Brinsley Schwarz

All Music Guide:

Pub rock, the English roots rock movement of the early '70s, would never have earned a cult following if it wasn't for Brinsley Schwarz. Initially, Brinsley Schwarz was a rambling, neo-psychedelic folk-rock band that borrowed heavily from Crosby, Stills & Nash and the Grateful Dead. Following a disastrous publicity stunt to promote its debut album, the band went into seclusion outside of London and developed a laid-back, rootsy sound inspired by Eggs Over Easy, an American band that had been playing a mixture of originals and covers in English pubs. Following their conversion to pub rock, the Brinsleys ditched their pretensions of stardom and became a down to earth, self-effacing rock & roll band. Between 1971 and 1974, Brinsley Schwarz toured England innumerable times, playing pubs across the country. Along the way, they established a circuit for similar bands like Dr. Feelgood and Ducks Deluxe to follow. Though the group was nominally guitarist Brinsley Schwarz's band, bassist/lead vocalist Nick Lowe provided the bulk of the group's songs. Lowe developed a distinctive songwriting voice -- conversational, melodic, offbeat, and funny -- and the band was infused with his skewed sense of humor. Despite strong reviews and a dedicated fan base, the Brinsleys never managed to escape cult status, yet they influenced a legion of other artists, creating an underground, back-to-basics movement that laid the foundation for punk rock.

Brinsley Schwarz didn't plan to start a grassroots movement -- the bandmembers wanted to be stars. Lowe and Schwarz had already spent several years in Kippington Lodge, a Tunbridge Wells-based guitar pop group that released five singles on Parlophone during the mid-'60s to no success. By 1968, the members of Kippington Lodge were beginning to feel restless with their straight-ahead pop/rock and were eager to explore psychedelia. Keyboardist Bob Andrews joined the band later that year and drummer Billy Rankin came aboard in the fall of 1969. By that time, Kippington Lodge had completely revamped its musical style, evolving into a folk-rock band with psychedelic pretensions and appropriately changing its name to Brinsley Schwarz after the group's lead guitarist. Ironically, it was around this time that Lowe became the band's lead singer and primary songwriter.

Within a few months, Brinsley Schwarz had come to the attention of Dave Robinson, a fledging rock & roll manager who had founded the Famepushers Agency. Robinson developed a complex scheme to elevate Brinsley Schwarz to stardom. According to his plan, the Brinsleys would play an opening set for Van Morrison at the Fillmore East in New York in the spring of 1970, and he would fly all of the leading rock journalists to America to review the show. Late in 1969, Brinsley Schwarz signed a record contract with United Artists, and the band financed the publicity stunt with its advance. The group planned to leave a few days before the show in order to rehearse, but the Brinsleys were denied visas on a technicality. They were finally given visas on the morning of the show, and arrived in New York hours before the concert. Back in Britain, the journalists ran into trouble, as their plane developed a mechanical fault, delaying the flight for four hours. When the journalists arrived at the Fillmore 18 hours later, they were either drunk or hung over. When Brinsley Schwarz finally hit the stage, the band gave a competent but underwhelming performance, setting the stage for a flood of scathing reviews for both the concert and the eponymously titled debut album, which appeared weeks after the showcase.

Reeling from the Fillmore fiasco, the group rented a house outside of London and spent days and nights playing music. By the end of 1970, the Brinsleys released a second album, Despite It All, which indicated that they were evolving into a country-rock outfit; guitarist/vocalist Ian Gomm joined the band at the end of the sessions for the record. For much of 1971, Brinsley Schwarz rehearsed, developing a blend of country, folk, R&B, and rock & roll that was largely inspired by the Byrds, Van Morrison, and the Band, as well as Eggs Over Easy, which the group met at the Tally Ho pub in Kentish Town. Silver Pistol, released early in 1972, demonstrated a new versatility, but the group truly flexed its muscles in concert, particularly during regular concerts at the Tally Ho. Soon, they had built a small but loyal following, and a number of likeminded bands began playing the same circuit. Eventually, this grassroots phenomenon came to the attention of the U.K. press, which dubbed the groups' style as "pub rock" and proclaimed Brinsley Schwarz as the style's leaders.

Nervous on the Road, released in the fall of 1972, was Brinsley Schwarz's best-reviewed album to date, and while it didn't chart, it helped the group land an opening slot for Paul McCartney. Throughout 1973, the Brinsleys toured constantly, not only playing pubs, but also colleges. As a result, they weren't able to record frequently, which hurt their already weak recording career. In an attempt to land a hit, the band released a series of non-album singles, none of which charted; they were compiled for the Please Don't Ever Change album, which was released in late 1973. Early the following year, the group cut its fifth album with producer Dave Edmunds. Released in the summer of 1974, New Favourites of Brinsley Schwarz was more polished than the band's previous albums, yet the record failed to generate any sales. The group continued for nearly another year, turning out a handful of singles under other names, before deciding to call it a day in the spring of 1975. Following the band's demise, Schwarz and Andrews became members of Graham Parker's backing band, the Rumour. Gomm pursued a solo career; Rankin played with Terraplane and Big Jim Sullivan's Tiger before retiring from music. Lowe became a successful solo artist and producer, scoring his biggest hit in 1980 with "Cruel to Be Kind," a Brinsley leftover that the band never recorded.

Wikipedia:

Brinsley Schwarz were a 1970s English pub rock band, named after their guitarist Brinsley Schwarz. With Nick Lowe on bass and vocals, keyboardist Bob Andrews and drummer Billy Rankin, the band evolved from the 1960s pop band Kippington Lodge.

Formation

Nick Lowe (bass, guitars, vocals) and Brinsley Schwarz (guitar, piano, vocals) originally met at Woodbridge School where they played in school bands with Barry Landerman (keyboards, vocals) and Phil Hall (guitar). In 1964, whilst still at school, they toured RAF bases in Germany as "Sounds 4+1". On leaving school, Schwarz formed "Three's A Crowd" with Pete Whale (drums) and Dave Cottam (bass). Landerman joined in 1967 and they renamed themselves "Kippington Lodge". Their first two singles, produced by Mark Wirtz, in a close-harmony pop style, both flopped. Cottam left, and Schwarz invited Lowe to join. Landerman then left to join Vanity Fare, Bob Andrews joined on keyboards, and finally, Whale was replaced by Billy Rankin on drums. Although the next three singles also failed, they had a residency as support band at The Marquee. The band's style was changing from pop into "a folk-rock band with psychedelic pretentions". In 1969 they renamed the band after their guitarist, and performed their new music under this name, whilst continuing to play pop as Kippington Lodge. One of the band's first agents was John Schofield, at the time the lover of Hattie Jacques (who would occasionally make bacon sandwiches for the band members when the visited Schofield's home). In the early part of their career the band shared a communal home in a large old house in Beaconsfield. The premises were used as a rehearsal space by The Band, who came to the UK as part of the Warner Brothers tour, where they borrowed the band's instruments.

The hype

Brinsley Schwarz signed a contract with manager Dave Robinson, of Famepushers, who devised a plan to earn the band extensive publicity. They were to open for Van Morrison and Quicksilver Messenger Service at the Fillmore East in New York City, on 3 and 4 April 1970. Robinson would fly a plane full of British journalists to the show, so they could review it, along with the winners of a Melody Maker competition, arranged in order to get pre-publicity. Though the band had planned on leaving a few days early, so they could rehearse, visa problems prevented this, so they went to Canada and entered the US in a light aircraft. They arrived in New York shortly before they were due on stage, and had to use hired equipment, which they were unfamiliar with. The journalists were due the following day, but their plane was delayed for four hours, so they had free use of the bar, and eventually arrived at the show either drunk or hung over. The show did not go over well, and the band received a flood of negative reviews over the following weeks, including bad reviews of their eponymous first album, Brinsley Schwarz which was released shortly after their return to the United Kingdom. This incident became known as the Brinsley Schwarz Hype.

Casey Kasem's version of this story, in a September 1979 episode of American Top Forty, implied that the presence of the critics was a surprise to the band.

Pub-rock

Later in 1970, Brinsley Schwarz released their second album, Despite It All, which had a definite country sound to it. They were heavily influenced by Eggs over Easy, who they first saw perform at 'The Tally Ho' in Kentish Town, and admired their laid-back style and extensive repertoire. In 1971, guitarist Ian Gomm joined the band, and they recorded their third album Silver Pistol. In response to "the hype", they became anti-commercial and spent much of 1971 rehearsing, although they toured on the Downhome Rhythm Kings package with Help Yourself & Ernie Graham (ex Eire Apparent), who were all managed by Dave Robinson. This led to them backing Ernie Graham on his eponymous solo album.

Brinsley Schwarz played at the second Glastonbury Festival (1971), and one track, "Love Song", appeared on the subsequent Glastonbury Fayre album. Their solid live performances soon garnered the band a large fanbase in London, and, along with bands like Eggs over Easy, Brinsley Schwarz were soon dubbed "pub rock" by rock journalists. They sounded rather like The Band, with Schwarz's guitar work influenced greatly by Robbie Robertson's. In February 1972 they supported Hawkwind and Man at the Greasy Truckers Party, which was issued as a double album, and brought critical acclaim. Unfortunately, for a band known for its live performances, this was their only live album.

1972's ironic take on country-rock, Nervous on the Road, also received excellent reviews. It did not reach the charts, but earnt(sic) them a UK tour, opening for Paul McCartney's Wings. The same year, they also acted as Frankie Miller's band for his debut album Once in a Blue Moon. Their fifth studio album Please Don't Ever Change, issued in 1973, was less well received by the critics, and achieved poor sales. However during this time they made successful appearances on The Old Grey Whistle Test with Lowe on guitar and vocals, Gomm on bass and Schwarz on piano alongside Andrews on keyboard and recorded sessions for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. In 1974 they arranged for Dave Edmunds to produce their sixth album The New Favourites of Brinsley Schwarz which was more polished, and again received good reviews. This association also led to their touring as Dave Edmunds' backing band, appearing on the live tracks of his Subtle as a Flying Mallet album. In addition to the albums, Brinsley Schwarz also issued a series of singles under their own name, and various pseudonyms, such as "The Hitters", "The Knees", "Limelight" and "The Brinsleys" but these all failed. They finally disbanded in 1975.

Subsequent careers

Schwarz and Andrews joined Graham Parker & the Rumour; later Andrews moved to New Orleans. He now plays in Dos Jefe's Uptown Cigar Bar and has a web page: www.neworleanspiano.com.

Rankin joined Terraplane and then Big Jim Sullivan's Tiger.

Lowe and Gomm both began solo careers, achieving moderate mainstream success. Lowe's 1978 album Jesus of Cool received considerable critical acclaim and reached number 22 in the UK albums chart. It included the track I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass, which reached number 7 in the UK singles chart and for which he is probably best known. The album also included Bob Andrews on keyboard and Dave Edmunds on guitar. He also co-wrote Dr Feelgood's top ten hit Milk and Alcohol, which reached number 9 in 1979. Lowe's (1980) single Cruel to Be Kind was co-written with Gomm and originally recorded by Brinsley Schwarz for their unreleased final album. This version was included on the 2008 30th anniversary edition of the Jesus of Cool album. In 1979 Gomm had a hit with Hold On, which reached number 18 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The original version of Elvis Costello's hit "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding", written by Lowe, was released by the band in 1974 on their album The New Favourites of Brinsley Schwarz, and also featured on the multimillion selling soundtrack of the movie The Bodyguard, where it was performed by Curtis Stigers.