Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band P o r t r a i t

Originally formed as the Bonzo Dog Dada Band, art college students Roger Spear and Rodney Slater shared a passion for 1920's / 1930's jazz and ginhouse rag, but with a twist. With their 30 member ensemble (made up mostly with fellow art students), the group had incorporated sight gags into their shows where they played mostly in and around the campuses. After changing their name to Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band, they began playing the pub circuit in '65 as the group was reduced to fewer members.

By this time, with their stage set up primarily with gadgets, machines, mannequins and robots, their shows consisted of music paradies as well as comic skits. After the group recorded two singles for Parlophone Records they appeared on The Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour TV special, before signing with Liberty Records in '67. They released their first album, "Gorilla" (which was promoted with comic advertisments between parodies of 1920's jazz, Rodgers and Hammerstein, and Elvis Presley) with most of the material written by vocalist Vivian Stanshall and guitarist Neil Innes. It was Innes' interest in rock and psychedelia that led to the sound of their follow albums as well as the single "I'm The Urban Spaceman" (produced by Apollo C. Vermouth - a.k.a. - Paul McCartney) which made the Top Five in '68.

By '68 the group recorded simply as the Bonzo Dog Band. Despite their growing popularity, the group broke up in 1970 with drummer Larry Smith, guitarist Vernon Bohay-Nowell and percussionist Sam Spoons joining Bob Kerr's Whoopee Band. Slater would drop out of music to become a government social worker. Innes and bassist Dennis Cowan formed The World and released an album before they would split (Innes would breifly join McGuinness Flint). Stanshall would form the short lived Sean Head Showband which had included Eric Clapton before forming biG GRunt with Spear. Spear would put together The Kinetic Wardrobe in which he was backed by a band of robots (he toured the U.K. and Europe opening for The Who).

Bonzo Dog Band would reunite in '71 and release "Let's Make Up And Be Friendly" the following year but would split up as their fans didn't quite take to the new line up despite contributions from Smith, and Spear. After Innes released a solo album in '73, he began working primarily as a composer for British TV, most notably Monty Python's Flying Circus and Rutland Weekend Television with Python alumni Eric Idle. With Idle, he wrote, directed and performed in The Rutles, a television special spoofing The Beatles with Innes playing the John Lennonesque character Ron Nasty. Stanshall (who's narration was recorded for Mike Oldfield's "Tubular Bells" and David Bowie's "Peter And The Wolf") would release several solo albums as well as appearing on his own Viv Stanshall's Radio Flashes for the BBC. The Bonzo's reunited in '92 and recorded a one-off single. Sadly, Stanshall lost his life in a fire at his flat in 1995.

Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band featured: Viv Stanshall - Trumpet, Vocals; Neil Innes - Guitars, Vocals, Keyboards; Vernon Bohay-Nowell - Guitars; Rodney Slater - Sax; Roger Spear - Percussion, Effects; Sam Spoons - Percussion; Larry Smith - Drums

neilinnes.org bonzodog.co.uk www.myspace.com/bonzodogdoodahband1

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