Climax Blues Band

Climax Blues Band

Climax Blues Band is a British blues rock group from Stafford, England, formed in late 1968. It begins as the Climax Chicago Blues Band and shortens its name to Climax Blues Band in 1970. The group is led for many years by Colin Cooper, who forms the band with guitarist Peter Haycock, bassist Richard Jones, drummer George Newsome and keyboardist Arthur Wood; Derek Holt also joins on guitar, and Cooper adds vocals and saxophone. Nicky Hopkins is also listed among the band’s members.

Style and early development

The band is part of the late 1960s UK blues boom and initially plays hard-edged 12-bar blues in the style associated with Chicago blues. Its first two albums on EMI’s Parlophone label present that approach, while Cooper’s use of wind instruments brings in a more jazz-leaning element. As the blues boom fades, the band shifts towards a more rock-based sound on albums such as Tightly Knit and Rich Man.

Record labels, touring and later work

In 1970 EMI moves the group to its Harvest label. The band also starts to focus on the US market, touring with acts including Canned Heat and the Steve Miller Band. After moving from EMI to Polydor, it achieves a major breakthrough with FM/Live, a live recording from a New York show that is also broadcast on radio. The album captures the group’s stage sound and becomes its biggest-selling release at that point, helping it move from support act status to headliners.

Later, the band moves to Warner’s and continues recording prolifically as an album-focused act. Its 1994 live album Blues from the Attic shows that it remains active on the European blues scene after its popularity on the US live circuit declines by the end of the 1980s.

Key songs and chart success

The band’s best-known single is “Couldn’t Get It Right”, written by Colin Cooper, which reaches the UK Top 10 in 1976 and No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. It later appears in a cover version by Fun Lovin’ Criminals. The band also reaches the US Top 20 again in 1981 with “I Love You”, written by Holt.

Colin Cooper

Colin Francis Richard Cooper, born in Stafford in 1939, is an enduring figure in the group and on the British blues scene. Before forming Climax Chicago Blues Band, he leads the R&B group Hipster Image, which moves to London, takes over the Spencer Davis Group’s residency at the Flamingo club in Soho, and secures a Decca deal in 1966. Their only single, “Can’t Let Her Go”, does not chart, despite being produced by Alan Price. Cooper later returns to the Potteries and forms the Gospel Truth before reshaping the group with Haycock. He remains with Climax Blues Band until shortly before his death from cancer in 2008. Outside music, he is known for doing The Times crossword daily.

Membership and continuity

Over time the line-up changes substantially, but Cooper remains a constant presence until his death. The group continues beyond his lifetime and is still active. Notable members across its history include Richard Jones, George Newsome, Arthur Wood, Pete Haycock, Colin Cooper, John Cuffley, Derek Holt and Nicky Hopkins.