Background

The Savages were formed in 1965 by Paul Muggleton and Jimmy O'Connor, both guitarists.^[1][2] They would often watch fellow Bermudan band, the Gents, play at nightclubs and decided to form a band of their own. They recruited Bobby Zuill, on bass, and Howie Rego, on drums.^[1] Muggleton usually sang lead vocals, but Zuill handled vocals on certain numbers.^[3] The band played teen functions and eventually were able to gain a residence at the Hub, a nightclub at the Princess Hotel, sometimes doing as many a three gigs a day, often for American college students on vacation.^[3][1]

They signed a recording contract with the Duane label, which also housed the Gents, run by Eddie DeMello, who would also manage the band and produce their material.^[1] The group had previously done mostly covers of other artists' songs, until they were asked by the label to cut a full album of material, which necessitated the urge to come up with a batch of original songs.^[1]

Recording and release

On February 6, 1966, the band were recorded during a live performance in front of about 150 patrons at the Hub, a nightclub at the Princess Hotel, which featured the band doing self-composed songs such as "Poor Man's Son," Man on the Moon," "Quiet Town," and the ventful "The World Ain't Round It's Square," sung in a scowling voice by Bobby Zuill.^[3][1][2] According to Rob Zuill, "...we were so scared that we played everything too fast…" The album also would contain three cover songs from the performance, which would include a version of the Icelandic song, "Ertu Med" which would also be recorded in a very different manner by Thor's Hammer later in 1966.^[1] One of Savages' original songs recorded this night, "No No No," would be covered by Connecticut band The Instincts.^[1] The resulting album taken from the show, Live 'n Wild, was a surprisingly diverse collection, containing a balance of rock & roll songs and ballads.^[3][1] Four songs would appear as A and B sides on singles, including "The World Ain't Round It's Square."^[1]

The album was released in 1966. The band's manager set up a tour of the West Indies for the band and arranged for them to go to New York to play and record.^[1] While in New York, they recorded a single, featuring "Roses are Red," which would be released on the Duane label, later in 1966.^[1] However, just as they were beginning to establish themselves in New York, the members got involved in a life-threatening incident, provoked by two members of the band.^[1] As a result of hard feelings created by the incident, the band broke up before the end of the year.^[1]

Critical reception

The album is considered to be a seminal work by garage rock enthusiasts and collectors and is sometimes cited as one of the finest live albums in the genre.^[1][2] According to Allmusic, the album " stands as one of the best '60s full-length garage platters."^[3] The song, "The World Ain't Round It's Square," included on the album, has been mentioned as a classic anthem of anger and defiance.^{[1][2][4][nb 1]} Yet, the album shows the band to be versatile and adept at writing ballads as well as rocking songs.^[1][2]

The album

• Live 'n Wild (Duane ELP 1047, rel. 1966)

Singles

• No No No / She's Gone (Duane 1043, rel. 1966)
• Roses Are Red My Love / Quiet Town (Duane 1049, rel. 1966)
• The World Ain't Round It's Square / You're on My Mind (Duane 1054, rel. 1966)

Notes

Works cited

• Markesich, Mike (2012). TeenBeat Mayhem!: Commemorating America's Forgotten Musical Heritage : Those Teenage Rock & Roll Combos of the Swingin' 1960s. Priceless Info Press. ISBN 978-0-9856482-5-1. Retrieved 4 November 2021.