Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas
Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas was a British pop band that existed from 1963 to 1966.
history
Billy J. Kramer (born August 19, 1943 as William Howard Ashton in Bootle , Liverpool ) was discovered in 1962 by the Beatles manager Brian Epstein and put under contract. Epstein also made sure that Billy became the lead singer of the Dakotas , the most famous band from Manchester at the time .
In March 1963 the band got an engagement in the Hamburg Star Club , the producer was George Martin , who also worked for the Beatles . It almost goes without saying that the first three singles were written by John Lennon and Paul McCartney : " Do You Want to Know a Secret " , the number one hit " Bad to Me " and "I'll Keep You Satisfied" , all in 1963 .
The first single not written by the two Beatles brought them back to the top of the charts in 1964 - "Little Children" was penned by Mort Shuman and John Leslie McFarland and became their biggest hit in the USA . The subsequent chart success "From a Window" was again a Lennon / McCartney composition. Her last chart hit "Trains and Boats and Planes" was a composition by Burt Bacharach .
In the 1963 annual survey of the British music magazine Melody Maker , Billy J. Kramer & the Dakotas were voted among the best newcomers by readers. Until 1965, the band was in the international charts to find, then their songs in the typical lost Beat Music - Sound obviously attractive. The group was disbanded in 1966; Kramer released other records under his pseudonym, but never reappeared in the charts.
Members
- Billy J. Kramer, vocals
- Michael "Mike" Maxfield (born February 23, 1944), lead guitar
- Robin McDonald (born July 18, 1943), rhythm guitar
- Ray Jones (born October 20, 1939 - † January 20, 2000), bass
- Tony Mansfield (born May 28, 1943), drums
Discography
Albums
| year | title |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 UK
|
 US
|
|||
| 1963 | Listen To Billy J. Kramer |
UK11 (17 weeks) UK |
- | |
| 1964 | Little Children | - |
US48 (15 weeks) US |
|
Singles
| year | Title album |
Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes) |
Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
UK
|
US
|
|||
| 1963 | Do you want to know a secret |
UK2 (15 weeks) UK |
- | |
| The Cruel Sea |
UK18 (13 weeks) UK |
- |
Instrumental piece without Billy J. Kramer
|
|
| Bad to Me |
UK1 (14 weeks) UK |
US9 (10 weeks) US |
||
| I'll keep you satisfied |
UK4 (13 weeks) UK |
US30 (7 weeks) US |
||
| 1964 | Little Children |
UK1 (13 weeks) UK |
US7 (15 weeks) US |
|
| From a window |
UK10 (8 weeks) UK |
US23 (10 weeks) US |
||
| 1965 | It's Gotta Last Forever | - |
US67 (5 weeks) US |
|
| Trains and Boats and Planes |
UK12 (8 weeks) UK |
US47 (7 weeks) US |
||
literature
- Stambler, Irwin: The Encyclopedia Of Pop, Rock And Soul . 3rd revised edition, New York City, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1989, p. 388 - ISBN 0-312-02573-4 .