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British Balladeers of the Sixties
Rock bands weren’t the only stars of the British Invasion
The “British Invasion” is most often associated with British rock bands that invaded North America beginning in 1964. The Beatles opened the floodgate for bands such as the Animals, the Dave Clark Five, the Kinks, the Rolling Stones, the Zombies, and many more.
Just as important as rock bands, though, were British balladeers — individuals and duos who, popular in their own right during the Sixties, were decidedly more pop or folk than rock ’n’ roll. Here are seven of the era’s leading balladeers who formed an integral part of the somewhat quieter wave of the British Invasion.
Chad & Jeremy
The duo of Chad (Stuart) & Jeremy (Clyde) got their start when the two met at a London drama school and Chad taught Jeremy how to play the guitar. They rode the invasion wave with “Yesterday’s Gone,” a single that first charted in the UK (1963) and became a U.S. hit in 1964 (#21 on the Billboard Hot 100). Their second U.S. hit, “A Summer Song,” was even more successful, rising to #7 in October 1964. Both were mellow pop/folk tunes with lovely harmonies and, eventually, their popularity was greater in the U.S. than in the UK.
