The Tornados

The Tornados burst onto the record scene in 1962 with their massive instrumental hit "Telstar" but their story began a little earlier, before the world was aware of the Telstar telecommunications satellite and before that distinctive keyboard sound that had been conceived by their maverick producer Joe Meek.

Joe Meek had brought the band together the previous year to provide backing for the numerous artists recording at his independent studio in North London. The line-up of the group was Clem Cattini on drums, Heinz Burt on bass, Alan Caddy and George Bellamy on guitars and Pete Newman and Pete Cotton on sax for some of the sessions and live work. The group were recruited as Billy Fury's live band were the saxaphones were replaced by keyboards. Norman Hale was the first to fill this role but Roger La Vern soon established himself as the fifth Tornado member after the release of their first single. Their first single was "Love and Fury"/"Popeye Twist" released in the spring of 1962 but failed to find chart success despite having many of what were to become trademark Tornados sounds. Their second release "The Breeze and I" was beated by the version of the guitar group The Fentones.

The first television pictures broadcast across the Atlantic on July 11th 1962 had inspired Joe Meek to create his greatest work as a tribute to the Telstar satellite. "Telstar"/"Jungle Fever" crashed into the UK charts at the end of August 1962 and stayed there for no less than 25 weeks, five of them at number one. It was also a major international success, most notably in America where the Tornados became the first British group to top the Billboard charts.

The next release "Ridin' the Wind" became the second hit single reaching 63 in the Billboard charts. More releases "Globetrotter", "Robot", "The Ice Cream Man", "The Scales Of Justice" in 1962 and 1963 became hits in the UK. Blond bassist Heinz Burt left the group in 1963 to concentrate on his vocal career. A series of replacements joined and departed in rapid succession. Subsequent releases on the Columbia record label were recorded by various different line-ups employed by Joe Meek to benefit from the remaining popularity of The Tornados' name.