The Mindbenders

Wayne Fontana, Bob Lang, Ric Rothwell and Eric Stewart formed Wayne Fontana And The Mindbenders in Manchester, England in 1963, joined a short time later by Graham Foote. Um Um Um Um Um Um, released in 1964, was their biggest selling hit, followed by Game Of Love the year after which reached number one on the Billboard Charts and number two on the UK Albums Chart. In 1965, Fontana famously walked out of the band in the middle of a concert, with Stewart taking up the role of frontman and changing the band's name to simply The Mindbenders. The new line-up released their debut single A Groovy Kind Of Love in 1966 which reached number two in the US and the UK, reassuring the band and the public that they could go on without Fontana. Subsequent records, however, failed to muster up the same amount of popularity and their final US tour took place in 1966 as support act to James Brown. The band appeared in the 1967 Sidney Poitier film To Sir, With Love, with songs of theirs also featuring on the soundtrack, but even that extra exposure failed to create the storm needed to resurrect the band that once was. The Mindbenders said goodbye one final time with a UK tour in 1968. After The Mindbenders, Graham Foote joined Herman's Hermits where he achieved success, and Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman went on to form the highly successful band 10cc.

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