Purple Gang, The

Band members               Related acts

- Irish Alex - drums (1969)
- Christopher Joe Beard - guitar (1967-68)
- Geoffrey Bowyer - keyboards, washboard (1967-68)
- George Jarkin - vocals, bass (replaced Peter Walker and Tony Moss) (1969)
- Ank Langley - banjo, jug (1967)
- Tony Moss - bass (1968)
- Dee Jay Robinson - mandolin (1967-68)
- Peter Walker - vocals (1967-68)

 

 

 - none known

 

Rating: *** (3 stars)

Title:  Strikes

Company: London/Sire

Catalog: SES 97006

Year: 1969

Grade (cover/record): G/VG

Comments: split seams; stain but LP plays fine; sticker on cover

Available: 1 

Price: $25.00

 Christopher Joe Beard (guitar), Geoffrey Bowyer (keyboards), Ank Langley (banjo), Dee Jay Robinson (mandolin) and Peter Walker (vocals) met while students attending Manchester, England's Stockport College of Art. Discovering a common interest in music, the formed a band, attracting a small following on the local club scene. By mid-1967 the group had a sponsor in the form of manager/producer Joe Boyd and scored a contract with the small Big T label, releasing the single "Granny Takes a Trip" b/w "Bootleg Whisky" (their spelling, not ours). A nifty slice of English jug music, the single attracted considerable attention, though sales were hampered by the BBC's decision to ban it from airplay - censors apparently felt it the title was a pro-drug use statement (it wasn't). A follow up single "Kiss Me Goodnight Sally Green" b/w "Auntie Monica" didn't do as well, leading to a personnel shake up that saw Langley replaced by bassist Tony Moss.

Signed by the larger Transatlantic label (London's newly formed Sire subsidiary acquiring American distribution rights), the new line up went into the studios, releasing 1968's "The Purple Gang Strikes". While lots of folks have filed this outfit under psych, for the most part they're not. Instead, written by Beard and Bowyer, material such as "Bootleg Whisky", "Overseas Stomp" and "Freightliner" offered up a distinctive folk-cum-jug band sound. To our ears they sound like an English version of The Lovin' Spoonful cross threaded with Mungo Jerry. (In case you were wondering, there were a couple of psych touches - notably "The Wizard 0z" and "The Sheik".) Certainly too eccentric for many listeners, the set's still worth a listen, particularly if you can buy it fairly cheap (such as our offering).

"The Purple Gang Strikes" track listing:
1.) Auntie Monica (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 3:04
2.) Bootleg Whisky (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 3:18
3.) Viola Lee Blues (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 3:10
4.) The Wizard 0z (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 3:49
5.) Mr. Aldred Jones (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 2:57
6.) Granny Takes a Trip (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 2:38
7.) Overseas Stomp (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 2:15
8.) Freightliner (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 2:50
9.) The Sheik (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 3:08
10.) Rising Sun (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 2:23
11.) Kiss Me Godnight Sally Green (Christopher Joe Beard - Geoffrey Bowyer) - 2:30

With the LP vanishing into cutout bins, the band quickly followed suite, though their was a brief 1969 reunion with George Jarkin replacing Moss and Walker, while Irish Alex was added on drums.  

 

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