The Alan Bown Set was formed in 1964, featuring Bown on trumpet; Jeff Bannister on vocals and keyboards; Dave Green on sax, clarinet, and flute; Pete Burgess on guitar; Stan Haldane on bass; and Vic Sweeney on drums. They built up a reputation for exciting live shows and then headed for London, where their resourcefulness at filling their repertoire with obscure but worthwhile American R&B and soul numbers quickly got them a loyal following in club patrons and trade reviews. In 1965, the Alan Bown Set were discovered by bassist turned producer Tony Reeves and signed to Pye Records by Reeves' superior, Tony Hatch. They might have made a noise on the charts if their intended single, a cover of Curtis Mayfield's "I'm the One," had gone out as planned -- instead, it ended up as the B-side and the "play" side, "Can't Let Her Go," was ignored by the powers-that-were. The group continued to succeed as a club band, and by the second half of 1965 had become a top attraction at the Marquee in London. Their recognition was such that they began getting offers to play all across England, and over the next year they did precisely that -- they lost guitarist Green in early 1966, his slot filled by saxman John Helliwell (later part of Supertramp), and they expanded further with the addition of singer Jess Roden, which allowed Bannister to devote his attention to playing keyboards. This version of the Alan Bown Set was actually much stronger, a fact perhaps reflected by the three singles that they cut and released in 1966, among them the classic "Emergency 999," which, like their other releases, failed to chart -- but it later found an audience among Northern soul enthusiasts. Pye finally hit upon the notion of simply recording a live set by the group, which (in tandem with a set by Jimmy James & the Vagabonds on the other side) was released as London Swings: Live at the Marquee Club. That LP is now considered one of the most important and essential ever released by Pye Records. Guitarist Pete Burgess departed the lineup in November of 1966 and was replaced by Tony Catchpole, and it was this version of the group that played out the end of its contract in 1967. This included one last Pye single, "Gonna Fix You Good (Everytime You're Bad)" b/w "I Really, Really Care," and a song for a French film entitled Jeu de Massacre, featuring Jacques Loussier. The next few months saw the group go through a complete transformation, into a psychedelic band known simply as The Alan Bown, which was signed to the Deram label (after one release on Verve Records) in 1968. With Robert Palmer on vocals, they finally enjoyed a minor hit single with "Still as Stone," and after Palmer left to join Dada and Vinegar Joe, the group carried on with Gordon Neville in its last incarnation circa 1970-1971, with Mel Collins on saxophone, by which time the band had moved over to Island Records, no less. The Alan Bown called it quits in 1971, with Bown himself becoming a member of Jonesy before moving into A&R work with British CBS Records, while Jeff Bannister jumped to Jess Roden's group Bronco and Vic Sweeney worked with Kevin Coyne. Line-up / Musicians Alan Bown/trumpet Jess Roden/vocals Tony Catchpole/guitar John Goodsall/saxophone Geoff Bannister/keyboards Stan Haldane/bass,vocals John A. Helliwell/saxophone Robert Palmer/vocals Vic Sweeney/drums Discography(Album) Listen 1970
1.Wanted Man 2.Crash Landing 3.Loosen 4.Pyramid 5.Forever 6.Curfew 7.Make Us All Believe 8.Make up Your Mind 9.Get Myself Straight
