Caravan (official site)

Caravan emerged in Canterbury, England in late 1968 with a line up of Pye Hastings (guitar), Richard Coughlan (drums), Dave Sinclair (keyboards) and his cousin Richard Sinclair (bass). They quickly gained a reputation amongst aficionados of psychedelia with songs such as, Magic Man, Grandma’s Lawn, If I Could Do It All Over Again I’d Do It All Over You (a top 30 single), I Wish I was Stoned and Nine Feet Underground. They were championed by BBC’s John Peel which did them no harm at all. What stood them apart were their unusual time signatures and the prominence of the Hammond organ, invariably used as a lead instrument.Personnel changes hindered the band’s progress, but albums continued to sell in large numbers, with the unique keyboard sound still at the heart of their music. They were the leading proponents of the so-called ‘Canterbury Sound’, along with bands like Soft Machine and Hatfield and the North. Albums such as ‘For Girls that Grow Plump in the Night’, ‘Blind Dog at St Dunstans’ and Cunning Stunts sold well and they were feted abroad, touring Europe, Australia and America.The band reformed in 1990 and on and off they have been pulling in audiences with their powerful live performances and recordings, which are as strong as ever. The most recent album, ‘The Unauthorised Breakfast Item’ continues to build on their reputation as a unique and endearing band. The live set features songs from ‘Land of Grey and Pink’ which is often described as ‘faultless’ and is consistently quoted in polls of the top 50 psychedelic/prog albums of all time.Their performances are testament to high quality musicianship and professionalism and the current line up has been stable for some years. It includes original members, leader and songwriter Pye Hastings on guitar and vocal and Richard Coughlan, the drummer. Geoffrey Richardson joined the band in 1972 and is a multi instrumentalist specialising in guitar, viola and flute, as well as spoons and hedgeclippers (true)! Jan Schelhaas is the long standing keyboard player. The line up is completed by Jim Leverton on bass. Apart from tours in the UK and an appearance at the Isle of Wight Festival in 2005, the band have played in several European countries and toured the US twice in the last three years or so.Richard Coughlan’s health- he has arthritis, has kept the band off the road for some time now, but he is improving, but whatever the situation, the band are hoping to tour the UK again in 2008.