Tommy Quickly (born Thomas Quigley, 7 July 1945) is an English

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

singer who recorded mostly in the early 1960s. He was a later signing of artist manager

Brian Epstein Brian Samuel Epstein ( ; 19 September 1934 – 27 August 1967) was an English music entrepreneur who managed the Beatles from 1961 until his death in 1967. Epstein was born into a family of successful retailers in Liverpool, who put hi ...

, whose biggest act was

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

. He was born to Patrick Quigley and Dorothy Gower. He is the twin brother of Patricia Quigley.

Professional career

Spotted as the vocalist with local group the Challengers, Epstein liked Quigley but not the band, suggesting first a name change (to "Tommy ''Quickly'' and the Stops"), then pairing him instead with the Remo Four. The next change was in song selection; while Quickly's voice was best suited to

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 ...

, Epstein steered him toward pop songs, starting with his first single, " Tip of My Tongue", written by

John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...

and

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained global fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and the piano, and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John ...

. He then made the usual round of appearances on stage and in public, and was promoted by Epstein as part of his NEMS Enterprises artist stable. "Tip of My Tongue" was a flop, as were his next three singles. His fifth single, "Wild Side of Life", made the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart, spending eight weeks there. Quickly was offered the

Lennon–McCartney Lennon–McCartney is the songwriting partnership between the English musicians John Lennon (1940–1980) and Paul McCartney (born 1942) of the Beatles. It is widely considered one of the greatest, best known and most successful musical collabo ...

song " No Reply", but when he failed to issue it, the Beatles took it back and recorded it themselves. Described as young, naive and impulsive, and seemingly overwhelmed with matters since parting with the Challengers, Quickly was ill-prepared for the spotlight. When follow-up hits did not materialise, and with manager Epstein unable to push him further, Quickly retired from the

music industry The music industry are individuals and organizations that earn money by Songwriter, writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music and sheet music, presenting live music, concerts, ...

in 1965. Switching to television, Quickly served as co-host of ''The Five O'Clock Club'', a variety show aimed at children under twelve, from January 1965 to January 1966. Later that year he spent tıme in Walton Hospital, Liverpool, suffering from a breakdown; he has remained out of the spotlight ever since. Tommy Quickly and the Remo Four can be seen performing "Humpty Dumpty" in the 1965 film '' Pop Gear'' (released in the United States as ''Go Go Mania'').

Singles

*" Tip of My Tongue" (Lennon–McCartney) / "Heaven Only Knows" (30 July 1963,

Piccadilly Piccadilly () is a road in the City of Westminster, London, England, to the south of Mayfair, between Hyde Park Corner in the west and Piccadilly Circus in the east. It is part of the A4 road (England), A4 road that connects central London to ...

7N 35137) *"Kiss Me Now” / "No Other Love" (1963, Piccadilly 7N 35151) *"Prove It" (Gerry Marsden) / "Haven't You Noticed" (1964, Piccadilly 7N 35167) *"You Might as Well Forget Him" / "It's as Simple as That" (1964, Piccadilly 7N 35183) *" The Wild Side of Life" / "Forget the Other Guy" (October 1964, Pye 7N 15708) UK No. 33 *"Humpty Dumpty" / " I'll Go Crazy" (December 1964, Pye 7N 15748)

In popular culture

Tommy Quickly is portrayed by British actor Andrew Gower in the 2020 independent short film, ''Humpty Fu*king Dumpty'', which depicts Quickly's mental breakdown after his career failed. The film was written and directed by Stephen Walters, and released on 8 May 2020 on their official website HumptyFilm.com.

References

External links

Tommy Quickly: A Manager Recalls
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Tommy Quickly Oxford Reference
{{DEFAULTSORT:Quickly, Tommy 1945 births Living people English male singers Singers from Liverpool People from Norris Green