Although they were associated with the
London psychedelic music scene, they originated in
Stockport, then in
Cheshire, as The Young Contemporaries
jugband. The band adopted the name, The Purple Gang, when they changed their image to the well-dressed, clean-cut "gangster" style in the 1960s. In London, they engaged
Joe Boyd as their
record producer, and shared a
studio with
Pink Floyd as they
recorded their first
single, "Granny Takes A Trip", named after
the eponymous shop in the
Kings Road, London. Pink Floyd were making their own first single, "
Arnold Layne", at the time. The BBC spotted the word 'trip' in the title and, assuming it to be a reference to
LSD, banned the record from their airwaves. Also noting that the band's lead singer at the time (Pete Walker) was nicknamed 'Lucifer', the BBC Controller said "... a song with a dubious title designed to corrupt the nation's youth – and a band that boasts a warlock for a singer will not be tolerated by any decent society..." An
album,
The Purple Gang Strikes was released in 1968, From 1999, their new lead vocalist was Stuart Pevitt (born 27 December 1952,
Sale,
Cheshire, England). It contained
remixes of several of their 1967 songs, including the BBC-banned track "Granny Takes A Trip". Another track, "Madam Judge", was their reply to the latter's banning. Beard and Robinson released a new CD in 2014 –
We Meant No Harm. Pevitt died of cancer in 2009, aged 56. Robinson died on 14 September 2024, aged 76. ==Discography==