The Equals


The Equals are an English rock band. They are best remembered for their million-selling chart-topper "Baby, Come Back", though they had several other chart hits in the UK and Europe. Drummer John Hall founded the group with Eddy Grant, Pat Lloyd and brothers Derv and Lincoln Gordon, and they were noted as being "the first major interracial rock group in the UK" and "one of the few racially mixed bands of the era".

History

Early career

The group's members met on a Hornsey Rise council estate, where Grant, Lloyd and Hall were school friends at Acland Burghley. In late 1964, Hall suggested that they form a band. John Hall, Eddy Grant, Pat Lloyd, Derv Gordon and Lincoln Gordon became the Equals. The three-guitar lineup continued until 1969, when Lincoln Gordon switched from rhythm guitar to bass.
At first the Equals performed in London, and gained a following "with their apparently limitless energy and a distinct style fusing pop, blues, and R&B plus elements of ska and bluebeat." They often opened the bill at shows by visiting American R&B and soul artists such as Bo Diddley, Solomon Burke and Wilson Pickett. A neighbour of Grant's, singer Gene Latter, put them in touch with President Records, whose boss Edward Kassner heard them and agreed to sign them.

Commercial success, 1966–70

The Equals released their first single "I Won’t Be There" in 1966, followed by "Hold Me Closer", with "Baby, Come Back" as the B-side. It did not do well in the United Kingdom, but after DJs in Europe began playing "Baby, Come Back", it went to the number one position in Germany and the Netherlands.
1968 saw the release of "I Get So Excited", which reached the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart. The subsequent re-issue of "Baby, Come Back" in early 1968 reached the top position in the UK, giving President Records its only number one hit. The song reached one million sales in June 1969, and was certified gold. Several of their later singles charted in the UK, including two further top 10 hits, "Viva Bobby Joe" and "Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys".
Their main songwriter was Eddy Grant, with contributions from the Gordon brothers, Pat Lloyd and John Hall. Though the majority were on traditional teenage pop themes, some, such as "Stand Up and Be Counted", "Police on My Back", and the funky "Black Skin Blue Eyed Boys", touched on social and political issues.
The band also released several studio albums on President in quick succession, six in four years, including Unequalled Equals and Explosion, both of which reached the UK Albums Chart. Several of their albums were repackaged by RCA, President's distributors, for the American market. According to the band, Kassner did not allow the band to tour the U.S. because of problems that might have arisen because of their multiracial line-up, though the band did tour other parts of the world, including Africa.
They made regular TV appearances on programmes including Top of the Pops in Britain and Beat-Club in Germany. The band also gained attention for their colourful clothes, presaging the glam rock style, and for Grant's occasional dyeing of his hair blonde, and wearing a woman's blonde wig. Writer Jason Heller commented: “The Equals were effectively code-switching between two audiences—immigrant rude boys and white pop fans—in the same song, if not the same line."

Break-up

In September 1969, all five group members were injured in a motorway car accident in Germany. Grant was the most severely injured and as a result left the touring version of the Equals while initially continuing to write songs for them. In January 1971, Grant suffered a collapsed lung and heart infection, following which he returned to Guyana. He soon started to pursue a solo career. John Hall left the band in 1974. The Equals disbanded in 1979.

Reformation and subsequent activities

In 1982 Pat Lloyd reformed The Equals with a modified lineup: Derv Gordon, Rob Hendry, Ronnie Telemacque, Lincoln Gordon and Pat Lloyd swapping instruments from the original lineup.
In 1984 Lincoln Gordon left the band, and was replaced by David "Dzal" Martin, another guitarist who had filled in between 1973 and 1975 during Grant's absence.
In 2017, Derv Gordon left the Equals. Decosta Boyce, formerly of Heatwave, joined the group on lead vocals, and Mark Haley, previously with the Kinks, was added on keyboards. In March 2019, Keeling Lee, previously with Groove Armada, replaced Martin.
The Equals produced a new album in May 2022, and re-released the single "Nobody's Got Time", originally written by Eddy Grant. "Nobody's Got Time" reached No.15 in the Heritage Charts.

Original line-up

  • Eddy Grant – lead guitar
  • John Hall – drums
  • Dervan "Derv" Gordon – vocals
  • Patrick "Pat" Lloyd – rhythm guitar
  • Lincoln Gordon – bass, guitar

    Discography

Albums

Compilation albums