The Shotgun Express

Lore & Background

The band emerged when Peter Bardens' instrumental group, Peter B's Looners, which included Bardens on keyboards, Peter Green on guitar, Dave Ambrose on bass and Mick Fleetwood on drums, decided to change styles and add vocalists. They were joined by Rod Stewart and Beryl Marsden and took the name Shotgun Express. The band played London clubs and focused on performing soul classics. Green left in late 1966 to join John Mayall's Bluesbreakers and was replaced by, first, John Mooreshead and then Phil Sawyer. The group released their first single, "I Could Feel The Whole World Turn Round" (Columbia DB 8025), in October 1966, but it was regarded as over-orchestrated by the band's followers and was not successful. Shotgun Express split up in early 1967 after Stewart left to join the Jeff Beck Group in February 1967.

Reader's Guide

The Shotgun Express is significant primarily as a formative stepping stone for several musicians who later achieved major fame. Rod Stewart, Mick Fleetwood, Peter Green, and Peter Bardens all passed through the band's ranks before moving on to iconic acts such as the Jeff Beck Group, Fleetwood Mac, and Camel. The band's brief existence and lack of commercial success contrast sharply with the subsequent careers of its members. Its single, "I Could Feel The Whole World Turn Round," failed to chart and was criticized for being over-orchestrated. The group's dissolution in early 1967 led its members to join other notable acts: Fleetwood joined Green in John Mayall's band before the two left to found Fleetwood Mac; Marsden joined The She Trinity; Ambrose joined Brian Auger; Sawyer joined Spencer Davis; and Bardens later formed the prog-rock band Camel. The Shotgun Express thus remains a footnote in music history, remembered for the future stars it briefly assembled.

Did You Know?

• The band formed from Peter B's Looners, which included Peter Green, Mick Fleetwood, and Dave Ambrose.
• Beryl Marsden, who joined as a vocalist, had been the leading female singer on the Liverpool club scene.
• The band's only single, 'I Could Feel The Whole World Turn Round,' was released in October 1966.
• After the band split, Mick Fleetwood and Peter Green left John Mayall's band to found Fleetwood Mac.