Wally Stocker

The Babys are a British rock group best known for their songs "Isn't It Time" and "Every Time I Think of You".

Both songs were composed by Jack Conrad and Ray Kennedy, and each reached No. 13 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and No. 8 on the Cashbox chart in the late 1970s.

Founding member Mike Corby places the origin of the idea for the band at Smalls Café on the Fulham Road in London in 1973, during a chance meeting with Adrian Millar.

An agreement was signed between Corby and Millar on 4 September 1974, and auditions were held to fill out the remaining members.

Tony Brock was an established rock drummer, having played with Strider and Spontaneous Combustion.

Financial difficulties with Strider, and the opportunity to join a group with sound financial backing, made him decide to take a chance with this group instead.

The last member to join the line-up was Wally Stocker.

Music videos were produced by Mike Mansfield for Supersonic, and Chrysalis Records signed the band in 1976.

In 1977, the band purchased a 24-track mobile unit with which to record their music.

They went to a ranch house in the Malibu mountains and laid down the tracks in six weeks.

However, the record sleeve says it was recorded at the famous Sound City in Southern California.

The influences of the songs came about from their first year in Los Angeles and the culture shock of their relocation there.

Adrian Millar's girlfriend suggested The Babys and the unusual spelling stuck.

Corby liked it because "it would piss mindless critics off."

The Babys eponymous first album (highlighted by the single "If You've Got the Time") was recorded in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, with producers Brian Christian and Bob Ezrin and released in January 1977, although it appears that Millar and Corby were unhappy with the production.

Their second album, Broken Heart, (released in September 1977) featured production by Ron Nevison and resulted in gaining the group a Top 20 U.S. hit, "Isn't It Time" (written by Jack Conrad and Ray Kennedy), that peaked at No. 13 on the Billboard chart.

The song was a departure from the group's desire to only play their own material.

Other writers' material, such as Mike Japp and Chas Sandford's "A Piece of the Action", was included.

The album featured unique acoustic openings on "I'm Falling" and "Wrong or Right".

Nevison's production techniques enhanced Waite's emerging talent as a vocalist and highlighted Brock's drumming, Stocker's guitar work, and Corby's instrumental abilities.

The band continued to tour the U.S. successfully with The Babettes, which included singers from Andrae Crouch and the Disciples: Lisa Freeman Roberts, Myrna Matthews and Pat Henderson.

The album spent two weeks at #1 in Australia and produced a #1 single with "Isn't It Time".

After recording their third album, Head First, in August 1978, co-founder Michael Corby was replaced by Jonathan Cain as keyboardist and Ricky Phillips took over as bassist.

From late 1978 until the breakup in 1981, The Babys line-up consisted of vocalist Waite, drummer Brock, bassist Phillips, guitarist Stocker, and keyboardist Cain.

Disputes with Chrysalis management resulted in the firing of original manager Millar in 1978.

Corby exited shortly thereafter.

Equipment Manager Ray Sheriff states:

"Almost immediately after Michael's leaving, the remainder of the band went into auditions for a replacement. Jonathan Cain, in fact, became Mike’s successor, but I am sure he had not been selected until after Mike left. The other musician was Ricky Phillips, who played bass. I think from what John, Wally and Tony said that it was they, and not Chrysalis, who selected these two successors, and I think that at about this same time Lookout Management ceased to be the band’s managers."

Two American musicians became a part of the lineup following the release of the third album, Head First.

Keyboardist/guitarist/vocalist Jonathan Cain replaced Corby, and bassist Ricky Phillips (of Nasty Habit) joined in the late fall of 1978, making it a five-piece band.

The new quintet made their debut at the Whisky a Go Go on 31 December 1978.

"Back on My Feet Again" also reached the U.S. Top 40 in 1979.

The original Babys line-up consisted of founding member keyboardist/guitarist Michael Corby, and, in order of joining the group, vocalist/bassist John Waite, drummer Tony Brock, and guitarist Wally Stocker.

The group signed a contract with Chrysalis Records that was the highest ever for a new music act at the time.

Two studio albums, The Babys and Broken Heart, were well received.

Another version surfaced in a 1979 Hit Parader interview where Waite claimed

"The name was meant to be a joke. We took the name simply because the record companies wouldn't listen to any bands they thought were rock & roll. I mean, they wanted sure-fire teen bands, pre-teen bands. We couldn't get anybody down to hear us to get a record deal, so we called ourselves The Babys. We thought we'd keep the name just for two weeks. Then, the word got around in London that there was a band playing rock & roll called The Babys and it seemed so off the wall, so completely crazy, that it was worth taking a shot with. It really appealed to everyone's sense of humour."

Anne Marie Leclerc, who guested on Union Jacks, appeared as a backup singer on tour with the band in 1979–1980.

The band's fourth album, Union Jacks, (released in January 1980), produced by Keith Olsen, had a more punchy sound; the single, "Back on My Feet Again," spent a short time in the Top 40.

During an extensive tour in 1980, The Babys opened for Journey, the band that Jonathan Cain would soon join.