Flamin' Groovies

The Flamin' Groovies are an American outfit who first emerged in 1960s San Francisco. The first iteration of the band started when guitarist Cyril Jordan, drummer Ron Greco, singer/guitarist Roy Loney, bassist George Alexander and guitarist Tim Lynch got together at school to form a group. They decided they had the makings of a rock band and went on to play band battles and teen dances under the names the Chosen Few and Lost and Found. They broke up briefly, but when they reformed in 1966 with drummer Danny Mihm replacing Ron Greco The Flamin' Groovies were born in earnest.

They haunted the periphery of San Francisco's music scene, not fitting in with the psychdelic sound that was popular at the time thanks to their fascination with early rock & roll and vintage R&B. Still, their self-published EP 'Sneakers' won them a record contract with Epic and their full-length debut was well-received. It was not, however, profitable and they were dropped by the label. They picked up a new deal with Kama Sutra and with their third album 'Teenage Head' began seeing some commercial success. Meanwhile, Jordan and Loney were clashing over the group's creative direction, eventually culminating with Loney leaving and Tim Lynch following suit.

Jordan's cemented position as band leader led to a new direction that was heavily influenced by the British Invasion. Singer Chris Wilson and guitarist James Farrell joined up and they began to amass a cult following thanks in no small part to the album 'Shake Some Action' and the lead track of the same name. Despite this their next two albums, 'Flamin' Groovies Now' (1978) and 'Jumpin' in the Night' (1979) failed to perform and led to a period of dormancy until 1987's 'One Night Stand'. The band split in 1991, shortly after recording 'Rock Juice', but a trickle of reissues and various other projects from band members kept them present in the minds of fans. Eventually it lead to a reunion in 2013 and, four years later, the first Flamin' Groovies album of new material in 24 years, 'Fantastic Plastic'. After an east coast tour in 2019 with special guest, former member Ron Loney, the band prepared to tour Europe. However, shortly before the European leg, Loney was taken ill, later passing away at the age of 73.