Zoot Money's Big Roll Band
A flamboyant front man who was one of the pioneers of the British R&B and rock & roll scene in the 1960s, Zoot Money helped pave the way for the likes of The Rolling Stones and The Yardbirds but only had one major hit with the swaggering, wailing, soul stomp 'Big Time Operator'.
Born into a family of Italian immigrants in Bournemouth, England, George Bruno Money grew up playing the French horn but was transfixed by the birth of rock & roll and the skiffle movement in the 1950s and renamed himself after seeing jazz saxophonist Zoot Sims. Becoming a regular at Soho's basement bars, Money started his Big Roll Band in 1961 with guitarist Roger Collis, pianist Al Kirtley and bassist Mike Montgomery and they later became a house band at the legendary Flamingo Club just as the swinging sixties were fully hitting their peak. Andy Summers also played with the band before later finding international fame with The Police. Money learned his trade and built his reputation as keyboard player with the seminal Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated group before releasing the first Big Roll Band singles 'The Uncle Willie' and 'Good' in 1964.
Their albums 'It Should Have Been Me' and 'Zoot!' perfectly captured the British take on American R&B of the era, but it was only really 'Big Time Operator that crossed over into the mainstream and reached number 25 on the UK charts in 1966. As trends changed the band morphed into the psychedelic, prog-rock act Dantalion's Chariot in 1967 and Money moved to America a year later to play with Eric Burdon and The Animals before releasing his first solo album 'Welcome to My Head' and playing on Peter Green's 'The End of the Game'.
He continued to work on a variety of musical projects in the '70s and '80s including with Steve Marriott and Ronnie Lane, Spencer Davis Group and Mick Taylor and featured as an actor in a number of British films and television shows including 'Bergerac', 'Coronation Street' and 'Porridge'. Still performing regularly with The Big Roll Band on the British blues scene, he released a new solo album 'The Book of Life. I've Read It' in 2016 through Treasure Island Records.
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Discography
11 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Big Money - [The Dave Cash Collection]
Blues - Released by The Dave Cash Collection - OMP on 9 May 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Big Time Operator
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records (UK) Limited on 3 Nov 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
As & Bs Scrap Book (Digitally Remastered Version) (Digitally Remastered)
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records on 1 Jan 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Full Circle
Blues - Released by Repertoire Records on 16 Feb 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
It Should've Been Me (Digitally Remastered Version) (Digitally Remastered)
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records on 1 Jan 1965
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Best Of (Digitally Remastered Version) (Digitally Remastered)
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records on 30 Apr 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live at the Flamingo (Live)
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records (UK) Limited on 12 Feb 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
It Should've Been Me
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records (UK) Limited on 20 Oct 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live at the BBC
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records (UK) Limited on 12 Feb 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Zoot (Digitally Remastered Version) (Digitally Remastered)
Soul - Released by Repertoire Records on 1 Jan 1966
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -