JOHN E BROOME AND THE HANDELS

John E Broome and the Handels—what can you say about a band with such a quirky name? Well, for starters, they were formed by Kevin Peek, one of Australia's most talented guitarists. The band’s lineup was equally remarkable. Bassist Alan Tarney later joined the James Taylor Move and the Tarney-Spencer Band, worked with The Shadows, and wrote and produced for Cliff Richard and Olivia Newton-John. Drummer Laurie Pryor famously played with The Twilights, Healing Force, Genesis (with Matt Taylor), and Chain. Guitarist Kevin Peek also formed the James Taylor Move in 1967 but gained fame as part of the pop-classical fusion group Sky with John Williams. As for John E Broome, his real name was Dave Reekes-Parsons, and he went on to produce The Vibrants, among others.

The majority of the members hailed from the northern suburbs of Adelaide and the band performed at The Octagon and the Salisbury Youth Centre weekly in Elizabeth during the mid-sixties. The tracks ''Do's And Dont's / Didn't Know Her Name'' were released in 1964 on the W&G label. They were recorded at Visound Recording Studio's situated at 202 Hindley Street, Adelaide. Both of these songs were written by guitarist Frank Tarney. The song reached #41 in 5DN's Big 60 for four weeks. They impressed Ken Pitt who was the manager for both Manfred Mann and the Animals in 1965, and they were summoned to London to play a season at the famous Marquee Club. When they returned to Australia, they morphed into the James Taylor Move. Laurie Pryor died in 2010. Kevin Peek died from cancer in 2013. Dave Reekes-Parsons died in 2018.

Members

John E Broome [Dave Reekes-Parsons] (vocals) Kevin Peek (guitar), Frank Tarney (guitar), Laurie Pryor (drums), Alan Tarney (bass)

SINGLES

''Do's And Don'ts / Didn't Know Her Name'' 1964 W&G