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On this day, 5 September 1964. sixties pop band Freddie and the Dreamers played Cardiff’s Top Rank.
Support for the evening was provided by The Hollies, The Four Pennies, Tony Jackson & The Vibrations, Marianne Faithfull, The Toggery Five with Don Dwight (compere).
The band consisted of Freddie Garrity (14 November 1936 – 19 May 2006), vocals; Roy Crewdson (born 29 May 1941, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester), guitar; Derek Quinn (24 May 1942–22 Oct 2020, born in Didsbury, Manchester), guitar and harmonica; Peter Birrell, bass; and Bernie Dwyer (11 September 1940, West Didsbury, Manchester – 4 December 2002, Cheadle, Cheshire), drums.
Although the band was grouped as a part of the Merseybeat sound phenomenon that the Beatles exploded around the world in the wake of Beatlemania, they came from Manchester. Prior to becoming a singer, Garrity had worked as a milkman in Manchester.
They had four Top 10 UK hits: a cover of James Ray's hit "If You Gotta Make a Fool of Somebody", which reached number 3 in the UK Singles Chart in mid-1963, "I'm Telling You Now" (number 2 in August), "You Were Made For Me" (number 3 in November) and a cover of The G-Clefs' "I Understand", which hit the number 5 spot in November 1964.
Their eponymous debut album was released in the United Kingdom in 1963, peaking at number five in the UK Albums Chart and reaching number 19 in the US albums chart on May 22, 1965. It was the only LP by the group to chart in America. Their subsequent four albums in the UK failed to chart.
