page_title: The Spencer Davis Group
section_title: Disbandment
hierarchical_section_title: The Spencer Davis Group / History / Disbandment
caption_attribution_description: Publicity photo for the music group The Spencer Davis Group.
context_page_description: The Spencer Davis Group are a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963, by Spencer Davis with Steve Winwood and his brother, Muff Winwood and Pete York. Their best known songs include the UK number ones "Somebody Help Me" and "Keep on Running", "I'm a Man" and "Gimme Some Lovin'", which reached #2 in the UK and #7 in the US.
  Steve Winwood left in 1967 to form Traffic before joining Blind Faith, then forging a career as a solo artist. After releasing a few more singles, the band ceased to be active in 1968. Davis refounded the group on two more occasions, without the involvement of the Winwood brothers, first in 1973–1974 for two more albums, and again from 2006, since when they have primarily been a touring act.
context_section_description: Steve Winwood left to form Traffic in 1967; his brother, Muff, moved into the music industry working in Artists and repertoire (A&R) at Island Records. In the same period, both the Spencer Davis Group and Traffic featured on the soundtrack of the film Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush released in that year. After the Winwoods' departures, the Spencer Davis Group continued with the addition of guitarist Phil Sawyer (ex-Les Fleur de Lys) and keyboardist/vocalist Eddie Hardin (ex-A Wild Uncertainty). This line-up recorded several tunes for Here We Go Round The Mulberry Bush and released the psychedelia sounding, "Time Seller" single in July 1967; the b-side, "Don't Want You No More", also received radio airplay.
  This was followed by "Mr. Second-Class" in late 1967, which received heavy airplay on Radio Caroline (a pirate radio ship off the British coast), and the album With Their New Face On in 1968. At that time Ray Fenwick had replaced Phil Sawyer. The group's last minor hit, "After Tea", was released at the same time by the German band The Rattles, providing competition that led finally to a temporary stop to all activities of the band. The song was originally recorded by the Dutch group After Tea, which included guitarist/singer Fenwick amongst its members. 
  After one further single ("Short Change"), at that time Eddie Hardin and Pete York had left to form the duo Hardin & York. They were replaced by future Elton John band member Dee Murray on bass and Dave Hynes on drums. Nigel Olsson replaced Hynes, and this lineup produced the album Funky in 1969 (only released in the USA on Date Records, a subsidiary of CBS) before splintering.
  The group broke up on 19 July 1969.
caption: The Spencer Davis Group in 1974
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