The Babys

The Babys are a British rock group best known for their songs "Isn't It Time" and "Every Time I Think of You". Both songs were composed by Jack Conrad and Ray Kennedy, and each reached No. 13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 8 on the Cashbox chart in the late 1970s. "Back on My Feet Again" also reached the U.S. Top 40 in 1980. The original Babys line-up consisted of founding member keyboardist/guitarist Michael Corby, and in order of joining the group, vocalist/bassist John Waite, drummer Tony Brock and guitarist Wally Stocker.The group signed a contract with Chrysalis Records that was the highest ever for a new music act at the time. Two studio albums, The Babys and Broken Heart, were well received. After recording their third album, Head First, in 1978, co-founder Michael Corby was replaced by Jonathan Cain as keyboardist and Ricky Phillips took over as bassist. From late 1978 until the breakup in 1981, The Babys line-up consisted of vocalist Waite, drummer Brock, bassist Phillips, guitarist Stocker, and keyboardist Cain.Founding member Mike Corby places the origin of the idea for the band at Smalls Café on the Fulham Road in London in 1973, during a chance meeting with Adrian Millar. A management agreement was signed between Corby and Millar on 4 September 1974 and auditions were held in 1974–75 to fill out the remaining members.Among those who auditioned were Mandrake Paddle Steamer bassist Paul Riordan and drummer Lucas Fox, who would go on to join Motörhead. One of their friends, singer/guitarist Gordon Hawtin (a.k.a. Gordon Rondelle), recommended an acquaintance, John Waite (ex-Graf Spee/Chalk Farm), who had relocated to Cleveland, Ohio, to play bass with a band called The Boys, but returned to the UK to try out for Corby's new project. Riordin decided to pass and drummer Tony Brock was pursued instead of Fox.Tony Brock was an established rock drummer, having played with Strider and Spontaneous Combustion. Financial difficulties with Strider, and the opportunity to join a group with sound financial backing, made him decide to take a chance with this group instead. Brock brought in ex-Dream Police/Longdancer keyboardist/guitarist/bassist Matt Irving in late 1975, but Corby left temporarily shortly thereafter. The last member to join the line-up was ex-Joy/Pegasus guitarist Wally Stocker, in January 1976. After Corby then returned, rehearsals began in London's Tooley Street and ten songs were demoed. These ten songs were later first released on NEMS Records in 1978 as The Babys (and later, in 2006, as The Official Unofficial BABYS Album). But Irving was the next to leave (eventually to join Manfred Mann's Earth Band).

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.