It's emerged that Duke D'Mond, formerly lead singer of The Barron Knights, (pictured middle with the group) died back on 9 Apr at the age of 66. He had been taken to hospital following a heart attack and there developed pneumonia.
D'Mond, real name Richard Palmer, was a founder member of the Bedfordshire based group, which was formed in 1960 as a straight pop group. It was their humorous and satirical songs which brought them to public attention, however; their first hit, 1964's 'Call Up The Groups' parodied a number of contemporary groups, including The Beatles, The Searchers, Freddie and The Dreamers and The Dave Clark Five. The band continued to produce hit singles throughout the sixties and seventies, achieving their biggest hit in 1978 with 'A Taste Of Aggro', which sold more than a million copies. The group still perform, albeit with a changed line-up. Only one founding member, Peter Langford, remains.
Langford told BBC news that Palmer stopped performing with the group four years ago following a fall. He said of his former bandmate: "We missed him such a lot. He was the guy who sang all the serious stuff. He had a great voice and he was part of the team for 46 years".