THE ZOMBIES play Belly Up Sep. 10; press photo
Let’s take a trip back to 1969. The Zombies’ song “Time of the Season” is at the top of the charts. Every time you turn on the radio, there’s Colin Blunstone’s plush, velvet voice asking, “What’s your name? / Who’s your daddy?”. It was the biggest hit of their career, but at the time of its release, the band had already broken up.
Fortunately, Blunstone and keyboardist/songwriter Rod Argent reunited in 2000, beginning one of the unlikeliest second acts in music history. In anticipation of their upcoming SoCal shows, Concert Guide Live caught up with Blunstone to talk about the fortuitous early days of the band, the mystery of Odessey and Oracle, and how The Zombies lived to see another day.
Criminally polite, and understated in the most British sense of the word, Blunstone attributes most of his career to chance. “There were a lot of happy accidents,” he mused while thinking back on the early days of The Zombies.
Whether it’s John Lennon leaving his Mellotron in Abbey Road’s studio 3, causing Argent to use it all over Odyssey and Oracle, or one persistent DJ in Boise, Idaho relentlessly playing “Time of the Season” until everyone caught on, The Zombies story is filled with these unexplainable happenings.
Although, Blunstone once showed up to a rehearsal with two black eyes and a broken nose he received in a rugby match, he instantly proved to be essential in building the band’s signature sound.
“I looked like a zombie, to be honest,” Blunstone said.
During one of their rehearsal breaks, Blunstone watched as Argent began to expertly play “the most broken down, old piano you can ever imagine.”
Amazed, Blunstone insisted that Argent play keyboards for the group, but Argent was hesitant.
“He was very, very reluctant because he thought of rock bands being three guitars. He didn’t think there was a place for keyboards.”
Later, Argent overheard Blunstone singing a Ricky Nelson song to himself and quickly returned the favor.
“He said, ‘I’ll play keyboards if you be the lead singer,’” Blunstone recalled.
“Now I was always very shy. If I was going to be in a band, I wanted to be the rhythm guitarist, standing at the back, looking at my feet. Instead, I ended up right at the front.”
The Zombies rode the wave of “She’s Not There” all the way to America, where the song went to #2 on the Billboard charts. The band hit again with “Tell Her No”. By 1967, the band decided to call it quits (Blunstone was just 22), but not before recording one last album, the chamber-pop masterpiece, Odessey and Oracle.
Since it’s less than successful release, the album has become a cult classic, garnering a spot on several “greatest albums of all time” lists. With songs like “This Will Be Our Year,” “A Rose For Emily,” and the aforementioned “Time of the Season,” it is considered one of the most-beloved albums of the decade. It continues to sell more copies than it ever did in the 60’s, and is largely responsible for the continued interest in the band. So what does Blunstone attribute the album’s odd path to eminence?
“It’s a mystery, it’s an utter mystery,” Blunstone admitted.
“In the music industry, people like to be able to categorize you, and when your music is quite diverse and takes influences from such a wide spectrum of music, it can confuse people. I think that was a little bit of a problem for us.
“We never in a million years envisioned we would be talking about The Zombies catalogue 50 years later, but because it was original, it is still of interest to people. I’m not saying we were that special, but there were some bands that were derivative, obvious, and they tend not to be talked about so much.”
Following the split of the group, Blunstone and Argent kept in contact, working together through the years before their eventual reunion as The Zombies in 2000.
“Rod will often say that he learned to write songs, writing for my voice. Even when we weren’t working together, often my voice would be subconsciously in his mind. Just the same, I learned to sing, singing his songs. We’re good friends. If there’s a night off, Rod and I will usually go have dinner together.”
The nights off are few and far between, with Blunstone and Argent playing up to five nights in a row. Amazingly, Blunstone still sings all The Zombie’s songs in the original key, a feat he attributes to working with a vocal coach and doing regular voice exercises.
“Some of them were in quite high keys, even when I was 19 or 20,” he laughs, “but I’ve been very lucky that I’ve still got that range.”
Very lucky, seems to be the phrase Blunstone most likes to use. Eternally grateful that he still gets to make music, he’s extremely thoughtful and wise when giving advice to young musicians.
“Never forget the enthusiasm that you have now, as you’re coming into the business. Never forget what your aim is. Writing and performing are crafts, and it takes time, it takes practice and application. It’s not a bad thing if you take the scenic route to where you want to be.”
When asked what route his own life may have taken if he hadn’t pursued music, Blunstone remembers when he was a teenager trying to convince his father to let him go to art school.
“He said to me, ‘You’re not going to art school. All they do there is drink beer and chase girls,’ which sounded fantastic to me.
“The irony was, when we came to sign the recording deal, we were under 21, so the contracts also had to be signed by our parents. He wouldn’t let me go to art school, but he had no problem signing my contract to join a rock and roll band [laughs].
“I don’t know what he thought we would be doing, but there was quite a lot of beer consumed, and I’ll let you use your imagination for the rest.”