(c’59-’63) Malcolm ‘Rocky’ Weston (drums), Alan ‘Kerry Rapid’ Hope (vocals), Brian ‘Chubby’ Williams (guitar) and Martin Dry (bass).
It all started at the Palais, Aldershot when Brian Allender asked Tony Robson, then under the stage name Tony Angelo, to form a group and be the vocalist; and Robson and Allender formed The Bandits.
They were Bob Potter’s first touring band, but unfortunately Allender couldn’t do the tour, so he was replaced on drums by Brian “Rocky” Ford of The Blue Stars. As with many of the bands Potter managed in the early days, members were ‘swapped’ / ‘interchangeable’ and dropped pretty quick if they were not ‘professional’. We know that on a tour of the West Country, the line up of the Bandits included brothers Ted and Martin Dry.
In 1960 a 16 year old Jeff Beck, under the name Jeff Mason, auditioned for The Bandits, who had a contract to back a tour of Elvis and Vincent impersonators. Beck played six gigs including the Atlanta Ballroom, Woking; Agincourt Ballroom, Camberley; and The Corn Exchange, Newark. The latter being memorable for the brawl that broke out. Beck’s contract was only for a summer and he went back to school, studying art.
Brain Sell, having been replaced by Ritchie Blackmore on lead guitar for Mike Dee & The Jaywalkers in May ’61, joined The Bandits, whose lineup had expanded to the trifecta of Kerry Rapid, Cal Danger and Mel Turner on vocals; Dick Scott (lead guitar), Pete Wilson (bass); and drummer Ford.
At sometime in ’62, The Bandits backed Bruce Channel and Delbert McClinton at Agincourt Ballroom. America singer Channel, which was shə-NEL; had a successful solo career and is best known for his 1962 million-selling number-one hit record, “Hey! Baby”. McClinton played harmonica on this record, and it’s said to have inspired John Lennon’s playing on The Beatles’ “Love Me Do”, as well as later Beatles records, and the harmonica break on Frank Ifield’s “I Remember You.”
When the band decided to relocate to Plymouth, Sell opted to stay in London and formed a new version of The Bandits with guitarist Ted Dry, Ted’s brother Martin Dry on bass, and drummer Malcolm “Doc” Randall. The Bandits re-signed to Bob Potter’s Agency and frequently played the Agincourt and Atalanta. The Bandits or a member/s of the band later became The Soultones, and were booked as the support band to The Yardbirds at Farnborough Tech, on either 20 March or 9 July 1965; which also featured a brawl.
The members that went to Plymouth for Summer changed name to The Plymouth Sounds. The group came back to Aldershot and ran their own dances for a while, maybe this was when they were photographed at the Central Club, Aldershot. Then they were offered work in Germany – the band went, but Angelo stayed. A while later, one night at New Central Ballroom, Aldershot, the band playing asked Angelo if he would sing with them, the guitarist was a young Alan Elkins from Tongham. They became the next Plymouth Sounds. Eventually the band members changed to include Topper Clay, John Hirst and Mick Douglas and become Tony Angelo and The Regents until around ’64.
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