Bay City Rollers

Bay City Rollers
Bay City Rollers in the Netherlands (1976) (Photo by Rob Bogaerts)
Background information
Also known as	The Rollers
Origin	Edinburgh, Scotland
Genres	Pop, pop rock, power pop, glam rock
Years active	1966–87, 1990, 1998–2000
Labels	Bell, Arista, Epic
Associated acts	The Saxons (1967–68) The Rollers (1979–81) Eric Faulkner's Bay City Rollers Les McKeown's Legendary Bay City Rollers Pilot
Past members	Alan Longmuir Derek Longmuir Gordon "Nobby" Clark Keith Norman David Paton Eric Manclark Russell Powell Billy Lyall Ray Weston Neil Henderson Archie Marr John Devine Eric Faulkner Stuart "Woody" Wood Les McKeown Ian Mitchell Pat McGlynn Duncan Faure

Bay City Rollers were a Scottish pop band whose popularity was highest in the mid 1970s. The British Hit Singles & Albums noted that they were "tartan teen sensations from Edinburgh", and were "the first of many acts heralded as the 'Biggest Group since The Beatles' and one of the most screamed-at teeny-bopper acts of the 1970s".^[1] For a relatively brief but fervent period (nicknamed "Rollermania"), they were worldwide teen idols. The group's line-up featured numerous changes over the years, but the classic line-up during its heyday included guitarists Eric Faulkner and Stuart John Wood, singer Les McKeown, bassist Alan Longmuir, and drummer Derek Longmuir.^[2]

History

Early days and formation: 1966–73

In 1966 bassist Alan Longmuir, his younger brother, drummer Derek Longmuir and their schoolfriend, lead singer Gordon "Nobby" Clark, founded The Saxons in Edinburgh, Scotland. Soon after, they changed to The Bay City Rollers by throwing a dart at a map of the United States, landing "near" Bay City, Michigan.^[2]

The Bay City Rollers' first manager was Tam Paton, himself a former big band leader.^[3] Short-term members from this period included bassist David Paton (from 1969–70) and keyboardist Billy Lyall (1969–71), who went on to be founding members of another successful Edinburgh band, Pilot.

After signing with Bell Records, the band's first hit was "Keep on Dancing" (UK No. 9, 1971), a cover of a 1965 hit by The Gentrys, recorded at the suggestion of record producer Jonathan King.^[2][4] Clark was backed on vocals on "Keep on Dancing" by King doing multi-tracked singing.^[4] Upon this release's success, they made appearances on BBC One's Top of the Pops. The group then won a Radio Luxembourg-sponsored song contest with the tune "Mañana", which was later popular in parts of Europe and in Israel.

Several non-charting singles were released over the following two years. This period saw the addition of long term member guitarist Eric Faulkner. In mid-1973 they narrowly missed the UK Singles Chart with the fourth single, "Saturday Night", one of many songs written and produced for the band by the songwriting duo of Scotsman Bill Martin and Irishman Phil Coulter. By the end of 1973, Clark had become disillusioned with the band's musical direction and decided to leave just when his recording of "Remember (Sha La La La)" zoomed up the charts to No.6. He was replaced as lead singer by Les McKeown. A couple of months later, in early 1974, what became known as the classic line-up^[2] was completed when guitarist John Devine was replaced by Stuart "Woody" Wood.

British breakthrough: 1974–75

In late 1973 McKeown recorded lead vocals on "Remember (Sha La La La)", and a lead-in to a series of UK chart hits. A young 16 year old Stuart Wood completed the 'Classic Five' line up in late 1974, and by 1975 the band were well on their way to achieving global success likened to Beatles fame. The successful Classic Five line up consisted of Alan Longmuir, Derek Longmuir, Stuart Woody Wood, Eric Faulkner & Les McKeown.

Beginning with "Remember" (UK No. 6), the Rollers' popularity exploded, and they released a string of hits on the UK chart. Following in succession were "Shang-a-Lang" (UK No. 2), "Summerlove Sensation" (UK No. 3), and "All of Me Loves All of You" (UK No. 4).^[1]

By early 1975, they were one of the highest-selling acts in the UK. That year saw a successful UK tour (which prompted newspaper headlines about "Rollermania"),^[4] and a 20-week UK television series, Shang-a-Lang.

A cover of the Four Seasons' "Bye, Bye, Baby" stayed at No. 1 in the UK for six weeks in the spring of 1975, selling nearly a million copies to become the biggest seller of the year, and the subsequent single "Give a Little Love" topped the charts that summer, their second No. 1 hit.^[1][2] Two full-length LPs were produced during this period: Once Upon a Star (1975) and Wouldn't You Like It? (1975). Faulkner and Wood undertook the majority of the songwriting duties.

By this time, Bay City Roller fans had a completely distinctive style of dress, the main elements of which were calf-length tartan trousers and tartan scarves.^[2]

English singer-songwriter Nick Lowe wrote a "jaundiced" (in Lowe's words^[5]) paean to the band titled "Bay City Rollers We Love You". The track was "carefully sculpted" to be poor enough to get Lowe out of a recording contract with United Artists, but the strategy backfired. UA issued the record as by "The Tartan Horde",^[6] which was the name given to Rollers fans in England, and it became a substantial hit in Japan.^[5] Lowe was obliged to record a follow-up song called "Rollers Show", which did not meet with the same commercial success. This follow-up song was included on the US release of Lowe's first album, "Pure Pop for Now People".

World impact: 1976

As the group's popularity swelled to superstardom in the UK, a concerted effort was made by Arista Records (the record company that evolved from Bell) to launch the Rollers in North America. New Arista head Clive Davis was instrumental in grooming and overseeing the project. His work paid off, as in late 1975, the Rollers reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 with "Saturday Night", the song that had missed the UK chart completely two years earlier.^[2] The Rollers gave the track their American debut via a satellite-link performance on Saturday Night Live with Howard Cosell. In Canada, it fared equally well, hitting No. 1 on the RPM national singles chart on 10 January 1976.^[7] The Bay City Rollers (1975) album (North American release only) hit No. 1 in the same chart on 7 February.^[7]

A second North American hit came with "Money Honey", written by Faulkner which hit No. 9 in the US. In Canada, it fared better, following its predecessor to the top and giving them their second No. 1 in the RPM national singles chart on 13 March 1976.^[8]

The North America/Japan release album Rock n' Roll Love Letter (1976) jumped from No. 25 to the top position in a single week in Canada, deposing their own Bay City Rollers (1975) album at No. 1 on the national chart on 27 March 1976,^[9] but only managed to achieve the No. 31 spot on the US Billboard chart.

They were also extremely popular in Australia. One great example of their popularity was put into the book about Countdown – the Australian TV music show that ran from 1974–1987. Their 1976 appearance on Countdown coincided with a total eclipse of the sun. Director Ted Emery recalls

there... were thousands of kids done up in tartan pants that didn't reach the top of their shoes, constantly bashing on the plexiglas doors. They would do anything... to get into that television studio. There's 200 kids bashing on the door and a total eclipse of the sun occurred. I'd never seen one. On this day we all stopped in the studio and the Rollers went up on the roof. We stood out there and watched the flowers close up and all the automatic street lighting come on. It was chilling, the most fantastic thing you'd ever see. Downstairs the kids never turned around, staring into the plexiglas waiting to see the Rollers come out of the studio, go down the corridor and into the canteen. (They) never noticed the total eclipse of the sun.^[10]

By early 1976, the strain of success (and the discomfort of being a man in his late 20s in a teen band) had taken its toll on bassist Alan Longmuir, who decided to leave the group.^[2] He was replaced for seven months by 17-year-old Ian Mitchell – the first band member born outside Edinburgh, Scotland. (He was from Northern Ireland.)^[2] With Mitchell, the group released an album titled Dedication (1976), and hit the charts with a cover version of the Dusty Springfield song "I Only Want to Be with You", which reached US No. 12, as well as "Yesterday's Hero" (featuring live material from a 1976 personal appearance in Toronto's Nathan Phillips Square),^[11] and "Dedication".

1977–79

As the Rollers' popularity waned, the shuffling of personnel continued; Mitchell quit the band. He was replaced by guitarist Pat McGlynn, who joined the band with the forlorn wish that "I just hope I can cope." McGlynn lasted only a few months before quitting in turn, complaining that the other Rollers had treated him like a servant. Further struggles around the band involved the direction of their sound, as the members wished to pursue more sophisticated styles. They settled on David Bowie's producer, Harry Maslin, and in August 1977 released It's a Game as a four-piece group, comprising McKeown, Wood, Faulkner and Derek Longmuir. The It's a Game tour produced the live album Rollerworld: Live at the Budokan 1977, recorded in 1977 at Japan's Budokan Hall, but unreleased until 2001.

On the disc, they covered an unsuccessful 1973 single by String Driven Thing, "It's a Game" to give them their final UK Top 20 hit (#16 in May 1977). Oddly enough, this single provided them with their highest-charting German hit, reaching No. 4 in the same year.^[12] The follow-up "You Made Me Believe in Magic" could only make No. 34 in July in the UK and No. 10 in the US, but this would be their final major success there too.^[2]

In 1978, Alan Longmuir reunited with the band for the recording of Strangers in the Wind. The release of this LP was timed to coincide with the debut of the Rollers' US Saturday morning television show The Krofft Superstar Hour, later renamed The Bay City Rollers Show, on the NBC network. The show was a poor match for the band. Their time in the teen idol spotlight was slipping away and their music had matured and become more sophisticated compared to the bubblegum hits they had released in 1975–1976.

New singer, new name

At the end of 1978, the band had split with McKeown, then fired manager Tam Paton shortly after, and decided to continue in a more new-wave, rock-oriented sound. Their name was now The Rollers. South African-born Duncan Faure joined the band as new lead vocalist, guitarist and songwriter. With Faure, the line-up produced three albums: Elevator (1979), Voxx (1980), and Ricochet (1981).^[2] Following the expiry of the band's Arista contract, neither of the releases sold as well as expected, and they stopped touring by late 1981. However, the rise in internet use since the '90s has seen these albums become accessible.

1980s and beyond

During the 1980s and 1990s, there were a few short tours. Seven past members played Japan in 1982, and again in 1983. A reunion album, Breakout, was released in Japan and Australia in 1985, and added drummer George Spencer. Breakout was written primarily by McKeown and McGlynn with minor contributions from Faulkner, Wood, and Mitchell.

In the late 1980s a version of the band called the 'New Rollers' was formed featuring Faulkner on lead vocals, Kass (Karen Prosser) on vocals, Jason Medvec on guitar, Andy Boakes on bass, Mark Roberts on drums. The band toured extensively throughout the US and Canada as well as tours of the UK and Australia. This group also released an independent 5-song EP titled "Party Hardy".

In 1990 Stuart Wood and Alan Longmuir joined with Faulkner to tour under the Bay City Rollers name, and issued several CDs of re-recordings of the old Roller tunes.

The classic line-up were filmed for an episode of the VH1 – Behind the Music series in 1998. Around the same time the same line-up played in Japan for a TV show.

The classic line-up (minus Derek Longmuir) performed a one-off New Year's Eve millennium concert, the last official Bay City Rollers concert (1999–2000) in the shadow of Edinburgh Castle in Scotland. Interest was rekindled in the UK by various television documentaries about the group, and a new television-advertised compilation of greatest hits, Very Best of the Bay City Rollers, which entered the UK Albums Chart on release in 2004 at No. 11.^[1]

On 26 April 2008, fans in the greater Los Angeles area celebrated the first "Bay City Rollers Day", a day celebrating all things "BCR" via music, games, and attempting to live the Bay City Roller lifestyle. The tradition has continued and grown in popularity with each passing year.

Financial disputes

According to the BBC they sold 70 million records.^[13]

In March 2007, six former members of the group (Faure plus the "classic line-up") announced a lawsuit against Arista Records in hopes of claiming what they describe as "tens of millions of dollars" of unpaid royalties. Nobby Clark has threatened to sue the other band members if their lawsuit is successful, stating that he was the creative force behind the band's success, despite the fact that he left the group in 1973 before the bulk of their fame and fortune began.^[14][15]

In September 2010, Gordon "Nobby" Clark, Ian Mitchell and Pat McGlynn filed a complaint in the courts in United States against the six members (Faure plus the "classic line-up") over their being excluded from the case against Arista records. Clark, Mitchell and McGlynn were seeking to have their rights determined and are also seeking financial damages against the other Bay City Rollers for alleged breach of contract. In 2013 a judge in the United States Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the three due to the statute of frauds, which establishes that certain agreements must be in writing under certain conditions, with the appellate judge ruling, "A claim for unjust enrichment must be based on the value of plaintiffs' contribution to the joint effort of the band at the time it made the relevant records, not on the income stream resulting from a revival over thirty years later,"^[16]

In March 2011 a New York judge determined that the Bay City Rollers can move forward with their four-year-old lawsuit against Arista Records. Arista had denied responsibility for the majority of the royalties, claiming that the New York statute of limitations, which limits plaintiffs from recovering damages past six years in contract disputes, bars the Rollers' claims for royalties incurred prior to 2001. However, since the Rollers were able to show that Arista had continued to promise them their royalties in writing, the judge ruled that the statute was not applicable.^[17]

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions					Certifications (sales thresholds)
		UK [1]	AUS	CAN	JPN [18]	US [19]
1974	Rollin'	1	8	—	37	—	UK: Platinum[20]
1975	Once Upon a Star	1	4	—	26	—	UK: Platinum[20]
1975	Bay City Rollers (North America only release)	—	—	1	—	20	CAN: Platinum[21] US: Gold[22]
1975	Wouldn't You Like It?	3	3	—	21	—	UK: Gold[20]
1976	Dedication	4	3	5	1	26	UK: Silver[20] US: Gold[22]
1976	Rock n' Roll Love Letter (North America only)	—	—	1	—	31	CAN: Platinum[21] US: Gold[22]
1977	It's a Game	18	10	14	1	23	US: Gold[22]
1978	Strangers in the Wind	—	61	—	5	129
1979	Elevator	—	—	—	—	—
1980	Voxx	—	—	—	—	—
1981	Ricochet	—	—	—	—	—
1982	...And Forever (Japan only)	—	—	—	—	—
1985	Breakout (Japan and Australia only)	—	—	—	—	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or was not released

Compilation albums

Year	Album details	Peak chart positions
		UK [1]	JPN [18]
1975	Souvenirs of Youth	—	29
1976	Rock and Roll Love Letter	—	1
1977	Greatest Hits	—	10
1978	Early Collection	—	3
2000	Bay City Rollers: The Definitive Collection	—	—
2001	Saturday Night	—	—
2004	The Very Best of	11	—
2010	The Greatest Hits	12	—
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or was not released

Live albums

Year	Album details
1983	Live in Japan (Japan only)
1985	Breakout (Japan and Australia only)
2001	Rollerworld: Live at the Budokan 1977

Singles

Year	Song	UK [1]	AUS [23]	US Billboard [24]	US Cash Box [25]	CAN [26]	GER [23]	Album
1971	"Keep on Dancing"	9	—	—	—	—	—	Singles only
1972	"We Can Make Music"	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Manana"	—	—	—	—	—	—
1974	"Remember (Sha La La La)"	6	67	—	—	—	37	Rollin'
	"Shang-A-Lang"	2	28	—	—	—	41
	"Summerlove Sensation"	3	53	—	—	—	—
	"All of Me Loves All of You"	4	—	—	—	—	—	Single only
1975	"Bye, Bye, Baby"	1	1	—	—	—	10	Once Upon a Star
	"Give a Little Love" (Not released in the US or Canada)	1	2	—	—	—	11	Wouldn't You Like It?
	"Don't Stop the Music" (Released in Germany and North America only)	—	—	—	—	—	32
	"Love Me Like I Love You"	4	7	—	—	—	—	Single only
1976	"Saturday Night"	—	45	1	1	1	10	Rollin'
	"Money Honey"	3	3	9	7	1	16	Rock n' Roll Love Letter
	"Rock n' Roll Love Letter" (Not released in the UK)	—	9	28	30	6	13
	"I Only Want to Be with You"	4	8	12	8	3	9	Dedication
	"Yesterday's Hero" (Released in North America only)	—	—	54	49	22	13
	"Dedication" (Not released in the UK)	—	—	60	70	—	16*
	"Don't Worry Baby" (Released in Australia only)	—	34	—	—	—	—
1977	"It's a Game"	16	9	—	—	—	4	It's a Game
	"You Made Me Believe in Magic"	34	36	10	7	5	25
	"The Way I Feel Tonight"	—	56	24	19	23	—
	"Don't Let the Music Die" (Released in Japan only)	—	—	—	—	—	—
1978	"Where Will I Be Now"	—	—	—	—	—	48	Strangers in the Wind
	"All of the World is Falling in Love"	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Another Rainy Day in New York City" (USA promo only)	—	—	—	—	—	—
1979	"Turn on the Radio"	—	—	—	—	—	—	Elevator
	"Hello and Welcome Home" (Released in South Africa only)	—	—	—	—	—	—
1980	"God Save Rock & Roll" (Released in Japan only)	—	—	—	—	—	—	Voxx
1981	"Life on the Radio"	—	—	—	—	—	—	Ricochet
	"No Doubt About It" (Released in the UK only)	—	—	—	—	—	—
1983	"Piece of the Action" (Released in Japan only)	—	—	—	—	—	—	Live in Japan
1985	"When You Find Out"	—	—	—	—	—	—	Breakout

* Based on German radio airplay reports

References

Further reading

• Coy, W. (2005), Bay City Babylon: The Unbelievable But True Story of the Bay City Rollers, Hats Off Books, ISBN 978-1587364631

Bay City Rollers Eric Faulkner Alan Longmuir Derek Longmuir Les McKeown Stuart "Woody" Wood Nobby Clark John Devine Duncan Faure Billy Lyall Archie Marr Eric Manclark Pat McGlynn Ian Mitchell Neil Henderson David Paton Albums Rollin' Once Upon a Star Bay City Rollers Wouldn't You Like It? Rock n' Roll Love Letter Dedication It's a Game Strangers in the Wind Elevator Voxx Ricochet Breakout Singles "Keep on Dancing" "We Can Make Music" "Mañana" "Remember (Sha-La-La)" "Shang-A-Lang" "Summerlove Sensation" "All Of Me Loves All Of You" "Bye Bye Baby" "Give a Little Love" "Saturday Night" "My Teenage Heart" "Money Honey" "Love Me Like I Love You" "Rock and Roll Love Letter" "Don't Stop the Music" "Maybe I'm a Fool to Love You" "I Only Want To Be With You" "Yesterday's Hero" "Dedication" "You're a Woman" "Don't Worry Baby" "It's a Game" "You Made Me Believe in Magic" "The Way I Feel Tonight" "Don't Let the Music Die" "Where Will I Be Now" "Another Rainy Day in New York City" "All of the World Is Falling in Love" Related articles Shang-a-Lang The Krofft Superstar Hour Burning Rubber Tam Paton Book Category

Pilot David Paton Billy Lyall Ian Bairnson Stuart Tosh Studio albums From the Album of the Same Name (1974) Second Flight (1975) Morin Heights (1976) Two's a Crowd (1977) Blue Yonder (2002) A Pilot Project (2014) Compilations Best of Pilot (1980) A's B's & Rarities (2005) The Craighall Demos 71:76 (2007) Anthology (2007) Singles "Just a Smile" "Magic" "Ra-Ta-Ta" (as Scotch Mist) "January" "Call Me Round" "Lady Luck" "Running Water" "Canada" "Penny in My Pocket" "Get Up And Go" "Monday Tuesday" Related articles Bay City Rollers Alan Parsons Andrew Powell

Best-selling singles by year in the United Kingdom 1952–1969 1952: "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart" – Vera Lynn 1953: "I Believe" – Frankie Laine 1954: "Secret Love" – Doris Day 1955: "Rose Marie" – Slim Whitman 1956: "I'll Be Home" – Pat Boone 1957: "Diana" – Paul Anka 1958: "Jailhouse Rock" – Elvis Presley 1959: "Living Doll" – Cliff Richard 1960: "It's Now or Never" – Elvis Presley 1961: "Wooden Heart" – Elvis Presley 1962: "I Remember You" – Frank Ifield 1963: "She Loves You" – The Beatles 1964: "Can't Buy Me Love" – The Beatles 1965: "Tears" – Ken Dodd 1966: "Green, Green Grass of Home" – Tom Jones 1967: "Release Me" – Engelbert Humperdinck 1968: "Hey Jude" – The Beatles 1969: "Sugar, Sugar" – The Archies 1970–1989 1970: "The Wonder of You" – Elvis Presley 1971: "My Sweet Lord" – George Harrison 1972: "Amazing Grace" – The Royal Scots Dragoon Guards Band 1973: "Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" – Tony Orlando and Dawn 1974: "Tiger Feet" – Mud 1975: "Bye Bye Baby" – Bay City Rollers 1976: "Save Your Kisses for Me" – Brotherhood of Man 1977: "Mull of Kintyre" / "Girls' School" – Wings 1978: "Rivers of Babylon" / "Brown Girl in the Ring" – Boney M. 1979: "Bright Eyes" – Art Garfunkel 1980: "Don't Stand So Close to Me" – The Police 1981: "Don't You Want Me" – The Human League 1982: "Come On Eileen" – Dexys Midnight Runners 1983: "Karma Chameleon" – Culture Club 1984: "Do They Know It's Christmas?" – Band Aid 1985: "The Power of Love" – Jennifer Rush 1986: "Don't Leave Me This Way" – The Communards 1987: "Never Gonna Give You Up" – Rick Astley 1988: "Mistletoe and Wine" – Cliff Richard 1989: "Ride on Time" – Black Box 1990–2009 1990: "Unchained Melody" – The Righteous Brothers 1991: "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" – Bryan Adams 1992: "I Will Always Love You" – Whitney Houston 1993: "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)" – Meat Loaf 1994: "Love Is All Around" – Wet Wet Wet 1995: "Unchained Melody" – Robson & Jerome 1996: "Killing Me Softly" – Fugees 1997: "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" / "Candle in the Wind 1997" – Elton John 1998: "Believe" – Cher 1999: "...Baby One More Time" – Britney Spears 2000: "Can We Fix It?" – Bob the Builder 2001: "It Wasn't Me" – Shaggy featuring Rikrok 2002: "Anything Is Possible" / "Evergreen" – Will Young 2003: "Where Is the Love?" – The Black Eyed Peas 2004: "Do They Know It's Christmas?" – Band Aid 20 2005: "Is This the Way to Amarillo" – Tony Christie featuring Peter Kay 2006: "Crazy" – Gnarls Barkley 2007: "Bleeding Love" – Leona Lewis 2008: "Hallelujah" – Alexandra Burke 2009: "Poker Face" – Lady Gaga 2010–present 2010: "Love the Way You Lie" – Eminem featuring Rihanna 2011: "Someone Like You" – Adele 2012: "Somebody That I Used to Know" – Gotye featuring Kimbra 2013: "Blurred Lines" – Robin Thicke featuring T.I. & Pharrell Williams 2014: "Happy" – Pharrell Williams