“Screaming Lord Sutch 3rd Earl of Harrow” he had no connection with the peerage of course. He was born David Edward Sutch, at New End Hospital, in Hampstead, North West London, on 10th November 1940 from William & Annie Sutch who named him after 'David Copperfield' from Charles Dicken's novel. He and his mother moved from Killburn to South Harrow in Northwest London in the early 50s.
After he left school in 1956, he had various jobs: sheet metal worker, plumber's apprentice, spanner boy for a garage mechanic then self employed and part-time window cleaner.
In 1959, Dave Sutch started to perform at the Two I's Coffee Bar in Old Compton Street, Soho, London.
There Sutch decided to swap his former Elvis Presley look-alikes apparel for the 'wild man of Borneo' look after he saw a pair of old buffalo horns for sale at 2/- in a place called "Jack's Second Hand Shop" and then came on stage disguised with buffalo horns glued to a crash helmet and his aunt's leopard skin jacket, which he tored the sleeves off.
Building a rock horror act, David Sutch renamed himself with the stage name "Screaming Lord Sutch" inspired by the black american Rock sorcerer "Screaming Jay Hawkins". Now he wore 18 inch long hair, he would pull it up over his head and wore a top hat during the day. He actually had very long hair before that would eventually become the mood.
By 1963, after the "Profumo Affair" Screaming Lord Sutch decided to form a political party The 'Sod Em All Party' whose main campaign issue was lowering the voting age from 21 to 18.
Therefore he unsussesfully stood for 39 elections, leading various other lunatic parties such as The 'Go To Blazes Party' and the Monster Raving Loony Party, and campaigning for nutty causes such as knighthoods for the Beatles, passports for pets, or providing heated toilet seats for all pensioners.
During his long career Screaming Lord Sutch was backed by many famous bands: the Playboys (of Vince Taylor), the Fleerekkers, The Echoes (later with Dusty Springfield), The Ravers (of Dave Anthony), the Tridents (with Jeff Beck), the Others (of Derry Wilkie), the Loving Kind (with Noel Redding), his Heavy Friends, Rock Island Line, Shotgun, the Houseshakers, the Rapiers, the Nightriders (of Mike Sheridan) and many others. Although his most famous backing band was, of course, the Savages who stayed by his side more than 30 years.
Screaming Lord Sutch came on stage in a “Big Black Coffin” carried by the Savages, dressed in animal skins and stone-age gear, before to front an audience with a repertory of horror songs. His most popular and well known of number was “Jack The Ripper” during which he was chasing the pianist with a knife. Many of his keyboardists ended up falling off stage and then in hospital. Later he used an huge axe instead and keyboardists were replaced by saxophonists. And his music sound evolved from loud Rock’n’Roll and R’n’B to more Soul oriented music.
However his band was famous above all for its musical innovations such as using fuzz guitar effects or very loud drummings sounding like a cannon.
From 1961, he had released with the Savages more than 20 singles and 4 original albums in Britain but never achieved a hit. His most well known song was his tribute to “Jack The Ripper”.
Suffering with long-term and struggling with major debts, Dave Sutch took his own life on the 16 June, 1999, aged just 58.
