Colin Hicks & The Cabin Boys
Encyclopedia
Colin Hicks & The Cabin Boys were a British
rock and roll
band
, led by Colin Hicks, the younger brother of singer Tommy Steele
.
music magazine, NME
, reported that Steele's manager, Larry Parnes
had signed up Hicks, and that Hicks would undertake a ten week variety tour with Marty Wilde
. In March the following year, the same source stated that Hicks and Wilde were fulfilling contracted dates, left after Terry Dene
had been diagnosed as unfit to continue touring. In 1958 they had some television appearances, and a recording contract
with Pye Records
, and released a few singles
with the label. However, he did not achieve the same level of success as his brother.
In 1959 they appeared in the Italian
film
, Europe By Night, with the song "Giddy Up a Ding Dong
" that became a hit for them in Italy
and resulted in an invitation to tour there. They became popular there and recorded several singles for the Broadway label in Italy.
In the early 1960s just before a concert
in Torino, Hicks became ill and lost his voice
, and his backing group at the time consisting of Shel Shapiro, Johnny Charlton, Bobby Posner and Mike Shepstone were persuaded by a manager in Italy to sever ties with Hicks which they did. They then became The Rokes, and started playing behind the Italian female singer Rita Pavone
. However they were signed to RCA Records
on their own and debuted with a single, a cover version
of "Shake, Rattle and Roll
".
Note: One line-up of the Cabin Boys evolved into a group called Nero & the Gladiators
Broadway International
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
band
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
, led by Colin Hicks, the younger brother of singer Tommy Steele
Tommy Steele
Tommy Steele OBE , is an English entertainer. Steele is widely regarded as Britain's first teen idol and rock and roll star.-Singer:...
.
Career
In November 1957, the BritishUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
music magazine, NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
, reported that Steele's manager, Larry Parnes
Larry Parnes
Laurence Maurice "Larry" Parnes was an English pop manager and impresario. He has been described as "the first major British rock manager... Parnes' stable encompassed most of the most successful pre-Beatles British rock singers."...
had signed up Hicks, and that Hicks would undertake a ten week variety tour with Marty Wilde
Marty Wilde
Marty Wilde is an English singer and songwriter. He was among the first generation of British pop stars to emulate American rock and roll, and is the father of pop singers Ricky Wilde, Kim Wilde and Roxanne Wilde.-Career:Wilde was performing under the name Reg Patterson at London's Condor Club in...
. In March the following year, the same source stated that Hicks and Wilde were fulfilling contracted dates, left after Terry Dene
Terry Dene
Terry Dene is a former British pop singer popular in the late 1950s. He achieved three Top Twenty hits between June 1957 and May 1958.-Career:...
had been diagnosed as unfit to continue touring. In 1958 they had some television appearances, and a recording contract
Recording contract
A recording contract is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording artist , where the artist makes a record for the label to sell and promote...
with Pye Records
Pye Records
Pye Records was a British record label. In its first incarnation, perhaps Pye's best known artists were Lonnie Donegan , Petula Clark , The Searchers , The Kinks , Sandie Shaw and Brotherhood of Man...
, and released a few singles
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
with the label. However, he did not achieve the same level of success as his brother.
In 1959 they appeared in the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
, Europe By Night, with the song "Giddy Up a Ding Dong
Giddy Up a Ding Dong
Giddy Up A Ding Dong is a rock and roll song which rose to prominence in 1956, when it was featured in the film, Rock Around the Clock starring Bill Haley...
" that became a hit for them in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and resulted in an invitation to tour there. They became popular there and recorded several singles for the Broadway label in Italy.
In the early 1960s just before a concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
in Torino, Hicks became ill and lost his voice
Human voice
The human voice consists of sound made by a human being using the vocal folds for talking, singing, laughing, crying, screaming, etc. Its frequency ranges from about 60 to 7000 Hz. The human voice is specifically that part of human sound production in which the vocal folds are the primary...
, and his backing group at the time consisting of Shel Shapiro, Johnny Charlton, Bobby Posner and Mike Shepstone were persuaded by a manager in Italy to sever ties with Hicks which they did. They then became The Rokes, and started playing behind the Italian female singer Rita Pavone
Rita Pavone
Rita Pavone is an Italian ballad and rock singer who enjoyed success through the 1960s. Pavone is also an actress.-Singing career:...
. However they were signed to RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
on their own and debuted with a single, a cover version
Cover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of "Shake, Rattle and Roll
Shake, Rattle and Roll
"Shake, Rattle and Roll" is a prototypical twelve bar blues-form rock and roll song, written in 1954 by Jesse Stone under his assumed songwriting name Charles E. Calhoun. It was originally recorded by Big Joe Turner, and most successfully by Bill Haley & His Comets...
".
Former personnel
- Colin Hicks - vocals - (born Anthony Hicks, February 1940, CornwallCornwallCornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
) - Jimmie Nicol - drums - (born James George Nicol, 3 August 1939, BarnesBarnesBarnes is a riverside London suburb in southwest London and in terms of local governance falls under the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is located around west south-west of Charing Cross in a loop of the River Thames, with Hammersmith Bridge at the north end...
, South West LondonSouth West LondonSouth West London could refer to:*SW postcode area*South West *Western part of South London*South West...
) - Mike ElliottMike Elliott (saxophonist)Mike Elliott is a saxophonist who was born in Jamaica on 6 August 1929. He played on Ska recordings in the early 1960s as well as some Pop / Soul hits in the late 1960s.-Early 1960s:...
- saxophone - (born 6 August 1929, JamaicaJamaicaJamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
) - Mike O'Neill - piano - (born Michael O'Neill, in 1938, LeighLeigh, Greater ManchesterLeigh is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan, in Greater Manchester, England. It is southeast of Wigan, and west of Manchester. Leigh is situated on low lying land to the north west of Chat Moss....
, LancashireLancashireLancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...
) - Ronnie Mills - Piano - toured Italy - European Nights (born 5 February 1938, Glasgow)
- Dave 'Zom' Tick - lead guitar
- Rod 'Boots' Slade - bass guitar
- Brian Gregg - bass guitar - (born 31 January 1939, North LondonNorth LondonNorth London is the northern part of London, England. It is an imprecise description and the area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes. Common to these definitions is that it includes districts located north of the River Thames and is used in comparison with South...
) - Shel Shapiro - guitar, vocals - (born Norman David Shapiro, 16 August 1943, StanmoreStanmoreStanmore is a suburban area of the London Borough of Harrow, in northwest London. It is situated northwest of Charing Cross. The area is home to Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, high.-Toponymy:...
, MiddlesexMiddlesexMiddlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
) - Johnny Charlton - guitar, vocals - (born Raymond John Charlton, 3 April 1945, WalthamstowWalthamstowWalthamstow is a district of northeast London, England, located in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is situated north-east of Charing Cross...
, east LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
) - Bobby Posner - bass, vocals - (born Martin Robert Posner, 6 May 1945, EdgwareEdgwareEdgware is an area in London, situated north-northwest of Charing Cross. It forms part of both the London Borough of Barnet and the London Borough of Harrow. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
, Middlesex) - Mike Shepstone - drums, vocals - (born Michael James Roger Shepstone, 29 March 1943, Weymouth, DorsetDorsetDorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
)
Note: One line-up of the Cabin Boys evolved into a group called Nero & the Gladiators
Singles
Pye- "Wild Eyes And Tender Lips" / "Empty Arms Blues" - 7N 15114, November 1957
- "La Dee Dah" / "Wasteland" - Pye 7N 15125, February 1958
- "Little Boy BlueLittle Boy Blue"Little Boy Blue" is a popular English language nursery rhyme, often used in popular culture. It has a Roud Folk Song Index number of 11318.-Lyrics:The most common version of the rhyme is:...
" / "JambalayaJambalayaJambalaya is a Louisiana Creole dish of Spanish and French influence. -Jambalaya varieties:Jambalaya is traditionally made in three parts, with meats and vegetables, and is completed by adding stock and rice. It is also a close cousin to the saffron colored paella found in Spanish culture...
" - Pye 7N 15163, November 1958
Broadway International
- Europa Di Notte (EPExtended playAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
: "Iea-Iea" / "Oh, Boy!" / "Book of Love" / "20 Flight Rock" - Broadway Int. EP B-106EP - "Brand New Cadillac" / ? - Broadway Int. 1022, 1959
- "Oh Boy" / "Rock & Roll Shoes" - Broadway Int. 1023
- "Giddy-Up-A Ding Dong" / "Hanging Around" - Broadway Int. 1024
- "Sexy Rock" / "Johnny B. GoodeJohnny B. Goode"Johnny B. Goode" is a 1958 rock and roll song written and originally performed by American musician Chuck Berry. The song was a major hit among both black and white audiences peaking at #2 on Billboard magazine's Hot R&B Sides chart and #8 on the Billboard Hot 100.The song is one of Chuck Berry's...
" - Broadway Int. 1028, 1959