Orange Bicycle

The British psych-pop band Orange Bicycle grew out of the earlier Beat outfit Robb Storme & the Whispers, alternately billed as the Robb Storme Group. During the first half of the 1960s the latter act cut several harmony-pop 45s for Pye, Piccadilly, Decca, and Columbia Records, none of which gained traction. The Robb Storme Group tackled the Beach Boys’ “Here Today” in 1966; Wilson Malone, the ensemble’s versatile keyboardist and in-house producer, supplied the arrangement while Morgan Music co-owner Monty Babson oversaw the session at Morgan Studios in London’s Willesden district. At the height of the psychedelic era the musicians adopted a fresh identity, resurfacing in 1967 as Orange Bicycle. Across the following seasons the group issued roughly six singles, among them the enduring “Hyacinth Threads,” which has since surfaced on multiple anthologies. Late in the summer of 1968 the band, clad in coordinated black-and-orange outfits, took the stage at the Isle of Wight festival and performed material associated with Love and the Rolling Stones. By 1970 Orange Bicycle, whose moment had largely passed, cut their sole long-player, titled The Orange Bicycle; the set leaned heavily on outside material such as Elton John’s “Take Me to the Pilot,” Bob Dylan’s “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here with You,” and Denny Laine’s “Say You Don’t Mind,” with John Peel producing several tracks. As psychedelic pop receded in favor of harder prog and rock styles, the musicians disbanded in 1971. That year Wilson Malone issued a self-titled solo album on Fontana under the name Wil Malone. Drummer Kevin Currie subsequently entered Supertramp, later Burlesque, and eventually worked as a session player. Malone next assembled the heavy psych-prog power trio Bobak Jons Malone alongside noted engineer-producer Andy Jons and guitarist-producer Mike Bobak; the unit released a single album, Motherlight. In addition, Malone and bassist John Bachini appeared on singer-songwriter Robert MacLeod’s 1976 solo effort Between the Poppy and the Snow. The same year they contributed a version of the Beatles’ “You Never Give Me Your Money” to the soundtrack All This and World War II. Malone subsequently established himself as an independent producer-arranger, lending his skills to numerous prominent acts and artists; his string arrangement for the Verve’s “Bittersweet Symphony,” which drew on the orchestral treatment of the Rolling Stones’ “The Last Time,” sparked litigation when Andrew Loog Oldham sued the Verve over songwriting royalties. Morgan Bluetown compiled the band’s Columbia-era singles on the 1988 collection Let’s Take a Trip On…, omitting any Parlophone material. In 2001 Edsel gathered all thirty-three Orange Bicycle recordings onto a two-disc reissue.