Mod-A-Day: Simon Dupree & The Big Band

Simon Dupree & The Big Band was the name of a British blue-eyed soul outfit of the mid-sixties formed by three brothers that was one of the most mixed up bands of the day. They started out as a mod styled rhythm-n-blues unit that recorded a number of decent singles along the lines of The Who, The Creation, and The Animals, such as their first single featured here, "I See The Light", and othes like "Reservations" and "Day Time Night Time". The songs were okay, but not all that memorable and the band was popular on the club circuit, but still their debut album's sales were meager at best. The band morphed then into a more psychadelic sound, and when that didn't work later became a sort of easy listening folk rock act. Along the way they tried stupid publicity stunts and made a couple of colossal blunders such as booting out their pianist when he announced he was changing his name to Elton John; or replacing session player Dudley Moore when they went out on tour. Looking back they should have stuck with their bluesy R&B style.

Simon Dupree & The Big Sound -- I See The Light