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The Graham Bond Organisation

April 02, 2023

The Graham Bond Organisation (GBO) were a British jazz/rhythm and blues group of the mid-1960s consisting of Graham Bond (vocals, keyboards, alto-saxophone), Jack Bruce (bass), Ginger Baker (drums), Dick Heckstall-Smith (tenor/soprano saxophone) and John McLaughlin (guitar). They recorded several albums and further recordings were issued when the group's members achieved fame in progressive rock and jazz fusion. The spelling of the band's original name varied between releases, often depending on the intended audience. The British English spelled as "Organisation" or "ORGANisation" (Bond's original plan), while in some other countries outside the UK spelled "Organization".

The Graham Bond Organisation
Genres
Years active
  • 1963–1967
  • 1969–1970
Labels
Past members

History

At the start of the British rhythm and blues boom the Graham Bond Organisation earned a reputation for playing aggressive R & B with prominent jazz and blues. Bond was the primary songwriter but encouraged the other musicians to contribute material, including Dick Heckstall-Smith's "Dick's Instrumental" and Ginger Baker's "Camels and Elephants", in which the drummer explored ideas he eventually developed into his signature piece "Toad". Jack Bruce's harmonica-driven version of Peter Chatman's "Train Time" would become a staple in Cream's live performances.

The first commercial recording by the original lineup of the Graham Bond Organisation was released under the name of singer Winston G. (real name Winston Gork). A protégé of expatriate Australian impresario Robert Stigwood, Winston had launched his career under the pseudonym "Johnny Apollo". In early 1965 both Winston and the Graham Bond Organisation were part of Stigwood-promoted UK package tour headlined by Chuck Berry (on which Stigwood incurred heavy losses). Since they shared management, the Graham Bond Organisation backed Winston on the Parlophone single "Please Don't Say" / "Like A Baby"; the A-side was credited "Arrangement directed by Graham Bond" and the B-side "Arrangement directed by Ginger Baker".[1] The band signed for Decca Records who released their dynamic version of the Don Covay composition "Long Tall Shorty" in 1964, backed with "Long Legged Girl" ("Long Tall Shorty" had been popularised by US singer/organist Tommy Tucker). Their best-known single, and the second released under their own name, was "Tammy" (Jay Livingston/Ray Evans) / "Wade in the Water" (trad. arr. group), recorded on 4 January 1965 at Olympic Sound Studios, London (EMI Columbia DB 7471, 29 January 1965). The track also appeared on their debut album The Sound of 65 (EMI Columbia, March 1965).

In 1965 the band appeared as themselves in the film Gonks Go Beat, where they played two songs including "Harmonica".

The band's fourth 45 featured the single-only tracks "Lease on Love" / "My Heart's in Little Pieces" (July 1965). The A-side is noteworthy for its pioneering use of the Mellotron, which Bond also played on several tracks on their second LP There's A Bond Between Us (November 1965); the album also included studio versions of the two aforementioned instrumentals. The single and the album tracks are believed to be the first 'popular' recordings to feature the instrument, since "Lease on Love" appeared more than a year before the first UK chart hit to feature a Mellotron—Manfred Mann's "Semi-Detached Suburban Mr. James" (October 1966)[2]—and at least 18 months before The Beatles made the Mellotron world-famous with "Strawberry Fields Forever" (January 1967).[3] The tracks recorded for the second album were also the last cut by the original Graham Bond Organisation lineup before Jack Bruce was fired in August 1965. On 7 August 1965 they played at the Richmond-on-Thames Jazz and Blues Festival which was televised on the US television show Shindig!.[4]

The band gained minor attention after their 'Waltz For a Pig' (originally titled 'Ode to a Toad') was issued as the B-side of the Who's 1966 single 'Substitute', which reached number 5 on the UK Singles Chart. The band was billed as 'the Who Orchestra' for this release and the track was written by Baker.

The group was plagued with problems because of substance abuse and Baker's ongoing feud with Bruce. Retrospectives of Cream indicate that Bond deputised Baker to fire Bruce, who joined Manfred Mann for a short time until July 1966 when Baker formed Cream with Bruce and Eric Clapton. The group recorded "St. James' Infirmary" without Bruce on 10 January 1966, which was released in the United States on the Ascot label and received indifferently. Another sideman was Mike Falana on trumpet.[5]

Bond reformed the Organisation with Jon Hiseman on drums. As a trio, Bond, Heckstall-Smith and Hiseman recorded the single "You’ve Gotta Have Love Babe" / "I Love You" (both by Graham Bond) on 18 January 1967 for Page One records.[5] Bond left for the USA, releasing two albums there in 1969 with well-known session players.[5] Hiseman and Heckstall-Smith would leave to join John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers for Bare Wires (recorded April 1968)[6] before forming Colosseum in the summer of 1968, with Tony Reeves on bass and Dave Greenslade keyboards.

The Graham Bond Organisation's lack of commercial success, internal struggles and drug problems brought the band to an end in 1967, but its importance was soon recognised with the vogue for blues and progressive rock and the increased sales of albums. The double album Solid Bond, released by Warner Bros. Records in 1970, compiled live tracks recorded in 1963 by the Graham Bond Quartet (Bond, McLaughlin, Bruce and Baker) and a studio session from 1966 by the final trio version of the Graham Bond Organisation (Bond, Heckstall-Smith and Hiseman).

Graham Bond reunited with his former bandmates in the early 1970s, playing with Ginger Baker's Air Force and also spending a short time touring with Jack Bruce's band. He subsequently signed a contract with Vertigo Records and was reportedly off drugs by this time, although he was becoming increasingly obsessed with black magic. Bond died in May 1974, when he was hit by a train at London's Finsbury Park underground station.

John McLaughlin is the last surviving member of the band as of 2021.

Band members

Timeline


Discography

See also

External links

  • The Graham Bond Organization discography at Discogs

References

  1. ^ Musicstoryteller#15.aline. "Obscure Bands Of The 50s & 60s: Winston G & The Wicked".
  2. ^ "Manfred Mann Discography - UK - 45cat".
  3. ^ "Mellotron - history".
  4. ^ "National Jazz and Blues festival Graham Bond Organisation".
  5. ^ a b c "Graham Bond Discography".
  6. ^ "John Mayall's Bluesbreakers* - Bare Wires". Discogs.
  7. ^ Strong, Martin Charles (2004). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate. p. 167. ISBN 9781841956152.

April 02, 2023
graham, bond, organisation, were, british, jazz, rhythm, blues, group, 1960s, consisting, graham, bond, vocals, keyboards, alto, saxophone, jack, bruce, bass, ginger, baker, drums, dick, heckstall, smith, tenor, soprano, saxophone, john, mclaughlin, guitar, th. The Graham Bond Organisation GBO were a British jazz rhythm and blues group of the mid 1960s consisting of Graham Bond vocals keyboards alto saxophone Jack Bruce bass Ginger Baker drums Dick Heckstall Smith tenor soprano saxophone and John McLaughlin guitar They recorded several albums and further recordings were issued when the group s members achieved fame in progressive rock and jazz fusion The spelling of the band s original name varied between releases often depending on the intended audience The British English spelled as Organisation or ORGANisation Bond s original plan while in some other countries outside the UK spelled Organization The Graham Bond OrganisationGenresRock rhythm and blues beat jazzYears active1963 1967 1969 1970LabelsDecca Page One Columbia AscotPast membersGraham Bond Jack Bruce Dick Heckstall Smith Ginger Baker Jon Hiseman John McLaughlin Contents 1 History 2 Band members 3 Discography 4 See also 5 External links 6 ReferencesHistory EditAt the start of the British rhythm and blues boom the Graham Bond Organisation earned a reputation for playing aggressive R amp B with prominent jazz and blues Bond was the primary songwriter but encouraged the other musicians to contribute material including Dick Heckstall Smith s Dick s Instrumental and Ginger Baker s Camels and Elephants in which the drummer explored ideas he eventually developed into his signature piece Toad Jack Bruce s harmonica driven version of Peter Chatman s Train Time would become a staple in Cream s live performances The first commercial recording by the original lineup of the Graham Bond Organisation was released under the name of singer Winston G real name Winston Gork A protege of expatriate Australian impresario Robert Stigwood Winston had launched his career under the pseudonym Johnny Apollo In early 1965 both Winston and the Graham Bond Organisation were part of Stigwood promoted UK package tour headlined by Chuck Berry on which Stigwood incurred heavy losses Since they shared management the Graham Bond Organisation backed Winston on the Parlophone single Please Don t Say Like A Baby the A side was credited Arrangement directed by Graham Bond and the B side Arrangement directed by Ginger Baker 1 The band signed for Decca Records who released their dynamic version of the Don Covay composition Long Tall Shorty in 1964 backed with Long Legged Girl Long Tall Shorty had been popularised by US singer organist Tommy Tucker Their best known single and the second released under their own name was Tammy Jay Livingston Ray Evans Wade in the Water trad arr group recorded on 4 January 1965 at Olympic Sound Studios London EMI Columbia DB 7471 29 January 1965 The track also appeared on their debut album The Sound of 65 EMI Columbia March 1965 In 1965 the band appeared as themselves in the film Gonks Go Beat where they played two songs including Harmonica The band s fourth 45 featured the single only tracks Lease on Love My Heart s in Little Pieces July 1965 The A side is noteworthy for its pioneering use of the Mellotron which Bond also played on several tracks on their second LP There s A Bond Between Us November 1965 the album also included studio versions of the two aforementioned instrumentals The single and the album tracks are believed to be the first popular recordings to feature the instrument since Lease on Love appeared more than a year before the first UK chart hit to feature a Mellotron Manfred Mann s Semi Detached Suburban Mr James October 1966 2 and at least 18 months before The Beatles made the Mellotron world famous with Strawberry Fields Forever January 1967 3 The tracks recorded for the second album were also the last cut by the original Graham Bond Organisation lineup before Jack Bruce was fired in August 1965 On 7 August 1965 they played at the Richmond on Thames Jazz and Blues Festival which was televised on the US television show Shindig 4 The band gained minor attention after their Waltz For a Pig originally titled Ode to a Toad was issued as the B side of the Who s 1966 single Substitute which reached number 5 on the UK Singles Chart The band was billed as the Who Orchestra for this release and the track was written by Baker The group was plagued with problems because of substance abuse and Baker s ongoing feud with Bruce Retrospectives of Cream indicate that Bond deputised Baker to fire Bruce who joined Manfred Mann for a short time until July 1966 when Baker formed Cream with Bruce and Eric Clapton The group recorded St James Infirmary without Bruce on 10 January 1966 which was released in the United States on the Ascot label and received indifferently Another sideman was Mike Falana on trumpet 5 Bond reformed the Organisation with Jon Hiseman on drums As a trio Bond Heckstall Smith and Hiseman recorded the single You ve Gotta Have Love Babe I Love You both by Graham Bond on 18 January 1967 for Page One records 5 Bond left for the USA releasing two albums there in 1969 with well known session players 5 Hiseman and Heckstall Smith would leave to join John Mayall amp the Bluesbreakers for Bare Wires recorded April 1968 6 before forming Colosseum in the summer of 1968 with Tony Reeves on bass and Dave Greenslade keyboards The Graham Bond Organisation s lack of commercial success internal struggles and drug problems brought the band to an end in 1967 but its importance was soon recognised with the vogue for blues and progressive rock and the increased sales of albums The double album Solid Bond released by Warner Bros Records in 1970 compiled live tracks recorded in 1963 by the Graham Bond Quartet Bond McLaughlin Bruce and Baker and a studio session from 1966 by the final trio version of the Graham Bond Organisation Bond Heckstall Smith and Hiseman Graham Bond reunited with his former bandmates in the early 1970s playing with Ginger Baker s Air Force and also spending a short time touring with Jack Bruce s band He subsequently signed a contract with Vertigo Records and was reportedly off drugs by this time although he was becoming increasingly obsessed with black magic Bond died in May 1974 when he was hit by a train at London s Finsbury Park underground station John McLaughlin is the last surviving member of the band as of 2021 Band members EditGraham Bond keyboards saxophone vocals 1963 1967 Jack Bruce bass harmonica vocals 1963 1965 Ginger Baker drums percussion 1963 1966 John McLaughlin guitar 1963 Dick Heckstall Smith saxophone 1963 1967 Jon Hiseman drums percussion 1966 1967 TimelineDiscography Edit1965 The Sound of 65 1965 There s a Bond Between Us 1988 Live at Klooks Kleek recorded October 1964 7 also issued as The Beginning of Jazz Rock See also EditSteampacket Manfred Mann Shotgun Express Blues Incorporated John Mayall Colosseum Harvey MandelExternal links EditThe Graham Bond Organization discography at DiscogsReferences Edit Musicstoryteller 15 aline Obscure Bands Of The 50s amp 60s Winston G amp The Wicked Manfred Mann Discography UK 45cat Mellotron history National Jazz and Blues festival Graham Bond Organisation a b c Graham Bond Discography John Mayall s Bluesbreakers Bare Wires Discogs Strong Martin Charles 2004 The Great Rock Discography Canongate p 167 ISBN 9781841956152 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Graham Bond Organisation amp oldid 1138301990, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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