Joy & The Hit Kids
| Joy & The Hit Kids | |
|---|---|
| General information | |
| origin | Mannheim |
| Genre (s) | Beat , pop |
| founding | 1966 |
| resolution | 1969 |
| Founding members | |
| Roland Heck | |
| Klaus Nagel | |
| Albin Metz (†) | |
| Hans W. Herkenne | |
Guitar, bass |
Dieter Kindl |
| Joy (†) | |
Joy & The Hit Kids were a pop and beat group from Mannheim that existed from 1966 to 1969.
history
The group was founded in May 1965 as Hit Kids. It consisted of Roland Heck on keyboards, Klaus Nagel on guitar and flute, Dieter Kindl on guitar and bass, Albin Metz on trumpet and bass, and Hans Herkenne on drums. The first three studied at the Mannheim University of Music, and the others also trained as musicians. The head of the group was Roland Heck, Klaus Nagel took care of the business. She often played in US clubs in the Mannheim area. In 1966 the manager of such a club wanted to force a singer on them that none of them knew. At first they refused, but when they heard the voice they agreed. It was Erna Raad, who then called herself Joy and later Joy Fleming . With her as the singer, the group was now called Joy & The Hit Kids and released several singles, first on Decca , then on Polydor . License presses of it appeared in countries like Lebanon and Mexico . Joy & The Hit Kids soon became known nationwide as an integral part of the SWF Talent Shed , which became the first forum for numerous later celebrities. The group was often and gladly used by the radio and television stations because of their artistic abilities, also as an accompanying group for many singers. The legendary Mannheim sound made the rounds back then. In 1969, when the group turned to more complex sounds, they renamed themselves Joy Unlimited to illustrate the change. In the transition phase, both band names appeared on the covers and labels of their records in order to familiarize buyers with the name change. For Joy Fleming, the group was the first stepping stone for her later career.
Later, when Joy Unlimited came to an end, they played again as Hit Kids, without Joy. There is a short film from a trip to the USA from that time, which can be seen on YouTube .
A CD release of Joy & The Hit Kids is still pending. Universal holds the rights .
Discography
Singles
- Sunshine / All The Days (Decca, 1967)
- Togetherness / The happiness of this world (Decca, 1967)
- Bla, Bla / I'm Still A Child (Decca, 1968)
- Daytime, Nighttime / Mr. Pseudonym (Decca, 1969)
- Oh! Darling / Runaway (Polydor, 1969)
- Feelin '/ I Just Made Up My Mind (Polydor, 1969)
- Once upon a time / gold and happiness (Polydor, 1969)
Web link
- Joy & The Hit Kids at Discogs (English)