About Me
The Swinging Mood Rings were one of an unusual breed of garage punk bands to come out of Canada in the mid-'60s. Originally known as the Shades of Blonde when they were formed in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, the band featured Dennis Costello on vocals, Dan Hite and Carl Robertson on guitars, Doug Patch at the organ, "Woody" Woodcock on bass, and Teddy Bare on drums.
The band was signed to Gaiety Records and made their debut in mid-1967 with "Labourer of Love," a piece of hard-edged garage punk, laden with fuzz-tone guitar and a defiant sneer, that sold moderately well in Canada. Their second single, "Maker Of Love" (co-written by a then-unknown Delaney Bramlett about the equally unknown Bonnie Bramlett, no less) had more of a lyrical folk-rock feel, though it kept its sharp edge in the singing and lyrics. Around this time, Woodcock exited the lineup and was succeeded by Dave Upton bass; he was later replaced by Alf Baker, and Dennis Friday (and later Luke Walker) succeeded Patch on organ. In the spring of 1969, they finally had a national hit in Canada with "Give You Some Loving," which charted in parts of the United States as well, and sounded like a poppier, slightly folkier version of the sound that bands like Tomorrow were generating in England.The group was never able to capitalize on the success of "Give You Some Loving" and its follow-up, "Sweetest Sadie," however, in part because they were unable to hold their lineup together. Lead singer Dennis Costello quit after their release, and in the course of changing personnel -- with Daran Beatty replacing him -- their sound changed. By 1970, the group had changed its name to Paintgun Peguin. The latter group scored a modest hit with "West Coast Toast" and its follow-up, "Feeling Crazed and Bitchy," before the band was renamed BananaHammer in the early to mid-'70s. They, in turn, issued a pair of singles, "Feelin' With My Hands On Fire" and "Late Night Sugar Snack."At their best, The Swinging Mood Rings had a hard, cutting sound that could have put them in the front ranks of garage punk bands, their slashing guitars and swirling organ around Abbott's lead vocals making a compelling and memorable sound, which was easily adaptable to psychedelic punk. Their slow ballads were suitably spacey in a pop/rock vein, but it was their harder numbers that hold up best. Like a lot of '60s bands, they outlived their era and metamorphosed into new shapes and directions. Guitarist Dan Hite later made a small fortune in the field of multimedia sound design, as the inventor of Quadraphonic earphones. ~ Will Elder, Antwerp Music Guide
