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One day, three young girls from Manchester decided to write to their local musical paper. "We're always hearing about Beatlemania," they complained, "well, we've got 'Hermania'. What about giving HIM some publicity!?" |
for 3 months. Herman joined them when they were called the Heartbeats. The group was playing at a youth club that Herman frequented one night and were short of a singer. He stepped in and sang and
hasn't looked back. The personnel of the group has changed around a bit since its formation. Karl Green (bass guitar) is the only member of the original group. As people left, Barry Whitwam (drums) was the first to join, then Derek 'Lek' Leckenby (lead & rhythm guitar) and last Keith Hopwood (lead & rhythm guitar). The rather unusual name of Herman comes from a cartoon character. In a cartoon show on TV called "The Bullwinkle Show" was a boy called Sherman. The rest of the group were amused at the similarity of the character and their lead singer. Mistaking the name Sherman for Herman, they christened him. They chose the Hermits because it fitted the first name. The group was brought to the attention of independent record producer Mickie Most - the man responsible for the hits of the Animals and The Nashville Teens. He travelled to see them at a concert in Bolton, was immediately impressed by their stage show and signed them to a recording contract. |
