Anne Margot Lantree, better known as Honey Lantree, was notable as one of the few female drummers to come out of the British Invasion. As a member -- and eventually the featured member -- of the Honeycombs, she was probably the best-known woman drummer in rock & roll in the 1960s, at least in England. Lantree was not a visual novelty; she could play well, and was a capable singer when called upon in that capacity.

Lantree was working in a London hair salon managed by Martin Murray when the latter decided to form a rock & roll group in 1963. Having played drums previously, Lantree took to that spot in the band naturally, and her presence gave them a visual edge over almost all of the competition. The Honeycombs, as they were later christened, were signed up professionally coming out of a three-night-a-week gig at an East End pub by songwriter/managers Ken Howard and Alan Blaikley. They hit the number one spot in early 1964 with "Have I the Right," produced by the renowned Joe Meek. With an international hit to the group's credit, Lantree became the most well-known female drummer in the world thanks to the touring and film and television appearances that followed. She also proved her worth as a singer by sharing the lead vocal spot on one of their follow-up hits, "That's the Way"; their second album, All Systems Go, offered her singing a soulful pop ballad, "Something I Got to Tell You," that only confirmed her talents in this area. A little later in the group's history, the band's managers decided to move Lantree to center stage, with Pretty Things alumnus Viv Prince taking over the drumming on tour. Her fortunes declined with those of the group, which lost most of its audience after 1965 as music moved on and popular styles changed, and they ended up playing in cabaret during their final phase. Honey Lantree and the Honeycombs seemed quaintly archaic by 1967, when they split up following Meek's suicide early that year.

Lantree was, by some accounts, one of the inspirations for a young Karen Carpenter to take up the drums, and a revival of interest in the British Invasion in the early '80s led to a rediscovery of the Honeycombs' music and to her being championed by a new generation of young listeners. With the rise of female instrumentalists in rock bands (especially those influenced by garage rock and British Invasion sounds), Lantree was seen as an inspiration for women in rock, and with the help of various CD reissues of the Honeycombs' work, Lantree finally got her due as a trailblazer in music. She did not participate in work by the revived versions of the Honeycombs. Honey Lantree died on December 23, 2018, at the age of 75. ~ Bruce Eder, Rovi