Biography
The Ugly's embody one of those persistent misfortunes that recur throughout British beat music: a gifted ensemble boasting strong material, some of it self-penned, and an arresting moniker, yet one that, across an extended run and despite several future notables passing through its ranks, never advanced beyond local and regional recognition. Depending on the chosen starting point, the band's active span stretched either nine or twelve years; its unusual duration alone renders the tale worth recounting at length. The story originates in Birmingham in 1957, predating British rock & roll's chart prominence aside from Tommy Steele, when the Dominettes formed with Jim Holden handling drums and Colin Smith on vocals. Three years of lineup flux followed until Smith's departure in 1960, after which Steve Gibbons, an avowed Elvis Presley devotee who doubled on harmonica, assumed frontman duties. Roy Bates on saxophone and Bob Burnett on guitar arrived concurrently, supplanting Rick Burrows and Clive Jones. Retaining the Dominettes name, the group shifted under Gibbons toward an R&B foundation that deepened as Alan Pierce joined on guitar and John Hustwayte on bass. Steady work ensued, including occasional strip-club backing gigs noted by David Wells to bridge dance-hall bookings.
By 1963 only Holden survived from the original configuration, whose dated image clashed with the Merseybeat surge. The sound had evolved to incorporate Liverpool influences, prompting retirement of the Dominettes name in favor of the Ugly's, a choice whose precise rationale faded over time yet proved more effective for securing engagements. Pierce soon exited, replaced by full-time organist John Gordon, and the revamped unit signed to Pye Records in 1965. Their debut single, “Wake Up My Mind,” co-written by Gibbons, Holden, and Burnett, marked Gibbons's distance from his Presley roots; the British Invasion protest number echoed Bob Dylan's topical style, an influence Gibbons never fully shed alongside a subdued Presley echo. Though it failed to chart domestically, the release fared strongly in New Zealand and similar distant markets. Gordon departed afterward, succeeded by Jimmy O'Neill, whose stage presence and harpsichord contributions shaped the follow-up. “It's Alright” garnered heavy pirate-radio rotation on Radio Caroline and Radio London, sparking fan petitions for a Ready Steady Go appearance, yet sales remained flat, possibly owing to a distributors' strike. Early 1966 brought the third single, “A Good Idea” backed with “The Quiet Explosion”; the band later rued the A-side choice, recognizing too late that the B-side deserved promotion. A Thank Your Lucky Stars slot proved insufficient, and Burnett and Hustwayte exited in its wake.
Mid-1966 replacements Roger Hill on lead guitar and Dave Pegg on bass contributed to a fourth single, a cover of Ray Davies's “End of the Season” ahead of the Kinks' own release, earning the Ugly's a footnote in Kinks lore without restoring Pye support. Pegg and Hill left after a failed Finnish tour, briefly co-founding the Exception, which briefly featured Robert Plant in 1967. Will Hammond, veteran of the blues-based Yamps and the big-band rock & roll group Traction, replaced Hill; O'Neill shifted to bass, leaving a quartet of Gibbons, Hammond, O'Neill, and Holden, now in his tenth year. A one-off CBS single, “And the Squire Blew His Horn,” vanished without impact despite strong live reception the group could not replicate on tape. Another near-miss occurred with “Roses in the Rain,” recorded in Graham Nash's presence; Hammond recalled serious discussion of Nash assuming management and mounting major promotion, an overture that collapsed over demands to abandon the Ugly's name. The band reformed as a quintet with Dave Morgan on rhythm guitar from the Mayfair Set, cut BBC covers, then lost O'Neill to the Mindbenders and Holden after eleven years in early 1968.
Richard Tandy on keyboards and Keith Smart on drums completed the lineup that cut MGM's “I've Seen the Light (Goodnight),” which stalled amid a contractual dispute with new manager Tony Secunda. Late 1968 into 1969, Secunda, recently dismissed by the Move following the “Flowers in the Rain” campaign debacle, maneuvered to merge Gibbons, Tandy, Morgan, and Smart with ex-Move members Trevor Burton and Carl Wayne. Hammond was sidelined, the group effectively dissolved by year's end. Hammond later passed through a later Mindbenders iteration; Morgan joined Wishful Thinking in the 1970s. Gibbons launched a solo career backed by the post-Jeff Lynne Idle Race. Lynne's move to the Move alongside Roy Wood and Bev Bevan, and their formation of Electric Light Orchestra, proved pivotal: Tandy joined ELO in 1972, initially on bass then keyboards, remaining through arena tours and multi-continental releases. Morgan later contributed to ELO in the 1980s; the pair formed the Tandy Morgan Band in 1986. Smart joined Roy Wood's Wizzard in the mid-1970s. Short-term member Pegg thrived with Fairport Convention and, briefly, Jethro Tull. Hammond became the subject of a 2004 television documentary. That year Castle Records issued The Quiet Explosion, compiling the Ugly's complete recordings, including the previously unreleased MGM single.
By 1963 only Holden survived from the original configuration, whose dated image clashed with the Merseybeat surge. The sound had evolved to incorporate Liverpool influences, prompting retirement of the Dominettes name in favor of the Ugly's, a choice whose precise rationale faded over time yet proved more effective for securing engagements. Pierce soon exited, replaced by full-time organist John Gordon, and the revamped unit signed to Pye Records in 1965. Their debut single, “Wake Up My Mind,” co-written by Gibbons, Holden, and Burnett, marked Gibbons's distance from his Presley roots; the British Invasion protest number echoed Bob Dylan's topical style, an influence Gibbons never fully shed alongside a subdued Presley echo. Though it failed to chart domestically, the release fared strongly in New Zealand and similar distant markets. Gordon departed afterward, succeeded by Jimmy O'Neill, whose stage presence and harpsichord contributions shaped the follow-up. “It's Alright” garnered heavy pirate-radio rotation on Radio Caroline and Radio London, sparking fan petitions for a Ready Steady Go appearance, yet sales remained flat, possibly owing to a distributors' strike. Early 1966 brought the third single, “A Good Idea” backed with “The Quiet Explosion”; the band later rued the A-side choice, recognizing too late that the B-side deserved promotion. A Thank Your Lucky Stars slot proved insufficient, and Burnett and Hustwayte exited in its wake.
Mid-1966 replacements Roger Hill on lead guitar and Dave Pegg on bass contributed to a fourth single, a cover of Ray Davies's “End of the Season” ahead of the Kinks' own release, earning the Ugly's a footnote in Kinks lore without restoring Pye support. Pegg and Hill left after a failed Finnish tour, briefly co-founding the Exception, which briefly featured Robert Plant in 1967. Will Hammond, veteran of the blues-based Yamps and the big-band rock & roll group Traction, replaced Hill; O'Neill shifted to bass, leaving a quartet of Gibbons, Hammond, O'Neill, and Holden, now in his tenth year. A one-off CBS single, “And the Squire Blew His Horn,” vanished without impact despite strong live reception the group could not replicate on tape. Another near-miss occurred with “Roses in the Rain,” recorded in Graham Nash's presence; Hammond recalled serious discussion of Nash assuming management and mounting major promotion, an overture that collapsed over demands to abandon the Ugly's name. The band reformed as a quintet with Dave Morgan on rhythm guitar from the Mayfair Set, cut BBC covers, then lost O'Neill to the Mindbenders and Holden after eleven years in early 1968.
Richard Tandy on keyboards and Keith Smart on drums completed the lineup that cut MGM's “I've Seen the Light (Goodnight),” which stalled amid a contractual dispute with new manager Tony Secunda. Late 1968 into 1969, Secunda, recently dismissed by the Move following the “Flowers in the Rain” campaign debacle, maneuvered to merge Gibbons, Tandy, Morgan, and Smart with ex-Move members Trevor Burton and Carl Wayne. Hammond was sidelined, the group effectively dissolved by year's end. Hammond later passed through a later Mindbenders iteration; Morgan joined Wishful Thinking in the 1970s. Gibbons launched a solo career backed by the post-Jeff Lynne Idle Race. Lynne's move to the Move alongside Roy Wood and Bev Bevan, and their formation of Electric Light Orchestra, proved pivotal: Tandy joined ELO in 1972, initially on bass then keyboards, remaining through arena tours and multi-continental releases. Morgan later contributed to ELO in the 1980s; the pair formed the Tandy Morgan Band in 1986. Smart joined Roy Wood's Wizzard in the mid-1970s. Short-term member Pegg thrived with Fairport Convention and, briefly, Jethro Tull. Hammond became the subject of a 2004 television documentary. That year Castle Records issued The Quiet Explosion, compiling the Ugly's complete recordings, including the previously unreleased MGM single.
Albums
