Rod made his way back to London in 1964 and joined a Long John
Baldry's Hoochie Coochie Men, recording a single, 'Good Morming
Little Schoolgirl'. Unfortunely fame was not to be at this time
and it failed to make the chart.
The Hoochie
Coochie Men evolved into Steampacket which featured Rod, John
Baldry (famous for his duet with Kathi
McDonald, 'You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling') , Julie
Driscoll ( well known for her 1960s hit
versions of "Wheel's on Fire" and Bob Donovan's "Season
of the Witch") , Brian
Auger ( a jazz and rock keyboardist, specialising in
playing the Hammond Organ and was also founder of Steampacket),
Mickey Waller (best known for his excellent drum playing) and
Rick Brown (who played bass guitar). The Steampackets supported
the Rolling Stones and the Walker Brothers (known for their
hits, 'The Sun Ain't Gonna Shine (Anymore) and 'Make It Easy
On Yourself' ), back in the summer of 1965. During this time
Rod and the Steampackets would also recored an album which
was not released until 1970, a time at which Rod has already
made a name for himself in the musical arena.
In early 1966, Steampacket disbanded at which time Rod joined
another group, Shotgun Express as lead vocalist along with Beryl
Marsden (who began singing at the age of 15 with 'The Undertakers
and Faron's Flamingoes. Quiet possibly she could have been
Liverpool's answer to Brenda Lee). Also among the members of
Shotgun were Mick Fleetwood, (who would later served as drummer
with the rock band Fleetwood Mac), and Peter Green ( blues-rock guitarist,
later joining and becoming a founding member of Fleetwood
Mac.
Rod's careet with Shotgun was short lived as it
disbanned in 1966 after releasing only one single. Rod didn't
let that discourage him, he got right back out there, singing
guest vocals for Pythod Lee Jackson (the Australian band) in
1970 with "In a Broken Dream" re-released in 1972, becoming
a global success. Strangely enough, Rod's payment
for his efforts was a set of seat covers for his car! Bet that
was a disappointment!.
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