Bands > South West England > The Wurzels

The Wurzels

The Wurzels [official website] [Wurzelmania!] - The original Wurzels were started by Adge Cutler in 1966. Adge was the leader and wrote most of their early songs, including the Adge Cutler & The Wurzels's first hit single Drink Up Thy Zider, which reached no. 45 in 1967. At the time of Adge's tragic death on 5th May 1974, the remaining group members continued under the name The Wurzels. They went on to even greater heights with a number one hit in 1976 with Combine Harvester, followed by a string of other successful records. The band is still performing today - and long may they continue! The Wurzels are now a four-piece band, consisting of Tommy Banner (accordion/keyboards/vocals), Pete Budd (guitar/banjo/vocals), Dave Winter (bass), and John Morgan (drums). Check Ents24.com for Wurzels gigs listing.

Wurzels Tributes & Other Other Scrumpy & Western Bands

AD Rice & The Wazzuks - a popular Adge Cutler tribute band from the Bristol area, The Wazzuks play 100% Adge Cutler-only Scrumpy & Western music. The singer AD Rice hails from Pill and is reputed to be the spitting image of Adge. Their last known gig was in the summer of 2001, and they may have split up now.

Hedge Cutter & The Mangledwurzels [official website] - Somerset-based three-piece Wurzels tribute band playing Wurzels songs, old and new, blended with self-penned titles and pop standards 'Mangled' in true Wurzels tradition. Currently gigging across Somerset and the South West.

Shag Connors & The Carrot Crunchers - a humorous and fondly remembered West Country band, based in Gloucestershire, and led by the inimitable and sadly missed Shag Connors. No longer gigging.

The Cowshed Cleaners - a band in the Scrumpy & Western tradition from Tiverton in Devon in the late 1970s. They claimed to be "the only West Country group that smells like one". No longer gigging.

The Pigsty Hill Light Orchestra - fondly remembered band who started out as Fred Wedlock's backing group, but went on to make a big name for themselves as Scrumpy & Western stars in their own right in the early and mid-1970s. No longer gigging.

The Plonkers - Smock-clad Hampshire-based yokels with more than a few Wurzels songs in their set. An off-shoot band calling themselves The New Plonkers also exist, and rumours have it that there is some dispute between the two. No information about whether either band are currently gigging.

The Yetties [official website] Dorset's Scrumpy & Western Stars! The Yetties are one of England's most popular folk groups. They take their name from the Dorset village of Yetminster which was their childhood home. Their obvious love of the West Country, it's songs, stories and humour wins them friends wherever they go. Check the band's website for current gig dates

The Yokels - Wiltshire's very own Scrumpy & Western stars. Formed in the mid-1970s, the band briefly reunited to release a single for the BBC Children In Need 2002 charity appeal. Their last public performance was in the summer of 2002.

Thanks to the Wurzelmania website for much of the archive material