The Zombies
Before launching into their 1965 single “I Want You Back Again,” a jazzy cut that’s still so fresh the band re-recorded it for their 2015 album Still Got That Hunger, lead singer Colin Blunstone explained, “Not only had the public forgotten it, we did too.”
Contrary to that statement, the sold-out crowd at The Coach House last Saturday night didn’t seem to have forgotten at all, belting right along with Blunstone and giving the band a standing ovation after almost every song. Never mind that 50 years have passed since The Zombies were regularly on the radio.
One of the oddest stories in rock, The Zombies rose to fame on the backs of hit singles like “She’s Not There” and “Tell Her No,” slipping in the British Invasion door propped open by The Beatles. However, as it was for many groups, the hits quickly dried up and The Zombies disbanded, but not before recording the chamber-pop masterpiece Odessey and Oracle. Released in 1968 after the group had already gone their separate ways, it flopped upon arrival, but by some magical mystery has become one of the most beloved albums of the 60’s, continuing to sell more copies every year than it did back then.
As Blunstone and other original member Rod Argent played a medley from that album, “Care Of Cell 44,” “I Want Her She Wants Me,” the aforementioned “Time Of The Season,” and the
sweetly, touching, fan favorite, “This Will Be Our Year”, it drove home just how baffling it is that the album didn’t sell upon initial release, but also how lucky and grateful Blunstone and Argent feel to still be able to play their music.
Argent, who wrote most of The Zombies’ songs, was as spry as ever, effortlessly firing off transcendent keyboard solos on “Time Of The Season,” and “Hold Your Head Up,” a huge hit from his post-Zombies band, the appropriately named, “Argent”.
Blunstone, who had a successful solo career in England with songs like “Caroline Goodbye,” miraculously sings The Zombies songs in the same key as when he was 19 years old, hitting the dizzying high notes on “I Love You” and “Going Out Of My Head” with complete ease. If anything, his voice has actually gotten stronger and more capable, while the breathy, velvet voice that cooed, “What’s your name/Who’s your daddy” all those years ago, still remains.
The night wasn’t all nostalgia, with cuts like the blues piano-inflected “Edge Of The Rainbow,” and the upbeat, “Lady Madonna”-esque “Maybe Tomorrow” being particularly well received. After all, everyone loves a good comeback story, and the enthusiastic crowd loves this one so much, they actually seemed to be enjoying the new songs.
Other highlights included a “You Really Got A Hold On Me” and “Bring It On Home To Me” mashup in a nod to the group’s blue-eyed soul roots. The hit singles “She’s Not There” and “Tell Her No,” and a rousing rendition of Argent’s “God Gave Rock And Roll To You” closed out the show.
“I won’t cry for the past,” Blunstone sang during new track “Moving On.” With shows as good as this 50 years on, The Zombies definitely don’t have to.