The Move never made it big, despite a number of fairly successful singles and a British No. 1 Hit - "Blackberry Way."
One of the many interesting chapters in The Move's history is their 1969 tour of America.
By the time the group ventured to the U.S., bassist/vocalist, Trevor Burton, and rhythm guitarist/vocalist, Ace Kefford, had already departed from the group. And Rick Price had joined the band as bassist/vocalist.
Thus, the line-up for the 1969 tour was as follows:
Left to right: Rick Price (bass, vocals); Roy Wood (guitar, vocals);
Carl Wayne (vocals); and Bev Bevan (drums, vocals)
In his 1981 book, The Electric Light Orchestra Story, drummer Bev Bevan writes:
It was the silliest American tour that anyone has ever been on.
We had a record deal over there, but no-one met us on our arrival in New York. It was as if they rather hoped we would never turn up.
John "Upsy" Downing, who had been with Jimi Hendrix for a couple of years in America, knew his way around and hired a truck and a Dodge car.
We took off along the freeways for Detroit and did two nights at the Grandee Ballroom with Iggy and The Stooges. But our next date was Los Angeles. Whoever had organised this tour had not been studying a map at the time.
We had to drive right across the United States - nearly 3,000 miles - with only one night's sleep. It was the only way we were going to make our booking on time and as we couldn't afford to fly there was no option.
But on this "tour" I got the feeling that I was to enjoy many times again: that of camaraderie, the "boys are back in town" attitude, devil-may-care, full of jokes and laughs. There is a carefree atmospher and an underlying feeling that however bad it might be you're all in it together.
And when we finally arrived in Los Angeles we certainly were. Together in one room with two double beds and a camp bed between five at the Continental Hyatt House on Sunset Strip. It was the only way we could afford to stay in a hotel. That night we went out and I saw Jim Morrison being carried out of a club feet first, stoned out of his mind.
I thought to myself: "Great. This is Hollywood. This is living."
It was in the middle of Texas, the heart of Redneck country, that we met trouble.
Woody had his hair to his shoulders and this Redneck about eight feet tall began tugging at it: "Hey - are you a boy or a girl?"
"We want no trouble," we said. "We're English."
We assumed that would end all conversation immediately. But no.
We started walking back to the car when other Rednecks began shouting: "Cissies!"
Upsy Downing then made his appearance: "What's the trouble?" he asked. "These guys are in a band and they're with me."
Upsy fancied himself as a bit of a hard case, but one of the Redneck - about half the size of the eight-foot tall baboon, but built like a brick shithouse - gave Upsy one on the jaw.
He went straight over the bonnet of the car, turning, and twisting, and landed in the dust on the other side, half unconscious. We had to drag him in the car and drive off, with the Redneck yobs yelling and shrieking, "Come back here and fight, you faggots!"
...the three week cross country "tour" was a shoestring operation, poorly planned, and with no album to plug, had little real impact. The band flew into New York thinking they were to undertake an East Coast tour, only to discover that there was no one from A&M Records to meet them or organise things, and that the dates were booked for the West Coast. They rend a car and played shows with The Stooges at the legendary Grande Ballroom, before setting off down Route 66 to Los Angeles for five nights at the Whisky a Go Go. A further drive to San Francisco culmiated in a series of gigs at the Fillmore West sharing the bill with Joe Cocker and Little Richard."Had we gone during the [band manager, Tony] Secunda era, we would have taken America by storm," Carl Wayne insisted. "But with no record to support when we were out there, we were rudderless." The singer found himself doubly out of sorts because The Move had worked up an entirely different set to take across the Atlantic. "We did one Move hit, "I Can Hear the Grass Grow," which we stretched out for almost 15 minutes. I think we did "Hello Susie," which Roy had written for The Amen Corner. The rest of the set was West Coast song such as "Open My Eyes" by The Nazz. I mean, Roy's a good guitarist, but he's no Hendrix or Jimmy Page. I wasn't impressed, and I'm not sure that America was wholly convinced either."
Regarding the band's set list, it is true that they did not have an album to promote during their October 1969 tour. But the phenomenol Shazam would be released four months later, and the tracks on that album obviously influenced the songs the group chose to perform while in America.
According to http://bigplansforeverybody.blogspot.com/2011/04/move-fillmore-west-1969.html, while at the Fillmore West, The Move played the following:
October 16, 1969
1. Open My Eyes
2. Hello Susie
3. Under the Ice
4. Open My Eyes (Reprise)
5. Cherry Blossom Clinic Revisited
October 18, 1969
1. Open My Eyes
2. Don't Make My Baby Blue
3. Cherry Blossom Clinic Revisited
4. The Last Thing on My Mind
5. I Can Hear the Grass Grow
"I Can Hear the Grass Grow," as recorded October 18, 1969, is currently available on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DxgQ3ZyfaN8
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December 2011 postscript: February 2012 will see the release of the audio CD "The Move Live at the Fillmore." For more information, see http://www.amazon.com/Live-at-Fillmore-Move/dp/B006FZVZ6W/ or http://www.play.com/Music/CD/4-/27378295/Live-At-The-Fillmore-1969/Product.html?searchtype=allproducts&searchsource=0&searchstring=fillmore&urlrefer=search
Someone ought to adapt the story of the Move's US tour into a movie. Thanks for writing this post!
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