Biography All Music Guide Wikipedia
Group Members: John Sutton Band
All Music Guide:
Of all the British R&B bands to follow the Rolling Stones' footsteps, the Downliners Sect were arguably the rawest. The Sect didn't as much interpret the sound of Chess Records as attack it, with a finesse that made the Pretty Things seem positively suave in comparison. Long on crude energy and hoarse vocals, but short on originality and songwriting talent, the Sect never had a British hit, although they had some sizable singles in other European countries. Despite their lack of commercial success or appeal, they managed to record three albums and various EPs and singles between 1963 and 1966, with detours into country-rock and an EP of death rock tunes. Although they recorded afterwards, it is the Sect's early work that continues to attract connoisseurs of '60s garage and punk.
Wikipedia:
The Downliners Sect were a British rhythm and blues band of the beat boom era, formed in 1963 when the existing Downliners band split up.
Stylistically, they were similar to The Yardbirds, The Pretty Things and the Rolling Stones, playing basic R&B on their first album The Sect. Critic Richie Unterberger wrote: "The Sect didn't as much interpret the sound of Chess Records as attack it, with a finesse that made the Pretty Things seem positively suave in comparison."
They subsequently modified their musical style, and after an EP of 'sick' songs (e.g. "I Want My Baby Back") they experimented with both country ("The Country Sect") and rock ("Rock Sect's In"). They later collaborated with Billy Childish's Thee Headcoats, and released two albums under the name Thee Headcoats Sect.
