The Cougars were a short-lived
band
Band or BAND may refer to:
Places
*Bánd, a village in Hungary
* Band, Iran, a village in Urmia County, West Azerbaijan Province, Iran
* Band, Mureș, a commune in Romania
* Band-e Majid Khan, a village in Bukan County, West Azerbaijan Province, ...
, formed in
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 ...
, England, in 1961. They specialised in
rock music
Rock is a Music genre, genre of popular music that originated in the United States as "rock and roll" in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of styles from the mid-1960s, primarily in the United States and the United Kingdo ...
, mostly
instrumental
An instrumental or instrumental song is music without any vocals, although it might include some inarticulate vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a big band setting. Through Semantic change, semantic widening, a broader sense of the word s ...
versions
Version may refer to:
Computing
* Software version, a set of numbers that identify a unique evolution of a computer program
* VERSION (CONFIG.SYS directive), a configuration directive in FreeDOS
Music
* Cover version
* Dub version
* Remix
* Versi ...
of
pop
Pop or POP may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Pop music, a musical genre
Artists
* POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade
* Pop! (British group), a UK pop group
* Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band
Album ...
and
classical pieces.
Career
The band, comprising Keith Owen (
lead guitar
Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...
) (born 1942 died 2019), Dave Tanner (
rhythm guitar
In music performances, rhythm guitar is a guitar technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse (music), pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., d ...
) (born 1942), Adrian Morgan (
bass guitar
The bass guitar (), also known as the electric bass guitar, electric bass, or simply the bass, is the lowest-pitched member of the guitar family. It is similar in appearance and construction to an Electric guitar, electric but with a longer nec ...
) (born 1943 died 7 December 2023) and Dave Hack (
drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...
s) (born 1940), signed a
recording contract
A recording contract (commonly called a record contract or record deal) is a legal agreement between a record label and a recording act (artist or group), where the act makes an audio recording (or series of recordings) for the label to sell and ...
with
Parlophone
Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a 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 1923 as the Parloph ...
in 1963, after having been spotted at a
talent contest
A talent show or talent contest is an event in which participants perform the arts of singing, dancing, lip-syncing, acting, martial arts, playing an instrument, poetry, comedy or other activities to showcase skills. Many talent shows are per ...
by
EMI
EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
's
A&R man,
Norrie Paramor
Norman William "Norrie" Paramor (15 May 1913 – 9 September 1979) was a British record producer, composer, arranger, pianist, bandleader, and orchestral conductor. He is best known for his work with Cliff Richard and the Shadows, both togethe ...
.
Their
single
Single may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Single (music), a song release
Songs
* "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004
* "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008
* "Single" (William Wei song), 2016
* "Single", by ...
"Saturday Nite at the Duck-Pond" used music from ''
Swan Lake
''Swan Lake'' ( rus, Лебеди́ное о́зеро, r=Lebedínoje ózero, p=lʲɪbʲɪˈdʲinəjə ˈozʲɪrə, links=no ), Op. 20, is a ballet composed by Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1875–76. Despite its initial failu ...
'' by
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popula ...
.
The song achieved some notoriety for being 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 ...
, despite which it spent eight weeks in the
UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 33.
The reason for the ban was reported in the musical press, saying Saturday Nite at the Duck Pond was "a travesty of a major classical work".
Their songs "Red Square" and "Caviare and Chips" also borrowed themes from Tchaikovsky.
The Cougars' final session for Parlophone was on 16 December 1963, when they recorded "Caviare and Chips", "While The City Sleeps" and "Sausage Roll", although the latter track remains unreleased. After recording three singles and an
EP, The Cougars disbanded in 1964.
"Saturday Nite at the Duck-Pond" is included in the anthology ''20 One Hit Wonders'', published on the label
See For Miles
See for Miles Records (SFM) was a British record label that specialised in reissuing rock classics. It was one of the first British re-issue specialists predating the emergence of compact discs.
See for Miles reissued "oldies", including most of ...
and on
EMI
EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...
's ''Instrumental Greats of the 60's'' (CDB 7 94226 2 – 1990). "Fly-By-Nite" is on ''Instrumental Diamonds – Jumpin'' (
Sequel Records
Sanctuary Records Group Limited was a record label based in the United Kingdom and is, as of 2013, a subsidiary of BMG Rights Management solely for reissues. Until June 2007, it was the largest independent record label in the UK and the largest ...
– NEXCD 149 – 1990).
In 1996, the band performed at the
Pipeline Instrumental Rock Convention in London.
Lead guitarist Keith Owen born 1942 died in 2019.
Bass guitarist Adrian Morgan born Adrian Jeffrey Morgan 1943, Newport, South Wales died on 7 December 2023, Yeovil District Hospital, Yeovil, Somerset at the age of 80.
Discography
Singles
See also
*
List of songs banned by the BBC
This article lists songs and whole Discography, discographies which have been banned by the BBC, BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation) over the years. During its history, the corporation has banned songs from a number of high-profile artists, in ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cougars, The
Parlophone artists
English rock music groups
Rock music groups from Bristol
Musical groups established in 1961
Musical groups disestablished in 1964
1961 establishments in England