Blue Mink

One of the most popular British bands of the early 1970s, Blue Mink formed in 1969 around Roger Coulam (keyboards) with American singer Madeline Bell, singer Roger Cook and studio musicians Alan Parker (guitar), Herbie Flowers (bass) and Barry Morgan (drums, percussion). Right from the start, the single "Melting Pot" proved to be an international hit, reaching No. 3 in the U.K., followed by the No. 10 "Good Morning Freedom", which was initially omitted but later included in the Melting Pot repress album, with its psychedelic tone and characteristic blend of soul and pop. Between sessions at Morgan Studios in London, the musicians reunited as Blue Mink and continued in a more pop direction with the albums Real Mink (1970), Our World (1970) and A Time of Change (1972), released after another major hit with the bubblegum pop hit "The Banner Man" (No. 3 in 1971). The band scored a few more hits with "Stay with Me" (no. 11), followed by "Randy" and "By the Devil (I Was Tempted)" (no. 9), featured on the next album Only When I Laugh... (1973), recorded with new members Ray Cooper and Ann Odell. A final studio album, Fruity, was released in 1974, but failed to chart, and Blue Mink disbanded after a U.S. tour that ended with a farewell concert at the Troubadour club in Los Angeles, with Elton John in the audience. The last single recorded, "Get Up", became a disco hit when renamed "7-6-5-4-3-2-1 (Blow Your Whistle)" by The Rimshots. Reunited in 1976, the group recorded three new singles before disappearing. Numerous compilations followed. Roger Coulam died on October 23, 2005, Barry Morgan on November 1, 2007 and Herbie Flowers on September 5, 2024.