FM
History
The Peddlers formed in Manchester, UK in 1964 as a trio of Trevor Morais (born in Liverpool, 10 October 1944), Tab Martin (born in Newcastle upon Tyne on 24 December 1944) and Roy Phillips (born in Parkstone, Dorset on 5 May 1943). Morais, the drummer, had previously played with Faron's Flamingoes and Rory Storm and the Hurricanes (who had struggled to replace Ringo Starr after he had left to join The Beatles). Martin, the bassist, and Phillips, on vocals and keyboards, had both been in The Saints and The Tornados; Phillips had also been with The Soundtracks.
The trio released six singles and an EP on the Philips label before joining CBS in 1967. That year they released the album Freewheelers, consisting of standards sometimes adventurously arranged by Keith Mansfield (composer of the Grandstand theme tune, amongst others). The follow-up, 1968's Three In A Cell, included a downtempo version of 'On A Clear Day (You Can See Forever)', from the 1965 musical of the same name, which was later heavily sampled for its bass and hammond organ riff. The third and final CBS album, Birthday, followed in 1969, and brought the band two UK Top 40 singles in 'Girlie' and the title track. Following Birthday, the Peddlers returned to Philips.
