Dave Dee, leader of the British band Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, died in a hospital in Surrey, England Friday morning (January 9) after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 65. While the group's only American charted record was "Zabadak" (#52) in 1968, they had eight top ten hits in England, including the #1 record, "Legend Of Xanadu". Formed in Wiltshire, England, they were originally called Dave Dee and the Bostons and even worked-- briefly and unsuccessfully-- with producer Joe Meek before signing with Fontana Records and changing their name to include all the members. Dave left for a solo career (yielding one top 50 record in England) in 1969 while the others continued as D,B,M & T before disbanding in 1972. The group reunited in the nineties and Dave continued to play with them until shortly before his death, though his main occupation was as a justice of the peace. Dave-- whose real name was Dave Harmon-- was once a police officer and as a cadet, was at the site of Eddie Cochran's fatal car crash in 1960. It was Dave who took Eddie's Gretch guitar from the scene and held onto it until it could be returned to Eddie's family. Legend has it Dave learned to play guitar on the instrument.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
British Singer Dave Dee RIP
Dave Dee, leader of the British band Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick and Tich, died in a hospital in Surrey, England Friday morning (January 9) after a three-year battle with cancer. He was 65. While the group's only American charted record was "Zabadak" (#52) in 1968, they had eight top ten hits in England, including the #1 record, "Legend Of Xanadu". Formed in Wiltshire, England, they were originally called Dave Dee and the Bostons and even worked-- briefly and unsuccessfully-- with producer Joe Meek before signing with Fontana Records and changing their name to include all the members. Dave left for a solo career (yielding one top 50 record in England) in 1969 while the others continued as D,B,M & T before disbanding in 1972. The group reunited in the nineties and Dave continued to play with them until shortly before his death, though his main occupation was as a justice of the peace. Dave-- whose real name was Dave Harmon-- was once a police officer and as a cadet, was at the site of Eddie Cochran's fatal car crash in 1960. It was Dave who took Eddie's Gretch guitar from the scene and held onto it until it could be returned to Eddie's family. Legend has it Dave learned to play guitar on the instrument.
