Name for me some 60s rock bands (and performers) that made the charts in England but never had a modicum of success here in the States. [Please]
The Creation - rock band
The Sorrows - freakbeat at its finest
Tomorrow - sort-of psychedelic folk rock
Those are the first few that popped into my head.
He doesn’t meet your criteria of not having a modicum of success but Cliff Richard is not widely known in the US and was a huge star in the U.K. I might not have even remembered him except for being mentioned repeatedly in The Young Ones.
Here’s an article listing a few others.
The Downliners Sect, The Big Four (Lennons favorite mersey band), Colosseum, Status Quo, are some.
Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac, the first iteration, is woefully under-worshipped in the US. for that matter, Green’s last album with John Mayall, a Hard Road, features The Super-Natural, aka the Carlos Santana lesson book. Some of the best Brit blues lead work, period.
PGFM, supporting Chicago Blues pianist Otis Spann, The Biggest Thing Since Colossus: Otis Spann [with Fleetwood Mac] – The Biggest Thing Since Colossus... (1969) - YouTube
The Bonzo Dog Band were a UK institution, but never cracked the US market.
The Walker Brothers (who were American). Never made the top ten in the US, but had several big hits in the UK. David Bowie was a big fan.
Slade.
Soft Machine, Caravan, Gong, Hatfield and the North, etc. as well as many other groups in the Canterbury scene. Not that big in the UK, either, but far better known there.
[Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich](Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich) were maybe more pop than rock but were very big here from 1966 - 1969. In the US Zabadak peaked at # 52 in the charts… And who couldn’t love the percussion on it!? They do rock a bit harder on Hold Tight, though.
Amen Corner were more a pop band but had several big hits in UK in 1968 - 1969. I’m not aware of any particular success they had in the US.
The various members later played with the likes of Clapton, Harrison and Roger Waters.
You named 'em. Slade. They might be disqualified, since they were named Ambrose Slade in 1969 and then changed it to Slade in 1970, but they were playing as a group in the 60s. They had some (i.e., very little) success in the USA, but not much. However, they were hugely successful in the UK and some other countries in the 70s.
As far as Slade being the “BEST,”…yeah, I’ll give them that, too. When they were good, they were very good.
I just immediately discount groups like Fairport Convention. They were not just good, they were great. But they weren’t even that popular in the UK at the time. Lots has changed since then, so RT and SD have had a lot more recognition, but they weren’t the “TOTP” stars that Slade were.
Technically, they weren’t “unknown,” since they had ONE hit in America. But the Small Faces are known here almost solely for “Itchycoo Park,” one of their silliest songs. They deserved to be MUCH bigger.
Similarly, Status Quo have had a long, successful career in Europe, but in America they’re one hit wonders, known solely for “Pictures of Matchstick Men.”
Wow, now I know where the inspiration for “Black Magic Woman” came from! And Carlos’ overall sound. Gonna definitely check out more John Mayall. Always did like Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac.
Wicked Lady (artistic NSFW-ish cover.) Great proto-doom, you can hear their style/influence in a lot of later music.
My guess would be The Kinks - after all they were banned from playing in the US for a number of years - I daresay that they picked up some popularity during the 1970’s but really they should have been near as big as The Beatles
Pretty Things
Took me forever to find their CD Crosstalk Granted, it’s from the 80’s, not the 60’s. But most of their hits were in the 60’s.
Nope. Touring was nothing like it is now as far as an indication of popularity. They didn’t tour in the USA (much), but I had at least four singles (45s) from The Kinks by the time I was 14.
Yeah, I’ll give you Status Quo, though I don’t see much difference between them having one single and Slade having one. Slade was much bigger in the UK for the end of the 60s and the 70s. I always compare them to A-Ha in the 80s.
Agreed. The Kinks were one of the major groups of the British Invasion (With the Beatles, Stones, the Who, The Dave Clark Five, and the Animals) and were well known in the US even if they didn’t tour.
I always have fun betting (and collecting from) people that Fleetwood Mac recorded Black Magic Woman prior to Santana. Here in America, people only know the Santana version.
The Move had almost no presence in the USA. Their offshoot, the Electric Light Orchestra, was much bigger.
Still***, Shazam*** was one of my favorite albums ever, and most Americans have never heard of it (or of the great Roy Wood).
PP Arnold was an American soul singer, but nobody in America has ever heard of her. She had a lot of success in England (where her backing band included Keith Emerson and other future members of the Nice).
A few American metalheads know of Trapeze, but they’re surprisingly obscure.
The Kinks had a few hits in the US in the 80s before breaking up. Destroyer, Come Dancing, and Don’t Forget To Dance. And their song Father Christmas gets some airplay during the holidays.