Being from Liverpool, it would be hard not to be 
influenced by the Beatles, whom I saw play at the
 Cavern a couple of times when I was young." 

Peter Beckett

After Paladin disbanded in 1973, Peter was asked to join Tin Tin by his friend Steve Kipner, when two of their members, Johnny Vallins and Geoff Bridgeford, quit. The UK band was known for producing a top ten hit called 'Toast And Marmalade For Tea' in 1971. At the end of 1972, Bridgford left Tin Tin to concentrate on his work with the Bee Gees. When Vallins also left, Steve Kipner and Steve Groves had to find somebody else, thus Peter's entrance. Peter contributed to Tin Tin by writing and producing their last single in 1973 called 'I'm Afraid' and the B side 'Handle Me Easy'. Peter's voice can be heard on the lead vocals of another rare single record "It's A Long Way To Georgia"-1974, due to the fact that Steve Kipner left for the US to persue another music project. Peter then left England to move to L.A. to further his music career.

Back in the US, Steve Kipner had a new band there called 'Friends' with Daryl Cotton and Michael Lloyd. Cotton was formerly of the Australian band Zoot, and Lloyd was from the West Coast Pop Art Experiment Band. As 'Friends', they produced  a few singles including 'Gonna Have A Good Time' and 'Would You Laugh?' The album was  considered to be soft pop rock, and had alot going on for it as far as production, vocals, and instruments. Peter co-writing 'Applecart' with Steve Kipner for the LP. Cotton and Lloyd quit the band to form Cotton, Lloyd, and Christian. The 'Friends' album was immediately pulled from the store shelves when Lloyd left MGM to form a new label with Mike Curb, called Curb Records. Cotton then quit, and Peter and Steve took on Lane Caudell, changing their name to Skyband in 1974.  

Skyband released their one and only self-titled LP, recorded at RCA House in London, England. This album was produced by the members of Skyband themselves and is well remembered for the cover photo of the band in tribal headgear. Skyband also co-managed themselves along with GTO/Entner. Their sound was similar to the Bee Gees, yet a rock and roll influence could be heard on some of the tracks. Very often, the two styles collided as one on a few select tracks. The songs are a combination of nice harmonies, great guitar and piano work, with excellent lead vocals shared by Beckett, Kipner, and Caudell. The song Skyband is most remembered for is the first single called  "Bang! Ooh! You Got Me!'  They later released "Pie In The Sky" as their second single. The band toured mostly abroad and played a handful of shows in the US, opening for such artists as Peter Noone at Knotts Berry Farm and The Jackson 5 at the Worlds Fair in Spokane, WA. They were also known to play the famous, but now gone, Greens/Apollo Theater in Glasgow, Scotland as a support act for Alex Harvey in 1975. Skyband, with their more pop oriented sound, didn't sit well with the fans of Alex Harvey when on tour in England and Europe. After one album, Lane Caudell quit the band to move on to an acting career. He was replaced by Reed Kailing, formerly of the Grassroots.

                               RIFF RAFF/BANDANA

Steve, Peter, and Reed succeeded in creating a viable band, under its first name Riff Raff. On a daily basis, Riff Raff rehearsed tunes written by the band. Steve’s song was "Square Peg in a Round Hole", Peter’s song was "Childish Games (Foolish Pride)". They began composing additional original material while rehearsing at the famous Whiskey-a-Go-Go on Sunset Boulevard. The band had progressed to the point where instead of sending cassettes to prospective producers’ offices as was customary, they literally went in and performed as a trio, using acoustic guitars and small amps. They performed live for such people as Bill Halverson, engineer for Crosby, Stills, and Nash at his home, and Phil Ramone, producer of Paul Simon and Billy Joel. Kipner eventually left the band and a musician from Galveston Bay Texas, J.C. Crowley, took his place.

With Crowley aboard, they met and performed for Phil Ramone at ABC Dunhill Studios on Beverly Boulevard. Original songs included "Cancellation", "Love is Where You Find It", and "Movin’ Up". They soon discovered that another band out of England, also on the RCA label, had ownership of the Riff Raff name, and thus they changed their name to Bandana. A six-song singles deal was negotiated, and they signed with Haven Records; such songs as "Melanie", "Love Is Where You Find It", "Movin’ Up", and "Cancellation". Peter Beckett had maneuvered around his prior commitment to GTO by changing his name to J. Crockett for the song writing credits.

Bandana released a single called "Jukebox Saturday Night", written by J.C. Crowley and Peter Beckett. The flip side was "Love Is Where You Find It". Needless to say, the single didn’t chart. Kailing went on to do other projects, which left Beckett and Crowley to form Player.