Them (band)
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | April 1964 |
| Headquarters | Belfast , Northern Ireland |
| Products | Music albums and singles |
Them was a rock band originating from Belfast, Northern Ireland, established in April 1964. They are primarily recognized for their 1964 garage rock anthem "Gloria" and for being the starting point of Van Morrison's musical journey. The initial roster included Morrison, Alan Henderson, Ronnie Milling, Billy Harrison, and Eric Wrixon.
In 1965, Them secured two hits on the UK charts: "Baby, Please Don't Go" reached number 10, while "Here Comes the Night" climbed to number 2 in both the UK and Ireland. Additionally, "Mystic Eyes" and "Here Comes the Night" achieved positions within the US top 40.
Van Morrison departed from the group in 1966 to embark on a prosperous solo career. Them's influence extended to many musicians, notably the Doors.
Their rendition of "Gloria" was honored with induction into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1999. In Dave Marsh's 1989 publication The Heart of Rock and Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever, "Gloria" was ranked at number 69, while "Mystic Eyes" appeared at 458. Furthermore, "Gloria" was placed at number 208 in Rolling Stone magazine's 2004 list The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
Formation
In April 1964, Van Morrison responded to an advertisement seeking musicians for a new R&B venue located in the Maritime Hotel, an old dance hall favored by sailors. Having left his previous band, the Golden Eagles, Morrison joined forces with members of the Gamblers—an East Belfast group formed in 1962 by Ronnie Milling, Billy Harrison, and Alan Henderson. The young Eric Wrixon served as pianist and keyboardist while still attending school. Morrison contributed saxophone and harmonica skills and shared vocal duties with Harrison. At Wrixon's suggestion, the Gamblers adopted the name Them, inspired by the 1950s horror movie Them!.
Performances at the Maritime Hotel showcased Them's energetic style. Morrison frequently improvised songs live, including early originals like "Could You Would You," composed during a tour of Camden Town with the Manhattan Showband. The first presentation of Morrison's "Gloria" took place there, often extending into lengthy twenty-minute renditions. Morrison believed that their live shows at the Maritime Hotel captured an energy and spontaneity unmatched by their studio recordings. Following this period, the band's lineup became unstable; only Morrison and Henderson remained consistent members as a less successful version of Them continued after Morrison left.
Them secured a two-year recording contract with Decca Records through Dick Rowe. During this time, they released two albums and ten singles under Morrison’s tenure plus two additional singles afterward. They achieved chart success with three songs: "Baby, Please Don't Go" (1964), "Here Comes the Night" (1965), and "Mystic Eyes" (1965). Despite these hits, it was the B-side of "Baby, Please Don't Go," namely "Gloria," that became a garage rock staple covered by artists such as Patti Smith, the Doors, the Shadows of Knight, and Jimi Hendrix.
Maritime Hotel
On 14 April 1964, a Belfast newspaper featured an advertisement posing cryptic questions: "Who Are? What Are? THEM". Similar notices followed until 17 April, promoting Them’s upcoming performance at Club Rado within the Maritime Hotel. The venue held around two hundred people and quickly sold out as attendance swelled by the third week.
Them’s live shows were highly spontaneous and energized by audience interaction. Morrison later reflected that while studio recording felt somewhat artificial or constrained ("out of our element"), their live performances at the Maritime were vibrant and improvised. He frequently extended songs like "Gloria," which he had written at age eighteen, sometimes performing them for up to twenty minutes. Morrison remarked that "Them lived and died on the stage at the Maritime Hotel," although few recordings from this era exist. A fan-recorded version of "Turn On Your Love Light" eventually reached Mervyn and Phil Solomon, who then contacted Decca Records's Dick Rowe. After witnessing Them live in Belfast, Rowe and Solomon secured a two-year deal with the band. Since Morrison was only eighteen years old at that time, his father signed the contract on his behalf. Shortly thereafter, Them relocated to England to undertake their initial Decca studio session in West Hampstead.
During the Decca period
Them's inaugural recording session in London on 5 July 1964 yielded tracks including "Turn on Your Love Light," "Gloria," their first single "Don't Start Crying Now" / "One Two Brown Eyes," as well as "Groovin'," "Philosophy," and Bo Diddley's "You Can't Judge a Book by Its Cover." Interestingly, the songs "Gloria" and "One Two Brown Eyes" featured dual drum tracks, incorporating session musicians Arthur Greenslade on organ and Bobby Graham providing additional drumming. Due to contractual complications, Eric Wrixon was replaced by Pat John McAuley. The single released in August did not achieve commercial success.
Their subsequent release was Big Joe Williams' "Baby, Please Don't Go," which included Andy White on drums, Phil Coulter on keyboards, and Jimmy Page playing rhythm guitar, with Billy Harrison handling lead guitar duties. Issued in November with "Gloria" as the B-side, this single coincided with their television debut in December on Ready Steady Go!, where they appeared alongside The Rolling Stones. Manager Phil Solomon secured the song as the program's theme tune; it climbed to number 19 on the UK Singles Chart, eventually reaching number 10.
In January 1965, Them embarked on another tour of England, lodging at the Royal Hotel—known as disc jockey Jimmy Savile's London base—who actively promoted them through his column in The People. Despite this exposure, Them developed a reputation for discourteous behavior during interviews, possibly influenced by the prevalent anti-Irish attitudes of the time. Their management organized performances on Ready Steady Go! and Top of the Pops, where they were required to lip-sync their songs—a practice that Morrison openly criticized as "ridiculous."
Their most successful UK single was "Here Comes the Night," written and produced by American Bert Berns, co-author of "Twist and Shout." Paired with the B-side "All for Myself," it reached number 2 in the UK charts on 22 April 1965 and peaked at number 24 in the United States in May. Both tracks originated from an October 1964 session but were initially withheld in favor of Lulu's version, which only reached number 50.
On 11 April 1965, Them performed at the NME Pollwinners Concert held at Wembley Empire Pool alongside prominent groups such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, and The Kinks. They notably extended "Here Comes the Night" into a seven-minute version of "Turn on Your Love Light." Music critic Derek Johnson commended Morrison's genuine soulfulness compared to other British artists.
Their debut album The Angry Young Them was released in June 1965 in the UK and July in the US. However, their next single, "One More Time," selected by Phil Solomon, did not achieve commercial success. In mid-1965, drummer Terry Noon and guitarist Joe Baldi joined briefly but had left by September. Their sophomore album Them Again was released in January 1966 in the UK and April in the US.
Achievements in North America and Morrison's Exit
In the United States, the band was promoted as part of the British Invasion. Following the success of "Here Comes the Night," Them achieved another charting single in 1965 with "Mystic Eyes," which peaked at No.33. Their album Them Again, released in April 1966 in the US, also entered the charts, prompting a tour across America starting in May 1966. Between 30 May and 18 June, Them held a residency at Los Angeles' Whisky a Go Go. During the final week, The Doors served as their opening act; on the concluding night, both groups alongside Morrison engaged in extended jam sessions of "Gloria" and "In the Midnight Hour." Subsequently, Them headlined at The Fillmore in San Francisco before touring Hawaii, where financial disagreements emerged between the band members and management. This tension led to the band's breakup, with Morrison and Henderson returning to Belfast, while Ray Elliott and David Harvey stayed in the United States.
Reflecting on the split, Van Morrison commented: "You just did it because you wanted to do it... but it got twisted somewhere along the way... You can't take something like that, put it in a box and place a neat little name on it, then try to sell it. That's what killed Them."
Morrison went on to achieve solo acclaim, while Them's fusion of garage rock and blues left a lasting impact on later rock artists. Their most famous singles continue to be essential tracks within rock music.
The influential Proto Punk group from Detroit, MC5, covered Them's "I Can Only Give You Everything" in 1967.
Belfast Gypsies
In late August 1965, Billy Harrison and Pat McAuley established a competing version of Them, challenging the Morrison/Henderson lineup and leading to legal disputes. By March 1966, Morrison's group secured exclusive rights to the name; Harrison and McAuley's ensemble—now including Pat's brother Jackie McAuley—were restricted to using 'Other Them' within the UK. This faction unofficially became known as Them Belfast Gypsies, releasing two singles on Island Records (one under the name Freaks of Nature) along with an album issued only in Sweden produced by Kim Fowley. They toured Europe under the Them name and issued a French EP before disbanding in November 1966. Shortly thereafter, Morrison's lineup also dissolved. In March 1967, Morrison briefly toured the Netherlands with backing from Cuby & the Blizzards (minus their lead vocalist) before relocating to New York to pursue his solo career. The remaining members reassembled in Belfast, recruited Kenny McDowell (formerly of Mad Lads) as lead vocalist, and continued recording and touring after moving to the US in early 1967 at producer Ray Ruff's invitation.
From 1968 Until Disbandment
The albums Now and Them and Time Out! Time In for Them marked a period where the band delved into psychedelia. Jim Armstrong and Kenny McDowell returned to Belfast to form Sk'boo; later Armstrong, McDowell, and Ray Elliot reunited in Chicago during 1969 as Truth, producing demos and soundtrack pieces that were released as Of Them and Other Tales.
Alan Henderson engaged session musicians for two further albums under Ray Ruff's Happy Tiger Records, transitioning toward hard rock infused with country and folk elements. The 1969 release Them featured guitarist Jerry Cole, while Them in Reality (1970) included lead guitarist Jim Parker and drummer John Stark (both previously members of Kitchen Cinq). Henderson also co-authored the rock opera Truth of Truths, produced by Ruff in 1971. Despite these projects, commercial success was limited, culminating in Them's disbandment in 1972.
In 1979, Henderson reunited with Billy Harrison and Eric Wrixon without Morrison; they released Shut Your Mouth and toured Germany with Billy Bell on drums and Mel Austin as vocalist. From the 1990s onward, Wrixon performed as Them the Belfast Blues Band, occasionally joined by former Them guitarists Armstrong and Harrison.
Alan Henderson died on 9 April 2017 in Big Lake, Minnesota, aged 72.
Personnel
- Van Morrison – lead vocals, saxophone, harmonica (1964–1966)
- Alan Henderson – bass guitar (1964–1966, 1966–1971, 1979; passed away 2017)
- Billy Harrison – guitar, vocals (1964–1966)
- Ronnie Milling – drums (1964; deceased 2024)
- Eric Wrixon – keyboards (1964, 1965, 1979; died 2015)
- Pat McAuley – keyboards (1964), drums (1964–1965; died 1984)
- Jackie McAuley – keyboards (1965)
- Peter Bardens – keyboards (1965; passed away 2002)
- Joe Baldi – guitar (1965)
- Terry Noon – drums (1965)
- Jim Armstrong – guitar (1965–1966, 1966–1969, 1979)
- John Wilson – drums (1965–1966)
- Ray Elliott – keyboards, saxophone, flute (1965–1967)
- Dave Harvey – drums (1965–1966)
- Steve Reush – drums (1966)
- Sammy Stitt – drums (1966)
- Eric Bell – guitar (1966)
- Mike Brown – bass guitar (1966)
- Joe Hanratty – drums (1966)
- Kenny McDowell – lead vocals (1966–1969)
- Ray Harvey – drums (1966–1969)
- Jerry Cole – vocals, guitar, percussion (1969–1970; died 2008)
- Jim Parker – guitar, vocals (1970–1971)
- John Stark – drums, vocals (1970–1971)
- Mel Austin – lead vocals (1979; died 2017)
- Billy Bell – drums (1979)
- Brian Scott – keyboards, flute (1979)
- Other Them / Belfast Gypsies
- Pat McAuley – organ (1965–1966), drums (1966)
- Mark Scott (also known as Peter Cutchey) – bass guitar (1965–1966)
- Nick Wymer – lead vocals (1965–1966)
- Skip Alan – drums (1965)
- Billy Harrison – guitar (1965)
- 'Don' – guitar (1965–1966)
- Viv Prince – drums (1965)
- Ken McLeod – drums (1965–1966), guitar (1966)
- Jackie McAuley – lead vocals, organ, harmonica (1966)
- Peter Bardens – keyboards (1966)
- Truth
- Jim Armstrong – guitar (1969–1971)
- Curtis Bachman – bass guitar (1969–1971)
- Kenny McDowell – lead vocals (1969–1971)
- Reno Smith – drums (1969–1971)
- Ray Elliott – keyboards, flute (1970)
- Buddy Clark – drums (1971)
- Them – The Belfast Blues Band
- Eric Wrixon – keyboards, lead vocals (1993–2015)
- Jim Armstrong – guitar (1993–2003)
- John Wilson – drums (1993–?)
- Billy Bell – drums
- Ally MacKenzie – bass guitar
- Siggi Heilek – drums
- Billy McCoy – guitar (?–2015)
- Luca Nardi – bass guitar (?–2015)
- Tom Wagener – drums (?–2015)
Studio albums
| Album Title | Release Information | Highest Chart Rankings | |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK | US | ||
| The Angry Young Them Issued as Them in the United States |
|
— | — |
| Them Again |
|
— | 138 |
| Belfast Gypsies |
|
— | — |
| Now and "Them" |
|
— | — |
| Time Out! Time in for Them |
|
— | — |
| Them |
|
— | — |
| Them in Reality |
|
— | — |
| Shut Your Mouth |
|
— | — |
Extended plays
| EP Title | Release Details |
|---|---|
| Them |
|
Selected compilation albums
| Compilation Title | Release Information |
|---|---|
| The World of Them |
|
| Them Featuring Van Morrison |
|
| Backtrackin'' |
|
| Rock Roots |
|
| The Story of Them |
|
| The Story of Them Featuring Van Morrison |
|
| The Complete Them 1964–1967 |
|
Singles
| Title (A-side and B-side generally from the same album unless otherwise noted) |
Year Issued | Peak Chart Rankings | Associated Album | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | BEL (Wallonia) |
CAN | GER | IRE | US | |||
| "Don't Start Crying Now" B-side track: "One Two Brown Eyes" |
1964 | – | – | – | – | – | – | Them (EP) |
| "Baby, Please Don't Go" B-side track: "Gloria" |
10 | 36 | – | – | – | 102 | ||
| "Here Comes the Night" B-side track:"All For Myself" |
1965 | 2 | – | 8 | – | 2 | 24 |
The Angry Young Them (US release) |
| "One More Time" B-side track:"How Long Baby" |
Non-album single | |||||||
| "(It Won't Hurt) Half As Much" B-side track:"I'm Gonna Dress In Black" |
Non-album single | |||||||
| "Mystic Eyes" B-side track:"If You And I Could Be As Two" |
24 |
33 |
||||||
| "Call My Name" B-side track:"Bring 'Em On In" |
1966 | Them Again | ||||||
| "Richard Cory" B-side track:"Don't You Know" |
Non-album single | |||||||
| "I Can Only Give You Everything" B-side track:"Don't Start Crying Now" |
||||||||
| "It's All Over Now, Baby Blue" B-side track:"Bad or Good" |
"1973" | 13 | Them Again | |||||
External links
- Comprehensive timeline of Them and Van Morrison's music career
- Them Biography on AllMusic
- Official Them band page on tripod.com
- In-depth biography of Them and subsequent careers of band members authored by John Berg
- Detailed month-by-month history of Them available at Garagehangover.com
- Them discography on Discogs
- Mark Scott biography by Richie Unterberger on AllMusic
- Articles with short description
- Them (band)
- Blues musical groups from Northern Ireland
- Freakbeat groups
- Blues rock musical groups from Northern Ireland
- British Invasion artists
- Garage rock groups from Northern Ireland
- British rhythm and blues musical groups
- British rhythm and blues boom musicians
- Rock music groups from Northern Ireland
- Musical groups from Belfast
- Van Morrison
- Musical groups established in 1964
- Musical groups disbanded in 1972
- Decca Records artists
- Parrot Records artists
- Protopunk groups from Northern Ireland
- Deram Records artists
- Sonet Records artists
- Musical groups disestablished in 1972