Biography
While still enrolled in high school, this Indiana ensemble attracted the notice of the Feldman-Goldstein-Gottehrer production unit responsible for the Strangeloves, who recruited the band in 1965 to interpret their songs. The outfit’s debut single, “Hang on Sloopy,” exploded into a chart-topping blockbuster whose riff and refrain have endured alongside “Louie Louie” and “La Bamba” as an elemental garage-rock staple marked by straightforward, visceral appeal. Fronted by the lead vocals and guitar of a teenage Rick Derringer, the group followed with a string of comparable, straightforward pop-rock tracks that enjoyed modest chart traction over the ensuing two years. Among these, the “Hang on Sloopy”–style follow-up “Fever” became their sole additional Top Ten entry, while their cover of Ritchie Valens’s “C’Mon Let’s Go” supplied their lone other Top 40 appearance.
During their initial Bang Records period the McCoys contributed scant original material, relying chiefly on further Feldman-Goldstein-Gottehrer productions that largely recycled the “Hang on Sloopy” formula with limited distinction. Two departures from this pattern stand out: the folk-tinged “Sorrow,” which the Merseys transformed into a British Top Ten hit and which David Bowie later included on Pin Ups, and the Middle Eastern–flavored psychedelic garage number “Don’t Worry Mother,” widely regarded as their strongest effort aside from their breakthrough. After their teen-pop phase, the McCoys displayed unusual longevity by parting ways with their Bang handlers in the late ’60s to explore psychedelic and progressive rock on Mercury. In the early ’70s most members joined Johnny Winter’s backing ensemble, and Rick Derringer moved in 1973 to the Edgar Winter group, where he served as lead guitarist and vocalist before launching a durable solo career in hard rock.
During their initial Bang Records period the McCoys contributed scant original material, relying chiefly on further Feldman-Goldstein-Gottehrer productions that largely recycled the “Hang on Sloopy” formula with limited distinction. Two departures from this pattern stand out: the folk-tinged “Sorrow,” which the Merseys transformed into a British Top Ten hit and which David Bowie later included on Pin Ups, and the Middle Eastern–flavored psychedelic garage number “Don’t Worry Mother,” widely regarded as their strongest effort aside from their breakthrough. After their teen-pop phase, the McCoys displayed unusual longevity by parting ways with their Bang handlers in the late ’60s to explore psychedelic and progressive rock on Mercury. In the early ’70s most members joined Johnny Winter’s backing ensemble, and Rick Derringer moved in 1973 to the Edgar Winter group, where he served as lead guitarist and vocalist before launching a durable solo career in hard rock.
Albums
