The Mojos
Encyclopedia
The Mojos are a British
beat group from the 1960s, best known for their hit
UK
single
, "Everything's Alright". In spite of having one of the best reputations among the Liverpool
scene, "Everything's Alright" remained their only major hit, with only two other singles charting low in the UK Singles Chart
in 1964.
Keith Karlson (born Keith Alcock) and drummer
John Runt. The next to join was lead singer, pianist
Stuart James (born Stuart Leslie James Slater), rhythm guitarist, vocalist Adrian Lord (born Adrian Wilkinson) and drummer
Bob Konrad (born John Konrad), replacing Runt. The band continued without a lead guitarist when Wood left. At the suggestion of Beatle George Harrison
, pianist Terry O'Toole (born Timothy Steveley) was added to the lineup in August 1963; Harrison having heard him play at a jazz club. The band also changed their name in August 1963 to The Mojos and Lord changed from rhythm guitarist to lead guitarist. This lineup recorded "My Whole Life Through", which was featured on the Oriole Records
This is Merseybeat compilation album
, and the debut single "They Say You Found A New Baby".
Despite having written the single's b-side, Lord (Wilkinson) left the group soon after its release in October 1963 and was replaced by Nicky Crouch (formerly of Faron's Flamingos) (born Nicholas Crouch, Aintree
). This was the line-up that was to continue until October 1964, recording the group's three charting singles - "Everything's Al'right" (#9), "Why Not Tonight" (#25) and "Seven Daffodils" (#30) - as well as two further singles and an EP
. Like many of their contemporaries the group played at the Star-Club
in Hamburg
, Germany.
In October 1964, Karlson, Konrad and O'Toole left the group, which changed its name to Stu James & the Mojos in December 1964. James and Crouch were joined by drummer Aynsley Dunbar
, who had previously played on the group's recording of "Everything's Alright", and bassist Lewis Collins
. This line-up recorded two further singles - "Goodbye, Dolly Gray
", for Decca
, and "Until My Baby Comes Home", for Liberty
- before disbanding in September 1966.
Collins became an actor
, starring in The Professionals
, and Dunbar became a noted session musician, playing with Frank Zappa
, David Bowie
and John Mayall
amongst others. Crouch currently plays in a group called "Nicky Crouch's Mojos", which features members of other 1960s Merseybeat
acts including The Swinging Blue Jeans
, Rory Storm & The Hurricanes and Faron's Flamingos.
A compilation entitled Everything's Alright: The Complete Recordings was released in 2009 by RPM Records. As its name suggests, it features all of the above (including "My Whole Life Through"), in chronological order by release date.
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...
beat group from the 1960s, best known for their hit
Hit record
A hit record is a sound recording, usually in the form of a single or album, that sells a large number of copies or otherwise becomes broadly popular or well-known, through airplay, club play, inclusion in a film or stage play soundtrack, causing it to have "hit" one of the popular chart listings...
UK
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...
single
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...
, "Everything's Alright". In spite of having one of the best reputations among the Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
scene, "Everything's Alright" remained their only major hit, with only two other singles charting low in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
in 1964.
Biography
The band formed under the name The Nomads in September 1962 and originally consisted of lead guitarist Roy Wood, bassistBassist
A bass player, or bassist is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass, bass guitar, keyboard bass or a low brass instrument such as a tuba or sousaphone. Different musical genres tend to be associated with one or more of these instruments...
Keith Karlson (born Keith Alcock) and drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
John Runt. The next to join was lead singer, pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
Stuart James (born Stuart Leslie James Slater), rhythm guitarist, vocalist Adrian Lord (born Adrian Wilkinson) and drummer
Drummer
A drummer is a musician who is capable of playing drums, which includes but is not limited to a drum kit and accessory based hardware which includes an assortment of pedals and standing support mechanisms, marching percussion and/or any musical instrument that is struck within the context of a...
Bob Konrad (born John Konrad), replacing Runt. The band continued without a lead guitarist when Wood left. At the suggestion of Beatle George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
, pianist Terry O'Toole (born Timothy Steveley) was added to the lineup in August 1963; Harrison having heard him play at a jazz club. The band also changed their name in August 1963 to The Mojos and Lord changed from rhythm guitarist to lead guitarist. This lineup recorded "My Whole Life Through", which was featured on the Oriole Records
Oriole Records (UK)
Oriole Records was the first British record label founded in 1925 by the London-based Levy Company, which owned a gramophone record subsidiary called Levaphone Records.-History:...
This is Merseybeat compilation album
Compilation album
A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
, and the debut single "They Say You Found A New Baby".
Despite having written the single's b-side, Lord (Wilkinson) left the group soon after its release in October 1963 and was replaced by Nicky Crouch (formerly of Faron's Flamingos) (born Nicholas Crouch, Aintree
Aintree
Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside. It lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, about north of Liverpool city centre, in North West England....
). This was the line-up that was to continue until October 1964, recording the group's three charting singles - "Everything's Al'right" (#9), "Why Not Tonight" (#25) and "Seven Daffodils" (#30) - as well as two further singles and an EP
Extended play
An 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...
. Like many of their contemporaries the group played at the Star-Club
Star-Club
The Star-Club was a music club in Hamburg, Germany that opened Friday 13 April 1962 and was initially operated by Manfred Weissleder and Horst Fascher. In the sixties, many of the giants of rock music played at the club. The club closed on 31 December 1969 and the building it occupied was...
in Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, Germany.
In October 1964, Karlson, Konrad and O'Toole left the group, which changed its name to Stu James & the Mojos in December 1964. James and Crouch were joined by drummer Aynsley Dunbar
Aynsley Dunbar
Aynsley Thomas Dunbar is an English drummer. He has worked with some of the top names in rock, including Eric Burdon, John Mayall, Frank Zappa, Ian Hunter, Lou Reed, Jefferson Starship, Jeff Beck, David Bowie, Whitesnake, Sammy Hagar, UFO, and Journey...
, who had previously played on the group's recording of "Everything's Alright", and bassist Lewis Collins
Lewis Collins
Lewis Collins is an English actor best known for his tough-guy role as Bodie in The Professionals. He was educated at Bidston Primary and Grange School in Birkenhead. He started out as a ladies' hairdresser before playing drums and guitar in pop groups. He had a number of other jobs before...
. This line-up recorded two further singles - "Goodbye, Dolly Gray
Goodbye, Dolly Gray
"Goodbye, Dolly Gray" is a music hall song by Will D. Cobb and Paul Barnes . Popularised as a Boer War anthem, it was written during the earlier Spanish-American War....
", for Decca
Decca Records
Decca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
, and "Until My Baby Comes Home", for Liberty
Liberty Records
Liberty Records was a United States-based record label. It was started by chairman Simon Waronker in 1955 with Al Bennett as president and Theodore Keep as chief engineer. It was reactivated in 2001 in the United Kingdom and had two previous revivals.-1950s:...
- before disbanding in September 1966.
Collins became an actor
Actor
An actor is a person who acts in a dramatic production and who works in film, television, theatre, or radio in that capacity...
, starring in The Professionals
The Professionals (TV series)
The Professionals was a British crime-action television drama series produced by Avengers Mk1 Productions and London Weekend Television that aired on the ITV network from 1977 to 1983. In all, 57 episodes were produced, filmed between 1977 and 1981. It starred Martin Shaw, Lewis Collins and Gordon...
, and Dunbar became a noted session musician, playing with Frank Zappa
Frank Zappa
Frank Vincent Zappa was an American composer, singer-songwriter, electric guitarist, record producer and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, orchestral and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
and John Mayall
John Mayall
John Mayall, OBE is an English blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, whose musical career spans over fifty years...
amongst others. Crouch currently plays in a group called "Nicky Crouch's Mojos", which features members of other 1960s Merseybeat
Beat music
Beat music, British beat, or Merseybeat is a pop and rock music genre that developed in the United Kingdom in the early 1960s. Beat music is a fusion of rock and roll, doo wop, skiffle, R&B and soul...
acts including The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans
The Swinging Blue Jeans were a four piece 1960s British Merseybeat band, best known for their hit singles with the HMV label; "Hippy Hippy Shake", the follow-up, Little Richard's "Good Golly Miss Molly", and "You're No Good", a Clint Ballard song that provided a change of pace and furnished the...
, Rory Storm & The Hurricanes and Faron's Flamingos.
Discography
| Year | Single | UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
|---|---|---|
| 1963 | A. "They Say You Found a New Baby" (Myers) B. "Forever" (Wilkinson) |
- |
| 1964 | A. "Everything's Al' Right" (Crouch/Konrad/Staveley/James/Karlson) B. "Give Your Lovin' To Me" (Staveley/James/Karlson) |
#9 |
| A. "Why Not Tonight" (James/O'Toole) B. "Don't Do It Any More" (James) |
#25 | |
| A. "Seven Daffodils" (Hayes/Moseley) B. "Nothin' At All" (James/Crouch) |
#30 | |
| "The Mojos" EP 1. "Everything's Al'right" (Crouch/Konrad/Staveley/James/Karlson) 2. "I Got My Mojo Working Got My Mojo Working "Got My Mojo Working" is a 1956 song written by Preston Foster and first recorded by Ann Cole, but popularized by Muddy Waters in 1957. Waters' rendition of the song was featured on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of 500 Greatest Songs of All Time at #359 and was inducted in the Grammy Hall of... " (Foster) 3. "The One Who Really Loves You The One Who Really Loves You (song) "The One Who Really Loves You" is a single recorded by Mary Wells on the Motown label in 1962. It was written and composed by Smokey Robinson of The Miracles and peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number two on the Billboard R&B chart.... " (Robinson Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy... ) 4. "Nobody But Me" (Isley/Isley/Isley) |
- | |
| 1965 | A. "Comin' On to Cry" (James/Crouch) B. "That's The Way It Goes" (James/Crouch) |
- |
| A. "Wait A Minute" (Lynch/Shuman) B. "Wonder If She Knows" (James/Crouch) |
- | |
| 1967 | A. "Goodbye, Dolly Gray Goodbye, Dolly Gray "Goodbye, Dolly Gray" is a music hall song by Will D. Cobb and Paul Barnes . Popularised as a Boer War anthem, it was written during the earlier Spanish-American War.... " (Cobb/Barnes) B. "I Just Can't Let Her Go" (Ross) |
- |
| 1968 | A. "Until My Baby Comes Home" (Slater) B. "Seven Park Avenue" (Slater) |
- |
A compilation entitled Everything's Alright: The Complete Recordings was released in 2009 by RPM Records. As its name suggests, it features all of the above (including "My Whole Life Through"), in chronological order by release date.
External links
- [ The Mojos] at Allmusic
- The Mojos at 45-rpm.org.uk
- The Mojos at Merseybeatnostalgia.co.uk
- Nicky Crouch's Mojos