Howie Casey | |
---|---|
Birth name | Howard William Casey |
Born |
Huyton, Liverpool, England |
12 July 1937
Instruments | Saxophone |
Years active | 1958–present |
Website | http://beatleswithwings.wix.com/beatles-with-wings |
Howard William "Howie" Casey (born 12 July 1937) is a British rhythm and blues and rock saxophonist. He first came to prominence in the early 1960s as a member of Derry and the Seniors, the first rock and roll band from Liverpool to play clubs in Germany, and later, as leader of the renamed Howie Casey and the Seniors, the first Liverpool group to record an LP. In the 1970s, he was featured on several albums by, and toured with, Paul McCartney and Wings, among others.
He was born in Huyton, Liverpool, and starting playing saxophone in his teens. After a period working in engineering, he was called up for national service in 1955, played in a military band, and, after hearing early rock and roll records by Little Richard, Fats Domino and others, formed a rock group before leaving the Army in 1958. Back in Liverpool, he first joined the Rhythm Rockers, a group led by drummer Frank Wibberley, and then another group, the Hy-Tones.
He formed his own band, the Seniors, at the end of 1959. Other original members of the group were Billy Hughes (rhythm guitar), Stan Foster (piano) – both of whom had been in the Hy-Tones – together with Brian Griffiths (lead guitar), Phil Whitehead (bass) and Jeff Wallington (drums). They soon added lead singer Derry Wilkie, a black British singer who had previously sung with the Hy-Tones. As Derry and the Seniors, the group performed in local venues, and in May 1960, after appearing in a show headed by Gene Vincent, were invited to audition for the role of backing band for Liverpool star Billy Fury. Although they did not win the audition, they were invited by Fury's manager Larry Parnes to go to London to perform at the 2i's Coffee Bar in Soho.