The Move

The Move is a 1960s rock music band from Birmingham, England, led by guitarist, singer and songwriter Roy Wood. The group evolved from several mid-'60s Birmingham groups, including Carl Wayne and the Vikings, the Nightriders and the Mayfair Set. The group's name seems to refer to the move various members of these bands made to form the group. Beside Wood, the original members of the Move were drummer Bev Bevan, bassist Chris "Ace" Kefford, vocalist Carl Wayne and guitarist Trevor Burton.

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They played their first shows in early 1966, and became known for their elaborate vocal arrangements and for their taste in soul music and American West-Coast bands the Beach Boys, the Byrds, Love and Moby Grape. Their manager, Tony Secunda, got them a weekly residency at London's Marquee Club, where they appeared dressed in gangster regalia. Roy Wood wrote their first single, 1967's "Night of Fear," which began the Move's practice of musical quotation (in this case, the 1812 Overture).

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Known for outrageous stage antics, they were sued by Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Harold Wilson for libel after Secunda, to promote their single "Flowers in the Rain," produced a postcard of Wilson in bed with a woman with whom he was allegedly having an affair.

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Their "Wave Your Flag and Stop the Train" referenced the Monkees, while "Fire Brigade" contained a guitar figure straight out of Duane Eddy, and the bridge of "Blackberry Way" is taken from the intro of Harry Nilsson's "Good Old Desk".

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By spring 1968 and the release of their first LP, Kefford had left the band; Burton played bass, but also left a year later. He was replaced by Rick Price,another veteran of Birmingham rock groups.

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1970s Shazam continued their practice of musical quotation and of elaborately re-arranged versions of other performers' songs; "Hello Susie", which was a top five hit for Amen Corner in 1969, quotes Booker T. Jones' and Eddie Floyd's "Big Bird," and the album includes a cover of a Tom Paxton song.

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Carl Wayne left the group after Shazam, soon replaced by Jeff Lynne, who was yet another Birmingham musician (from the Idle Race). This lineup recorded Looking On, which featured the single "Brontosaurus." Lynne, Wood, Price and Bevan then made the final Move LP, Message from the Country (1971), which many regard as their best. The title track quoted Jimmy Webb's "Up-Up and Away," Wood's "Ben Crawley Steel Company" was obviously modelled on Johnny Cash, and Bevan's "Don't Mess Me Up" was homage to Elvis Presley, complete with fake Jordanaires.

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Down to the trio of Wood, Lynne and Bevan, the Move released a "maxi-single" in 1972 consisting of "Ella James," "California Man" and "Do Ya." "California Man" was a tribute to Jerry Lee Lewis, while "Do Ya" became the Move's best-known song, the original version reaching the lower rungs of the American charts in 1972. Meanwhile, Wood and Lynne had embarked on a side project, the Electric Light Orchestra (whose remake of "Do Ya" was a hit in 1977).

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Wood released a solo album in 1972, Boulders, which contained a stunning tribute to the Everly Brothers, and went on to front the glam rock band Wizzard, while Lynne (minus Wood) achieved massive success with the Electric Light Orchestra. Randy Newman wrote a song about "English boys from Birmingham" that appeared on his Born Again LP.

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Although never nearly as popular in the United States as they were in their native England, the Move was a seminal pop group of the era, and is often cited as one of the main progenitors of power pop. Cheap Trick recorded a version of "California Man" on their Heaven Tonight LP.

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"Flowers in the Rain" was the first track played on Radio 1 when it began in 1967.

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Carl Wayne, who had joined the Hollies in 2000, died on August 31 2004 after a long battle with cancer.

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1960s: The 1960s, or The Sexy Sixties, in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. The Sixties has come to refer to the complex of inter-related cultural and political events which occurred in approximatel...

Rock music: Rock music is a genre of popular music that entered the mainstream in the 1950s. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, rhythm and blues, country music and also drew on folk music, jazz and classical music. The sound of rock often revolves around the electric guitar, a back beat laid dow...

Birmingham: :This article is about the city in England. For other uses, please see Birmingham, Alabama or other places named Birmingham....

The Move related Images and Photos (experimental)

On the Move	Herd on the Move	Fortitude: Tank on the Move	Belgian Infantry on the Move 1906
Vikings Ships on the Move	Hautman Bros. Large Size On the Move 300 Piece Puzzle	Your Move	Don't Move
How She Move	Move Over Darling 1964	Donavon Frankenreiter: Move by Yourself	Donavon Frankenreiter: Move by Yourself