Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera
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Elmer Gantry's Velvet Opera was a British rock band active in the late 1960s.
The group emerged from a soul/blues band called 'The Five Proud Walkers'. After supporting the Pink Floyd, they were inspired to change their approach and become a more "psychedelic" outfit. The band consolidated as Richard Hudson on drums, John Ford on bass, Colin Forster on lead guitar, Jimmy Horrocks (Horovitz) on organ and flute, and Dave Terry on vocals and harmonica. Initially just calling themselves the Velvet Opera, they developed their full name when Terry took to wearing a cape and preacher's hat in the style of the character in the 1960 movie Elmer Gantry.
They started to make club appearances in London, using electronic backing sounds, and soon securing a record deal with CBS's "Direction" label. Their first recording was the song, "Flames", which reached the lower reaches of the UK charts in 1968 and was later covered on stage by Led Zeppelin. Further singles and a self-titled album followed, including the track "Mary Jane" which was taken off the BBC playlist after they realised its drug connotations. However, the success of the band was limited, and first Forster and then Terry left when Hudson and Ford wanted to take the band in a different direction. The loss of lead singer "Elmer Gantry" meant that the band reverted to the name "Velvet Opera".
Forster and Gantry / Terry were replaced by Paul Brett and John Joyce, and the band released a second album, "Ride a Hustler's Dream". However, this again failed to achieve success, and Hudson and Ford left to join the Strawbs.
Meanwhile, Gantry / Terry had formed his own band with ex-members of the Downliners Sect, and went on to perform in Hair, and record with Alan Parsons, Jon Lord, and the 70s band Stretch.
