Colin Young (born 12 September 1944, Barbados) is an English singer who led Joe E. Young & The Toniks in the 1960s. He is mainly known for being a member of the British soul band the Foundations. He also led a progressive rock band and was part of a hit making dance band of the 1980s.
Background In the mid-1960s, Young came to England for a holiday with his father and decided to stay. He was a former bookkeeper who prior to joining The Foundations was lead singer of a group called Joe E. Young & The Toniks.New Musical Express, No. 1147 Week ending 4 January 1969 - Page 3 HOW FOUNDATIONS ESCAPED THE ONE HIT WONDER TRAP
Young joined The Foundations at a time when two members, lead singer Clem Curtis and tenor saxophonist Mike Elliott were leaving 1968. The Foundations were originally managed by Ron Fairway and Barry Class. By the time Young came onboard,Melody Maker, October 5, 1968 - Page 5 JOEY REPLACES CURTISThe Foundations, Baby Now That I've Found You CD Sequel Records – NEECD 300 Notes by Roger Dopson Fairway was gone and Class had sole charge of the group.New Musical Express, December 2, 1967 - Page 10 FOUNDATIONS SUED Replacing Clem Curtis as lead singer, he went on to sing on two more of The Foundations' big hits, "Build Me Up Buttercup" and "In the Bad Bad Old Days (Before You Loved Me)".
Career 1960s The Toniks In the 1960s, Young fronted the group Joe E. Young & the Toniks. He formed it with guitarist Oscar Knight, sax player Anthony Barman (aka Bauman), bass player Sam Southwell and drummer John Seally.Garage Hangover, March 26, 2017 - JOE E YOUNG & THE TONIKS The group was discovered when they auditioned at the All-Star club at Liverpool Street.Record Mirror, No. 380 Week Ending June 11. 1968 - Page 7 LEAP TO TOAST - Peter Jones The group would record for Vicki Wickham's Toast label. Toast was a subsidiary of the Major Minor label.Seventies Sevens - MAJOR MINORBillboard, March 29, 1969 - Page 60 From The Music Capitals of the World, LONDON - PHIL.LIP PALMER
It was in the period of late 1966 to early 1967 that Calvin "Fuzzy" Samuel took over from Sam Southwell, and Conrad Isidore replaced John Seally. Keyboard player Ken Cumberbatch and second sax player Denis Overton also joined the group. The line up of the group then consisted of Colin Young on vocals, Oscar Knight on lead guitar, Calvin "Fuzzy" Samuel on bass, Ken Cumberbatch on keyboards, Tony Bauman and Denis Overton on saxophones and Conrad Isidore on drums.
In early 1968, Joe E. Young & the Toniks released the single, "Lifetime of Loving". It was part of Philip Solomon's three-single release to unveil the new logo for Toast Records which also included "You're Never Gonna Get My Love" by The Stocking Tops and "The Telephone by Nino Ferrer.Cash Box, February 3, 1968 - Page 56 Great Britain, Philip Solomon
While with the Toniks, Young and co recorded the Soul Buster! album that was released in 1968. Gripsweat - Joe E Young & the Tonics 'Soulbuster!' 1968 Toast LP Produced by Pete Gage it featured the songs, "Lifetime of Lovin'", "Dancing Man", "Love How Sweet It Is", "Got That Feeling", "Good Day Sunshine", "You've Got A Good Thing Going", "Flower In My Hand", "Sixty Minutes of Your Love", "It's Been Such A Long Way Home", "Open the Door to Your Heart", "Qualifications" and "Lost Someone".Gripsweat - Joe E. Young & The Toniks - Soul Buster 1968 UK LP TOAST 1st MOD/NORTHERN SOUL
The group was booked to perform in June 1968, where they were to appear at the Rhodes Centre.Herts and Essex Observer, Friday 14 June 1968 - RHODES CENTRE-MONDAY AT 8.0 p.m.— the spectacular all-coloured JOE E. YOUNG AND THE TONICS From ..
The group's single "Good Day Sunshine" bw "Lifetime of Lovin'" was released on Toast TT 514. It was reviewed in the 8 February 1969 issue of Record Mirror and given five stars. The reviewer said that it was a Record of the Week. With the right tempo being noted, the great swinging bluesy powerful droning attacking sounds were also mentioned.Record Mirror, No. 413 Week ending February 8, 1969 - Page 8 new singles reviewed by Peter Jones, JOE E. YOUNG AND THE TONIKS: Good Day Sunshine; Lifetime Of Lovin' (Toast TT 514) By the time of the release, Young had been out of the group for some time.Melody Maker, October 5, 1968 - JOEY REPLACES CURTIS The song had also appeared on their album.
The Foundations It was reported in the 14 September issue of Melody Maker with Clem Curtis leaving The Foundations, the group was also trying out a line of singers which included Warren Davis of the Warren Davis Monday Band for the position of lead singer.Melody Maker, September 14, 1968 - Page 4 Clem finally quits Apparently Hue Montgomery was also a contender.The Second Disc, August 24, 2022 - Build Me Up, Buttercup: Cherry Red Collects The Foundations on "Am I Groovin' You" By Joe Marchese Colin Young referred to as Joey Young in the 5 October issue of Melody Maker was the successful replacement for the departing Curtis. It was in late September / early October that Young had come on board. He had been rehearsing with them for the week of October 5 and was ready to make his debut on Friday October 4 at Aberdeen University.Time and Date - Calendar for Year 1968 (United Kingdom)
In his early period with Young fronting the Foundations, he had to learn that he was just another group member. Other members put him in into Coventry, eventually he learnt to toe the line and was accepted by the other members.Disc and Music Echo, 5 July 1969 - Page 14 DISC SPECIAL, Colin Young - longs to sing ballads!
It was mentioned in the 12 October issue of Melody Maker that the Foundations would record their next single "Build Me Up Buttercup" as soon as legal complications for the release of Joey Young (Colin Young) were sorted out with Major Minor Records which was his former label.Melody Maker, October 12, 1968 - Page 5 FOUNDATION SINGLE With Young, the group released "Build Me Up Buttercup".New Musical Express, 1969 Summer Extra Special - Page 13 MONEY (TOO MUCH) BREAKS UP GROUPS, Happier are the Foundations It entered the UK chart on 26 November 19, 1968, and made the no. 2 spot on 31 December. It spent a total of fifteen weeks in the chart.Official Charts - BUILD ME UP BUTTERCUP by FOUNDATIONS
With Young on vocals the group recorded "In the Bad Bad Old Days (Before You Loved Me)".All Music Guide to Soul The Definitive Guide to R&B and Soul, Vladimir Bogdanov, August 2003 - - The Foundations Backed with Young's own composition "Give Me Love", it was released on Pye 7N 17702.Popsike - the foundations in the bad bad old days The song peaked at no. 8 in the UK and spent a total of ten weeks in the chart there.Official Charts - IN THE BAD, BAD OLD DAYS by FOUNDATIONS
The Digging the Foundations album was released in 1969. It was reviewed in the 5 July 1969 issue of Disc and Music Echo. In addition to "In the Bad, Bad Old Days", the album also included Young's composition, "A Penny, Sir".Disc and Music Echo, 5 July 1969 - Page 12 Digging the Foundations, Digging their new album, track by track, A PENNY, SIR
Later in 1969, a self-titled album, The Foundations was released on Marble Arch MALS 1157. It was among the selection of lower priced records listed in the 18 October 1969 issue of New Musical Express.New Musical Express, October 18, 1969 - Page 12 UNDER A£ It featured stereo re-recordings of songs previously recorded by The Foundations.Last Dodo - The Foundations 1970 LP: MALS 1157The Foundations, Baby Now That I've Found You CD Sequel Records – NEECD 300 Notes by Roger Dopson Young's composition "Give Me Love" was also included.Popsike - Foundations The Foundations Marble Arch Records MAL1157 Mono Vinyl LP Album The songs "Any Old Time (You're Lonely and Sad)", "Back on My Feet Again", "Harlem Shuffle", "Tomorrow" and "We Are Happy People" appeared on the Rocking the Foundations album released the previous year.Popsike - Foundations Rocking The Foundations UK vinyl LP album record NPL18227 PYE 1968 "Baby Now That I've Found You" with Colin Young on vocals from the Marble Arch LPThe Second Disc, August 24, 2022 - NEWS, Build Me Up, Buttercup: Cherry Red Collects The Foundations on "Am I Groovin' You", CD2 Plus:, 16. Baby, Now That I've Found You (Colin Young Vocal/Stereo) (from The Foundations, Marble Arch LP MALS 1157, 1969) has the same backing track as the original Clem Curtis version.The Foundations channel, Jan 4, 2023 - The Foundations - Baby Now That I've Found You (Stereo) (Colin Young Version) (Official Audio)The Foundations channel, Dec 22, 2022 - The Foundations - Baby Now That I've Found You (Mono) (Official Audio) The new version of "Tomorrow" years later has been referred to as the alternate version. This version has Colin Young on vocals instead of Clem Curtis' vocals which appeared on the live version. They too have the same backing track. However, the Colin Young re-recording is a longer edit.The Foundations channel, Jan 4, 2023 - The Foundations - Tomorrow (Alternate Version) (Official Audio)The Foundations Channel, Jul 21, 2021 - Tomorrow (Live) It was originally on the Rocking the Foundations albumAmazon - The Foundations - Rocking The Foundations - Pye Records - NSPL 18227 NM/NM LP which was a mixture of actual live and studio tracks.It's Psychedelic Baby! Magazine, July 22, 2011 - Pluto interview with Paul Gardner & Alan Warner, The Foundations Albums: It's likely that there were some recordings with Clem Curtis on lead vocals in existence, but his vocals were replaced with those by Colin Young.
Young's singing on Foundations hits didn't end with "Build Me Up Buttercup" and "In the Bad Bad Old Days", He also sang on the hits, "My Little Chickadee" which was minor hit in the U.S. and Canada, "Born to Live, Born to Die" which was a hit in the UK.The Second Disc, August 24, 2022 - NEWS, Build Me Up, Buttercup: Cherry Red Collects The Foundations on "Am I Groovin' You" By Joe Marchese and "Baby, I Couldn't See". He also composed the song on the B side, "Penny Sir"New Musical Express, November 15, 1969 - Page 11 FOUNDATIONS, CLIFF, TRASH AID CHARITY which was adopted as the official song for the Save the Children Fund. The Foundations were donating the royalties from "Penny Sir" to the fund as well as performance royalties. The group was also planning a concert at the Royal Albert Hall to support the cause. "Baby, I Couldn't See" was a hit in the Netherlands where it got on to the Dutch Tipparade chart. Peaking at no. 8 on week three,Top 40 - TIPPARADE-LIJST VAN WEEK 49, 1969, BABY, I COULDN'T SEE, the foundations 13 8 3 WEKENTop 40 - TIPPARADE-LIJST VAN WEEK 50, 1969, BABY, I COULDN'T SEE, the foundations 8 16 4 WEKEN it spent a total of four weeks in the chart.Top 40 - TIPPARADE-LIJST VAN WEEK 51, 1969
1970s Young wrote a heavy blues song for The Foundations. "I'm Gonna Be a Rich Man" which was the B side to the single, "Take a Girl Like You".It's Psychedelic Baby! Magazine, August 9, 2022 - The Foundations – ‘Am I Groovin’ You: The Pye Anthology’ (2022) It was released again in June and July 1970 on Pye 7N 17956 with two different B sides. The first one had "Who Am I?" by Eric Allandale as the B side. The second had Young's composition, "In the Beginning as the B side.45Cat - The Foundations - Discography, UK It was an instrumental. The group performed the song on Top of the Pops which was broadcast on 6 August that year.Top of the Pops archive - The Foundations, Artist Appearances