NOTE - I have now redeveloped this material on a new Blogspot site for the Coventry Arts Umbrella - here http://coventryartsumbrella.blogspot.co.uk/
Updated Oct 2007
In September 1969, I saw a poster in the Butts Technical College in Coventry. I was on day release from an electrical
contractor DF Gibbs. The poster seemed just up my street with underground bands and films. Up until then I was pretty isolated in terms of like minded people. I wrote song lyrics and loved music but didn't know many others that shared my interest. I was about 18 then. Al Docker who also worked at Gibbs said he was involved with the Umbrella,
organising the band nights on a Friday. I went along with him to Transcendental Cauldron, a weekend Underground fest in October 1969. This was my first involvement on the Coventry music scene.
On the back of the above poster it says " During the weekend 31st October -
2nd November the Umbrella Club is to promote a Fringe Arts Festival. Events planned include Films, Music, Drama, Poetry, Lights shows and an exhibition of posters. I'm not sure what was on in terms of drama and poetry as I don't have that part of the programme. I mainly saw the music events.
The following bands played over the 3 day festival - Last Fair Deal, Asgard, Ra Ho Tep, Chris Jones Aggression and Dando Shaft. The Light Show was directed by Alan Worral. The following underground films were on too -
Scorpio Rising - Directed by Kenneth Anger 1964. Occultist believe that the year 1962 was the end of 2000 years of Christian domination nd the beginning of a period of pagan domination coinciding with the Aquarian age in astrology. Anger, seeing pop music, drugs use, American Nazi style motor cycle cultists as evidence of demonic forces at work, made Scorpio Rising to illustrate the death throes of the Old Age and the transition to the new.
Relativity - Directed by Ed Emshwiller 1966 This is an experimental feature made with the aid of a grant from Ford Foundation. This metaphorical work about man's place in the universe uses ultra high speed photography, pin-point lighting in black limbo together with careful framing and superimposition to achieve complete visual control of time flow.
NB both these films were refused a certificate by the British Board of Film Censors.
Sins of the Fleshapoids - directed by Mike Kuchar 50 mins 1964 and features a cast of robots and overdeveloped women intent on taking over the world.
On- Off 10 min supporting short directed by Richard Bartlett.
Such is the information on the poster. In 1995 - I organised a lottery funded three week Arts Festival in N. Yorks and Tees Valley called Merlin's Cauldron. Although quite different and much wider in concept - the name was inspired by the first event I attended at the Umbrella. I only remember seeing the bands so can offer no information or opinion of the rest of the events at the Umbrella.
Update Oct 2007
From the Umbrella newsletter -
The Transcendental Cauldron will be a festival or 'Happening' to take place on Halloween. The theme is the new undeground art forms as exemplified by the work of the Arts Lab in Dury Lane.
We hope for several types of participants - Umbrella members who attend parties, local teachers and other intelligentia, students of the current scene, hippies, new left etc. We are expecting 50 visitors from Birmingham, Leamington and London.
The idea came from the Umbrella Film Group - Jo Petter saw this as a nucleus of a more ambitious event. A catalyst for a great mixed media event and experiment and party. Jo Petter organised the Drama, Mike Taunton organised the Poetry, Doug Dekin organised the films, Jo Petter organised the lights along with Daryl Weiner, Posters organised by Jo Petter, Music by Mike Taunton and Martin (Lre??)
About a month later, and the second event I attended in November 1969 was a weekend Music Marathon. I think
more or less the same bands played. I have no documentation on this although I attended the weekend. I don't know who organised these events it was a few months before I got more involved with the Umbrella.
Update Nov 07
Some of the events included Fri Night in the Lounge - Terra Buena Jazz Band with Chris Jones Aggression and Whistler. In the Theatre Asgard and Phoenix played also more Jazz. Sat Night saw performances from Tobias Heat / Trad B Jefferson and the Folk Club was also on. In the Theatre Last Fair Deal and Andy Jam Session. Sunday saw a folk session with Jackie and Bridie, Dando Shaft, The Rocking Chair Blues Band. In the Theatre Wandering John, Down Country Boys, Dave Beaufoy's Trio, Rod Felton and Cliff Cowling, White Heat, Joy Hyman, Terry Wisdom.
However in March 1971 I mooted the idea of doing another Music Marathon No 2 and Lyndie Watson (Brimstone) offered to help me organise it. Through most of April that year we worked hard on the project. Lyndie was an actress, training at Brookland Annexe Drama College and a poet.
There were no shortage of local bands and had most of the contacts but we wanted a few from the wider area. Lyndie placed an ad in the underground newspaper Friendz and we got a
lot of interest from Birmingham. Steve Knopinski was one of the first to contact us from Birmingham.
This was my first shot at orgainisng a festival and we had built up a good ahead of steam in terms of getting bands to play and volunteers to be involved. The crunch came when the Umbrella Executive - who initially had been very supportive, broke the news that the building had been condemned and that we would not be able to hold the Marathon at the Queen Victoria Rd premises. They did suggest that we might hold it at the Charterhouse on London Rd. (where the Umbrella would ultimately move to. There would be no problem with noise there from local residents. Lyndie and I went through to see the building, however the police, fire brigade and local authorities warned us off, saying that it will cause all kinds of traffic, security and health and safety issues. They seemed to have scaled the project up to a rock festival status. All we had proposed was a faily humble affair similar to the one the Umbrella successfully held without hassel in 1969 when I joined. After more negotiations we realised the project wouldn't be allowed and the musicians who generously pledged to play were told the news. We spent that summer living in a communal house in Birmingham and making new contacts. We were pretty gutted!
I'd given up putting the bands on over the summer. When I returned to Cov in the autumn I developed my first mixed media nights - The Humpoesic Happening. More on that in another of the Umbrella posts. Opposite the notice in Umbrella News about the called off Music Marathon.
THE NEOL DAVIES MARATHON JAM SESSION
Called Vic's Heavy Rock Jam Session on Friday August 4th 1970
Update (Oct 2007) - looking at source material and Neol's own site it seems that Neol didn't actually initiate this - someone called Vic did. Possibly Vic was a jazz drummer but can't remember now -if anyone knows who Vic was - let us know. Borrowed this programme from Neol's site. Not quite sure now if Neol had a role in bringing some of the musicians together for this or if he just played. Al Docker was probably involved with this from an organising side as he was still putting the bands on until autumn 1970 when I took over.
In between time NEOL DAVIES
organised c 1970, a brilliant Marathon Jam session at the Umbrella. I can't remember now if it lasted all weekend or twenty four hours - but it was long and interesting, involving all the local musicians Neol could muster. Apart from the quality of the music over such a long period, the hightlight for us was during a break in the small hours, when a long-haired trench-coated guy went to sleep with his head in the bass drum (it had no outside skin on it). When the band struck up again, that bass drum took some pounding but the guy slept through it all. We speculated on what he must be dreaming about as he was not to be roused from his slumber. Mordor was one suggestion! Among the musicians playing were Al Docker, Chris Jones and his band, and members of Asgard, Whistler, Wandering John, Ra Ho Tep and included Loz Netto and John (Brad) Bradbury of Nack ed en (Loz was later with Sniff and the Tears and Brad was later drummer with the Specials.
One one occasion around this time, Neol brought in a sitar and sat in the coffee lounge playing it. He told us his earliest influence had been the Shdaows and it was interesting to hear Neol play the Shadows - The Stars Fell on Stockton at a gig in Stockton in 95 - with Selecter Instrumental. The Shadows also wrote Summer Holiday in Stockton while giging there.
Neol was involved in a jam at the Hobo Workshop - later when it was on at the Golden Cross.
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