Headband

Bo Peeps entrance

ROCKHAPPENZ Public Collection

Headband  —  original line-up circa 1971 .....
Jimmy Hill (drums), Jack Stradwick (Bass), Dick Hopp (Electric Violin/Flute), Ronnie Craig (Guitar), Alan Quinell (Guitar) and Tommy Adderley (Vocals/Harmonica) (front) .....

Headband was formed in 1971 by Tommy Adderley, who was a huge fan of British rhythm and blues ace John Mayall, and came up with an idea for a group which was to go without drums (as Mayall had done in 1969) but to include an electric violin.  This worked in rehearsal but didn’t work live because the music wasn’t bright enough.  Birmingham-born Tommy Adderley had lived in New Zealand since 1959, and he harbored a passion for jazz, having worked across multiple genres and venues prior to the formation of Headband.  To ultimately get the sound he wanted, he added Jimmy Hill, formerly of Ray Columbus and the Invaders and Max Merritt and the Meteors, to the line-up.  Although early publicity shots show Alan Quinnell in the band, essentially, lead guitar for the original Headband was handled by Ron Craig (who was ex The Keil Isles).

The original substantive Headband was Tommy Adderley (Harmonica/Vocals), Ron Craig (Lead Guitar), Dick Hopp (Electric Violin/Flute), Jack Stradwick (Bass Guitar) and Jimmy Hill (Drums), and in the very early days of their existence they played at Molly Hatchets (over the Cook St Market), but by mid-1971 Adderley had gone into partnership with Dave Henderson, who leased the old Bluestone building Brown’s Lane, Auckland building that had in the past housed the Top 20, then Bo Peep.  Headband moved in there, playing 3 nights a week (Thursday, Friday and Saturday), and with the new Adderley/Henderson partnership, the venue was renamed Granny’s which was all about music and was the starting a place for a lot of groups such as Mandrake, Dragon, Ragnarok, Karma and Rockinghorse with the support band playing early in the evening up until Headband came on.  The partnership ran another club above Granny's and this was known as Granpa's

Granny's advertisement

Granny's Club matches

Granpa's Members Card

Jack Stradwick wasn’t comfortable with all the alcohol and drugs, and left after a short stint being replaced by Billy Kristian, ex Ray Columbus and The Invaders and Max Merritt and The Meteors).  This move re-established the tried and tested combination of Billy Kristian and Jimmy Hill, which had made its mark in successful bands previously.  While Adderley was a partner in both Granny’s and the upstairs club Granpa’s, he formed the second version of Headband in 1975 with Tommy Adderley, Jimmy Hill and Dick Hopp from the original band, plus Len Whittle (Keyboards) plus Neil Edwards on bass.  Adderley said they re-formed because people wanted them to record another album.  Kristian described the first version of Headband, which lasted about 18 months, breaking up in mid-1972, as the successful one.  The reconstituted band lasted just under a year.

For overseas musicians who came to town Tommy Adderley's was the place to go, and over the life of the club Muddy Waters went with his band.  John Mayall went, as did Elton John, Lulu, Deep Purple, Santana, The Moody Blues, The Joe Cocker Band, Osibisa, Led Zeppelin, Three Dog Night, The Guess Who, The Sweet, Electric Light Orchestra, Leon Russell and The Shelter People, members of the James Last Band and many more.  In fact John Mayall visited several times, and once the entire band was with him.