Chimo!

Chimo! (Inuit for "Hello") was a Canadian rock band of the late 1960s and early 1970s. It grew out of the "Georgian People" in 1969. The band recorded an album for Revolver Records.

History

The band played Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens with sister group Chicago to a full house, and opened the second day of the Festival Express with The Band and Janis Joplin that was held at Canadian National Exhibition Stadium on June 28, 1970. They also appeared at the Midsummer Night Rock Festival at Michigan State Fairground in Detroit on July 4 with shock-rocker Alice Cooper, the Electric Circus, and others.

Following the release of the band's album in November 1970, Andy Cree left (later to do sessions for the likes of David Wiffen and spend several years with Anne Murray's band) and was replaced by former member Pat Little, who had spent the interim doing sessions for Van Morrison, Peter, Paul & Mary and playing with a reformed Luke & The Apostles. The new line-up was responsible for one single, Little's "In The Sea" and "Mowbray Cross Country Man". The songs were written on a flight to Rome to negotiate a European tour and to secure a song writing contract with Chapel Publishing Milan with Mowbray's previous assistant and former drummer Silvino Desemoni, and bass player Franco Deljudich from a 1967 Italian tour with Nicola Di Bari and RCA-Victor/Rome.

After disbanding

However, the group's career was flagging and in mid-1971 Raby, Johnson and Collocot dropped out, leaving the power trio of Mowbray, Leboeuf and Little to play at Butchers Arms, Yonge Street clubs like Zanzibar Tavern and others. Little departed to join Heaven and Earth for two singles before forming Flag, while LeBoeuf joined a re-formed Motherlode. Breen Leboeuf later joined the Montreal band Offenbach in 1977.

Personnel

• Breen Leboeuf : Vocals
• Ross Raby : Organ, vocals
• Jack Mowray : Guitars, voals
• John Johnson : Bass, vocals
• Andy Cree : Drums, percussions
• Pat Little : Drums, percussions

Recordings

• 45 Quicksilver Woman c/w Day After Day (Revolver 006) 1969
• 45 Silken Silver Melody c/w Lonely Girl (Revolver 009) 1970
• 45 In The Sea c/w Cross Country Man (Revolver 1070) 1971
• LP Chimo! (Revolver 503) 1970

Relics

A Traynor YBA-3 Custom Special amplifier head, marked with Chimo!'s paint stencil, has been owned and used by bassist Michael Small of The Meligrove Band since late 2006.

Sources

• "1,500 rock groups in search of smash records", Toronto Telegram, September 17, 1970, page 33
• Bill Munson's sleeve for Chimo! CD on Pacemaker
• Interview with Breen LeBoeuf, 2004 I love Chimo!