The Cryan' Shames
Encyclopedia
The Cryan' Shames is an American
garage rock
group from Hinsdale, Illinois
. They originally formed as The Travelers, with founding members Tom Doody ("Toad"), Gerry Stone ("Stonehenge"), Dave Purple ("Grape") of The Prowlers, Denny Conroy and Jim Fairs from The Roosters, Jim Pilster ("J.C. Hooke", so named because he was born without a left hand and wore a hook), and Bill Hughes. In 1966, upon learning that another band
already had the name The Travelers, they needed to find another name; J.C. Hooke remarked that their difficulty in doing so was "a cryan' shame," and thus named the band.
After signing with Bob Monaco, the promotion manager for Destination Music, their first hit single was "If I Needed Someone
", which was not released in the US (but included on their debut album). It was soon followed by "Sugar and Spice
," a Tony Hatch
song that was a hit in 1963 for the English group The Searchers
. The Shames' version reached #49 in the USA (while reaching #4 on local radio WLS).
They signed to Columbia
in 1966, and while they never were to become a national success, their singles and albums continued to sell well in the Chicago area.
The group disbanded in December 1969, but reunited again and continues to tour. Jim "J.C. Hooke" Pilster and Tom Doody (Toad) are the only remaining original members in the current lineup. Two members of The Cryan' Shames have since died: bassist Dave Purple in June 2001, and his replacement Isaac Guillory
, on December 31, 2000.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
garage rock
Garage rock
Garage rock is a raw form of rock and roll that was first popular in the United States and Canada from about 1963 to 1967. During the 1960s, it was not recognized as a separate music genre and had no specific name...
group from Hinsdale, Illinois
Hinsdale, Illinois
Hinsdale is a suburb of Chicago, Illinois; it is located partly in Cook County and mainly in DuPage County in the U.S. state of Illinois. The population was 17,349 at the 2000 census. The town's ZIP code is 60521. The town has a rolling, wooded topography, with a quaint downtown and is a 30-minute...
. They originally formed as The Travelers, with founding members Tom Doody ("Toad"), Gerry Stone ("Stonehenge"), Dave Purple ("Grape") of The Prowlers, Denny Conroy and Jim Fairs from The Roosters, Jim Pilster ("J.C. Hooke", so named because he was born without a left hand and wore a hook), and Bill Hughes. In 1966, upon learning that another band
The Travellers (band)
For other meanings of the term see The Travellers For the American folk trio see Travelers 3The Travellers were a Canadian folk singing group which formed in the summer of 1953...
already had the name The Travelers, they needed to find another name; J.C. Hooke remarked that their difficulty in doing so was "a cryan' shame," and thus named the band.
After signing with Bob Monaco, the promotion manager for Destination Music, their first hit single was "If I Needed Someone
If I Needed Someone
"If I Needed Someone" is a song written by George Harrison. Versions by The Beatles and by The Hollies appeared simultaneously, both being released in the United Kingdom on 3 December 1965. The Hollies version appeared on a single. Most of the Hollies previous singles had been big top ten hits...
", which was not released in the US (but included on their debut album). It was soon followed by "Sugar and Spice
Sugar and Spice (song)
"Sugar and Spice" is a 1963 song by Merseybeat band The Searchers written by Tony Hatch under the pseudonym Fred Nightingale. It made number two on the UK charts and number 44 in the USA charts....
," a Tony Hatch
Tony Hatch
Anthony Peter "Tony" Hatch is an English composer, songwriter, pianist, music arranger and producer.-Early life and early career:...
song that was a hit in 1963 for the English group The Searchers
The Searchers (band)
The Searchers are an English beat group, who emerged as part of the 1960s Merseybeat scene along with The Beatles, The Fourmost, The Merseybeats, The Swinging Blue Jeans, and Gerry & The Pacemakers....
. The Shames' version reached #49 in the USA (while reaching #4 on local radio WLS).
They signed to Columbia
Columbia Records
Columbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
in 1966, and while they never were to become a national success, their singles and albums continued to sell well in the Chicago area.
The group disbanded in December 1969, but reunited again and continues to tour. Jim "J.C. Hooke" Pilster and Tom Doody (Toad) are the only remaining original members in the current lineup. Two members of The Cryan' Shames have since died: bassist Dave Purple in June 2001, and his replacement Isaac Guillory
Isaac Guillory
Isaac Guillory was an American folk guitarist. He wrote over 70 songs during a career that spanned 30 years.-Personal life:...
, on December 31, 2000.
Singles
| Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... (BB)/Cashbox (CB)/WLS Radio Chicago (WLS) |
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| 1966 1966 in music -Events:*January 3 – Hullabaloo shows promotional videos of The Beatles songs "Day Tripper" and "We Can Work it Out".*January 8 – Shindig! airs for the last time on ABC, with musical guests the Kinks and the Who... |
"Sugar and Spice Sugar and Spice (song) "Sugar and Spice" is a 1963 song by Merseybeat band The Searchers written by Tony Hatch under the pseudonym Fred Nightingale. It made number two on the UK charts and number 44 in the USA charts.... " B-side: "Ben Franklin's Almanac" |
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| 1966 | "I Wanna Meet You" B-side: "We Could Be Happy" |
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| 1967 1967 in music The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The... |
"Mr. Unreliable" B-side: "Georgia" |
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| 1967 1967 in music The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The summer of 1967 is "The Summer of Love" in San Francisco. It also became an important year for psychedelic rock, with releases from The Beatles The... |
"It Could Be We're in Love" B-side: "I Was Lonely When" |
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| 1968 1968 in music -Events:*January 4 – Guitarist Jimi Hendrix is jailed by Stockholm police, after trashing a hotel room during a drunken fist fight with bassist Noel Redding.*January 6 – Gibson Guitar Corporation patents its Gibson Flying V electric guitar design.... |
"Up on the Roof Up on the Roof (song) "Up on the Roof" is a song written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King and recorded in 1962 by The Drifters. Released at the tail end of that year, the song became a big hit in early 1963, reaching number five on the U.S. pop singles chart and number 4 on the U.S... " B-side: "The Sailing Ship" |
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| 1968 | "Young Birds Fly" B-side: "Sunshine Psalm" |
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| 1968 | "Greenburg, Glickstein, Charles, David Smith & Jones" B-side: "The Warm" |
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| 1969 1969 in music -Events:Perhaps the two most famous musical events of 1969 were concerts. At a Rolling Stones concert in Altamont, California, a fan was stabbed to death by Hells Angels, a biker gang that had been hired to provide security for the event... |
"First Train To California" B-side: "A Master's Fool" |
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| 1969 | "Rainmaker" B-side: "Bits and Pieces" |
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Albums
| 1967 | Sugar And Spice | Columbia CL 2589 (Mono) / CS 9389 (Stereo) | |
| 1968 | A Scratch In The Sky | Columbia CL 2786 / CS 9586 | |
| 1969 | Synthesis | Columbia CS 9719 | |