The Creation (band)

Infobox musical artist
Name = The Creation


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Origin = England
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Genre = Freakbeat Power pop Psychedelic rock
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Years_active = 1966–1968 Reunited: mid-1980s
Label = Planet Records, Polydor, Mercury Records
Associated_acts = The Birds
URL = [http://www.myspace.com/thecreationofficial myspace.com/thecreationofficial]
Current_members = Kenny Pickett (lead vocals) Simon Tourle Mick Thompson Jack Jones (dr) Bob Garner Doug Sandom Ronnie Wood Eddie Phillips Kim Gardner David O'Brien (only live, rhythm guitar, 1968)
Past_members =
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The Creation were an English beat band, formed in 1966.

Career

Pickett, Phillips, Thompson and Jones had previously been in The Mark Four, accompanied by John Dalton who had left to join The Kinks. Garner had previously been in the Tony Sheridan Band.

Their style was originally loud pop-art, similar to The Kinks and The Who, but developed into a more typically mid 1960s psychedelic sound. The most popular Creation song was "Painter Man", which made the Top 40 in the UK Singles Chart in late 1966, and reached number 8 in the German chart in April 1967. It was later covered by Boney M in 1979, and reached the number 10 position in the UK charts. The song featured, in an intersection in the second half, lead guitarist Phillips's trademark of playing his instrument with a violin bow. He was reputedly the first guitarist to pioneer this technique, although Jimmy Page would later do so to greater acclaim. [cite web|url=http://www.chrishunt.biz/features37.html|title=Eddie Philips interview|author=Chris Hunt] Phillips was also responsible for coining many of the band's best known quotes: "Our music is red – with purple flashes" was one such soundbite that was also used in their marketing material. They took their pop art experimentation slightly further when singer Kenny Pickett would spray paint a canvas during their live shows, before a member of the road crew would set light to artwork on stage. [cite web|url=http://www.chrishunt.biz/features37.html|title=Eddie Philips interview|author=Chris Hunt]

Although most of their singles were issued in the UK, after "Making Time" and "Painter Man", there were no further hits. They even had four singles were issued in the US ("Making Time" b/w "Try And Stop Me" and "Painter Man" b/w 'Biff Bang Pow" on US Planet, "If I Stay Too Long" b/w "Nightmares", and "How Does It Feel To Feel" b/w "Life Is Just Beginning" on US Decca), without success, though they remained extremely popular in Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Norway.

At the end of 1966, Garner left and was replaced by Kim Gardner; plus in March 1968 Pickett left and was replaced by Ronnie Wood (both of these new members had been in The Birds), but Pickett soon returned, replacing both Phillips and Gardner. Shortly afterwards, however, Creation disbanded; Pickett continued as songwriter for their American producer, Shel Talmy, and also became the guitar technician for Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin; Ronnie Wood joined the Jeff Beck Group; Gardner co-formed Ashton, Gardner & Dyke and was later a member of Badger; Jones became a cabaret singer. Pickett and Phillips later wrote the hit single "Teacher Teacher" for Rockpile.

The Creation re-formed in the mid 1980s with Phillips, Pickett, Dalton, and Mick Avory (drums, ex-Kinks), releasing a single on Jet Records and recording an album in a more contemporary rock style. The reformed band continued to tour, with various line-up changes, capitalising first on their cult notoriety with the underground mod and garage rock audiences and subsequently in their return to cool after the success of Creation Records. Their influence on popular music has been greater than their limited chart success. In the 1970s, Boney M released a disco version of "Painter Man" that reached the UK top ten. Eighties mod band Makin' Time are among the many garage bands who have taken their name from a Creation song, while Edward Ball wrote a song for The Times, "Red With Purple Flashes", based on the Eddie Phillips quote. The most successful UK indie record label of the Nineties, Creation Records, took their name from the band. [cite web|url=http://www.chrishunt.biz/features37.html|title=Eddie Philips interview|author=Chris Hunt] They performed in the United States for the first time at the final edition of Cavestomp in November, 2001.

Trivia

*The independent record label Creation Records was named after the band.
*The bands Makin' Time, The Paintermen and Biff Bang Pow! are named after songs by The Creation
*Their song "Makin' Time" was used in the movie Rushmore
*The Sex Pistols 1989 album "Pirates of destiny" includes a partial performance of The Creation's song "Through My Eyes".

Original band members

* Kenny Pickett (born Kenneth George Pickett, 3 September 1942, in Ware, Hertfordshire — died 10 January 1997) on vocals
* Eddie Phillips (born Edwin Michael Phillips, 15 August 1942, in Leytonstone, East London) on lead guitar
* Mick Thompson on rhythm guitar
* Jack Jones (born Jack Llewleyn Jones, 8 November 1944, in Northampton, Northamptonshire) on drums
* Bob Garner (born Robert Anthony Garner, 15 May 1946, in Warrington, Lancashire) on bass.

Discography

Albums

*1967 - "We Are Paintermen" (Hit-ton, issued in Germany and Sweden only)
*1999 - "Power Surge" (Creation)
*2004 - "Psychedelic Rose: The Great Lost Creation Album" (Cherry Red)
*2007 - "Live at Budokan 1979" (Universal)

ingles

*June 1966 - "Making Time" / "Try and Stop Me"
*October 1966 - "Painter Man" / " Biff Bang Pow"
*1967 - "Cool Jerk" / "Life Is Just Beginning" (Germany only)
*June 1967 - "If I Stay Too Long" / "Nightmares"
*October 1967 - "Life is Just Beginning" / "Through My Eyes"
*February 1968 - "How Does it Feel to Feel" / "Tom Tom"
*May 1968 - "Midway Down" (John Wonderling/Los Shapiro) / "The Girls are Naked" (Pickett/Gardner/Jones) (Polydor 56246)
*Bonney Moroney (Larry Williams) b/w Mercy, Mercy, Mercy (Larry Williams/Johnny Watson/Zawinul) (Germany only, Hit-ton HT 300210)
*1968 "For All that I Am" (Friedland/Kahan) b/w "Uncle Bert" (Wood/Pickett/Gardner/Jones) (Hit-ton HT 300235, Germany)
*1968 - "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" / "Uncle Bert" (Germany only)
*April 1987 - "A Spirit called Love" / "Making Time" / "Mumbo Jumbo" (12" EP)
*July 1994 - "Creation" / "Shock Horror" / "Power Surge" (CD single)

Compilations and live albums

*1968 - "The Best of The Creation" (Pop, issued in Germany and Sweden only)
*1973 - "Creation 66-67" (Charisma, 12" LP)
*1973 - "Makin' Time" / "Painter Man" (7" single)
*1975 - "The Creation" (UK collection)
*1982 - "The Mark Four/The Creation" (Eva, German collection)
*1982- "How Does it Feel to Feel?" (Edsel, 12" LP)
*1984 - "Recreation" (Line, 12" LP)
*1984 - "We Are Paintermen" (12" LP)
*1984 - "Making Time" / "Little Bert" (Eva, 7" single)
*1985 - "Live at the Beat Scene Club" (7" EP)
*1993 - "Lay the Ghost" (Universal)
*1994 - "Painter Man" (Edsel, UK budget collection)
*1998 - "Our Music Is Red - With Purple Flashes" (Diablo, UK collection)
*1998 - "Complete Collection, Vol. 1: Making Time" (Retroactive)
*1998 - "Complete Collection, Vol. 2: Biff Bang Pow" (Retroactive)
*2007 - "The Singles Collection" (Get Back Italy)

DVDs

*2004 - "Red with Purple Flashes: The Creation Live" (Cherry Red)

References

External links

* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:g9fpxqt5ldde~T0 The Creation at All Music Guide]
* [http://www.chrishunt.biz/features37.html Eddie Phillips interview: 1974] by Chris Hunt, published in "Guitarist", 1988.
*http://www.myspace.com/thecreationofficial
* [http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/theWorldof_EddiePhillips_and_TheCreation/ The World of Eddie Phillips and The Creation Yahoo! Group] mailing list - a place to discuss Phillip's career and his music.
* [http://www.geocities.com/mikegriffiths6/Eddie_Phillips_Q_and_A.html Eddie Phillips Q And A] - an e-mail interview with Phillips.