The Loved Ones were formed in Melbourne, Victoria, in October 1965 by Gerry Humphrys (originally from London) on vocals and harmonica, Kim Lynch on bass guitar and Ian Clyne on organ and piano. They were all former members of a trad jazz group, The Red Onion Jazz Band, in which Humphrys played clarinet, and sang, Lynch played tuba and Clyne played piano. They can be heard on the album 'Hot Red Red Onions' released in 1965 on W&G Records blue label. Following the British Invasion, led by the Beatles' tour of Australia in mid-1964, the band split as the three members wanted to switch to R&B and felt they had drifted towards more mainstream 1940s jazz. The Loved Ones were named after Evelyn Waugh's short and darkly satirical novel The Loved One. To round out the line-up, Humphrys, Lynch and Clyne recruited former Wild Cherries guitarist Rob Lovett. Their first drummer, Terry Nott, was soon followed by Gavin Anderson.
The Loved Ones became renowned as an exciting, if erratic, live act in a Rolling Stones/Animals mould and rose to prominence in the local club and dance scene. The group's visual impact was heightened by their striking mod stage attire and the band had a strong focal point thanks to the charismatic stage presence, saturnine good looks and growling, blues-influenced baritone voice of Humphrys, who is widely acknowledged as one of Australia's finest male pop-rock vocalists. The Loved Ones were also one of the first Australian pop bands to use the electric piano (a Hohner pianet) as part of their regular stage set-up and their distinctive keyboard-based sound set them apart from most of their contemporaries.
Early in 1966, they signed to the In Records label, a subsidiary of W&G Records. Their debut hit was "The Loved One", which reached #2 on the Sydney Top 40 singles charts in May. The song was written by Clyne, Humphrys and Lovett. It had a complex double rhythm, which was joined by hand clapping, and Humphrys' bluesy and soaring vocals. According to Lovett, the inspiration for the hand claps came from Clyne, who went to a nightclub to talk to another musician: Yeah, the organist said he liked it but he thought we should put some handclaps in so the audience didn't get lost. In those days most people were brought up with 'easy listenin' music – C&W, very straightforward. In the end, the handclaps were more dominant than the 2-beat pattern so the whole thing sounded a bit like a crazy waltz. As it turned out the organist was absolutely right. It would never have made it without his suggestion and the way he played. He really gave it some atmosphere and suspenseful excitement – building up on the first chord sequence till it burst out into the second and Gerry screamed out his, 'Yonder she's walking'.
Director, Peter Lamb filmed the group performing it for a documentary on mid-1960s Melbourne, Approximately Panther (1966), with Go-Set writer Doug Panther interviewing other local acts including Lynne Randell and Bobby & Laurie. The song was an Australian Top 20 hit again in 1981 when covered by INXS. The Loved Ones released their second single "Ever Lovin' Man" in July 1966, which peaked at #7 on the Go-Set National Top 40 singles chart in October while "The Loved One" was still in the Top 20. ''Everlovin' Man'' was released in the USA on the Mainstream label and in Germany on Ariola. To promote their singles, the group appeared on ATV-0 popular music series The Go!! Show on 24 October to perform, "The Loved One", "Ever Lovin' Man" and "More Than Love".
A cover of Fats Domino's version of "Blueberry Hill" was issued in December on a four-track EP, 'The Loved Ones', which reached #11 on the Go-Set singles chart. The EP included both "Ever Lovin' Man" and "The Loved One". After some personal crises, Ian Clyne left and moved to Sydney; he was replaced by Treva Richards (ex-Delta Set) on piano and organ in September.
We had a falling out between Ian and the rest of us. Nothing really that Ian did, except he did get sick of being the only one to do any of the promotional or organising work. We were all kids, and if anyone would do it, the rest stood back. As a result, Ian was cast into the position of being the nagging parent and became more in tune with our manager than the rest of us. Without going through the details, it came messily down to his being fired. — Rob Lovett
After leaving The Loved Ones, Clyne played in The Black Pearls, The Ram Jam Big Band, Excalibur, Levi Smith's Clefs and Chain; he was in Aunty Jack's backing group The Gong in the mid-1970s."Sad Dark Eyes" followed in February 1967, which peaked in the Top 30. This was the first single with Richards' input. "A Love Like Ours" was issued in April and also reached the Top 30. Each captured an emotional intensity and musical inventiveness which marked them out from their peers. On 23 April, they performed at Festival Hall, Melbourne and recorded live versions of "Ever Lovin’ Man", "Sad Dark Eyes" and "The Loved One". They supported the national tour by Eric Burdon and the Animals and Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich in April. In May, Kim Lynch left, and they added a new lead guitarist, Danny De Lacy (from Los Angeles), with Lovett moving to bass guitar.
Their fifth single, "Love Song" was released in August but did not chart in the Top 40. They released their debut album, 'Magic Box', in October, which essentially was a collection of the band's singles. W&G Records was unable to co-ordinate releases with the band's touring, The Loved Ones split in late October, two years after they formed.
Rob Lovett stated: The split was a non-event. We had been in Perth for two weeks on what felt like a very long tour. A miserable tour by the end. It started off so well. We were mobbed at the airport and smuggled off in the caterer's van. We had people who spotted us and chased the cars that whisked us off, waving their autograph books in vain. We did TV, we did radio, we did concerts, we did a trip round Albany, Kalgoorlie and other places on the way – one-nighters – but the record company, W&G, hadn't thought to put any records in the shops. Anyway, at the end of the tour the promoters disappeared. I can't remember if we even had our tickets home. We got back to Melbourne broke and completely dispirited. People tell me our last gig was at Opus (Ormond Hall in Prahran) but I have to say I haven't any recollection of it.
Following a resurgence of interest in the Loved Ones, prompted in part by the INXS cover of "The Loved One", the band reformed for a live tour in September 1987. The line-up of Clyne, Humphrys, Lovett and Lynch was augmented by Melbourne drummer Peter Luscombe sitting in for Anderson. The album 'Live on Blueberry Hill' followed on Mushroom Records. The Loved Ones 'Magic Box' is considered a classic recording which enjoys cult status and has reportedly never been out-of-print since it was released. It was listed in the book 100 Best Australian Albums. The Loved Ones were inducted into the ARIA Hall of Fame in 2010. Humphrys died of a heart attack in 2005.
Gerry Humphrys (vocals), Rob Lovett (guitar), Danny De Lacy (guitar), Kim Lynch (bass), Terry Nott (drums), Gavin Anderson (drums), Ian Clyne (keyboards), Treva "Reg" Richards (keyboards), Peter Luscombe (drums)
SINGLES
''The Loved One (#11) / This Is Love'' 1966 In''Ever Lovin' Man (#9) / More Than Love'' 1966 In
''Sad Dark Eyes (#27) / The Woman I Love'' 1966 In
''A Love Like Ours (#26) / The Loverly Car'' 1967 In
''The Magic Box / Love Song'' (#83) 1967 In
EPs
'The Loved Ones' 1966 W&G
ALBUMS
'Magic Box' 1967 W&G
'Live On Blueberry Hill' 1987 Mushroom
References
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Loved_Ones
http://top100singles.blogspot.com.au/
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