Manfred Mann's Earth Band

An R&B band that only played pop to get on the charts, Manfred Mann and its various permutations ranked among the most adept British Invasion acts in both styles. South African-born keyboardist Manfred Mann was originally an aspiring jazz player, moving toward R&B when more blues-oriented sounds became in vogue in England in the early '60s. Original Manfred Mann singer <a href="spotify:artist:1I41xgLiwTZvdFsOSgGMvs">Paul Jones</a> was one of the best British Invasion singers, and his resonant vocals were the best feature of their early R&B sides, which had a slightly jazzier and smoother touch than the early work of <a href="spotify:artist:22bE4uQ6baNwSHPVcDxLCe">the Rolling Stones</a> and <a href="spotify:artist:3ICflSq6ZgYAIrm2CTkfVP">Animals</a>.

It was a couple covers of obscure girl group songs, "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" (<a href="spotify:artist:2GF1B0GIaFrLFLdfH6ufRO">the Exciters</a>) and "Sha La La" (<a href="spotify:artist:0x83OBqixqdCHnStP5VMcn">the Shirelles</a>), that broke the group internationally -- "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" reached number one in the States, and "Sha La La" just missed the Top Ten. The <a href="spotify:artist:1I41xgLiwTZvdFsOSgGMvs">Paul Jones</a> lineup never duplicated this success, although "Come Tomorrow" and "Pretty Flamingo" were smaller hits. From 1964 to 1966, they took the approach of playing gutsy pop/rock on their singles (including the original version of "My Little Red Book") and soul and R&B on their albums, with occasional detours into jazz, <a href="spotify:artist:74ASZWbe4lXaubB36ztrGX">Dylan</a> (their cover of his then-unreleased "If You Gotta Go, Go Now" was a big British hit), and competent original material.

<a href="spotify:artist:1I41xgLiwTZvdFsOSgGMvs">Jones</a> left for a solo career and acting in 1966, and the group reformed around singer Mike D'Abo (<a href="spotify:artist:3WrFJ7ztbogyGnTHbHJFl2">Beatle</a> friend Klaus Voormann was also in this aggregation on bass). Adopting an even more pop-oriented approach for the singles, with occasional psychedelic and progressive touches, the band ran off a string of Top Ten hits in their homeland until 1969, although the only one to hit the jackpot in the U.S. was their cover of another unreleased <a href="spotify:artist:74ASZWbe4lXaubB36ztrGX">Dylan</a> song, "The Mighty Quinn."

Mann dissolved the D'Abo lineup in 1969 to form Manfred Mann Chapter Three with drummer <a href="spotify:artist:0YS4DrOfGvaJdIkxYVEi82">Mike Hugg</a>, who had been in the band since the beginning. The outfit's early jazz-rock efforts were interesting, but not very popular, and Manfred steered the ship back toward mainstream rock by forming yet another incarnation, Manfred Mann's Earth Band. The heavier, more synthesizer-oriented outfit made quite a few albums in the 1970s; 1976's The Roaring Silence made the Top Ten, and featured the number one hit "Blinded by the Light" (Mann also made the Top 40 with another <a href="spotify:artist:3eqjTLE0HfPfh78zjh6TqT">Springsteen</a> cover, "Spirit in the Night"). Ironically, despite Mann's oft-proclaimed preferences for serious explorations of jazz, blues, and progressive music, it's his pop/rock recordings that hold up best, and for which he'll be remembered most. ~ Richie Unterberger, Rovi