About The Buzz
Formed
1966
Genre
Rock
The Buzz made just one single in 1966. However, it excites collectors both because of its wild guitar sounds -- the epitome of the mod/R&B/proto-psychedelic collision collectors have retroactively dubbed "freakbeat" -- and because it was produced by Joe Meek. "You're Holding Me Down" was a beehive orgy of frenzied guitars and typically compressed Meek production, and one of the relatively few examples of Meek managing to adapt to the changing trends of the British Invasion (the Syndicats' "Crawdaddy Simone" being another one). Singer Tam White recalled that Meek flooded the song with echo, and that the B-side, "I've Gotta Buzz," was one of the worst songs he (White) had heard. "You're Holding Me Down" was reissued on the compilation Freak Beat Fantoms in 1989.
The Buzz had evolved from an Edinburgh band called the Boston Dexters, and Meek had originally planned to record them covering the Drifters' song "Please Stay," which he instead produced with the Cryin' Shames (who had a small hit with it in Britain). The Buzz broke up just a few months after their single, with Tam White going on to a few singles for Decca, and an album for Middle Earth. The Buzz that did "You're Holding Me Down," incidentally, are totally unrelated to the group called the Buzz that backed David Bowie in 1966. ~ Richie Unterberger
Members of The Buzz include, or have included, Brian Henderson and Tam White.
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