Chris Townson
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Chris Townson (24 July 1947 – 10 February 2008) was an English musician, illustrator and
social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...
er. He was a founding member of the 1960s rock group
John's Children John's Children were a 1960s rock band from Leatherhead, England that briefly featured future T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan. John's Children were known for their outrageous live performances and were booted off a tour with the Who in Germany in 19 ...
, and a member of several other bands, including Jook, Jet and
Radio Stars Radio Stars are an English punk rock band formed in early 1977. They released two albums and had one UK Singles Chart, UK Top 40 single. Career Radio Stars were formed by Sparks (band), Sparks exile Martin Gordon (bass, songwriter) and also i ...
. He replaced
The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
's
Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 1946 – 7 September 1978) was an English musician who was the drummer for the rock band the Who. Regarded as one of the greatest drummers in the history of rock music, he was noted for his unique style of playing and ...
on drums on a 1967 UK tour after Moon had injured himself, and he jammed with
Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
at the Speakeasy rock club in London. Later in his life Townson quit the music business and became an illustrator and a highly respected
social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...
er.


Early life

Chris Townson was born in
Battersea Battersea is a large district in southwest London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and also extends along the south bank of the Thames Tideway. It includes the Battersea Park. Hist ...
, London on 24 July 1947. He was abandoned by his parents at the age of four, and spent his early childhood in
foster care Foster care is a system in which a minor has been placed into a ward, group home ( residential child care community or treatment centre), or private home of a state- certified caregiver, referred to as a "foster parent", or with a family mem ...
. In 1958, after passing the
entrance exam In education, an entrance examination or admission examination is an examination that educational institutions conduct to select prospective students. It may be held at any stage of education, from primary to tertiary, even though it is typicall ...
, the
London County Council The London County Council (LCC) was the principal local government body for the County of London throughout its existence from 1889 to 1965, and the first London-wide general municipal authority to be directly elected. It covered the area today ...
sent Townson to the Stoatley Rough School in
Haslemere The town of Haslemere () and the villages of Shottermill and Grayswood are in south-west Surrey, England, around south-west of London. Together with the settlements of Hindhead and Beacon Hill (Hindhead, Surrey), Beacon Hill, they comprise ...
, Surrey, where he was resident for two years. In the early 1960s, Townson attended
Box Hill School Box Hill School was a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private coeducational Boarding school, boarding and day school until they merged with Reigate Grammar School and became RGS Surrey Hills in 2025. It was situated in the village of Mic ...
, also in Surrey, and there he met
Andy Ellison Andrew Ellison (born 5 July 1945 in Finchley, London, England) is an English musician and vocalist, best known as the frontman in John's Children, Jet and Radio Stars. Biography He attended Box Hill School in Surrey, where he met Chris Tow ...
.


John's Children

In 1965 Townson and Ellison formed a band called the Clockwork Onions, which later became The Few, and then The Silence. The band was Townson (drums), Ellison (vocals), Geoff McClelland (guitar) and John Hewlett (bass guitar). Townson invited The Yardbirds' manager
Simon Napier-Bell Simon Robert Napier-Bell (born 22 April 1939) is an English record producer, music manager, author and journalist. At different times, he has managed artists as diverse as the Yardbirds, John's Children, Marc Bolan, Japan, London, Sinéad O'Co ...
to see The Silence perform, and while Napier-Bell thought they were "dreadful", he was impressed by their antics and agreed to manage them. He changed the group's name to
John's Children John's Children were a 1960s rock band from Leatherhead, England that briefly featured future T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan. John's Children were known for their outrageous live performances and were booted off a tour with the Who in Germany in 19 ...
and said they should make their act "as outrageous as possible" to attract the attention of the press. The band was named after their bass player because he played so badly and Napier-Bell wanted to be sure the band would not fire him. In March 1967
Marc Bolan Marc Bolan ( ; born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 – 16 September 1977) was an English guitarist, singer-songwriter and poet. He was a pioneer of the glam rock movement in the early 1970s with his band T. Rex (band), T. Rex. Bolan strongly i ...
joined John's Children and Napier-Bell signed them with
Track Records Track Record (a.k.a. Track Records) was founded in 1966 in London by Kit Lambert and Chris Stamp, then managers of the rock group The Who. It was one of the first British-owned independent record labels in the United Kingdom. The most succ ...
, which included artists like The Who and
The Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential guitarists of all time. Inducted ...
. John's Children released several
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'' ...
, including "
Desdemona Desdemona () is a character in William Shakespeare's play ''Othello'' (c. 1601–1604). Shakespeare's Desdemona is a Venice, Italy, Venetian beauty who enrages and disappoints her father, a Venetian senator, when she elopes with Othello (char ...
", which was banned by the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
because of its lyrics. Their live act, according to Townson, was "theatre", "anarchy" and "deconstruction". They fought each other on stage, used chains, fake blood and feathers, and they trashed their instruments. In general the band "whip edthe audience into a frenzy". In April 1967 John's Children went on a tour of Germany with The Who, also notorious for their own wild stage performances. But John's Children were sent home early because they "upstaged" The Who, and their act in
Ludwigshafen Ludwigshafen, officially Ludwigshafen am Rhein (; meaning "Ludwig I of Bavaria, Ludwig's Port upon the Rhine"; Palatine German dialects, Palatine German: ''Ludwichshafe''), is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in the German state of Rh ...
caused a riot in the audience, which nearly prevented The Who from playing. A few months later, however, The Who called on Townson's services when their drummer
Keith Moon Keith John Moon (23 August 1946 – 7 September 1978) was an English musician who was the drummer for the rock band the Who. Regarded as one of the greatest drummers in the history of rock music, he was noted for his unique style of playing and ...
had injured himself demolishing his own drum kit on stage. Townson drummed with The Who, his "all time favourite band", in four of their concerts in June 1967. But The Who got their revenge on Townson for John's Children's "reckless behaviour" on the German tour: at the end of his last gig with them, they "blew imoff the stage" with
flash powder Flash powder is a pyrotechnic composition, a mixture of an oxidizer and a metallic fuel, which burns quickly (deflagrates) and produces a loud noise, regardless of confinement in some formulations. It is widely used in theatrical and display pyro ...
. John's Children split up in late 1967 after only 18 months, but in that short period of time they had achieved a "cult status".


Later life

Townson played in several groups after John's Children, including Jook, Jet and
Radio Stars Radio Stars are an English punk rock band formed in early 1977. They released two albums and had one UK Singles Chart, UK Top 40 single. Career Radio Stars were formed by Sparks (band), Sparks exile Martin Gordon (bass, songwriter) and also i ...
. In the late 1970s Townson quit the music business and built a successful career illustrating album covers and books. Later, and for health reasons, he studied to be a
social work Social work is an academic discipline and practice-based profession concerned with meeting the basic needs of individuals, families, groups, communities, and society as a whole to enhance their individual and collective well-being. Social wo ...
er, and worked with the
National Children's Home Action for Children (formerly National Children's Home) is a UK children's charity created to help vulnerable children and young people and their families in the UK. The charity has 7,000 staff and volunteers who operate over 475 services in ...
, becoming director of its Phoenix Project. It was Townson's own difficult childhood and the help he had received from social workers at the time that gave him an "innate understanding" of the children's circumstances. Townson rejoined John's Children when they reformed in the late 1990s for the occasional tour, and recorded a single with them in 2006. He also played on all of (former Jet member)
Martin Gordon Martin Gordon (born 3 May 1954) is an English musician who plays bass guitar, double bass, and piano. After a long period as band member and session musician, he embarked on a solo career in 2004. His most recent album release was in 2024. Bi ...
's solo albums, and also illustrated a book which accompanied one of them, entitled ''The Illustrated and Annotated 'God's on His Lunchbreak, Please Call Back' Companion Volume''.


Death

Townson died of cancer in London on 10 February 2008. He was married twice and fathered four daughters and a son.


Influences

Notwithstanding the
Beatlemania Beatlemania was the fanaticism surrounding the English rock band the Beatles from 1963 to 1966. The group's popularity grew in the United Kingdom in late 1963, propelled by the singles " Please Please Me", "From Me to You" and " She Loves Yo ...
that was sweeping the country at the time, Townson and Ellison were more interested in the
rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...
sound of
The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...
,
The Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock music, rock band formed in London in 1963. The band started the careers of three of rock's most famous guitarists: Eric Clapton (1963–1965), Jeff Beck (1965–1966) and Jimmy Page (1966–1968), all of whom ...
and
The Who The Who are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup (1964–1978) consisted of lead vocalist Roger Daltrey, guitarist Pete Townshend, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon. Considered one of th ...
. When Townson saw The Who perform, he said in a magazine interview some years later, "that was it, it was this that I wanted to do!"


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Townson, Chris 1947 births 2008 deaths People from Battersea People from Leatherhead English drummers English illustrators English social workers English male drummers 20th-century English male musicians People educated at Box Hill School