The V.I.P.s

Formed in Carlisle, England, this blues/soul quintet comprised Mike Harrison (b. 3 September 1945, Carlisle, Cumberland, England; vocals), Jimmy Henshaw (b. 20 October 1943, Bothwell, Lanarkshire, Scotland, d. 1 May 2007, Carlisle, Cumbria, England; guitar), Frank Kenyon (rhythm guitar), Greg Ridley (b. 23 October 1947, Cumberland, England; bass) and Walter Johnstone (drums). Signed to RCA Records in 1964, they released the Jimmy Reed -influenced ‘Don’t Keep Shouting At Me’ before moving to CBS Records for ‘Wintertime’, which was curiously credited to the V.I.P.P.S. Ploughing similar ground to the Spencer Davis Group, they found a new home at Island Records where Chris Blackwell produced their exuberant reading of Joe Tex’s ‘I Wanna Be Free’. Several singles followed, but line-up changes gradually took their toll. Harrison, Ridley, guitarist Luther Grosvenor (b. 23 December 1949, Evesham, Worcestershire, England), drummer Mike Kellie (b. 24 March 1947, Birmingham, England) and keyboard player Keith Emerson (b. 2 November 1944, Todmorden, Lancashire, England) recorded Supernatural Fairy Tales with producer Guy Stevens, though by this time they had changed their name to Art. After further false starts, Ridley, Grosvenor, Kellie and Harrison formed Spooky Tooth. ~ Rovi