Freddie & the
Dreamers were the clown princes of the 60s' beat-scene, mixing music
with comedy. They played their music for laughs, eschewing the
earnest stance of other contemporary combo's. Yet comic capers and
lightweight lyrics couldn't disguise an innate pop sensibility.
Lead singer Freddie Garrity started on the path to fame playing in
skiffle groups in the late 50s, switching to rock & roll in the
early 60s. Their debut release in Britain was a cover of R'n'B
favourite If You Gotta Make A Fool Out Somebody (by James Ray
and Maxine Brown) and it was a huge hit.
Subsequent releases were tailored to the quintet's effervescent
image, such as I'm Telling You Now and You Were Made For
Me, which reached the UK top 3. They had further hits in 1964
with Over You, I Love You Baby, Just For You
and I Understand.
But just as their appeal began to wane in the UK, new opportunities
opened across the water. After the Beatles smashed the American
market wide open, Freddie & the Dreamers formed part of the
British Invasion that converged Stateside to capitalise on the
path-breaking success of the Fab Four.
Their two biggest U.S. successes were 1965's chart-topping I'm
Telling You and Do the Freddie which reached 21.
The group broke up at the end of the 60s, but Freddie and assorted
cohorts often appear for revival concerts both home and abroad.
Freddie Garrity
(vocals)
Roy Crewsdon (guitar)
Derek Quinn (guitar)
Pete Birrell (bass)
Bernie Dwyer (drums)
With thanks to :: Manchester
On Line
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