Liverpool Five

The Liverpool Five were a rock and roll quintet that was part of the British Invasion of the 1960s. The five members of the band came to the United States by way of Japan in 1965. Considering these guys weren't from Liverpool, how logical it is to assume they were attempting to capitalize on the success of The Beatles. But according to Mike Stax's extensive interview with the band, which is included with "The Best of The Liverpool Five," a promoter in Germany gave them the name. Initially billed The Steve Laine Combo, the band came together in 1963 in London. The group comprised Steve Laine (lead vocals), Ken Cox (guitar and vocals), Dave Burgess (bass and vocals), Ron Henley (keyboards, sax and vocals) and Jimmy May (drums and vocals). Despite the name, none of the group members were from Liverpool; All were Londoners except Burgess, who hailed from Cumbria. The group played in many major cities in Europe and Asia before achieving their greatest success in the United States, especially between 1965 and 1967. In Europe they recorded one album for CBS entitled Tokio International. In the United States, under contract with RCA Victor, the group released a number of singles produced by multiple Grammy award winner Al Schmitt, all of which were successful in regional markets. In 1966, their recording of "Any Way That You Want Me" would mark their only appearance on the national charts, spending one week on the Billboard Hot 100 at #98. The band played all over the United States with major artists including The Rolling Stones, The Kinks, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Beach Boys, Everly Brothers, Chad And Jeremy and The Righteous Brothers. They also played on many television shows such as American Bandstand, Where the Action Is, Hullabaloo and many music shows on local stations throughout the US. Two albums on RCA, Arrive (LSP 3583) in 1966 and Out of Sight (LSP 3682) in 1967 were reasonably successful for the group, particularly in the Pacific NorthWest. The group disbanded in 1968 and by then Freddi Dennis from Spokane, Washington had replaced Dave Burgess on bass. Their many records and CDs remain available on the Internet. In April, 2008 Sundazed Records released a CD with 18 of the group's RCA recordings that they have remastered and packaged as "The Best of the Liverpool Five" (SC11158). More recently two videos featuring the group have turned up on YouTube. Each clip includes three songs. The sites are "Nuggets from the Liverpool Five (Part 1) and (Part 2)". Part 1 includes "She's Mine", "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" and "Too Far Out". Part 2 includes " Sister Love", "She's Got Plenty of Love" and "Any Way That You Want Me".