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The Zombies

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For the undead creature of Vodou lore, see zombie. For other meanings, see Zombie (disambiguation).

The Zombies

Background information
Origin	St Albans, Herts, England
Genre(s)	Psychedelic pop British Invasion Psychedelic folk
Years active	1961 - 1967
Label(s)	Decca Records CBS Records
Associated acts	Argent
Members
Rod Argent Paul Atkinson Colin Blunstone Chris White Hugh Grundy

The Zombies, formed in 1961 in St Albans, were an English rock band. Led by Rod Argent on piano and Colin Blunstone on vocals, the band scored US hits in the mid- and late-1960s with "She's Not There", "Tell Her No," and "Time of the Season." Although they never rose to the prominence of other British invasion bands, The Zombies are a favourite of music critics for their sophisticated, jazz-inspired musical arrangements and vocal harmonies. Their 1967 album Odessey and Oracle, comprising twelve songs by the group's principal songwriters, Argent and Chris White, now considered one of the best of its time, is ranked 80 on Rolling Stone Magazine's list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.^[1]

1 Line-up
2 History
3 Quotation
4 Discography
5 References
6 External links

Line-up

Rod Argent - born Rodney Terence Argent, 14 June 1945, in St Albans, Hertfordshire - (organ, vocals and songwriting)
Paul Atkinson - born Paul Ashley Warren Atkinson, 19 March 1946 in Cuffley, Hertfordshire, died 1 April 2004 in Santa Monica, CA - (guitar, vocals)
Colin Blunstone - born Colin Edward Michael Blunstone, 24 June 1945, in Hatfield, Hertfordshire - (lead vocals)
Chris White - born Christopher Taylor White, 7 March 1943, in Barnet, Hertfordshire - (bass, vocals and songwriting)
Hugh Grundy - born Hugh Birch Grundy, 6 March 1945, in Winchester, Hampshire - (drums)

History

The group formed in 1961 in St Albans, England, and gained their initial reputation playing the Old Verulamians Rugby Club in that town. The group was formed whilst the members were at school. Some sources state that Argent, Atkinson and Grundy were at St Albans School, while Blunstone and White were students at St Albans Boys' Grammar School (since renamed Verulam School).^[2]^[3] Other sources claim they were all at St Albans Boys' Grammar School;^[4] however, this is not correct. After winning a beat-group competition sponsored by the London Evening News, the Zombies signed to Decca and recorded their first hit, "She's Not There" (Argent's second song, written specifically for this session), which was released in mid-1964 and peaked at number 12 in the UK, where it would be their only UK Top 40 hit. This minor-key, jazz-tinged number, distinguished by its musicianship and Blunstone's breathy vocal, was unlike anything previously heard in British rock and would become a bona fide classic. It was first aired in the United States in early August 1964 on New York City rock station WINS by Stan Z. Burns, who debuted the song on his daily noontime "Hot Spot" segment during which new songs were played. The tune began to catch on in early fall and eventually climbed to #2. Like many other British Invasion groups, the Zombies were sent to America to tour behind their new hit single. One of their most memorable early U.S. gigs were Murray the K's Christmas shows at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre, where the band played seven performances a day. Hugh Grundy later recalled also contributing to the sets by the Shangri-Las...not as a musician, but by revving a motorcycle brought backstage as a sound effect for their performance of "Leader of the Pack". In early 1965, Rod Argent's "Tell Her No" became another big seller in the United States (where it was a hit a second time, in 1983 for American pop vocalist Juice Newton), but had failed to make the Top 40 in the band's native UK. Although subsequent recordings such as "I Love You" (which became a hit for People! in 1968), "Indication", "Whenever You're Ready", and "Is This the Dream" were of uniformly high quality, none achieved the success of the previous two singles. In 1967, the Zombies signed to CBS Records for one final LP, only the second of their career and the first one produced as a single unit. Their previous LP, Begin Here (1965), was a collection of early singles, half a dozen original songs combined with several R&B covers. The resulting album, Odessey and Oracle, was one of the very first to utilize a Mellotron keyboard, as the band's budget did not allow for the hiring of session musicians. The band discovered too late that "odyssey" had been misspelled by the cover designers and were reportedly deeply embarrassed.

Odessey and Oracle

By the time Odessey and Oracle was released in April 1968, the band had broken up. The album sold little, and was only released in the U.S. because musician Al Kooper vouched for it. An album track called "Time of the Season", again written by Argent, was released as a single and eventually (1969) it became a huge nationwide hit (Billboard #3) after a radio DJ discovered it and put it on heavy rotation. Since the group declined to perform, various concocted groups tried to capitalize on the success and falsely toured under the band's name. After The Zombies, Rod Argent formed a band called Argent, while Blunstone eventually launched a solo career. In 2003, Blunstone and Argent reunited to record and tour, and released an album in 2004 credited to the Zombies (As Far as I Can See...), which received generally mixed reviews. A 120-track compilation of the original band's work, Zombie Heaven, was much better regarded.In 2005 Colin Blunstone and Rod Argent of The Zombies released a DVD and 2-CD album (Live At The Bloomsbury Theatre), which received excellent reviews in the Times, Mojo, The Sun and other publications. In November of 1997, all five Zombies reunited at a club in London as part of a solo show by Blunstone, to perform "She's Not There" and "Time of the Season". Guitarist Paul Atkinson died in Santa Monica, California, on April 1, 2004. Having retired as a performer, he was a highly successful A&R man for many years. In 2006 Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone carried on touring, as Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone of The Zombies. Their U.S.tour of 2007 garnered stellar reviews - "The Zombies, still led by original keyboard wizard Rod Argent and featuring the smoked-silk vocals of Colin Blunstone, is the finest British-invasion-era band still touring that doesn't have Mick Jagger as a frontman"- The Washington Times.

To mark the 40th anniversary of Odessey & Oracle all surviving members of The Zombies will participate in a series of concerts at London's Shepherd's Bush in March 2008. The Zombies with additional gitarist Keith Airey will play the album in its entirety. In addition, Blunstone and Argent, with their current touring group, will play a selection of other Zombies songs and solo material. One of the band's songs "This Will be Our Year," was featured in a 2006 Nike advertisement dedicated to Tiger Woods's late father. Use of the Begin Here album track "The Way I Feel Inside" in the soundtrack to the 2004 film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou has spurred on another generation to seek out and revive their music. Many of their songs are used in the 2004 film Dear Wendy. A remix of their song "She's Not There" can be heard in Kill Bill Volume 2 as The Bride enters Bill's home. 'Time of the Season' was used by Bulmers/Magners cider in their March 2006 spring television advertisement campaign (http://www.bulmers.ie/the-ads/). They are re-running it in 2007 in the UK and Republic of Ireland.

Quotation

"Over the course of the ensuing decades, [The Zombies'] final album...Odessey and Oracle - a beautifully arranged, harmony drenched pristine pop paean to memory, the changing seasons, the passage of time and lost love - slowly began to be recognised as one of the greatest albums of the 1960s." New York Times, 1998

Discography

Albums

Studio Albums

The Zombies (Featuring "She's Not There" and "Tell Her No") (U.S.) (1965) #39 U.S.
Begin Here (UK) (1965)
Odessey and Oracle (1968) #95 U.S.
As Far As I Can See... (2004)
Live At The Bloomsbury Theatre(2005)

Collaborations & Contributions

Bunny Lake Is Missing - An Original Soundtrack Recording (1965) (contributed tracks)
New World (1991) (featuring Blunstone, White, Grundy, and Sebastian Santa Maria. Rod Argent appears on "Time of the Season" remake.)

Compilations

(A 28 song compilation from 1965-1968) (1972)
Zombie Heaven (1997) (4 CD comprehensive compilation with rarities and live recordings)
The Singles As and Bs (2005)
The Ultimate Zombies - Original Hits (2007)
Into the Afterlife (2007) (compilation of post Odessey and Oracle recordings)

Singles

Release date	Title	Chart positions
Release date	Title	U.K.	U.S.	CAN
August 1964	"She's Not There"	#12	#2	#2
November 1964	"Leave Me Be"	—	—	—
December 1964	"Tell Her No"	#42	#6	#6
March 1965	"She's Coming Home"	—	#58	#21
June 1965	"I Want You Back Again"	—	#95	—
August 1965	"Whenever You're Ready"	—	#110	—
September 1965	"Just Out Of Reach"	—	#113	—
February 1966	"Is This The Dream"	—	—	—
June 1966	"Indication"	—	—	—
September 1966	"Gotta Get A Hold Of Myself"	—	—	—
November 1966	"Goin' Out Of My Head"	—	—	—
November 1967	"Care Of Cell 44"	—	—	—
June 1968	"Butcher's Tale (Western Front 1914)"	—	—	—
November 1968	"Time of the Season"	—	#3	#1
May 1969	"Imagine The Swan"	—	#109	—

Covers

Dave Matthews Band began occasionally performing "Time of the Season" on their 2005 Summer tour, & subsequently released a live version on their Weekend on the Rocks CD & DVD later that year. It continues to be a Dave Matthews Band crowd favorite.
Both "Time of the Season" and "She's Not There", were covered on American Idol by Blake Lewis and Chris Sligh respectively on the sixth season British Invasion episode.
In Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill Vol. 2, the song "About Her" is a remake of "She's Not There" by Malcolm McLaren.
Santana recorded a version of "She's Not There" and released it as a single and on their Moonflower album in 1977
The Necro song "Who's Ya Daddy" samples "Time of the Season."
OK Go covered "This Will Be Our Year" it appeared on the Future Soundtrack for America compilation (2004) and the John Tucker Must Die soundtrack (2006).
Jon Brion has covered multiple Zombies songs live, including "Time of the Season" and "This Will Be Our Year."
Boston based Indie-pop duo Action Camp closed out their rare Live at Howlers EP with "The Way I Feel Inside". They have also performed an electronic arrangement of "Time of the Season" on occasion.
The late Elliott Smith performed a cover of "Care of Cell 44."
The Tough Alliance recorded a cover of the song "Hung up on a Dream", released as the b-side of their single "First Class Riot" in 2007.

References

Guinness Book of British Hit Singles - 16th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-190-X
Guinness Book of British Hit Albums - 7th Edition - ISBN 0-85112-619-7
Guinness Rockopedia - ISBN 0-85112-072-5
The Great Rock Discography - 5th Edition - ISBN 1-84195-017-3
The Book of Golden Discs - 2nd Edition - ISBN 0-214-20512-6

External links

• • e The Zombies
Colin Blunstone · Rod Argent · Chris White · Paul Atkinson · Hugh Grundy
Albums	Begin Here · Odessey and Oracle · New World · As Far As I Can See...
Singles	"She's Not There" · "Leave Me Be" (1964) · "Tell Her No" (1965) "Time of the Season"