The Rogues - Memories of Missy/ And You Let Her Pass By

 

Obscure, disowned and faintly psychedelic pop from Salfordians

Label: Decca

Year of Release: 1967

Most bands who only manage to release one single are proud of their efforts, even if looking back they find themselves cringing a little at the naiveté of the work. They've achieved something few of us ever will - a nice slab of seven inch vinyl, a small, gentle ripple in life's great rockpool to prove they existed and had ideas of their own.

The Rogues from Salford seem to have very different ideas about this record, however. The Manchester Beat website quotes one of them as saying this is a "truly appalling record the whole group hated!" Their gripe appears to be with the A-side "Memories of Missy" here, a Dick James penned tune which while not awful, is certainly a bit beige. 

Lurking on the B-side, though, is something you'd hope is much more in keeping with the group's sound. "And You Let Her Pass By" sounds a lot more 1967 with its insistent Blackpool Pier organ sound, aggressive, powerful drumming, and punchy brass section continually cutting through the angst. While Ivor Raymonde's production stops the track getting too aggressive, you can still feel The Rogues pulling hard on the leash he's tied them to, always only a few moves away from going full garage rock. It unintentionally creates a tension that stops the track from being a common-or-garden B-side and pushes it close to something special.

The membership of The Rogues and further details about the line-up can be found documented on the excellent Manchester Beat website, who have managed to uncover more facts about the band than any other published outlet I've come across. It looks as if they became Sunshine at some point after this release, presumably in an attempt to further distance themselves from it, but I think I'm right in saying that this group didn't manage to release any records under that name. 

Thanks very much to "Left and to the Back" reader Neil Nixon for the images and mp3 files for this one. 

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