Locomotive (band)
Encyclopedia
Locomotive were a British
band in the 1960s, from Birmingham
. Their musical styles ranged from jazz
to psychedelic rock
and ska
, and their original line-up featured Chris Wood
, later of Traffic
, and drummer Mike Kellie
of Spooky Tooth
. They had a minor UK hit in 1968 with "Rudi's In Love", before turning to progressive rock
with their only album, We Are Everything You See, released in 1970.
music, they changed their name to The Locomotive, and gained a strong reputation for their live performances. There were many personnel changes, and by the end of 1966, after Wood left to join Steve Winwood
, Jim Capaldi
and Dave Mason
in Traffic, Simpson was the only remaining original member. Other members by that time were singer and keyboard player Norman Haines, together with Jo Ellis (bass), Bill Madge (saxophone), and drummer "Mooney" Mazzone.
Having worked in a record shop in Smethwick
, an area of Birmingham with a large Black British
population of West Indian descent, Haines developed a particular interest in ska music. Increasingly, he took over as front man, and the band's first single, on the Direction
label, combined Haines' composition, "Broken Heart", with a version of Dandy Livingstone
's "A Message to You, Rudy
", which was later revived by The Specials
. In 1968 Simpson left the band in order to act as their manager; he later became the manager of local band Black Sabbath
. In other personnel changes, Ellis and Mazzone were replaced by Mick Hincks (bass) and Bob Lamb (drums), with trumpeter Mick Taylor replacing Simpson. The band dropped the definite article from their name, moved to Parlophone Records, and their second single, "Rudi's In Love", was a ska song written by Haines. It became a hit, reaching no. 25 on the UK pop chart in late 1968.
Following the single's success, Locomotive recorded an album at the Abbey Road Studios
in London
with producer Gus Dudgeon
. By this time, however, the band decided to perform more progressive rock, based around Haines' keyboard skills. Because of their uncertainty over how it would be received, the record company delayed the release of the album. A single, a version of a Question Mark and The Mysterians song, "I'm Never Gonna Let You Go", was released but failed to make the charts. Haines left the group in 1969, reportedly turning down an offer to join Black Sabbath and eventually forming the Norman Haines Band.
On its eventual release in early 1970, the Locomotive album, We Are Everything You See, received good reviews, but failed to appeal to the band's earlier R&B audience. The album included the track "Mr. Armageddan", released as a single and later included on several anthologies of progressive rock of the time, together with two tracks, "Coming Down" and "Love Song For the Dead Ché", which were versions of Joseph Byrd
's songs for his band The United States of America
. The band also recorded a single for the Transatlantic
label, under the name of Steam Shovel.
Hincks and Lamb attempted to continue Locomotive with new members John Caswell and Keith Millar, releasing a single "Roll Over Mary", before changing the group's name to The Dog That Bit People in 1970. The renamed band released an album in 1971 before splitting up. Hincks and Lamb joined another local band, Tea & Symphony, before Lamb joined the Steve Gibbons Band
and later worked as a record producer for UB40
.
We Are Everything You See was reissued on CD in 1995 and again in 2010.
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...
band in the 1960s, from Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
. Their musical styles ranged from jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
to psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock
Psychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
and ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
, and their original line-up featured Chris Wood
Chris Wood (rock musician)
Christopher Gordon Blandford 'Chris' Wood was a founding member of the English rock band Traffic, along with Steve Winwood, Jim Capaldi, and Dave Mason....
, later of Traffic
Traffic
Traffic on roads may consist of pedestrians, ridden or herded animals, vehicles, streetcars and other conveyances, either singly or together, while using the public way for purposes of travel...
, and drummer Mike Kellie
Mike Kellie
Mike Kellie is an English drummer. Most notably, he has played in Spooky Tooth and The Only Ones. Kellie has also played with Peter Frampton and in various bands with Chris Wood....
of Spooky Tooth
Spooky Tooth
Spooky Tooth are an English rock band principally active, with intermittent breakups, between 1967 to 1974. In recent years, the band has been reconstituted at various points, and continues to perform occasionally.-Career:...
. They had a minor UK hit in 1968 with "Rudi's In Love", before turning to progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
with their only album, We Are Everything You See, released in 1970.
Career
The group was formed in 1965, originally as the Kansas City Seven, by trumpeter Jim Simpson, with singer Danny King, saxophonists Chris Wood and Brian "Monk" Finch, organist Richard Storey, bass player Pete Allen, and drummer Mike Kellie. All the members had previously played in local bands in Birmingham. After they began playing less jazz and more R&B and soulSoul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
music, they changed their name to The Locomotive, and gained a strong reputation for their live performances. There were many personnel changes, and by the end of 1966, after Wood left to join Steve Winwood
Steve Winwood
Stephen Lawrence "Steve" Winwood is an English international recording artist whose career spans nearly 50 years. He is a songwriter and a musician whose genres include soul music , R&B, rock, blues-rock, pop-rock, and jazz...
, Jim Capaldi
Jim Capaldi
Nicola James "Jim" Capaldi was an English musician and songwriter. His musical career lasted more than four decades. He co-founded Traffic in Birmingham with Steve Winwood, and the band's psychedelic rock was influential in Britain and the United States...
and Dave Mason
Dave Mason
David Thomas "Dave" Mason is an English singer, songwriter, and guitarist from Worcester, who first found fame with the rock band Traffic...
in Traffic, Simpson was the only remaining original member. Other members by that time were singer and keyboard player Norman Haines, together with Jo Ellis (bass), Bill Madge (saxophone), and drummer "Mooney" Mazzone.
Having worked in a record shop in Smethwick
Smethwick
Smethwick is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sandwell, in the West Midlands of England. It is situated on the edge of the city of Birmingham, within the historic boundaries of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire....
, an area of Birmingham with a large Black British
Black British
Black British is a term used to describe British people of Black African descent, especially those of Afro-Caribbean background. The term has been used from the 1950s to refer to Black people from former British colonies in the West Indies and Africa, who are residents of the United Kingdom and...
population of West Indian descent, Haines developed a particular interest in ska music. Increasingly, he took over as front man, and the band's first single, on the Direction
Direction (record label)
The Direction record label was a subsidiary label established by CBS Records in the UK in spring 1967. It primarily released American soul and R&B recordings in the UK, but also issued records by British and Jamaican artists. Among its most successful releases were those by Sly & the Family...
label, combined Haines' composition, "Broken Heart", with a version of Dandy Livingstone
Dandy Livingstone
Dandy Livingstone is a Jamaican reggae musician and producer, best known for his 1972 hit, "Suzanne Beware of the Devil", and for his song, "Rudy, A Message to You", which was later a hit for The Specials...
's "A Message to You, Rudy
A Message to You, Rudy
"Rudy, A Message to You" is a 1967 rocksteady song by Dandy Livingstone. The song later achieved broader success when in 1979, The Specials cover, titled "A Message to You, Rudy", reached Number 10 in the UK chart....
", which was later revived by The Specials
The Specials
The Specials are an English 2 Tone ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry, England. Their music combines a "danceable ska and rocksteady beat with punk's energy and attitude", and had a "more focused and informed political and social stance" than other ska groups...
. In 1968 Simpson left the band in order to act as their manager; he later became the manager of local band Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath
Black Sabbath are an English heavy metal band, formed in Aston, Birmingham in 1969 by Ozzy Osbourne , Tony Iommi , Geezer Butler , and Bill Ward . The band has since experienced multiple line-up changes, with Tony Iommi the only constant presence in the band through the years. A total of 22...
. In other personnel changes, Ellis and Mazzone were replaced by Mick Hincks (bass) and Bob Lamb (drums), with trumpeter Mick Taylor replacing Simpson. The band dropped the definite article from their name, moved to Parlophone Records, and their second single, "Rudi's In Love", was a ska song written by Haines. It became a hit, reaching no. 25 on the UK pop chart in late 1968.
Following the single's success, Locomotive recorded an album at the Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
in London
London
London 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...
with producer Gus Dudgeon
Gus Dudgeon
Angus Boyd Dudgeon , most commonly known as Gus Dudgeon was an English record producer, most notable for production of many of Elton John's recordings.-Early career:...
. By this time, however, the band decided to perform more progressive rock, based around Haines' keyboard skills. Because of their uncertainty over how it would be received, the record company delayed the release of the album. A single, a version of a Question Mark and The Mysterians song, "I'm Never Gonna Let You Go", was released but failed to make the charts. Haines left the group in 1969, reportedly turning down an offer to join Black Sabbath and eventually forming the Norman Haines Band.
On its eventual release in early 1970, the Locomotive album, We Are Everything You See, received good reviews, but failed to appeal to the band's earlier R&B audience. The album included the track "Mr. Armageddan", released as a single and later included on several anthologies of progressive rock of the time, together with two tracks, "Coming Down" and "Love Song For the Dead Ché", which were versions of Joseph Byrd
Joseph Byrd
Joseph Byrd was the leader of The United States of America, a notable rock band from the 1960s, as well as the psychedelic group Joe Byrd and the Field Hippies, of cult fame through their release The American Metaphysical Circus...
's songs for his band The United States of America
The United States of America (band)
The United States of America was an American experimental rock and psychedelic band whose works are an example of early electronic music in rock and roll.-History:...
. The band also recorded a single for the Transatlantic
Transatlantic Records
Transatlantic Records was a British independent record label. It was established in 1961. It started began primarily as an importer of American folk, blues and jazz records - by many of the artists who influenced the burgeoning British folk and blues boom. Within a couple of years, the company had...
label, under the name of Steam Shovel.
Hincks and Lamb attempted to continue Locomotive with new members John Caswell and Keith Millar, releasing a single "Roll Over Mary", before changing the group's name to The Dog That Bit People in 1970. The renamed band released an album in 1971 before splitting up. Hincks and Lamb joined another local band, Tea & Symphony, before Lamb joined the Steve Gibbons Band
Steve Gibbons Band
Steve Gibbons is an English rock vocalist.-The Dominettes:Steve Gibbons started his professional life as a plumber's apprentice in Harborne. He joined the Dominettes by 1960 to replace Colin Smith, who had left to join Jimmy Powell's backing group...
and later worked as a record producer for UB40
UB40
UB40 are a British reggae/pop band formed in 1978 in Birmingham. The band has placed more than 50 singles in the UK Singles Chart, and has also achieved considerable international success. One of the world's best-selling music artists, UB40 have sold over 70 million records.Their hit singles...
.
We Are Everything You See was reissued on CD in 1995 and again in 2010.
Singles
- "Broken Heart" / "Rudy - A Message To You" (Direction, 1967)
- "Rudi's In Love" / "Never Set Me Free" (Parlophone, 1968, UK chart no. 25)
- "I'm Never Gonna Let You Go" / "You Must Be Joking" (Parlophone, 1969)
- "Mr. Armageddan" / "There's Got To Be A Way" (Parlophone, 1969)
- "Roll Over Mary" / "Movin' Down The Line" (Parlophone, 1970)