The Rutles

Dirk McQuickly and Ron Nasty first met in early 1959, at the now-legendary address, 43 Egg Lane, Liverpool. After teaming up with Stig O'Hara - a guitarist of no fixed hairstyle - they began playing as a three-piece. After eighteen short months, the pre-Prefab Four came across drummer Barrington Womble, who was persuaded to call himself Barry Wom to save time, and his haircut to save Brylcreem, hiding in their van. The classic Rutles line-up was complete.

At the suggestion of their then-manager Arthur Scouse, the group went to Hamburg in 1961. Their, they played all the clubs on the Reeperbahn, particularly The Rat Kellar. With them was 5th member, Leppo (who mainly stood at the back). It was in The Rat Kellar that Leppo crawled into a trunk with a diminutive German frulein and was never seen again. As luck would have it, he had little or no musical talent, anyway.

Later that same year, fate arrived in the shape and other attributes of one-legged Bolton-based retail chemist, Leggy Mountbatten who, after falling into "The Cavern" one night, declared he despised the boys' music, but liked the cut of their jib - in particular the cut of their trousers. Leggy became their manager, polished up their image, and touted them around most of the large record companies. In time, they succumbed to the charms of (and tea served at) Parlourphone, and their dbut album, (recorded in twenty minutes - their 2nd took even longer - became a huge success.

The rest, as they say, is history...