Rhinoceros were a short-lived rock band in late 1960s. Paul A. Rothchild, then Elektra Records' talent scout and house producer conceived the idea to individually sign talented young musicians and then put them together in a group. They were
- John Finley, lead vocal
- Mike Fonfara, organ
- Alan Gerber, keyboard
- Doug Hastings, guitar
- Danny Weis, guitar
- Jerry "The Bear" Penrod, bass
- Billy Mundi, drums
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Formation
Jon and Lee & The Checkmates singer John Finley had been contacted by Paul Rothchild who had wanted to sign the group in November 1965. Rothchild invited Finley and Checkmates' bass player Peter Hodgson to his house in Laurel Canyon, Hollywood on November 30 to audition for a supergroup he was forming, subsequently to become Rhinoceros. The Checkmates' keyboardist Fonfara had joined The Electric Flag in mid-November for sessions and a brief tour of the US northeast and California. During mid-December, he ran into Finley and Hodgson at the Tropicana Motel in Los Angeles after being elbowed out of The Electric Flag and signed up to the Rhinceros project.
Career
Their self-titled debut album, produced by Paul Rothchild, was released in 1968. Despite heavy promotion and critical acclaim it didn't sell well. The album contained the instrumental "Apricot Brandy", which was later used as a signature tune by BBC radio, and was covered by Danny Gatton for the 1990 compilation Rubáiyát. Another of the album's songs, "Let Me Serenade You" was covered by Three Dog Night and went to #17 in the US in 1973. The next two years saw many changes of the line-up and two more albums. For their second album "Satin Chickens" (1969), Peter Hodgson replaced Jerry Penrod on bass. Hodgson had originally lost out to Jerry Penrod and subsequently rejoined David Clayton-Thomas in Toronto for his "David Clayton-Thomas Combine". He later returned to Los Angeles to work with Jackson Browne before finally joining Rhinoceros in April 1969. Alan Gerber and Billy Mundi, who had left the band, were replaced by two ex-Checkmates. Checkmates' guitarist Larry Leishman had played with "Freedom Fair" and "The Power Project" until mid-1968 and then with Bobby Kris & The Imperials. In early 1969, he reunited with Checkmates' manager/drummer Duke Edwards in The Duke Edwards Cycle. Later that year, both musicians joined Rhinoceros. "Better Times Are Coming", their third and last album, appeared in 1970.
Blackstone
In 1971, after the break up of Rhinoceros, John Finley, Michael Fonfara, Peter Hodgson, Danny Weis and Larry Leishman formed a new group called Blackstone, who recorded an album for Canadian label GRT, produced by Paul Rothchild. The musicians then went their separate ways.
