CHICK CHURCHILL - KEYBOARDS
Chick began playing piano at the age of six and continued classical studies until the age of fifteen. At this point he became more interested in Blues and Rock and joined his first band, a Nottingham outfit, Sons Of Adam. At a local gig, Chick met Alvin Lee of The Jaybirds, in whose line-up were bassist, Leo Lyons and drummer Ric Lee. At first, Chick joined as Road Manager but soon became keyboard player when The Jaybirds became the backing group for a chart vocal act, The Ivy League. In 1968, after Chick secured an audition for the band at London's Marquee Club under the name The Bluesyard (the only gig the group ever performed under this name), the quartet became the highly successful rock group, Ten Years After.
They toured the world extensively, including 28 tours of the USA in eight years. August 1969 saw them play the unique Woodstock Festival and appear in the Woodstock film, released the following year. Also in 1970, Ten Years After appeared at the Isle of Wight Festival and in the film, which was finally released in 1995! When Alvin left Ten Years After in 1976 to go solo for the first time, Chick became Professional Manager at Chrysalis Music, the company owned by his then manager, Chris Wright.
A year later, Chick left Chrysalis Music and founded a partnership with Tim Whitsett as Whitsett Churchill Music Publishing. They specialised in publishing and promoting American artists from the Southern States, where Tim Whisett had his roots. Following on from this, Chick furthered the career of The News, a group he managed and signed to a lucrative deal with Polydor Records. Ten Years After re-formed again in 1983 for the Marquee Club's 25th Anniversary, performed two large European festivals in Belgium and Switzerland and were special guests at The Reading Festival, the year of headliner Thin Lizzy's final concert. Chick plays: Piano, Hammond Organ, Synthesizers
Date and place of birth: 2nd January 1946, in Ilkeston, Derbyshire