The Honeycombs
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The Honeycombs were an English Beat/pop group of the 1960s. Their most distinguishing mark was their female drummer, Honey Lantree.
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[edit] Discovery
One night the group, known then as The Sheratons, was playing in a London pub, The Mildmay Tavern in the Balls Pond Road. In the audience were Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley, a very prolific British songwriting team, who later wrote hits for such artists as Lulu, Elvis Presley, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich and Petula Clark. Howard and Blaikley, then working in production for BBC Television, liked what they saw and suggested the band might like to hear some of their material. The band had an upcoming audition with indie record producer Joe Meek, whom most notably had produced The Tornados, and composed their number one hit ("Telstar") in 1962, and were eager for some new material. At the audition in Meek's studio in Holloway Road, they played Howard and Blaikley's "Have I the Right?" which Meek immediately recorded.
The group's founder Martin Murray had worked as a hairdresser, Honey Lantree being his assistant. They decided to combine his profession with the name of the drummer, and changed their name to The Honeycombs. They were signed to the Pye record label. After proving a 'sleeper' for seven weeks the record took off in the summer of 1964 reaching the number one spot around the world and selling over 2 million records. It was Meek's final hit in the United States, where it was issued on the Interphon label. The Honeycombs were managed by Howard and Blaikley who went on to write more successes for them.
[edit] Success
"Have I The Right?", the Honeycombs' first recording, took off - going to number one in the UK and number five in the U.S. in the Autumn/Fall of 1964, shortly after the start of the British Invasion in pop music. They were especially successful in Sweden (four consecutive number ones) and in Japan ("Love in Tokyo" went to number one and they issued a Japan only released live album). Honey Lantree was an accomplished drummer and the star attraction of the group, as she was one of very few female drummers at the time. The unique and heavily compressed bass drum sound on "Have I The Right?", which many other drummers of the period tried to replicate, was augmented by the group stamping on the stairs of Meek's studio. Meek achieved this by placing four microphones under the stairs, attached with bicycle clips. The Honeycombs also recorded the song in German.
They made many appearances on music-television-shows such as Top of the Pops, Ready Steady Go! (UK) and Beat-Club (Germany). They also recorded their second album entitled All Systems - Go! in 1965. A fine dubbed performance appears in the 1965 British film Pop Gear, (U.S. title: Go Go Mania!).
[edit] Personnel
The group consisted of:-
- Dennis D'Ell - (born Denis James Dalziel, 14 October 1943, in Whitechapel, East London — died 6 July 2005) - Lead singer and harmonica player
- Martin Murray - (born 7 October 1939, in The City, London) - Lead guitar
- Alan Ward - (born 12 December 1945, in Nottingham) - Rhythm guitar
- John Lantree - (born John David Lantree, 20 August 1940, in Newbury, Berkshire) - Bass guitar
- Honey Lantree - (born Ann Margot Lantree, 28 August 1943, in Hayes, Middlesex) - Drums.
- Peter Pye (born 12 July 1946, in Walthamstow, London), who was brought into the band by Murray, and eventually replaced him.
- Colin Boyd (born Colin Nicholas Nicol, 4 June 1946, in Combe, outside Bath, Somerset) who was a singer and songwriter for The Honeycombs ca. 1966; he went on to form Honeybus, and was from then on was known as Colin Hare.
[edit] Discography
[edit] Singles
- "Have I The Right?" b/w "Please Don't Pretend Again" (June 1964)
- "Is It Because" b/w "I'll Cry Tomorrow" (October 1964)
- "Eyes" b/w "If You've Got To Pick A Baby" (November 1964)
- "Something Better Beginning" b/w "I'll See You Tomorrow" (April 1965)
- "That's the Way" b/w "Can't Get Through To You" (August 1965)
- "This Year Next Year" b/w "Not Sleeping Too Well Lately" (November 1965)
- "Who Is Sylvia" b/w "How Will I Know" (February 1966)
- "It's So Hard" b/w "I Fell In Love" (July 1966)
- "That Loving Feeling" b/w "Should A Man Cry" (September 1966)
[edit] Albums
- The Honeycombs (Pye NPL 18097, 1964)
Colour Slide/Once You Know/Without You It Is Night/That's The Way/I Want To Be Free/How The Mighty Have Fallen/Have I The Right?/Just A Face In The Crowd/Nice While It Lasted/Leslie Anne/She's Too Way Out/It Ain't Necessarily So/This Too Shall Pass Away
- All Systems - Go! (Pye NPL 18132, 17 December 1965)
I Can't Stop/Don't Love Her No More/All Systems Go/Totem Pole/Emptiness/Ooee Train/She Ain't Coming Back/Something I Gotta Tell You/Our Day Will Come/Nobody But Me/There's Always Me/Love In Tokyo/If You Should/My Prayer
- In Tokyo (Live-recording, Japan only)
[edit] References
- Guinness Book of British Hit Singles - 16th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-190-X
- The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits - ISBN 0-85112-250-7
- Guinness Book of British Hit Albums - 7th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-619-7
