An R&B band that only played pop to get on the charts, Manfred Mann ranked among the most adept British Invasion acts in both styles. The fact that their range encompassed jazz as well as rhythm & blues, coupled with some elements of their appearance and presentation -- co-founder/keyboardist Manfred Mann's bearded, bespectacled presence -- also made the Manfreds more of a thinking person's band than a cute, cuddly, outfit like [wimpLink artistId="3634161"]the Beatles[/wimpLink], or sexual provocateurs in the manner of [wimpLink artistId="573"]the Rolling Stones[/wimpLink]. Yet, their approach to R&B was as valid as that of [wimpLink artistId="573"]the Stones[/wimpLink], equally compelling and often more sophisticated. They charted an impressive number of singles from 1964 through 1969, and developed a large, loyal international fandom that lingers to this day.
South African-born keyboardist Manfred Mann, born Manfred Lubowitz in Johannesburg in 1940, was originally an aspiring jazz player. He performed at dances and local coffee bars in Johannesburg as a teenager, and studied classical music at Witwatersrand University, also playing with [wimpLink artistId="889"]Hugh Masekela[/wimpLink] in a local band. His influences included [wimpLink artistId="9042"]John Coltrane[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="55"]Miles Davis[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="10442"]Cannonball Adderley[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="823"]Ornette Coleman[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="1158"]Bill Evans[/wimpLink], and [wimpLink artistId="115"]Dave Brubeck[/wimpLink]. He felt that his musical growth would be stymied by further work in South Africa, however, and decided to move to England in 1961, making his living as a jazz pianist and teacher, and writing articles under the name Manfred Manne, the surname derived from drummer [wimpLink artistId="13389"]Shelly Manne[/wimpLink] -- he later dropped the "e" and used "Manfred Mann" as his performing name.
[wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink]'s preference for jazz quickly ran headlong into the growing public taste for rhythm and blues that began sweeping through younger audiences in England during the early '60s. In the course of his playing at the Butlins resort in Clacton during 1962, [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] met percussionist [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Mike Hugg[/wimpLink], and the two soon began playing together in a band that included [wimpLink artistId="3579097"]Graham Bond[/wimpLink]. [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Hugg[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] eventually formed their own band, the Mann Hugg Blues Brothers, which grew into a septet, including two saxmen and a trumpet player. They were successful on the London club scene, playing venues such as the Marquee and other top music spots. The band's membership also grew to include guitarist, flautist, and saxman [wimpLink artistId="3511388"]Mike Vickers[/wimpLink].
The group was still lacking a lead singer, but this deficiency was rectified in late 1962 when they added [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink], who had previously worked with guitarist [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]Tom McGuinness[/wimpLink], to their lineup. By early 1963, the Mann Hugg Blues Brothers had shrunk back to five members -- Manfred Mann (keyboards), [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Mike Hugg[/wimpLink] (percussion), [wimpLink artistId="3511388"]Mike Vickers[/wimpLink] (guitar, sax, flute), [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] (vocals), and [wimpLink artistId="4542307"]Dave Richmond[/wimpLink] (bass) -- and also picked up a manager, Kenneth Pitt, who arranged auditions for the group with Pye, Decca, and EMI Records.
The EMI audition in May of 1963 was the one that worked, and they were signed to the latter company's HMV label. The band was assigned producer [wimpLink artistId="3643801"]John Burgess[/wimpLink], who was intrigued by the mix of jazz and R&B in their style. It was also [wimpLink artistId="5235255"]Burgess[/wimpLink] who decided that the group needed a shorter, punchier name and -- against the wishes of the keyboardist himself -- chose Manfred Mann as the band's name.
[wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] was one of the best British Invasion singers, and his resonant vocals were the best feature of Manfred Mann's early R&B sides, which had a slightly jazzier and smoother touch than the early work of [wimpLink artistId="573"]the Rolling Stones[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="9867"]the Animals[/wimpLink]. The group's debut single, "Why Should We Not" b/w "Brother Jack," were drawn from their first EMI commercial recording audition, and showed a bit of what the band could do instrumentally -- the A-side was a moody, bluesy original that alternately featured Vickers' sax, [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Jones[/wimpLink]' harmonica, and [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink]'s organ, while the flip was a bouncy jazz variant on "Frere Jacques." If the group's debut showed the Manfreds' virtuosity and cleverness, then the blues-rock follow-up "Cock-A Hoop" heralded the arrival of a major and charismatic singing talent in [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink]. Despite a lot of radio play, "Cock-A Hoop" failed to chart. The group's luck changed late in 1963, however, when they were asked to write a new theme song for the British television rock & roll showcase Ready, Steady, Go. The result was "5-4-3-2-1," a catchy, pulsing piece of rock & roll that got to number five on the British charts and became the permanent signature tune for the television series. Shortly after the single was recorded, [wimpLink artistId="4542307"]Dave Richmond[/wimpLink] exited Manfred Mann's lineup and was replaced by [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]Tom McGuinness[/wimpLink], who switched from guitar to bass to join the group.
The chart success of "5-4-3-2-1" and its use on Ready! Steady! Go! gave the band a secure commercial berth in England, and their two follow-up singles charted easily. It was a couple covers of obscure girl group songs, "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" ([wimpLink artistId="4069"]the Exciters[/wimpLink]) and "Sha La La" ([wimpLink artistId="3529910"]the Shirelles[/wimpLink]), that broke the group internationally -- "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" reached number one in the States, and "Sha La La" just missed the Top Ten. The [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] lineup never duplicated this success, although "Come Tomorrow" and "Pretty Flamingo" were smaller hits. From 1964 to 1966, they took the approach of playing gutsy pop/rock on their singles (including the original version of "My Little Red Book") and soul and R&B on their albums, with occasional detours into jazz, [wimpLink artistId="80"]Dylan[/wimpLink] (their cover of his then-unreleased "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" was a big British hit), and competent original material. This sharp difference in the content of their singles and albums resulted in a split in their audience, and occasional confusion on the part of fans, who bought Manfred Mann's albums expecting to hear songs like "Do Wah Diddy Diddy," and, instead, found blues and jazz numbers represented much more than pop-rock. Listeners who paid close attention to "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" might've recognized unusual touches such as the kettle drums over the choruses, and anyone who flipped it over might've gotten the hint from its B-side, a jazz-blues jam called "What You Gonna Do?" An organ and harmonica-driven piece, it was as hard and threatening as "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" was upbeat and cheerful.
Where "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" and the later "Sha La La La" were covers of girl group songs, Manfred Mann's debut long-player, cut in early 1964, had a very different orientation, comprised of songs associated with [wimpLink artistId="10442"]Cannonball Adderley[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="11368"]Ike & Tina Turner[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="454"]Muddy Waters[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="453"]Willie Dixon[/wimpLink], and [wimpLink artistId="30429"]Howlin' Wolf[/wimpLink], among others, and hard, bluesy originals such as the [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink]-[wimpLink artistId="9918"]Jones[/wimpLink] authored "What Are You Gonna Do."
Still, driven by their reputation and some superb R&B singing by [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] -- who was a genuine rival to [wimpLink artistId="36207"]Mick Jagger[/wimpLink] in those days -- the group's debut LP, [wimpLink albumId="244715377"]The Five Faces of Manfred Mann[/wimpLink] made it all the way to number three on the British album chart. The group did seem to make the leap from a single to and album act -- their EMI LPs and EPs all sold well, charting high despite the fact that the sound on them wasn't quite like any other British Invasion act.
Manfred Mann played blues-based rock, but in contrast to most of the other British bands of the era, the guitar didn't always figure prominently in their sound. [wimpLink artistId="3511388"]Mike Vickers[/wimpLink] was as likely to be playing a sax (and he really played, rather than just honking along in the manner of rock saxmen of the period such as [wimpLink artistId="11917952"]Dennis Payton[/wimpLink] of [wimpLink artistId="4857577"]the Dave Clark Five[/wimpLink]), or even a flute as an electric guitar; and [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Mike Hugg[/wimpLink] also played the vibraphone, an instrument usually far removed from rock & roll. Yet despite the fact that these guys had obviously all studied music, they made a hard and heavy R&B sound, and flexed their musical muscles accordingly -- check out Vickers' guitar break on their version of [wimpLink artistId="453"]Willie Dixon[/wimpLink]'s "Hoochie Coochie Man," or [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink]'s pounding piano on [wimpLink artistId="454"]Muddy Waters[/wimpLink]' "Got My Mojo Working." What's more, they could write credibly -- not hits in the manner of [wimpLink artistId="36207"]Mick Jagger[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="578"]Keith Richards[/wimpLink], but album tracks like "I'm Your Kingpin," "Without You," and "Don't Ask Me What I Say" held up very nicely alongside the [wimpLink artistId="30429"]Howlin' Wolf[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="454"]Muddy Waters[/wimpLink], and [wimpLink artistId="30369"]Bo Diddley[/wimpLink] repertory on the album.
One quirk in the group's history was their virtual absence from America, apart from a three-week tour late in 1964, despite their charting four singles (including the number one "Do Wah Diddy Diddy") in the U.S. during 1964-66. The band found America, with its vast distances as well as its distance from England, too wearying a market to deal with for the money being offered, and concentrated instead on Europe. They opened several important doors by touring such Eastern Bloc countries as Czechoslovakia, in a time when American and western European rock & roll was usually considered a prime manifestation of capitalist decadence.
Despite their popularity and a steady stream of successful singles, EPs, and LPs, all wasn't well within the quintet. Each member of the group got to express himself, at least on their EP and album tracks, but by 1965 there was a sense that Vickers, [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Jones[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]McGuinness[/wimpLink], and [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Hugg[/wimpLink] were all becoming known simply as "Manfred Mann," especially on their singles. None of that would have been so bad if the sound on those singles had represented anything other than the group's most commercial manifestation, and Manfred Mann hadn't also been the name of a walking, breathing bandmate -- though [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] himself had never wanted the group to use his name.
[wimpLink artistId="3511388"]Mike Vickers[/wimpLink], who'd always desired to expand his talents into work as a composer and arranger, exited in late 1965 -- his later credits, in addition to work on soundtracks and other instrumental material, also included producing and arranging songs for [wimpLink artistId="30814"]the Zombies[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="32809"]Gentle Giant[/wimpLink], among other bands. His announcement was the crack in the wall that allowed [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] -- who had been getting a vast amount of attention anyway (if awkwardly) as the lead singer of Manfred Mann -- to announce his departure in pursuit of careers as a solo performer and actor, although he stayed with the group well into 1966.
The core of the band, consisting of [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]McGuinness[/wimpLink], and [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Hugg[/wimpLink], soon picked up [wimpLink artistId="33050"]Jack Bruce[/wimpLink], then in [wimpLink artistId="4268314"]John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers[/wimpLink], on bass, which allowed [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]Tom McGuinness[/wimpLink] to return to playing guitar. A saxman and trumpet player also came into the lineup around this time. A car accident early in 1966 left [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Jones[/wimpLink] sidelined for an extended period, which resulted in the group recording a large number of instrumental numbers, several of which -- including jazzy covers of "Satisfaction," "I Got You Babe," and "Still I'm Sad" -- appeared on the EP Instrumental Asylum. Despite all of its internal problems, the band generated yet another worldwide hit single in "Pretty Flamingo," which reached the number one spot in England and made the Top 30 in America, despite the group's not touring there to promote it. Even this record, and a number one charting EP in England (Machines) failed to stabilize the band's situation -- in the wake of "Pretty Flamingo" in the spring of 1966, [wimpLink artistId="33050"]Jack Bruce[/wimpLink] exited the group to join a new kind of rock-blues trio with [wimpLink artistId="3640026"]Ginger Baker[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="124"]Eric Clapton[/wimpLink], to be called [wimpLink artistId="32879"]Cream[/wimpLink]. To top matters off, May of 1966 marked the end of the contract that the band had signed with EMI. The label evidently had sufficient doubts about the group's ability to continue, that it hedged its bets by signing [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] as a solo act and, despite a pair of chart-toppers to their credit that year, let Manfred Mann go. [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Hugg[/wimpLink], as the original co-founders of the band, weren't going to let it disappear, however -- with [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]McGuinness[/wimpLink], they still comprised the core of a group, and they surprised a lot of onlookers (and, no doubt, their former label) by forming a new lineup around singer [wimpLink artistId="4031719"]Mike D'Abo[/wimpLink]. [wimpLink artistId="3634161"]Beatles[/wimpLink]' friend [wimpLink artistId="13137142"]Klaus Voormann[/wimpLink], late of Paddy, Klaus & Gibson also joined in this aggregation on bass. As a backdrop to all of this maneuvering, [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Mike Hugg[/wimpLink] suddenly emerged as a successful songwriter in his own right when [wimpLink artistId="28680"]the Yardbirds[/wimpLink], with whom the Manfreds had previously toured, covered "You're a Better Man Than I," a song he'd written in collaboration with his brother Brian Hugg. Ironically, the Manfreds of this period didn't get around to covering the song themselves, which was probably just as well, as [wimpLink artistId="28680"]the Yardbirds[/wimpLink]' version, cut at Sun Records in Memphis with legendary producer [wimpLink artistId="14764"]Sam Philips[/wimpLink] running the session, became an instant classic and remained in the group's repertory for years. It wouldn't be the last song that members of the Manfreds would provide to [wimpLink artistId="28680"]the Yardbirds[/wimpLink], but it was the best. Manfred Mann signed with Fontana Records, an English off-shoot of the Holland-based Philips label (best known as the home of [wimpLink artistId="3612294"]the Merseybeats[/wimpLink] and Wayne Fontana & the Mindbenders), in June of 1966. At various times over the next year, EMI would release EPs and LPs of older material by the original band that competed with their new recordings. The advent of a new contract with a new Manfred Mann lineup essentially opened a new, separate phase ("Chapter Two") in the band's career, similar to the post-blues era of [wimpLink artistId="1134"]Fleetwood Mac[/wimpLink]. [wimpLink artistId="4031719"]Mike D'Abo[/wimpLink], though a good singer, lacked [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink]' depth and power, and the group compensated with an approach that was more pop than blues oriented, although at first the differences were very subtle.
The new lineup's first single, a cover of [wimpLink artistId="80"]Dylan[/wimpLink]'s "Just Like a Woman," became a Top Ten hit in England during the summer of the 1966, establishing the new lineup's commercial credibility. The big change came with their next single, "Semi-Detached Suburban Mr. James," a song written by Geoff Stevens of [wimpLink artistId="3607324"]the New Vaudeville Band[/wimpLink] -- a novelty song that marked a major departure for the group, it made number two in England and began the reshaping the band's sound and image. A new album, [wimpLink albumId="45076691"]As Is[/wimpLink], followed in October of 1966. It had a cut or two that harked back to their R&B days, as well as the two hit singles, but [wimpLink albumId="45076691"]As Is[/wimpLink] also contained a fair amount of psychedelic and experimental conceptual music, including the prominent use of an instrument new to their sound -- a Mellotron -- and a solo acoustic guitar piece by [wimpLink artistId="13137142"]Voorman[/wimpLink], as well as one track, "Another Kind of Music," that mixed pop and operatic-style choruses.
The group returned to its jazz roots momentarily for an EP, Instrumental Assassination, consisting of instrumental tracks, similar to the earlier Instrumental Asylum on EMI. The group also hit in the spring of 1967 with "Ha! Ha! Said the Clown," a [wimpLink artistId="3605405"]Tony Hazzard[/wimpLink] song that also got picked up by [wimpLink artistId="28680"]the Yardbirds[/wimpLink] in the final phase of their history. During this same period, [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Hugg[/wimpLink] linked up as songwriters and emerged as successful in the field of commercials and, to a lesser degree, soundtracks. Their pop-oriented approach to their singles, with occasional forays into psychedelic and progressive rock, yielded a string of Top Ten hits in England through 1969, although the only one to hit the jackpot in the U.S. was their cover of a then-unreleased [wimpLink artistId="80"]Dylan[/wimpLink] song, "The Mighty Quinn." [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] dissolved the [wimpLink artistId="4031719"]D'Abo[/wimpLink] lineup in 1969 to form [wimpLink artistId="7867478"]Manfred Mann Chapter Three[/wimpLink] -- drummer [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Mike Hugg[/wimpLink], who had been in the band since the beginning, took over on piano and vocals, and as principal songwriter, while [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] played the organ and arranged the music. The outfit's early jazz-rock efforts were interesting, but not very popular, and Manfred steered the ship back toward mainstream rock by forming yet another incarnation, [wimpLink artistId="11383"]Manfred Mann's Earth Band[/wimpLink], with [wimpLink artistId="4754648"]Mick Rogers[/wimpLink] on vocals and guitar. The heavier, more synthesizer-oriented outfit made quite a few albums in the 1970s. [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] also found time for various outside projects, including producing Lo and Behold, an album of [wimpLink artistId="80"]Dylan[/wimpLink] songs that the songwriter had never recorded officially -- and, in that regard, something of an off-shoot of one element of Manfred Mann's history -- cut by [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]Tom McGuinness[/wimpLink]' then current group, [wimpLink artistId="3542666"]McGuinness Flint[/wimpLink], which also included instrumental contributions by [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Mike Hugg[/wimpLink].
The 1976 [wimpLink artistId="11383"]Earth Band[/wimpLink] album [wimpLink albumId="69778329"]The Roaring Silence[/wimpLink], featuring singer/guitarist [wimpLink artistId="4144916"]Chris Thompson[/wimpLink] on lead vocals, made the Top Ten, and included the number one hit "Blinded by the Light," a milestone of sorts for [wimpLink artistId="509"]Bruce Springsteen[/wimpLink] as a songwriter, whose work [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] had discovered three years earlier. [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink] also made the Top 40 with another [wimpLink artistId="509"]Springsteen[/wimpLink] cover, "Spirit in the Night." [wimpLink artistId="11383"]The Earth Band[/wimpLink], in various configurations and working on different styles, with interruptions (especially by [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink]'s efforts at solo music), has endured for more than two decades since their last chart hit, finding success in the concert arena when their studio work ceased to catch the public's imagination.
Ironically, despite [wimpLink artistId="9354"]Mann[/wimpLink]'s oft-proclaimed preferences for serious explorations of jazz, blues, and progressive music, it's his pop/rock recordings that hold up best, and for which he'll be remembered most. The continuing power of that music was illustrated in 1992, when the release of a television-marketed compilation of EMI and Fontana tracks called The Ages of Mann precipitated a reunion of [wimpLink artistId="4031719"]Mike D'Abo[/wimpLink] and [wimpLink artistId="9918"]Paul Jones[/wimpLink] with [wimpLink artistId="8717412"]McGuinness[/wimpLink], [wimpLink artistId="7899781"]Hugg[/wimpLink], and Vickers, for a tour under the guise of "the Manfreds". Manfred Mann himself, although still heavily involved with his own current projects and never a part of "the Manfreds," participated in some radio appearances by the re-formed group. The Manfreds reunited twice more over the next two years, for tours or Europe and a brief foray into America. ~ Bruce Eder & Richie Unterberger