The Roulettes
More than fifty years after their break-up, The Roulettes more than deserve their own catalogue number in the Sixties Pop Library, if only for such gems as ‘Bad Time’ and ‘The Long Cigarette’ or self-written funky b-sides like ‘Junk’ and ‘Jackpot’. Providing a back-bone to Adam Faith , they were on par with The Shadows. Their impressive musical curriculum encompasses the likes of Chris Andrews, The Shadows, Unit 4+2, The Kinks, Argent and French superstar Richard Anthony, not to mention their Cheshunt Connection comprising Cliff Richard, Cliff’s friend Dave Sampson, The Hunters, The Royal Parker Five and Buster Meikle’s Daybreakers.
(01) THE REAL START OF THE ROULETTES
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Until my article in Shindig! Magazine (issue 84 of October 2018), the story of the early days of The Roulettes had never – that’s never – been told correctly. By erroneously starting the group’s story in May 1962, websites and encyclopaedia conveniently argue that The Roulettes were put together to provide Adam Faith with a new sound to cope with ‘the dawn of The Beatles’ (‘The Guinness Encyclopedia of Sixties Music’s website), ‘in order for him to compete with the beat bands then merging from Merseyside’ (Wikipedia), or ‘to compete with the beat artists about to overtake the British music scene’ (45cat.com). In actual fact, The Roulettes first hit the stage with Adam Faith on 17th September 1961 – that’s seven months earlier. At that time, Merseybeat was a local underground phenomenon at best and The Beatles pleased the German crowds with ‘La Bamba’ and ‘When The Saints Go Marching In’.
Guitarist Peter Thorp tells us what really happened.
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(02) NO 'NEW SOUND'
Whatever, encyclopaedia and websites may say: The Roulettes were not formed to allow Adam Faith to cope with 'a new sound', because there was no 'new sound' in September 1961. Read here what Roulettes Peter Thorp, John 'Mod' Rogan and Bob Henrit remember.
(03) I WANT MY OWN BAND
If there was no 'new sound' to cope with in the Autumn of 1961, then why did Adam Faith look out for a new group to back him?
(04) LEARNING THE TRADE
After the grand start at the Royal Albert Hall on 17th September 1961, Faith took his four new ‘lads’ on a two weeks’ tour of England: During the coming year, the line-up would change considerably: The Roulettes are downsized to a trio, Cliff and Faith switch bassists, saxophonist Alan Jones and drummer Bob Henrit join.