The Groop [music videos]

The Groop was a rock band which was formed in Melbourne by Peter McKeddie, Max Ross, and Richard Wright, and which performed from 1964 to 1969.

The band members, who had been students at Wesley College, were originally a folk trio named “The Oxford Trio” (named after the Oxford Hotel, a pub located near RMIT, in Swanston Street, Melbourne), but after hearing the new developments in rock and roll music they decided to point their talents in that direction.

They placed a handwritten advertisement for a rhythm guitarist in Ivan Loel’s music store in Russell street, Melbourne, in 1964. Peter Bruce (originally from England) replied to the advert, and offered his skills. When Bruce joined, he added a skiffle influence to the band. The style of the band was changing, and so they decided to changed their name as well; thus, the band became The Groop (using a deliberate misspelling of the word “group”).

Peter McKeddie has cited The Beatles (formed 1960) as “an enormous influence”, as well as noting the musical impact of the Rolling Stones (formed 1962). In an interview with Nick Black, played on Southern FM, Peter McKeddie described how he was driving down the highway when a song by The Beatles came on the radio, and he had to pull over to listen to this amazing new development in popular music. An article in Go-Set (February 1966), a Melbourne music magazine, also noted the influence of African-American folk-blues.

With the advent of The Beatles, and American rock singers, the popularity of rock ’n’ roll music in Australia skyrocketed, and the band was able to work seven nights a week. They played a lot of 21st birthday parties and society functions.

They arranged to play one of their songs on “Kevin Dennis’ New Faces” (an early Saturday morning TV show on Channel 9, which was sponsored by the car dealership Kevin Dennis Motors). The band’s performance was seen by a CBS Records executive, who offered them a contract. They were flown up to Sydney, where they signed a contract with CBS, and produced some hit records.

The Groop’s first single was “Ol’ Hound Dog” (released by CBS in December 1965), which reached #7 in the music charts. In those early years, Ian “Molly” Meldrum was The Groop’s road manager, and he did some key work in getting the band written up in Australian music magazines. They also had a publicity boost when they played as the supporting act to Herman’s Hermits and Tom Jones in Adelaide during their Australian tour in 1966, when they Twilights were unable to play.

However, Peter McKeddie felt that playing the same music over and over again at various Melbourne venues was becoming monotonous, so he decided to leave the band (1966); also, McKeddie’s girlfriend (later to become his wife) had gone to England, so Peter decided to go there too. Around the same time, Peter Bruce decided to move on as well.

Therefore, The Groop had a changeover of talent in 1966, after McKeddie and Bruce left, with Don Mudie, Ronnie Charles (Ron Boromeo), and Brian Cadd (briefly known as Brian Caine) joining the band (with Max Ross and Richard Wright). Ronnie Charles was lead singer with The Jackson Kings; he joined The Groop on the condition that Brian Cadd (who was also with The Jackson Kings) join the band as well.

Followers of The Groop divide the works of the band into two time periods: The Groop, Mark I (the last song of which was “Empty Words”), with Peter McKeddie and Peter Bruce involved; and, afterwards, The Groop, Mark II (the first song of which was “Sorry”), with the addition of Cadd, Charles, and Mudie.

With the new line-up, the band became even more successful. In July 1967 they won Hoadley’s Battle of the Sounds (sponsored by the Hoadley confectionary company), which was held in Festival Hall (Melbourne) on that occasion; the prize was a trip to the UK, along with some spending money. So they travelled to England on a cruise liner; although, the trip turned out to be somewhat disappointing, as the CBS UK producers pushed music onto them that wasn’t their style, and the company wouldn’t promote the songs that the band wrote themselves. They played a lot of venues in Britain, but didn’t achieve popularity needed for them to be successful. However, whilst in Europe, their single “Lovin’ Tree” (B-side: “Night Life”) was a hit in Germany, so they toured that country in July 1968.

In his interview with Nick Black, Max Ross said that whilst they were in England they signed a “recording contract with MCR, or some company like that; turned out to be a bit of a disaster … they wrote a song for us, and tested the song in Italy, and then asked us to sing the song, which we thought was not our style at all … we tried to convince them to use ours, but I think when we told them that we wouldn’t play the song … the recording side of our show in England came to a pretty sudden halt.”

The band returned to Australia in September 1968. After they got back, Max Ross left the group (due to reasons of ill heath). As well as that, Brian Cadd was considering moving his musical abilities in a new direction. To top things off, their latest single, “You Gotta Live Love” (B-side: “Sally’s Mine”), was a flop in the charts.

The group broke up in May 1969. Cadd and Mudie went on to form a new band, Axiom.

However, the band was revived for an Australian tour in late 1988 to early 1989, by several past members of The Groop, so that they could give their fans a thrill, and also perhaps that they cold indulge in some musical nostalgia.

During their time together, the band played some great music, and had a number of hits. Their song “Woman You’re Breaking Me” became a hit in 1967, reaching #6 on the Go-Set National Top 40 (going to #4 in Brisbane and #3 in Canberra; it was also a hit in some parts of the USA). “Such a Lovely Way” was a hit in 1969, reaching #13 on the Go-Set National Top 40 (going to #12 in Canberra).

The Groop was a key part of the Australian music scene of the late 1960s, and was influential upon the development of Australian popular music.

Music videos

The Groop – Such a Lovely Way
(written by Brian Cadd and Don Mudie)

The Groop – Woman You’re Breaking Me
(written by Brian Cadd and Richard Wright)

The Groop – Annabelle Lee
(written by Max Ross and Brian Cadd)

The Groop – Baby Blue
(written by Bob Dylan, USA)

The Groop – The Best in Africa
(written by Peter Bruce)

The Groop – Bury My Body
(traditional gospel blues song, USA)

The Groop – Downtown Women
(written by Max Ross and Brian Cadd)

The Groop – Empty Words
(written by Max Ross) (last song of The Groop, Mark 1)

The Groop – Good Time Baby
(written by Brian Cadd and Max Ross)

The Groop – The Gun and Flowerpot Trick
(written by Peter Bruce and Peter McKeddie)

The Groop – Happy With Love Like Yours
(written by Brian Cadd and Max Ross)

The Groop – I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself
(written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David, USA)

The Groop – I’m Satisfied
(from Jerry Garcia with Mother McCree’s Uptown Jug Champions, July 1964, USA)

The Groop – Little Man
(written by Peter McKeddie and Richard Wright)

The Groop – Mandrake Wine

The Groop – Ol’ Hound Dog
(written by Max Ross and Peter McKeddie)

The Groop – Sorry
(written by Joy Byers, USA) [commonly misattributed to Solomon Burke]

The Groop – Sorry
(B&W video of the band)

The Groop – Thinkin’ ’Bout the Things
(written by Brian Cadd and Max Ross)

The Groop – Turn On Your Lovelight
(written by Deadric Malone and Joseph Scott, USA)

Members of The Groop

[The Groop, Mark I]
Peter McKeddie (vocals)
Peter Bruce (guitar)
Max Ross (bass)
Richard Wright (drums, vocals)

[The Groop, Mark II]
Ronnie Charles (vocals)
Brian Cadd (keyboards, vocals)
Don Mudie (guitar) (October 1968 to May 1969)
Max Ross (bass) (until Oct. 1968)
Richard Wright (drums, vocals)

Discography

Singles:
— [The Groop, Mark I] —
* 1965: Mojo; Just Like Me [W&G Records: White & Gillespie]
* 1965-12: Ol’ Hound Dog (M. Ross – P. McKeddie); Cry, Baby Cry (Moore – West) [CBS: Columbia Broadcasting System; produced by Sven Libaek]
* 1966-02: The Best in Africa (P. Bruce); Gloria (Morrison) [CBS; produced by Sven Libaek]
* 1966-06: I’m Satisfied (Arr. The Groop); (These Are) Bad Times (S. Barri – P. Sloan) [CBS; produced by Sven Libaek]
* 1966-06: Empty Words (M. Ross); The Gun and Flower Pot Trick (P. Bruce – P. McKeddie) [CBS; produced by Sven Libaek]

— [The Groop, Mark II] —
* 1967-02: Sorry (S. Burke); Who Do You Love? (McDaniels) [CBS]
* 1967-06: Annabelle Lee (Ross Cadd); Seems More Important to Me (Ross Cadd) [CBS]
* 1967-07: Woman You’re Breaking Me (B. Cadd-R. Wright); Mad Over You (R. Charles) [CBS]
* 1968: The Groop Plays Lilydale Cider [promotional single] Side 1: Lilydale Cider; Lilydale Cider. Side 2: instrumental
[Note: This single included two tracks with the same name.]
* 1968-01: Lovin’ Tree (M. Ross-B. Cadd); Night Life (M. Ross-B. Cadd) [CBS]
* 1969-01: Such a Lovely Way (B. Cadd-D. Mudie); We Can Talk (R. Manuel) [CBS]
* 1969-04: You Gotta Live Love (Cadd-Mudie); Sally’s Mine (Cadd-Mudie) [CBS]
* 1989: Mandrake Wine [flexi-disc issued with From the Vault magazine, vol. 2 no. 1]
[Note: This disc included two songs: “Cortina Jingle” (by the Masters Apprentices) and “Mandrake Wine” (by The Groop).]

EPs (Extended Play records):
* 1966: The Groop [CBS]
Side 1: 1. Ol’ Hound Dog (M. Ross-P. McKeddie); 2. Gloria (Morrison)
Side 2: 1. The Best in Africa (P. Bruce); 2. It Must Be Love (Wood-Kirkland)
[Note: The 1966 EP appears in the CBS list under the title of “Ol’ Hound Dog” (which is the name of the first song on the record), with the reference number of “BG225114”; however, the EP was released under the title of “The Groop” (with the record having the same reference number, “BG225114”). The back cover of the EP states that “The four tracks here are taken from the 12″ LP album “The Groop””.]
* 1967: Woman You’re Breaking Me [CBS]
Side 1: 1. Woman You’re Breaking Me (Wright-Cadd); 2. Mad Over You (Ron Charles)
Side 2: 1. Downtown Women (Ross-Cadd); 2. Sorry (S. Burke)
[Note: The back cover of the 1967 EP states that “The tracks for this EP were taken from the 12″ LP “Woman You’re Breaking Me””]
* 1969: Such a Lovely Way [CBS]
Side 1: 1. Such a Lovely Way (B. Cadd-D. Mudie); 2. We Can Talk (R. Manual)
Side 2: 1. Night Life (M. Ross-B. Cadd); 2. Lovin’ Tree (M. Ross-B. Cadd)
* 1980: Woman You’re Breakin’ Me [Raven Records, by arrangement with CBS Records]
Side 1: 1. Woman You’re Breaking Me (Wright/Cadd); 2. Sorry (Solomon Bourke); 3. Mad Over You (Ron Charles)
Side 2: 1. Such a Lovely Way (Cadd/Mudie); 2. Who Do You Love? (Elias McDaniel); 3. Biggest & Best in Africa (Peter Bruce)
[Note: The back cover of the Raven EP was dated 1979, whilst the vinyl record was dated 1980.]

LPs (Long Playing records) / albums:
* 1965: The Groop [CBS; produced by Sven Libaek]
Side 1: 1. Ol’ Hound Dog (Ross-McKeddie); 2. Gloria (Morrison); 3. The Sporting Life (Arr. The Groop); 4. Just Like Me (Carroll-Guy); 5. Bury My Body (Arr. Price); 6. Endless Sleep (J. Reynolds-D. Nance)
Side 2: 1. The Best in Africa (P. Bruce); 2. Natural Born Loser (Good Lover) (J. Reed); 3. Cry, Cry Baby (West-Moore); 4. It Must Be Love (Wood-Kirkland); 5. Ham and Eggs (Arranged The Groop); 6. I’m Mad (John L. Hooker)
[Note: The CBS list gives the date for this LP as 1965; however, the back cover of the LP is dated “Sydney, 1966”.]
* 1966: I’m Satisfied [CBS]
Side 1: 1. I’m Satisfied; 2. Little Man; 3. Roberta; 4. Here She Comes; 5. Your Feet’s Too Big; 6. Empty Words
Side 2: 1. Ain’t That a Shame; 2. (These Are) Bad Times; 3. Big Boy Pete; 4. Ain’t She Sweet; 5. If You Live; 6. The Gun and Flower Pot Trick
* 1967: Woman You’re Breaking Me [CBS]
Side 1: 1. Baby Blue (B. Dylan); 2. Mad Over You (Ron Charles); 3. I Just Don’t Know What To Do With Myself (Bacharach-David); 4. Sorry (S. Burke); 5. Thinkin’ ’Bout the Things (Ross-Cadd); 6. Downtown Women (Ross-Cadd)
Side 2: 1. Woman You’re Breaking Me (Wright-Cadd); 2. Reach for the Sun (Ross-Cadd); 3. Happy With a Love Like Yours (Ross-Cadd); 4. I’ll Be Damned (Ross-Cadd); 5. Good Time Baby (Ross-Cadd); 6. Turn On Your Lovelight (Marlone-Scott)
* 1968: Great Hits from The Groop [MFP: Music For Pleasure]
Side 1: 1. Mad Over You (Ron Charles); 2. Downtown (Ross-Cadd); 3. Woman You’re Breaking Me (Wright-Cadd); 4. The Gun and Flower Pot Trick (Bruce-McKeddie); 5. I’m Satisfied (Arr. The Groop)
Side 2: 1. Little Man (P. McKeddie-R. Wright); 2. Here She Comes (P. Bruce); 3. Empty Words (M. Ross); 4. The Best in Africa (P. Bruce); 5. Ham and Eggs (Arr. The Groop)
* 1989: The Best & the Rest 1965-1969 [CBS; compiled by Glenn A. Baker and Peter Shillito] (compact disc)
1. Watch Your Step (Unknown); 2. Come On Now (Unknown); 3. Ol’ Hound Dog (M. Ross/P. McKeddie); 4. The Best in Africa (P. Bruce); 5. Empty Words (M. Ross); 6. Little Man (P. McKeddie/R. Wright); 7. Who Do You Love? (McDaniels); 8. Sorry (Soloman Burke); 9. Mad Over You (Ron Charles); 10. Baby Blue (B. Dylan); 11. Woman You’re Breaking Me (Wright/Cadd); 12. Seems More Important to Me (Ross/Cadd); 13. Annabelle Lee (Ross/Cadd); 14. Thinkin’ ’Bout the Things (Ross/Cadd); 15. Happy With a Love Like Yours (Ross/Cadd); 16. Night Life (Ross/Cadd); 17. Sally’s Mine (Cadd/Mudie); 18. We Can Talk (R. Manuel); 19. You Gotta Live Love (Cadd/Mudie); 20. Such a Lovely Way (B. Cadd/D. Mudie)
[Note: The CBS list includes the title of “Greatest Hits 1965-6”, with the reference number of “463480 1”; the back cover of the CD “The Best & the Rest 1965-1969” has the reference number of “463480 2”. The back cover of the CD states that “Watch Your Step” and “Come On Now” were recordings made by The Jackson Kings (which included Ronnie Charles and Brian Cadd, before they joined The Groop).]

Notes re. the discography:
1) The song details have been sourced from the records, with the following exceptions: 1965 single “Mojo”, 1967 single “Lilydale Cider”, 1966 LP “I’m Satisfied”.

2) The years of release of the CBS records were sourced from Michael De Looper’s comprehensive work, The C.B.S. Label: 1963–1992, with the following exceptions: 1965 single “Mojo” [W&G Records], 1966 EP “The Groop” [also released as “Ol’ Hound Dog”], 1967 single “Lilydale Cider” [promotional record], 1980 EP “Woman You’re Breakin’ Me” [Raven Records], 1968 LP Great Hits from The Groop [MFP], 1989 single “Mandrake Wine” [flexi-disc], 1989 CD The Best & the Rest 1965-1969 [CBS].

References and further information:
“The Groop”, Milesago: Australasian Music & Popular Culture 1964-1975
“The Groop”, Australian Rock Database [Internet Archive]
“Encyclopedia entry for ‘The Groop’” (Encyclopedia of Australian Rock and Pop), Whammo (Worldwide Home of Australian Music and More Online) [Internet Archive]
“Groop, The”, Nostalgia Central
“The Groop”, Wikipedia
“Hoadley’s Battle of the Sounds”, Wikipedia
“Hoadley’s National Battle of the Sounds”, Milesago
Nick Black (interviewer), “The Purple Haze Archive presents great Australian ‘group’ of the 1960s: The Groop on podcast”, 88.3 Southern FM [includes interviews with Peter McKeddie and Max Ross, interspersed with music; available as an MP3 file]
“Hermans Hermits and Tom Jones 1966 Australian tour”, Australian rock and pop tours of the 50’s and 60’s, 25 September 2012
“The Groop: Sorry”, PopArchives.com.au [states that “Sorry” (“I Said I Was Sorry”) was written by Joy Byers, although it is often misattributed to Solomon Burke]
“The Groop: From “society” to … you!”, Go-Set (Melbourne, Vic.), vol. 1 no. 1, 2 February 1966, pp. 4-5
“The Groop [Australia] – Discography”, 45cat
“W&G Records”, Milesago
“The Groop .. The Best and the Rest .. 1965 to 1969 … A band made in two phases”, The Aussie Music Blog, 17 March 2014

Music chart references:
“Go-Set National Top 40: 26 July 1967”, PopArchives.com.au [“Woman You’re Breaking Me” enters the charts at #40]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 30 August 1967”, PopArchives.com.au [“Woman You’re Breaking Me” peak position at #6]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 18 October 1967”, PopArchives.com.au [“Woman You’re Breaking Me”, last week in the charts (13 weeks)]
“Australian (radio station 4BC-Brisbane) weekly single charts for 1967”, [“Woman You’re Breaking Me”, 4BC-Brisbane, 10 September 1967, #4]
“Canberra Top Forty”, The Canberra Times (Canberra, ACT), 16 August 1967, p. 30 [“Woman You’re Breaking Me”, #3]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 13 December 1967”, PopArchives.com.au [“Annabelle Lee” / “Seems More Important To Me” enters the charts at #37]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 3 January 1968”, PopArchives.com.au [“Annabelle Lee” / “Seems More Important To Me” peaks at #30; last week in the charts (4 weeks)]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 5 February 1969”, PopArchives.com.au [“Such a Lovely Way” enters the charts at #40]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 5 March 1969”, PopArchives.com.au [“Such a Lovely Way” peaks at #13]
“Go-Set National Top 40: 9 April 1969”, PopArchives.com.au [“Such a Lovely Way” last week in the charts (10 weeks)]
“Canberra Top Forty”, The Canberra Times (Canberra, ACT), 28 March 1969, p. 16 [“Such a Lovely Way”, #12]

Discography references:
Michael De Looper, The C.B.S. Label: 1963–1992, Australian Record Labels, November 2019, pp. 8-12, 14-15, 78-80, 87-88, 90, 161 [PDF file]
Michael De Looper, Independent Australian Labels: 1955 to 1990, Australian Record Labels, October 2019, p. 165 [re. Raven Records] [PDF file]
The Sixties: Australian rock and pop recordings(1964–1969): A guide to holdings in the National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, Canberra: National Film and Sound Archive of Australia, 2000 [PDF file]
Note: A later version of the NFSA’s publication “>The Sixties is also available: “The Second Wave: Australian Rock and Pop 1964 –1969: Collection Guide”, [Canberra]: National Screen and Sound Archive, 2001 [PDF file]
“The Groop (3) ‎– The Groop”, Discogs [track list for the 1965 LP “The Groop”]
“The Groop (3) ‎– I’m Satisfied”, Discogs [track list for the 1966 LP “I’m Satisfied”]
“The Groop (3) ‎– Great Hits From The Groop”, Discogs [“Released 1968”]
“The Groop (3) ‎– Plays Lilydale Cider”, Discogs [track list for the 1968 7″ “The Groop Plays Lilydale Cider”]
“The Master’s Apprentices / The Groop (3) ‎– Cortina Jingle / Mandrake Wine”, Discogs [track list for the 1989 flexi-disc issued with From the Vault]
“The Groop (3) ‎– The Best And The Rest 1965-69”, Discogs [“Year: 1989”]

General notes:
1) There was an American band of the same name, “The Groop”, who were active in the late 1960s (produced by Bell Records).

2) There was also an American band with a similar name, “The Groop Ltd”.

3) CBS repurposed the same artwork which was used for the front cover of the German single of The Groop’s “Lovin’ Tree”, for the cover of the Italian single of Jerry Adriani’s “Canzone Di Felicità” (“Song of Happiness”), B-side: “Ma Tu Non Sai” (“But You Don’t Know”).