The Perfumed Garden and The Acme Patent Electric Band

 

The Perfumed Garden and The Acme Patent Electric Band.

by Pete Clemons

The recent discovery that a Coventry group, who supported Cream at the Lanch during 1966, had me wanting to learn more about that band who were known as The Perfumed Garden.

The Perfumed Garden was run by guitarist Malcolm Harker and existed between 1966 and around September 1967. The band, according to Malcolm, also contained Pete Wright on bird duplex organ, Des Kendrick on drums, bassist Tony Mather - A nice guy from Nuneaton on bass who looked like John McVie and harmonica player Tim James who was also the band's lead vocalist. Tim was a great singer and performer, remembers Malcolm Harker. We played early Cream (NSU) and Hendrix (Foxy Lady).

Because of a thread, I had noticed on Facebook, I enquired about bass player Tony Smith. As Malcolm recalls, Tony Smith played bass in an earlier band he had joined when he first came to Coventry back in 1965/1966. They may well have been an early version of The Perfumed Garden. But Rod Ingram was the singer and Bill Griffiths was the drummer. I think that might have been the band that Chas Cheetham played sax in. In fact I believe Chas Cheetham went on to play with Ainsley Dunbar. But that band played soul and Motown. I vaguely remember him but I don’t think I ever played with guitarist Rod Grant.

The Perfumed Garden, according to Tim James 'played everything from the Four Tops to Jimi Hendrix but with a spark of originality and free thinking that made me forget my own obsession with the blues and move onwards and upwards'.

Tim also recalled how he joined up with Perfumed Garden. 'Luckily, by lending an old junior schoolfriend, Des Kendrick, a Shure microphone and accompanying it on its night out I finished up jamming with, and being invited to join, a band called The Perfumed Garden. At last, it was great to play with people who enjoyed playing progressive music and weren't afraid to improvise and experiment. It was the music of the era, without any of the bullshit around at the time. But all too soon it was September 1967, Pete and the horn player (suggesting that Chas Cheetham had actually been a member of the band) were off to to university and the band had to fold'.

Tim continued 'In its place sprang up the Acme Patent Electric Band, a fine original band which was really in the wrong place at the wrong time'.

The Acme Patent Electric Band existed between 1967 and 1968. They were Tim James on vocals & harp, Dave Pennycook on guitar, Bob Jackson on bass, Pete Wright on Hammond Organ, Malc Harker on drums and Steve North on special effects.

More of Tim James memories: 'We played long heavy arrangements of everything from Dylan's 'Like a Rolling Stone' to the Supremes 'Ain't no Mountain High Enough', not to mention Jimmy Smith style instrumentals and all sorts of other things thrown in. We hired costumes, had lights, backdrop movies and all sorts of special effects. It was far too much for local audiences to swallow, and I remember at a gig in Sheffield being told by the audience to get out of the way so that they could see the movie (King Kong). We never managed to get high enough up the gig hierarchy to get proper recognition before the band folded to make way for Indian Summer. I now had the opportunity to regroup, learn to play saxophone, and try to fulfil my long term ambition of playing jazz. I took sax lessons and at last I received some formal musical education'.

Malcom Harker remembers that at Tim James funeral, he discovered that he’s been offered a record deal by Decca when he was still at Henry VIII school, but turned it down because there was no money in it and he’d have to sing Tony Hatch & Jackie Trent songs. Tim became an accountant and always reminded people that there was more money in counting the money than counting in the band!

.............

Addition information from the original Broadgate Gnome A to Z of Coventry bands.

The PERFUMED GARDEN
Circa 1966 - 1967 Source Broadgate Gnome. Soul band

Line up: Tim James (vocals, harmonica), Rod Grant (vocals, guitar), Pete Wright (organ), Malc Harker (guitar), Des Kendrick (drums). A later addition was Steve Milliner on keyboards.

' 6-piece Sax and Organ' said the ad in CET 1967

' very stylish soul band, featuring Hammond, Tenor and driving lead vocalist ', said Midland Beat in November 1966

Split September 1967.

ACME PATENT ELECTRIC BAND
circa 1967-1968 (Sources - Broadgate Gnome / Rex Brough / Tim James)


Psychedelic blues Tim James (vocals, harmonica), Dave Pennycook (guitar), Pete Wright (Hammond organ), Bob Jackson (bass), Malc Harker (drums). Had own light show with movies operated and Special Effects by Steve North.

Mick O'Rourke vocals & Paul Shanahan on Guitar

Malc Harker (bass) and Bob Jackson (Hammond / Vocs) formed Indian Summer.

Memories from Tim James (From Rex Brough Site)

"We played long heavy arrangements of everything from Dylan's Like a Rolling Stone to the Supremes' Ain't no Mountain High Enough, not to mention Jimmy Smith style instrumentals and all sorts of other things thrown in. We hired costumes, had lights, backdrop movies and all sorts of special effects. It was far too much for local audiences to swallow, and I remember at a gig in Sheffield being told by the audience to get out of the way so that they could see the movie (King Kong).We never managed to get high enough up the gig hierarchy to get proper recognition before the band folded to make way for Indian Summer."

"Acme Patent Electric Band, a fine original band which was really in the wrong place at the wrong time. After a short time Malc Harker and Bob Jackson left to form Indian Summer, a band aiming towards "class" heavy metal." From the Tim James site

Tim on Dave Pennycook -  "in the Acme Patent Electric Band in about 1968 he played a lovely old Stratocaster. Like many I knew at the time, he bought a Hammond L102 (for about 500 quid) and became an organist in later bands. Now, and for some considerable number of years, he has run the family business, Pennycook Jewellers, in Earlsdon Street, Coventry. An ace photographer"