The Rokes
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The Rokes were one of the more unusual British Invasion-era groups to come out of England, if only for the pattern and locale of their success. They never sold many records in England, or any in America, but they were a major act in Italy. London-born Shel Shapiro (b. 1943) had broken into music as a guitarist and singer with Rob Storm & the Whispers. He played in Hamburg as a member of the Shel Carson Combo and then became a member of the band backing Colin Hicks, the brother of Tommy Steele, on an extended tour of Italy in 1963 as The Cabin Boys. They got the attention of a manager in Italy who got them to sever their ties to Hicks and rename themselves the Rokes. Their debut release under their new name was a single of "Shake, Rattle and Roll" that failed to sell. Another recording effort, this time in Italian, failed, but their future releases would all be in Italian, with English-language versions issued overseas. That same year, the Rokes also won second place in a poll of the most popular beat groups in Italy. Their big success and their major impact on the world of rock & roll beyond Italy, however, came when Shapiro co-authored a song called "Piangi Con Me," a hit for the group in Italy and later released in England by the group as "Let's Live for Today." That record not only sold more than two million copies, but became one of the most enduring hit singles of its period, with a special meaning to Vietnam veterans, and stylistically, was a forerunner of a sound that Bruce Springsteen would become a star with nine years later. The Rokes never benefited from the song's success in America. They remained an Italian phenomenon, scoring a number two hit in 1967. They remained in vogue in Italy, even crossing paths with the Cowsills at the San Remo Festival in 1968, and continued to chart records there into 1969. By then, the public taste for pop/rock in Italy was changing and the group broke up during the summer of 1970. Shapiro continued to write songs and produce records, forming his own label in Milan in 1977, while the other members of the group eventually left the music business. Line-up: Norman David "Shel" Shapiro - Guitar, Vocals Vic Briggs replaced by John Charlton - Guitar, Vocals Bob Posner - Bass, Vocals Mike Shepstone - Drums, Vocals