 | | The Shadows are usually thought of as the quintessential British instrumental group and, along with the American band the Ventures and the Swedish group the Spotnicks, one of the most popular instrumental groups in the world. |
 | | One of the saddest stories in rock & roll history surrounds the Tornados, an instrumental group from Britain. |
 | | A British teen idol whose fame overlapped with the early days of Beatlemania, Heinz (full name Heinz Burt) first achieved success as the bassist for the Tornados, the instrumental group best remembered for topping the charts on both sides of the Atlantic with "Telstar," before emerging as a recording artist in his own right. |
 | | Formed in Bristol, England in the early '60s, the Cougars were a band that specialized in rocked-up versions of pop and classical standards, mostly done as instrumentals. |
 | | One of the most distinctive instrumental groups of the '50s and '60s, Johnny & the Hurricanes produced the Top Ten hit "Red River Rock" and scored several other instrumental hits that mixed rock & roll with traditional melodies. |
 | | |
 | | If Duane Eddy's instrumental hits from the late '50s can sound unduly basic and repetitive (especially when taken all at once), he was vastly influential. |
 | | One of the many British R&B groups fighting for attention in 1964 and 1965, the T-Bones (not to be confused with the American group that had an instrumental hit in 1965 with "No Matter What Shape") were reared in the shadow of the Yardbirds, sharing their manager (Giorgio Gomelsky), taking over their residency at London's famed Marquee club, and confounding collectors when a picture of the Yardbirds appeared on a French T-Bones EP. |
 | | The Dakotas were most closely associated with Liverpool-born singer Billy J. Kramer. They had a history before that, however, as well as a striking lineup on their own, separate from the developments in Kramer's career. |
 | | To anyone not from England, or not part of the baby boom generation, it's a bit difficult to explain the significance of Marvin, Welch & Farrar as a group -- not that they were lacking in any way; far from it, their music speaks (or, more properly and significantly, sings) volumes, and they made some superb vocal pop, very much influenced by Crosby, Stills & Nash, among other harmony vocal music of the early '70s. |
 | | Not the first but definitely the most popular rock instrumental combo, the Ventures scored several hit singles during the 1960s -- most notably "Walk-Don't Run" and "Hawaii Five-O" -- but made their name in the growing album market, covering hits of the day and organizing thematically linked LPs. |
 | | Mostly renowned for their 1964 Top Five hit "Have I the Right," the Honeycombs in their hit-making years were pretty much a vehicle for producer Joe Meek and the songwriting-management team of Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley. |
 | | It's difficult for anyone who has heard them not to like -- or even love -- the Tremeloes. They were one of the more prodigiously talented British pop/rock bands of the 1960s, and they threw that talent into the making of amazingly catchy and well-crafted singles that lit up the charts and radio on both sides of the Atlantic for four years running, from 1966 through 1970. |
 | | If remembered at all today, it is probably thanks to their silly astronaut costumes, but in the '60s the Spotnicks were one of the most successful instrumental rock groups, alongside the Shadows and the Ventures. |
 | | |
 | | One of the more intriguing footnotes to pre-Beatles rock in Britain, Jet Harris first made his mark as the bassist for the Shadows. |
 | | He couldn't properly be considered part of the British Invasion -- he never had a hit in the U.S. or the U. |
 | | The Eagles -- not to be confused with the 1970s California band of that name -- started out in Bristol, England at the end of the '50s. |
 | | In the early days of British rock & roll, there were dozens of contenders for stardom: Tommy Steele, Cliff Richard, and Marty Wilde were among the players who rose to the challenge for at least a few years. |
 | | Brian Bennett may not be an internationally known name, aside from parts of the former British Empire and Japan -- but in England, as a member of the Shadows since 1961, he has been one of the top drummers in rock & roll for two generations, as well as a top arranger and an award-winning film and television composer. |
 | | Strictly speaking, Phil Spector wasn't even a performer -- he's a musician, but he very rarely released records under his name. |
 | | Link Wray may never get into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but his contribution to the language of rockin' guitar would still be a major one, even if he had never walked into another studio after cutting "Rumble. |
 | | The concept of a Uruguayan band in the mold of the Hard Day's Night-era Beatles may seem absurd, but it did happen in the mid-'60s. |
 | | Formed in the early '80s in the north of London, the Rapiers gained much influence and credibility for a sound that resembled classic Merseybeat rock & roll in the vein of Cliff Richard and his backing group the Shadows. |
 | | Britain's answer to Elvis Presley, Cliff Richard (born Harry Webb) dominated the pre-Beatles British pop scene in the late '50s and early '60s. |
 | | The Merseys had a big pop/rock hit in the U.K. in 1966 with "Sorrow," later covered by David Bowie (on Pin Ups), but never followed up on the promise of this successful debut. |
 | | An underrated British quartet made up of John Rogan (bass), Russ Ballard (lead guitar), Peter Thorpe (rhythm guitar), and Bob Henrit (drums), the Roulettes featured future Argent alumnus Russ Ballard on lead guitar. |
 | | A major influence on British guitar heroes of the '70s such as Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page, Hank Marvin played lead guitar for the Shadows, one of the U. |
 | | When UK chart-toppers Brian Poole And The Tremeloes parted company in 1966, few would have wagered that the backing group would outdo the lead singer. |
 | | The Outlaws -- not to be confused with the American country act of the same name -- were one of a wave of instrumental groups that came along in British pop/rock music during the late 1950's and early 1960's. |
 | | The Bachelors were an Irish pop band of the 1960s consisting of brothers Conleth (b.March 3, 1941) and Declan Clusky (b. |
 | | |
 | | Providing the soundtrack to numerous biker and teen exploitation movies in the mid- and late '60s, Davie Allan & the Arrows bridged the surf and psychedelic eras. |
 | | Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders first emerged out of apprentice telephone engineer Glyn Geoffrey Ellis' daydreams of becoming a successful pop performer. |
 | | Herman's Hermits were one of those odd 1960's groups that accumulated millions of fans, but precious little respect. |
 | | Who was the second biggest-selling music star to come out of Liverpool after the Beatles? It wasn't Gerry & the Pacemakers or Billy J. |
 | | Most Americans first heard of Lulu when she soared to the top of the charts with the pop ballad "To Sir with Love," the theme to the film of the same name, in 1967. |
 | | Freddie & the Dreamers were the clowns of the British Invasion, playing their pop music for laughs while the other groups of the time were dead serious. |
 | | When the Hollies -- one of the best and most commercially successful pop/rock acts of the British Invasion -- began recording in 1963, they relied heavily upon the R&B/early rock & roll covers that provided the staple diet for countless British bands of the time. |
 | | Remaining together following the departure of frontman Wayne Fontana, the Mindbenders got off to one of the most promising starts any band could enjoy, when their debut single "A Groovy Kind of Love" soared to number two in the U. |
 | | The Easybeats occupy a unique place in the pantheon of 1960s British rock acts. For starters, they were Australian, except that they really weren't -- they met in Sydney alright, and being based in Australia with the talent they had gave them a leg-up over any of the local competition. |
 | | So much has been said and written about the Beatles -- and their story is so mythic in its sweep -- that it's difficult to summarize their career without restating clichés that have already been digested by tens of millions of rock fans. |
 | | One of the most popular Merseybeat singers, Billy J. Kramer (born Billy Ashton) was one of the most mild-mannered rockers of the entire British Invasion. |
 | | For a very brief time in 1964, it seemed that the biggest challenger to the Beatles' phenomenon was the Dave Clark Five. |
 | | Dick Dale wasn't nicknamed "King of the Surf Guitar" for nothing: he pretty much invented the style single-handedly, and no matter who copied or expanded upon his blueprint, he remained the fieriest, most technically gifted musician the genre ever produced. |
 | | Remembered chiefly as proto-punkers who reached the top of the charts with the "caveman rock" of "Wild Thing" (1966), the Troggs were also adept at crafting power pop and ballads. |
 | | Singer and songwriter Jackie DeShannon has quite a musical legacy. Her early singles crafted doo wop to intelligent lyrics. |
 | | The Ronettes weren't the most commercially successful girl group, but their music was some of the most groundbreaking in the field, thanks to their association with the legendary Wall of Sound producer Phil Spector. |
 | | Mexican-born American guitarist Carlos Santana is best known as the leader of the band that bears his last name, which has toured and recorded successfully since the late '60s. |
 | | Small Faces were the best English band never to hit it big in America. On this side of the Atlantic, all anybody remembers them for is their sole stateside hit, "Itchycoo Park," which was hardly representative of their psychedelic sound, much less their full musical range -- but in England, Small Faces were one of the most extraordinary and successful bands of the mid-'60s, serious competitors to the Who and potential rivals to the Rolling Stones. |
