328:'s tour that year, as well as their own shows) and built a formidable army of fans - despite the fact that they did not fit the mold considered against the backdrop of old-fashioned punk movement. In the spring of 1978, they signed up for a live album with the participation of six groups of the Chiswick Records roster. The project was not fully realised, but the label released it as a mini-album called
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and died on 17 March 1979, and instead of the anticipated "breakthrough" the
Bishops were forced to retrench. They toured with Blitz Krieg (of Blast Furnace fame) deputising for Zen, and then Paul Balbi (drums) was deported back to Australia after returning from a Spanish festival. The band carried
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Shortly before the release (on Dutch label
Dynamite) of the single "Taking it Easy" (In the UK "Train, Train" was the A side and Taking it Easy the B), Spenser left the band after an incident involving a glass door and his boot. Johnny and Zen handled lead vocals for the next year, including on the
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The Count
Bishops formed in spring 1975 when members of the group Chrome joined the American vocalist Mike Spenser. In July of that year, Spenser (née Scolnick) called fellow countryman Johnny Guitar from Paris for five days straight and finally convinced him to pack up two Les Pauls and fly to the
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UK and join up with
Spenser and Zenon DeFleur (so named by Johnny after seeing him passed out on the floor at their first recording session). They found Steve Lewins (bass) and Paul Balbi (drums) within a few weeks. The new line-up recorded the next month at
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441:"The Count Bishops were a fine, energetic, R&B-based band capable of kicking out a fierce racket of noise that sounded like a grimier version of seminal British R&B revivalists Dr. Feelgood." (John Dougan,
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were a
British rock band, formed in 1975 in London and which broke up in 1980. The Count Bishops had limited commercial success, but forged an important stylistic and chronological link between the root
358:(Tom Robinson Band, Elton John) on drums and just Johnny on guitar for some months, including a tour of Australia with Balbi, but Zen's death had taken much of the impetus away and they split up.
448:"The sound of the Bishops in sensitive rockabilly mode has a swirling darkness and a restless rhythm, and it rattles by as hellbound as any classic blues locomotive." (Dave Thompson, Allmusic)
293:). With this lineup, the group finished recording its debut UK album, and toured heavily making a name for themselves and bringing to a new level their traditional influences of the 1960s:
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Dutch release "Good Gear" on the
Dynamite label. After recording the backing tracks for their first LP on Chiswick, they decided to bring over Dave Tice (formerly of Australian band
451:"This solid, unpretentious debut album belongs in the home of every fan of English R&B from the Yardbirds to the Pretty Things to Dr. Feelgood." (John Dougan, Allmusic)
332:, reducing the band name to the Bishops. With this material (and a new bass player Pat McMullan, who replaced Steve Lewins) the Count Bishops toured extensively.
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Speedball Plus 11 (1975 multinational, powerful punky boogie pub rock)
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with Barry Farmer at the desk and of these 13 tracks, four became the
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737:English new wave musical groups
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622:Rollin' with the Count Bishops
620:Erlewine, Stephen Thomas.
518:"Give pub rock another chance"
379:Rollin' with the Count Bishops
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742:Rock music groups from London
688:. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
682:The Best of the Count Bishops
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475:Chiswick Records - Early Days
429:The Best of the Count Bishops
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281:EP, the first release of
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58:"The Count Bishops"
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202:Past members
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41:Please help
36:verification
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607:18 February
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362:Discography
307:garage rock
299:the Beatles
166:garage punk
721:Categories
459:References
410:Cross Cuts
347:Cross Cuts
295:beat music
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222:Paul Balbi
212:Bob Burgus
69:newspapers
436:Reception
398:Good Gear
373:Speedball
326:John Cale
324:tour and
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279:Speedball
258:punk rock
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220:Dave Tice
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181:1975–1980
153:, England
711:Homepage
686:AllMusic
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83:scholar
431:(1995)
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158:Genres
151:London
147:Origin
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