The Move

Among British ensembles from the tail end of the 1960s, The Move ranked as the most vital and accomplished without ever registering meaningful commercial impact stateside. Guitarist and principal songwriter Roy Wood supplied the constant thread across the group’s shifting lineups, blending Beatles-inspired melodic craft with a distinctly British, sometimes macabre wit that often guided their visual presentation as much as their sound. By the closing records, substantial contributions from Jeff Lynne steered the band toward greater sophistication and scale, foreshadowing the symphonic rock that Wood and Lynne would later perfect in Electric Light Orchestra, although The Move consistently favored concise pop songcraft over abstract experimentation while retaining firm allegiance to their rock-and-roll foundation.

Assembled in the middle of the decade, the quintet adopted its name to reflect the transition of its original members from established Birmingham outfits into a fresh project. Several had already issued unsuccessful 45s in standard British Invasion mode with prior groups. Under the guidance of manager Tony Secunda, the musicians relocated to London and developed a volatile live show modeled on the Who, complete with on-stage television destruction. Their initial singles drew from mod pop through punchy riffs and eccentric character portraits, yet Roy Wood’s compositions remained markedly more buoyant and melodic than those of Pete Townshend.

With Wood credited for every original, the band’s opening quartet of releases—“Night of Fear,” “I Can Hear the Grass Grow,” “Flowers in the Rain,” and “Fire Brigade”—all reached the British Top Ten during 1967 and 1968. Even with strong material and a sturdy 1968 debut album, attention from management and the press centered on theatrical stage behavior, flamboyant attire, and provocative promotional schemes. One such stunt, a mail-out for “Flowers in the Rain” depicting Prime Minister Harold Wilson in a compromising pose, proved costly when the ensuing libel action stripped the group of royalties from that single.

Bassist Ace Kefford, valued chiefly for visual impact rather than musical input, departed in 1968. Following a pair of modest chart entries, the band secured its sole British number-one in 1969 with the darkly humorous “Blackberry Way,” a pointed counterpart to “Penny Lane.” Guitarist Trevor Burton, who had shifted to bass following Kefford’s exit, left shortly after that hit. Rick Price joined as replacement, and the resulting album Shazam (1970) ranked among their strongest, granting room for progressive and exploratory impulses beyond the constraints of single-length tracks. After an ill-advised turn on the cabaret circuit, vocalist Carl Wayne exited, shifting primary lead duties to Roy Wood.

Continued membership flux might have derailed most acts, yet The Move grew more compelling in the early 1970s once Jeff Lynne, formerly of the pop-rock outfit the Idle Race, replaced Wayne. Lynne became the sole member besides Wood to supply significant material and help define the group’s direction. On Looking On (1971) and Message from the Country (1972), Lynne’s brighter pop sensibility balanced Wood’s darker, ironic writing in the manner of storied partnerships such as Lennon-McCartney or Stills-Young. The strongest output from these years actually appeared on singles, several of which—“Brontosaurus,” “California Man,” and “Tonight”—registered as British hits.

The Move stayed largely invisible in the United States, where touring had been minimal, and focused on studio refinement after Lynne arrived. Arrangements grew denser as Wood mastered additional common and unusual instruments. This mounting interest in orchestral textures prompted Wood, Lynne, and drummer Bev Bevan to dissolve the band in the early 1970s and establish Electric Light Orchestra. ELO’s 1977 cover of the Move’s late single “Do Ya,” which had barely registered on U.S. charts in 1972, became a hit, yet Wood had already exited ELO in 1972 to lead Wizzard and pursue solo work. Despite ELO’s global commercial reach, it never recaptured the distinctive fusion of pop immediacy and experimentation that defined The Move at its peak. Bassist Rick Price died on May 17, 2022 at the age of 77.