The Sir Douglas Quintet was also a “Beatle knockoff” (it was a formulated attempt to get an American band on the charts in the midst of the British Invasion).
Just about everything rock and roll was a Beatle knockoff in those days.
And there are those who decry the Monkees because they did not (initially) play their instruments or (initially) write their own songs. Sounds like the Motown “Hit Machine” system to me.
RIP Doug Sahm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th7yaYqEKSA
Sir Douglas Quintet ~ Mendocino
(Augie Meyers playin’ that funky Farfisa)
Later reunited as the Texas Tornados
I wouldn’t say The SD Quintet were a “ knockoff “ at all . Yes , the band had a British sounding name but their musical sound was nothing like what was coming out of England , a mix Tex-Mex , Cajun and blues for the most part .