They were one of New Zealand's most popular bands in 1964-65, and after relocating to Sydney they gained recognition in Australia for their polished live performances and their 1966 version of the Paul Revere & The Raiders song "Kicks".

[1] The original lineup was Roger Simpson (lead vocal), Dave Clark (piano), Rod Stone and Johnny England (guitars), Paul Griffin (bass) and Andy Shackleton (drums), who was later replaced by Gordon Jenkins.

They built up a solid following in the city during 1963, and their profile was further boosted by a support slot on the 1964 NZ national tour by British Merseybeat acts Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas and Cilla Black.

Three days into a residency at the Sylvania Hotel in Sydney's south, the band was sacked for playing too many Beatles covers and "mod music", and they were forced to take part-time jobs to make ends meet.

There they recorded their final single, "Kicks" / "Whatcha Gonna Do About It", which received good airplay in Melbourne (notably from leading DJ Stan "The Man" Rofe") but did not sell well.

While Rowe was overseas, the lineup of the Playboys changed again - keyboardist Phil Blackmore had to return to Australia for family reasons, and Rod Stone quit soon after, reportedly after a disagreement with the other band members.

Trottman and Stone were replaced by two English musicians, organist Trevor Griffin and guitarist Mick Rogers and the Playboys continued as Rowe's backing group for live performances until he returned to Australia in mid-1967.

Before leaving England the Playboys scored a one-off single deal with the recently formed Immediate Records, for whom they cut two original numbers, "Sad" / "Black Sheep R.I.P."

Graham Trottman opted to leave at this point, so Peacock contacted his former Librettos bandmate Craig Collinge, who broke up The Knack and moved to Melbourne to join the quartet, which was renamed Procession.