Coventry Music Archives's blog

Kevin Harrison - Obsessive - Innovative All-star Album

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Kevin Harrison (who was in Transposed Men, an early precursor of Two Tone band Selecter) is about to launch his new album OBSESSIVE under the name of reallife. (Click link to listen), feat. Two Tone top men Horace Panter and Neol Davies, along with other Cov musicians and friends - Mick Gawthorp (Sax) and Charles Bullen (guitar) and Lynda Harrison on vocals. The new album features some of the best sound-scaping Kevin has done to date, encompassing elements of many styles including Soul, funk and Dub Reggae. His masterful synth work and sampling and guitar is augmented by some power-punching bass licks from ex Special Horace Panter and some screaming, sound-scaped blues licks from masterclass guitarist Neol Davies - (the original Selecter). Add in some some vocal elements and some sax and plenty of echo and effects - the album is varied, highly evocative and fresh.

Let Me See Inside Your Soul_edit from http://isotope23.vox.com/

Let Me See Inside Your Soul- Edit by Realife- From the album 'Obsessive'

 

The following is derived from Kevin's personal history site with full illustrations and audio examples and links which can be found HERE

Kevin Harrison is no newcomer, his story starts in the late sixites when he joined the avant garde jazz rock outfit

Kevin Harrison in Whistler

Whistler in Coventry c 69, playing some progressive jazz-rock with tricky time-signatures and key changes. (influenced by Mothers of Invention, Caravan, Soft Machine). Whistler were a regular band at Coventry's Arts Umbrella Club, playing the Transcendental Cauldron Underground Arts fest, and the Music Marathon. Whistler were soon gigging all around Cov and much further afield and were one of the top Coventry bands of the early 70's. Besides Kevin there was Lynda Harrison (vocals), Mick Gawthorp (

Lynda Harrison

Sax and flute) John Westacott (bass), Gary Kirton / Nick Trevisick (drums), Rick Woods (Trumpet) and Martin Barter (Hammond). At one stage they were even invited to write music for the film  "La Compte  de Foix". (The Count of Fools) - an American surrealist film.

 

By the early 70's Kevin's musical direction was moving from the progressive rock field more into experimental  areas. He cites these artists as some of his influences- Can, Faust, Neu!, Cluster and Harmonia. He forms an innovative and synthy Zoastra, calling himself Zodicoaxial, working with musicans such as Al Docker, Rick Medlock, Charles Bullen, John Westacott (there were two line-ups - 1972 - 1975) I visited Kevin in 1975 to interview him for Hobo and was amazed to find a room full of electronic equipment and early synthesizers. Kevin was surely the Brian Eno of Coventry, ahead of his time - with not only his tape looping and synth effects but even down to his cut-up spacey prose/poetry lyrics and his stage name. The article never got printed as Hobo folded soon afterwards although some of the material and lyrics are on the site HERE.

Along the way Kevin becomes good friends with nascent outfit This Heat in London. They swap tapes/phone calls and listen to interesting and challenging musics (e.g. Can, Beefheart, Philip Glass, Magma, The Residents, Devo, Eno, Miles, Sun Ra, Harry Partch etc.) and on one occasion in '76, Kevin gets asked to record an early gig in a London pub. One of the tracks he records ends up on their debut album, (released in '79 - the blue and yellow one). Charles Bullen and Charles Hayward visit Lynda and Kevin in Bedworth and some casual recording is done. At Gareth Williams's invitation, Kevin also spends a few days in Camberwell playing & recording the trio.

In 1976 -77 Kevin is beguiled by punk, meeting Joe Strummer and Johnny Rotten at the Clash and Sex Pistols gig in Coventry and at this stage meets up with good friend Roddy Radiation, who often pops round to record a few demos. Favourite UK bands during this time include The Pop Group, This Heat, Subway Sect, The Fall, Gang of Four, Wire, PiL and Magazine. American 'new wave' artists favoured are Patti Smith, Television, Suicide, The New York Dolls, The Modern Lovers, The Cramps and Père Ubu. Later on he's also spinning Dr. Alimantado 'Best Dressed Chicken', Tapper Zukie 'MPLA', Augustus Pablo 'King Tubby meets The Rockers Uptown', Dillinger 'Cokane in my Brain' and Lee Perry 'Double Seven' and anything else I can find that is produced by 'Scratch'
.

In the late seventies, prior to Two Tone, Kevin joined the TRANSPOSED MEN. Neol Davies - Guitar and Vocals, John Bradbury ( later of The Specials) Drums, Desmond Brown - Hammond Organ, Steve Wynne (aka Vaughan Tive) - Bass and Kevin Harrison on Guitar and Vocals. Hear the early version of On My Radio as rehearsed by by Neol Davies's earlier band Transposed Men
HERE -  

Download On My Radio Transposed Men rehearsal

The main bulk of the songs they played will became staples in The Selecter's  set and many will feature on their first album. Virgin Records are interested but nothing happens. When John Bradbury leaves to join The Specials everything falls apart. After awhile Neol and Desmond team-up with some of the ex-members of Hardtop 22,  Pauline Black joins them on vocals, and The Selecter is born.

 

urge - revolving boy

In 1979 Kevin got asked to join Urge. Kevin "played guitar, electric piano and EMS synth and started to introduce some of his songs to the group. He employed Burroughs 'cut-up' techniques (he had begun to develop with Zoastra) for some of the lyrics. They released their first single in the midst of the Two Tone explosion. John Peel described it as "more Coventry genius" when he played it on his show. Both John Peel and Kid Jensen made it their "Record of the Week". They followed on with a tour of Holland and Germany. View some of the press cuttings HERE

 

Urge-nme

Kevin says about Revolving Boy on his website "David Wankling and I have good chemistry. It turns out to be a good song writing team, Dave writes most of the lyrics, I compose most of the music. We remain good friends in the future. The first single 'Revolving Boy' takes it's title from a pulp sci-fi paperback. It's a kinda fun song about a pre-pubescent boy named Derv spinning around in zero gravity searching for love. It's married to an updated Stax groove and underpinned by an hypnotic dub bassline, music fans!"

 

and then goes on to comment on the Coventry scene around the time of Two Tone -

"Although things are grim with Thatcher gaining power in the general election, this only seems to feed the desire of Coventry musicians to make a stand and take a strong political stance. Overall, there is a positive, more optimistic scene starting to grow. This is a good period for music in Coventry, there's lots of bands that play different styles of music, who all know (of) each other. There's friendly rivalry for sure, but a sense of unity seems to be the most prevailing attitude. Importantly The Specials success seems to galvanise the scene. Martin Bowes (Attrition) essential 'Alternative Sounds' is the 'zine with all the dope about what's happenin' locally."

During this period Kevin released a cassette 'On Earth 2' on the 'Ambivalent Scale' label. This Nuneaton collective comprised Eyeless In Gaza and Bron Area among others. he felt an immediate affinity with them and recorded some tracks for Side 1 of Bron Area's  'One Year' cassette. They then try to organise dates where Bron / Eyeless play with Urge or Kevin whenever possible.

Kevin starts performing local live gigs with his Stratocaster and a tape-delay system, (this consisted of 2 tape recorders, both in record mode, the tape spools from the left (tape deck #1) through two sets of recording heads and is taken up on the right (tape deck #2) the delay is the space between the tape heads, you can then improvise over the top of what you've already played, this is cool as it automatically records the performance. He found out about this system from Brian Eno's 'Discreet Music' album on his Obscure label.

Kevin's Clippings

Cherry Reds Downloads

Cherry Red released a new version of On Earth 2 on their label as Inscrutably Obvious.  (Link above)

Urge split up in 1981. A new Urge line up was quickly put together (including Lynda Harrison, Dave Gedney, Rick Medlock, Dennis Burns and Kevin but time had shifted and some of the elusive chemistry had gone. Chic and funky, they play plenty of gigs, but by this time they've had too much stuffing kicked out of them, and despite tentative record company interest, accept the fact that Coventry is no longer the fashionable city it once was and reluctantly decide to call it a day. (In hindsight, Kevin says that if they could have done some studio recordings things may have been very different)

Get Ready - Urge

Around this time Kevin signs to Glass Records and releases the 'Fly' e.p which also features Horace Panter, Lynda Harrison, Rick Medlock and Dave Gedney. Two tracks from this record (Views Of the Rhine / Inkman) have surfaced as Italo Cosmic Dance favourites and remixes this year (2007) in Italy.

Inkman Remix

Kevin followed on with various solo projects and various collaborations, continuing to produce fine and innovative music culminating in his new album OBSESSIVE (hear some of the music). Advance copies are available through Kevin's website or just e mail him form his Vox blog.
http://isotope23.vox.com/

Trev Teasdel

(Thanks to Kevin for minor corrections)

Read the full story on Kevin's site HERE

Kevin's other sites are -
http://www.marz-imprint.co.uk/
http://www.myspace.com/84875733
http://www.myspace.com/isotopex
http://unconsciousrepeat.blogspot.com/2007/04/limbic-bath-part-2.html
http://isotope23.vox.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Gordian Knot Interview with Horace Panter of The Specials

 

Horace_n_rodd

Charley Anderson formerly of The Selecter has kindly sent a copy of an interview with Horace Panter of The Specials from the Coventry 80's fanzine Gordian Knot.

Back in 1973 Horace sent a letter to Hobo Magazine with a 50p advert enclosed. He was seeking a 'happy band' in need of a bass player with 50 watt gear! Although we printed the advert, owing to lack of money for printing, Hobo came out too late for Horace as he'd managed find musicians at the Lanch poly. 

In 1974 he wrote another letter asking if we could advise on places for his band to play.I'd set up the Hobo workshop by then which in 1975 moved to upstairs at the Golden Cross. Horace played for us in a jazz rock outfit with two of my musician friends - Ricky and Andy Cairns. I knew them as Ricky's band. Neol Davis and some of the other later members of Two Tone bands were there although they weren't all playing together at that early stage. Later Horace was in a band called Breaker. The Hobo letters are below and a link to Horace's fuller history - Ska'd for Life. Meanwhile enjoy the Gordian Knot interview.

  

Magazine[1]

Magazine2[1]

Horace

Horace Panter's Letter to Hobo Magazine in the 70's

Ska'd for Life: A Personal Journey with The Specials

Horace Panter

 Visit TWO TONE CENTRAL MUSEUM http://www.2tonecentral.co.uk/

Flatpack Festival 2010 - Event - Three minute heroes

http://www.flatpackfestival.org/event/three-minute-heroes

 

 

Dir: Michael Custance

UK 1982, 60 mins

Showing with Pete Murray Takes you to Coventry (1983, 17 mins) and Rudies Come Back(1980, 35

3-minute

 mins)

 

A triple-bill of Coventry in the early 80s – what more could you want? We kick off with DJ Pete Murray’s guide to the city (from the same series as Telly Savalas Looks at Birmingham) and then a rare treat: a BBC Arena film on two-tone with footage of the Specials in their ‘79 prime. To round things off, Three Minute Heroes is a teen drama from Play for Today, shot in the precincts and car parks of a Coventry already mourning the death of two-tone. An amazing time-capsule, complete with rollerskates, light-up jackets and horrific knitwear.

 

From 23-28 March Flatpack Festival, an eclectic film festival is happening

across Birmingham. There will be shorts, workshops, silent cinema
re-scored, parties, kids films, live music and so much more!

 

 

Three Minute Heroes (Neol Davies) Selecter

They ask if you're all right
You say yes
But all the time you know
It's just a mess
It's 5:00p.m. and you're on your way home
Just another day
With that endless grey drone

Three minute hero, I wanna be
Three minute hero, I wanna be
Three minute hero, I wanna be
A three minute hero

Drag yourself along the road
Sit on the bus
Switch on your transistor
Start causing a fuss
It's eleven p.m. and you're on your way home
Just another night
With that endless grey drone

Three minute hero, I wanna be
Three minute hero, I wanna be
Three minute hero, I wanna be
A three minute hero

I wanna be, I wanna b, I wanna be
A three minute hero
It's too early in the morning

Stupid job
Don't wanna eat, can't think straight
The same as yestereday
It's seven a.m. and you're leaving home
Just another day
With that endless grey drone

Three minute hero, I wanna be
Three minute hero, I wanna be
Three minute hero, I wanna be
A three minute hero

 

 

 

Pete Chambers and the Two Tone Trail

Pete Chambers, as ever, has been busy putting Coventry music in general and Two Tone in particular on the map in Coventry. Back in 2003 when I took my kids back to Coventry and showed them around the place I grew up, there was plenty going on to establish a Coventry heritage trail but nothing to show for all the music that has come out of the city. Since then Pete has established a Two Tone Trail with a series of plaques on buildings that still remain and much more.On top of that there are his books and the More than Two Tones exhibition. Here are a few photos from Pete's Facebook site to give a taste to those who haven't seen this development.

NEW -  VISIT PETE'S TWO TONE CENTRAL - MUSEUM SITE - http://www.2tonecentral.co.uk/

More than Two Tones Exhibition 2009

Specials Liverpool - Pete Chambers pic_n

Lanch (Cov University) Student Union Two Tone plaque

The Specials Live 2009 - with Pete Chambers

Neol Davies -PeteChambers - Holyhead Rd Youth Centre plaque

Holyhead Youth Centre - Two Tone Plaque

Hand in Heart Two Tone Plaque

Gosford Books Plaque! Horace and Gaps have been in actually

The above is not one of the 'Official' plaques but quite funny.

Pete Chambers and Roadent Two Tone Plaque Mr Georges

Pete Chambers with Roadent (Cov lad who roadied with Sex Pistols and Clash and introduced the Specials to Bernie Rhodes at Mr George's Niteclub in Cov). The is more on Roadent (Scon) on this site here )

Pete Waterman and Brad of Specials - Two Tone Trail

Above - Pete Waterman outside Coventry Virgin Records store where he ran the Soul Hole (Import records) store in the 70's and where Brad of the Specials worked. In the Photo Pete Waterman, John Bradbury and Pete Chambers

More pictures in the Two Tone Collection Folder in the side bar (see Collections).

 

The Swinging Cat's - Two Tone Band on TV

More Swinging Cats Videos on You Tube if you click back to You Tube

Note - a new fuller page has been created for the Swinging cats on Hobo A to Z of Coventry bands - here https://sites.google.com/site/bandsfromcoventry/coventry-bands-a-to-z/coventry-bands-s/swinging-cats

Hope and Anchor - Historic Music Venue - Threat of Demolition

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The Hope And Anchor pub in Whitefriars Lane (Central Coventry) is under threat of demolition. Musicians and music fans in the city are protesting the loss of the historic venue that enabled the Enemy and Two Tone bands to get started. 

Now owned by Coventry University, the site is to be demolished to widen the road and provide more car parking facilities!

Coventry Weavers

Back in the 1850's Coventry Weavers regularly met at the 'Anchor' for union and benefit society meetings and Digger Dave of Broadgate Gnome raised a an environmental question " What will happen to the apple trees in the garden. They are the only local remaining ones of the local variety Wyken Pippin". 

 However it is it's role as a pub venue with historic importance to the Coventry Music scene that has caused protest over its closure and threatened demolition.

The Coventry Music Scene

In the early 1970's it was one of many city centre pubs that formed a circuit for local and regional bands, folk clubs

Pete Willow in the 70's

 and discos along with the Colin Campbell, Plough, Golden Cross, Hand in Heart, Three Tons. Councillor Dave Nellist recalls being a DJ there in the early 70's. Folk performer Pete Willow tells us 

" I ran The Magic Lamp Folk Club there in the 70s with Bob Powell. Guests included Joe Stead, Armpit Jug Band, (the late, great) Gerry Lochran, Cliff Aungier, Kev Dempsey & Polly Bolton, Martyn Wyndham Read, Dave Paskett, and many others. Some good memories waiting to be bulldozed."

Two Tone

However it was during the punk and Two Tone days that the pub really cut it as a venue when an explosion of Coventry bands hit the scene. Top local bands, many of whom appeared on the  Sent From Coventry album, appeared at the venue (where, I think, the album was launched - correct me 

279197S

if I'm wrong).The list is endless but includes - Vietnamese Babies, Squad, Urge, Hot Snacks (Machine), EMF, Criminal Class, The Wild Boys, The End, and of course Two Tone bands The Selecter and Specials. Later bands include The Travelling Riverside Blues Band, The Primitives, Naphalm Death and The Enemy.

New Generation of Musicians

More recently one of Coventry's top acoustic artist and promoter Kristy Gallacher ran an acoustic night there, encouraging  a new generation of Coventry musicians and Horace Panter has played there many times in recent years.

Protest

Hobo was alerted to this by Paul Maddocks of the Coventry Society and since then a range of Coventry musicians and fans of all ages and Councillor Dave Nellist have protested the demolition.

Roger Lomas (Ex Sorrows and Selector's Producer) said on Facebook 

" Another venue lost!! When the hell are the powers-that-be in Coventry going to step in and INSIST that this does not

Roger-lomas-prince-buster-w265-h191-b

 keep happening ???"

Roger is remembering that over the last couple of years a number of Coventry music venues were threatened with closure owing issues over noise, including The Golden Cross and The Tin Angel and more and has been an issue in the rest of the country too at a time when the Government is stressing the importance of the Creative Industries.

Coventry's music scene has always been mainly centrally based and cohesive. Young people have travelled into the city centre for pubs and entertainment for decades now. While progress and redevelopment is important it's often done in disregard to the communities that use the City Centre. Locating new residencies next to longstanding  venues with a music licence is not a good idea. The new residents protest the noise and the musicians, landlords and fans protest the closure of the venue.

So What's Happening Now?

The Coventry Society have initiated a protest on a Facebook group and socialist councillor Dave Nellist is leading the campaign with the head of the Coventry Society Paul Maddocks. Bob Brolly is holding a debate on BBC Coventry and Warwickshire Radio. The Coventry Telegraph have covered it at least twice - Campaign to Save Doomed Pub 

and tonight (October 26th) the day it was originally due to be demolished The Pub should be demolished says Ex Landlord 

Tonight it looks like demolition has been stalled and some discussions have taken place but the fate of the building still hangs in the air. -

The Coventry Telegraph report -" A spokesman for Coventry University confirmed plans were still in place to demolish the pub and said a meeting took place on Friday between university bosses and the council to discuss ways of providing alternative performance venues in the city."

However, Mick Farr, a former landlord at the Hope and Anchor, told the Coventry Telegraph that he thought the pub 'should be closed down'. He claims that while the pub was good in it's heyday, recently the pub wasn't making money and was mostly empty except on Friday and Saturday. Dave Nellist denies that the pub was not used when it was open.

For sure a lot of pubs are suffering around the country owing to people paying the price of the machinations of the financial Rude Boys but as Peter Every says, in response to a comment on the Coventry Telegraph article 

"  Hope and Anchor. Post-Thatcher reasoning = "Dave Nellist hasn't got a clue obviously, if the former Landlord states it wasn't making money .. then that's that .. whats the point if these people who are fighting to save it never drank in there anyway! Get a life!" Hey! there are 400 empty rooms in Buckingham palace. BULLDOZERS!!!! Which bit of heritage don't you get? clearly the bit that happens after 1979..." 

We've Been Here Before! Here's a Meditation.

In 1973 we started Hobo magazine in response the bulldozers flattening the Coventry Arts Umbrella Club which 

Holyhead Youth Centres

had in some way facilitated bands with gigs, rehearsal space and more. It was getting harder for local bands to find venues to play,especially if they were young and new. Our campaign led to Coventry Voluntary Service Council arranging for us to have use of The HolyHead Youth Centre theatre to organise a weekly mixed media gig. So many young bands came to us and some of them told us they were about to give up as there was no where to play by the mid 70's. One 16 year who started off at the Hobo Wokshop, Holyhead Youth Centre was Dave Pepper - who later went on to form the X Certs, his band at the time was Phoenix (as he mentions in the comment below). When we moved to the Golden Cross we gave a first gig to a jazz rock group.The bassist was a young Horace Panter who wrote to Hobo asking if we knew of anywhere they could play (See letter below). 

Hobo Workshop

Back then you wouldn't know the importance of first step venues to artists but two other bands we gave first gigs to in 1974 were Analog and Trigon.  Later those two bands formed the Two Tone band Reluctant Stereotypes out of which came King in the 80's.Midnight Circus was another band whom we put on a few times. Later they became The Flys and appeared on Grey Whistle Test. It's leader Neil O'Connor joined his sister Hazel on the Breaking Glass tour as a guitarist. Meanwhile downstairs in the cellar, Charlie Anderson was youth leading a group of West Indian musicians who even then sounded great. No one would know that five years later most of these shy musicians would be creating pop history in the The Specials and Selecter. Neol Davies came along to help organise a jam session and we tried to encourage some of Charley's group to join in. They were a bit shy but Neol, already knowing Neville a bit,went down and jammed with them in the cellar. A few years late I saw Neol in bands like Chapter 5 and Hard Top 22 with some of them - transitions along the way to the final Two Tone line ups.

Horace Panter's Letter to Hobo Magazine in the 70's

And my point is...

I mention all this to illustrate the point that without places to start off, play and grow, develop stage presence and 

Charley Anderson and The Selecter

performance skills, make connections such as the one that Neol and Charley made, no new musical developments will happen in the city. At the time, no of us knew what some of the musicians would go on to do, including the musicians themselves and today in Coventry there are a range of impressive bands and acoustic artists coming out of the city. They deserve to be supported and to have a range of venues where they can play, build up a following, learn by mistakes and develop their own cultural heritage.

Whether or not the Hope and Anchor survives, I welcome the discussion that's going on between Coventry University and The Council on how best they can provide alternative performance venues in the city and the discussion on Bob Brolly's show. One important feature though is not to make them all corporate entities with entrance fees that restrict participation. Equally important is the intitative involved in somebody creating a venue or disco, whether they just be organisers or musicians. 

Kristy Gallacher at More Than Two Tones

Good examples currently, are Kristy Gallacher and Justine Watson who not only promote and play their own music but initiate acoustic nights to encourage others. They are not the only ones of course but without pubs available, these initiatives can't and would never have taken place.

Without them Pete Chambers wouldn't be able to write books like this -

Godiva Rocks - Pete Chambers

ADD YOUR THOUGHTS TO THE DISCUSSION

 

BNP Protest - Jerry Dammers Speaks

BNP Protest - Jerry Dammers Speaks

MORE THAN TWO TONES - Review of the Launch

MORE THAN TWO TONES - Launch Review

Two Tone Gold Discs at the Exhibition

Having been on the steering group for the Coventry Music History Exhibition - More Than Two Tones over the past

8722_147477422912_602877912_2630983_6232629_n

 two years, (along with Pete Chambers, Richard Elms, Trev Teasdel (me), Huw Jones, John Dawkins, Roger Lomas, Neol Davies, Dave Fisher, Pete Walters and Herbert Museum team) I was invited to the launch at the 

Herbert Museum and Art Gallery  last Friday (2nd October). 

This is a temporary exhibition lasting until January 3rd.

Down in Coventry

Living now on the edge of both Teesside and the North York Moors, I travelled down to the Two-Tone Motor City by National Express down long stretches of arterial lanes and souless motorways passing through the wonderwell of York and the urban guerrilla of Birmingham where I was picked up and ushered to Cov by my young nephew in his smart new car, albeit with a heavy accent on the accelerator!

Coventry seemed surprised to see me after all these years and spread the rumour loft to loft 'Trev is back' but the cars and buses and lorries bustled on regardless. After spending the afternoon with my mother and sister in Chapelfields, I was driven by my nephew down to Priory Street where things were already happening. 

Striding down the new Cathedral steps, trying to avoid eye contact with devil on the side wall, I saw a crowd entering

Lauch of the 8th Two Tone Plaque

 the Lanch Poly (now Coventry University) Student Union building. Priory Street has become the iconic street in Coventry having had three Cathedrals, one of which was bombed and it is near where the Lennons laid acorns for peace in 1969 and where the Lanch Poly SU held its arts festivals and put on some of the top undergraound in the 70's and early 80's from Soft Machine, Jack Bruce, Colosseum, Clash, Selecter, UB40 to name just a few. Priory Street is now where Pete Chambers does his BBC Coventry Pop into the Past programme with his Walk of Fame outside in Priory Place - with it's tributes to the Specials, Hazel O Connor and Pete Waterman etc. At the other end - the Herbert Museum and Art Gallery but more of that soon.

THE 8th TWO TONE PLAQUE

The gathering at the Student Union was to launch the 8th Coventry Two Tone plaque.This being the place where Roddy Radiation wrote Rat Race in the Student Union. Horace Panter, Pauline Black and Jerry Dammers all did their degrees there.

9430_131943802613_544527613_2208399_871552_n

The fact that the plaque had already been up a year (I know because Pete Chambers photographed me below it a year ago) didn't matter - it was a good way to start the launch and attract a crowd and a flashing of journalists! Pete Chambers and Horace of the Specials addressed the crowd and answered questions. Afterwards it was camera and notebook madness with Pete and Horace most likely 'Braggin' and Trying not to lie!' as they say in the song!

Stories of Indian Summer

The crowd then moved up past the old Cathedral to the new Herbert Museum and Art Gallery for the launch. There was

Indian summer Cover photo

 quite a crowd of invited guests,many seemingly of the Two Tone generation but quite a mixture of ages really.  I was hard put though to find anyone from the early 70's music scene.  Bob Jackson, the former Indian Summer front man who over the years has played with John Entwhistle, Pete Brown, Badfinger and the Fortunes came up and spoke. He too had expected to see more familiar faces. Neol Davies of Selecter came up and shook our hands but wasn't able to stay as he was guesting at a Ska gig in Birmingham. 

Neol had originally wanted to reform The Selecter for 30th Celebration and I suggested they might play at the Exhibition launch. Neol however was unable to get Selecter back together again but there was talk of a Two Tone jam or a solo performance from Neol,  but Neol was off to Brum instead. Roger Lomas (Ex Sorrows and producer of the Selecter and also on the steering group, was touring the contient with The Ripps. Bob Jackson told me a story about how they had to push his Hammond Organ all the way from Grafton Street near Gosford Green to the Lanch poly for a gig owing to a lack of transport and also corrected a story I'd heard that when

Hobo3 Cover

the Nice played the Lanch poly. Rumour in the 70's had it that Keith Emerson borrowed Bob's Hammond  albeit that Emerson was notorious for throwing knives into his Hammond as part of the act but that Emerson bought him a brand new one to replace it! Bob revealed that the story had gotten a little far fetched and Bob confirmed he turned Emerson down! Bob's Hammond was precious and there was no mention of any replacement - not that Bob - in his own addmission - was opposed to throwing knives in his own Hammond as part of the act at one stage but no way would he let anyone else do that -even Emerson! 

I agreed to interview Bob for Hobo on the Indian Summer days and beyond. Bob was always good for some interesting news update stories in the 70's when I ran Hobo magazine I was amazed tofind Bob looks more or less the same as he did in the 70's - he still has the long hair and the colouring and so was easily recognisable!

Pete Chambers and Horace Panter

The Launch

After much socialising and free drinks and Liquorace Allsorts - Pete and Horace opened the launch with a speech. Unfortunatley little of it was audiable in the new cathedral-like reception hall except for the words 'Two Tone' which seemed to resound in the rafters like a sacrad word! I commented to Martin Richards of the museum that Pete would probably love that - the rest of the words were presumably fillers and acknowlegements anyway and the crowd were anxious to see the Exhibition..

Without giving too much away (you really will have to go and see for yourself) the exhibition was rather smart with a mix of Gold discs, costumes, guitars, posters, recording desks and outline histories. Sure it's not going to please all of the Coventry musos - much that was mentioned in the planning wasn't evident but given the size of the gallery and the time scale and pressures, I think the team did a great job and although it focuses on the big names mainly, it presents a convincing picture of Coventry as an important musical centre. It will be what the fans from across the world will want to see. Sure there were names missing - I didn't see Dando Shaft for instance and it didn't portray the underground music scene out of which Two Tone emerged, but it was probably better for being simple; being a temporary exhibition and the first of its kind in Coventry. The Hobo Vox site (here) gives a lot of that background anyway although I didn't notice the urls to the Coventry music sites that I thought were going tobe displayed!

But it gets the thumbs up for all the hard work the team did to make it happen at all and hopefully this is just the start of documenting the rich musical history of the city.

The Concert

Meanwhile downstairs in the restaurant the stage was being prepared for the musical aspects of the night. Early  plans for the launch had included The Selecter or a Two Tone Jam with Neol Davies at least, The Vampires - a Cov band from the 50's.

Kristy Gallacher live

Once more Pete Chambers took to the stage but this time we could hear him loud and clear through the PA. We knew the Primitives were headlining but who was on first? I was delighted when Pete introduced a young Coventry singer songwriter called Kristy Gallacher. I'd communicated with her and had a copy of her CD but never got to see her live, living a long way from Cov. Kristy did a short but highly effective set. The sound system and lighting was superb and Kristy looked great in her stageoutfit. Kristy is a great example of the new talent coming out of the city, proving that the cities musical achievement is not all in the past - far from it - there's a thriving acoustic scene and although mixed, has a good representation of female singer songwriters (in the seventies - with a few exceptions like Beverly Martyn) music scene was largely male dominated (ok maybe some bands had the cursory 'chick singer') but the lads ruled!

Now some like Kristy and Janine are not only talented muscians and writers but run some of the top venues in the city

Wac13nov

 - a measure of how far women have come. Kristy led us through some of her best songs with confidence and skill and such good guitar accompaniment with touches of  jazz funk, finger style and rock in the chording.  Her songs tell an evocative and heartfelt story with great wit, ingenuity and rhythm. Speaking to her afterwards I realised what a lovely person she is and, in the best of the Cov Scene spirit, selfless enough to give much of her time to promoting other up coming artists (she runs at least two acoustic venues herself). Kristy ended the short set with an uptempo number and had the audience not been so close to the stage, I would have been both dancing and listening (but as those who have been to the Writers Cafe in Stockton know - I need space for my kind of dancing!).Kristy's Home page is http://www.kristygallacher.com/

Kristy Gallacher at More Than Two Tones

Next on were the Primitives. I was excited to see the Primitives as they emerged after I left Cov.Produced by Paul Sampson -who used to play for us at the Hobo Workshop - Holyhead Youth Centre in the mid 70's with his jazz rock band - Trigon. Paul went on to be a leading member of the Two Tone band Reluctant Sterotypes with Paul King who later topped the charts 

with his own band King. For those not in the know - the Primitives were a kind of Blondie style groups who had hits in the mid 80's - like Crash. Sadly it wasn't the original line up with the passing of Steve Dulla. Their performance is on You Tube for those interested. Very much a pop style band with plenty of dancable tunes and it was a treat to see them live despite the abscence of one of it's leading members.The Primitives underpin the diversity of music that has come out of Coventry over the decades, from rock n roll, progressive pop, metal, folk rock, ska and punk and much more. Here are some photos of the concert by Chris Johnson http://www.flickr.com/photos/chrisjohnsonphotographics/sets/72157622380970547/

Inspire

Inspire

On the advice of Kristy, I headed to Inspire for a glass of Vino before heading back to my sisters. Although I didn't recognise anyone I knew, it is apparently one of the places Coventry musos now go. Maybe the equivalent of the Dive bar in the 70's. Inspire is interesting for those not from Coventry. So called because Coventry's smallest spire of the three famous ones is just that  - the church got blown away by the Luffwaffe. The pub is literally in the base of the spire with an outside lounge area and a powerful landlord who keeps order by thunderbolts!!! It often has live music or a DJ.

The flying visit was over - next morning bright and early back on the coach heading towards Leeds through blustery headwind and then out in to Middlesbrough and home!

Pete Chambers - Photo by Chris Johnson

http://www.2tonecentral.co.uk/ Vist the Two Tone Central Museum in Coventry - which followed on from this, thanks to Pete Chambers.

Priory Street Blues

 

Priory Street Blues

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I wrote these lyrics for a new Coventry on line magazine 'Priory Street Blues' (in the planning stage) and collaborated with Coventry drummer and muso Jim Pryal on the music. An short edit of the music is above this post but here are the words. The track is unfinished but I've put the words and the edit track on as it's the Launch of More Than Two Tones - Coventry Music Exhibition at the Herbert Museum and Art Gallery from October 3rd 2009 - celebrating the 30th Anniversary of Two Tone and Coventry music in general.

Priory Street Blues

You can 'pop into the past'
Down on Priory Street
Do the 'walk of fame'
to an old 'backbeat'.

When the sun goes down 
on Priory Street
Angels pluck their harps 
to the Devil's beat

It's either 'Rat Race' or 'Ghost Town'
on Priory Street,
They'll teach you how to yodel 
to a skanking beat.

Underground music spills
across the street
and all the groovy people
dance on Priory Street.

Chorus..
Priory Street, Priory Street
Everybody's dancing on Priory Street
Priory Street, Priory Street
They dance for peace and love down on Priory Street.

'You can live and die' 
on Priory Street
but 'on the radio'
they'll play a Coventry beat

You can hear the bombers 
in the moonlit sky
When they took out the Cathedral
and made the angels cry.

The Lennon's planted acorns 
and a seat
now it's 'Give Peace a Chance'
down on Priory Street.

They say there's 'more than Two Tones'
and 'Broadgate Gnomes'
more than ringtones on mobile phones

We saw the Phoenix rise
from out of that heat
Now there's two Cathedrals 
in one street.

Chorus
Priory Street, Priory Street
Everybody's dancing on Priory Street
Priory Street, Priory Street
They dance for peace and love down on Priory Street

Trev Teasdel 2008

Swinging Cats - Coventry Two Tone band

Swinging Cats

Note - a new fuller page has been created for The Swinging Cats on Hobo A to Z of Coventry bands here https://sites.google.com/site/bandsfromcoventry/coventry-bands-a-to-z/coventry-bands-s/swinging-cats