Mungo Jerry

Mungo Jerry is one of rock's great one-hit successes. Outside of England, they're known for exactly one song, but that song, "In the Summertime," is a seasonal anthem known by listeners who weren't even born when it was released. Mungo Jerry was a solid blues outfit as well -- in fact, one suspects they were the kind of blues band that purists Alexis Korner and Cyril Davies would have loved, had they ever intersected -- and knew how to get the most out of their jug band sound, which has helped them survive for three decades.



Mungo Jerry was formed in 1970 by singer/guitarist Ray Dorset (born March 21, 1946), who had a fascination with early rock & roll sounds, as well as skiffle and blues. The other original members were Mike Cole on upright bass; Paul King on guitar, kazoo, and jug; Joe Rush playing washboard; and Colin Earl at the keyboards. Dorset and Earl had first hooked up in the Good Earth, a group with a mixed rock & roll and blues sound, which cut some tracks for the mid-priced label Saga, none of which sold. Cole, King, and Rush came aboard and the lineup was complete. The name Mungo Jerry -- from a T.S. Eliot poem -- came next, with a contract from Pye Records.

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