- The Cryan' Shames
-
Not to be confused with The Cryin' Shames.
The Cryan' Shames is an American garage rock group from Hinsdale, Illinois. They originally formed as The Travelers, with founding members Tom Doody ("Toad"), Gerry Stone ("Stonehenge"), Dave Purple ("Grape") of The Prowlers, Denny Conroy and Jim Fairs from The Roosters, Jim Pilster ("J.C. Hooke", so named because he was born without a left hand and wore a hook), and Bill Hughes. In 1966, upon learning that another band already had the name The Travelers, they needed to find another name; J.C. Hooke remarked that their difficulty in doing so was "a cryan' shame," and thus named the band.[1]
After signing with Bob Monaco, the promotion manager for Destination Music, their first hit single was "If I Needed Someone", which was not released in the US (but included on their debut album). It was soon followed by "Sugar and Spice," a Tony Hatch song that was a hit in 1963 for the English group The Searchers. The Shames' version reached #49 in the USA (while reaching #4 on local radio WLS).
They signed to Columbia in 1966, and while they never were to become a national success, their singles and albums continued to sell well in the Chicago area.
The group disbanded in December 1969, but reunited again and continues to tour. Jim "J.C. Hooke" Pilster and Tom Doody (Toad) are the only remaining original members in the current lineup. Two members of The Cryan' Shames have since died: bassist Dave Purple in June 2001, and his replacement Isaac Guillory, on December 31, 2000.
Contents
Discography
Singles
Year Title Label & number Chart positions Billboard Hot 100 (BB)/Cashbox (CB)/WLS Radio Chicago (WLS) 1966 "Sugar and Spice"
B-side: "Ben Franklin's Almanac"Destination 624 BB #49 / CB #52 / WLS #4 1966 "I Wanna Meet You"
B-side: "We Could Be Happy"Columbia 43836 BB #85 / CB #65 / WLS #6 1967 "Mr. Unreliable"
B-side: "Georgia"Columbia 44037 BB #127 / WLS #7 1967 "It Could Be We're in Love"
B-side: "I Was Lonely When"Columbia 44191 BB #85 / CB #70 / WLS #1 1968 "Up on the Roof"
B-side: "The Sailing Ship"Columbia 44457 BB #85 / CB #70 / WLS #10 1968 "Young Birds Fly"
B-side: "Sunshine Psalm"Columbia 44545 BB #99 / CB #86 / WLS #15 1968 "Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith & Jones"
B-side: "The Warm"Columbia 44638 BB #115 / CB #73 / WLS #11 1969 "First Train To California"
B-side: "A Master's Fool"Columbia 44759 1969 "Rainmaker"
B-side: "Bits and Pieces"Columbia 45027 Albums
Year Title Label & number Billboard & Cashbox chart positions 1967 Sugar And Spice Columbia CL 2589 (Mono) / CS 9389 (Stereo) BB #192 1968 A Scratch In The Sky Columbia CL 2786 / CS 9586 BB #156 / CB #78 1969 Synthesis Columbia CS 9719 BB #184, CB #83 References
- ^ "The Cryan' Shames Biography". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/artist/the-cryan-shames/bio/14071#/artist/the-cryan-shames/bio/14071. Retrieved 30 November 2010.
External links
- http://www.cryanshames.com/ Official website
Categories:- Musical groups established in 1966
- Rock music groups from Illinois
- United States musical group stubs
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