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Bio:
Eire Apparent was in fact the last lineup of The People,
a band whose history dates back through several lineup changes to the early 1960's.
The People had been managed by David Robinson and had moved from North Ireland to Blackpool
and then to a highly successful period in Dublin, before setting for London in May 1967.
There they endured a tough couple of
months until old manager Dave Robinson got them a gig at the UFO club. This brought
them to the attention of Mike Jeffrey & Chas Chandler which led to a new management deal,
a name change to Eire Apparent courtesy of Chandler, and support slots
on the legendary Jimi Hendrix Experience,
The Move and Pink Floyd tour of November - December 1967.
Eire Apparent's recording debut was an excellent single for Track Records, "Follow Me" / "Here I Go Again".
Released in January 1968, it failed to take off and Track did not pick up the option
for an LP. Nevertheless the band's fortunes were picking up especially in North America, where
they spent most of 1968 touring as support act either for Hendrix or The Animals (and often with
the Soft Machine on the same bill) (all these acts were managed by Jeffreys & Chandler, of
course). Then in September, McCullough was busted in Canada
and had to leave the country to avoid a jail sentence. The rest of the band were
understandably reluctant to quit the tour, and so McCullough's place was taken by Mick Cox
(ex The End, The Alleykatz).
With a new lead guitarist and Jimi Hendrix im the producer's chair, the band recorded it's
debut LP for Buddah Records in October 1968.
"Sunrise" is a mix of rock, 60s pop, psychedelia and some early progressive moves.
It's diverse nature is held against it in some
quarters but it's long been a staple for psych collectors. It sold reasonably well
and was kept in print for some years. In fact it was once a common bargin bin find,
but now it's become somewhat harder to find in good condition.
One track on the album "Mr. Guy Fawkes"
became a hit for an Australian psych band [insert reference] who recorded a fantastic
version of the song. It is a rare example
of a cover outdoing an original by some margin.
Back in London in early 1969, the band recorded a new song for the A-side of
their second single and spent the rest of January touring in Europe with Hendrix.
Mick Cox was replaced by Tiger Taylor the same month. At the end of this tour
the relationship with Mike Jeffrey and Hendrix ended, and the band returned to
the UK without management or record company support.
The rest of 1969 was spent by the band trying to establish itself in the UK
but they paid the price for concentrating on touring in the USA.
The second single came out in March 1969 to promote the album. "Rock'N'Roll Band"
is nothing special but the B-side, "Yes I Need Someone" is superb and was an excellent taster for the album.
It failed to chart. On April 20th they recorded three tracks for a John Peel BBC Top Gear session
(Yes I Need Someone / Highway 61 / Gloria) which have never been released.
After a long year spent touring the small clubs and universities in Britain
and with nothing to show for it, the band split at the end of 1970.
Ernie Graham released a now elusive solo album on Liberty Records in 1971,
backed by members of
Brinsley Schwartz,
and was involved in Help Yourself (briefly, in 1972) and formed Clancy.
Henry McCullough was briefly in Sweeney's Men and later joined Joe Cocker's
Grease Band, Paul McCartney's Wings and also released two solo albums on George
Harrison's Dark Horse label. His list of guest appearances is very long indeed.
Tiger Taylor was later in Anno Domini. He actually left Eire Apparent shortly before
the end, and his short-lived replacement was Peter Tolson (guitar/vocals), now better
know for his time with the Pretty Things in the mid-70s.
Chrissie Stewart was later in Frankie Miller's Full House and Spooky Tooth.
Dave Lutton played drums with Heavy Jelly, Steve Ellis and Marc Bolan.
Mick Cox later fronted his own Mick Cox Band and recorded with Van Morrison in the 80s.
Recorded at TTG and Sunset-Highland Studios, Los Angeles on 30th October 1968.
Produced by Jimi Hendrix. Hendrix plays guitar on all tracks. He also played on the
non-LP A-side "Rock 'N' Roll Band", recorded at Polydor Studios, London on 5 January 1969,
produced by Carlos Olms.
The Japanese issue is retitled "Jimi Hendrix presents Eire Apparent".
Bio:
Belfast beat/soul group best known for the final 1967 lineup of
Ernie Graham, Davy Lutton, Henry McCullough & Chris Stewart
who were renamed Eire Apparent by
their manager Chas Chandler.
The People developed out of an earlier beat group called The Telstars. In 1966
they moved to Blackpool, following in the footsteps of The Wheels,
who'd gained a huge local following there. Eric Wrixon left The People for The Wheels during
the Blackpool period.
His replacement was guitarist Henry McCullough, late of
Gene & The Gents, who suggested the band move to Dublin,
where he'd heard
they could do much better financially than the tough living they were eeking out
in Blackpool.
The People had a huge impact on the Dublin beat scene.
Their manager during this period was Dave Robinson, later head of Stiff Records.
They left for London in May 1967
and became Eire Apparent.
The People's only vinyl appearance is on the Ireland's Greatest Sounds LP released
on Ember Records in 1966. I don't know the exact lineup on these recordings.
According to several sources, both tracks feature Henry McCullough on guitar.
Mike Niblett was bassist from late 1965 through all of 1966 and therefore is
very likely to appear on the recordings aswell. Guitarist Tiger Taylor was
briefly a member of the band during 1965 and left shortly after Mike Niblett joined,
and so he's unlikely to feature.
Mike Niblett
was in many other bands including The Stellas;
Eric Wrixon had been a founding memebr of Them and was later in The Trixons,
the fledling Thin Lizzy and the reformed late 1970s version of Them.
Help!: We need your help to complete this entry. If you can tell us more about this band then please do! We welcome any corrections, missing details, connections to other bands, where are they now, etc. We also need photos, scans, copies of releases or live or demo recordings, and any other memorabilia gathering dust in the attic.