The Quik

In the late '60s, English Decca made a valiant effort to compete in all categories of the new rock sounds that were emerging. With the exceptions of the Rolling Stones and the Moody Blues, however, none of their signings saw major success internationally, and precious few acts beyond the Small Faces and the Honeybus did much domestically. The Quik were one of Decca's attempts to gain a foothold in the burgeoning market for soul-based music -- signed in 1967, the quintet got three singles out that year that never charted. Their membership is lost to the mists of time, but their music has been reissued on various 1990s CD compilations. The B-side of their debut single, "Love Is a Beautiful Thing" b/w "Burt's Apple Crumble," was a diamond-in-the-rough instrumental, Booker T. morphing into the Small Faces, with a stomping beat and an incredible, enveloping organ sound, and both sides of their final single were soul/freakbeat classics. ~ Bruce Eder