George Bean

George Bean was one of the relatively uncommon folk-cum-folk/rock artists of mid-'60s England who actually got to record for a major label. He first signed to English Decca in 1963 and released four singles through them over the next two years, of which the most notable was his superb folk-pop version of the Mick Jagger/Keith Richards song "Will You Be My Lover Tonight?" None of these records charted, though his self-penned B-side of "She Belongs to Me," "Why Must They Criticize?" (both released credited to George Bean & the Runners), was later covered by the In Crowd on their way to becoming Tomorrow. Bean moved to British CBS for one single and appeared in the movie Privilege, where he sang "Onward Christian Soldiers." He subsequently formed the group Trifle, which was managed by Robert Stigwood, with future Strawbs member Rod Coombes in the lineup, but he died before they got to record for the Pye Records progressive rock offshoot Dawn Records.