Sounds Incorporated, first recorded as Sounds Inc., was a British

instrumental An instrumental is a recording normally without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through semantic widening, a broader sense of the word song may refer to inst ...

pop/rock group which recorded extensively in the 1960s.

Career

Sounds Incorporated formed in early 1961, in

Dartford Dartford is the principal town in the Borough of Dartford, Kent, England. It is located south-east of Central London and is situated adjacent to the London Borough of Bexley to its west. To its north, across the Thames estuary, is Thurrock in ...

, Kent, and gained a reputation in nearby

South London South London is the southern part of London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the boroughs, in whole or in part, of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Richmond, Southwark, Sut ...

for the fullness of their saxophone-led instrumental sound. In August 1961, after

Gene Vincent Vincent Eugene Craddock (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971), known as Gene Vincent, was an American musician who pioneered the styles of rockabilly and rock and roll. His 1956 top ten hit with his backing band the Blue Caps, " Be-Bop-a-Lula ...

's band, The Blue Caps, had been denied permission to work in the UK, Sounds Incorporated won the opportunity to back Vincent on his British tour and on recordings in London. This led to further opportunities to back other visiting American artists, including

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as " rock & roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis mad ...

Brenda Lee Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known professionally as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. Performing rockabilly, pop and country music, she had 47 US chart hits during the 1960s and is ranked fourth in that decade, surpassed onl ...

and

Sam Cooke Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul music, soul artists of all time, Cooke is common ...

. Their only record with

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a German–British record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 192 ...

, "Mogambo", failed to achieve significant sales. The band then moved to

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in We ...

, where they released a trio of

singles Singles are people not in a committed relationship. Singles may also refer to: Film and television * ''Singles'' (miniseries), a 1984 Australian television series * ''Singles'' (1992 film), written and directed by Cameron Crowe * ''Singles'' ...

, the last of which was recorded with producer

Joe Meek Robert George "Joe" Meek (5 April 1929 – 3 February 1967) was an English record producer, sound engineer and songwriter who pioneered space age and experimental pop music. He also assisted in the development of recording practices like over ...

, again with little success. However, while performing in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; nds, label=Hamburg German, Low Saxon, Hamborg ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg (german: Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg; nds, label=Low Saxon, Friee un Hansestadt Hamborg),. is the List of cities in Germany by popul ...

in Germany, they met and befriended

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

and in 1963 signed to

Brian Epstein Brian Samuel Epstein (; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967) was a British music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1962 until his death in 1967. Epstein was born into a family of successful retailers in Liverpool, who put him i ...

's management company, NEMS. In the same year, they appeared as musical guests in the film '' Live It Up!'' The band's first two singles on new label Columbia, "The Spartans" and "

Spanish Harlem East Harlem, also known as Spanish Harlem or and historically known as Italian Harlem, is a neighborhood of Upper Manhattan, New York City, roughly encompassing the area north of the Upper East Side and bounded by 96th Street to the south, Fi ...

", made the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in 1964. These were the only successes that Sounds Incorporated enjoyed in their home country. That same year they became

Cilla Black Priscilla Maria Veronica White (27 May 1943 – 1 August 2015), better known as Cilla Black, was an English singer, actress and television presenter. Championed by her friends the Beatles, Black began her career as a singer in 1963. Her ...

's backing band, and released their first album called ''Sounds Incorporated''. It contained many stage favourites, but not their recent chart successes. The group's third Columbia single, a version of the "

William Tell Overture The ''William Tell'' Overture is the overture to the opera '' William Tell'' (original French title ''Guillaume Tell''), whose music was composed by Gioachino Rossini. ''William Tell'' premiered in 1829 and was the last of Rossini's 39 operas, a ...

", was included and turned out to be their greatest success in Australia, where it reached number 2. The group toured the world as the Beatles' opening act, including the August 1965 concert at New York City's

Shea Stadium Shea Stadium (), formally known as William A. Shea Municipal Stadium, was a multi-purpose stadium in Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, Queens, New York City.

. Sounds Incorporated's continuing popularity ensured a stream of work, including backing duties at the televised '' NME'' awards. In December 1964, ''NME'' reported that Sounds Incorporated would appear at the Hammersmith Odeon at the "Another Beatles Christmas Show". Unusual

musical instruments A musical instrument is a device created or adapted to make musical sounds. In principle, any object that produces sound can be considered a musical instrument—it is through purpose that the object becomes a musical instrument. A person who pl ...

were a feature. The battery-operated

Clavioline The clavioline is an electronic keyboard instrument, a forerunner to the analog synthesizer. It was invented by French engineer Constant Martin in 1947 in Versailles. The instrument consists of a keyboard and a separate amplifier and speaker ...

keyboard (as used by

the Tornados The Tornados (The Tornadoes in North America) were an English instrumental rock group of the 1960s that acted as backing group for many of record producer Joe Meek's productions and also for singer Billy Fury. They enjoyed several chart hi ...

) is heard on "Keep Movin'", but is also heard prominently on their previous disc before Meek, "Sounds Like Locomotion". Al Holmes played the lead melody on flute throughout "The Spartans". 1966 was the first year the group released no singles in their home country, although they recorded a second album, again simply titled ''Sounds Incorporated''. This was released on EMI's fledgling Studio 2 label, primarily to show off EMI's mid-1960s advances and developments in stereo recording techniques. Any singles taken off the LP for foreign markets were in that format's standard mono, however, making these unusual items for UK collectors of the group. By 1967 the band's name had been truncated to "Sounds Inc". The Beatles invited Cameron, Holmes and West to be the saxophone section on their track "

Good Morning Good Morning "Good Morning Good Morning" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1967 album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. It was written by John Lennon and credited to Lennon–McCartney. Inspiration for the song came to Lenno ...

", from the album ''

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' is the eighth studio album by the English rock band the Beatles. Released on 26May 1967, ''Sgt. Pepper'' is regarded by musicologists as an early concept album that advanced the roles of sound composi ...

''. After this guest appearance, Sounds Inc left EMI and released a solitary single on the

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United State ...

label. Titled "How Do You Feel", it was their first single release to feature vocals. The group began to disintegrate in the late 1960s. Drummer Tony Newman left to work as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

and at one stage joined the Jeff Beck Group. He later joined Reid Hudson and James Black to form British/Canadian power trio

May Blitz May Blitz was a Canadian-British hard rock power trio that was active in the early 1970s. The group was formed in 1969 by bassist Terry Poole and drummer Keith Baker, the rhythm section of the blues-rock trio Bakerloo, both of whom lef ...

. For the remaining members of Sounds Inc, Cameron's departure for a career in A&R left a gap, which was filled by Terry Fogg (percussionist and drummer) and Trevor White, the band's first true vocalist. The group soldiered on, moving to and mainly playing in Australia for their final years together. Their act became more middle-of-the-road, exemplified in their final LP, which was released in many territories but not the UK, containing more vocals than instrumentals. Sounds Inc finally broke up in 1971.

Discography

Singles

*August 1961: "Emily" / "Mogambo" – Parlophone R4815 *November 1962: "Sounds Like Locomotion" / "Taboo" – Decca 11540 *February 1963: "Go" / "Stop" – Decca F 11590 *August 1963: "Keep Movin'" / "Order of the Keys" – Decca F 11723 *March 1964: "The Spartans" / "Detroit" – Columbia DB 7239 #28. UK. *July 1964: "Spanish Harlem" / " Rinky Dink" – Columbia DB 7321 #34. UK. *November 1964: "William Tell" / "Bullets" – Columbia DB 7404 *April 1965: "Time for You" / "Hall of the Mountain King" – Columbia DB 7545 *August 1965: "My Little Red Book" / "Justice Neddi" – Columbia DB 7676 *October 1965: "I'm Comin' Through" / "On The Brink" – Columbia DB 7737 *October 1967: How Do You Feel / Dead As A Go-Go – Polydor 56209

EPs

* August 1964: ''Top Gear'' – "Detroit" / "Spanish Harlem" / "Top Gear" / "The Spartans" – Columbia SEG 8360

Albums

* June 1964: ''Sounds Incorporated'' – "William Tell"/"Fingertips"/"I'm in Love Again"/"Rinky Dink/Bullets"/"Last Night"/"Sounds Like Movin'"/"One Mint Julep"/"Ready Teddy"/"Crane"/"Maria"/"Light Cavalry" – Columbia SX 3531 * November 1966: ''Sounds Incorporated'' – "Goldfinger"/"Little Bird"/"If We Lived on Top of a Mountain"/"Grab This Thing"/"Yesterday"/"Boil Over"/"What Now My Love"/"Zorba's Dance"/"Bahama Sound"/"On The Rebound"/"The Old and the New"/"Legend of Lyndos"/"Twilight of an Empire" – Studio Two TWO 144 Their recording career is currently covered on various CD sets. Virtually all of their recorded output is available, including rare and unreleased items. All tracks released as singles make up one compilation (''The Singles''). Both UK released albums are contained on another collection in stereophonic sound, and their third LP is covered in a specialist UK

compilation album A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several performers. If by one artist, then generally the tracks were not originally intended for rel ...

of rarer tracks. Many individual cuts spanning the first half of their career, appear on various specialist instrumental compilations. COMPILATION: Sounds Incorporated 1993 See For Miles Records CD No SEECD 371 1) The Spartans (1964) / 2) Detroit (1964) / 3) Rinky Dink (1964) / 4) My Little Red Book (1965) / 5) Hall Of The Mountain King (1965) / 6) One Mint Julep (1964) / 7) Last Night ( 1964) / 8) Crane (1964) / 9) Emily (1961) / 10) Mogambo (1961) / 11) Bullets (1964) / 12) Spanish Harlem ( 1964) / 13) Little Bird (1966) / 14) If We Lived On Top Of A Mountain (1966) / 15) Old and the New (1966) / 16) Grab This Thing ( 1966) / 17) Boil Over (1966) / 18) I'm Comin Through (1965) / 19) Fingertips (1964) / 20) I'm In Love Again (1964) Their third Decca single "Keep Movin'" / "Order Of The Keys" is most sought-out by collectors, mainly due to being produced by

. The first ''Sounds Incorporated'' was issued in both mono and stereo. Television recordings still exist featuring the group in action, although little if anything exists from the UK archives. They also appeared in ''

Pop Gear ''Pop Gear'' (U.S. title: ''Go Go Mania'') is a British music revue film, directed by Frederic Goode, which was released in 1965. It contains live concert footage of the Beatles, and lip-synched performances of some of the British Invasion bands ...

'', a music revue film made in colour, which has been released on video in recent years.

Band members

*Alan "Boots" Holmes (

baritone sax The baritone saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of instruments, larger (and lower-pitched) than the tenor saxophone, but smaller (and higher-pitched) than the bass. It is the lowest-pitched saxophone in common use - the bass, contrab ...

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

flute The flute is a family of classical music instrument in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, meaning they make sound by vibrating a column of air. However, unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is a reedles ...

) – (born Alan F. Holmes, 25 April 1939,

Rotherhithe Rotherhithe () is a district of south-east London, England, and part of the London Borough of Southwark. It is on a peninsula on the south bank of the Thames, facing Wapping, Shadwell and Limehouse on the north bank, as well as the Isle of D ...

, South East London) *"Major" Griff West (tenor saxophone/flute) – (born David Edward Glyde, 19 December 1940,

Barnehurst Barnehurst is a town and electoral ward in South East London within the London Borough of Bexley. It lies north east of Bexleyheath, and 13.0 miles (20 km) east south-east of Charing Cross. It is separated from North Bexleyheath by the A2 ...

, Kent) *Barrie Cameron (organ/baritone saxophone) – (born Barrie Cameron-Elmes, 25 October 1939,

Erith Erith () is an area in south-east London, England, east of Charing Cross. Before the creation of Greater London in 1965, it was in the historical county of Kent. Since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Bexley. It lies nort ...

, Kent Died 11 November 2019) *John St. John (lead guitar) – (born John Gillard, 1 April 1940, Dartford Hospital,

, Kent) *Wes Hunter (bass) – (born Richard Thomas, 17 December 1941,

, Kent. Died 4 April 2013, Barnehurst) * Tony Newman (drums) – (born Richard Anthony Newman, 17 March 1943,

Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...

, Hampshire) * Trevor White (vocals/keyboard/piano/drums) – (born 3 August 1947,

Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Southend-on-Sea and Colchester. It is located north-east of Londo ...

, Essex) *Terry Fogg (drums/percussion) – (born Terrence George Fogg, 25 September 1945, Chesterfield, Derbyshire)

References

External links

* Allmusic.com biography by Steve Huey {{DEFAULTSORT:Sounds Incorporated Beat groups English pop music groups Musical groups established in 1961 Musical groups disestablished in 1971 1961 establishments in England