More Info on King HarvestSimilar Undetermined MusicSearch Artistopia
Biography
: For the song by The Band, see King Harvest (Has Surely Come)
Unreferenced|date=December 2010Infobox musical artist | name = King Harvest | image = | caption = | background = group_or_band | origin = | genre = Rock (music)|Rock , pop rock | years_active = 1970–1974 | label = Perception A& M Records |current_members = |past_members = Dave "Doc" Robinson Ron Altbach Ed Tuleja Rod Novak Sherman Kelly Wells Kelly Steve Cutler Didier Alexandre David Montgomery Tony Cahill Bobby Figueroa
King Harvest was a 1970s United States|American rock music|rock band, best known for their 1973 hit single , " Dancing in the Moonlight ".
Background
Formed by a group of four United States|American expatriates in Paris in 1970, King Harvest was best known for its one US hit Single (music)|single , " Dancing In The Moonlight ," which was released in 1972. Although the band had a constantly fluctuating membership, it always included its four core co-founders: Dave "Doc" Robinson ( lead vocals / bass guitar|bass / Keyboard instrument|keyboards ), Ron Altbach (keyboards), Ed Tuleja ( guitar ), and Rod Novak ( saxophone ), all of whom had previously attended Cornell University . At one time, the band consisted of three keyboardist s, with Sherman Kelly (who wrote "Dancing in the Moonlight") joining Altbach and Robinson. Sherman Kelly's brother, drummer Wells Kelly, who would later go on to form the band Orleans (band)|Orleans also served a brief stint in the group both in Paris and in the US. It was Wells who introduced the group to "Dancing in the Moonlight," but he left Paris before the song was recorded. Steve Cutler, a jazz drummer from New York City|New York , joined King Harvest for their last six months in Paris, recording "Dancing in the Moonlight" and playing clubs and concerts in Paris and London.
France|French musician Didier Alexandre also joined the band in the early 1970s. A Single (music)|45 rpm record of "Dancing in the Moonlight" was released in Paris, with "Lady, Come Home To Me" on the B-side . The single languished and the group disbanded, only to be re-formed in the USA for the re-release of "Dancing in the Moonlight" by Perception.
Australia n drummer David Montgomery, formerly of the band Python Lee Jackson , joined after the band's debut album and toured with them during the spring of 1973. Other members of the band at various times included another Python Lee Jackson alumnus Tony Cahill (bass guitar) and Bobby Figueroa (drums). All members had been involved previously with other bands and done session musician|session work .
In 1972, the four original members signed with the Perception label. Their first single, leased by Perception from the French company Musicisc, was one-time band member Sherman Kelly's "Dancing in the Moonlight," a Pop music|pop song that he and Robinson had performed with their earlier band, Boffalongo. It reached number 13 in the US in early 1973 but King Harvest's future singles were unable to match its success. The original line-up recorded one album titled after the hit single, which failed to break into the Top 100. They made other singles, including a cover of The Four Seasons (group)|The Four Seasons song "Hickory", but by the mid-1970s had disbanded. A new version, which included the four original members, was formed in 1974. With support from Beach Boys members Carl Wilson and Mike Love , they were signed to A& M Records and made another album, but, failing to achieve any hits, they subsequently broke up. Novak, Altbach, Tuleja, and Figueroa toured with the Beach Boys. Tuleja and Novak played on Dennis Wilson's 1977 solo Pacific Ocean Blue , while Altbach and Robinson performed with Love in his band Celebration.
King Harvest released their The Lost Tapes album in September 2007, and performed on TJ Lubinsky 's My Music DVD entitled The 70s Experience Live produced for PBS .
External links
http://www.mp3.com/artist/king-harvest---dancing-in-the-moonlight/summary/ Biography from mp3.com
http://www.bandtoband.com/band/king-harvest King Harvest - BandToBand.com
http://www.myspace.com/kingharvest MySpace Page
http://bandtoband.com/forums/viewtopic.php? p=17218 Brief David Montgomery Info
Category:American expatriates in France Category:American rock music groups
