The Vagrants
- Composer
- Soundtrack
The Vagrants were a soul-influenced mid 60s garage rock band from Long
Island, New York. The group first got together in 1965. The line-up
was: Peter Sabatino (lead vocals), Leslie West (guitar), Larry West
(bass), Jerry Storch (organ), and Roger Mansour (drums). The Vagrants
hold the distinction of being one of the few garage rock bands who were
signed to the folkie label Vanguard. The group recorded several songs
for this label, with "I Can't Make a Friend" being the best known of
the bunch. The band later signed with and recorded a few more singles
for the Atco label in 1967. Although they never had a major hit song
peak on the Billboard charts in America, their rock cover of Otis
Redding's "Respect" did do well in some Eastern regions in 1967. The
song "I Love You, Yes I Do" was featured on the soundtrack for the
groovy hippie soft-core exploitation feature "Blonde on a Bum Trip."
The Vagrants broke up in late 1968. Leslie West went on to form the
hugely successful 70s hard-rock group Mountain while Peter Sabatino now
fronts a new version of the Vagrants who have performed at various live
shows in the New York area.
