The Zombies are undoubtedly one of the UK’s most iconic bands and their latest tour sees them visiting Whitley Bay this May.

There’s a select bunch of singles from the 1960s that you can say belong among that halcyon decade’s very best. I’m talking ‘She Loves You’, ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction)’ and ‘Baby Love’. But I’m also talking The Zombies who definitely have at least two singles on that list:  ‘She’s Not There’ and ‘Time of the Season’. Not only that, I don’t think I’d be treading on anyone’s toes if I said that The Zombies are also responsible for one of the very best albums of the 1960s: ‘Odessey and Oracle’ from 1968. It didn’t receive glittering notices on release, but since then its reputation has grown and grown and it can now take its rightful place among the canon of truly great albums (NME, Q magazine and The Guardian all found a place for it in their Greatest Albums of All Time lists). The band – who were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 – continue to be a huge draw on the circuit, both here and in the US, and any chance to catch them live should never be passed up. GM

The Zombies, Thursday 30 May, Whitley Bay Playhouse, 7.30pm, £41.50, playhousewhitleybay.co.uk