 Imagine, if you can, an actor, a telephone engineer, an engraver, a ladies' hairdresser and a university student. And then after you've made them up, try to put them together and make up a name for them as a musical group. Come to think of it, "Herman's Hermits" is as good as any! The baby of this young British quintet of million sellers is the head Hermit himself, Herman. Really, he is Peter Blair Denis Bernard Noone, who was born just 19 years ago, November 5. Little did anyone realize then that the baby tooth that irritatingly began to hang out over his bottom lip would someday make him an internationally famous millionaire. Neither, of course, did Peter guess that a couple of the old English music hall songs he memorized and sang as a child, "Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter" and "Henry (sung Hen-er-ee) the VIII" would someday become million selling record hits for him. Heman began his career as a child actor on British TV at the age of 13. He's from Manchester, but got together with karl Green, also 19 from Salford, Keith Hopwood, 20, from Manchester, Derek Leckenby, 21, from Leeds and Barry Whitwam, 20, from Manchester, just three years ago. They thought perhaps the austerity and dedication that would probably be required of them if they were to be successful musically might cause them to lead a rather monastic life for a few years. They turned out to be wrong about the amount of time they would take to "make it", but the name that came to mind, "Hermits", stuck. The rest of the name? Well, you couldn't get very excited about a group called "Peter and His Hermits" now could you? (Although they did consider naming the group "Peter and the Wolves", except that it didn't fit their young personalities at all!) The most important thing fans of Herman's Hermits have noticed, however, is that the fantastic success the group has attained has left them  |
individually unchanged. All five boys still live at home with their families. They still get homesick when they're away on long tours and, during the filming of their movie, "No Place Like Space," each brought his family to Hollywood for a vacation.
For relaxation during their busy road schedules, the Hermits excercise by swiming and gorge themselves on cream cakes and other delicacies. They are also devotees of American steaks and hamburgers and are excellent testimonials for the value of a tall glass of milk at every meal. Their newest album on MGM, is "The Best of Herman's Hermits" containing twelve of their biggest record hits, including "Mrs. Brown", "Henry" and Herman's personal favorite, the ballad "The End of The World". The next time you have the opportunity, see them. In the meantime, enjoy their MGM records. HERMIT SIDELIGHTS Karl Green, plays harmonica and guitar in addition to his Gilbson Thunderbird IV bass. Keith Hopwood, a talented composer as well as a fine musician. His favorite is his Gibson J-200 Super Jumbo flat top guitar. Derek Leckenby, has the perfect pitch that contributes to the Hermits' precise musicality. He plays a custom built Gibson ES 355 TD SV Stereo guitar. Barry Whitwam, in addition to being the group "Charmer" is also the drummer And if you want even more current news about them, write: 200 West 57th Street, Suite 1208 New York, N.Y. 10019
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