BIO

 

 

 

 

 

 

​

;;;;;;

​

​

​

Mars Garden was formed in early 2022 by five individuals who had a love of sixties music. As can be seen by the bios (below), in some cases band members had known each other for several years.

 

Chris Colmans (vocals, rhythm guitar and keyboard)

 

Chris started his musical career as a drummer/lead vocalist at the age of sixteen. After a few years he had taught himself how to play guitar, bass and keyboards and got into writing and recording original material. In the eighties he was part of a jazz funk band called ‘Table Talk’ who played lots of gigs in and around London and the Home Counties and built quite a following. He played in function bands and and has been playing professionally as a solo artist for several years. Chris also teaches music including guitar, bass, drums and keyboards. Chris also plays with Rob Walsh as Two Steps Back. Martin and Chris played in The Niteshades duo from May 2016 to November 2024.

​

 

Martin Page (lead guitar, harmonica and backing vocals)

 

Martin started playing the guitar in 1961 and the following year was in his first group playing at a local dance. The group was called The Ghosts, which evolved into the Democrats and then The Niteshades .  He then progressed to a band that again evolved through several names, Inner Sect, Inner Set and Parker's Mood. Finally he joined The Gass Company in 1967 who released a record called 'Everybody Needs Love' in January 1968 on the President label. The following year he gave up playing for 20 years before picking up the guitar again in 1989. He's since played a variety of music including the Hank Marvin role in two Cliff Richard and The Shadows' tribute bands. He met Chris Colmans and Rob around 2014 when he joined Rewind, That folded a couple of years later and he and Chris formed a 60s duo called The Niteshades, which after nine years together, played their last gig in November 2024 because they wanted to concentrate  on Mars Garden. In May 2022 they had enhanced their duo by forming Mars Garden. Martin has also played in bands with the likes of Bill Hurd (Rubettes), Heinz Burt (Tornados) and Ronnie Lane (Small Faces).

​

 

Chris Chitticks (bass guitar and backing vocals)

​

Chris started playing guitar at the age of 12 and after leaving school at 15 spent two years as a trainee chef. During this time he joined the Johnny Stuart Combo and at 17 went on to tour Greece and Turkey. Chris later moved to Cyprus and turned to playing bass with the 4 Men. On his return to the UK he joined a semi pro band, The Plague who were signed to Decca The band was quite successful and went on to support a lot of the chart bands such as  Sweet, Joe  Cocker, The Herd with Peter Frampton, to mention but a few, and toured the UK for over two years. When The Plague split he moved to Dorset where he formed another very successful  band that toured most of the west country, but after a disappointing encounter with E.M.I., decided to quit the music business. Some 20 years later he returned to music playing with many bands in and around the Sussex/Kent area, eventually playing  with Chris Colmans and VicScott  in different bands and in the end coming together with Martin Page and Rob Walsh who became Mars Garden.

​

​

Vic Scott (drums)

​

Vic started learning to play drums at the age of 10 (1963) after his dad bought him a Spanish guitar that somehow he didn't get along with. Reaching the age of 18 he went pro with an Essex outfit (Olly & co) for about three years, playing social clubs, pubs and lots of other venues around Essex.  Later he met Dennis Wilcock and Bob Sawyer to form Nitro, a blues band, playing just a few gigs. They decided to form a new heavy rock band and recruited bassist Steve Harris, then reforming under the name Iron Maiden! This was short-lived as Vic hated heavy metal and consequently he left just six months after the formation of such a successful band!  The rest is history... In 1978 he moved to Lincolnshire where he played in various covers bands before joining the highly underrated Bamboo Beat Band and depping for other outfits when needed. Whilst in Lincolnshire he played many venues including RAF Cranwell, RAF Scampton and other camps, and Butlins Skegness and Trusville holiday camp Mablethorpe for a summer season. In 1989 he decided to return to London and joined Dosy Rosy a covers band gigging mainly in London's East End. Moving out to Essex in 1992, he played in various outfits before meeting Chris Chitticks to form The Wanderers and thereafter Mars Garden.

​

 

Rob Walsh (lead vocals)

​

Rob started singing in 1999, and progressed quickly to form a duo called Whatever Next. They played regularly around numerous venues for about three years. After a couple more years going solo he met Chris Colmans and Chris Chitticks (rhythm and bass guitarists for Mars Garden). He quickly teamed up with Chris Colmans and formed the popular sixties duo, Two Steps Back. They've been playing together since 2008. They played several sixties weekends, supporting the likes of The Searchers, The Troggs, Brian Poole and many others! Around 2015 Rob played with Chris Colmans and Martin in the short-lived sixties band, Rewind, and later in 2022 formed the band Mars Garden where he is now lead vocalist and also plays some acoustic guitar.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

C