The Groundhogs
| Groundhogs | |
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 McPhee with The Groundhogs, London, September 1991 | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | England |
| Genres | Blues rock, psychedelic rock |
| Years active | 1963–present |
| Members |
Tony McPhee Dave Anderson Joanna Deacon Carl Stokes |
| Past members | Former members |
Groundhogs are a British rock band founded in late 1963, that toured extensively in the 1960s, achieved prominence in the early 1970s and continued sporadically into the 21st century.
Career
The band was originally formed as The Dollar Bills in New Cross, London in 1962 by brothers Pete and John Cruickshank (born in 1943 and 1945 respectively[1] in Calcutta, West Bengal, India). Tony McPhee (born 1944), the lead guitarist in an instrumental group called the Shcenuals, joined the group later that same year. McPhee steered them towards the blues and renamed them after a John Lee Hooker song, "Groundhog's Blues".
John Cruickshank suggested they became John Lee's Groundhogs when they backed John Lee Hooker on his 1964 UK tour: they later supplemented Little Walter, Jimmy Reed and Champion Jack Dupree when they toured the UK. McPhee featured on Dupree's From New Orleans to Chicago (1966) alongside Eric Clapton. The Groundhogs issued "Shake It" b/w "Rock Me" on the Interphon record label in January 1965.
Their line-up on their first album, Scratchin' the Surface, released in November 1968,[1] consisted of McPhee as singer and guitarist; bassist Peter Cruickshank (born 2 July 1945,[1] in Calcutta), Ken Pustelnik on drums (born 13 March 1946 on a farm near Blairgowrie, Angus, Scotland) and Steve Rye on harmonica (born 8 March 1946 in London – died 19 July 1992, in London). In 1969, the single "B.D.D." (Blind Deaf Dumb) flopped in the UK but hit number one in Lebanon.[1]
The group's album releases Thank Christ For The Bomb (May 1970); Split (March 1971); and Who Will Save the World? The Mighty Groundhogs (March 1972), recorded as a trio without Rye, all reached the Top 10 in the UK Albums Chart.[2] Split reached number 5, spending 27 weeks in the UK Albums Chart and achieved gold record status, while a single release from the album, "Cherry Red", was featured on BBC Television's Top of the Pops programme on 22 April 1971.[1]
They supported The Rolling Stones on their 1971 British tour at the request of Mick Jagger and released an album of their live set on the Stones tour, recorded at Leeds University and called Live at Leeds. All these albums and live shows were performed by the classic power trio of Cruickshank, McPhee and Pustelnik. 1974's album Solid saw a last return to the charts.[1]
After breaking up in 1976 they returned with a different line-up a decade later. At times in the 1990s, McPhee alternated two line-ups. After years of performing and recording for a loyal following, original manager Roy Fisher put together a short-lived 'original line-up' to celebrate their fortieth anniversary. McPhee left the band again in order to pursue an acoustic career, leaving Cruickshank and Pustelnik to continue, subsequently forming 'The Groundhogs Rhythm Section' with invited frontmen, latterly with Eddie Martin, while McPhee embarked on a major tour in 2004 with Edgar Winter and Alvin Lee and issued an acoustic blues album Blues at Ten.
McPhee put together a new band in 2007, with long-time Groundhogs bassist Dave Anderson (ex-Hawkwind) and Marco Anderson on drums. This trio toured England in 2008 with Focus and Martin Turner's Wishbone Ash. The 2009 line-up of Tony McPhee's Groundhogs comprised McPhee, Anderson and previous long-term drummer Mick Jones. The Groundhogs Rhythm Section's latest recruits, Bob Bowles (guitar, vocals) and Jon Buckett (guitars, keyboards, vocals), joined Ken Pustelnik and Pete Cruickshank in February 2011.[3] As of 2011, the new Groundhogs' lineup consisted of McPhee, Anderson, Joanna Deacon (vocals), and Carl Stokes (drums) from the death rock band 'Cancer'.[4] Due to McPhee's ongoing health issues relating to a stroke in 2009, Tony McPhee & The Groundhogs retired in January 2014 although Tony McPhee & Carl Stokes have since worked with David Tibet's 'Current '93.
Personnel
Members
- Current members
- Tony McPhee - guitars, vocals (1963-1974, 1976, 1982-2004, 2007-present)
- Dave Anderson - bass (1987-1988, 2001-2003, 2007-present)
- Joanna Deacon - vocals (2001-2003, 2011–present)
- Carl Stokes - drums (2011–present)
- Former members
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Lineups
| 1963-1964 | 1964-1965 | 1965 | 1965-1969 |
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| 1969 | 1969-1972 | 1972 | 1972-1974 |
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| 1974-1976 | 1976 | 1976 | 1976-1982 |
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Disbanded |
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Disbanded |
| 1982-1983 | 1983-1984 | 1984-1987 | 1987-1988 |
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| 1988-1989 | 1989 | 1989-1994 | 1994-1996 |
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| 1996 | 1996-2000 | 2000-2001 | 2001 |
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| 2001-2003 | 2003-2004 | 2004-2007 | 2007-2009 |
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Disbanded |
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| 2009-2011 | 2011–present | ||
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The Groundhogs Rhythm Section
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Discography
Albums
as The Groundhogs:
Studio albums
- Scratching the Surface (November 1968)
- Blues Obituary (September 1969)
- Thank Christ for the Bomb (May 1970) - UK Number 9
- Split (March 1971) - UK Number 5
- Who Will Save the World? The Mighty Groundhogs (March 1972) UK Number 8 US Number 202
- Hogwash (November 1972)
- Solid (June 1974) - UK Number 31
- Crosscut Saw (February 1976)
- Black Diamond (October 1976)
- Razor's Edge (May 1985)
- Back Against the Wall (1987)
- Hogs in Wolf's Clothing (January 1998)
- The Muddy Waters Song Book (April 1999)
Other
- The Groundhogs with John Lee Hooker and John Mayall (1968)
- Hoggin' the Stage (live album) (April 1984)
- Moving Fast, Standing Still (compilation) (May 1986)
- Extremely Live (July 1988)
- Hogs on the Road (live) (June 1988)
- Groundhog Night... Groundhog Live (July 1993)
- Who Said Cherry Red (October 1996)
- The Best Of (1997)
- Live at Leeds 71 (live) (August 1998)
- No Surrender - Razors Edge Tour 1985 (live) (1998)
- UK Tour '76 (1999)
- Live at the Astoria (September 2001)
- Live at the New York Club, Switzerland 1991 (2007)
- Live at Anti WAA Festival 1989 (CD, 2014; Nibelung Records)
as Tony McPhee and the Groundhogs:
- No Surrender (live) (August 1989)
as Tony McPhee (solo):
- The Two Sides Of T.S. McPhee (1973)
- Foolish Pride (February 1993)
- Bleaching the Blues (April 1997)
DVDs And Videos
- Live At The Astoria (1999) [Video]
- 60/40 Split (2005) [DVD]
- Live at Anti WAA Festival 1989 (DVD, 2014; Nibelung Records)
References
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Strong, Martin C. (2000). The Great Rock Discography (5th ed.). Edinburgh: Mojo Books. pp. 405–406. ISBN 1-84195-017-3.
- 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 237. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
- ↑ "Blues Night: BOB BOWLES with the legendary GROUNDHOGS Rhythm Section! - Saturday 19 February 2011 at 19:30 | Gig Guide | Riffs Bar - Live Originals & Covers Music Venue in Swindon, Wiltshire". Riffs Bar. 2011-02-19. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
- ↑ "The Groundhogs Archive". Thegroundhogs.co.uk. Retrieved 2012-03-07.
- Hoggin' The Page: Groundhogs' Classic Years - Northdown Publishing - ISBN 978-1-900711-16-6
External links
- The Groundhogs biography at the AMG website
- The Groundhogs & Tony McPhee's Official Website
- Fan Site with complete Discography
- Tony McPhee's MySpace page
- Rare photos & video clips
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