The Zombies Overview

The Zombies formed in 1961 in St Albans, England, and gained their initial reputation playing the Old Verulamians Rugby Club in that town. The group was formed whilst the members were at school. Some sources state that Argent, Atkinson and Grundy... [more]

The Zombies formed in 1961 in St Albans, England, and gained their initial reputation playing the Old Verulamians Rugby Club in that town. The group was formed whilst the members were at school. Some sources state that Argent, Atkinson and Grundy were at St Albans School, while Blunstone and White were students at St Albans Boys' Grammar School (since renamed Verulam School).[1][2] Other sources claim they were all at St Albans Boys' Grammar School.[3]; however, this is not correct. After winning a beat-group competition sponsored by the London Evening News, the Zombies signed to Decca and recorded their first hit, "She's Not There" (Argent's second song, written specifically for this session), which was released in mid-1964 and peaked at number 12 in the UK, where it would be their only UK Top 40 hit. This minor-key, jazz-tinged number, distinguished by its musicianship and Blunstone's breathy vocal, was unlike anything previously heard in British rock and would become a bona fide classic. It was first aired in the United States in early August 1964 on New York City rock station WINS by Stan Z. Burns, who debuted the song on his daily noontime "Hot Spot" segment during which new songs were played. The tune began to catch on in early fall and eventually climbed to #2. In early 1965, "Tell Her No" became another big seller in the United States (where it was a hit a second time, in 1983 for American pop vocalist Juice Newton), but had failed to make the Top 40 in the band's native UK. Although subsequent recordings such as "I Love You" (which became a hit for People! in 1968), "Indication", "Whenever You're Ready", and "Is This the Dream" were of uniformly high quality, none achieved the success of the previous two singles. In 1967, the Zombies signed to CBS Records for one final LP, only the second of their career and the first one produced as a single unit. Their previous LP, Begin Here (1965), was a collection of early singles, half a dozen original songs combined with several R&B covers. The resulting album, Odessey and Oracle, was one of the very first to utilize a Mellotron keyboard, as the band's budget did not allow for the hiring of session musicians. The band discovered too late that "odyssey" had been misspelled by the cover designers and were reportedly deeply embarrassed. Odessey and Oracle Odessey and Oracle By the time Odessey and Oracle was released in April 1968, the band had broken up. The album sold little, and was only released in the U.S. because musician Al Kooper vouched for it. An album track called "Time of the Season" was released as a single and eventually (1969) it became a huge nationwide hit (Billboard #3) after a radio DJ discovered it and put it on heavy rotation. Since the group declined to perform, various concocted groups tried to capitalize on the success and falsely toured under the band's name. After The Zombies, Rod Argent formed a band called Argent, while Blunstone eventually launched a solo career. In 2003, Blunstone and Argent reunited to record and tour, and released an album in 2004 credited to the Zombies (As Far as I Can See...), which received generally poor reviews. A 120-track compilation of the original band's work, Zombie Heaven, was much better regarded. Use of the Begin Here album track "The Way I Feel Inside" in the soundtrack to the 2004 film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou has spurred on another generation to seek out and revive their music. Many of their songs are used in the film Dear Wendy. A remix of their song "She's Not There" can be heard in Kill Bill Volume 2 as The Bride enters Bill's home. Guitarist Paul Atkinson died in Santa Monica, California, on April 1, 2004. In 2006 Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone carried on touring. This was not a Zombies reunion and was credited to Rod Argent and Colin Blunstone of The Zombies. Earlier in the year, one of the band's songs "This Will be Our Year," was featured in a Nike advertisement dedicated to Tiger Woods's late father. The good news for Zombies fans is that all of the surviving members of the band have announced that they will tour in 2008 to mark the 40th anniversary of Odessey & Oracle. Further, for residents in the UK and Republic of Ireland, 'Time of the Season' was used by Bulmers/Magners cider in their March 2006 spring television advertisement campaign; which they are re-running for 200 [show less]