The Dave Clark Five were a British rock and roll group in the 1960s, and one of the few that were able to present a commercial threat to the Beatles, the dominant group of the period. Originating in North London the band promoted themselves as the vanguard of the 'Tottenham Beat', a response to the Mersey Beat stable managed by Brian Epstein. They had a series of memorable hits, including Glad All Over, Because, and Bits and Pieces. Bits and Pieces was banned from being played at their live concerts as fans would jump up and down in time to the song's beat, and promoters feared this would damage the theatre. Dave Clark was the manager and producer of the band, who also wrote most of their own songs; this made them unusual at the time.

The group consisted of Dave Clark (drums), Mike Smith (lead vocals,keyboards and song-writing), Lenny Davidson (lead guitar), Rick Huxley (bass guitar), and Denis Payton (tenor and baritone saxophones, harmonica, guitar). In spite of their incredible success for a period, bolstered by a 1965 film Catch Us If You Can (directed by John Boorman), and a 1967 TV special, the hits dried up after 1967's Nineteen Days and You Got What It Takes, due to their refusal to embrace the prevailing trend of psychedelia. They broke up in 1970 after a failed attempt at repositioning themselves as a Sha Na Na/Showaddywaddy type 1950s revival act. (see 1970 in music).

Unusual for a group of that (or any) era, the leader was the drummer Dave Clark who would play and sing with his drums positioned at the front of the stage, relegating the guitarists and keyboard to his rear.

Following the break up of the band Clark set up a media company. In the process he acquired the rights to the iconic sixties pop series Ready, Steady, Go! . Clark had the series re-edited so that every episode featured a performance from the Dave Clark Five.

External links

• Classic Bands on The Dave Clark Five