The Honeycombs

Biography Wikipedia

from Wikipedia:

The Honeycombs were an English beat/pop group, founded in 1963 in North London. The group had one chart-topping hit, the million selling "Have I the Right?", in 1964. After that song the interest in the group ebbed away, and they split up in late 1966. The group's most distinguishing mark was their female drummer, Honey Lantree.

Personnel

The original group members were:

Denis D'Ell (born Denis James Dalziel, 10 October 1943, Whitechapel, East London; died of cancer 6 July 2005) - Lead singer and harmonica playerMartin Murray (born 7 October 1939, The City of London) - Rhythm guitar. He was replaced by Peter Pye (born 12 July 1946, Walthamstow, London) in November 1964Alan Ward (born 12 December 1945, Nottingham) - Lead guitarJohn Lantree (born John David Lantree, 20 August 1940, Newbury, Berkshire) - Bass guitarHoney Lantree (born Ann Margot Lantree, 28 August 1943, Hayes, Middlesex) - Drums and singer

Career

The group started in November 1963 as an amateur band founded by Martin Murray. Its members were Murray, a hairdresser, his salon assistant Honey Lantree, her brother John and two friends. Originally they called themselves The Sheratons.

The group played dates in the West End of London, and at the Mildmay Tavern, a North London pub. Among those attending an appearance of the band in February 1964 were aspiring songwriters Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley. Howard and Blaikley would become a prolific British songwriting team, writing songs recorded by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, The Herd, Lulu and even Elvis Presley, but in 1964 they had just started their career. They got into conversation with the group, which appeared interested in a few songs the duo had just written. The group had already arranged an audition with indie record producer Joe Meek. The audition resulted in a recording of Howard and Blaikley's "Have I the Right?". Meek himself provided the B-side, "Please don’t pretend again".

Meek used his apartment at 304 Holloway Road, Islington, as a recording studio. Three UK No. 1 hits were produced there: "Johnny Remember Me" by John Leyton, "Telstar" by The Tornados and "Have I the Right?".

Conspicuous in "Have I the Right?" is the prominence of the drums, whose effect was enhanced by members of the group stamping their feet on the wooden stairs to the studio. Meek recorded the effect with five microphones he had fixed to the banisters with bicycle clips. For the finishing touch someone beat a tambourine directly onto a microphone. The recording was also somewhat speeded up.

"Have I the Right?" was released in June 1964 on the Pye record label. Louis Benjamin (1922–1994), Pye’s later chairman, rechristened the group The Honeycombs, a pun on the drummer’s name and her job as a hairdresser's assistant. The sales started slowly, but by the end of July the record started to climb in the UK Singles Chart. At the end of August the record reached No. 1. "Have I the Right?" was also a big success outside the UK, hitting No. 1 in Australia and Canada, No. 5 in the US and No. 2 in the Netherlands. Overall sales of the record reached a million. The Honeycombs also recorded a German version of the song: "Hab ich das Recht?" Both the English and the German versions reached No 21 in the German charts: the English one in October, the German one in November 1964.

From then on Howard and Blaikley acted as the group's managers and also wrote their next singles, "Is It Because" and "Eyes". These records did not sell well. This also applied to their fourth single, "Something Better Beginning", written by Ray Davies from The Kinks.

Soon after their first record had become a hit, The Honeycombs went on tour to the Far East and Australia, and were not able to promote their new records at home. The tour gained them a long-lasting popularity in Japan, however. Especially for the Japanese market the group produced a live album and a single, "Love in Tokyo". The group also made a lasting impression in Sweden, where they scored two No. 1 singles.

In July 1965, British music magazine NME reported that it had been agreed in the London High Court that "Have I The Right?" was the work of Howard and Blaikley. Composer Geoff Goddard agreed to drop allegations that he, not they, had written the song.

In August 1965 the group released, "That's the Way", with Honey Lantree sharing vocals with D'Ell (when on tour, Viv Prince of The Pretty Things took over the drumming). This record became their fourth British hit and reached #12. Its successor, "This Year Next Year", again with Lantree and D'Ell sharing vocals, did not reach the UK chart.

D'Ell sang on all but the last single the group recorded. "Who Is Sylvia?" was an adaptation of Franz Schubert’s song “An Sylvia”. "It's So Hard" was also recorded by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich as "Hard to Love You".

In April 1966 Denis D'Ell, Alan Ward and Peter Pye left the group. The last single "That Loving Feeling" (September 1966) was written and sung by the new singer Colin Boyd.

The Honeycombs made many appearances on music television shows such as Top of the Pops, Ready Steady Go! (UK), Shindig! (US), and Beat-Club (Germany). The group also appeared in the 1965 film Pop Gear, miming "Have I the Right?" and "Eyes".

The (new) Honeycombs and afterwards

The group went on, with new lead singer, guitarist and keyboardist (This line-up released the last single "That Loving Feeling"):

Colin Boyd (born Colin Nicholas Nicol, 4 June 1946, Combe, outside Bath, Somerset) - Guitar and vocals. Later he formed Honeybus and changed his name to Colin HareRod Butler (born Rodney Butler, 27 May 1944, Mill Hill, London) - Lead guitar and vocals. Later he played with The Lemmings and subsequently The College Boys, formed by ex-Honeycomb Martin Murray. Butler later joined forces with D'Ell and formed Zarabanda and later still played in Violinski, with Mik Kaminski of the ELOEddie Spence - Keyboards and vocalsJohn Lantree - Bass guitarHoney Lantree - Drums and vocals

In 1967, The Honeycombs broke up.

In the 1990s founding member Martin Murray toured the cabaret circuit with a group called 'Martin Murray's Honeycombs'. Another line-up including Honey Lantree, Peter Pye and Denis D'Ell also successfully toured from 1991 onwards. John Lantree later rejoined this line-up. In 1999 record producer Russell C. Brennan asked D'Ell, Honey and John Lantree and Pye to record "Live and Let Die", on the Future Legend Records compilation, Cult Themes from the 70s Vol. 2. This compilation also featured Glenda Collins, another Joe Meek artist.

In 2004, with the rights to the name now secure, Murray organized a Honeycombs band, though the name "New Honeycombs" was still in use thereafter by a band featuring several other interim members. At present there are two groups calling themselves the Honeycombs, one led by founder member Martin Murray, the other by later member Tony Harte. In 2011 a band led by Paul Bonner appeared calling themselves The New Honeycombs after working with Martin Murray as The Honeycombs for over a year. Subsequently the legal rights to the name The New Honeycombs were secured.