Classic era (1974–1980)

The Rubettes' first and biggest hit was "Sugar Baby Love" (1974) which was a number one in the United Kingdom, going on to sell around 500,000 copies in the UK and three million copies globally.^[6] With three more songs, "Sugar Baby Love" was recorded for Polydor in October 1973 at Lansdowne Studios in Holland Park, London, by a group of session musicians featuring the distinctive falsetto and lead vocals of Paul Da Vinci (born: Paul Leonard Prewer). However, Da Vinci did not join the others to become a member of the band put together by John Richardson, and instead pursued solo work, having signed a contract with Penny Farthing Records.^[7] "Sugar Baby Love" was their only UK No. 1 and sole US Top 40 entry.^[8]

For public appearances to promote the song, initially on Top of the Pops, Alan Williams took on the role of lead singer, being the only one of the original session singers able to duplicate Da Vinci's falsetto vocals.^[9] The Rubettes then comprised Williams, Richardson, and Pete Arnesen (all three of whom had participated in the original recording) together with Tony Thorpe, Mick Clarke, and Bill Hurd.^[10] In performance, the group wore distinctive white suits and white caps which, according to Williams, "were a practical addition to the ensemble.. [as] we all had long hair, which didn't suit the image we'd gone for.. We compromised by having our hair pinned up inside the caps...".^[9]

Williams sang lead on later recordings, and the Rubettes went on to have a number of other top ten hits across Europe during the mid-1970s, such as "Tonight", "Juke Box Jive" and "I Can Do It", mostly written by the Bickerton–Waddington songwriting team. The Rubettes' success encouraged Bickerton and Waddington to set up State Records, so that ten months after the release of "Sugar Baby Love", the fourth Rubettes single "I Can Do It" was on State (catalogue reference STAT 1).^[7] In November 1974, NME music magazine reported that The Rubettes, The Glitter Band and Mud were among the UK bands who had roles in a new film titled Never Too Young to Rock.^[11]

In 1976 the band abandoned glam nostalgia to enter more serious territory.^[2] "Under One Roof" (1976) sung by John Richardson was a portrayal of a gay man disowned and later murdered by his father; along with Rod Stewart's "The Killing of Georgie" (1976), it was one of the few songs that tackled the topic of homophobia.^[2] Their most successful self-composed hit was the country rock styled ballad "Baby I Know" (1977) sung by Tony Thorpe, which reached number 10 in the UK and Germany in 1977. During this period the band continued to cater for the much bigger European market by continuing to release more commercial pop singles all featuring lead vocals by Alan Williams ^[10] such as "Julia" (1976), "Allez Oop" (1976), and "Ooh La La" (1977).^[10] The band became a quintet in early 1975 with the departure of Arnesen, and later became a quartet in mid-1976 when Hurd departed the band; to this day the original band has never expanded its line-up beyond four members. Whilst the band continued as a four-piece; Hurd joined Suzi Quatro's band, touring and playing on a number of worldwide hits, which included the Top 20 success "She's in Love with You" in 1979, before re-joining the Rubettes in 1982.^[12][13]

In another attempt to get away from the 'doo-wop' glam image, Thorpe insisted that the trademark vocal harmonies were left off of his composition, "You're the Reason Why". Gerry Shury and the band out-voted him. The version with no vocal backing has been available as a bootleg recording in certain parts of Europe. In 1979, Thorpe and the band separated over musical differences. Thorpe can be heard on lead vocals on the last Still Unwinding track, "Does It Gotta Be Rock 'N' Roll". His guitar parts and backing vocals remained.^[14] After Thorpe's departure, the group's success began to dwindle.^[2] The band replaced Thorpe with Bob Benham, but he departed shortly thereafter and the band dissolved in 1980.^[15]

Reformation (1982–1999)

The band reformed in 1982, with a line-up consisting of Williams, Clark, Hurd, and drummer Alex Bines to exploit the German market for 1970s nostalgia.^[2] This line-up remained relatively stable until 1999, with the only line-up changes being the departure of Clark in 1987, to be replaced first by Steve Kinch and then by Trevor Holliday, before he returned to the fold in 1993.

Separate projects (2000–present)

In 2002, the group hit the headlines once more when, following an acrimonious split and legal action, the Rubettes became the latest in a long line of bands (including the Beach Boys and Spandau Ballet) to end up in the courts in a dispute over ownership of the band's name. The court ruled that both Williams and Hurd could tour as the Rubettes, as long as it was clear which member was fronting the band.^[4]

All was well until 2005 when Williams and Hurd were back in court following an appearance by Hurd's band on the German television station ZDF, with Williams claiming Hurd had breached the terms of the original agreement. On 2 February 2006, a High Court judge found that Hurd and Williams had both been guilty of breaching the 2002 agreement. Costs of the trial were, however, awarded to Williams in view of the severity of Hurd's breaches.^[4] Hurd appealed against this decision, but on 3 November 2006, the Appeal Court in London ruled against him, awarding the costs of the appeal to Williams.^[4] Hurd has since gone bankrupt.^[4]

In March 2012, Thorpe digitally released the No Hits, No Jazz Collection and performed at Darwen Library Theatre with a live eight-piece band for his '50th Anniversary 1-Gig-Tour'. It featured session musicians Iain Reddy, Liam Barber, Justin Randall and Greg Harper.^[16][17] "You're the Reason Why" was played.^[16]

Current members

Former members

Studio albums

Other Albums

• On Tour (October 2008) [Studio Album/Compilation + Bonus Tracks] CLCD002 ^[33]
• La Legende Continue (July 2016) [Studio Album/Compilation + Bonus Tracks] CLCD003 ^[33][34]

Singles