Surrogate Suns
Active :1969 – 1978
Members :
Derreck ‘Oily’ Pilton - Drums
Jerome ‘Jerry’ Moorcock (a.k.a. Cocky) - Guitars
Andy ‘Shiny’ Shyner - Vocals
Michael ‘Ratty’ Ratcliff - Bass
Trevor ‘Donkey’ Doncaster - Keyboard
Management : Capt. Brian ‘Batty’ Belfreigh
Label : Cut Throat Records
Associated acts :
Fruit Loop Explosion
The Golden Cicadas
Secret Salami
The Trouser Snakes
Surrogate Suns were formed in 1969 after the break-up of, experimental underground band Fruit Loop Explosion.
Fruit Loop Explosion were a bizarre cross between psychedelic rock band and cabaret act. The epitome of style over substance. The singer performed with a live python down his trousers, and “swallowed” his (specially modified) microphone stand as part of the act.
The guitarist wore nothing but shiny black skin-tight lederhosen and did an escapology act during the keyboard solo in one of their songs.
When Fruit Loop Explosion’s guitarist electrocuted himself during the escapology act and the singer was attacked by the python during the mic stand swallowing trick, both incidents happening in a single concert, the remaining members of the band quit. That left just the drummer to fulfil a string of contracted gigs.
The drummer, Derreck Pilton, had been watching the guitarist, Jerome Moorcock, from another band, The Golden Cicadas, who had had one minor hit in the early sixties but nothing much since. Jerome didn’t fit in to the rest of the Golden Cicadas (having replaced the original guitarist who left, shortly after their one hit, to take over his dad’s upholstery business) The Cicadas were stuck in the mid-sixties playing harmonic pop songs including their one hit, and during live sets he would often try to extend guitar solos much to the disgust of the rest of the band.
Moorcock was unsure about joining Fruit Loop Explosion but was persuaded when he found out the drummer didn’t want to carry on with the cabaret type performances. Moorcock suggested a singer that he had seen in a club in Bournemouth and the two travelled there to track him down.
The singer, Andy Shyner, was performing with a pub band called “Secret Salami” they were appalling and yet years later the drummer recalled, “The singer had a certain something that grabbed your attention as soon as you saw him. Also he had a decent voice.”
Shyner insisted on bringing his bass player, Michael Ratcliff, with him and it turned out he was a pretty solid rhythm man with a touch of flair when it was needed.
The new line up complete, the New Fruit Loop Explosion, completed the tour although fans were disappointed by the straight-ahead stage style of the new line up, and a few people complained they were too loud.
At a gig at The Gazebo Club in London they were watched by a shady man in a sharp suit sitting in a corner booth, with two heavies ensuring he was not disturbed. At the end of the gig, he had the venue management bring the band over and he made them a proposition they couldn’t refuse.
He signed them to his new record label, ironically named Cut-Throat Records. Their new manager had said in an interview “The music business is a cut-throat business, so we decided to name the record company accordingly.” Few journalists wanted to ask the man more questions after he looked them squarely in the eye.
The band began to organise a new tour approaching previous venues that had played host to Fruit Loop Explosion, but not getting a warm reception.
A change of name seemed to be needed, although how the name Surrogate Suns came about nobody really remembers clearly. All that is known is that the manager locked them in a room with large amounts of alcohol and the name came from that meeting.
Surrogate Suns first gig was in Liverpool on 5th Jan 1970 and the band were paid £3-7s-6d
They then criss-crossed the UK playing 3 – 4 gigs per week for the first three months of the year before continuing without a break to play a series of small theatres and concert halls in Europe.
Initially they played a mix of blues and rock and roll covers, plus one or two of Fruit Loop Explosions songs but rocked up to the max. At first, audiences didn’t know what to make of them but there was a chemistry, and the time was right for a really loud band. Led Zeppelin had led the way and Surrogate Suns followed closely in their footsteps. The first album “Supernova” (1970) was recorded in six weeks at a studio in London and was already selling slowly in America ready for their tour.
It was a raw collection of the regular stuff from the live set, but it just blasted away the cobwebs and became a favourite with bikers and rockers in general.
The American tour began in September, and they played a staggering 46 gigs in two months. Back in the UK, the album had sold steadily but not spectacularly.
It was enough to get them a headline gig in Bristol with a local support act. The support band were a strange fusion of jazz and prog and they didn’t really enthuse the audience, but the keyboard player was a bit special. He made sounds come out of the Hammond organ that nobody had ever heard before. He played with his back to the instrument, he climbed on top of it and even took his shoes and socks off and played with his toes.
Backstage it was clear that this other band was falling apart arguing and bickering about everything. So Surrogate Suns felt no pang of guilt when they lured the keyboard player, Trevor Doncaster, away.
Doncaster’s input was the making of the second album which bore the name “Second Sun” (1971) and contained one of their best-known songs.
“Wild About Love” was a crazy musical roller coaster ride featuring a lengthy instrumental section with all sorts of strange noises made by using and abusing the instruments in bizarre ways.
“Sol Three” (1971) came next with a descent into uncharted waters of jazz/prog and Indian music influenced by the Beatles experiments with Ravi Shankar a few years earlier. Also included were two acoustic tracks featuring Blind Willy MacTavish.
“Centaur Eye” (1972) took the prog ideas still further with the title track at nearly 15 minutes; and yet this was still hard rock too; much heavier than anything produced by Pink Floyd up to that time.
The first four albums appeared at six-month intervals and, the whole time, the band were touring relentlessly, playing over four hundred gigs in the first three years. Eventually the heavy schedule caught up with them. They were selling out large venues and their albums were selling by the shed load. The money they were making was being spent on drugs and loose women, and soon it all came crashing to a halt as Andy ‘Shiny’ Shyner was taken seriously ill and admitted to hospital. It looked like the end of the road for the Suns. However, by the end of 1972 Shiny was pronounced fit to be sent home, although he immediately flew out to California and spent six months convalescing. The guitarist and keyboard player flew out as well and they spent the time relaxing around a pool and writing songs.
When the fifth album “Ra” finally came out in 1974 it was either the greatest work ever or an unholy mess, depending on which critics you read. Most agreed it was the latter.
They had spent almost a year in the studio, and it was by far the most expensive album they ever made, but there wasn’t a single track on it that grabbed you at first hearing. One or two were quite jazzy but not in a good way. It was overproduced and inaccessible and yet it sold by the bucket-load.
Nevertheless the tour was not well attended, and newspapers talked of the amusing sight of ticket touts offering tickets for the price of a bus fare home.
1975 saw the band take a hiatus while two of them went to an Indian retreat. Here they gradually got off an addiction to cocaine although they did experiment with a variety of other drugs.
On their return the band spent the first part of 1976 in a Scottish castle cut off from the rest of the world and honed what was to become their best album ever.
The aptly titled “Sol Invictus” (the unconquered Sun) was released on Midsummer night at midnight. Loyal fans queued at record shops which were persuaded to remain open and the first run sold out before sunrise. The album was received warmly by critics many of whom had panned “Ra” Even as Punk was set to storm the British music scene, these old has-been rockers could pull something special out of the bag.
It contained eleven tracks ranging from the short and punchy opener “I’m Back” with wailing vocal over a fast and furious guitar riff that was a match for any punk song, to the amazingly ethereal progressive title track. The Suns were indeed back and their next tour was the biggest ever; playing stadium venues in Europe, the USA, Australia, Japan, and South America.
Then at the end of 1977 their guitarist died in mysterious circumstances. They were on top of the world musically and planning their eighth studio album when he died in his sleep.
The rest of the band refused to consider continuing under the name Surrogate Suns and they disbanded forthwith.
Seventh Son of a Seventh Sun was released posthumously
Discography
Studio Albums
Live Album
Fast forward to the 21st century.
Tributes to Surrogate Suns - in no particular order.
And now Second Sun ...