Among their early US gigs were Murray the K's Christmas shows at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre, where the band played seven performances a day. Like many other British groups, the Zombies travelled to the United States to tour on the momentum of their hit single. L-R: Chris White, Colin Blunstone, Hugh Grundy, Paul Atkinson and Rod Argent. It sold over one million copies, and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA. The tune began to catch on in the United States and eventually climbed to number 2 in early December. It was released in mid-1964 and peaked at number 12 in the UK, becoming their only UK Top 40 hit. They signed a recording contract with Decca and recorded their first hit, " She's Not There". In 1964 the band won a £250 cash prize in a beat-group competition organized by the Watford Borough Council and sponsored by the London Evening News. Īrnold lost interest in the band, chose to leave to become a physician and was replaced by Chris White. ![]() Colin was wary, I'm sure, at the beginning, I know, but I always, always really, really liked it". Arnold explained the name, saying "I thought this was a name that no one else is going to have. Argent said "Well, we chose that name in 1961 and, I mean, I knew vaguely that they were: sort of, you know, the Walking Dead from Haiti and Colin didn't even really know what they were". "It was Arnold who came up with "the Zombies". To be honest, I didn’t really know what a zombie was". According to Blunstone, "Every young band wants an original name. ![]() Originally named the "Mustangs", the band soon realised that there were other groups with that name. If you’ll be the lead singer, I’ll play keyboards'". Blunstone added "I was literally in a corner singing to myself, doing a Ricky Nelson song, and Rod came over and said, 'That’s really good. They met outside the Blacksmiths Arms pub in St Albans before their first rehearsal and gained their initial reputation playing the Old Verulamians Rugby Club there.Īrgent said "We met outside a pub. They held their original rehearsals at the Pioneer Club, then situated on Hatfield Road, using equipment lent to them by the Bluetones. Argent was a boy chorister in St Albans Cathedral Choir. However, both Blunstone and Grundy came from Hatfield and both sang in the choir there at St Etheldreda's Church. Some sources state that Argent, Atkinson, and Grundy were at St Albans School, while Blunstone and Arnold were students at St Albans Boys' Grammar School. Colin Blunstone and Paul Arnold joined the other three to form the band in 1961, while all five members were at school. ![]() Rodford was in a successful local band, the Bluetones, at the time and so declined, but he offered to help Argent (Rodford would later join in 2004 when the band reformed). Argent wanted to form a band and initially asked his elder cousin Jim Rodford to join as a bassist. Three members of the band, Rod Argent, Paul Atkinson and Hugh Grundy, first came together to jam in 1961 in St Albans, Hertfordshire. History 1961–1964 The Blacksmiths Arms public house in St Albans, Hertfordshire, where The Zombies first met The Zombies were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019. ![]() Their 1968 album Odessey and Oracle was ranked number 100 on Rolling Stone 's 2012 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and number 243 on Rolling Stone 's 2020 list. In the US, two further singles-" Tell Her No" in 1965 and " Time of the Season" in 1968-were also successful. Led by keyboardist/vocalist Rod Argent and vocalist Colin Blunstone, the group had their first British and American hit in 1964 with " She's Not There". The Zombies are a British rock band formed in St Albans in 1961.
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