Clouds

Clouds were a 1960s Scottish rock band that disbanded in October 1971. The band consisted of Ian Ellis (bass and lead vocals), Harry Hughes (drums) and Billy Ritchie (keyboards). Biography Early days: The Premiers In early 1964, Ian Ellis and Harry Hughes were playing in a band called The Premiers. The band itself consisted of Bill Lawrence (bass guitar), James ‘Shammy’ Lafferty (rhythm guitar), Derek Stark (lead guitar), Harry Hughes (drums) (born 5 August 1944) and Ian Ellis (vocals) (born Ian John Ellis, 7 October 1943). It was decided that an organ would help the sound of the band, and Billy Ritchie (born 20 April 1944) joined. Cyril Stapleton took the band to London to record some demos, but nothing came of that, and Derek Stark, Bill Lawrence, and James Lafferty decided to leave. It seemed that Ritchie joining the band had prompted more changes than had been intended. Ian Ellis decided that he would take up the position of bass guitarist as well as lead vocalist. The group decided to move in a new musical direction, and changed their name from The Premiers to 1-2-3.