Marsupilami were an English

progressive rock Progressive rock (shortened as prog rock or simply prog) is a broad genre of rock music that primarily developed in the United Kingdom through the mid- to late 1960s, peaking in the early-to-mid-1970s. Initially termed " progressive pop", the ...

band active in the early 1970s. Their name was taken from a famous Belgian comics character created by Belgian artist

André Franquin André Franquin (; 3 January 1924 – 5 January 1997) was an influential Belgian comics artist, whose best-known creations are ''Gaston (comics), Gaston'' and ''Marsupilami''. He also produced the ''Spirou et Fantasio'' comic strip from 1946 to ...

. In 1969, the band toured with

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal music, heavy metal and modern hard rock, although their musical style has varied throughout their career. Originally for ...

, and played at the opening of the

Isle of Wight Festival The Isle of Wight Festival is a British music festival which takes place annually in Newport, Isle of Wight, Newport on the Isle of Wight, England. It was originally a Counterculture of the 1960s, counterculture event held from 1968 to 1970. Th ...

when

King Crimson King Crimson were an English progressive rock band formed in London in 1968 by Robert Fripp, Michael Giles, Greg Lake, Ian McDonald (musician), Ian McDonald and Peter Sinfield. Guitarist Fripp remained the only constant member throughout the ...

withdrew. They released two albums, ''Marsupilami'' (1970) and ''Arena'' (1971), on Transatlantic Records. The albums were reissued on

Cherry Red Records Cherry Red Records is a British independent record label founded in Malvern, Worcestershire by Iain McNay in 1978. The label has released recordings by Dead Kennedys, Everything but the Girl, The Monochrome Set, and Felt, among others, as w ...

in 2007. The band briefly reunited for gigs in 2011.

Personnel

*Mike Fouracre – Drums *Fred Hasson – Vocals, harmonica, words and music *Leary Hasson – Keyboards and music *Richard Lathom Hicks – Bass *Dave Laverock – Guitar, vocals, words and music * Jessica Stanley Clarke – Flute and vocals * Peter Bardens – Percussion and producer of ''Arena'' *Mandi Riedelbauch – Woodwinds on 'Arena' *Bob West – Vocals and words on 'Arena' * Paul Dunmall – Tenor and soprano saxes and flute

Discography

*''Marsupilami'' (Transatlantic TRA 213) 1970 *''Arena'' (Transatlantic TRA 230) 1971

After Marsupilami

Singer Jessica Stanley Clarke later became known as Jekka McVicar, who is one of the UK's best-known organic gardening experts, and proprietor of Jekka's Herb Farm near

Bristol Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...

. Fred Hasson has followed a career in media industries – TV, dotcom and video games, but can sometimes be seen at jam sessions in London playing harmonica. Leary Hasson still lives on the farm the band rehearsed in, and still plays in a number of local outfits. Bob West is now an artist living in France. Mike Fouracre works at the Arts Council. Paul Dunmall is still playing on the free jazz circuit with Keith Tippett and others.

References

External links

Official website (inactive)
*

Discography Discography is the study and cataloging of published sound recordings, often by specified artists or within identified music genres. The exact information included varies depending on the type and scope of the discography, but a discography entry ...

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

Marsupilami at The Tapestry of Delights
English progressive rock groups {{UK-band-stub