Description
with Foreword by SUSANNA HOFFS
Six decades after they stormed the British and American charts in 1964, The Zombies are possibly more popular than ever. Their biggest hits, ‘She’s Not There’, ‘Tell Her No’ and ‘Time of the Season’ have been played more than 14 million times on U.S. radio alone. Praised by critics, discovered by a new generation of fans and inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, The Zombies returned in the 2000s to establish themselves as a top-class touring act still driven to create new music.
Based largely on the author’s interviews with the five original band members, Times and Seasons – The Rise and Fall and Rise of The Zombies tells the whole story in detail: from the mid-‘60s Decca Records hits and misses through the break-up, the solo years, and their unexpected revival in the 21st century.
Times and Seasons recounts the unlikely tale of an inexperienced quintet of English schoolboys who made the hit parade in 1964 only to watch their fortunes dwindle, splitting just weeks after completing their 1968 masterpiece Odessey and Oracle. The book covers the unexpected posthumous success of ‘Time of the Season’ in 1969 and how the band’s refusal to reunite led to a plague of phony bands touring under The Zombies’ name. The book looks at the 1970s solo success of Colin Blunstone and the band Argent, the chance encounter that led to a hugely successful Zombies revival, and all points in between.
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“They were just teenagers when they started the band in St. Albans, not far from London. Rod, a choir boy; Hugh, a drummer in the marching band; Chris, who played bass; and Paul who played guitar — and Colin — played rugby which I can hardly imagine! He had to have been the kindest bloke you could ever knock heads with in a rugby scrum. But, by the time they were 18, the lads had a number one hit in America with “She’s Not There,” quickly followed by “Tell Her No.” Both songs were written by budding songwriter Rod Argent, who just so happened to be a virtuoso on the keyboards. Rod’s expressive playing would define the Zombies’ distinctive sound, along with Chris and Paul’s ingenious guitar work and chiming three-part harmonies, Hugh’s iconic, hypnotic drumming, and, of course, Colin’s magnificent, mellifluous voice.
The band’s songs are a case study in craft and excellence, but even more importantly, the kind of songs you wanna put on a mix tape or play on a boombox beneath someone’s window, because they say the things you wanna say and express the feelings you want to share with someone but may not have the nerve to! Songs like “You Make Me Feel Good,” “The Way I Feel Inside,” and “I Love You” — sincere, heartfelt gems delivered with unflinching, undeniable passion. Which brings me to their masterpiece: the astonishing album, Odessey and Oracle.
My love affair with the Zombies may have started in the sixties, but I love them still — even more, as I’ve had the great privilege of knowing what fine human beings they are and the great fortune of seeing them perform many times, watching them inspire a whole new generation of music lovers. But that’s the thing about music — it knows no boundaries, no borders; it travels straight to our hearts. I listen to the Zombies every day on those same palm-lined streets of my youth because quite honestly — I crave — I need — a little dose of their particular sonic alchemy. And it never fails to touch me, inspire me, excite and dazzle me — to make me feel less alone, to lift me when I’m down. And even when their music moves me with its poignancy to tears, it reminds me of what it is to be alive — to be human — and of the power of song and music to connect us all!” — Susanna Hoffs, 2023
