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In
December 1962 they became Johnny Sandon & The Remo Four in order to
embark on a tour of U.S. bases in France, when Roy Dyke replaced Prytherch
and Johnny Sandon joined them. They made several further appearances
on Beatles Cavern bills under the name Johnny Sandon & The Remo Four.
The group performed some original numbers, including an instrumental ‘The Rat Race’ and a number sung by Sandon, ‘Spanish Main’. Their single ‘Yes’, flipside ‘Magic Potion’, was issued by Pye Records on 27th August 1963, but Johnny left on 18th December, after two years, to go solo. The Remo Four turned down the offer of becoming Billy J. Kramer’s backing band but seemed fated to be cast in the role of a support group and accepted the offer of backing Tommy Quickly. The group thought that they were on the brink of success when they teamed up with Quickly. They were now managed by Brian Epstein and were included on the Beatles Christmas show at the Finsbury Park Astoria and also joined The Beatles on their autumn tour of Britain in 1964. |
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were excited when The Beatles provided them with ‘No Reply’ to record
and felt that it would be the single to take them and Tommy to the top
of the charts. The Remo Four recorded the backing track, then double-tracked
the guitars and added extra percussion, with Paul McCartney joining
them on tambourine and John Lennon clinking Coke bottles in the background.
Unfortunately, Quickly was slightly drunk and very nervous at the session
and the single was never released. The group then began to back a variety of singers including Georgie Fame, Billy Fury and Billy J. Kramer (when they called themselves the New Dakotas). By this time Tony Ashton had joined the group. The personnel of the band comprised Manley, Ashton, Dyke and Phil Rogers in 1968, when George Harrison used them on the recording of the ‘Wonderwall’ album. A number they recorded during the ‘Wonderwall’ sessions was ‘In the First Place’ and it was finally issued as a CD single in 1999. |
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Bass guitarist
Kim Gardner (who had appeared with The Birds, Ronnie Woods' first
band 63-66)) teamed up with Roy Dyke and Tony Ashton in the trio 'Ashton,
Gardner & Dyke' and they were later to have a chart hit in 1971 with
‘Resurrection Shuffle’. George Harrison was to play guitar on the
‘I’m Your Spiritual Breadman’ track on their album, ‘The Worst Of
Ashton, Gardner & Dyke’. When the group broke up, Colin began to back
singers such as Engelbert Humperdinck, Clodagh Rodgers and Freddie
Starr, before becoming a member of the Swinging Bluejeans. He died
of cancer in April 1999. |
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