Tomcats - A Tu Vera - [Vinyl]

English band Tomcats (who would later become July) spent most of 1965-1966 in Spain, where they played the clubs and released a string of thrilling EPs of feral R&B, collected here along with 1964 demos by The Second Thoughts, their early incarnation. Apart from great versions of then-recent hits by English and American artists, this double LP includes several original compositions and two covers of Spanish songs made popular by the legendary Lola Flores, which The Tomcats turned into wild, fuzzed-out rockers. The Tomcats' story begins in Ealing, West London, where Tom Newman (vocals, guitar), Peter Cook (lead guitar), Alan James (bass) and Chris Jackson (drums) first began playing together as The Dreamers. When Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies opened the Ealing Club in 1962, it became a magnet for young blues enthusiasts, many of whom would go on to form their own R&B groups, including The Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds and Manfred Mann. Evenings spent at the Ealing Club had a similar effect on members of The Dreamers, who soon afterwards retooled their repertoire and rebranded as The Tomcats. Another Ealing-based group, The Second Thoughts, were thinking along the same lines. Singer Patrick Campbell-Lyons (later the mastermind behind pop-psych heroes Nirvana), guitarist Tony Duhig, harmonica player Vic Griffiths, bassist Mickey Holmes, drummer John "Speedy" Keen and conga player/backing vocalist Jon Field played in a similar roughneck R&B style to The Tomcats, and at many of the same venues. It was inevitable that their stories would eventually entwine. In 1964 The Second Thoughts recorded some demos at a studio in Rickmansworth. However, the band parted company shortly afterwards when three of the members (Duhig, Holmes and Keen) headed for Spain to accompany the French nightclub singer Teddy Ray. When they returned to England a few months later, they immediately set about putting a new band together with the intention of returning to Spain as soon as possible. Meanwhile, after playing a lengthy residency at the Oxford Street club Beat City, The Tomcats had also broken up, so it was only natural that the remnants of the two bands join forces. Initially called The Thoughts, the new group featured Tom Newman (lead vocals, guitar), Tony Duhig (lead guitar), Mickey Holmes (bass), Jon Field (congas, backing vocals) and Speedy Keen (drums). Soon afterwards Speedy was replaced by original Tomcats drummer Chris Jackson, at which point they decided to readopt the Tomcats name. The revamped Tomcats arrived in Madrid in early 1965 and took up residency at Club Consulado. The group's long hair and fashionable mod clothes were a novelty in Franco's Spain and they immediately began to attract attention. When Mickey Holmes decided to go home, original Tomcat Alan James came out to take over on bass. Vic Griffiths of The Second Thoughts returned as harp player for a short while too. Philips signed the band, which resulted in the release of four EPs in 1965 and 1

Tomcats - A Tu Vera - [Vinyl]

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