Tremeloes

Following the 1966 dissolution of Brian Poole And The Tremeloes, expectations ran low that the instrumentalists would achieve more than their former frontman. Yet the reconstituted Tremeloes soon surpassed both Poole and the earlier hitmaking lineup. At the moment of their 1966 revival the roster consisted of Rick West (b. Richard Westwood, 7 May 1943, Dagenham, Essex, England; guitar), Alan Blakley (b. 1 April 1942, Dagenham, Essex, England, d. 1995; rhythm guitar), Dave Munden (b. 2 December 1943, Dagenham, Essex, England; drums) and Alan Howard (b. 17 October 1941, Dagenham, Essex, England; bass). Mike Clark stepped in for Howard during May 1966, only to yield his position three months later to Len ‘Chip’ Hawkes (b. 2 November 1946, London, England), whose lead vocals and boyish looks supplied a sharper visual profile. To align with shifting tastes the musicians swapped tailored stage suits for Carnaby Street clothing and extended hairstyles. Their renewed Decca Records debut arrived as a version of Paul Simon’s ‘Blessed’, which found no traction. Seeking stronger commercial prospects they transferred to CBS Records and interpreted ‘Good Day Sunshine’ from the Beatles’ Revolver, yet this effort also missed the charts despite airplay. Their third single, ‘Here Comes My Baby’, a composition by Cat Stevens, entered the Top 20 in both Britain and the United States.

An astute choice followed with ‘Silence Is Golden’, originally the B-side of the Four Seasons’ ‘Rag Doll’; the track suited the Tremeloes’ gentle harmonic approach and delivered their sole UK number 1 along with their strongest American placing at number 11. Once established as chart regulars they accumulated further late-1960s successes such as ‘Even The Bad Times Are Good’, ‘Suddenly You Love Me’, ‘Helule Helule’ and ‘My Little Lady’. By decade’s end the group grew restless within conventional pop and distanced themselves from Tin Pan Alley songwriters to compose their own songs. Their initial self-penned effort, ‘(Call Me) Number One’, proved stronger than most prior releases since 1967 and reached number 2, prompting the members to believe bolder ambitions would yield greater success. Overreaching after this promising start as songwriters, they declared they were “going heavy” and alienated their pop following by branding earlier record buyers “morons.”

The short-lived progressive chapter produced the album Master, which attracted no additional listeners yet yielded a final Top 20 single in ‘Me And My Life’. From that point the Tremeloes gravitated toward cabaret, where their energetic stage presence found ready appreciation. Chip Hawkes departed in 1974 for Nashville, USA, in pursuit of a solo path that ultimately faltered, although his son Chesney Hawkes would enjoy brief prominence in the late 1980s. Blakley exited the following January, after which Aaron Woolley and Bob Benham joined as replacements. The Tremeloes maintained sporadic recording activity, issuing albums through DJM Records and their former label CBS. They remained active into the new millennium, with Munden and West augmented by Joe Gillingham (keyboards/vocals) and Davey Freyer (bass/vocals). In September 2006 Poole rejoined the band for a UK tour marking forty years since their separation. The current lineup featured Munden, Hawkes, West, Gillingham and Jeff Brown.