List of Atomic Rooster members

Atomic Rooster are an English progressive rock band from London. Formed in 1969, the group originally included former Crazy World of Arthur Brown keyboardist Vincent Crane and drummer Carl Palmer, in addition to bassist, flautist and vocalist Nick Graham.^[1] Shortly after the release of the band's debut album Atomic Roooster, guitarist John Du Cann joined the group and took over on lead vocals, as Graham departed.^[2] Palmer left later in the year to form Emerson, Lake & Palmer, with Ric Parnell temporarily taking his place.^[3] Paul Hammond later joined in time for the recording of Death Walks Behind You.^[4] During the recording of 1971's In Hearing of Atomic Rooster, Pete French was brought in as the band's new lead vocalist.^[5] Du Cann was subsequently fired by Crane, with Hammond choosing to leave alongside him.^[2][3]

Atomic Rooster performing in 2021, (from left to right) Steve Bolton, Pete French, Paul Everett, Adrian Gautrey and Shug Millidge.

Du Cann and Hammond were replaced by Steve Bolton and Parnell, respectively.^[6] Chris Farlowe took over from French in early 1972,^[7] first contributing to the album Made in England.^[8] Bolton had left the group by the end of the year, with Johnny Mandala taking his place for the 1973 release Nice 'n' Greasy.^[9] By early 1974, everyone but Crane had left Atomic Rooster; the keyboardist continued to tour under the name "Vincent Crane's Atomic Rooster", adding former Sam Apple Pie members Sam "Tomcat" Sampson (vocals), Andy Johnson, Denny "Pancho" Barnes (both guitars), Bob "Dog" Rennie (bass) and Lee Baxter Hayes (drums) before disbanding the group in early 1975.^[10] Following the band's breakup, Crane worked on music for plays and radio dramas, as well as collaborating with former bandmate Arthur Brown.^[11]

In mid-1980, Crane reformed Atomic Rooster with former guitarist and vocalist Du Cann.^[12] Preston Heyman performed drums on the band's self-titled comeback album.^[13] Former Cream drummer Ginger Baker joined for a brief period in September,^[14] but had left within a month to join Hawkwind.^[15] Paul Hammond had returned to the band by the end of the year, marking a reunion of the Death Walks Behind You lineup.^[3] Du Cann left in 1982, with guitars on the band's seventh album Headline News performed by new member Bernie Tormé and Pink Floyd's David Gilmour.^[16] After a few months of touring, with more lineup changes, Atomic Rooster disbanded again in late 1983.^[3] Crane committed suicide in 1989,^[17] while Hammond died of an accidental drug overdose in 1992,^[18] and Du Cann died after a heart attack in 2011.^[19]

Over 30 years after the band's breakup, Atomic Rooster reformed in 2016 with the blessing of Crane's widow Jean,^[20] with former members Pete French and Steve Bolton joined by bassist Shug Millidge, keyboardist Christian Madden and drummer Bo Walsh.^[21] Madden was replaced by Adrian Gautrey in 2017, after the former joined Liam Gallagher's touring band.^[22]

Members

Current

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Pete French	1971 2016–present	vocals	In Hearing of Atomic Rooster (1971)
	Steve "Boltz" Bolton	1971–1972 2016–present	guitar	Made in England (1972) BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert (1992) Devil's Answer (1998)
	Shug Millidge	2016–present	bass guitar	none to date
	Adrian Gautrey	2017–present	keyboards backing vocals
	Paul Everett	2020–present	drums

Former

Image	Name	Years active	Instruments	Release contributions
	Vincent Crane	1969–1975 1980–1983 (died 1989)	keyboards piano synthesizer keybass vocals	all Atomic Rooster releases to date
	Carl Palmer	1969–1970	drums percussion	Atomic Roooster (1970) Devil's Answer (1998) Live and Raw 70/71 (2000)
	Nick Graham		bass guitar vocals flute guitar (studio)	Atomic Roooster (1970)
	John Du Cann	1970–1971 1980–1982 (died 2011)	guitar vocals bass guitar	Atomic Roooster (1970) – overdubs on reissue Death Walks Behind You (1970) In Hearing of Atomic Rooster (1971) Atomic Rooster (1980) Devil's Answer (1998) Live and Raw 70/71 (2000) Live at the Marquee 1980 (2002)
	Ric Parnell	1970 1971–1974 (died 2022)	drums percussion	Made in England (1972) Nice 'n' Greasy (1973) BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert (1992) Devil's Answer (1998)
	Paul Hammond	1970–1971 1980–1983 (died 1992)		Death Walks Behind You (1970) In Hearing of Atomic Rooster (1971) Headline News (1983) Live and Raw 70/71 (2000) Live in Germany 1983 (2000) Live at the Marquee 1980 (2002)
	Chris Farlowe	1972–1974	vocals	Made in England (1972) Nice 'n' Greasy (1973) BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert (1992) Devil's Answer (1998)
	Johnny Mandala	1972–1974 (died 2021)	guitar	Nice 'n' Greasy (1973)
	Sam "Tomcat" Sampson	1974–1975	vocals	none
	Andy "Snakehip" Johnson	1974–1975 (died 2010)	guitar
	Denny "Pancho" Barnes	1974–1975
	Bob "Dog" Rennie		bass guitar
	Lee Baxter Hayes		drums
	Preston Heyman	1980		Atomic Rooster (1980)
	Ginger Baker	1980 (died 2019)		none
	Mick Hawksworth	1982	bass guitar
	John McCoy	1982–1983
	Bernie Tormé	1983 (died 2019)	guitar	Headline News (1983) Live in Germany 1983 (2000)
	John Mizarolli	1983		Headline News (1983)
	Christian Madden	2016–2017	keyboards	none
	Bo Walsh	2016–2020	drums

Timeline

Line-ups

Period	Members	Releases
1969–1970	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals Nick Graham – bass, flute, vocals, guitar Carl Palmer – drums, percussion	Atomic Roooster (1970)
1970	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass Carl Palmer – drums, percussion John Du Cann – guitar, vocals	Devil's Answer (1998) Live and Raw 70/71 (2000)
1970	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass John Du Cann – guitar, vocals Ric Parnell – drums, percussion
1970–1971	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass John Du Cann – guitar, vocals Paul Hammond – drums, percussion	Death Walks Behind You (1970) Live and Raw 70/71 (2000) Devil's Answer (1998)
1971	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass John Du Cann – guitar, backing vocals Paul Hammond – drums, percussion Pete French – vocals	In Hearing of Atomic Rooster (1971)
1971 (briefly)	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass Pete French – vocals Steve Bolton – guitar Ric Parnell – drums, percussion	none
1971–1972	Vincent Crane – keyboards, vocals, keybass Steve Bolton – guitar Ric Parnell – drums, percussion
1972	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass Steve Bolton – guitar Ric Parnell – drums, percussion Chris Farlowe – vocals	Made in England (1972) BBC Radio 1 Live in Concert (1993) Devil's Answer (1998)
1972–1974	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass Ric Parnell – drums, percussion Chris Farlowe – vocals Johnny Mandala – guitar	Nice 'n' Greasy (1973)
1974–1975	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals Sam Sampson – vocals Andy Johnson – guitar Denny Barnes – guitar Bob Rennie – bass Lee Baxter Hayes – drums	none
Band Inactive 1975–1980
1980	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass John Du Cann – guitar, vocals Preston Heyman – drums	Atomic Rooster (1980)
1980	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass John Du Cann – guitar, vocals, bass Ginger Baker – drums	none
1980–1982	Vincent Crane – keyboards, backing vocals, keybass John Du Cann – guitar, vocals Paul Hammond – drums, percussion	Live at the Marquee 1980 (2002)
1982	Vincent Crane – keyboards, vocals Paul Hammond – drums, percussion Mick Hawksworth – bass	none
1982–1983	Vincent Crane – keyboards, vocals Paul Hammond – drums, percussion John McCoy – bass
1983	Vincent Crane – keyboards, vocals, keybass Paul Hammond – drums, percussion Bernie Tormé – guitar	Headline News (1983) Live in Germany 1983 (2000)
1983	Vincent Crane – keyboards, vocals, keybass Paul Hammond – drums, percussion John Mizarolli – guitar	Headline News (1983)
In active 1983–2016
2016–2017	Pete French – vocals Steve Bolton – guitar Christian Madden – keyboards Shug Millidge – bass Bo Walsh – drums	none
2017–2020	Pete French – vocals Steve Bolton – guitar Shug Millidge – bass Bo Walsh – drums Adrian Gautrey – keyboards, backing vocals
2020–present	Pete French – vocals Steve Bolton – guitar Shug Millidge – bass Adrian Gautrey – keyboards, backing vocals Paul Everett – drums

References

1. "Rooster Crowing" (Scan). Record World. Vol. 24, no. 1160. New York City: Record World Publishing. 6 September 1969. p. 39. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
2. Unterberger, Richie. "John Du Cann: Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
3. Leigh, Spencer (10 October 2011). "JohnDu Cann: Singer and guitarist with the hardrockers Atomic Rooster". The Independent. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
4. van Lustbader, Eric (27 March 1971). "Very Heavy Eggs" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 32, no. 40. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. p. 43. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
5. Ruhlmann, William. "Atomic Rooster: Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
6. "Appearances Spark Rooster LP Sales" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 33, no. 13. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. 18 September 1971. p. 22. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
7. "From the Music Capitals of the World: New York" (Scan). Billboard. Vol. 84, no. 9. New York City: Billboard Publications. 26 February 1972. p. 15. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
8. "Two New LPs from Elektra" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 34, no. 10. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. 26 August 1972. p. 39. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
9. Mulhern, Tom (August 1980). "John Goodsall". In Molenda, Michael (ed.). Guitar Player Presents: 50 Unsung Heroes of the Guitar. Montclair, New Jersey: Backbeat Books (published 1 November 2011). p. 68. ISBN 978-1617130212. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
10. "Sam Samson & Jim Mitchell" (PDF). Walthamstow Memories. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
11. Harper, Colin. "Vincent Crane". colin-harper.com. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
12. Underwood, Nick (19 July 1980). "International Dateline: United Kingdom" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 42, no. 10. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. p. 35. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
13. Thompson, Dave. "Atomic Rooster – Atomic Rooster: Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
14. Fuchs, Aaron (27 September 1980). "East Coastings: London Calling" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 42, no. 20. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. p. 46. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
15. Fuchs, Aaron (18 October 1980). "East Coastings: Sniffs 'n' Skinpops" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 42, no. 23. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. p. 12. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
16. "Coast to Coast: Points West" (Scan). Cash Box. Vol. 44, no. 6. New York City: Cash Box Publishing. 9 July 1983. p. 11. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
17. Vengadesan, Martin (2 July 2006). "Death walks behind Crane". The Star. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
18. Talevski, Nick (7 April 2010). Rock Obituaries: Knocking on Heaven's Door. New York City: Omnibus Press. p. 242. ISBN 978-1846090912. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
19. "Atomic Rooster's John Du Cann Dies". Planet Rock. 26 September 2011. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
20. Taylor, Mark. "Atomic Rooster: London 100 Club: 3rd August, 2016". Record Collector. Diamond Publishing. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
21. O'Neill, Christina (8 July 2016). "Cambridge Rock Festival shares final lineup announcement". Prog. TeamRock. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
22. "Atomic Rooster". Classic Rock. Future plc. 2 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018.