Biography
Pickettywitch occupied the same pop terrain as the Tremeloes, Edison Lighthouse, and Paper Lace, its career falling squarely between those well-known 1960s and 1970s acts. Lack of an international hit kept the group from matching their visibility, yet the Macaulay-Macleod composition “That Same Old Feeling,” written by the same team behind the Foundations’ biggest successes, still climbed into England’s Top Five. From the outset the music and presentation carried a cabaret polish rather than any heavy rock edge. Origins trace to 1969, when vocalist Polly Browne—sometimes listed as Brown—along with guitarist Dave Martyr, bassist Martin Bridges, keyboardist Bob Brittain, and drummer Keith Hull abandoned an ill-fated mixed music-and-dance project run by an overbearing manager and regrouped as a five-piece. After adding singer Chris Warren and securing new management, the six members spent months refining a tightly choreographed stage act for label and producer auditions. The name Pickettywitch was taken from a Cornish village Browne had once passed through with her sister.
Producer John Macleod placed the group on Pye Records, releasing the July 1969 single “You’ve Got Me So I Don’t Know” backed with “Solomon Grundy.” Although it failed to chart, the record earned radio and television exposure, including an appearance on Opportunity Knocks. Martyr soon exited; Bridges moved to guitar and Mike Tomich joined on bass. The follow-up, the Foundations track “That Same Old Feeling,” issued in November 1969, overcame a competing Françoise Hardy version to reach number five in England by early 1970. An accompanying album sold poorly, partly because the hit was omitted in keeping with standard British practice at the time. Subsequent English hits included “(It’s Like A) Sad Old Kinda Movie” at number 16 and “Baby I Won’t Let You Down” at number 27. Bridges and Tomich departed in pursuit of more progressive material and were replaced by Peter Hawkins and Brian Stewart. Session musicians continued to color the arrangements—guitarist Terry Clarke of the early-1960s band the Eagles contributed at one point—while the core sound rested on Browne’s lead vocals. At peak moments she evoked a subtly more soul-inflected Karen Carpenter, although she later noted that Macleod rarely permitted the soul phrasing she preferred.
In 1970 Janus Records issued the group’s music in America, where “Days I Remember” received some airplay without charting. Momentum faded in England by 1971. Hawkins and Stewart left, succeeded by Paul Risi on guitar and Paul Riordan on bass. Browne, whose solo sides had always outsold those fronted by Warren, faced mounting pressure to launch a separate career and did so in late 1972. The remaining members recorded one final 1973 release with Warren on vocals, an effort that served mainly to exploit the existing name. Farron later gave up performing. Browne formed the duo Sweet Dreams with Tony Jackson and scored a British hit with their version of the ABBA song “Honey Honey.” Going solo, she reached number 43 in England and number 16 in America with the 1974 single “Up In a Puff of Smoke,” remaining a familiar presence on English radio throughout the disco years. In the mid-1970s a stand-in lineup trading as New Pickettywitch briefly recorded before public indifference ended the venture.
Producer John Macleod placed the group on Pye Records, releasing the July 1969 single “You’ve Got Me So I Don’t Know” backed with “Solomon Grundy.” Although it failed to chart, the record earned radio and television exposure, including an appearance on Opportunity Knocks. Martyr soon exited; Bridges moved to guitar and Mike Tomich joined on bass. The follow-up, the Foundations track “That Same Old Feeling,” issued in November 1969, overcame a competing Françoise Hardy version to reach number five in England by early 1970. An accompanying album sold poorly, partly because the hit was omitted in keeping with standard British practice at the time. Subsequent English hits included “(It’s Like A) Sad Old Kinda Movie” at number 16 and “Baby I Won’t Let You Down” at number 27. Bridges and Tomich departed in pursuit of more progressive material and were replaced by Peter Hawkins and Brian Stewart. Session musicians continued to color the arrangements—guitarist Terry Clarke of the early-1960s band the Eagles contributed at one point—while the core sound rested on Browne’s lead vocals. At peak moments she evoked a subtly more soul-inflected Karen Carpenter, although she later noted that Macleod rarely permitted the soul phrasing she preferred.
In 1970 Janus Records issued the group’s music in America, where “Days I Remember” received some airplay without charting. Momentum faded in England by 1971. Hawkins and Stewart left, succeeded by Paul Risi on guitar and Paul Riordan on bass. Browne, whose solo sides had always outsold those fronted by Warren, faced mounting pressure to launch a separate career and did so in late 1972. The remaining members recorded one final 1973 release with Warren on vocals, an effort that served mainly to exploit the existing name. Farron later gave up performing. Browne formed the duo Sweet Dreams with Tony Jackson and scored a British hit with their version of the ABBA song “Honey Honey.” Going solo, she reached number 43 in England and number 16 in America with the 1974 single “Up In a Puff of Smoke,” remaining a familiar presence on English radio throughout the disco years. In the mid-1970s a stand-in lineup trading as New Pickettywitch briefly recorded before public indifference ended the venture.
Albums
Singles
