The Rubettes


The Rubettes are an English pop/glam rock band put together in 1974 after the release of "Sugar Baby Love", a recording assembled of studio session musicians in 1973 by the songwriting team of Wayne Bickerton, the then head of A&R at Polydor Records, and his co-songwriter, Tony Waddington after their doo-wop and 1950s American pop-influenced songs had been rejected by a number of existing acts. Waddington paired the group with manager John Morris, the husband of singer Clodagh Rodgers, and under his guidance, the band emerged at the end of the glam rock movement, wearing trademark white suits and cloth caps on stage. Their first release, "Sugar Baby Love", was an instant hit remaining at number one in the United Kingdom for four weeks in May 1974, while reaching number 37 on the US chart that August, and remains their best-known record. Subsequent releases were less successful, but the band toured well into the 2000s with two line-ups in existence.

History

Classic era (1974–1980)

The Rubettes' first and biggest hit was "Sugar Baby Love", which was a number one in the United Kingdom, selling around 500,000 copies in the UK and three million copies globally. With three other songs, "Sugar Baby Love" was recorded for Polydor in October 1973 at Lansdowne Studios in Holland Park, London, by a group of session musicians featuring the distinctive falsetto and lead vocals of Paul Da Vinci. However, Da Vinci did not join the others to become a member of the band put together by John Richardson, and instead pursued solo work, having signed a contract with Penny Farthing Records. "Sugar Baby Love" was their only UK No. 1 and sole US Top 40 entry.
For public appearances to promote the song, initially on Top of the Pops, Alan Williams took on the role of lead singer, being the only one of the original session singers able to duplicate Da Vinci's falsetto vocals. The Rubettes then comprised Williams, Richardson, and Pete Arnesen together with Tony Thorpe, Mick Clarke, and Bill Hurd. In performance, the group wore distinctive white suits and white caps which, according to Williams, "were a practical addition to the ensemble... we all had long hair, which didn't suit the image we'd gone for... We compromised by having our hair pinned up inside the caps".
Williams sang lead on later recordings, and the Rubettes went on to have a number of other top-ten hits across Europe during the mid-1970s, such as "Tonight", "Juke Box Jive" and "I Can Do It", mostly written by the Bickerton–Waddington songwriting team. The Rubettes' success encouraged Bickerton and Waddington to set up State Records, so that ten months after the release of "Sugar Baby Love", the fourth Rubettes single, "I Can Do It", was on State. In November 1974, NME music magazine reported that The Rubettes, The Glitter Band and Mud were among the UK bands who had roles in a new film titled Never Too Young to Rock.
In 1976 the band abandoned glam nostalgia to enter more serious territory. "Under One Roof" sung by John Richardson was a portrayal of a gay man disowned and later murdered by his father; along with Rod Stewart's "The Killing of Georgie", it was one of the few songs that tackled the topic of homophobia. Their most successful self-composed hit was the country rock-styled ballad "Baby I Know" sung by Tony Thorpe, which reached number 10 in the UK and Germany in 1977. During this period the band continued to cater to the much bigger European market by continuing to release more commercial pop singles all featuring lead vocals by Alan Williams, such as "Julia", "Allez Oop", and "Ooh La La". The band became a quintet in early 1975 with the departure of Arnesen, and later became a quartet in mid-1976 when Hurd departed the band; to this day the original band has never expanded its line-up beyond four members. Whilst the band continued as a four-piece, Hurd joined Suzi Quatro's band, touring and playing on a number of worldwide hits, which included the Top 20 success "She's in Love with You" in 1979, before re-joining the Rubettes in 1982.
In another attempt to get away from the 'doo-wop' glam image, Thorpe insisted that the trademark vocal harmonies be left off of his composition "You're the Reason Why". Gerry Shury and the band outvoted him. The version with no vocal backing has been available as a bootleg recording in certain parts of Europe. In 1979, Thorpe and the band separated over musical differences. Thorpe can be heard on lead vocals on the last Still Unwinding track, "Does It Gotta Be Rock 'N' Roll". His guitar parts and backing vocals remained. After Thorpe's departure, the group's success dwindled. The band replaced Thorpe with Bob Benham, but he departed shortly thereafter and the band dissolved in 1980.

Re-formation (1982–1999)

The band re-formed in 1982, with a line-up consisting of Williams, Clarke, Hurd, and drummer Alex Bines to exploit the German market for 1970s nostalgia. This line-up remained relatively stable until 1999, with the only line-up changes being the departure of Clarke in 1987, to be replaced first by Steve Kinch and then by Trevor Holliday, before he returned to the fold in 1993.

Separate projects (2000–present)

John Richardson, under the name Jayadev, has recorded as a session percussionist, and played on Tight Fit's version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight".
In 2000, Williams and Hurd both formed their own versions of the Rubettes, which at the time both also included two members of the Rubettes in each group. Due to legal issues, both versions of the band have to specify that their version is only led by them, by having the phrase "featuring __" after "The Rubettes".
In March 2012, Thorpe digitally released the No Hits, No Jazz Collection and performed at Darwen Library Theatre with a live eight-piece band for his "50th Anniversary 1-Gig-Tour". It featured session musicians Iain Reddy, Liam Barber, Justin Randall and Greg Harper. "You're the Reason Why" was played.

Legal issues

In 2002, the group hit the headlines once more when, following an acrimonious split and legal action, the Rubettes became the latest in a long line of bands to end up in the courts in a dispute over ownership of the band's name. The court ruled that both Williams and Hurd could tour as the Rubettes, as long as it was clear which member was fronting the band.
In 2005, Williams and Hurd were back in court following an appearance by Hurd's band on the German television station ZDF, with Williams claiming Hurd had breached the terms of the original agreement. On 2 February 2006, a High Court judge found that Hurd and Williams had both been guilty of breaching the 2002 agreement. Costs of the trial were, however, awarded to Williams in view of the severity of Hurd's breaches. Hurd appealed this decision, but on 3 November 2006, the Appeal Court in London ruled against him, awarding the costs of the appeal to Williams. Hurd has since gone bankrupt.

2022 High Court ownership ruling

In July 2022 Alan Williams and his company won a High Court trial for the ownership of The Rubettes name, against Clarke, Richardson and Etherington. Sitting in the High Court in London, Judge Pat Treacy ruled for Williams and said: "The defendants' conduct amounts to a misrepresentation sufficient to engage the tort of passing off. The claimants have succeeded."

Original personnel

The Rubettes (1973–1980, 1982–1999)

Former
  • Alan Williams – guitars, vocals
  • Pete Arnesen – keyboards
  • Tony Thorpe – guitars, vocals
  • Mick Clarke – bass, vocals
  • Bill Hurd – keyboards, vocals
  • John "Jayadev" Richardson – drums, vocals
  • Bob Benham – guitars, vocals
  • Alex Bines – drums, vocals
  • Steve Kinch – bass, vocals
  • Trevor Holliday – bass, vocals
Timeline
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