The group formed in 1962 in St Albans, Hertfordshire, England, and gained their initial reputation playing the Old Verulamians Rugby Club in that city. The band was formed while the members were at school. Some sources state that Argent, Atkinson and Grundy were at St Albans School, while Blunstone and White were students at St Albans Boys' Grammar School (since renamed Verulam School). Argent was a boy chorister in St Albans Cathedral Choir.
Their choice of names was out of desperation, and the Zombies won out over Chatterley and the Gamekeepers, according to Blunstone and White. After winning a beat-group competition sponsored by the London Evening News, they signed to Decca and recorded their first hit, "She's Not There" (Argent's second song, written specifically for this session). It was released in mid-1964 and peaked at number 12 in the UK, their only UK Top 40 hit. This minor-key, jazz-tinged number, distinguished by its musicianship and Blunstone's breathy vocal, was unlike anything heard in British rock at the time. It was first aired in the United States in early August 1964 on New York City rock station WINS by Stan Z. Burns, who debuted the song on his daily noontime "Hot Spot". The tune began to catch on in early fall and eventually climbed to No.2 in early December.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_ZombiesMurray the K's Christmas show at the Brooklyn Fox Theatre, 1964:
January 12, 1965 on the first episode of
Hullabaloo:
http://youtu.be/tKmA_9bSHYIhttp://youtu.be/ezSMbQKQEJIInterview with Colin Blunstone:
http://www.classicbands.com/ZombiesInterview.html