Sonny Childe / R B Greaves Rip

A Sonnye Childe & the TNT UK recorded cut ....

A ballad from Sonny Childe .....

SOME INFO on Sonny Childe & the TNT's .....

Screaming Lors Sutch needed a new band after members of his old outfit had quit. He went to see Liverpool outfit Derry Wilkie & The Others in a South London Club. He got talking with members of the Others who in conjunction with ex members of the Four Saxes became the new Savages (SLS's backing band). The members of the Others worked for Screaming Lord Sutch for a considerable time, playing a lot of dates with him in England and Scotland. They were the set of Savages that recorded "One Eyed Flying Purple People Eater" - with Nicky Hopkins on piano - and played 6 concerts over a weekend in early 1966, starting at the Astoria Finsbury Park and promoted by Robert Stigwood, alongside The Who, The Fortunes and The Merseybeats.

Sutch made Derry Wilkie (the Other's lead singer) dress up as a woman for one part of the act so he could chase him around the club with an axe. Derry did it as a good sport for a while but he didn't really enjoy having to but the pay was good and they all needed the money.

Soon after the departure of Noel McManus, the Savages were approached by heavy-weight boxer Freddy Mac to form a larger "Soul" stage show which included American vocalists Cleo Sylvester (who previously worked with The Rolling Stones in '64) and Ronald Bertram Greaves aka "Sonny Childe". As a result, the whole band - Phil Kenzie, Derek Bond, Ernie Hayes and roadie Bazz Ward - apart from Billy Adamson ended up involved with this project and left Dave Sutch.

The group called "This 'n' That" was in fact two groups which merged to form one large soul band with three singers and debuted at the Ram Jam Club in Brixton in April 1966. It was short lived and Derry Wilkie, who felt he was not getting the same attention as Sonny Childe, opted out.

By mid '66, the group finally left Freddy Mac because they felt they could do better as a smaller unit. They became Sonny Childe and TNT and recorded for Polydor.

Ronald Bertram Aloysius Greaves was born on Nov. 28, 1943, at an Air Force base in Georgetown in what was then British Guyana. He was

the nephew of Sam Cooke and was raised on a Seminole reservation in California.

In 1963, he moved to England to perform and record as the frontman for Sonny Childe and the TNT's.

One of the songs he recorded in the UK was a cover of Sam Cooke's "Ain't That Good News".

A big UK touring package that Sonny & the group took part in .....

did he use his UK stage-name after returning to the US ?? ......

Another date on that UK tour was ............

ABC Cinema Edinburgh ..... 20th March 1967

Roy Orbison, The Small Faces, Paul & Barry Ryan, The Jeff Beck Group, The Settlers, Sonny Childe & The TNT, The Robb Storme Group, & Ray Cameron (compere).

Sonny & the group were the opening act on the bill.

A gig the group did at the Mojo in Sheffield is one of my wife's top memories of her visits to the allniters held at the venue.

That's because, during the group's performance, Sonny pulled a couple of girls up to dance on stage with the group and she was one of them.

That was great reading Roburt, "Heartbreak" has always been one of my favourite UK only Northern 45's. Produced by Claire Francis, here stuff is always interesting and worth seeking out.

SOME INFO on Sonny Childe & the TNT's . . . . . . . .

That's interesting reading.

I remember seeing Sutch and Freddy Mack playing live back then - maybe these guys were involved.

But for some reason have absolutely no recollection of Sonny Childe from that era AT ALL.

He just wasn't on my radar - either on vinyl or live.

Having said that sounds like that band would really have "ripped up" the stage - like a lot of those great British R&B/soul bands from the mid-60's.

MB

Is this the same Sonny Childe?

Alan Rhodes spin from Wigan era....

Inside outside, upside down

R.I.P. Sonny

thanks 4 givin up on love incredible 45. rip

Deep soul Viet war masterpiece

A big UK touring package that Sonny & the group took part in .....

did he use his UK stage-name after returning to the US ?? ......

That record's like a 'who's who' of Northern Soul.......

Chester and Gary Pipkin and Brice Coefield (misspelt on the labe) wrote the song and Mike Post produced it........

Ian D