| DAVE DEE,
DOZY, BEAKY, MICK AND TICH (ARTIST BIOGRAPHY)
The tongue-twisting name is as unique as the band
itself. It was formed in 1964 in Wiltshire, England, was active
until 1972.
Starting out in the very early 60s as Dave Dee and The Bostons, the
Dozies plied their trade around various UK venues and were also
extremely popular on the Hamburg scene, playing clubs like The Top
Ten and The Star Club. Their stage act involved a lot of humor and
showmanship - in fact it still does - which made them stand out on
the circuit.
The songs, too, were wonderfully dramatic, and although each one was
instantly recognizable as one of theirs (mainly penned by managers
and songwriters Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley) they also each had a
different theme to them, from the Greek influences of Bend It to the
Latino rock qualities of Save Me and many points in between.
The band’s name stems from the nicknames of the members, and was
thoroughly twisted and mangled by DJs and presenters alike. Well
you’ve got to admit it’s a bit of a mouthful, and it’s much easier
to refer to them as The Dozies for short.
Another aspect that made them stand out from the crowd was their
fashion sense. They would design their own clothes, get the material
and have them sewn together by a lady in Cheshire. Later the designs
would be copied and appear in some form in the Carnaby Street
boutiques for public consumption. Check out some of the vintage
footage of the band and you’ll be aware that they had quite an
influence on the clothing scene at the time.
The Dozies only had one UK number one hit - The Legend Of Xanadu -
in 1968, but they did have a lot of top ten and top twenty hits in
the 60s and one year spent around 50 weeks in the chart!
The end of the decade saw the end of the band, and Dave Dee went
into production for a while. Nowadays the former police cadet is a
Justice of the Peace and still tours, as do the others, often
together. Keep an eye on the local gig listings they are well worth
checking out!
Many people heard about the band when Hold Tight! was released on
the soundtrack of a Tarantino Movie: Quentin Tarantino’s Death
Proof.
www.dddbmt.com |
