I'm
aware that I've just featured an early gig by out
and out rockers, Blast,
but I remember Val and myself were so impressed,
we caught them just months later at The Duke.
So
here is just a taste (which is about the amount of
Coke in one of Thompa's JDs).
We could be late 90s here or early 2000s. Note
just how much the band are enjoying the gig too .
. .
---------------------------------------------------------------------
'97
or '98 for both of these pics.
Wow, someone's got a
good memory "how come you didn't
include the pic of Val with Len
in the Tubesnake pics?" A quick
search unearthed it. Happy?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Ere's some late 90s
pics of the Zeppelin-touting Black Dog
which I suspect - because of the pic of
Val squeezed between Thompa and Ronnie -
were taken when myself and Val caught the
band at the Duke of Cumblerland in
Felling. Many great nights we had there
and I can state that Thompa Cumberland,
along with Paul Tuns, were the two most
gracious hosts in the North East. Mind
you, Thompa was a terrible barman - for me
and Val he always got the amounts of JD
and Coke the wrong way round. . . bless
his little cotton socks.
  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
And talking of Baz, just
found this odd pic, sitting there, in the
archives - with no other pics of the
night. How bazarre:
So, is it just me who
didn't know that our local lad Baz
Warne not only is
a guitarist in the Stranglers, but
is also lead singer? Oh, it is. Anyway,
click on the music icon on the right
column to see the man himself . . . [yeah,
I knew he was in the band, but . . .]
To the email enquirer:
Yes, every single picture in this column I
have personally took - at the gig, on the
night. If for whatever reason I use
someone else's picture I ALWAYS mention
it, otherwise, they are ALL taken by
myself. Soz, thought this was common
knowledge. Val and myself have always
prided ourselves on the personal touch
(well, especially Val) and we hope that
it's this detail that lends a certain
intimacy and reality to our reviews and
pics....
Now, back to just
another night at The Office. Don't
have nightmares . . .
   
  
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Next batch of pics
which I hope I'll have ready to upload
tomorrow feature a nightmare at the Office
. . .
---------------------------------------------------------------------
A few pics from the much-acclaimed but
short-lived UUFO,
not sure of the year.
--------------------------------------------------------
Here's a couple of the earliest Riffs pics of
the brilliant Tubesnake . .
.
-------------------------------------------------------
Well,
I could have sworn that I had already added to
this News page the review of Baz Warne in Robot Elvis at
Paddywhacks in Sunderland - but scrolling down the
News page I just couldn't see it anywhere, so I
guess I must have dreamt it, which is strange, as
the majority of my dreams don't include band
reviews.........
----------------------------------------------------------------------
More
Riffs archive dipping finds the inimitable Baz
Warne and the Sun Devils
at the Office - photos taken on March 16. How
about that for accuracy eh?! Oh, you want the year
do you? Bugga. Could be 1997 or 1998 . . . And I
also include the poster for when Baz played a
special gig for Val
when she was running the Earl of Warwick in West
Auckland (this was a few years later after Baz had
joined The
Stranglers). Also (just to be as
accurate as poss) the pic of Baz and Val was taken
at Paddywhacks in Sunderland a few years later.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Trying
desperately now to narrow down the date of these
old pics. With confirmation from Big Al though, I
can say that these pics are from 1998 at The
Office in Shields.
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------
Well, look what I found - pics of the
night Dark-Glam trans-gender band from Minneapolis,
Minnesota appeared at the Office in Shields. The
band, All The
Pretty Horses,
featured Venus DeMars. The band
blend the influences of artists such as David
Bowie and Sex Pistols with a dose of
heavy, guitar rock and outrageous costumes, into a
self-described style called dark-glam.
If
I hadn't taken the pictures I just wouldn't have
believed that this gig took place. To say it was
an eye-opener is an understatement. Trying to
narrow it down but I reckon late 90s. Probs 1997
or 8.
-----------------------------------------------------
Seems
a lot of these old photographs I've been
resurrecting have time details that may have been
corrupted - as most say 2001 (reasonable),
November 14 (hmmm) and then 2pm (unlikely) so,
basically, I now don't have a clue when they were
taken!! Still, probs more exciting . . .?
Anyway, back to The Cluny with Loaded 44
. . . fuck knows when.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Cover
Story at the
Boldon Lad,
late
90s.
 
----------------------------------------------------------------
So just how much would you pay for a line-up like
this?
The Doors, Pink Floyd,
the Faces, Family, Curved Air, Atomic
Rooster, The Kinks, Rory Gallagher, Uriah
Heep, Country Joe McDonald, Buddy Miles,
Status Quo, Brinsley Schwarz, Spencer
Davis, The Strawbs and Humble Pie all
appeared at the 2nd British Rock Meeting,
Insel Grun, Germersheim, West Germany. 1972.
--------------------------------------------------------
When
the world was rockin' . . .
Does
anyone remember where this was? I'm suspecting
1997 or 8.
-------------------------------------------------------
Stormin' 2004
Jackl. I know it's at
'The Masons Arms' but, not 100% sure where. Any
ideas?
--------------------------------------------------------------
And
while I was rummaging, what year do you think this
was at Stormin' the Castle? - without looking at
the picture
details!
It was 2007.
Somebody emailed to say we have a picture of some
Stormin' boobs! I must track down that one....
 
---------------------------------------------------------------
 Nice to hear from Big Al who, I think, is
bass player for North-East stalwarts, Witchkraft,
with amazing axe-man Mal.
Val has extreme
respect for Al and called him "A gentleman among
gentlemen". He is one of that rare breed of
men who you not only never got sick of talking to,
but always learn so much from.
So, after a quick rummage, I dug up this pic of
the two aforementioned, dating back to November
2004, which Al reminds me was taken at the Rock
Bar in Easington.
Oh those heady days of deciding which Rock band to
go see . . .
------------------------------------------------------------------
Ten years ago yesterday
(Saturday) we lost an unbelievably stunning Rock
voice - the one and only RONNIE JAMES DIO. So sadly
missed, what a phenomenal voice this guy had.
These pics I took at a venue in Durham (I think) in
2005. [Memory isn't what it used to be!]
  
------------------------------------------------------------
Knew there had to be somebody out there.
Seriously though, just heard from Dave from the Graham Henderson
Experience to say he is biting at
the bit to get back out there after all this voodoo hoodoo and
re-create the thriving live music scene that we
all miss so much. In the meantime let's remind
ourselves of the band in full flow at the Penny
Gill in Spennymoor . . . https://youtu.be/Y8Goiam0xW0
--------------------------------------------------------------
After a deluge of mail from readers (well, I did
actually get one) so for all the people still
reading Riffs, this is for both of you.........the
sensational BLAST
from 2001 at Shields' Office.
  
-----------------------------------------------------------------
We're back to 2001 again, this
time it's Left
Hand Drive at the Rock Garden in
Easington Colliery . . .
 .
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
The
phenomenal Blackout
from October 2002 at The Office in South shields;
all Riffs pics and all by yours truly.....
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Back
to 2007 and Darlington's Quaker House for another
Riffs review from Val . . .
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well look who dropped in to the Powerage gig . . .
POWERAGE - NEWCASTLE CITY HALL, SEPTEMBER 28, 2001
. . .
 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Back to September 28, 2001, when Disposable Heroes -
belting out some quality Metallica
- supported Powerage
at Newcastle City Hall . . .
 
 
Will
get the Powerage pics from this same gig uploaded
in the next day or two...............and also pics
of the special visitor the band got who just
happened to be gigging in the same city on the
same night . . .
----------------------------------------------------------------
More
pics from the past, this time NO
DICE from the Blaydon Music Venue
in 2002.
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Dug
out these pics of Avatar
from the Three Tuns in Gateshead back in 2008.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Here's another review from those heady days of
blistering nights out surrounded by talented
musicians (oh how long ago that seems right now).
This is from 2009
Miss
ya Nick.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Back to 2008 and a special event at The Three Tuns
in Gateshead...................
----------------------------------------------------------------
A mensh for UFOs Paul
Raymond who passed away due to a heart attack one
year ago Monday 13th.
----------------------------------------------------
Arch Enemy and Blind Guardian at
Bloodstock 2008, review shown here in memory of
Gary Harwood who recently passed away.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Rejection
always hurts . . . but this must sting like a
mutha:
Thanks to The
Silverback for sending this in.
--------------------------------------------------------------
One of Riffs' reviews
from a bygone age - but wouldn't you have thought
the writer would have mentioned the date?!! No idea
when this was written (although around 2008 is a
rough guess) . . .
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 "Growing
up in the 60s I’d always leaned towards the rockier
side of music, preferring the Stones, Kinks
and the Who
to the Beatles
and the Tremeloes
etc. I’d seen local bands but
the first major band I had the chance to go and see
was The Who,
in the Rink at Sunderland - for the princely sum of
50p. At the time I was an apprentice at college full
time with a weekly wage of about £5.30 so by the
time I’d paid my mam her share, this probably
constituted 25% of my weekly pocket money without
taking into consideration my bus fare there. (Some
of my mates walked there and back to Houghton to
save money for a couple more beers).
Queuing up to get in, Roger Daltrey
pulled up and drove down the side to the load in
area in his Jensen Interceptor, no chauffeur, just
the man himself behind the wheel. Apparently, Keith Moon
arrived in a mauve Bentley, but I missed that.
It was the first time I’d been in the
Rink and I was mesmerised; dimly lit, UV lights
around the room, loud music playing over the PA
and loads of long haired yoof, just like me.
Excellent. I’m racking my brains to remember, but
I think the support band were called Cochise and as I
recall they were pretty good, though I can’t
remember anything they played. (This was 50 years
ago!).
This gig was just 2 weeks prior to the
release of the iconic “Live at Leeds” album so the
set by the Who
featured most of the tracks on that great album,
the excerpts from Tommy were immediately
recognisable along with stuff from their already
extensive back-catalogue. Woodstock was less than
12 months previous and we’d all seen the movie
released in March 1970 so the fringed jacketed,
mike swinging Daltrey
was bang on form and just what we had come to see
along with the windmill-armed Townshend. Moony was his
usual thrashing self, throwing his stick in the
air and catching them on the way down apart from
one time when one stayed up in the low ceiling
above the stage. The band also played “won’t get
fooled again” from the “Who’s Next” album that
wouldn’t be released for another year, Townshend
had this huge reel to reel tape recorder on stage
playing the synth intro. That track sticks in my
mind, but I have a vague recollection there were
other tracks from the forthcoming album played
that nobody had heard before.
The volume was like nothing I’d ever
experienced, I’d never known the flat feeling in
your ears after a loud gig, I thought I’d been
deafened for life but still thought it was worth
it. That gig was definitely a turning point in my
life and so different from what I’d imagined it
would be like, it was visceral, exciting and the
first time I’d shared the crowd power that an
event like that brings out in you. Many more were
to follow."
The
Piebald Lizard
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LET'S
HEAR FROM YOU LOT
The
Seaham Silverback came up with an idea for those
of you who, like a lot of us, reminisce the good
times of Rock. That one gig that sticks in your
mind (or for those of us who spent most of our
young life at a Rock or Metal gig, try and narrow
it down to a special one!). Put fingers to
keyboard and let Riffs know your most memorable
gig - we won't publish your name if you don't want
us to [you could always use a pseudonym].
Personally, there has been a gazillion as every
gig is memorable in one way or another. But just
yesterday I was downloading the discography of The Heavy Metal Kids and
it jogged my memory of seeing them at the City
Hall in Newcastle in the 70s on a double bill with
Nutz. It was £1 door
but just 50p if you showed the voucher from
Sounds. I can still remember Gary Holton strutting
around the stage sporting a jockstrap with a
massive penis extension. Aye, good
times............. Then the night I arrived at
Middlesbrough Rock Garden, knocking on a locked
door and hearing bolts pulled aside, and a guy
leaning out, looking left and right and then
pulling me in . . . that was the Spots gig (Sex Pistols). Oh, and a Nazareth gig where the
sound was distorted all night...... so plenty to
go
on.........
riffsonline@gmail.com
------------------------------------------------------
That's it then!
----------------------------------------------
The
Garden Farm in
Chester-le-Street has had their fair share of
party cancellations and as such their function
room is free most nights for any band wishing to
practice - free of charge. If you would like to
use it then contact the pub on 0191 3882064 and
ask for Natalie or Grant. Alternatively
get in touch via email, thegardenfarmhotel@gmail.com,
or Facebook.
-------------------------------------------------------------
A
big 'thank you' to bands and venues for keeping
Riffs updated during this hectic time of
cancellations and replacements.................. I
can usually get the amends done within minutes;
and keeping the punters informed is the most
important thing we can do . . .
More
bad news I'm afraid: Platform 1 in East Bedlington
has now shut and no bands will be performing there
for the forseeable future. All their gigs on the
Listings page have been marked as cancelled but,
just in case I have missed one, no gigs will be
held there from today. We will, of course, let you
know when they re-open.
--------------------------------------------------------
***NOTIFICATION
TO BANDS***
Riffs has just learned
courtesy of On The Case Music that The Black
Rose Pub Group are cancelling all Live
entertainment for the next few weeks due to the
present circumstances.
On The Case clients
affected are The Crown in Whickham and The Greens
Sunderland.
If you are booked to
play at any of these pubs in the near future the
gigs are now cancelled (hopefully to be rescheduled
once things get back to normal).
BLACK
ROSE PUBS include :
The Ox Inn
Durham, DH9 7LR
The Elephant
Ashington, NE63 0SZ
The Guide Post
Gateshead, NE9 7RR
The Cross Keys
Washington Village, NE38 7AB
The Townhouse
Whitley Bay, NE26 2TG
The Millstone Hotel
Newcastle, NE3 1QL
The Black Bull
East Boldon, NE36 0SG
The Victoria
Whitley Bay, NE26 2TE
The Black Bull
Morpeth, NE61 1PE
The Greens
Sunderland, SR1 3PY
The Lambton Arms
Durham, DH3 3BJ
Ship & Royal
South Shields, NE33 2HT
The Crown
Gateshead, NE16 4DT
The Prior
Moorside, Sunderland, SR3 2SW
Britannia Inn
Houghton Le Spring, DH4 4AL
----------------------------------------------------
 We should
call it the Battle of the Queens, but hey, thriving
live gigs can not be frowned upon - just celebrated.
Which is exactly what the Qween
Live lads are doing
right now as they wind down from another prestigious
sell-out gig at The Exchange Theatre in North Shields.
Rob told Riffs: "Absolutely amazing night - it was
really nice to meet and greet a lot of our fans
after the gig - we are playing in Norwich this
Saturday as the headline guest Queen tribute band -
everyone is so excited!" And if you missed them
locally then you have one last chance this month:
catch them at The Westovian Theatre South Shields on
Sat 28th.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
On
this day (Monday) in 2007 this happened . . .
Brad Delp
lead singer of Rock band Boston committed
suicide by carbon monoxide
poisoning at his home in the New
Hampshire town of Atkinson. He
died from the smoke of two
charcoal grills he’d lit inside
his sealed master bathroom. He
was found by police lying on a
pillow on his bathroom floor
with a note paper-clipped to his
shirt which read: "Mr. Brad
Delp. I am a lonely soul."
-----------------------------------------------------------
We Are Champion
update
Monday 2nd - ALL tickets have now been sold for
Bedlingtonshire Golf Club gig. ...
-----------------------------------------------------------
And talking of Queen . . . what's
better than a Queen tribute band? Two Queen tribute
bands!
Rob from Qween tells Riffs that their recent gig at
Billingham Sythonia Suite was also a sell-out (two
pics from that night showing), and that
their next gig at The
Exchange Theatre North Shields this
coming Saturday 7th March has only a few tickets left
on sale. Queen fans must think all their Christmas and
birthdays have come at once.
---------------------------------------------------------
SEASIDE
RENDEZVOUS
We love good
news here at Riffs so we're really chuffed to bring
you some - but it's tinged with bad news too, so we'll
mention that first!
 If
you were looking foward to seeing
We Are Champion in the
next few weeks then, unless you snapped up tickets
toot suite, you are going to be mightily disappointed
as their next three gigs (Gateshead, Doncaster [well,
ya might have], and Stockton) have all sold out. Soz,
but y'know what they say
'He who hesitates is lost'.
Paul from the band told me: 'We do feel sorry for
fans who have been unable to get tickets. It's been a bit of a
whirlwind really, we have had some amazing gigs;
selling out the majority of them. And getting to
play some huge venues inc Leeds and Newcastle O2
Academies.'
 The
first bit of good news for disappointed fans is We Are Champion have just added three new dates in April -
Hartlepool, South Shields and Ashington. And I suspect
the lads are going to be on full
rockin' form as they will no doubt be still buzzing
from having secured a really prestigious gig - no less
than being asked to appear at the
Official Queen Fan Club Convention down
in Mablethorpe. Paul continued: 'We are thrilled -
not to mention deeply honoured - to have been asked
to perform at probably the pinacle of Queen tribute band gigs. We would never have believed when we
started this band just over a year ago that we would
be so heartily accepted by the Queenie community.'
Paul went on to say: 'This is the biggest event of
the Queen Fans calendar where fans from all over the globe come
to party to all things Queen. We have our sights on
loads
of big festivals over this summer so can't wait to
grow this thing even bigger.'
The event takes place at Haven Golden Sands Holiday
Park in Mablethorpe first weekend in October.
-------------------------------------------------------
“These
guys do the nasty blues like the devil hisself
was hurting"
Tommy Hartlepool
does it again. That guy is the forefront of Bluesy
Rock in the North-East with his hand-picked quality
bands. I'm in the middle of designing some boxed ads
for his up and coming gigs and, obviously, try and
get a feel for the band before doing the ad - and
it's so difficult to stay detached when the bands he
books - some from other continents! - are so damn
good. Personally, my DNA is Metal, Rock and Punk,
but quality music is quality music. [Reminds me of
long ago when Val and I used to go out to see bands
for a live review and pics, and if we were on the
way to a Blues gig she would often say "is it
Rocky Blues or Blues you slit your wrists to?"].
Thankfully the 'Blues you slit your wrists to' gigs
were few and far between and I know her fave venue
now would be Tommy's Hartlepool Supporters Club
where the Blues is 'grimy, lean, mean and
soulful' which brings me neatly to the
description of . . . wait for it . . . Crow Black Chicken.
I've snatched this from their website, but give it a
read and then tell me you're not tempted. All I've
got to say is their two main influences are Skynyrd and Zeppelin: [enough
for me]
This power trio combine elements of folk and hard
rock with the blues rock of bands such as Gov’t
mule, Lynyrd Skynyrd and Led Zeppelin. The band
was formed in 2009 in Cork city when lead singer
Christy O’Hanlon met the former rhythm section of
Clonmel Punk Rock outfit Aural Ammunition, Stephen
McGrath ( Bass ) and Gev Barrett ( Drums ). The
band immediately jelled and went on to perform on
the BBC Introducing stage at Glastonbury 2011. The
band released their first raw blues rock and roll
album in 2012 which was produced by Producer
Philip Magee ( Kodaline, Aslan, The Blizzards ).
The bands second album Rumble Shake was released
in 2014 and debuted at number 12 in the Irish
album charts. Recorded in Westland Studios Dublin,
this album was a more roots and blues affair than
the first record, heavily influenced by the bands
work with Texan Americana singer Ray Wylie Hubbard
and legendary Austin Producer the late George
Reiff. In 2015 the band went on to release their
first live album entitled Deep South which was
voted top 5 live albums of 2015 by Classic Rock
Blues. In 2016 Crow Black Chicken opened for ZZ
Top at the Marquee in Cork which brought them face
to face with the Texan compatriots whom they often
drew so many comparisons to. Always determined to
create a sound all of their own the band continues
to tour all over Europe and have since released a
4th studio album Pariah Brothers in 2017.
“These guys do
the nasty blues like the devil hisself was
hurting and rock like they’ll skate come
judgement day” Ray
Wylie Hubbard
They're on at
Hartlepool's Smallcrafts
Association on April 10. Tickets £12/14. 07535
979658 or ents24 website.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Not
sure what has happened to Ronnington publicity
machine but it's only thanks to Patrick from UK/DC
and Obsession
that we were forwarded the poster for this year's
Ronnington Charity Fundraiser 2020 . . .
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRIBUTE TO RUSH THIS FRIDAY
News
just in . . . [sound of tele typesetting machines
clattering away in background] The Force’s
gig this Friday (21) at The Voyager, South
Shields, we have just been reliably
informed, will be slightly different from the
usual Force setlist.
As
a tribute to Neil
Peart and Rush, the first half will
be all Rush numbers – the second half Classic
Rock. An absolute mega-treat for all Rush fans.
Expect class, expect perfection, expect a
phenomenal gig.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------
Shepherds
Rest Alnwick are
looking for a
band that can
play 22nd Feb
... it's for
Border Crew
MCC birthday
party... we
have been
dropped in it
last minute...
looking for
rock... punk
etc. Contact
Dave
Smith..07736116156
Or email
stevecolly@hotmail.co.uk
NOW SORTED
-------------------------------------------------------------------
 Magnesia
Bank's mega-weekend, Stevestock,
was a great success thanks to all who worked
tirelessly behind the scenes and the magnificent
North Shields peeps who packed out the venue
upstairs and down.
A very healthy £2,600 was made and this all goes
to help McMillan Cancer.
A heartfelt thanks to absolutely everyone
involved.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Another review from
way back, we have the date but not the year. Probs
around 2008 methinks.
------------------------------------------------------------------
 A sell out gig last
Friday evening at Boldon Community Association was
appreciated by a capacity audience who were really
into the "Mercury &
May" experience. Their next gig is
at Primrose Community Association on Saturday 15th
Feb - ticket sales are flying! (£5 from venue NE32
5QY / 01914249977).
-----------------------------------------------------------------
 Riffs is very sad to hear of
the passing of a much-loved and respected
North-East musician - Ron Owens.
Val has fond memories of him and band when she
booked them to play at a pub she was running in
West Auckland many moons ago.
"He was such a lovely guy - well they all were
- no airs and graces for someone with so much
musical talent. Humble and kind. The thought of
him gone brings tears to my eyes."
--------------------------------------------------------
DARLO'S LITTLE SECRET
Just
found an absolute gem of a book/vinyl
record/dc comic/dvd/cd/cassette call-it-what-you-want
shop. A real little secret, just on the outskirts
of Darlington town centre in an old terrace. If I
said it had a million books you'd think I was
exaggerating. I went in looking for the writings
of Shel Silverstein (him of Dr. Hook
fame - he wrote Sylvia's Mother, Freakin' at the
Freakers Ball, Cover of the Rolling Stone etc, and
A Boy Named Sue) and I was staring at a room
absolutely jam-packed full of books and thinking
how many he had and the guy (who has been
collecting his whole life) told me this was just
the horror and sci-fi section; other genres were
in other rooms! Thousands upon thousands in every
room - and there were many rooms. And that is just
upstairs. Down in the basement (down a rickety and
well passed its use by date staircase) is another
treasure trove of books, magazines, cassette
tapes, cds, dvds, Marvel and DC comics, vinyl
records (he's got some rare punk singles too) -
and God knows what else. It's on Victoria Road,
200yds down from the train station, and 20 yards
from the Royal Mail Sorting Office. DL1 5JQ. I'm
actually surprised he has a phone but try 07946
505 886, but you need to get in there and have a
good old rummage - but take a flask of coffee and
some sandwiches!! Oh, and the sad thing is,
because he isn't getting enough money to cover
rent and rates he may soon be moving - probs to
Leeds. And if you plan to visit (Thu Fri Sat only)
- and I really urge you to; for free 2 hour
parking, then go past the book shop (with it on
your left) take the first right and then first
left.
---------------------------------------------------------------
CROOKFEST
2020 ON SATURDAY 9th MAY
 Crookfest
2020 will be the
festival's 10th birthday and to celebrate we have a
cracking something for everyone line-up across 3
stages: the Rock Bands playing this year are... Queen -We Are Champion, Guns or
Roses, Bon Jovi Forever, Deep Purple in Rock,
Little Devil, Fossil, Punk Pop Disaster, Nixon UK
and a collective of local Crook rock musicians headed
by Circa69 singer/guitarist Kieran
Johnson. We also have
Indie-Pop-Punk-Ska covered including UK's number one
Kasabian tribute - Kazabian
plus from Dumfries and Galloway, a band well known on
the Scottish festival circuit
The Dangleberries - a 10 piece bagpipes
'n all band playing pop/rock classics! Last year's Big
Tent headline band Revolver
return to headline the Scooter Tent playing top Indie
classics, plus on the same Stage we have punk band The Suspect Device
plus 80s classics from The
Breakfast Club, Beyond Madness and Beyond Blonde. Also in
the mix we also have Oasis/Jam
and The Heretics.
It's a full day of live music, bars and food outlets
from noon till 11pm, all for only £15 a ticket / £25
on the day at the gate if not sold out. PLEASE NOTE
the festival as a rule has always been on the 1st May
Bank Holiday Sunday; however, the Government has moved
this year's bank holiday Monday to the following
Friday for VE day, so we have moved the fest to
Saturday 9th May. All the festival and ticket info can
be found at www.crookfest.co.uk
--------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------
GIROSCOPE ROCK 4 EMILY
  After a
blistering review on Riffs from our resident
reviewer - The Seaham Silverback - of
astounding new band Giroscope (right), ["I'd
walk barefoot over broken glass to see them again"
was one of his quotes] we are pleased to announce
that the lads not only turn out some brilliant toons
but have hearts the size of Rainbow's
band members' list. Along with Michael Lavery from Groovetrain, they
are giving of their time and talents totally and
completely FREE to play at a fundraising event at
Gateshead Rugby Club on Friday April 3. At only £4
to see a sensational band, a great compere and
acoustic support, and to help a brave young lady
with Cerebral Palsy and epilepsy, you'd need a heart
of stone to not support this event. But enough from
me, this is an extract from an email from her father
Ian with some background to the event:
 "My daughter Emily is a disabled
athlete who competes nationally for Gateshead
Harriers and hopes to compete for Team GB at a
future Paralympic Games. Emily has Cerebral Palsy
and epilepsy.
We are holding a fundraising evening to raise funds
for travel and accommodation costs as well as entry
fees to national competitions for the forthcoming
outdoor and indoor season for 2019/20.
In 2018 Emily competed at the CPISRA WORLD GAMES in
Barcelona coming home as a 5 time world champion.
Later that year Emily was invited to become part of
the British Athletics Paralympic development squad
with the intention of producing Para athletes for
Paris 2024.
We have the fantastic GIROSCOPE playing as our band
for the evening. Tickets are available from the
Rugby Club bar or directly from me Ian on
07711415820. This event is a ticket event but any
unsold tickets will be sold on the door. .Please
take a look at Emily’s website www.emilystewart-t38.com"
----------------------------------------------------------------------
STEVESTOCK WEEKEND 2020
in aid of Macmillan Cancer
Support
FRIDAY 31st
Ground Floor and FREE:
7 SINS 10.15 / ELENBAK 8.40 / MONKS IN AN EGGCUP
7.15 / BRANDON PROCTOR 6.30
First Floor £5 door (strictly limited
capacity):
THE BREAKFAST CLUB 11.00 / RIGID DIGITS 9.25 /
THIS MACHINE 7.55
SATURDAY 1st
Ground Floor and FREE:
FM 10.15 / TINY AFRO 8.40 / LOU ROSS BAND 7.15
First
Floor £5 door (strictly limited capacity):
LITTLE DEVIL midnight / DIAMOND DOGS 11.00 / DEEP
PURPLE IN ROCK 9.25 / TIN SOLDIERS 7.55
SUNDAY 2nd
Ground
Floor and FREE:
NUTOPIANS
7.15 / THE WHODLUMS 5.30 / DEJA VU 3.45
First
Floor £5 door (strictly limited capacity):
THE FORCE
8.00 / BIG TED 6.30 / VINTAGE EDITION 4.30
Please note that ALL
tickets have now been sold, but £5 door is
available - first come first served.
------------------------------------------------------------------
GOODBYE TO BB's MARGE
 The
highly-respected landlady of the Bell and
Bucket in North Shields bids a farwell to
bands and punters alike this weekend (17, 18, 19)
when she goes out with a bang - well, hopefully
not literally - as three excellent bands intend to
raise the roof in honour of this much talked about
lady. Riffs has had no personal contact with Marge but, by all
accounts, she is much admired and treats the bands
with the respect they deserve. A
rare flower indeed. Norman
Force
says about her "a lovely landlady who will be
a big miss").
Her three last gigs are ROCK
SOLID on the 17th, FM on the 18th,
and STICKY
FINGERS on the 19th.
Please go along and make Marge's last three gigs
ones she will never forget. Pictures welcome . . .
Also, we have just heard (cheers Norm) that no
less than Tony Liddle
is to be the new vocalist for FM.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
MERCURY
AND MAY - THE ULTIMATE QUEEN TRIBUTE
Queen fans
must feel like all their Christmas and birthdays have
come at once at the moment. Not only two excellent
Queen tributes gracing our venues, but now an act that
highlights the incredible vocal talents of Freddie Mercury and
the outstanding guitar playing of Brian May.
The gig, Mercury & May live at
Boldon Community Association, New Road, Boldon
Colliery NE35 9DS is on Friday January 31st and the
performance commences at 8.30pm. Tickets are just £5
and the venue contact is 0191 5368085.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
DIABLO - Happy
New Year Everyone!
2019 saw some great gigs
for Diablo with
fab crowds culminating with a cracking headlining slot
at Tynedale’s annual Music and Beer Festival in
Corbridge. The big success of the year, without
doubt, was the new album “Screaming Out” (still
available) which eclipsed sales and triumphs of all
previous Diablo recordings – so nearly achieving a hit
record! Rave reviews kept pouring in such as Andy
Jennings at GigItNorthEast; Harvey Smith of The
Bastards of Eclectic Music Taste; Crack magazine
Newcastle among many, and the track “I’m Unknown”
became BBC2 Music North East Introducing Show’s Record
of The Week in January. Tracks “Screaming Out” and
“Crawl” have been played on local Nova Radio and “I’m
Unknown” played at Gateshead FC International
Stadium’s PA! Diablo’s original songs have been played
on social media and YouTube over 77,000 times and
those are just the plays we’ve managed to track! And
with streaming the new album there have been literally
thousands of plays and downloads. Thank you EVERYONE
for supporting the album and us, for so long – we
love you all. And Davy has just announced that the
next album has already been written and is slated for
2021 release. Onwards & Upwards through 2020 –
Diablo’s 16th year of continued success!
Dave Drums Diablo xxx
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blackhall Community Centre is to
host an AC/DC
show featuring Livewire, with
support from local lads Sticky Fingers. It's
on Saturday February 22nd and tickets are £15,
from ents24, seetickets or from the venue itself.
Doors 6.30 and you'll be fully Rocked out by 11.30. By
all accounts Livewire
put on a fantastic show; but with the outrageous
guitar of Phil Martin, I think if there is a band that
can give Livewire
a run for their money then it's the Stickies. Be prepared
for a battle of the guitars!!!!!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FILTHY RICH AND STARZ
I think it was only this year (still in 2019 - oh
yeah) that Starz took the North-East music
scene by storm [well, okay that might be a slight
exaggeration, but certainly a breath of fresh
Rockin' air at the very least] and  no
other three guys looked more as though they belonged
together than guitarist
Kenny, drummer Mark
and singer/guitarist Kiko.
So, to hear that they had pulled in a dedicated
singer and formed a second band did crease my brow a
tad (although that
could be just age).
But as Kenny explained: "American Girl is now
finished and we wanted to replace that band - when
we heard singer Rich
Myers (hence Filthy
Rich, yeah?) audition we just went
'WOW' as he is such a powerful vocalist."
Kenny told Riffs exclusively: "Filthy Rich will
be doing one set of the American
Girl songs that Rich wants
to do and one set of all new Rock
cover songs that we think people will love and
will be different to the usual covers."
I can recommend Starz
unreservedly as all three members have their own
charisma, style and musical skills; and if you're
gonna add a dedicated frontman to the mix and gig
as Filthy Rich
then 'scuse me while I kiss the sky! Kenny
continued: "We start gigging as Filthy Rich in
February and have gigs booked for the whole of
2020 but not as many as we'd like because Starz has
taken off and is soooooo busy."
A website for the band is under construction and
we will announce it as soon as it is up and
running.
---------------------------------------------------------------
FM at The Turf in Consett
today (Boxing Day) 4pm. Unless my memory serves me
incorrectly, you're in for a heavy dose of AC/DC and Zeppelin. And
personally, I can't think of many things that
would do it for me at this time of year. Get along
and RAWK.
-----------------------------------------------------------
PB
update: Firefox is being a bit of an arse with
connecting. However, Google Chrome connects
without a problem. Weird, but that's how it is.
I download all my albums from PB without a
problem; I've paid for them in vinyl, then paid
again on DAT, then again on CD, I'm buggered if
I'm gonna pay again for mp3 files!
--------------------------------------------------------
Just heard from Dirty Dogz Phil
with some bad news - the trial run gig a the Cluny
this Sunday 22nd is now OFF due to flu. Needless to
say, Phil is gutted, but hopes to re-arrange the gig
for February. Any news concerning the gig and we
guarantee to be the first to let you
know............
------------------------------------------------------------
Apologies
to the few peeps who have emailed to say the
current PB address is not working. More and more
ISPs are blocking it, but the address that is
currently showing (top right, under page links) is
fully working as of Wednesday 18th. I will try and
keep it up to date. Appreciate you letting me
know.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
The Three Tuns in
Gateshead is now booking for January and February
2020. Anyone interested text me (Paul)
07940715824. ALL
SORTED NOW...............
--------------------------------------------------------------------
The below article we
originally put together a few weeks ago and things
have come together nicely and Phil has now not only
a got a date for the gig, but also has sold over
fifty tickets for this Rockin' event. Phil is
understandably cagey concerning the event and
explains: "Me
and the boys have booked a trial run at The Cluny
on Sunday 22nd December, but this is to get a
taster for next year." The gig is £10 a ticket
(in excess of fifty sold to date) and kicks off at
6pm and runs till 9. Expect a night of
surprises.....................
DIRTY
DOGZ PHIL PROPOSES A NIGHT OF
'PANACHE, POWER,
PRECISION AND PASSION'
 And talking of 'no-nonsense', Riffs
is excited at an email from
Phil from Dirty
Dogz fame who, after the demise of
aforesaid band, has been pining for some quality,
down-to-earth Rock done by mature, experienced
musicians - or in his own words 'A tasty selection of highly regarded and
seasoned pros' (I'm hearing
people standing and clapping at the back . . .) and
with the adage 'if you want something doing properly
do it yourself' resounding around his thinking
organ, Phil has decided to do just that.
Putting
his money where his mouth is, Phil is arranging a
'little' soiree where he expects to showcase some
incredible Rock talent. He
told me: 'There’s still some
cracking nights to be had out there I’m sure
but, as most bands are finding, it's often hard
chuffin work playing to 2 men, a whippet and a
crazy couple in the corner who are adamant they
want a bit of Britney! However, the frustration
and disappointment seems to have wained a tad
over the noted period of inactivity and I am
dipping my arthritic toes (some may say
foolishly) into the local, unpredictable
rock'n'roll waters again.'
Still in its early stages,
Phil is wanting to gauge support before he goes full
tilt. He continued: 'Looking for definite feedback
from real fans of live music who like nothing more
than to immerse themselves in a night of quality
sounds delivered with panache, power, precision and
passion'. Expectations are high and Phil hopes
the setlist to include
'interpretations/improvisations of classic rock,
blues and psychedelia from Hendrix, Zeppelin, Cream,
Stones, Beatles, Free, Neil Young, Peter Green, Bob
Dylan...plus the odd original and a few surprises.'
Phil has emphasised that this will happen only
with enough prior interest. He welcomes texts on 07803 640235. I have promised Phil,
Riffs' full involvement and when anything happens -
we wanna know!
LET'S MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
-----------------------------------------------
The Schooner in Gateshead is
looking for bands for Boxing Day and New Year's Day.
Call Paul 07940 715824
-----------------------------------------------
The Schooner in
Gateshead is looking for a band or artist to play
This Saturday 7th December.
0191 477 7404. NOW SORTED NOW
SORTED NOW SORTED
------------------------------------------------------------------------
A
heads up............
Hearing little birdies talking
about The Black Horse in Monkseaton stopping bands
as the manager is close to leaving.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
BUFFALO
FOUR SECRET NO LONGER
It seems only a brief five minutes ago that
I popped along to Bishop Auckland's Bay Horse to catch
the excellent Four
Letter Word (review way, way down this very page). I
also remember drummer Andy
- not only for his steady and rhythmic playing - but
also for the fact that I never got a picture of him!
And I can well understand his disappointment when
everyone in the band gets a photo - but not him. Even
more so, considering he was doing the band a favour,
standing in for their regular drummer. Andy plays in Buffalo
Four who go down
extremely well in the
Blacksmiths in Gosforth but, he
explained: "we have played there quite a few times
and had some great nights with many compliments but
apart from that venue we are unknown around
Newcastle." It seems that Four
Letter Word did quite well from Riffs mensh and Andy
goes on to say: "they got a rave review and plenty
of interest and some gigs from your article so
thought we [Buffalo Four] are maybe due some
attention. We have been going for 6 years and play
to some pretty appreciative audiences but we are
almost a secret in some places." Whoops, think I
may have blown your secret Andy. Buffalo Four are at
the Blacksmiths
this Friday (6th).
Pic linked
to the band playing 'I Won't Back Down'.
Metallica? AC/DC?
C'mon lads, practice what you wear!!
------------------------------------------------------------
Air4ce
at Cluny 2, Newcastle, 21st January 2020
Celebrating the life and
music of Ginger Baker,
featuring some of the north east's finest musicians
- PLUS SPECIAL GUESTS...music from Ginger's work
with Cream, Blind Faith,
Graham Bond, Airforce, Billy Preston,
and more.
Tickets (£8adv): click on poster.
And more information as it is announced here -https://www.facebook.com/Air4ce2020/
Apparently the first words that St. Peter
said to Ginger, upon his arrival, were "look, I
don't want any trouble".
--------------------------------------------------------------
Those Queen tribute
guys did it again - this time at Darlington's
Hopetown & Whessoe Club on Saturday 23rd
of this month when they wowed a packed house
with Queen
and Freddie's
record-breaking and memorable songs covering
over forty years. Qween's next gig is
this Friday (29th) at Newcastle's Heaton Buffs
but unfortunately there will be a lot of
dissatisfied punters as the gig is strictly a
private function so, unless you hold that
special ticket, no entry. But keep your eye on
Riffs Listings page as the lads will be
playing in 2020.
If you just can't wait that long then We Are Champion,
who do a superb tribute to Queen, have
several gigs running up to Christmas. Also, on
Sunday December 1 with a start time of 6pm at
the Isabella in Blyth you can catch a Freddie Mercury
tribute. Spoilt for choice!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHOT
DOWN IN FLAMES
"Interesting
idea, the tips for the band idea…..but here’s where
my cynicism kicks in;
We have to be careful of the law of unintended
consequence, it’s only a kick in the arse from there
to playing for tips only, or used as an excuse not
to pay a band or reduce their fee. Who would do such
a thing I hear you say? Well there are plenty of
reasons why a struggling venue may take that
approach even before you factor in any exploitative
reasons.
Yes it would sort some wheat from the chaff,
but overall the standard would diminish because who
would layout all that cash on gear without a fair
chance of paid gigs?
But that dismisses the nous of even the most
cynical of band bookers, theres not many that book
bad bands, safe bands perhaps, and safe isn’t what
brings in the punters, it may well entertain the
ones already there however?"
Alan Fizzyfish
------------------------------------------------------------------
Just heard from Patrick
from the excellent Obsession
and UK/DC
that the Market Tavern in
Chester-le-Street has ceased all bands
for the forseeable future.
------------------------------------------------------------------
 What marvellous
peeps there are out at Usworth and Washington.
Some of those fine punters piled into The
Gardeners Club recently for Help for Heroes
night when FOXX
and Jay J Stevens
waived their fee to make the night one to
remember. Altogether the Club managed to make
a very healthy £1400.
Michelle from the club told Riffs: "I
had a lot of support ftom those who
attended, also a big thankyou for
those local businesses who donated
prizes for our raffle in aid of Help
For Heroes." The generosity of all those
involved will make such a difference for our
brave men and women.
And thanks to Michelle from Usworth and
Washington Gardeners Club for letting
Riffs know.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
HAD A
GOOD NIGHT? - THEN FILL MY BOX
 Well,
our articles on dwindling punters for live
gigs have been read by many, many people. The
majority of whom do seem to agree that it is
something that is happening now, and that it
is affecting venues and bands alike. The only
thing that is thin on the ground is solutions.
I have heard one (from soneone who wishes
anonymity), and as I have heard nothing better
I will mention it here: A DONATION BOX ON THE
BAR.
If you have had a great night at your local,
seen a brilliant band playing stuff you like
and recognise and the band have totally given
their all, what do you do at the end of the
night? Well, you just go home. And what if you
haven't had that good a night, the band have
been mediocre, stared at their feet all night
and left you wanting? Well, you just go home.
Now that seems rather unfair, the landlord
doesn't know if you have had a good night or a
bad one; that poor barmaid who has been
smiling all night and serving all and sundry
doesn't know, and the band who have lost at
least a stone amongst them and played their
collective kahunas off just see you leaving at
the end of the night and have no idea if you
loved them or hated them. SO - pop a few quid
in the box on the bar. To be shared out
equally between the band and the venue. One of
the best night's ever? Bung a fiver/tenner in
the pot and shout to the landlord "they were
crackin' - I'll see that band again any time!"
Now, to me, that seems feasible, but I am
neither in a band, nor run a venue, so what do
YOU think? Will it work - is it an A side, or
just a terrible demo that won't make it onto
the album?
riffsonline@gmail.com
----------------------------------------------------------------
An
online station are taking music from signed/unsigned
bands to be played for free.
No
pop, just rock etc. no adverts.
http://www.marlab.dk
Thanks to Tony (former drummer with Cue) for
this info.
----------------------------------------------------------------
A late booking for these outrageous funsters.
Friday night (22nd) at The Isabella in Blyth.
Totally free entry and a wild night is guaranteed.
Get along and let your Fez down!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
We have a straggler. By his own admission, the
writer of the following article does not read the
News page much, which does explain a lot. I know
the Gig Listings is the most viewed page
on Riffs but a lot of stuff on this page does tie
in to the gigs so perhaps a glance now and then
may prove beneficial. Any road up, here is
Richie's thoughts on our main topic . . .
"I
humped gear for a club band in the 70s then a pub
band for 12 years after that, booked bands for 8
years for 3 pubs until quite recently
but never for financial gain, still help out now and
then when asked, so know a little bit about the
music scene and how it works...
I have been watching bands since the 70s
when clubs in my area that put bands on - solos and
comedians, albeit on dedicated nights for each -
used to be packed out but, one by one, they ended up
dying a slow death, partly i think due to the loss
of heavy industry. Pits, ship building and the like
was to blame for some of it as shift workers could
go out on a Thursday night and a Sunday night with
Friday and Saturday nights taking care of them
selves, if that makes sense, these people worked
hard and went to clubs for nights out religiously
and were not frightened to spend their money,
and not forgetting the earlier closing times where
people on permanent days could go out, go home, bite
to eat and be up for work no problem; we were all a
lot younger then, yes there is Nissan and all of the
knock on factories in my area but I am talking about
a different age group here.
While talking about age I see some of the same
people from that era at pubs now watching bands and,
like myself, they are in there 60s with some older,
one club is still going, but not as busy as it used
to be with another two going down the sports club
route and using private functions to survive. In a
way what happened to clubs is the same as what is
happening to pubs now, there got to be too many,
also while for a long time they were a cheap night
out, it got to be no longer the case with cover
charges going up and all the add ons; bingo,
raffles, various draws, it got where every other
week there seemed to be something else. All of a
sudden some pubs discovered a niche to host live
music and were the better option cost-wise, you even
ended up seeing some of the same musicians as many
were happy to leave the club scene to gig the pubs.
The pubs saw an opportunity for making money by
putting bands on after the club scene had died off,
and while a lot were not designed to host live
bands, they had to go with what they had got,
most got really good turnouts and were well
supported, but over the years more and more pubs
jumped on the bandwagon (no pun intended) and it
watered the attendances down; where you once had a
couple of venues you ended up with 5 or 6 and all
within a small catchment area, people would go to
where they thought they would have the better night.
I think a similar thing happened in South Shields,
for landlords they need decent turnouts on every gig
night or it is no longer viable and becomes a
struggle, also pub owners need to listen to the
regulars as to what music they like, as all too
often a pub will get taken over and book the wrong
type of band, punk and acoustic is not going to go
down well if people want rock music while, like
myself, a lot of people still use Riffs and other
music guides to find out what is on at venues, I
think an up-to-date website is a must in this day
and age. It is no good to anyone if a pub has a page
and they do not keep it up to date as advertising
plays an important part in letting people know who
is playing and when; I think a few pubs are guilty
of poor advertising,
I could mention a couple I know of where i never
could find out who was playing, no good at all, they
need to put it out there. I think with out doubt
monthly pay plays a big part in sometimes having a
lower turn out, the amount of times I hear people
mention their funds are low the week before being
paid, whereas back in the day when people were paid
weekly they always seemed to manage money better and
were able to go out, even the holiday period takes a
toll on attendances, as does the run up to Christmas
when money gets tighter. Quite often I have heard or
read that the smoking ban has made a big difference,
I myself think it has been very minimal; I think
people have just accepted they have to go out side
to smoke. I do not personally know anyone that has
stopped going to gigs because of the ban.
Back to age and this has been mentioned various
times on a music forum, there just does not seem to
be many younger people attending gigs these days,
certainly not the venues I go to, with the bulk of
the audience being made up of 40s, 50s and 60s,
unlike in my day where we were in our late teens. I
have no idea the reason why. I might add that I go
to watch predominately rock bands, maybe the old
classics just do not appeal to the younger
generation any more.
I must say that the northeast circuit is blessed
with so many great bands and quality musicians; most
of the time you are spoilt for choice. Referring to
the 5 or 6 pubs in a small catchment area I have
already mentioned, the pub with the more fancied
band will get the better turnout with the others
getting just enough people to break even if they are
lucky. Every venue will have their group of regulars
but these days they are looking at getting people to
travel which we often do to Sunderland, Chester,
Shields, ect, 3 or 4 sharing a taxi works out
cheaper than the bus fare.
There seems to be a never ending supply of pubs that
venture in to putting live music on only to find out
that it is a hard slog with many giving up within a
short period of time and not realising they need to
be prepared to lose money early on until word gets
out about their venue. I think the reality is that
we will be left with the most well known of venues
and those that are prepared to stick it out through
this rough period."
Richie, Washington
-------------------------------------------------------------------
AS YE SOW,
SO SHALL YE REAP
Well, you gotta laugh, haven't you! This just
dropped into Riffs inbox and I just thought it was
so relevant. Then again, I bet nearly all bands
and venues have similar stories (I've thought it
prudent to edit) . . .
"The
guy who books bands in the ----------- has 26 gigs
to fill so he books 12 or 13 bands to fill them
giving each one 2 gigs a year regardless as to
whether they died on their collective arses on the
1st show or not. We have reached the point where
we’re getting the second time round for the dregs
and I’m not going to go and watch a band that were
shite 6 months ago in the vain hope they’ve
improved. The fact that neither the band nor the
club have bothered to contact your good self, or
even to put it on their FB page illustrates their
commitment to their craft. The next scheduled band
in the --------- is the ---------- and I know it’ll
be packed. At that time I'll be in Belfast. During
previous visits I/we have tried to find a venue in
that city playing Rock and it appears there either
ain’t any or they don’t advertise on the web.
Imagine a place like Belfast and no live Rock on a
regular basis? And we complain about the dearth of
decent music!!!!".
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Well, it was fantastic to
have such a brilliant response - and so many
views from bands and venues across the
North-East on what they thought was the reasons
for reduction in audience numbers. It was
eye-opening to see so many different and
interesting viewpoints. And Alan from
Fizzyfish, after reading every
single one with interest, now gives his views on
just who has hit the nail on the head. But are
we any closer to rectifying the problem?
"Since I wrote
that last piece I have had some conversations,
and some of the points raised by the other
writers make you think as well.
Our most recent gig
is a little case study, when I first started
regular gigging, relatively recently in 2003,
this place was one of the better venues on the
scene, I knew the pub from my youth and
actually went to see another band play there
as I was auditioning for them a week later.
When I
joined Fizzyfish
it was somewhere they
hadn’t played so I negotiated a gig there and
we became favourites - and the venue was one
of our favourites, building a relationship
with the audience and staff.
After
Fizzyfish split in 2010 we returned in a
different guise a few months later, but we
lost so much momentum that even with the boost
of changing our name back to Fizzyfish
we found so many venues
had changed, the stability had gone from the
scene. The venue I was talking about now had a
“manager” in but seemed more invested in food
than bands; his attitude was hostile and his
partner was one of those who knew the price of
everything and the value of nothing. They
destroyed the pub and within months it had
closed, had another false start then closed
again and after a lengthy period has opened
again.
The new owner is doing everything right,
it’s a nicer environment, he’s keen and
supportive, but crucially, that little
community had moved on, they had to find
different things to do. The last few years
have seen the venue go from weekly gigs, to
fortnightly gigs and 2020 will see one gig on
the last Saturday of each month, and I fully
support his approach.
Putting bands on was costing him too
much, the crowds came back initially, but for
all the reasons mentioned before and a few
more, the audience is a shadow of its former
self! Lost momentum in this game is a killer,
it’s taken us best part of a decade to get
back to the level of gigs and breadth of
geographical coverage we once had, were a
better band, but that only counts for so much
these days despite our fee being the same as
it was 15 years ago!
I don’t
think any of us have all the answers, Mike
from After Midnight
raises a valid point and
one we try to avoid, the too high a volume
mistake, it means significant investment in
quality gear, yet we still get the occasional
can you turn it down/up requests (usually to
turn it up!).
It’s been the same with our lights, we
have had to cut them down as people were
complaining about being blinded and most
venues don’t allow smoke machines anymore so
you have to get creative whilst still putting
on a show.
I don’t
blame the tribute acts moving up the tree and
Paul from We are Champion (genius) just highlighted my
point, a tribute to a good band with true
mainstream appeal. But I know lads in less
mainstream tributes who play less often and
sometimes they are going nationwide, some even
into Europe to sustain the interest.
Smoulty
and I generally agree on
stuff still, and I also agree with Dave from FM,
his points about over
saturation. We have
three venues who have us back 3 times a year,
we make sure each return is as different as we
can manage within what the punters will
accept, but there are so many places that will
not even answer any communication with us at
all! Closed shops or closed minds.
We generally want one venue in each town,
unless two venues will support us doing our
different sets, the Rollercoaster, which
is our crowd pleaser all over the place set
and the Seabass’tard which is our harder
uglier rock set, it’s a lot of work. But some
venues distrust that we can make that approach
work, they seem to be risk averse, they want
defined bands doing what they say on the tin,
safety.
We are open to do more clubs in the
future. The ones that have
turned their backs on the agencies and
excessive Bingo are now opening up a new
avenue, we found it logistically difficult to
be able to arrive at a club at the times they
prescribed in the past, but now some are more
flexible and we are as well, let’s see how
that pans out!"
Alan, Fizzyfish
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Just become aware of a venue in Sunderland - Angels Place
- and as was my wont did a quick google search
just to get a 'feel', and was rather impressed; a
biker's gaff with a great Rock atmosphere and on
their Facebook page recently hosted Deep Purple In Rock.
That video alone was enough to whet my appetite.
Took me back to the good 'ol Seventies at Middlesbrough Rock Garden.
If only someone would invent a time machine, that
would be the time I'd zip back to........
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Here we go, last one. It's
been a lot of hard work for me, but I hope it's
made a difference. And if it hasn't, at least
I've tried. If we all do one, may even be very
small, thing, then at least we've done more than
the next guy who has done sod all.........I have
extreme respect and admiration not only for the
bands who bust a gut getting organised and
traipsing to the venue, setting up, belting out
quality Rock (or whatever, but it should be
Rock, really) and then at the end, stripping
down their gear, and going home, but also to the
venues who sometimes take a punt on a band and
ending up crossing their fingers that the gig
isn't marred by, well, any number of things that
can go wrong. I have no musical talent
whatsoever, and would worry myself into an early
grave if I was to host bands on a weekly basis -
so I do what I can from this computer. Humungous
respect goes out to you all. Really.
Only one more 'Disappearing Audiences' article to
go, which I am working on right now. So if you
have something to say then now is the time - and
by 'now' I don't mean sometime next week, or even
in the next day or two or 'yeah, okay I'll
probably type something out this weekend' -
NO. I mean, like, today, in the next hour or two!
It doesn't take that long to type something out so
let people know your views. Anonymous is fine, as
long as you are honest. And it's no good saying
'Well, there's no point cos I agree with a lot
of what's been said'. How does anyone know
that unless you say so?!!!! Like I say, last one
today. That's it. Finito. Fin. Koniec. Tapitra.
Galas. Ende.
I
always, but always have on some belting Rock when
I'm working on Riffs, and as I am now (11am
Friday) half way through what will probably be the
penultimate article on Disappearing Audiences,
this track came on. I just remember being so
disappointed when mega bands 'throw away' a
classic track when at a live gig. Like 'this is
xxxxx xxxxxx' and then it's done and over in
a few minutes. UFO Doctor Doctor and Nazareth
Bad Bad Boy come to mind. Waste of a good
opportunity.
Now,
THIS is an intro...
(Oh, and it really
should go without saying - but PLAY IT
LOUD!!!!!!!!)
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Your Point of View is No More Or
Less Valid Than Anyone Else's
Well,
I've got to say I've been knocked out by the
eye-opening response concerning the demise of
punters coming out to enjoy live music. From
agents, bands, venues - you name them - they have
been concise, honest, eloquent. And it just goes
to prove that people DO care. Okay, there was some
that haven't bothered; but that happens in every
walk of life. If nothing else - and I sincerely
hope there has been considerably more - it has
given everyone involved the opportunity to see
'the other side' of life in the live music world.
I have been enlightened; and I'm sure I'm not the
only one. It highlights the fact that your point
of view is no more or less valid than anyone
else's.
Probably just one more article to go, hopefully
get that done today..........
------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
With all this talk of the
problems of punter numbers, band prices, low turnouts
etc, I was brought slap bang back to earth when I was
made aware of the problems of a member of local lads Ghostband. It
turns out the reason that they have been off the road
for quite a while was the necessity for Brian
Vasey to undergo a quadruple heart bypass,
with other complications that necessitated quite a
long layoff ("It was a rough time
for him and he says the recovery was far worse than
the op as they had to take a vein from his leg to
use in his heart and it was his leg that hurt the
most"). The good news is that he is on
the long, slow, gradual road to recovery and is
itching to get back on the road. But as guitarist Baz
pointed out: "since April Chris (drums) and myself
have either been depping in other bands, separately
or together, and ones we had dep guitarsts for we
never knew if they were going ahead, so other than a
last minute Facebook ad, we thought it better not to
advertise our gigs only to have to pull them. But
since his op Brian has now bounced back and I now
feel safer in advertising our gigs once more."
The three gigs booked for December are: Sat 7 Old
Ship, Newbiggin; Sat 14 Acklam Steels Club,
Middlesbrough; Fri 27 Lambton Arms, Chester Le
Street. I'm sure we all wish Brian well and for him to
be fully recovered and fighting for the Old Ship on
the 7th.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just this minute heard
of a late gig by
The Alcatraz House Band for this Friday
(November 1st) at Steels Club in Sunderland.
Haven't heard of AHB gigging for a very long time so
they may just be testing the water so to speak.
Let's hope this gig is the first of many as they
were a very proficient band. Anyway, quick look
in Riffs achives and here is Val's review of the
band from way way back if anyone is interested .
. .
Oh
- and a slap around the chops for both Jenn and
Steels Club as it was neither of them that we heard
it from - and here we are discussing disappearing
audiences!!
----------------------------------------------------------
TREAT THE BAND WELL OR PAY THE PRICE
Time for a bit ramble - well, it has been a while
- and I am part way through article number four
and it always takes longer than I imagine. Feeling
my brain going porridgey I need a break so, with
reference to the mention of some venues totally
ignoring the band for the evening and not giving
the band a welcome or whatever, I feel I must
mention the time Riffs'
Val ran a pub in West Auckland. It
wasn't for very long (less than a year I think),
but circumstances dictated that that was the way
things would be for a short time. She had her
licence, name above the door and whatever. She had
a live gig night once a week and would have loved
to have heavy Rock bands but her punters preferred
more laid back music; Whitesnake,
Bon Jovi (aaarggh), poppy type
stuff - with maybe a little Rock thrown in. Anyway
she would always make a point of welcoming the
band, each one, by name. Telling them that they
were an integral part of the evening and anything
at all they wanted, or had any problems, they were
to contact her, and only her, and she would sort
it.Don't bother anywone else, come straight to
her. She never charged the band for drinks, but
heaven help any of the band's hangers on trying to
get a freebie! (She could be quite formidable when
she wanted to be - and sometimes when she
didn't!). They were not charged for crisps, bar
snacks etc. She had in her mind what she needed to
break even, and a figure which would be great to
achieve for a modest profit from the evening. On
some occasions this figure was exceeded and she
gave half to the band as a big thank you. She told
me that the look on the guys' faces was pure
astonishment that someone would actually give them
MORE than they asked for. Needless to say she
didn't need to do much searching for bands as the
word spread how well (and fairly) the bands were
treated. Course a Riffs review usually
followed for every band that appeared there. I
remember more than one band said they would come
and play (Val
did do her homeword by the way - she wouldn't book
crap) and just take whatever Val decided to pay
them!! I bet that doesn't happen that often. And
yes, she made sure they got a fair price. Many
bands also played longer (well past finish time)
to a vibrant and appreciative crowd and she would
always make sure they got extra. When she took
over the pub it was, how should I put it, slightly
below what you would expect. Within just a few
weeks the clientele improved and it became a
decent pub. I remember one time a couple of Hell's
Angel types (over 6ft tall, about 3ft across the
shoulders, sleeveless denim jacket, tattoos, bald
- you get the image) started squaring up to one
another. Val was straight over to them, pulled her
top down and said: "I could knock both of you
out with these (Val was about a 38FF by
the way), so stop your messing and
enjoy the night. Or I'll kick you both out!".
They stood there nonplussed and I think they
forgot they were fighting and just went
shellshocked back to the bar. And yes, I have seen
her throw many a drunk guy clean out of the pub,
not one of them lifted a finger to her. But
anyway, back to how to treat bands. The way Val treated the
bands, to me, should be the norm, and I was really
surprised to hear that some bands are treated so
badly. It doesn't make sense to diss a band - they
have mates in other bands and if they are
impressed, the venue will benefit by getting a
good reputation. It was not that long ago that a
new band was struggling to get gigs and asked me
here at Riffs how they would go about getting
noticed in the region - they wanted me to do them
a boxed ad. I said that would be a waste of money.
No one is going to book a band just cos they took
out an advert. I told them what I would do if I
was a competent musician and wanted to get
noticed: I would ring up
Paul Tuns and tell him I had a
great band, and what I played, then say I will
play for expenses just to get a gig - even a
support slot. I would then email Nige at Riffs
(which is me by the way, in case you're losing the
will to live) and say come along for some quality
Rock, and also send in a blurb about the band
accompanied by some wild and quirky pics. I would
then ring around local landlords asking them to
come along. Blitz social media with some pics of
my band looking wild, happy and raucous (who wants
to see a 'boring' band). And just hope that Paul Tuns loves us
and mentions us to his mates (and of course gives
us a return booking at a reasonable price). yeah,
well I said most of this and never heard from them
again. Anyway, back to article number four, or is
it five........and why is my coffee stone cold?
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Really pleased to hear from Paul Tuns regarding
Disappearing Audiences, and his contribution will
be in the top spot in the next article to be
uploaded today (Wednesday).
--------------------------------------------------------------------
And here's the third - probably one more to go if
no more emails come in . . .
Just
uploaded the second of 'Disappearing Audiences'
articles (probably couple more to come as Riffs
readers have been marvellous at giving their
opinions and views on disappearing audiences [not
in a supernatural way you understand]). Brilliant
stuff and an absolute banquet for thought.
--------------------------------------------------------
I
just gotta say I've had some brilliant replies to
my request for insights into the dwindling crowds
at live gigs. Well, here we are, Saturday (it is
Saturday isn't it?!) and I still don't have
anything ready regarding the upcoming article (now
articles) on aforesaid subject. It's not that I'm
lazy (although that may go some way) but I have
had some frighteningly incisive, not to say
interesting and long-winded (but totally relevant)
replies. So much so that one article just will not
encompass them all. My original idea was to edit
them down to bite-size chunks (bullet points if
you will) but . . . well, I found that a bit like
trying to edit Stairway to Heaven or Rock Bottom
down to three minutes. You could - but you'd need
to hide away in a dark place for a long time so
no-one would know who you are. So, yes, I'm
working on it, so bear with me......
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riffs
is gathering info on your views as to what may be
the cause of dwindling crowds for live music gigs
around the North-East - and what, if anything, can
be done about it. We have some great venues,
caring landlords/owners and a plethora (that means
lots) of top quality
(I mean like fuckin' awesome)
bands - so why so few punters? If you wish to have
your say then just email me here:
riffsonline@gmail.com. You can even
remain anonymous if you wish (but make it clear in
your email).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
APATHY
RULES! - WHATEVER
Just
this very minute (well, coupla days now) heard
from an extremely well-known and well-respected
North-East pub landlord who has put his heart and
soul into live music for many years, that he is
close to calling it a day with live bands. Over
the past few years his gig crowds have steadly
dwindled to a point now that it is hardly feasible
to host live music. Considering the quality of
musicianship and wide range of excellent bands on
offer in our area, this is a total disgrace.
Regular readers will have noticed that Riffs (and
bands and venues) have mentioned the lack of live
music support on many occasions of late but it is
now becoming a frightening reality that venues
will have to react to. The annoying thing is, the
answer is unbelievably simple - fuck
the box and get out and watch a band!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
ADRENALINE-FUELLED HEAVY ROCK
 I think that any band who openly
welcomes a review must be reasonably sure they are
musically and visually capable.
Riffs never expects perfection, indeed, so glad we
haven't found it 'cos life would then be filled with
anti-climaxes. So it was nice to hear from Graham
from Adrenaline
who boast a night of 'Heavy Rock and Classic Rock' -
my musical taste buds are a-rockin' already.
The gig is on November 9th, Saturday, at
Darlington's Quakerhouse.
Now all I need to do is try and remember where I
have heard the name Graham Forrester from.... An
enlightening email will surely be heading my
way.......
Oh, and in case you
need a taster of what Adrenaline
offer. Look no further than HERE.
------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------
There's
many amongst us who just can't get enough AC/DC
from the good ol' early days of Bon Scott.
Well, your lust for Rock and Metal at its best
can be well-satiated tonight (Friday 11th) at
Gateshead's Three Tuns when UK/DC
take to the stage for a blistering Rock set
that I can assure you is dynamite. You have been duly notified.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Whoops. Thought I had mentioned this but
apparently not. The Times Inn, Dalton le
Dale, has shut its doors. On its Facebook
page, it says 'for good', but I don't think the
staff and punters would see much good in it! I
think they may mean 'permanently' or
'indefinitely'.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
VICTIM OF
CHANGES
 Without
question, Rob
Halford is one
of Heavy Metal’s all-time great vocalists – as heard
through his highly influential and groundbreaking work
with Judas Priest. But age must do strange things to people,
as he is about to release an all-new album entitled
‘Celestial’ - full of 'Christmas' songs.
‘Celestial’ sees Halford joined by a supporting cast
of those very close to him – his brother (Nigel) on
drums, his nephew on bass (Alex, son of Priest bassist
Ian Hill), has sister (Sue) on bells, and twin guitar
tandem of Robert Jones and Jon Blakey.
'Donner and Blitzen,' and 'Protected by the Light,' as
well as reworkings of such holiday standards as 'God
Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen,' 'Joy to the World,' and
'Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,' sit alongside other
offerings. 'Donner and Blitzen’ gets the snowball
rolling for Celestial – a song full of
excitement, love and hope,” says Rob. “You
can hear and feel the power of Christmas time –
energy roarin’ with rockin’ reindeers haulin’!”
Of course you can Mr Halford. Now where's my copy
of Sad Wings of Destiny . . .
------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Gonna
give a shout to Heart
Shaped Stone who, up until today,
I thought was a band but, apparently - well not
apparently - because she has told me she isn't a
band, she is solo, and she ought to know.
I'm giving a shout for two reasons. 1) she's
taken out an advert in Riffs, which helps me pay
the exorbitant prices for web hosting and domain
name; and 2) she was the lead singer in
two Rock bands - '99
Clicks', and 'Fallen Angel'.
[I could squeeze in a 3) by saying she
was very polite - you'd be surprised how many
people aren't!].
As she told Riffs quite candidly: "Everything
I play is totally live, no tracks or gizmos, I
strive to play well known cover songs that
people like to hear on a night out and very
often finish up with the audience singing
along as the night goes on, mainly great
singalong songs from the 80s and 90s from
bands such as 3 Non
Blondes, Oasis, Allanis Morrisette,
Beautiful South, Fleetwood Mac, KT
Tunstall, Blondie, Cranberries,
plus some older, earlier and more modern songs
too to please a wider range of audience."
She has a great following in her home town of
North Shields but travels all over the
North-East for gigs. She is no stranger to the
weird and wonderful venues we have here in the
North-East and has hosted buskers nights and
mulitplayer live music gigs since 2017, now
pushing her solo career.
I'll admit, unless she dives into the odd Priest or Motorhead track
("that really isn't going to happen, Nige")
she may leave me a bit by the wayside but, as my
niece told me "There's more to life than
Heavy Rock". Errrmmmm, sorry Hazel, nope,
you've lost me.
But I appreciate there is room for everyone in
our thriving music arena and Heart Shaped Stone
certainly have the background and
professionalism to say "I'm here now, just
leave everything to me". And that, surely,
is what a lot of landlords are dying to hear.
(second only to "there's hundreds of people
queued outside for tonight's gig!")
There is a Facebook page showreel:
https://www.facebook.com/heartshapedmusic/videos/3191461814229734/
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Ginger Baker, one
of the co-founders of Cream,
has died at the age of 80.
Baker
is best known for co-founding Cream with Eric
Claption and Jack Bruce in 1966. He
suffered various health problems in the later years
of his life, telling Rolling Stone in 2013 that
performing “exhausted” him. The
candid interview also saw Baker reveal that he
suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
(COPD) from smoking. In February 2016, he
was forced to cancel a tour with Air Force after
being diagnosed with “serious heart problems”. He is
thought to have undergone open heart surgery in June
of that year.
-------------------------------------------------------------
INTERNATIONAL DATELINE
OCTOBER 7 . . . INTERNATIONAL DATELINE OCTOBER 7
. . . INTE
 Direct
from Riffs International Overseas Reporter (you
better believe it!) comes some AC/DC news; recently
opened in Prahran, Melbourne (that's way over in
Australia, by the way) is 'Angus
and Bon' Steakhouse. Which,
co-incidentally or not, is just around the corner
from the Station Hotel where the band played one of
their first Melbourne gigs back in 1975. Our
intrepid Ozzie reported dutifully snapped this pic
of the Angus and Bon plaque and I have requested
that she wears her 'AC/DC founded 1974' t-shirt in
front of the aforementioned establishment while
taking a photo of herself (I think the hip amongst
us call it a 'selfie') - but of course this all
depends on the weather as I was unable to afford the
very fastest pigeon. But a big thanks to Franki who, by her
own admisssion ended up in Melbourne after missing
the Hollywood plane. Don't worry, I told her, relax.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------
Another
thousand words, this time from Qween,
also with a sellout concert on a recent Friday at
Hedworth Hall:
Checkout their radio interview here.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS
The
Bay Horse in Bishop Auckland (on a recent Friday).
. .
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 Heard
from Maddog - Chairman of the Tyne Wolves - that the Duke of
Cumberland in Gateshead reopened
fairly recently and is planning live gigs. The
management intends to have regular band nights but
The Tyne Wolves have got in quick with two gigs
there already planned: Red Revival on 28th of
this month, and Three
Odd Shoes on Oct 4. Start time is 8pm
and there will be a charity bucket for welcome
contributions.
Val and myself have
many happy memories of the Duke, with Thompa
vying with Paul Tuns for the most gracious
host
in the North East. He
set the bar extremely high, let's just hope the
present management are even half as good.
---------------------------------------------------------------
The
gig arranged for Darlington's Forum for 24th of
this month has been put back to next year and this
new gig featuring The Tom Atkinson
Band and the legendary Russ Tippins Band
now takes its place:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Heard from Dave from
the Graham
Henderson Experience that their gig
tonight (Friday) at the Ox and Plough in Washington
is off. The venue is closed and boarded so I guess
that means no live gigs there for a
while............but we'll let you know if anything
changes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Better
late than never - tonight's
gig (Fri) at the now iconic Three Tuns in
Gateshead is Heavy Metal USURPER. Tried my best
to get a pic of the band but no luck. But there
are some vids on Youtube taken at Trillans. I
mention tonight's gig as it is now getting so damn
difficult to get to see some Metal bands - and
even more so if they play their own compositions;
so good on Usurper. Check out their vids and if
you are in the Gateshead area then why not pop
along and give these guys some support? master of
the wreck baptism of
fire
And good on Paul Tuns for giving these
lads an airing.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
TRIBUTE
BAND BREAKS PUB ATTENDANCE RECORD
 By all accounts Darlo Blues day on
Sunday was a rip-roaring success and, although we
would have liked to hear from several bands
concerning their gig on the day, at least we've
been contacted by The
Paul Rodgers Story who, apparently,
broke an attendance record at a Darlington pub! We
hear that there was, wait for it, 110 (that's one
hundred and ten) people watching just the band's
sound check at Hoskins Bar in the town
centre. And when the band kicked off, there had
been an unbelievable 553 people in the venue. The
previous record was 350. The band, needless to
say, fed off the crowd and went down an absolute
storm. The Paul Rodgers Story have a new website
up and running www.paulrodgersstory.com
(I've told them about the Riffs reviews links not
working) and also I can link to a video taken on
the night of the band playing 'Fire and Water'.
Just click here.
(above
pic was taken at Darlington Forum earlier this
year)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
 Has anyone a cure for
Fizzyfish? Those adaptable funsters
are at it again - raising money for charity. I can't
put it much better than singer Alan so I'll quote
directly from his email:
"This one's been
drawn together really quickly, Sunday 29th
Sept at the old B&M store on Harbour Walk,
Hartlepool, TS24 0YA. We're helping out the
Personal Trainers at The Gym Group in Hartlepool
in an event to raise funds for Andy’s Man Club,
set up to help people with mental health issues in
remembrance of Adam Rutherford, a young lad who
sadly took his own life. The event is free, but
obviously we would welcome any donations on the
day to the cause, there's 3 live music acts; Red Sky,
the acoustic duo span off the band Skyran, the
wonderful Jades
a 4-part
glamourous harmony group, and to end the afternoon
there’s the ugly buggers that are us, Fizzyfish,
with a power hour to end the day with a bang. The
event runs from noon until around 4pm, there’s
plenty of other stuff going on for those who like
to physically exert themselves - and those who
like to watch them try. Everyones doing their bit
for nowt, from the organisers, Hart
tool hire, PA company Soundwaves, Van Hire
company and Hartlepool Council;
they have all been a great help, all funds raised
go straight to the cause."
There's nothing more I can add to enhance the event,
except a plea for local people to go along, have a
crackin' day out and try and pop a few pennies in
the collecting buckets. Anyone who's organised an
event knows just how much hard work - not to mention
sweat and sleepless nights - goes into it, so to tot
it all up at the end of the day to realise a
financial reward for Andy's Man Club would
put smiles on so many faces . . .
And well done Fizzyfish
- Riffs will always have room for you.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
DIRTY
DOGZ PHIL PROPOSES A NIGHT OF
'PANACHE, POWER,
PRECISION AND PASSION'
And talking of 'no-nonsense', Riffs is
excited at an email from Phil
from Dirty Dogz
fame who, after the demise of aforesaid band, has been
pining for some quality, down-to-earth Rock done by
mature, experienced musicians - or in his own words 'A tasty selection of highly regarded and
seasoned pros' (I'm hearing
people standing and clapping at the back . . .) and
with the adage 'if you want something doing properly
do it yourself' resounding around his thinking organ,
Phil has decided to do just that.
Putting
his money where his mouth is, Phil is arranging a
'little' soiree where he expects to showcase some
incredible Rock talent. He told me: 'There’s
still some cracking nights to be had out there I’m
sure but, as most bands are finding, it's often
hard chuffin work playing to 2 men, a whippet and
a crazy couple in the corner who are adamant they
want a bit of Britney! However, the frustration
and disappointment seems to have wained a tad over
the noted period of inactivity and I am dipping my
arthritic toes (some may say foolishly) into the
local, unpredictable rock'n'roll waters again.'
At the moment he
has got his main band together: Joe
Hope-Bass/Vox (“The Boy”), Ray Johns-Hammond
(“The Man”), Sid White-Drums
(“The Business”), Phil
Caisley-Gtr/Vox (“The Dreamer”) but
Phil promises some 'special guests' not to mention
support band(s).
Still in its early stages,
Phil is wanting to gauge support before he goes full
tilt. He continued: 'Looking for definite feedback
from real fans of live music who like nothing more
than to immerse themselves in a night of quality
sounds delivered with panache, power, precision and
passion'. Expectations are high and Phil hopes
the setlist to include
'interpretations/improvisations of classic rock,
blues and psychedelia from Hendrix, Zeppelin, Cream,
Stones, Beatles, Free, Neil Young, Peter Green, Bob
Dylan...plus the odd original and a few surprises.'
Phil has emphasised that this will happen only
with enough prior interest. He welcomes texts on 07803 640235. I have promised Phil,
Riffs' full involvement and when anything happens -
we wanna know!
LET'S MAKE THIS HAPPEN.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
HEADS
DOWN NO-NONSENSE BOOGIE
Nipped out to catch Ma Kelly's Boys
last Sunday (15th Sep) at Crook Hotel,
co-incidentally about the same time as John Coghlan's Quo
were playing in Darlington as part of the annual
Blues Festival. Again, Ma Kelly's Boys are
seasoned musicians who have done their homework
and noticeably love playing Quo's early stuff.
Lots on offer, including 'Railroad', 'Roll Over
Lay Down', 'Mystery Song' and many of the expected
Quo classics - the sound was ballsy, meaty and
perfectly balanced. Lead guitarist's feigned move
to turn down the volume elicited angry shouts from
the crowd. Think so too. Quo fans will not feel
short-changed here.
  
-------------------------------------------
My faith in
humanity has been partially restored - well, I say
humanity; I mean the Rock-going public of the
North-East. How? Well, I have just received (and
now put together) a review of UK/DC at Glendale Club from
last Friday (13th), and it was packed. Chocka.
Heaving. And don't take my word for it, The Seaham
Silverback was there, sent in his review with
pictures of said crowd. Magnifico.
------------------------------------------------------
 Received
a link to the new offering from our local lads Millennium.
Coming in at around an ear-battering six minutes
this Heavy Rock onslaught - A
New World - is a taster for
the full album coming out this month. Seems
there's fewer and fewer Rock and Metal heads left,
but for the Metal minority this little ditty
should satisfy. Paul from the band told me: 'It's
tough for all bands but especially those that
peddle their own stuff. Hopefully we'll travel a
wider road soon.' We wait with baited
breath. Give it a listen, crank your speakers to
11, sit back, and enjoy . . .A NEW WORLD
----------------------------------------------------
Just been
sent a link to a great video by the NE STREET BAND. Check it out here
--------------------------------------------
Three Tuns in Gateshead need
band for this Sat (14th). Contact Paul asap
07940715824 (and let me know if you get the gig
and I'll post it on the Listings page). NOW
SORTED,. FREDDIE PURVIS GOT THE GIG.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
After typing
the below para something came to me that Colin
Smoult said to me many, many moons ago when he was
in Shovelmouth. He told me how much it
means when, after a gig, if just one person comes
over and says to the band how much they had
enjoyed the gig. That, he said, made all the hard
work so worthwhile.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Can you
hear us at the back?"
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
While
writing the review for Obsession yesterday (Sat) I
twigged that the brilliant lead guitarist John Footitt was
in a band called Riot, way back. So, after a
search through Riffs' archives I found a review
for Riot done
at (you might guess) The Three Tuns, by
Val. Again, not sure what year - but I know
someone will help out. Here is the review. Plus a
couple of pics of John belting out some toons
including some Bon J . . .aaah, where's the sick
bucket?!!!
..............................................................................
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Less than a week to
go until the Ruf Blues
Caravan 2019
take to the stage at Hartlepool Supporters
Club on Saturday 14th.
A lot of people may panic
thinking they now do not have
time to arrange tickets for the
gig - but panic not, as Tommy is
allowing pay on door to this
event if all tickerts are not
sold.
If you want to check
availability just give him a quick email on
thomas.wormald2@ntlworld.com.
And he may even hold them on
the door for you, I know
not, but if you ask very
nicely he just may.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just heard from Blistered Molly that their charity Ball at Hexham
Mart has been cancelled. It was listed for later
this month but it is now not to be. Mike from
the band told Riffs "I'm not suprised really,
at £50 a ticket!" And I bet he was looking
forward to that drum solo too. Such is life.
Mike is slightly miffed as the band turned down
a couple of bookings for that night so is now
trying to fill that slot; it's Saturday
September 28; contact
Mike on 07711 006943.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOOD OLD-FASHIONED LOVER BOY
 And
I thought Sunday was a day of rest!!
No sooner had I finished putting together last night's
review of The Codgers by the Seaham Silverback,
than in pops an email from Rob of
Qween who had another successful gig
on Friday (30th Aug) at The Grand in Newcastle.
And he very kindly sent me in a couple of pics taken
at that fine establishment.
I also hear that the band even did a meet and greet
after the show for their many fans demanding a chat.
Nice one guys.
Their next gig is at Hedworth Hall South Shields on
Friday 27th Sep and tickets are just £6 from the venue
or Qween's Facebook page.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I
notice that The Codgers
are playing Houghton Sports and Social Club
tonight (Sat) and there's just a chance that the
Seaham Silverback may be out and about too. Now I'd
hate for anyone to put two and two together . .
. but I've sorted through Riffs archives and
dusted off some old pics I took of the young lads
when they were Old Codger in 2007. So,
without further ado:
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I can agree wholeheartedly with The
Seaham Silverback's review of Starz
a few weeks ago. I caught them last
night (Thursday 29th Aug) at
Osbournes in Yarm to get pics of
them on stage and was mega-impressed
by this versatile power trio. An
object lesson in how to - seemingly
effortlessly - entertain a crowd
with an ultra-tight sound by
seasoned and talented musicians and
still have a laugh with the punters.
To be able to play a bikers gig one
night and a wine bar the next will
give Starz an enviable edge.
Tony from St. Peter's Club
in Newcastle told me: "These lads
are great. I have had them twice
this year and intend to book them
again for 2020."
I
kidnapped
guitarist Kenny
between sets:
"There is no
other place
like the
North-East,"
he pointed out,
"every weekend
there are
numerous local
bands on offer
to go and see
- not many
people realise
this is
special to the
area."
Although he
still wouldn't
be drawn on
whether hardened
rockers Black
Rose would
be publicising
their upcoming
album with some
local gigs.
I have updated
the Silverback's
review with some
pics but have
not changed any
of his text.
Starz are
still mid
mini-tour and I
unashamedly urge
you to go see.
Kiko, Mark and
Kenny's
repertoire is
all-encompassing
and I truly
can't see anyone
being
disappointed. http:www.starzrock.co.uk
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FIZZYFISH
HAVE DARLINGTON IN THEIR SIGHTS
  By
jove they're at it again!
Fizzy by name and fizzy by nature.
Only this time, the band who put the E in
Entertainment plan to bring a bit of life to
Darlington. They are playing for nopence, not a
penny, not a threepenny bit, not a tanner, not a
florin so as to help Family Help in Darlington,
which specialises in domestic abuse support for
women and women with children fleeing domestic
abuse. They provide safe temporary accommodation for
those that need it, in a purpose built refuge with 8
units.
Alan told Riffs: "We are honoured to be
supporting the refuge and will be offering a night
of entertainment for the princely sum of £6 a
ticket. We will be going full on Rollercoaster set
for this one, so nothing esoteric, just a great
night of great tunes!"
It's on Friday, October 18. Tickets are available
direct from the venue, The Forum Music Centre,
Borough Road, Darlington, 01325 363135. All profits
will go direct to the refuge.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well,
some balls are held for charity and some for fancy
dress, but the ball that's held in aid of
Tynedale Hospice is the ball that
Blistered Molly likes
best. Yep, the band has been asked to play at the
Hats and Glad Rags Ball in
the Function Suite at Hexham Mart. Drummer Mike
from the band tells me they are all looking
forward to introducing the crowd to some Classic
Rock and I note that within their repertoire they
include some Free, Zep,
AC/DC, Lizzy and . . . Sabbath. Hmmm,
best keep clear of War Pigs methinks and probs go
for Paranoid. Even Zep
may be a push. "Well," said Mike
confidently, "we'll suss out the crowd and see
what we can get away with. The name  of the game,
though, is to entertain. And we have no worries
on that score." With such a positive
attitude the band may just make some converts.
Singer Ashleigh is a big
Zep fan so hopes are high for some
blistering Rock. The event has been put together
by Patricia Barnes of Hats and Glad Rags in Hexham
and Gofton Wagyu and takes place on Saturday
September 28th. It all kicks off at 7pm and you'll
get chucked out around midnight.
Not a cheap night mind, coming in at £50. But hey,
it is for charity and hospices up and down the
country rely on public donations to survive. And
if you had a loved one spending time in a hospice
you would wish the best for them wouldn't you? If
you do wish to treat yourself and partner then
call 01434 606 444 or e-mail
fundraising@tynedalehospice.com. Mike did say Blistered Molly
intend to make it a night to remember. I think
when
Mike announces: "Hey everybody, this
is our twenty-minute version of Moby Dick."
That should do the trick.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Had a
little jaunt last night (Fri 23rd) to Bishop Auckland
to see Four Letter
Word do their
stuff at the Bay Horse. Review and pics sorted
for your delectation. The
Seaham Silverback has just submitted to
Riffs his review of The Whole
Hog at The
Glendale and this is now finished and both
reviews are here to view.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
WELL - THEY
HAVEN'T KILLED KENNY
Well, would you credit it? Riffs was opining the
lack of music news today and into our lap popped
this little gem concerning not only a great Metal
band, but also we spy the ruggedly Rock looks of
guitarist Kenny Nicholson who is no stranger to
Riffs News pages. [And as this info didn't come from
Kenny we officially slap him around the face with a
wet lettuce].
He is now part of Millennium,
a Billingham-based Heavy Metal band who are due to
release their fourth full-length studio album A
New World on October 25th, 2019 through Pure
Steel Records.
Vocalist Mark Duffy commented: “We try to keep
some of our New Wave Of British Heavy Metal roots,
but we also try a bit of variation with songs like
‘Obsolete’ and ‘Assassin’ that have a more
straight ahead heavy metal feel to them." The
band who played on the album consisted of:
Mark Duffy (vocals, Toranaga)
Will Philpot (guitar, Serpents Kiss)
Louis Astbury (guitar)
Paul Simpson (bass)
Darren Moore (drums)
We say 'consisted' as Louis Astbury has been
replaced by Kenny, and drummer Darren Moore by Nigel
Waterfall-Brown.
I, for one, will be keeping my eye open for a
possible local gig - well, there's bound to be one
pub that has the balls to unleash some Heavy Metal
thunder. Isn't there?
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Further to the mensh for the
upcoming Red Revival gig at Leam Lane, thought some
readers may be interested in their take
on Whole Lotta Rosie. The lead singer's
voice is quite powerful - you could say
she's got it aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaall. Check
out the video here,
taken on the 18th of this month at the Smile
Festival.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Bearing in mind I have been a lilfe-long UFO fan, I was
looking forward to the Pete
Way Band at Trillians on Monday just
gone. But decided to give it a miss.
I'll say nothing more, just point you to this
Youtube video recorded recently - here. Too
bad, too sad.
----------------------------------------------------------
TYNE WOLVES INITIATE RED REVIVAL
Now,
this one's a month away but I'm rather intrigued
with this. Maddog
and the Tyne Wolves
not only show their worth by putting on some
regular Rock/Grunge/Metal offerings at the
Deuchars Arms up there in Leam Lane but has Riffs
mucho respect as he makes sure proceeds go to a
cause close to his heart - the Kayaks charity.
News enough you may agree but I've just heard from
him of his gig on Sep 15 for: Red
Revival. Now I know if I said they have a
female singer a lot of you will immediately
discount the band or subconciously think less off
them - I hold my hands up there. But then think of
Warlock, think
of Benatar. Roxette
even? And what about Harry?
No - not Dirty, Debbie!
Check out this song (click on image) and
see what you think. Massive potential to be a
rockin' combo there. And let's face it; if Maddog
says to them 'I want you Rockin' tonight'.
Would you argue?
.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Just one day to
go and we get info on tomorrow's (SAT 17th) Burning
Rock Festival at
Stanley. I've added the info to the Listings page but
here's a rundown of who's on:
2pm no ordinary Angel; 3pm me mes; 4pm dog in a
box; 5pm rigid digits; 6pm ballbreakers; 7pm riverrain; 8pm lock n load.
Only a fiver and pay at gate. That's it.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Gotta
give a big shout to Four Letter Word who are
braving Darlington's apathetic Rock scene to be
part of the Britannia's Britfest event in aid of
St. Theresa's Hospice this Saturday (17th).
Much kudos to Michael and the lads for giving of
their time for such a worthwhile cause, who are
hoping to take to the stage around 5. It's from 2
to 9pm and other bands on the menu are East Coast Mainline; The
Mechanical Capybara and String Edition.
I gotta say, know nothing much about the Britannia
except it's seemed to have always been there,
overseeing many changes to Darlo including the
demise of Handcrafts from directly over the road,
the building of the A68/St. Cuthbert's Way
roundabout directly outside the pub, not to
mention the massive ugly DWP building that it
faces.
And they do their bit for the wild birds by always
maintaining a fresh supply of num nums via their
Britannia tree (not much escapes Riffs' eagle
eye!!). So with that attention to detail it's
probs a pub worth visiting.
As with Maddog's afternoon gig up there in Leam
Lane, we wish for good weather to enhance the
event.
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Having a look at Riffs
Listings it's nice to see that Paul Tuns' panic at
getting his August's gigs sorted is now history
and he can look forward to some crackin' bands -
culminating in the astounding coup of securing Skinny Molly; featuring Lynryd Skynyrd's Mike Estes (as
this is the ONLY north-east gig [apart from
Stormin' biker rally the night before] you get to
this gig or you've missed the band for well over a
year). Zooming forward to this Friday (16th) he
has the ever-popular FM. Have dug out
a couple of pics which - according to the photo
info. - I took in 2013. AC/DC,
Hendrix and many others get an
outing with this quality band and - from what I
can remember - a stunning lead guitarist.
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Must give a shout out to David from High Howdon Social Club which
was host to an Abba
tribute last weekend. Between you and me he would be
happy for them to sneak in 'Thunderstruck'. Well, you
never know - the last song the
Pistols played at their gig at
Midddlesbrough Rock Garden in the Seventies was
'Teenage Kicks' - and who'da thought that? So fingers
crossed for ya mate. On the off chance they do, be
sure to let Riffs know!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Isn't
it nice - or do I mean 'rare' - when people keep their
word? And so it is that Rob from Qween Sold Out (Soz -
I mean Qween) sent in some pics - or should I say 'pic'
- of his gig last night Saturday 9th at Newcastle
Village Hotel.
Although I was expecting more than one, at least it's
nice to have an image of the evening. I must apologise
for the size though (unfortunately not the first time
I've had to say that) but this is exactly as supplied.
Beggars can't be choosers, so I thank Rob and fingers
crossed his full houses continue.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
THIS MACHINE
CREATES WHEELS OF STEEL
Nice to hear from This Machine who, I
have been reliably informed (cos they told me), have
been having some rather pleasing responses regarding
their cover versions. Saxon
commented
'very cool' when talkin' 'bout Wheels of
Steel - praise indeed. Also,
their version of the Dead Daisies Long
Way To Go  got a 'like' on
the Daisies' Facebook page. Not bad going for Norman, Tony, Sequel, Paul
and The Hamster of Doom (aka
Gazza) who I know have been on the circuit long enough
to hone their musicianship to deserve such eminent
acolades. I just hope this mensh doesn't embarrass the
lads - no? Well, if that doesn't, then the following
photos just may; taken ten years ago when myself and
Val interviewed the band at The Three Tuns in
Gateshead.
We were all much older then - we're younger
than that now...
 
This Machine playing
Wheels of Steel at The Frigate, Marske- here
This Machine
playing Long Way To Go at The Penny Gill - here
---------------------------------------------------------------....................................
New
Plough Dipton Music festival confirmed
for Sunday 25th August
from 1.15pm through to 10.15pm
Music all day with 6
live acts from solos to full bands as below:
Scott
Kiers solo
North Road duo
Mitch Laddie band
Jen Stevens Little Moth duo
Ash Humble solo
Sofi-stication band
And no reason not to pop along as it's completely,
totally FREE.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
HSC BACK ON THE CIRCUIT
 
Just a heads up for any sharp eyed readers -
especially around the Hartlepool area - who have
noticed that Hartlepool Supporters Club has
been missing from our Gig Listings the last few
months. Well, just heard from Tommy there and they
have had a break from bands but are now back to
firing on all six. Their gigs are, of course, now on
our Listings and you would do well to check out that
fine establishment, which has hosted some really
rare out-of-town bands. Highlight for this month just
has to be The Feelgood Band. I think you will be a
tad impressed. Check 'em out here
--------------------------------------------------------------
QWEEN SOLD OUT
Just heard that the Qween gig (that's a Queen
tribute for those of you have just got up or are or
well hungover) this Friday 9th at Newcastle is now
completely SOLD OUT. That's three gigs in a row for Qween that have
sold out. Wonder if they'll be tempted to rename the
band 'Qween Sold Out'
. . .!!
Rob
from the band has promised to send in some pics
so I'll pop the best on the this page as soon as
I get them.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Hey Molly,
how you so skinny?"
 Bands come and go, venues come and
go, but Gateshead's Three Tuns has been
one of the most reputable and long-established
venues for North-East live gigs for as long as I
can remember [many of you will be thinking 'well,
that's about a fortnight then'] - indeed, just
look at our old reviews and quite a few feature
the Tuns, so it's quite fitting that Paul from
that Rockin' gaff has the honour to be the ONLY
North-East pub to host Lynyrd
Skynyrd's Mike
Estes and his band Skinny Molly. The
band rate the Tuns gig so highly [it states on the
 Skinny Molly website
that The Three Tuns is one of their favourite
places to play] that not only did they plead with
Paul to have a gig there [I totally imagine] but I
understand they are having a warm-up the night
before when they headline Stormin' The Castle
Bikers Rally at Bishop Auckland. Those bikers
appreciate a bit of the ol' Southern hospitality
and will no doubt get the Mollies all fired up for
a night of propa Rockin' boogie for the Tuns
crowd. Just a shame they don't play Freebird
anymore as they reckon it's just not called for at
any of their gigs..............yeah,
right!! - they wouldn't dare not play
Freebird!!!! Skinny Molly
also play the best of Lynyrd
Skynyrd, Molly Hatchet, Blackfoot
and The Outlaws. The Tuns gig is Saturday 31st August
and tickets are a tenner. And, although we all
know the Tuns is like a massive football arena
once you get inside . . . Paul must make it known
that when the tickets are gone - they're gone. No
door entry wiithout a ticket. No squeezing in the
odd punter. And apparently there's quite a few
odd punters in Gateshead.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Paul at the Tuns in now all
sorted. All dates filled and up on the Listings
page... he's appreciative of all bands who
enquired and is full for August - unless someone
pulls out!!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Well, just dug
out another Riffs
review from way back, by dear ol' Val - and again, no
idea when this was penned. Val mentioned it was the
week after the 26th. Ah, right, so that's cleared that
up........
-------------------------------------------------
C'mon
bands - Riffs is updated many times daily and when we
say Paul needs bands for The Three Tuns in Gateshead
for this month then we are talking now;
we will let you know when the slots have been filled -
but they haven't been yet. He still has three dates to
fill
This Saturday 10th August
Next Friday 16th August
Next Saturday 17th August. So give him a call
07940
715824. WHEN?
NOW!!
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
AC/DC
GB AT THE PENNY GILL
 Hello
everybody peeps. Well, just  got back from The
Penny Gill in Spennymoor where I
nipped along to try out a new camera -
always felt a bit of a wally lugging my
large DSLR about, so invested in new
technology. Was really pleased with the
results; will need some tweaking but I
thought I'd post a few pics from its very
first use. I'm contemplating undertaking
band reviews - just like the old days
(but, unfortunately without Val) if there
is a demand; and of course a review is no
good without pics to illustrate. Anyway,
this is from last night's gig (Sun Aug
4th) at The Penny Gill of
AC/DC GB . . .
I recorded them playing 'High Voltage' and that
is now on Youtube - https://youtu.be/V-0BzWOjMDk.
---------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
I've started experimenting
with linking bands names in the Listing page to
Youtube videos of themselves - to help readers get
an idea of what to expect at a gig. At the moment
I've picked a few at random but, if any band wants
a link to a particular video then please let me
know and I will initiate that. I'm not sure what
will happen though when that gig comes and goes; I
guess you will need to re-send the link for me to
keep it up to date............ I'll see how it
goes........
---------------------------------------------------------------------
COME
ON AND TOUCH ME
The keen-eyed amongst you may have noticed how
many Starz
gigs there are now in August and
September. Well, it just happens their popularity
seems to know no bounds. I remember guitarist
Kenny telling me earlier this year that they went
out of their way to pick a set list that was
recognisable but yet well away from the
'done-to-death' covers. Well, that has paid off in
spades [what's the builders' motto - measure twice
and cut once]. Kenny explained to Riffs: 'Starz has gone down
really well everywhere; one landlord told us that
we were the first band he'd listened to for months
cos normally he switches off when he's serving
behind the bar because he's sick of hearing the
same old songs, he couldnt wait to get us back!' Not
only that but Kenny is in The
Paul Rodgers Story who had no choice
but to reform after constant requests and, by all
accounts, played a blinder recently at Darlington's
Forum (and yes a re-booking ensued). And, if all
that isn't impressive enough, his other band, the
heavy Black
Rose is on the verge of
releasing a new album. Kenny went on: 'Black Rose are almost finished
recording a new album which is a lot heavier than
anything we have done in the past, it should
surprise a few people!'
Couldn't be too heavy for me Kenny - or too
loud! Click pic to hear
'Cure For Your Disease' by Black Rose.
I wouldn't be surprised if Kenny makes himself
available on a regular basis, surrounded by
railings, for bands who want to just get close and
touch him . . . or just stare in awe . . .
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Three Tuns all sorted for
weekend - they have Romeo's Pistol
for this Friday and Prism
for Saturday. Two bands quick off the mark - mind
you, neither have been in touch with Riffs. We got the
confirmation from Paul Tuns. Y'know, ya try to
give bands publicity . . .
Paul is still short for some dates late August
so give him a call 07940 715824.
THREE TUNS NEEDS BAND FOR FRIDAY now sorted
Paul Tuns is well on his way to filing his listing
for gigs in August but finds himself with a space
for THIS FRIDAY 2ND (Three Tuns in Gateshead)- so
get in there quick: call or text
07940 715824. And when you have
secured your gig, email me here at Riffs and I will
add it to the Listings page - and if you are very
polite I will give your band a mensh here on the
News page!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 If
I'm anything, I'm a man of my word; September's
listings is now live and the first entry is for Friday 13th at The Glendale,
Hall Lane, Houghton le Spring DH5 8DA for a gig
by UK/DC
playing tracks by the legendary Bon Scott.
Angus from that band played with AC/DC GB
recently and went down a storm at Steels
Club in Sunderland, so a lot is riding on
the Glendale gig.
Will they - can they - surpass the Steels Club
gig?
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Can I make a clarification concerning the AC/DC GB review
below. The Angus on the night of the gig review
was from UK/DC, and he was standing in on that
night at Steels
Club and it is his band - UK/DC who is
appearing at Glendale Club on Friday
September 13th. UK/DC
play the Bon Scott
era songs, so that's the first five AC/DC albums; and
some would argue undoubtedly the best. But let's
not get into that. I should be getting September's
list up soon on the Listings page and I will make
sure that that will be the first gig entered into
it.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
BANDS SOUGHT
FOR GATESHEAD GIGS
Looks like landlord Paul Tuns
is having a reet rough August suffering numerous
cancellations! He has put an urgent shout out for
bands for the following dates for his two pubs in
Gateshead - no specific style has been mentioned
so just give him a ring . . . call or text 07940 715824
SCHOONER
Sat 17th, Fri 23rd
THREE TUNS
Fri 2, Sat 3, Sat 10, Fri 16, Sat 17, Sat 24, Fri
30.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
The band's website: https://www.acdcgb.co.uk/
For a taste of the band: https://youtu.be/QRCIfpYXSC8
---------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------------
---------------------------------------------------------------------
WE'LL
HAVE NONE OF YER DEVIL MUSIC
AROUND THESE 'ERE PARTS
Well, ya just gotta
feel sorry for those Junkyard Dogz, all set for
their debut gig at Ye Old Cross in Ryton
Village recently - but just days away from
their much-anticipated gig and they are told it's
off. Who says they can't go ahead? Environmental
Health, that's who. Apparently the pub wants to
start up live music nights but have been shot down
in flames before they've even got going. Paul from
the band told me: 'I wouldn't mind but they
haven't even heard us!'
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorting
through Riffs archives (well, when you wake at 5am
you need something to fill in the time!) I noticed
another little gem that warrants an airing, so
without further ado here's Rough Justice
from July 2008 at the Princess Alice in
Middlesbrough . . .penned by yours truly.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
ONE
VISION
By all accounts Queen tribute
Qween knocked
'em dead at Birtley Buffs Club recently. Every single
ticket had been sold and the place was, as you can
well imagine, rammed to the rafters. Rob from the band
told Riffs: 'It was a great responsive
audience who really appreciated our live show
experience - Billy West, our lead singer, does
"Freddie" proud at every gig and sings all Queen
songs in copy key!' No doubt all the musos
reading this will know exactly what 'copy key' is.
Moving on: Rob has been elated at the response his
band has been getting since its inception and playing
to capacity crowds looks like the norm for this
quality ensemble. Their next gig is at Hebburn
Iona Social Club on Friday 12th July tickets
from the club (£6)-.
Did anyone video the
band at the gig that Riffs could link to?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Twister at the
Academy: https://youtu.be/sh3AEUpWyFQ
Rock Solid: https://youtu.be/U8eBOJAF8_0
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
NOW THESE TOWNS
THEY ALL KNOW OUR NAME
Riffs
is forever hearing of venues closing and bands
splitting so how heartened are we to tell of a band
actually reforming?!! Yes, it's true. A big welcome
back to . . .
THE PAUL RODGERS STORY. It seems only five minutes ago that the
lads (well, I say 'lads' but the pedigree of these
mature guys is there for all to see/hear) were not
only belting out the most memorable tracks from Free, Bad Co., Queen
etc but they included Paul
Rodgers' foray into solo work too.
Not to mention Hendrix.
Gaining an envious reputation for reliablility and
quality musicianship throughout the North-East, it
was a blow to many when the band called it a day.
Guitarist Kenny told me: 'Since the band split up
we've had people asking us on a regular basis
what happend to the band and the enjoyment they
got from our gigs. A chance meeting between a
couple of us led to our reform, so by
popular demand we are back.'
Kenny continued: 'Because all the members are busy with
other bands we can only fit in a very few
gigs.'
Very few indeed, you'll be lucky to catch the band
once a month - but a trek worth taking.
Needless to say Riffs shows The Paul Rodgers Story
gigs on our Listings page but this is the current
list up to Christmas (Oh heavens - it's still June
and we've mentioned Christmas!!!!).
Thurs 4th July - The
Forum, Darlington cc
Sat 3rd Aug - Richmond
Live Festival (on stage at 4pm)
cc
Sun 15th Sept -
Rhythm & Blues Festival, Darlington (Hoskins
Bar at 6pm)
Thurs 28th Nov -
Trillians, Newcastle
Fri 20th Dec - Cleveland
Bay, Eaglescliffe
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----------------------------------------------------------------
HARTLEPOOL
CELEBRATES 50 YEARS OF
WISHBONE ASH
 Another
short notice gig just come to
Riffs attention is this Sunday (23rd)
at Hartlepool Supporters Club [5pm £4.00];
The venue is celebrating the 50-year anniversay of
the great Wishbone Ash.
Performed by The Flying Vs, Jeff
from the band told Riffs: 'It's one of a
series of gigs we will perform this year. We will be
joined by Dave Barnes from The
Test Pilots as our Ted Turner. Having
opened up for Wishbone Ash
and their fans in 2014 at Chesterfield Winding
Wheel, 2016 at The Grand Clitheroe and 2018 at The Y
Theatre Leicester, we're looking forward to playing
tracks from the early years Wishbone
Ash, Pilgrimage, Argus, Wishbone IV, New
England, and Strange Affair.'
---------------------------------------------------------------
Just found out about this all-dayer today - two
days before the event! Looks like their publicity
dept. is away on holiday . . . Anyway, thanks to American Girl
for keeping Riffs in the loop. Noticed there are
no band times on the poster but one time we do
know is that American Girl are due at 4.45pm. (and
they've missed an 'S' from Assassin!)
------------------------------------------------------------
Following on from
the unbelievable response I got from the last
two recent 'who is this band' pics. And I say
'unbelievable' because no-one - yes no-one -
emailed me! But am I saddened? [Well, yeah, just
a tad] but am I disheartened? [Well . . .] but
not to be deterred here is two more 'who the
fuck is this?' pics.................. any
ideas anyone? Anyone . . .?
 
---------------------------------------------------------------------
https://youtu.be/jhUhw_J5ItE
------------------------------------------------------------------
True
to my word I've dug out these two pics of a young
band pictured at The Grand in Bishop Auckland
(possibly) way back when - so if anyone
knows who the band is, or when I took them (or why
I never labelled them properly) we can then put a
name to the band...
----------------------------------------------------------------
https://youtu.be/DkWRCv5HDjk
------------------------------------------------------------------
YES,
WE TAKE OUR OWN PHOTOS - ALWAYS HAVE
In
reply to a recent email we received: ALL photos
that accompany Riffs reviews (and indeed reviews
by The Seaham Silverback) are taken at the actual
gig - without exception. The reviews by myself and
Val all contained photographs that I took of the
band on that particular night. We do not snaffle
pics from other websites, Facebook or whatever to
enhance the review. If I ever use a photo in this
column (not the column on the right) for
illustrative purposes I always mensh that I nicked
it from somewhere else (other than if it was sent
directly to Riffs by the band/venue themselves).
Myself and Val always prided ourselves on
reviewing, photographing and writing the whole gig
ourselves. In fact, typing this has just reminded
me that I have scores (maybe hundreds) of
photographs that are unnamed and I may post some
on this column soon. Shame to have them gathering
dust.... I am trying to persuade Mr Silverback to
get armed with a camera so as to illustrate his
reviews with some exciting pics... I am working on
his review of
The 3 Colonels from last night
right now and should have it uploaded within a
couple of hours....
---------------------------------------------------------
Mucho gracias to Alan W from The Grand
in Bishop Auckland who recognised the single as 'Watcha Doin' To Me' by The Reds. Just
one more to go . . . this catchy little punk ditty
from the Seventies has bewildered me . . . does
anyone know who it is?
--------------------------------------------------------
HELP - I NEED SOMEBODY
Can anyone help me identify this
single . . . ?
------------------------------------------------------------
Well, it's that
time again - a look though Riffs' archives and see
what gems we have hidden away. How about a review of
Freeway from August 2008? You got it.
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Just a brief mensh for an upcoming gig at the Cluny 2
in Newcastle for 26th June when the Tom
Atkinson Band will be performing
there. Over a year since the lads performed at the
Cluny but they are all fired up for this upcoming gig.
Tom Atkinson - Guitar/Vocs; Paul Gowland -
Sax/Keys (Strictly Smokin’
Big Band); Stu Dawson - Bass (RJ Thompson, Preach Alaska);
Jeff Armstrong - Drums (Flakes,
Russ Tippins Band) include some
original music in their set along with covers of Zappa, Mahavishnu Orchestra,
King Crimson etc. Tickets are a fiver
and available from http://www.thecluny.com
I
did try to get a pic from Tom but, even though it
would paint a thousand words, words are all I have ('to
take your heart away').
..............................................................
BACK IN BUFFS
It's always
nice when something works out and
goes to plan - cos in life it most
often bastard well doesn't (what, me -
bitter?). So it was great to get an email from Robert from Heaton
Buffs concerning the BOSS gig from last
week. Not only was it a
virtual sell-out - just five
tickets left unsold [how's
that for honesty? He could
have quite easily told me it
was a sell-out] - but the lads
went down the proverbial
storm. I remember searching
Youtube for a video of the
band to highlight the gig
but found zilch (punk
band from the 70s I think)
but we can make up for it
now because kind ol'
Robert has sent me a link
to the very opening of the
band's set filmed live as
it happenerd
at the Buffs!
So
without further ado here is
BOSS just
seventeen years since
their last visit
at the Buffs - c'mon
lads let someone
else get a look in .
. .
------------------------------------------------------------
Bit of sadness for me last week -
lost a friend, a good supporter of
Rock. Introduced me to Rammstein
and Airbourne.
He was a great lover of German
lesser-known bands and I used to meet up
with him at Newcastle Arena,
or the Academy. A regular at
live pub gigs in
Redcar and was
a regular
at Dr. Browns in
Middlesbrough. Great
guy. He was given
the all clear for cancer
a few years ago and then
it
came back suddenly
just weeks ago with a
vengeance. Anyway Gaz,
here's Rammstein
for you.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
 Listening to Rock on
internet radio today (which supports
the
age-old
question 'Why djs?')
and
on came Suzie Smiled
by Tygers of
Pan Tang and something
stirred deep inside
me, some distant memory of
reviewing that band many
moons ago.
A quick search of
Riffs archives and -
bingo! found it.
So, for your delectation
. . . (and yet again, I
mentioned the date [February
2], but not
the year, so if anyone
can help
out?....)
Wanna hear
what you missed? Suzie
Smiled
------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Due to my throat
virus causing voice loss, my band Steeler can’t
play gig at Redcar Rugby Club tonight Sat 25-May -
Classic Rock covers band or similar is needed.
Contact Pete 07775922523.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Riffs has
just been informed that the gig at Heaton Buffs
this weekend - which we have down as
Boss (and I thought
was a Springsteen tribute) - is in fact a
rather special reunion of a band from the 90s.
As Robert from the club told Riffs: 'They were a
big deal on the club scene back in the 90s &
early 00s. They are doing a few one-off
shows with the original band line up; and of course
they are 100% live! We
have already sold 200 tickets, with only 50 left.'
Apparently, back in 2002, Boss did an outstanding
sell-out gig there and Robert is keen to duplicate
that success.
Check them out - and if
you fancy the gig - you've missed it!!
-----------------------------------------------------------------
With
regards to the Riffs review of Phil Caisley's Dirty Dogs
featured below, Dave from the band has
been in touch to shed some light on exactly
when the gig took place and some info on what
has become of the band . . .
'The date of the review was the 12th February
2010. The Dirty Dogz
were in existence from 2009 until 2013 doing the north
east pub scene and the last gig was at Doctor Browns
in Middlesbrough on the 2nd November of that
year. Phil, in my opinion, is a great rock
singer and it was a good band although we were
certainly very punchy and could test the old ear drums
for volume. Keith John Dean on bass was replaced
by Ian Raine (played with DeeeXpus,
infinity, and lately, The Rising and
many others). The other guys are either not in
bands or between bands whereas I am working with my
brother in the ‘Graham
Henderson experience’.
To remind yourself of what we were like – here is a
link to a Youtube clip of us at the rock 4 All.
https://youtu.be/1LD2ouDwIKU
with keith on bass.
And here is a clip of my current band - (with
Ian Raine on Bass, now replaced by Duncan Sams).
https://youtu.be/u5ghYHhQvI4
Dave'
---------------------------------------------------------------
Another Riffs rave from the grave is featured below.
I know
it's from Feb 12th but Val never mentioned
which year! Possibly 2008. If
anyone has any better suggestions please
let me know . . .
---------------------------------------------------------------------
If you want it, here it is, come
and get it
Here at Riffs I
love to give publicity to live Rock bands - even more so if it
happens to be their first gig. Can imagine
it's quite a traumatic event and a lot
rides on that debut gig. But I am
saddened, I must say, that although publicity at Riffs is entirely
free and I really don't expect anything back,
that this
offer is not taken up more readily.
On a couple of
recent occasions upon
hearing of an approaching
first gig I have asked for
more info - a little blurb
about the band and hopefully
a pic or two - and I hear
nothing. Zilch. Zero. Nought.
Nil. Zippo. I'm
not losing out, but I
suspect that the band
and indeed the venue
would benefit from a tad
of extra publicity . . .
just saying.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
I'M ONLY HERE FOR THE BEER
 Saturday
11th May was Houghton annual beer festival, a
charity event organised by the round table running
for several decades now. I’ve been going along for
the last 5 years or so; nice venue in Houghton
Colliery Welfare club and a decent afternoon out
with mates. However, every year there’s what is
loosely described as “live music” and without
exception it is awful. Last year we offered to pay
the organisers whatever they’d paid the “singer” to
get him off (they declined). There’s usually about a
dozen of us, all guys I know from various venues
where we go to see bands who have varied tastes from
blues to thrash metal to country, we all agreed this
year’s offering was, once again, abysmal. The band
was advertised as “an experienced function band”
doing stuff from Adele, Ed
Sheeran, Kings of Leon, Elvis, Buddy Holly Michael
Buble and Pharrell
Williams; half the stuff wasn’t
recognisable until half way through the song, the
instruments were out of tune and the singer couldn’t
carry a tune in a bucket. If the organisers read
this, get artists who can sing and/or play; Russ Tippins or Tempest would bring
people in, you’re close to driving people away.
Now, it
was a charity event and the band may have agreed
to play for free in which case they were worth the
money. Do I name and shame them? Houghton
Beer Festival 2019 afternoon session, will bring
up an answer, but the hope is that the organisers
will read this and either not bother with live
music on afternoons OR book someone who will
attract punters, not alienate them.
The
Seaham Silverback
--------------------------------------------------
The NE Street Band,
playing iconic songs from Bruce
Springsteen and The E Street Band
debuted at The Old Fox in Felling just
recently and we have added a link to some footage
here (only phone footage).
The band's website: https://www.nestreetband.co.uk
They are at the Amphitheatre in South Shields on
Thursday 6th June, 7pm-9pm for an evening of Bruce
Springsteen sounds, as part of the Summer Festival.
---------------------------------------------------------------
THE
PRIESTS OF THE TEMPLE OF ROCK
Bank holiday Monday gigs are a
gamble for venues, if it’s been a nice day and the
punters have been in the garden all day having a few
drinks, they tend to stay there, it’s also a school
night so folk tend to think better of going out.
However, The Force are one of those bands I’d walk barefoot
over broken glass to go and see regardless, they set a
standard that other bands in the North East aspire to
reach and Monday 6th May was no exception. An early
start gave an opportunity for those at work the
following day to get their 8 hours kip and it meant
the gear was pretty much in and checked by the time
the audience started coming in. There was a decent
turn out, but I was expecting the place to be rammed –
punters eh?
The
band opened with a couple of their own tracks before
setting off in a set that featured Rush quite
extensively with songs from Rainbow,
AC/DC, UFO, Montrose, Metallica, Scorpions and Thin Lizzy. It
would be wrong to try and pick out tracks that were
better than the others, because I didn’t hear a bum
note all evening and the sound was absolutely spot
on from the word go. The twin lead guitars in Thin
Lizzy’s “Emerald” were flawless, the guy I was sat
next to turned to look at me at the end of the track
and we were both thinking the same thing. Phil sat
down for “Bad Motor Scooter” with his Strat over his
knee and a bottleneck, first time I’ve seen him do
this, and it was excellent.
I’m
always staggered by the sheer professionalism of The
Force, I doubt there can be a Rock fan between the
Tees and the Tweed who hasn’t heard these guys, but
if you fall into that small number, get out and see
them, you’ll thank me.
The Seaham Silverback.
----------------------------------------------------
 SWEETS FOR MY SWEET . . .
The Sugar Bs
18-year reunion gig on march 30 at the Park Inn,
Hartlepool raised £700, split equally between Alice
House Hospice in Hartlepool and The Great North Air
Ambulance Service.
Details
can be found on Facebook here.
--------------------------------------------------------
The
Big Jug in Durham have ceased all live bands as of
now.
..........................................................................
New Plough Dipton have their annual
music festival on Sunday May 5 starting from 1.30pm
with finish 10pm; latest line up is as follows.
Details here
..........................................................................
LIGHTS, SMOKE, AND ROCK 'N' ROLL
I’ve been following Rock
Solid for over ten years now and
always look forward to every show, the gig in Houghton
Glendale was a welcome spot; right on the
doorstep. I saw them about January and since then
they’ve invested in a completely new LED lighting rig
with fancy rotating spots etc. On a night when the
condensation was running down the walls, the lack of a
few KW of heat from PAR cans was welcome for all
concerned. The Solids have used smoke machines for
years but they must have put new batteries in the
current model - the stage was like a war zone all
night. Our musical tastes are as varied as we are but
the Solid’s set-list dovetails in with my
predilections perfectly, kicking off with a couple of
Priest tracks then
running through AC/DC, Saxon,
Maiden, Purple, Rainbow, Ozzy and Rush - what’s not to
like?
One
of the reasons Rock Solid are so well received
has got to be their interaction with their audiences,
the guys always have time for a few words both on and
off the stage. Last night’s gig was their first in the
Glendale for 8 years (apparently) and there’s another
one in the pipeline for December this year, the room
was full and the club was selling beer like it was
going out of fashion. The crowd loved them and the
band gave every impression they were having a good
time. Events like this keep the Rock scene in the
North East vibrant, everyone’s coming away from the
night happy. Long live Rock`n` Roll!
The Seaham Silverback
On a personal
note, myself (Nige) and Val have always rated Rock
Solid as one of the best rock acts in the North-East
music scene but, alas, have not had the pleasure in
quite a few years, so it really pleased me to read the
Silverback's review to know not only that the lads are
still going strong after so many moons, but also that
they actually seem to be improving. But as Val has
said on numerous occasions: 'When
you've got it, you've got it'.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
You can't beat quality pie
 The Three Tuns
Gateshead hosts its 14th
International Pie Festival between
2nd May and 6th May.
Over 2000 pies, 100 varieties
including Veggie and Vegan options all served with
creamy mash, mushy peas and special house gravy £3.50.
Live music from Prism Pink
Floyd, The Grumpies, Wham Bam Thank You Mam,
The Russ Tippins Trio and The Beetles.
--------------------------------------------
'Probably
one of the most entertaining
nights I’d had this year'
It was grab-a-granny night down
in Houghton
Sports & Social on 20th
April with a 60s tribute band called FAB gracing the stage (No,
I’d never heard of them either). It had been a
scorching day so the wife and I headed down there
early to re-hydrate ourselves and the car park was
filling rapidly. Walking through the doors at 7.30 we
got one of the last tables available, clearly some
people knew something we didn’t. Bearing in mind we’re
both over 60, our presence lowered the average age of
the crowd which rather put me off, but I was thirsty
and I’d paid my entrance money, so sod it – we stayed.
The band gave a nod to the appearance of the bands of
the 60s era with suits, and even ties in the first
set, the Hofner violin bass a salute to Paul McCartney and the
numerous Beatles
tracks scattered through the set. Now the band weren’t
the best musicians or singers I’ve heard (but I’ve
heard a LOT worse) but they grabbed the crowd by the
scruff of the neck and shook them all night long. Any
empty space was filled with folk on their feet and
dancing almost from the off, tracks from The Beatles, Roy Orbison, The
Searchers, Swinging Blue Jeans, The Hollies and
Gerry and the Pacemakers
with the obligatory Ferry across the Mersey. It was
probably one of the most entertaining nights I’d had
this year.
If you’re looking for a band to span a big age group
or just for a fun party, I can’t recommend these guys
highly enough. [PS, my photos turned out crap. I
nicked this shot from the band’s Facebook page, I
can’t credit the photographer by name, so please
excuse the liberty].
The Seaham Silverback
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
CROOKFEST
2019 - MAY 5
 Crookfest is a annual may bank holiday rock music
festival held in the County Durham market town of
Crook with a variety rock styles performed by
cover/tribute bands across 3 stages inside large
marquees. The event takes place on Sunday 5th May 2019 in
the Millfield ground home of Crook Town AFC from noon
untill 11pm along with food and beer stalls a-plenty.
www.crookfest.co.uk
Rock Bands... Coda a Tribute to Led
Zeppelin, AC/DC-GB, Mane
Attraction, Circa69, Tubesnake, Edenthorn.
Punk Reggae
Ska... The Marley
Experience, The Sex Pistols Experience, Skapones,
Panic Report, The Me Mes, The Anarchists.
Indie Mod
80-90s... Revolver, ZEN, The
Baggy Mondays, Deeper Season, The Thieves,
Collaborators.
--------------------------------------------
Tempest in
Houghton
I must confess I’ve never been a big fan of artists
who use backing tracks - with the exception of
Russ Tippins -
they all seemed to lack the spontaneity of a full
line up. So when some friends recommended I go see a
duet called Tempest
featuring a guy on guitar with backing tracks and a
lass on vocals I was hesitant to say the least. I
couldn’t have been more wrong; Kaz & Ritchie are
2 of the nicest people you could want to meet and
deliver a widely varied set that has never failed to
impress.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Just
heard, courtesy of Alan Fizzyfish, that the Ship
Inn, Richmond has closed - whether temp or
permanent is unknown - so any bands with a
gig there will need to look elsewhere.
---------------------------------------------------------------
The Glendale
Rock nights are going down really well, the place
was packed and there was a good friendly atmosphere
in the place. I’d guess there was 80-ish in, punters
were coming in late and leaving as there were no
more seats, so the solution is going to be get there
early if you intend to go to a gig there. I’ve been
following Lock n Load
for a couple of years, I first saw them at beer
festival since when the line-up has gone through a
couple of changes. Dave, the current singer was
originally on drums and they had a girl on vocals
with legs up to her armpits, I’ve got to say she was
easier on the eye than Dave, but Dave’s vocals suit
the current set list down to a tee.
 Kicking
off with “Tie your mother down” they ran through
tracks from Whitesnake,
AC/DC, Bryan Adams, ZZ Top and Zeppelin in the
first set alone. Journey’s
“Separate ways” was always going to stretch the old
vocal chords and we’ve all heard it murdered on
numerous occasions but the band pulled it off like
it was another day in the office.
Now I’m regularly accused of being proper OCD
about the sound, balance and levels but I couldn’t
find fault with any of that from the word go, I was
much impressed with the guitar sound in particular
that captured Brian May’s tone for the opening Queen number, to Billy Gibbons choppy
fuzz, Bryan Adams
jangly intro on “Run to you” and Gary Moore’s
mournful sustain on “Still got the blues”. All from
1 guitar. Respect.
The band are a mix of ages, so some of the set
was written before they were born; now as an aging
rocker I applaud this tribute to the music I love,
but feel slightly sad that little of any musical
value seems to have risen to the top for young bands
to play. The second set picked up where the first
had finished with a bit of
Bon Jovi then the band threw in
“Nellie the elephant” to a rapturous greeting before
some more Whitesnake, AC/DC, Billy Idol and G&R
before finishing the night with “The Hunter” –
always gonna go down well in Houghton. A cracking
night all round, the band were happy, everybody I
spoke to had a great time and the club sold lots of
beer. Next up “The Force” on 29th of this month.
The Seaham SIlverback
----------------------------------------------------------------
 Steve Hutchinson
from South Shields has recently re-joined CLASSIC CLAPTON on
keyboards & backing vocals.
He was a member of Animals
2 for 6 years during the 1990s
alongside original members Hilton Valentine &
John Steel.
Currently he performs with heritage band Animals 3 and
also UK Legends.
He previously played with Classic Clapton from
2003 - 2005.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Looks like there is yet
another change of management and booking agent at
The Maggie Bank and all bands booked
by the previous team are once again cancelled. If
bands think they are playing there they should get
in touch with the pub to clarify the situation.
---------------------------------------------------------------
I
AIN'T AFRAID OF NO GHOSTS
That
little birdie that told Riffs what a crackin'
gig awaited anyone partaking of ghostly
goings-on at the Glendale last Friday has, we
are cock-a-hoop to say, put his money where his
mouth is [or should we say 'beak']. He not only
popped in to said establishment with some mates
but was good enough to write a quick appraisal
of the gig and sent it in to Riffs. So, without
further ado . . .
'Last
Friday we went to see The Ghost Band at Houghton Glendale WMC.
For me this was a much anticipated gig, I’d
seen them at Philadelphia beer festival last
year playing a brief set and I was much
impressed by their choice of Blues/Rock and
the level of musicianship. Last night built on
that first impression as the band ran through
tracks from
Hendrix, Gary Moore, Jeff Healey, Tom
Petty, John Mayall and Free among
others. The guys I’d brought with me hadn’t
seen the band before and were captivated by
the whole show. In fact the entire evening
should have been videoed and distributed to
all bands in the region; 3 guys who aren’t
exactly in the first flush of youth had all
their gear brought in, connected and checked
in 20 minutes.
The sound check took literally 5 – 10
minutes and was spot on throughout the night. A
far cry from other bands I’ve seen recently who
spent 75 minutes on a sound check and the sound
was shite when they’d done, it took the “sound
engineer” all the first set to get it somewhere
near, even walking around with an iPad. What’s
the point of all those hours of practice if you
sound like you’re playing inside a spin dryer?
I’m sure we’ve all sat through 45 minutes of
fretboard masturbation turned up to 11. Watch
the Ghost Band and see how it’s done.
Climbing
off my high horse, I can recommend the Ghost
Band to anyone who appreciates good music played
well with the minimum distraction and gobshitery
between numbers.'
The
Seaham Silverback.
-----------------------------------------------------------
Just heard from Stormy
Phil that the Ship Inn at Benton is
now closed.
-------------------------------------------------------------
NURSES TO
WALK THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA
 As
someone who has seen first-hand the absolutely
wonderful and caring work our beloved Nurses
do (and the amount of piss that Hunt Jeremy
takes) I have no hesitation in giving a big
shout out to the Valentines Night gig at
The Alexandra in
Grangetown,
Sunderland.
The palliative care nurses working in St
Benedicts Hospice in Sunderland are
walking the Great Wall of China - yes, they
are going to walk along the Great Wall of
China!!) to raise funds for St Benedicts
Hospice Charity.
Tickets are £6 available from The Alex, the
Hospice or just turn up on
the night and splash cash on the door. Please pop along and help
these wonderful people - oh, nearly forgot -
there's a jam-packed evening of live music
too!!!
The Wolcott Band
Exit Left
Joanne Wallace
Steve Ayther
----------------------------------------------------------------
GHOSTS
AT THE GLENDALE
A little birdie tells Riffs what a cracking little venue Glendale
Social Club in Houghton le Spring is, and
what a great night it should be this Friday when
The Ghost Band take to the stage. Birdie Dave goes
on to say: 'The
club have bands on every 2nd & 4th Friday
of the month. Normally no cover charge, cheap
beer and a nice clean club with loads of free
parking. It’s on the bus route too for those
who use public transport although I’m not sure
what time the local buses stop running. I’m just an interested punter
and have nothing to do with the club, but I
like to encourage and support anyone who is
prepared to get stuck in.'
----------------------------------------------------------------
CONSPIRACY
TO ROCK
 If you like your rock of the
hard and heavy variety check out Conspiracy Theory; a
new band making inroads into the north east
rock and metal scene. If you’re a bit
tired of seeing too many rock bands playing
the same old stuff, CT’s intention is to
do the songs that no-one else does. And that
doesn’t mean obscure material you’ve
never heard of, if you’re into rock and metal
you’ll know everything they do. From Rainbow to Dio, Whitesnake
to Purple, Maiden
to Priest, Uriah Heep
to Rush
or the guitar greats such as Schenker or Moore, you
won’t forget them in a hurry. With stellar
musicianship from highly experienced players
having cut their teeth in bands such as PowerAge, Ministry of
Rock, Black Rose and On The Rocks
you’re bound to have a night to remember. You
can catch them at Trillians, Newcastle
on Friday 22nd February, The Penny
Gill, Spennymoor Sunday 3rd March,
Acklam Steelies Club, Middlesbrough
Saturday 9th March or the Big Jug,
Durham on Friday 15th March.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOYS IN ACTION . . .
 One of the most enjoyable
things I like to do is to announce the birth
of a new band, and if they are a Rock band
with pedigree then space on Riffs is a must.
So without further ado let me announce . . .
STARZ,
who are a new rock covers band and include three of
the north east's top musicians who have decided to
play some songs that were a little different from
'the usual stuff'. The band features members from
bands such as Pistoleros,
Bryan Adams Experience, Black Rose (not
the TL one), The
Paul Rodgers Story, Stoneheart, American Girl
to name a few and are all well known throughout the
north east for putting on a great show. The set list
includes classic and modern punk rock (Sex Pistols/Green Day
etc), glam rock (T Rex /
Bowie etc), heavy rock (Motley Crue / Marilyn Manson
etc) soft rock (Van Halen /
The Cult etc) pop (Dead or Alive / Kinks
etc) plus plenty of great songs for those that want
to dance and some surprises including rock versions
of songs by Gary Numan
and the Bee Gees.
The band start gigging this month and you can
check them out here -
Sunday 13th - Vigilant Inn, South
Shields (7pm)
Saturday 19th - Holey Molies,
Skelton, Teesside
Sunday 20th - Times Inn, Seaham
Thursday 31st - Osbournes, Yarm
The full list of all Starz
gigs are on Riffs Gig Listings page, but for more
info about the band go to http:www.starzrock.co.uk
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Riding On The Crest Of
The New Wave fitted no-one better than Lene Lovich
who this year is celebrating the 40th
anniversary of ‘Stateless’, her debut album,
featuring cult hit 'Lucky
Number' by touring the UK in March 2019 and
is set to appear at Newcastle Riverside on the 8th
of March. The song was originally a 'b' side to 'I
Think We're Alone Now' but was reissued as an 'a'
side by Stiff in '79. Before joining Stiff Records (The
Damned, Devo, Ian Dury, etc), her early work
included performing in cabaret clubs as a London
go-go dancer, voice-over work recording screams
for Hammer Film Productions, and being the
lyricist for French disco artist Marc Cerrone
(including penning the sci-fi dance hit
‘Supernature’). Riffs has no further details
regarding the gig as yet.....
Now let's see if I can still fit into my old
'If It Ain't Stiff . . .' t-shirt....
|
CELEBRATING ROCK AND METAL:
THIS
WEEK IN . . .
1964 - The Beatles
went to No.1 on the US singles chart
with 'Love Me Do', the group's
fourth US No.1 in five months. The
version released in America had Andy
White playing drums while Ringo
played the tambourine. The British
single was a take on which Ringo
Starr played the drums.
1980 - Carl
Radle bass player
with Derek
and the Dominoes died
of kidney failure aged 38. Also
worked with Gary
Lewis & the Playboys, George
Harrison, Joe Cocker, Dave Mason
& Delaney
and Bonnie.
1987 - David
Bowie kicked off his
87-date Glass Spider world tour at
the Feyenoord Stadium, Rotterdam.
The tour's set, described at the
time as "the largest touring set
ever," was designed to look like a
giant spider. It was 60 feet (18.3m)
high, 64 feet (19.5m) wide and
included giant vacuumed tube legs
that were lit from the inside with
20,000' (6,096m) of color-changing
lights. A single set took 43 trucks
to move.
1996 - Alan Whitaker from Penzance
appeared on Mastermind, his
specialist subject being the Sex Pistols.
He won a place in the semi-final of
the show answering all but one of
the 18 questions correctly.
2007 - A leaked copy of the new White Stripes
album 'Icky Thump' was played
completely on Chicago's radio
station Q101-WKQX. Jack White
personally called the US radio
station from Spain, where he was
touring, to voice his displeasure.
2009 - Mick
Jagger offered to buy
an ice cream van but was turned down
by its owner - who'd promised his
daughter he would drive her to her
wedding in it. Guiseppe Della Camera
had spent ten years restoring the
rusting van to perfection after he
spotted it on a farm - being used as
a chicken shed. The restoration was
such a success Sir Mick offered to
buy the vehicle when he saw it at a
show on Wandsworth Common. Camera
said, 'Jagger told me he'd really
fallen in love with my van and
asked me if I would consider
selling it. I was stunned when he
offered me £100,000.
2009 - Ozzy
Osbourne was suing
the band's guitarist Tony Iommi
over royalty payments. The
60-year-old had accused Iommi of
falsely claiming to have sole rights
to the band's name which has cost
him royalties from merchandise
sales. Osbourne was seeking
unspecified damages, lost profits
and a declaration he is a half-owner
of the trademark. Iommi claims
Osbourne legally relinquished rights
to the band's name in the 1980s.
Osbourne said he believed all four
original members of the band should
share Black
Sabbath's name
equally.
2015 -
Jeremy Brown,
guitarist for
Scott Weiland and the
Wildabouts, died of
'unknown causes' at the age of 34.
Brown began playing with the Stone Temple
Pilots as singer in
2008.
2015 - Enrique
Iglesias sliced his
fingers open when he tried to grab a
drone camera, which was taking
pictures of the audience at a
concert in Tijuana, Mexico. He was
"semi-treated" at the side of the
stage to stop the bleeding, and was
advised to end the show.
1962 - Chubby Checker won a
Grammy Award for Best Rock and Roll
Recording for ‘Let's Twist Again’ and
Ray Charles won Best Rhythm &
Blues Recording for ‘Hit The Road
Jack’.
1965 - Bob Dylan's album
Bringing It All Back Home was at No.1
on the charts, his second No.1 album.
1967 - The Move, Cream, The Jimi
Hendrix Experience, Pink Floyd, Zoot
Money, Geno Washington and
The Ram Jam Band all appeared at
the Tulip Bulb Auction Hall in
Spalding, Lincoln. Pink Floyd were
only a support band and played in a
corner of the shed with a white sheet
behind them with the coloured oil
shining onto it. Tickets cost £1. The
poster advertising the show promised a
'Knockout Atmosphere'.
1971 - The
Rolling Stones started a two
week run at No.2 on the
singles chart with 'Brown Sugar', from
Sticky Fingers. The first single
released on Rolling Stones Records.
The songs lyrics, which are
essentially a pastiche of a number of
taboo subjects, include: interracial
sex, cunnilingus, slave rape, and less
distinctly, sadomasochism, lost
virginity, and heroin.
1971 - Three dozen Grateful Dead
fans were treated for hallucinations
caused by LSD after they unwittingly
drank spiked apple juice served at a
gig at San Francisco's Winterland.
1977 - Manchester band Warsaw
(later to become Joy Division)
made their live debut supporting The
Buzzcocks at The Electric
Circus, Manchester.
1991 - After just completing the
recording of the 'Nevermind' album, Nirvana
played a last-minute show at the
Jabberjaw in Los Angeles. In the
audience was Iggy Pop, Dave Grohl's
girlfriend and L7 bassist Jennifer
Finch who brought along her best
friend Courtney Love.
1992 - Concerned that some pupils were
overly identifying with Freddie Mercury,
the sacred heart School in Clifton New
Jersey decided not to sing the Queen
song 'We Are The Champions', at their
Graduation Ceremony.
1997
- Singer songwriter Jeff
Buckley disappeared after
talking a swim in the Mississippi
River, his body was found on 4th June
1997 after being spotted by a
passenger on a tourist riverboat.
2009 - Phil Spector was jailed
for at least 19 years for murdering an
actress in 2003. The producer, 69,
famed for his Wall of Sound recording
technique, was last month found guilty
of shooting Lana Clarkson at his
California home. Spector had pleaded
not guilty to the second-degree murder
during the five-month retrial in Los
Angeles. His lawyers said he would
appeal. Spector was given a sentence
of 15 years to life for second-degree
murder and an additional four years
for personal use of a gun.
2010 - Sabrosa Park (at the small town
of Sabrosa, north of Portugal) was
renamed B.B. King Park in
honor of King and the free concert he
had played before 20,000 people.
2019 - Tony Glover, the
influential blues harmonica player who
was a longtime peer of Bob Dylan
and helped teach Mick Jagger
how to play, died of natural causes
age 79. He also worked as a writer and
critic, contributing to magazines
Crawdaddy and Cream, while also
writing extensively for Rolling Stone
between 1968 and 1973.
1966 - Percy
Sledge started a run at
No.4 on the chart and No.2 when
re-issued in 1987. Before the recording
session, the song had no title or
lyrics. The session proceeded with the
expectation that Sledge would produce
them for the vocal takes. When it came
time to record the vocals, Sledge
improvised the lyrics with minimal
pre-planning, using the melody as a
guide for rhythm and phrasing. The
performance was so convincing that
others working on the session assumed
Sledge had the lyrics written down.
1966 - All four
Beatles spent the day
with Bob Dylan
in his room at the Mayfair hotel in
London, watching rushes of D.A.
Pennebakers's forthcoming documentary
film, Dont Look Back, which covered
Dylan's 1965 concert tour of the United
Kingdom.
1973 - Pink
Floyd’s The Dark Side Of
The Moon was on both the UK and US album
charts. It remained in the US charts for
741 discontinuous weeks from 1973 to
1988, longer than any other album in
history. (After moving to the Billboard
Top Pop Catalog Chart, the album notched
up a further 759 weeks, and had reached
a total of over 1,500 weeks on the
combined charts by May 2006).
1976 - The
Allman Brothers Band
temporarily disbanded after Greg Allman
testified against Scooter
Herring, his personal
road manager, who was charged with drug
trafficking. Herring was subsequently
sentenced to 75 years in prison. An
album of previously unreleased live
material was issued later in the year
under the title 'Wipe the Windows, Check
the Oil, Dollar Gas'.
1977 - Sting,
Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers
played together for the first time when
they performed as part of Mike Howlett's
band, Strontium 90 in Paris France.
1983 -
Rapidfire appeared at
Gazzarri’s On The Sunset Strip, in Los
Angles. Rapidfire featured singer Axl Rose,
who was seen for the first time by
guitarist Slash,
who was in the audience.
1983 - The four day US Festival '83'
took place in California, featuring The Clash, U2,
David Bowie, The Pretenders, Van
Halen, Stray Cats, Men At Work,
Judas Priest, Stevie Nicks, Willie
Nelson. INXS, Joe Walsh, Motley Crue
and Ozzy
Osbourne. Over 750,000
fans attended the festival.
2019 - Motorhead’s
'Ace of Spades' was named Greatest
Gambling Song of All Time with Lady Gaga’s
'Poker Face' voted into second place.
Online poker giant PokerStars asked
1,000 of its European customers to
select their favorite poker-themed song
from a list of choices.
1957 - Buddy
Holly and the Crickets
released 'That'll Be The Day' which became
a No.1 hit. The song had its genesis in a
trip to the movies by Holly, Allison and
Sonny Curtis in June 1956. The John Wayne
film The Searchers was playing. Wayne's
frequently-used, world-weary catchphrase,
"that'll be the day" was the Inspiration
behind the song. It was also the first
song to be recorded by The Quarrymen,
the skiffle group that subsequently became
The Beatles.
1963 - The album The
Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan was
released by Columbia. Establishing Dylan
as a leader in the singer-songwriter genre
and a supposed spokesman for the
youth-orientated protest movement, it
reached No.1 in the charts. The
Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan showcased Dylan's
songwriting talent for the first time and
propelled him to national and
international fame.
1964 - Eleven boys were suspended from a
school in Coventry for having Mick Jagger
haircuts.
1983 - The
Smiths were at No.1 on the
independent chart with their debut single
'Hand In Glove.' The Smiths recorded the
track after their manager Joe Moss paid
£250 for a one-day recording session at
Strawberry Studios in Stockport.
1990 - The
Stone Roses played at Spike
Island, Widnes, Cheshire, to a capacity
crowd of 30,000. The event, considered a
failure at the time due to sound problems
and bad organisation, has become legendary
over the years as a "Woodstock for the
baggy generation."
1999 - Winners at the Ivor Novello song
writing awards included Rod Stewart
who won a Lifetime Achievement Award.
Robbie Williams
and Guy Chambers
won songwriters of the year and Chrissie Hynde
won outstanding contribution to British
Music.
2000 - Paula
Yates was awarded £400,000
in an out-of-court settlement from her
boyfriend Michael
Hutchence's fortune.
Hutchence had died in 1997. INXS
singer Hutchence was found dead in his
hotel suite in Sydney in 1997 aged 37.
2007
- Saatchi & Saatchi were fired by Dr
Martens for running an advertising
campaign featuring dead rock stars such
as Kurt Cobain
and Sid
Vicious wearing the
brand's boots in heaven. David Suddens,
the chief executive of Dr Martens parent
company Airwear, said the brand had not
commissioned the series of four print
ads. "Dr Martens are very sorry for
any offence that has been caused by
the publication of images showing dead
rock icons wearing Dr Martens boots."
2010 - Dozens of AC/DC
fans needed treatment after complaining
of burning eyes during a concert on the
runway of Wels Airport, Wels, Austria.
Around 150 fans had to be treated.
Doctors found that the fans showed
allergic reactions to bark mulch spread
at the venue - the runway of Wels
Airport, to avoid the soil getting too
muddy after hours of massive rainfall.
2017 - Gregg
Allman, founding member
of the The
Allman Brothers Band died
at the age of 69 at his home in
Savannah, Georgia. Allman had suffered a
recurrruence of liver cancer five years
ago, died from complications of the
disease. The band’s main songwriter
early on, Allman contributed
compositions such as
'Dreams' and 'Whipping Post' to the
Allman Brothers repertoire. Both songs
became staples of their live shows; a
cathartic 22-minute version of 'Whipping
Post' was a highlight of their acclaimed
1971 live album, At Fillmore East.
1964 - Marianne
Faithful recorded the Mick
Jagger and Keith Richards song 'As Tears Go
By', accompanied by future Led Zeppelin
members Jimmy Page on guitar and John Paul
Jones on bass.
1966 - The Beatles
recorded 'Yellow Submarine' at Abbey Road
studios in London. Recovering from a case of
food poisoning, producer George Martin
missed this recording, EMI engineer Geoff
Emerick worked on the session. The track
features John Lennon blowing bubbles in a
bucket of water, shouting "Full speed
ahead Mister Captain!"
1968 - US blues artist Little Willie John
died in prison after being convicted of
manslaughter. Co-wrote and was the first to
record a 'Fever' (covered by Peggy Lee in
1958), and 'Need Your Love So Bad' covered
by Fleetwood Mac.
James Brown recorded a
tribute album 'Thinking Of Little Willie
John... And A Few Other Nice Things'.
1968 - Pink Floyd,
Blonde On Blonde and The Pretty Things
all appeared at the OZ
magazine benefit at the Middle Earth Club,
Covent Garden. OZ was a satirical humour
magazine, founded by Richard Neville and
based in Sydney, Australia from 1963. In its
second and better-known incarnation it
became a counter-culture magazine, based in
London from 1967 to 1973.
1972 - At the point of the band splitting up
David Bowie
offered Mott The
Hoople two of his new songs,
'Suffragette City', which they turned down
and 'All The Young Dudes', which they
recorded. The song gave the group a No.3
hit.
1973 - The Edgar
Winter Group went to No.18.
The group featured ex McCoy
guitarist Rick
Derringer. In live
performances of the song, Edgar Winter
further pioneered the advancement of the
synthesizer as a lead instrument by becoming
the first person ever to strap a keyboard
instrument around his neck.
1974 - Tragedy struck at a David Cassidy
concert at London's White City when over
1,000 fans had to be treated by first aid
workers due to the frenzied excitement. One
fan Bernadette Whelan died from heart
failure four days later.
1979 - 'Sunday Girl' gave Blondie
their second No.1 hit single. The track was
taken from the group's 'Parallel Lines',
which went on to become the biggest selling
album of 1979.
1995 - The Rolling
Stones played two
semi-acoustic concerts at the Paradiso
Amsterdam over two days. Keith Richards
later said that the Paradiso concerts were
the best live shows the Stones ever did. The
venue is housed in a converted former church
building that dates from the nineteenth
century, subsequently squatted in 1967 by
hippies who wanted to convert the church
into an entertainment club. Artists who have
recorded concerts at the Paradiso include Joy Division, Willie
Nelson, Phish, Nirvana, The Cure, Lenny
Kravitz, Nick Cave, Dave Matthews
and Amy Winehouse.
1996 - A fire at the home of Eric Clapton
caused over one and a half million pounds
worth of damage; Firemen arrived on the
scene to find Clapton braving the blaze to
save his collection of guitars.
2016 - A set of stamps celebrating 50 years
of Pink Floyd
were unveiled by the Royal Mail. The ten
stamps which would be available the
following month marked five decades since
the band turned professional. The collection
included the band's most famous album covers
as well as live performance shots.
2017
- Chris Cornell
was laid to rest at the Hollywood Forever
Cemetery in Los Angeles next to Johnny Ramone.
Mourners at the funeral service include Dave Navarro, Tom
Morello, Lars Ulrich, James Hetfield,
Courtney Love and his
Soundgarden bandmates Matt Cameron
and Kim Thayil.
Cornell hanged himself on May 18 2017.
1961 - The
Temperance Seven were at No.1
on the singles chart with 'You're Driving Me
Crazy', their only No.1 single. The song gave
producer George Martin his first No.1.
1965 - Blues harmonica player, singer and
songwriter, Sonny
Boy Williamson died in his
sleep. Van Morrison,
Aerosmith, The Who, The Animals, Yardbirds
and Moody
Blues all covered his songs.
According to the Led
Zeppelin biography Hammer of
the Gods, touring the UK in the 60s, Sonny Boy
set his hotel room on fire while trying to
cook a rabbit in a coffee percolator.
1967 - Procol Harum's
'A Whiter Shade Of Pale' entered the chart for
the first time, where it went on to become a
No.1 hit. 'A Whiter Shade Of Pale' became the
most played song in the last 75 years in
public places (as of 2009). The first video
for the song was shot in the ruins of Witley
Court in Worcestershire. Directed by Peter
Clifton whose insertion of Vietnam War
newsreel footage caused it to be banned from
airplay on the Top Of The Pops. The band
subsequently made another video.
1969 - A benefit concert was held for Fairport Convention
at The Roundhouse, London to raise money for
the families of the band's drummer Martin
Lamble, Richard Thompson's girlfriend and
clothes designer Jeannie Franklyn who were all
killed in an accident driving back from a gig.
Also on the bill, Family,
Pretty Things, Soft Machine and
John Peel.
1969 - The Who
and Led Zeppelin
appeared at the Merriweather Post Pavilion,
Columbia, Maryland, USA. This was the only
time the two group's ever appeared together,
with Zeppelin opening the show. On the tickets
Led Zeppelin was spelt Lead Zeppelin.
1974 - Rick Wakeman
became the first member of Yes to have a
No.1 album when 'Journey To The Centre Of The
Earth' went to the top of the charts..
1997 - Bob Dylan
was diagnosed as suffering from histoplasmosis
pericarditis, a fungal infection of the lung,
and was admitted to hospital he stayed until
June 2nd. Having just turned 56, Dylan later
admitted: 'I really thought I'd be seeing
Elvis soon'. Treated by drugs and rest,
Bob was back on the road only 10 weeks later,
for 22 American and Canadian shows.
1998 - Coldplay
released their first ever record, an EP called
Safety, which featured 3 tracks; 'Bigger
Stronger', 'No More Keeping My Feet on the
Ground', and 'Such a Rush'. The EP was
intended as a demo for record companies and is
now such a rarity that it is known to fetch in
excess of £2000 on eBay.
2005 - The Alameda County Sheriff's Office in
California announced that it was officially
closing the stabbing case of Meredith Hunter,
the 18-year-old American who was killed at the
1969 Rolling Stones
Altamont Free Concert. Investigators,
concluding a renewed two-year investigation,
dismissed the theory that a second Hell's
Angel took part in the stabbing.
2007 - Sixties pop star Wayne
Fontana was remanded in custody
after admitting pouring petrol over a
bailiff's car and setting fire to it. The
judge criticised the former lead singer of the
Mindbenders,
for arriving at Derby Crown court dressed as
the Lady of Justice. He had to hand a sword
and scales to guards but still wore a crown,
cape and dark glasses, claiming "justice is
blind".
2013
- American rock and roll bassist Marshall Lytle
died aged 79. He was best known for his work
with Bill Haley
& His Comets and The Jodimars
in the 1950s. He played upright slap bass on
the iconic 1950s rock and roll records
'Crazy Man, Crazy', 'Shake, Rattle and
Roll', and 'Rock Around the Clock'.
Week Commencing May 18
1956 - The first Eurovision
Song Contest was held in Lugano,
Switzerland. The event was the brainchild of
Marcel Baisoncon of the European Broadcasting
Union. Seven countries participated and they
were each allowed two songs. Both Luxembourg and
the winner Switzerland used the same singer for
both. Switzerland won with 'Refrain' by Lys Assia.
1963 - The Beatles
recorded the first of their very own BBC radio
program, "Pop Go the Beatles". The theme song
for the program was a version of "Pop Goes the
Weasel". The Beatles' guests for this first show
were the Lorne Gibson
Trio.
1963 - US blues guitarist and singer Elmore James
died of a heart attack aged 45. James wrote
'Shake Your Money Maker', which was covered by Fleetwood Mac in
1968. Known as "The King of the Slide Guitar",
James influenced Jimi
Hendrix, B.B. King, Stevie Ray Vaughan
and Keith Richards.
1966 - Captain
Beefheart appeared at the Whisky
a Go Go. West Hollywood, California. Supported
by Buffalo Springfield
and The Doors.
1969 - Bob Dylan's
album Nashville Skyline scored Dylan his fourth
No.1. The album featured 'Lay Lady Lay', which
became one of Dylan's biggest pop hits.
1970 - Guitarist and founding member Peter Green
played his last gig with Fleetwood
Mac when they appeared at the
Bath Festival, Somerset.
1991 - Founder member of The
Byrds Gene Clark died of a heart
attack aged 49. Wrote The Byrds hits 'I'll Feel
a Whole Lot Better', and 'Eight Miles High',
member of McGuinn,
Clark and Hillman and solo.
1999 - Queen
singer Freddie Mercury,
who died in 1991, was honoured on a new set of
millennium stamps issued by the Royal Mail.
Mercury, who featured on the 19p stamp, was a
keen stamp collector, and his collection was
bought by the Post Office in 1993. The stamp
marked his contribution to the Live Aid charity
concert in 1985, and caused controversy by
featuring a small portion of Queen’s drummer,
Roger Taylor, in the background - UK stamps by
tradition only carry pictures of living persons
who are members of the Royal Family.
2017 -
Sonny West,
one of the original members of Elvis Presley's
Memphis Mafia, died of lung cancer at the age
of 79. Joining Elvis in 1960, he was abruptly
fired, along with his cousin Red and bodyguard
Dave Hebler, in 1976 without explanation. The
following year he co-authored the book Elvis,
What Happened?
1960 - The Everly
Brothers started a seven
week run at No.1 on the singles chart with
'Cathy's Clown'. It became the Everly Brothers'
biggest hit single, selling eight million copies
worldwide.
1970 - The Beatles
12th and final studio album 'Let It Be' started a
three week run at No.1 on the chart, featuring
'The Long And Winding Road', 'Across The Universe'
and the title track.
1970 - The Grateful Dead
played their first gig outside the US at 'The
Hollywood Rock Music Festival', in Newcastle under
Lyme. Also appearing at the festival was Free, Ginger Baker's Air
Force, Colosseum, Family, Black Sabbath
and Traffic.
1973 - Jefferson Airplane
were prevented from giving a free concert in
Golden Gate Park when San Francisco authorities
passed a resolution banning electronic
instruments. The group later wrote 'We Built this
City' about the ban.
1979 - Due to a record company dispute, Tom Petty was
forced to file for bankruptcy owing $575,000
(£338,235). A long-running battle with his record
company followed.
1992 - A statement issued by Freddie Mercury's
attorneys stated that Mercury had bequeathed the
majority of his estate (£10 million) to his
long-time friend Mary Austin.
2000 - Noel Gallagher
walked out on his band Oasis
during a European tour. The move was put down to a
series of bust-ups with his brother Liam. The band
drafted in replacement guitarist Matt Deighton for
the rest of the European dates.
2006 - The King of Sweden presented the surviving
members of Led Zeppelin
with the Polar Music Prize in Stockholm
recognising them as "great pioneers" of rock
music. Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul
Jones were joined by the daughter of drummer John
Bonham, who died in 1980. The Polar Music Prize
was founded in 1989 by Stig Anderson, manager of
Swedish pop group ABBA
who named it after his record label, Polar
Records.
2014 - The parents of a camera assistant who was
killed after being hit by a train while shooting
footage for a biopic about Gregg
Allman were suing the musician and
the film's producers. The case claimed film-makers
"selected an unreasonably dangerous site for the
filming location" and failed to take actions to
adequately protect the crew.
2019 - Richard Ashcroft
regained rights to his song ‘Bitter Sweet
Symphony’ after more than two decades. The Verve singer
lost the rights to his most recognisable song,
which ended up in the possession of The Rolling Stones’ Sir Mick
Jagger and Keith
Richards. Released in 1997 on Urban
Hymns, the track sampled The Rolling Stones’ song
‘The Last Time’, using a composition by Andrew
Oldham, and became the centre of lawsuits, which
saw Ashcroft stripped of rights and royalties.
1958 - Jerry Lee Lewis
arrived at London's Heathrow Airport to begin his
first British tour, along with his new bride, 14
year old third cousin, Myra. Although advised not to
mention it, Lewis answered all questions about his
private life. The public's shock over Lewis'
marriage marks the start of a controversy leading to
his British tour being cancelled after just 3 of the
scheduled 37 performances.
1968 - Gary Puckett and
the Union Gap were at No.1 on the
singles chart with 'Young Girl.' The song, which was
about under-age love, was the act's only No.1.
1971 - The Rolling Stones
album 'Sticky Fingers' started a four-week run at
No.1 on the charts. The artwork for Sticky Fingers
which, on the original vinyl release featured a
working zipper that opened to reveal cotton briefs,
was conceived by American pop artist Andy Warhol. The
cover, a photo of Joe Dallesandro's crotch clad in
tight blue jeans, was assumed by many fans to be an
image of Mick Jagger. The album also features the
first usage of the "Tongue and Lip Design" designed
by John Pasche.
1991 - Wil Sinnott
from The Shamen
drowned while swimming off the coast of La Gomera
when he was pulled under by strong currents. The
Shamen were in Tenerife filming a video for their
new single 'Move Any Mountain.'
2004 - Morrissey
appeared at the M.E.N. arena Manchester, on his 45th
birthday. It was Morrissey's return to his home city
Manchester after an absence of 12 years and the
18000 tickets sold out in only 90 minutes. During
the set Morrissey performed five Smiths songs.
2011 - Four dead dogs in 'sealed containers' were
found in the Tennessee home of former Kiss guitarist Vinnie Vincent
during an investigation that led to his arrest on
charges of assaulting his wife. Vincent, a member of
Kiss from 1982 to 1984, was released after posting
$10,000 bond after his arrest by the Rutherford
County Sheriff's Department.
2014 - Fleetwood Mac's
Christine McVie
was honoured with a lifetime achievement at this
year's Ivor Novello songwriting awards. McVie played
with Fleetwood Mac for 28 years and wrote some of
their most famous songs, including 'Don't Stop' and
'Little Lies'. Other winners at the ceremony in
London included London
Grammar, The Chemical Brothers and Nile Rodgers.
2016 - A guitar that Elvis
Presley was given by his father sold
for $334,000 (£230,000) at an auction in New York.
It was thought that Vernon Presley changed the
finish on the Gibson Dove to black after his son
earned a black belt in karate. Presley later gave
the guitar to a fan during a concert in North
Carolina in 1975. Auctioneers Julien's also sold
John Lennon's handwritten lyrics for The Beatles' 'Being
For The Benefit of Mr Kite!' for $354,400 (£244,000)
and a red neoprene vinyl jacket which Michael Jackson wore
for his 1996-97 HIStory world tour which sold for
$256,000.
1955 - Chuck Berry
recorded 'Maybellene' at Universal Recording Studios,
Chicago. The song adapted in part from the Western
swing fiddle tune 'Ida Red' is said to be one of the
first rock and roll songs. The track became Berry's
debut single release in July of this year.
1967 - Jimi Hendrix
signed with Reprise Records on the US Warner Brothers
label. They released the albums Are You Experienced?
Axis: Bold as Love and Electric Ladyland.
1970 - Crosby, Stills, Nash
& Young released the protest single
Ohio, written and composed by Neil Young in reaction
to the Kent State shootings of May 4, 1970, when
unarmed college students were shot by the Ohio
National Guard. The guardsmen fired 67 rounds over a
period of 13 seconds, killing four students and
wounding nine others, one of whom suffered permanent
paralysis.
1972 - The Doors, Pink
Floyd, the Faces, Family, Curved Air, Atomic
Rooster, The Kinks, Rory Gallagher, Uriah Heep,
Country Joe McDonald, Buddy Miles, Status Quo,
Brinsley Schwarz, Spencer Davis, The Strawbs
and Humble Pie
all appeared at the 2nd British Rock Meeting, Insel
Grun, Germersheim, West Germany. The festival was due
to take place in Mannheim, West Germany, but after
protests from the locals, the concert actually took
place in nearby Germersheim.
1974 - Two would-be concert promoters were arrested by
police in America on fraud charges in connection with
selling mail order tickets for a forthcoming Elten
John show. (Elten with an E and not an O). Police took
away over $12,000 in cheques.
1980 - A thief brook into Electric Lady Studios in New
York City, the recording studio built by Jimi Hendrix and stole
five Hendrix gold records for the albums ‘Are You
Experienced’’, ‘Axis: Bold as Love’, ‘Cry of Love’,
‘Rainbow Bridge’ and 'Live at Monterey'.
1980 - Joe Strummer
of The Clash was
arrested at a much-troubled gig in Hamburg, Germany,
after smashing his guitar over the head of a member of
the audience; he was released after an alcohol test
proved negative.
2001 - Producer, arranger and keyboardist Tommy Eyre died of
cancer aged 51. Worked with George
Harrison, Wham! Dusty Springfield, and
B.B. King. Played
and arranged Joe Cocker's
hit 'With A Little Help From My Friends' and Gerry Rafferty's
'Baker Street'.
2011 - Bob Dylan
came out on top as both the most inspirational
individual for poets and the dream collaborative
partner, in a survey carried out by The Foyle Poetry
Society. The extensive survey questioned poets asking
which musician and which genre of music most inspired
their writing. The young people, aged between 11 and
17, from countries throughout the world also voted for
artists such as Regina
Spektor, David Bowie, Florence and the Machine,
Leonard Cohen, Morrissey and Pete Doherty.
2013 - Trevor Bolder,
the bassist in David Bowie's
legendary 1970s backing band Spiders From Mars, died
from cancer at the age of 62. Bolder appeared on the
studio albums Hunky Dory (1971), The Rise and Fall of
Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972),
Aladdin Sane (1973), and Pin Ups (1973). He joined Uriah Heep in 1976,
replacing John Wetton.
2015 - Black Sabbath
received a lifetime achievement prize at the Ivor
Novello songwriting awards. Guitarist Tony Iommi picked up
the trophy, confirming the heavy metal band would
embark on their "final tour" next year.
1964 - Rudy Lewis
of The Drifters
died aged 28 under mysterious circumstances the night
before the group was set to record 'Under the
Boardwalk'. Former Drifters backup singer Johnny Moore
was brought back to perform lead vocals for the
recording session.
1966 - Pete Townshend
and Roger Daltrey
of The Who grew
tired of waiting for John
Entwistle and Keith
Moon to arrive for their gig at the Ricky
Tick Club in Windsor, so they took to the stage with the
bass player and drummer of the local band that opened
the show. When Moon and Entwistle finally arrived in the
middle of the set, a fight broke out, with Townshend
hitting Moon on the head with his guitar. Moon and
Entwistle quit the band (and rejoined a week later).
1967 - The Beatles
new album Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band had a
special preview on the Kenny Everett BBC Light program,
'Where It's At', playing every track from the album
(except 'A Day In The Life' which the BBC had banned
saying it could promote drug taking).
1968 - BBC 2 aired a short play 'The Pistol Shot',
featuring a young dancer/artist called David Bowie.
1969 - Led Zeppelin
started three days of recording and mixing sessions at
A&R Studios in New York City, which included the
recording of 'Heartbreaker' and various other parts for
new tracks for the group's forthcoming second album. The
band were under pressure to finish sessions for their
second album so they could release it in time for the
Autumn market.
1997 - Foo Fighters
released their second album 'The Colour And The Shape',
the album was a Grammy nominee for Best Rock Album in
1998. Even though Foo Fighters are an American band, the
word 'Colour' in the album title is always spelled with
the British spelling. This was a nod to producer Gil
Norton, who is British.
1998 - Black Sabbath
drummer Bill Ward
was taken to hospital in London after suffering a heart
attack during a band rehearsal.
2006 - Heavy Metal monsters Lordi
became Finland's first ever Eurovision Song Contest
winners after their song Hard Rock Hallelujah won in
Athens. The band won the Eurovision public vote after
singing their heavy rock anthem dressed in horror
costumes.
2013 - Ray Manzarek,
keyboard player and founder member of the The Doors died aged 74.
Manzarek, who had suffered from bile duct cancer for
many years, died in a clinic in Rosenheim, Germany, with
his wife and brothers at his bedside. He formed The
Doors with lead singer Jim
Morrison in 1965 after a chance meeting
in Venice Beach, Los Angeles.
2015 - The Rolling Stones
played a surprise gig at the 1,300-capacity Fonda
Theatre in Los Angeles during which they performed the
entire Sticky Fingers album. The audience included Jack
Nicholson, Bruce Willis, Harry Styles, Leonard Cohen and
Patricia Arquette.
1949 - English
guitarist, songwriter and
producer Larry
Wallis
was born today, best known as
a member of the Pink
Fairies and a
founding member of Motörhead.
He released a solo single,
"Police Car"/"On Parole"
produced by Nick Lowe, and
backed by two members of Eddie And
The Hot Rods;
bassist Paul Gray, and drummer
Steve Nicol. He also had a
brief stint in UFO
during 1972 and was a member
of Blodwyn
Pig. Formed The
Deviants.
Producer at Stiff
Records. Wallis
died on 19 September 2019 aged
70.
1960 - American DJ Alan
Freed was
indicted along with seven
others for accepting $30,650
in payola from six record
companies. Two years later, he
was convicted and given a
suspended sentence and a $300
fine.
1979 - Eric
Clapton held a
party at his Surrey house
celebrating his recent
marriage to Patti Boyd.
Clapton had set-up a small
stage in the garden and as the
evening progressed, Paul
McCartney, George Harrison
and Ringo
Starr ended up
jamming together along with Clapton,
Ginger Baker
and Mick
Jagger. The
all-star band ran through old
Little
Richard and Eddie
Cochran songs.
1980 - Ringo
Starr and his
future wife were involved in a
car crash less than half a
mile from where Marc
Bolan was
killed, the car was a
write-off but Starr and Bach
were not seriously injured.
2010 - 'Stairway To Heaven'
was named the UK's favourite
rock song in a survey by
listeners to radio station
Absolute Classic Rock. Led
Zeppelin had
two other tracks in the top
10; ‘Whole Lotta Love’ was
voted at No. 4 and ‘Rock 'n'
Roll’, from the group’s fourth
album, was at No. 7.
2013 - A guitar played by John
Lennon and George
Harrison sold
for $408,000 (£269,000) at
auction. The custom-made
instrument, built in 1966 by
VOX, was bought by an
unidentified US buyer in New
York. Harrison played ‘I Am
The Walrus’, on the guitar in
a scene from Magical Mystery
Tour in 1967. Lennon used it
in a video for Hello, Goodbye
later that year. After playing
the guitar, Lennon gave it as
a 25th birthday present to
Alexis "Magic Alex" Mardas, a
member of The
Beatles' inner
circle in the 1960s.
2016 - John
Berry, a
founding member of rap group Beastie
Boys died
at the age of 52. Berry
originally formed the
four-piece hardcore punk band,
the Young
Aborigines, in
1978 who later became the
Beastie Boys and came up with
the name for the group.
1964 - A riot broke out in
Hamilton, Scotland during a Rolling
Stones tour when
over 4,000 fans with forged
tickets gate-crashed the band's
gig at the Chantingall Hotel.
1966 - The
Castiles (with Bruce
Springsteen on
vocals), made their first
recordings at Mr Music Inc in
Brick Town, New Jersey. They cut
two Springsteen songs, ‘Baby I’
and ‘That’s What You Get’. The
songs were cut directly to disc,
of which seven or eight test
pressings of the studio takes
were made.
1966 - During his 1966 world
tour, Bob
Dylan and Robbie
Robertson from The Band
were filmed singing several
songs in a hotel room in
Glasgow, the footage turning up
in the film Eat The Document.
The film was originally
commissioned for the ABC
television series Stage '66, but
after Dylan edited the film
himself ABC rejected it as
'incomprehensible for a
mainstream audience'.
1967 - Pink
Floyd started
recording their forthcoming
single 'See Emily Play' at Sound
Techniques Studios, Chelsea. Syd Barrett
was inspired to write See Emily
Play, by the ‘looning about’ of
the early Pink Floyd fan Emily
Young (who is now a renowned
sculptor). Guitarist David
Gilmour, playing
gigs in France with his own band
in that period, visited Floyd in
the studio during a trip to
London.
1968 - The first Miami Pop event
took place with an estimated
100,000 people attending the
concert, which was promoted by
Richard O'Barry & Michael
Lang (later famous as the
promoter of Woodstock). Bands
featured at the festival
included Steppenwolf,
The Jimi Hendrix Experience,
The Mothers of Invention,
Blue Cheer, Chuck Berry, The
Blues Image, Pacific Gas and
Electric, Three Dog Night and
the Crazy
World of Arthur Brown.
2004 - Clint
Warwick the
original bass player with The Moody
Blues died from
liver disease at the age of 63.
Clint left the band in 1966
after playing on their only
number one hit, 'Go Now'.
2011 - John
Lennon's
handwritten lyrics for the 1967 Beatles
song 'Lucy in the Sky with
Diamonds' sold for $237,132
(£145,644) at an auction in the
US. The sale of the sheet, which
featured the song's third verse
and the opening words to 'She's
Leaving Home', took place at the
Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills.
Both songs feature on the 1967
album Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts
Club Band. It was speculated the
song was about the drug LSD,
however, The Beatles denied
this, with Lennon saying the
inspiration had come from a
picture his son Julian had drawn
of a classmate named Lucy Vodden
- who died of the immune system
disease Lupus in 2009.
2017 - American musician, singer
and songwriter Chris
Cornell died
suddenly in Detroit after
performing at a show with Soundgarden.
Cornell was known for his role
as one of the architects of the
1990s grunge movement, and for
his near four octave vocal range
as well as his powerful vocal
belting technique. He released
four solo studio albums as well
as working with Audioslave
and Temple
of the Dog.
2019 - A sweater worn by Kurt Cobain
during the singer’s last
photo-shoot with Nirvana sold
for $75,000 at a New York
auction. Also sold for $23,000
was Nirvana’s handwritten set
list from an April 1990 concert
in Washington, D.C., which
Cobain wrote with black marker
on a paper plate. Cobain had
eaten some pizza before the show
and preceded to write the set
list on the plate he had been
eating his pizza on.
1963 - The first Monterey Folk
Festival took place over three
days in Monterey, California. The
festival featured Joan Baez,
Bob Dylan and Peter Paul
and Mary. The 1967
Monterey Rock festival is
remembered for the first major
American appearances by Jimi Hendrix
and The
Who as well as the
first major public performances of
Janis
Joplin. It was also
the first major performance by Otis Redding
in front of a
predominantly white audience.
1964 - Bob
Dylan made his
first major concert UK appearance
when he played at the Royal
Festival Hall in London with an
afternoon show listed as a
‘Folksong Concert’. Dylan's
18-song set included the live
debut of Mr. Tambourine Man and
took place on a Sunday afternoon.
In the interval, Dylan received a
telegram from John Lennon
seeking a meeting which never
materialised.
1966 - During a UK tour Bob Dylan
appeared at The Free Trade Hall in
Manchester. This was the concert
where a member of the audience
shouted out ‘Judas’ at Dylan
unhappy with the singers move from
acoustic to rock. Dylan replied
with ‘You’re a liar’, the entire
concert was eventually officially
released in The Bootleg Series by
Sony Music in 1999.
1967 -
The Tremeloes were
at No.1 on the singles chart with
their version of a Four Seasons
song (the B-side to Rag Doll),
'Silence Is Golden', the group's
only No.1.
1969 - It was reported that for
the first time ever album sales
had overtaken single sales in the
UK. 49,184,000 albums were
produced during 1968 compared with
49,161,000 singles.
1975 - Led
Zeppelin played the
first of five sold-out nights to
17,000 fans at Earls Court Arena.
The set list included: Rock And
Roll, The Song Remains The Same,
The Rain Song, Kashmir, No
Quarter, Going To California,
Dazed And Confused, Stairway To
Heaven, Whole Lotta Love, and
Black Dog. Tickets cost £1 -
£2.50.
1990 - Nirvana
played the last date of a North
American tour at the Zoo in Boise,
Idaho. This was Chad Channing's
final gig with the band, drummer
Dave Grohl replaced him in Sept of
this year after his band Scream
had split-up.
1996 - US blues guitarist Johnny Guitar
Watson died of a
heart attack while on tour in
Yokohama, Japan. According to
eyewitness reports, he collapsed
mid guitar solo. His last words
were "ain't that a bitch."
His ferocious 'Space Guitar'
single of 1954 pioneered guitar
feedback and reverb.
Week Commencing May
11
1962 - B
Bumble and the Stingers were
at No.1 on the singles chart with
'Nut Rocker.' The instrumental was
based on Tchaikovsky's 'Nutcracker
Suite.'
1966 - The
Beach Boys released
the classic album Pet Sounds widely
ranked as one of the most
influential records ever released
and has been ranked at No.1 in
several music magazines lists of
greatest albums of all time,
including New Musical Express, The
Times and Mojo Magazine. In 2003, it
was ranked No.2 in Rolling Stone 500
Greatest Albums of All Time list (The Beatles
Sgt. Pepper's came first).
1969 - Pete
Townshend spent the
night in a US jail for assaulting a
man during a Who
gig at The Fillmore East. What
Townshend didn't know was the man
who jumped onto the stage was a
plainclothes policeman trying to
warn the audience that a fire had
broken out. The Who guitarist was
later fined $30 for the offence.
1976 - Patti
Smith made her UK
debut at The Roundhouse, London. The
American singer-songwriter, poet and
visual artist, became a highly
influential component of the New
York City punk rock movement with
her 1975 debut album Horses.
2009 - Bob
Dylan went to No.1 on
the album chart with ‘Together
Through Life’, his 33rd studio
album. The album received two Grammy
Award nominations in Best Americana
Album category and Best Solo Rock
Vocal Performance category for
'Beyond Here Lies Nothin'. The album
also is significant as the only
album by Dylan to top the US and UK
charts consecutively.
1967 - Paul
McCartney met American
photographer Linda Eastman for the
first time, during a Georgie Fame
concert at the Bag O'Nails nightclub
in London. They married on March 12,
1969.
1969 - John
Lennon's 'Life With The
Lions' was released on Apple's
avant-garde imprint Zapple. One side
of the album was recorded on a
cassette player at London's Queen
Charlotte Hospital during Yoko Ono's
pregnancy which ended in a
miscarriage.
1974 - Frank
Zappa and his wife
announced the birth of their third
child, a boy named Ahmet Rodan, after
the Japanese movie monster.
1981 - Former Sex
Pistol John Lydon's
band Public
Image Ltd performed a
show at New York's Ritz Club posing
behind a video screen while the music
was played from tapes. They were
showered with missiles and eventually
booed off stage.
1999 - Rob
Gretton manager of Joy Division
and New
Order died aged 46. He
was also a partner in Factory Records,
proprietor of the Rob's Records label
and a co-founder along with Tony
Wilson of The Hacienda nightclub in
Manchester.
2019 - Adria Petty and Annakim
Violette daughters of the late Tom Petty
filed suit against his widow, Dana
York Petty, in a dispute about the
singer-songwriter’s catalogue and
estate. The papers accused York Petty
of superseding the daughters’ right to
‘equal participation,’ as they claimed
was in the terms of the trust, when
making decisions regarding his
catalogue. The suit was seeking at
least $5 million in damages.
1967 - The
Monkees second album More
Of The Monkees, went to No.1 on the
charts. In 1967 only four albums reached
No.1; The Sound Of Music which spent 17
weeks at No.1, The
Beatles Sgt. Pepper, 25
weeks at No.1 and The Monkees first and
second albums spent 9 weeks at No.1.
1969 - Led
Zeppelin became one of
the first major British rock group to
appear in Hawaii, when they appeared at
The Civic Auditorium, Honolulu. A review
in the Honolulu Advertiser stated: 'The
showmanship exceeded any rock
performance here to date. I wondered
before the concert if Led Zeppelin
could sound as good as their Atlantic
album – they sounded better'.
1970 - The world premiere of The Beatles film
'Let It Be' took place in New York City.
The film which was originally planned as
a television documentary features an
unannounced rooftop concert by the
group, their last performance in public.
Released just after the album, it was
the final original Beatles release.
2000 - Shaun
Ryder's Volkswagen
Corrado was found abandoned after being
used as the getaway car. The former Happy Mondays
singer's car, was used in an armed
robbery on Harry Ramsden's fish and chip
restaurant in Manchester. £7,000 cash
was taken in the robbery.
2007 - Brian
May was under 24-hour
security watch after a deranged man
announced he was setting off to murder
him - then disappeared. Police were
hunting for a schizophrenic who left a
letter behind at his home blaming the Queen
guitarist for his illness. In it the man
- said May was an "impostor" and that HE
was the real rock star. He signed the
letter "Brian May."
2011 - 'Like A Rolling Stone' was voted
as Bob Dylan's
best-ever song by Rolling Stone
Magazine, who had asked the opinions of
a panel of writers, academics and
musicians to compile a poll to mark
Dylan's 70th birthday on 24th May. 'Like
A Rolling Stone', was described by U2's
Bono as 'a black eye of a pop song',
while Mick
Jagger praised the
simplicity of 'Desolation Row'. Keith Richards
believed that the original 1963 solo
version of 'Girl From The North
Country', ranked 30th, was superior to
Dylan's 1969 duet of the same song with
Johnny Cash.
2012 - Donald
Dunn, bassist with Booker T and the
MGs died in his sleep
after playing a show at the Blue Note
night club in Tokyo the night before. He
had been in the country as part of an
ongoing tour with Steve Cropper and
Eddie Floyd. Booker T and the MGs scored
the 1962 US No.3 single 'Green Onions',
and the 1969 UK No.4 single 'Time Is
Tight'.
1958 - The
Everly Brothers started a
four-week run at No.1 in the US with 'All
I Have To Do Is Dream'. Written by the
husband and wife songwriting team Felice
and Boudleaux Bryant - the track was
recorded in just two takes.
1963 - Bob Dylan
walked out of rehearsals for the US TV Ed
Sullivan show after being told he couldn't
perform his song 'Talking John Birch
Paranoid Blues' due to it mocking the US
military and segregation. CBS officials
asked Dylan to substitute it for another
song, but the singer reportedly said: 'No,
this is what I want to do. If I can't
play my song, I'd rather not appear on
the show'.
1967 - Pink
Floyd appeared at the Queen
Elizabeth Hall, London, giving a special
concert Games For May - Space Age
Relaxation For The Climate Of Spring. This
was reportedly the first show to include
loudspeakers placed at the back of the
hall to give a 'sound in the round', ie
quadraphonic, effect. The sound system,
developed by EMI technicians, was stolen
after the show and not recovered for some
years.
1967 - Are You Experienced by the Jimi Hendrix
Experience was released in
the UK. It is widely regarded as one of
the greatest debuts in the history of rock
music. The album features Jimi Hendrix's
innovative approach to songwriting and
electric guitar playing which soon
established a new direction in psychedelic
and hard rock music. The album spent 33
weeks on the UK charts and 106 weeks on
the US Billboard Top LPs chart.
1968 - Brian
Jones made his final live
appearance with The
Rolling Stones when they
appeared at the New Musical Express Poll
Winners Concert at the Empire Pool,
Wembley. Jones drowned while under the
influence of drugs and alcohol after
taking a midnight swim in his pool, on 3rd
July 1969 aged 27.
1972 - The
Rolling Stones released
Exile On Main Street, the second album on
their own label. The double set featured
two hit singles, 'Tumbling Dice' and
'Happy'. In 2003, the album was ranked No.
7 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the
500 greatest albums of all time, the
highest of any Stones album on the list.
1977 - After being dropped by both EMI and
A&M records in less than 6 months,
Virgin records announced they had signed
the Sex Pistols.
1981 - Meat Loaf
filed for bankruptcy with
debts of over $1 million. The singer
stated; "I made almost nothing. That’s
how it was back then. The record company
said Bat Out Of Hell never made a
profit."
2000 - Thieves stole the gates to
Strawberry Fields the Merseyside landmark
immortalised by The
Beatles song. The 10' high
iron gates were later found at local scrap
metal dealers in Liverpool.
1963 - The Beatles
started a 30 week run at No.1
on the album charts with their debut album
'Please Please Me', making it the longest
running No.1 album by a group ever. The
bands follow up 'With The Beatles' replaced
it at the top of the charts on 7th December
1963 and stayed there for 21 weeks.
1964 - During a UK tour The Rolling Stones
were refused lunch at The Grand Hotel,
Bristol, where they were staying because
they were not wearing jackets and ties. The
following day the Daily Express ran the
story with the headline, 'The Rolling Stones
gather no lunch.'
1974 - Led Zeppelin
attended an Elvis
Presley show at the Los
Angeles Forum in California. After a shaky
start to the show, Elvis stopped the band
and jokingly said: ‘Wait a minute, if we
can start together fellas, because we’ve
got Led Zeppelin out there, lets try to
look like we know what we're doing.’ All
four members of Zeppelin met with Elvis
after the show, spending over 2 hours
backstage. Elvis asked for all the group’s
autographs for his daughter Lisa Marie.
1996 - Bill Graham
the Irish journalist credited with
discovering U2
died of a heart attack aged 44. He was also
the co-founder of the Irish music paper Hot
Press. Members from Clannad,
U2, Hothouse Flowers and Gavin Friday
all attended his funeral.
2003 - Jimi
Hendrix Experience bassist Noel Redding
died at his home in Ireland aged 57. Redding
played on the classic Hendrix albums 'Are
You Experienced', 'Axis: Bold as Love' and
'Electric Ladyland,' Right up until his
death, Redding had been taking legal action
against the Hendrix estate for payment
estimated at £3.26 million for his part in
recordings and for ongoing royalties. Had
also been a member of Fat
Mattress and formed The Noel Redding Band.
2004 - US songwriter John
Whitehead was killed by a
gunman. He co-wrote 'Back Stabbers' for the O'Jays and
as McFadden &
Whitehead wrote and sang
'Ain't No Stopping Us Now' which sold more
than 8 million copies and was nominated for
a Grammy Award.
2011 - One of the rarest rock t-shirts in
the world sold for $10,000 (£6096.00), the
largest sum ever paid for a vintage t-shirt.
The record-setting sale of a 1979 Led Zeppelin
t-shirt on eBay was sold by Kyle Ermatinger
of Stormcrow Vintage. The recent completion
of the transaction placed the purchase as
the world's rarest and most expensive
vintage t-shirt.
2014 - American bass guitarist Ed Gagliardi
best known as the original bass player with Foreigner
died at age 62 after an eight-year battle
with cancer. In 1981, Gagliardi formed the
band Spys
with former Foreigner keyboardist Al Greenwood.
Week
Commencing May 4
1960 - The Silver
Beetles (John Lennon, Paul
McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe,
and Tommy Moore) auditioned for promoter Larry
Parnes and singer Billy Fury for a job as
Fury's backing group. Parnes was also looking
for backing groups for his lesser-known acts,
and The Silver Beetles were selected as
backing group for singer Johnny Gentle's
upcoming tour of Scotland. The group had
changed its name from 'The Beatals' to 'The
Silver Beetles' after Brian Casser (of Cass
and the Cassanovas) remarked that the name
'Beatals' was "ridiculous". He suggested they
use the name 'Long
John and the Silver Beetles',
but John Lennon refused to be referred to as
'Long John'.
1964 - Bob Dylan
arrived in Britain for his first major UK tour
including a show at London's Royal Festival
Hall on the 17th of this month.
1969 - Led Zeppelin
made their first appearance on the album chart
when the band's debut album charted at No. 6,
going on to spend 71 weeks on the chart. It
entered the US chart the following week at No.
10. Recorded in around 36 hours, the album is
now considered one of the most important
debuts in rock, creating an entirely new
interpretation of the Rock And Roll genre,
with groundbreaking musical styles and
recording techniques.
1969 - The Moody
Blues started a two-week run at
No.1 on the album chart with 'On The Threshold
Of A Dream' (their first No.1 album).
1986 - Falco
was at No.1 on the singles chart with 'Rock Me
Amadeus.' Falco became the first-ever Austrian
act to score a UK and US No.1 hit single and
the first German speaking artist to achieve a
No.1 on the US charts. Falco died of severe
injuries received on 6 February 1998, when his
Mitsubishi Pajero collided with a bus in the
Dominican Republic. It was later determined
that the bus driver was speeding, for which
the driver served three years in prison. His
estate claims he has sold 20 million albums
and 15 million singles, which makes him the
best selling Austrian singer of all time.
2013 - A two-year degree in heavy metal music
was branded an "easy option" by education
campaigners. The foundation degree was being
offered by New College Nottingham. The course,
which was due to start later this year would
include modules on the music business, the
history of heavy metal and its role in films
and video games and would show students how to
compose and perform heavy metal songs.
2013 - Two men were arrested in Dublin after
the city centre statue of Phil Lynott was
pushed over and seriously damaged. The
memorial to the Thin
Lizzy icon has been removed
from its Harry Street location for repairs,
and the men were later released without
charge. The life-size bronze sculpture was
unveiled in 2005 and had become a tourist
destination and landmark since then.
2018 - Scottish singer, songwriter, guitarist
Scott Hutchison
from indie band
Frightened Rabbit was found
dead near South Queensferry, Scotland.
Hutchison was last seen at 1am on the 9th May
leaving a hotel in South Queensferry and later
tweeted 'Be so good to everyone you love.
It's not a given. I'm so annoyed that it’s
not. I didn't live by that standard and it
kills me. Please, hug your loved ones',
followed by 'I'm away now. Thanks'
prior to his disappearance.
1964 - Gene Vincent
and the Shouts appeared at The
Rhodes Centre, Bishop's Gate. The poster
advertised that the first 50 girls would be
admitted free; tickets cost six shillings and
six pence.
1964 - Chuck Berry
began his first ever UK tour at The Astoria
Theatre, London, supported by The Animals, The Swinging
Blue Jeans, Karl Denver and the Nashville Teens.
1966 - The Doors
played at the Whisky A Go Go, West Hollywood,
California auditioning for the position of the
venue's house band.
1970 - Guess Who started
a three-week run at No.1 on the US singles chart
with 'American Woman', it was the group's sixth
Top 30 hit and only chart topper. The song was
born by accident when guitarist Randy Bachman
was playing a heavy riff on stage after he had
broken a string, the other members joined in on
the jam. A fan in the audience who had recorded
the gig on tape presented it to the group after
the show and they developed it into a full song.
1978 - Fee Waybill
of The Tubes
broke a leg after falling from the stage at the
Hammersmith Odeon, whilst wielding a chainsaw
during the bands set.
1980 - 'I Don't Like Mondays' by The Boomtown Rats
won the best pop song and outstanding British
lyric categories at the 25th Ivor Novello
Awards. And Supertramp's
'The Logical Song' won Best Song Musically and
Lyrically. Boomtown Rats lead singer Bob Geldoff was
inspired to write the song after reading about
the tragic shooting spree when 16-year-old
Brenda Spencer killed two people and wounded
nine others when she fired from her house across
the street onto the entrance of San Diego's
Grover Cleveland Elementary School.
1981 - Adam and the
Ants were at No.1 on the singles
chart with 'Stand And Deliver.' The song enjoyed
a five-week run at No.1.
1954 - BBC radio banned the Johnny
Ray song ‘Such a Night’ after
listeners complain about its 'suggestiveness'. Ray
was famous for his emotional stage act, which
included beating up his piano and writhing on the
floor.
1965 - The filming of the promotional film for Bob Dylan’s
'Subterranean Homesick Blues' took place at the
side of the Savoy Hotel in London. Actors in the
background were Allen Ginsberg and Bob Neuwirth.
The original clip was actually the opening segment
of D.A. Pennebaker's film, Dont Look Back, a
documentary on Bob Dylan's 1965 tour of England.
In the film, Dylan, who came up with the idea,
holds up cue cards for the camera with selected
words and phrases from the lyrics. The cue cards
were written by Donovan, Allen Ginsberg, Bob
Neuwirth and Dylan himself. While staring at the
camera, he flipped the cards as the song played.
1974 - Keyboard player Graham
Bond committed suicide, aged just
36, after throwing himself under a London tube
train at Finsbury Park station. It took police two
days to identify his body which was crushed beyond
all recognition. Briefly a member of Blues Incorporated,
a group led by Alexis
Korner, before forming the Graham Bond Quartet,
with a lineup of Bond on vocals and organ, Ginger Baker on
drums and Jack Bruce
on bass.
1976 - Radio 1 DJ Johnny
Walker announced he was quitting
the station after being told by the BBC he must
pretend to like The Bay
City Rollers.
1982 - Neil Bogart died
of cancer at the age of 39. Bogart was the founder
of Casablanca Records, with Peter Guber, home of Donna Summer, The Village
People, Kiss, T.Rex and Joan Jett.
1993 - Mark Knopfler
received an honorary music doctorate from the
University of Newcastle upon Tyne.
1967 - Pearls Before Swine
begin recording an album called 'One Nation
Underground'. The LP included a song called 'Miss
Morse', which would be banned in New York when it
was discovered that lead singer Tom Rapp was singing
F-U-C-K in Morse code. After disc jockey Murray The
K played the record on the air, local Boy Scouts
correctly interpreted the chorus and phoned in a
complaint.
1968 - Flying back to the UK after a US tour after
his last gig with the band Bluesology, keyboard
player Reginald Dwight
gave some thought for a stage name he could use for
his burgeoning solo career. In the cabin, he came
across the band's horn player Elton
Dean and lead singer Long John Baldry,
and asked them if he can appropriate their names to
concoct a new one for himself. They agree, and Elton John is born.
1971 - 'Moonage Daydream' was released as a single
by Arnold Corns,
a band formed by David
Bowie, the name of which was inspired
by the Pink Floyd
song 'Arnold Layne'. This was one of Bowie’s side
projects and something of a dry run for Ziggy
Stardust. The song later reappeared on Ziggy
Stardust in a new version with updated lyrics.
1978 - 90,000 tickets were sold in eight hours for Bob Dylan's
forthcoming London dates at Earls Court.
1992 - Nigel Preston
drummer with The Cult
died aged 32 in London. Was a founding member of The Death Cult, and
also played and recorded with Sex
Gang Children, Theatre of Hate and The Gun Club.
2011 - John Walker
(John Joseph Maus) best known as the founder of The Walker Brothers
died of liver cancer at his Los Angeles home. He
formed The Walker Brothers (originally The Walker Brothers Trio)
in 1964, with himself as lead vocalist and
guitarist. The Walker Brothers scored the 1966 UK
No.1 & US No. 13 single 'The Sun Ain't Gonna
Shine Anymore'.
1965 - In their Clearwater, Florida hotel room, Mick Jagger and Keith Richards worked
out the opening guitar riff of ’(I Can’t Get No)
Satisfaction’ following Richard's purchase of a Gibson
fuzz-box earlier that day. The song is considered to
be one of the all-time greatest rock songs ever
recorded. In 2004 Rolling Stone magazine placed
'Satisfaction' in the second spot on its list of The
500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
1967 - Jimi Hendrix, The
Walker Brothers, Engelbert Humperdink
and Cat Stevens
all appeared at the Imperial Ballroom, Nelson,
Lancashire.
1972 - The Tyrannosaurus Rex
double album 'Prophets, Seers And Sages And The Angels
Of The Ages / My People Were Fair And Had Sky In Their
Hair But Now Their Content To Wear Stars On Their
Brows' went to No.1. The longest title of an album
ever at the time!
2002 - 'Bohemian Rhapsody' by Queen
was voted the favourite single of all time in a poll
by the Guinness Hit Singles book. 'Imagine' by John Lennon was voted
in at No.2 and ‘Hey Jude’, The
Beatles No.3, 'Dancing Queen' by ABBA was fourth
and Madonna 'Like A Prayer' was in fifth place.
2003 - After the controversy regading Dixie Chicks member
Natalie Maines’ comments about President George W.
Bush and the Iraq war, a Colorado radio station
suspended two of its disc jockeys for playing music by
Dixie Chicks.
2015 - British-Jamaican singer and songwriter Errol Brown, best
known as the frontman of the soul and funk band Hot Chocolate died of
liver cancer at his home in the Bahamas. Their hits
included 'You Sexy Thing', 'So You Win Again' and
'Brother Louie'. His break in music came in 1969 when
he recorded a version of 'Give Peace a Chance' with
some friends. Unable to change the lyrics without John Lennon's
permission, he sent a copy to his record label, Apple,
and the song was released with Lennon's approval.
1963 - On a recommendation by George
Harrison, Dick Rowe Head of A&R at
Decca records (and the man who turned down The Beatles) went to see
The Rolling Stones
play at Crawdaddy Club, London. The band were signed to
the label within a week.
1966 - Manfred Mann
were at No.1 on the singles chart with 'Pretty
Flamingo'. The recording features future Cream bassist Jack Bruce, who briefly
joined the band in 1965. On their Top Of The Pops
appearance, singer Paul Jones
performed whilst standing on one leg.
1967 - The Kinks
released 'Waterloo Sunset' as a single which went on to
peak at No.2 on the chart. Songwriter and Kinks singer Ray Davies later stated
that the song was originally entitled 'Liverpool
Sunset', after his love for Liverpool and Merseybeat.
1972 - The first day of the three day Bickershaw
Festival, Wigan, featured Grateful
Dead, Dr John, Donovan, The Kinks, Captain
Beefheart, Hawkwind, America, Family, Country Joe
MacDonald, Wishbone Ash, New Riders Of The Purple
Sage, Brinsley Schwarz and the Flamin Groovies.
1973 - David Bowie
scored his first No.1 album when 'Aladdin Sane' started
a five-week run at the top, featuring the single 'Drive
In Saturday'. The follow-up to his breakthrough The Rise
and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars.
1983 - The Stranglers
'Golden Brown' was named most performed work of 1982 at
the 28th Ivor Novello Awards. The single had become a
hit after the conservative BBC Radio Two made it 'single
of the week', a surprising step considering the band
were almost as notorious as The
Sex Pistols only a few short years
before.
1996 - Cranberries
singer Dolores O'Riordan
received both a public apology and a donation of £7,500
to the Warchild charity from The Sport newspaper after
they ran a story claiming she had performed a gig in
Hamburg without wearing any underwear.
2003 - Holiday camp operator Butlins introduced a new
system of rhyming slang at bingo halls in an attempt to
bring the game up-to-date. Pop stars Jennifer Lopez and Gareth Gates became new
catchphrases for the callers, 'Gareth Gates' (8) and
'J-Lo's bum' (71). Other additions include 'stroppy
teen' (15) and 'feng shui' (53).
2015 - American rock bassist Craig
Gruber died of prostate cancer in Florida
aged 63. He is best known as the original bassist in Rainbow and also played
in Elf with Ronnie James Dio and
worked with guitarist Gary
Moore.
Week Commencing April 28
1964 - The Rolling Stones
self-titled debut album started a 12-week run at No.1 on
the charts. The album spent a total of 51 weeks on the
chart. Also on his day The Stones made their first
appearance on the US singles chart when 'Not Fade Away'
entered the chart at No.98.
1969 - The Who gave a
press preview of their new rock opera 'Tommy' at Ronnie
Scott's in London. The double album about a "deaf, dumb
and blind boy" who becomes the leader of a messianic
movement, was the first musical work to be billed overtly
as a rock opera. In 1998 it was inducted into the Grammy
Hall of Fame for "historical, artistic and significant
value" and has now sold over 20 million copies worldwide.
1969 - Pink Floyd
appeared at Manchester Chamber Of Commerce. The show was
recorded for the forthcoming album 'Ummagumma'.
1970 - One Hit Wonder Norman
Greenbaum was at No.1 on the singles chart
with 'Spirit In The Sky.' Also a No.1 hit for Doctor and the Medics in
1986 and Gareth Gates in 2003.
1980 - Joy Division
played what would be their last gig with singer Ian Curtis
when they appeared at Birmingham University. Curtis
committed suicide two weeks later.
1991 - The video for the R.E.M.
song 'Losing My Religion', was banned in Ireland because
its religious imagery was seen as unfit for broadcast.
1998 - Japanese rock star Hideto
Matsumoto was found hanged in the bathroom
at his Tokyo apartment and died in hospital a short time
later at the age of 33. His funeral, held on May 7th, was
attended by over 70,000 people and required 100 police
officers, 170 security guards, police boats and
helicopters. 21 people were hospitalised for injuries
caused by the massive crowd at his funeral.
2007 - Almost 2,000 musicians gathered in the Polish city
of Wroclaw to play a rock anthem by
Jimi Hendrix. The guitarists were aiming to
set a new Guinness World Record by gathering 1,876
guitarists in the city's market square to play 'Hey Joe'.
Organisers say it was the biggest guitar ensemble in
recorded history.
2009 - A rare Motown seven-inch single sold for £25,742,
setting a new world record. Kenny Burrell, from Fife in
Scotland, put the unreleased 1965 single 'Do I Love You
(Indeed I Do)' by Frank Wilson
up for auction; the single was one of only two in the
world. Motown boss Berry Gordy had all other copies
destroyed after Wilson moved into songwriting and
producing. British Record dealer John Manship, who
organised the sale, said the buyer wished to remain
anonymous. Wilson went on to write hits for The Supremes and The Four Tops.
2009 - Bob Dylan
mingled unnoticed with other Beatles
tourists during a minibus tour to John Lennon's childhood
home. He was one of 14 tourists to examine photos and
documents in the National Trust-owned home, where Lennon
grew up with his aunt Mimi and uncle George. Dylan who was
on a day off on a European tour paid £16 for the public
trip to the 1940s house in Woolton, Liverpool.
2013 - Jeff Hanneman,
founding member of rock band Slayer,
died at the age of 49. The guitarist had been suffering
from necrotising fasciitis, a flesh-eating disease that he
is believed to have contracted from a spider bite in 2011.
Hanneman was being treated in a local hospital when he
suffered liver failure.
A RETROSPECTIVE LOOK AT . . . 'THE RAMONES'
 Release
date: 23rd April 1976
The three-chord guitar riff introduction, and ‘Hey!
Ho! Let’s go!’ came the cry, a simple, catchy melody,
and they were off. The Ramones created something that
was rooted in the early 1960s, rock & roll/garage
band rock but sounded revolutionary. And this is what
made them the leaders of the emerging New York punk
rock scene. Everything about the Ramones felt right.
The look, the name, the sound, the attitude. You
wanted the Ramones to be your best friends.
Based in the Forest Hills section of Queens, New York,
John Cummings (Johnny Ramone), and Thomas Erdelyi
(Tommy Ramone), had both been in a high-school garage
band from 1966 to 1967 known as the Tangerine Puppets,
(what a brilliant name!). They became friends with
Douglas Colvin (Dee Dee Ramone), who had recently
moved to the area from Germany, and Jeffry Hyman (Joey
Ramone), who was the initial lead singer of the glam
rock band Sniper.
Colvin was the first to adopt the name ‘Ramone’,
calling himself Dee Dee Ramone, taking inspiration
from Paul McCartney’s use of the pseudonym Paul Ramon
during his Silver Beatles days. (McCartney reverted to
the name when he pseudonymously contributed to Steve
Miller’s My Dark Hour recording). Dee Dee convinced
the rest of the group to take on the name and came up
with the idea of calling the band The Ramones (why
don’t more bands do this?). All four dressed in torn
blue jeans and leather jackets, in homage to 1950s
greaser rockers.
The Ramones played before an audience for the first
time in March 1974. Playing fast and loud, most songs
in the set clocked in at under two minutes, and a full
live set would be under 20 minutes. Around this time,
a new music scene was emerging in New York, centered
around two clubs in downtown Manhattan: Max’s Kansas
City and, more famously, CBGBs. The Ramones made their
CBGB debut a few months later in August. Legs McNeil,
who cofounded Punk magazine, later described the
impact of that performance: ‘They were all wearing
these black leather jackets. And they counted off this
song…and it was just this wall of noise… They looked
so striking. These guys were not hippies. This was
something completely new.’
In late 1975, Linda Stein, the then-wife of Seymour
Stein, owner of Sire Records, witnessed a gig at CBGBs
and became their co-manager, resulting in The Ramones
signing to Sire Records.
The Ramones recorded their debut album, Ramones, in
February 1976, at a cost of $6,400, with sessions
taking just seven days from start to finish. Clocking
in at under 30 minutes, the longest song here is I
Don’t Wanna Go Down To The Basement (inspired by
horror movies), at 2:35 and the shortest track, Judy
Is A Punk, is just 1.32 seconds long.
The recording process was similar to the techniques
used by The Beatles from the early 1960s: the guitars
can be heard separately on the stereo channels –
electric bass on the left, rhythm guitar on the right
channel – while drums and vocals are mixed in the
middle of the stereo mix.
The album features a number of themes, including
Nazism, violence, male prostitution and drug use, as
well as lighter fare such as horror movies and teenage
romance. The opener, Blitzkrieg Bop, the first single
lifted from the album, was released in July 1976,
originally just on seven inch vinyl. The pace of the
album makes you short of breath, but it’s all over too
quickly. Chain Saw opens with the sound of a running
circular saw: influenced by the 1974 horror film The
Texas Chainsaw Massacre, at nearly 180 beats per
minute it is the fastest track on the album. Now I
Want To Sniff Some Glue consists of four lines of
minimalist lyrics which are about youthful boredom and
inhaling the solvent vapors contained in glue. On the
question of the authenticity of the text, Dee Dee said
in an interview: ‘I hope no one thinks we really sniff
glue. I stopped when I was eight years old.’
The Ramones originally wanted an album cover similar
to the 1964 album by The Beatles’ US release, Meet The
Beatles! A photo session was subsequently undertaken
at a cost of $2,000, but Sire was dissatisfied with
the results. The band later met up with Roberta
Bayley, a photographer for Punk magazine, who noted
that ‘getting the Ramones to pose was like pulling
teeth’. Originally featured in an issue of Punk,
Bayley’s black and white photograph on the front of
the album cover was to be the defining inage of the
band.
One of the first people to review the album was Robert
Christgau who, writing for Village Voice, said: ‘…my
theory has always been that good rock and roll
should damn well make you uneasy…just perfect, a
minor classic’.
In the UK, BBC DJ John Peel made his weekly trip to
the Virgin record store at Marble Arch in search of
new releases. After the store manager, Tim Clark,
handed him the Ramones LP, Peel threw out the running
order for that evening’s show and played six tracks
from the album. The inexorable rise of punk was now in
place on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Ramones parted ways 20 years after the release of
their debut album, and sadly, three Ramones are now
gone. Joey passed away on April 15, 2001, at age 49,
the victim of lymphoma. Little more than a year after
Joey’s death, Dee Dee was found dead in his home in
Los Angeles on June 5, 2002. Two years later, Johnny
died on September 15, 2004, after a long battle with
cancer. But, if nothing else, their legacy lives on as
the bona fide fathers of British punk rock, and as
authors of pithy slogans like ‘Gabba Gabba Hey!’ that
galvanised a generation.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This week in .
. .
1963 - Publicist Andrew
Oldham and agent
Eric
Easton signed a
management deal with The Rolling
Stones after
buying the rights to the bands
first recordings for £90. They
also persuade keyboard player
Ian Stewart to drop out of the
line up and become the bands
road manager (and still play
piano at the back of the stage).
1965 - Jimmy
Nicol, the
drummer who stood in for Ringo Starr
during a Beatles
Australian tour in 1964,
appeared in a London Court faced
with bankruptcy with debts of
£4,000.
1967 - The 14 hour Technicolour
Dream benefit party for The
International Times was held at
Alexandra Palace in London.
Seeing the event mentioned on
TV,
John Lennon
called his driver and went to
the show. Coincidentally, Yoko
Ono was one of the performers.
Other acts to appear included The Flies,
Pink Floyd, Arthur Brown,
The Move and Suzie
Creamcheese.
1978 - P.J.
Proby was sacked
from his role in the London
stage musical Elvis
after repeatedly changing his
lines from the script. Proby had
been playing the oldest of three
Presleys in the play.
1980 - Black
Sabbath began
their first tour with vocalist Ronnie
James Dio, who
had replaced Ozzy
Osbourne.
1993 - Guitarist, producer, Mick Ronson
died of liver cancer aged 46.
Ronson recorded and toured with
David
Bowie from 1970
to 1973. Released the 1974 solo
album 'Slaughter On Tenth
Avenue'. Ronson co-produced Lou Reed's
album Transformer, also part of
Hunter
Ronson Band with
Ian
Hunter. And
worked with
Morrissey, Slaughter &
The Dogs, The Wildhearts,
The Rich Kids, Elton John,
Johnny Cougar, T-Bone
Burnett.
1998 - Steven
Tyler broke
his knee at a concert in
Anchorage, Alaska delaying
Aerosmith's 'Nine Lives' tour
and necessitating camera angle
adjustments for the filming of
the video for 'I Don't Want to
Miss a Thing.'
2009 - An anonymous Queen
fan won a two-hour one-to-one
guitar lesson with Brian May,
after bidding £7,600 at a
private charity auction. The
auction, in support of the
Action for Brazil's Children
Trust, of which May is a patron,
was held at the exclusive Cuckoo
Club in London.
1973 - Pink
Floyd’s The Dark
Side Of The Moon went to No.1. The
album went on to enjoy a
record-breaking 741 discontinuous
weeks on the Billboard chart in
the US, and has now sold over 45
million copies world-wide. After
moving to the Billboard Top Pop
Catalog Chart, the album notched
up a further 759 weeks there, and
had reached a total of over 1,500
weeks on the combined charts by
May 2006.
1981 - Former T. Rex
member Steve
Currie was killed
in a car crash returning to his
home near Vale de Parra, Algarve,
Portugal, he was 33 years old.
Joined T. Rex as bass guitarist in
late 1970, also worked as a
session player, played on
'Motorbikin' by Chris
Spedding.
1999 - The tour bus carrying The Clint
Boon Experience was
involved in a near fatal accident
when it was involved in a crash
outside Glasgow. Members of the
band had to be airlifted to
hospital.
2000 - Paul Atkinson was jailed
for three years after being found
guilty of stealing more than
£25,000 from Rolling Stone
Charlie Watts.
Atkinson had been the manager of
an Arabian stud farm owned by
Watts.
2008 - Scott
Weiland singer with
The Stone
Temple Pilots was
sentenced to 192 hours in county
jail for his November 2007 drink
driving offence. He was also fined
$2000, required to complete an
18-month alcohol programme and was
placed on probation for four
years.
2009 - A TV commercial for
insurance featuring Iggy Pop
was ruled as misleading by the
Advertising Standards Authority.
In the advert, the singer was seen
exclaiming that he had an
insurance policy with Swiftcover
but the company did not cover
musicians at the time of the ad
being shown. Swiftcover had since
started to offer policies to
musicians, and stated that 'Mr
Pop would continue to endorse
the company'.
2014 - Scorpions
drummer James
Kottak was
sentenced to one month in jail in
Dubai for offensive behaviour
after an incident at Dubai airport
on 3 April of this year. He was
convicted of insulting Islam,
raising his middle finger and
being under the influence of
alcohol.
1965 - Bob
Dylan was interviewed
by BBC journalist and radio
presenter Jack DeManio in the Savoy
Hotel, London, for the BBC’s Home
Service, which was broadcast on the
Today programme the following day.
Later on the 27th, Dylan and Joan Baez
were filmed singing the traditional
song Wild Mountain Thyme in the
Savoy. Parts of the interview and
the song were used in the film Dont
Look Back
1966 - The
Beatles started
recording the new John Lennon song
'I'm Only Sleeping' at Abbey Road
studios London. The song features
the then-unique sound of a reversed
guitar duet played by George
Harrison. It was
released two months earlier in the
United States on the album Yesterday
And Today and did not feature on the
original US version of Revolver .
1969 - Pink
Floyd appeared at
Mothers Club in Erdington,
Birmingham. Now legendary
DJ John
Peel reviewed the gig
as '...sounding like dying
galaxies lost in sheer corridors
of time and space'. Recordings
from this show were included in the
group’s 1969 album Ummagumma.
1971 - The
Grateful Dead
appeared at the Fillmore East in New
York City. The
Beach Boys also
appeared on stage with the Dead, who
together performed a short set of
Beach Boys songs.
2008 - The
Last Shadow Puppets
went to No.1 on the album charts
with 'The Age of the
Understatement', a side project of
Alex Turner of Sheffield band Arctic Monkeys
and Miles Kane of Liverpool band The Rascals.
2013 - A blue plaque was unveiled at
Swansea railway station, honouring Peter Ham
who co-wrote 'Without You'. Ham, who
was a member of
Badfinger, were
signed to The
Beatles Apple Records
label (and enjoyed their biggest hit
in 1970 with a Paul McCartney penned
'Come And Get It'). Ham took his
own life in 1975 at the age of 27.
Week
Commencing April 21
1966 - Dusty
Springfield was at No.1
on the singles chart with 'You Don't
Have To Say You Love Me', the singer's
only No.1. When recording the
track, Springfield was not satisfied
with her vocal until she had recorded
forty-seven takes.
1969 - During the band's second North
American tour
Led Zeppelin played the
second of two nights at The Winterland
Ballroom, San Francisco in California.
It was during this show that 'Whole
Lotta Love' was played live for the
first time.
1980 - Blondie
were at No.1 on the singles chart with
'Call Me', the group's fourth No.1,
featured in the Richard Gere movie
'American Gigolo'.
The track was also a No.1 in
the US where it became the band's
biggest selling single. Producer
Giorgio Moroder originally asked Stevie Nicks
from Fleetwood
Mac to help compose and
perform a song for the soundtrack, but
she declined.
1988 - Mick
Jagger appeared in
White Plains, New York, Federal Court
in the copyright infringement case
brought by reggae singer Patrick Alley,
who claimed the Mick Jagger solo track
'Just Another Night' was a plagiarism
of his own song of the same name.
Alley was claiming $7m in profits from
the track. During the case Sly Dunbar
played drums to the court to show how
the beats were different in each song
and Mick sang and played demos of his
song to show the court the development
of the track. At the end of the
week-long trial, Jagger won the case.
1997 - Ernest
Stewart, keyboard
player with KC
and the Sunshine Band,
died of an asthma attack. (1975 US
No.1 single 'That's The Way, I Like
It', 1983 UK No.1 single 'Give It
Up').
2019 - Molly
Hatchet singer
Phil
McCormack died age
58. He’d fronted the Southern rock
band since 1996 after having
performed with them previously,
taking over from Danny Joe
Brown.
1974 - Pamela
Courson the long-term
companion of the late Jim Morrison
died of a drugs overdose. It was Courson
who found The
Doors singer dead on July
3, 1971 in the bathtub of their
apartment in Paris, France.
1979 - The
Police made their debut
on Top Of The Pops performing 'Roxanne'.
The single which was taken from their
album Outlandos d'Amour was written from
the point-of-view of a man who falls in
love with a prostitute.
1990 - The Fender Stratocaster that Jimi Hendrix
played at the Woodstock festival was
auctioned off for a record $295,000. His
two-hour set at the 1969 festival became
the longest of his career.
1994 - The
Eagles played the first
of two shows where they recorded their
'Hell Freezes Over' album. Don Henley,
Glenn Frey, Joe Walsh, Don Felder and
Timothy B. Schmit first got back
together the previous December for the
making of a Travis Tritt video of their
song, 'Take It Easy' The name of the
album was taken from an earlier quote by
Glen Frey, who responded to the question
"When will the Eagles get back
together?"
2007 - American singer Bobby "Boris"
Pickett died of leukaemia
at the age of 69. Scored the Halloween
anthem 'The Monster Mash' in 1962. The
song had been banned by The BBC, deemed
offensive and wasn't a hit until 1973.
It was a spoof on the dance crazes
popular at the time, including the Twist
and the Mashed Potato.
1955 - Perez
Prado was at No.1 on the
singles chart with 'Cherry Pink and Apple
Blossom White'. Known as the 'King of the
Mambo' the instrumental was the theme from
the film 'Underwater' where Jane Russell
can be seen dancing to 'Cherry Pink'.
1959 - Buddy
Holly was at No.1 on the
singles chart with the Paul Anka
song 'It Doesn't Matter Anymore.' A No.1
hit six weeks after Holly's death.
1965 - Wayne
Fontana and the Mindbenders
went to No.2 on the
singles chart with 'Game Of Love'. Wayne
took his name from DJ Fontana the Elvis Presley
drummer. Eric
Stewart, guitarist in the
Mindbenders, went on to join Hotlegs
and 10CC.
1968 - The
Beatles new company, Apple
Records, turned down the offer to sign new
artist David
Bowie. Apple later signed Mary Hopkin, James
Taylor, Badfinger and Billy Preston.
1970 - Elton
John released his fourth
single 'Border Song' the first single from
his 1970 album Elton John. The appearance
of 'Border Song on the Canadian charts was
Elton John's first chart appearance in any
country.
1976 - Paul
and Linda McCartney
spent the evening with John Lennon
at his New York Dakota apartment and
watched Saturday Night Live on TV.
Producer of the show Lorne Michaels
made an offer on air asking The Beatles
to turn up and play three songs live.
Lennon and McCartney thought about
taking a cab to the studio, but
decided they were too tired. This was
the last time Lennon and McCartney
were together.
1992 - David
Bowie married Somali born
supermodel and actress Iman in
Switzerland. Iman first got married at the
age of eighteen to a young Somali man, in
1977, she married American basketball
player Spencer Haywood.
1964 - The President of The National
Federation Of Hairdressers offered a free
haircut to the next No.1 group in the pop
charts. He said 'The Rolling Stones
are the worst, one of them looks as if
he's got a feather duster on his head.'
1966 - Two dozen local groups appeared at a
‘battle of the bands’ gig in Matawan Keyport
Roller Drome in New Jersey. All acts
performed three songs each. The Rogues
won first place, second was Sonny & The
Starfires, and third place
went to The
Castiles (with Bruce Springsteen
on vocals). The three winners were given an
opportunity to perform at the Roller Drome
the following week as part of a major
concert headlined by The Crystals.
1972 - Deep Purple
scored their second No.1 album with Machine
Head. The album which features 'Smoke on the
Water' and 'Highway Star', is often cited as
a major influence in the early development
of the heavy metal music genre and
commercially it was Deep Purple's most
successful album.
1977 - The Jam
released their first single 'In The City',
which peaked at No. 40 in the charts. The
punk rock/mod revival formed in Woking,
Surrey, fronted by Paul Weller, and achieved
17 other Top 40 hits including four No.1s.
1969 - Janis Joplin
appeared at The Royal Albert Hall, London (her
first London appearance). The opening act was
Yes.
1970 - Tyrannosaurus
Rex, Spooky Tooth, Jackie Lomax, Elton
John (making his solo concert
debut) and Heavy
Jelly all appeared at The
Roundhouse, London, tickets cost 25 shillings.
1976 - Women Against Violence Against Women
called for a boycott of all Warner
Communications albums because of the
promotional campaign for
The Rolling Stones' new album
Black and Blue. The album was being promoted
with a controversial advertising campaign that
depicted the model Anita Russell, bruised and
bound, under the phrase ‘I'm Black and Blue
from the Rolling Stones - and I love it!’
1978 - UK folk singer Sandy
Denny died aged 31. While on
holiday with her parents in Cornwall, Denny
was injured in a fall down a staircase. A
month after the fall she collapsed at a
friend's home; four days later she died in
Hospital, her death was ruled to be the result
of a traumatic mid-brain hemorrhage. She was a
member of Fairport
Convention and a solo artist.
Her 1967 song 'Who Knows Where the Time Goes',
was covered by Judy
Collins. Denny sang on the Led Zeppelin
track 'Battle Of Evermore' on the bands fourth
album (the only guest vocalist on a Led
Zeppelin album).
1982 - Clash
frontman Joe
Strummer went
missing for three weeks which
resulted in the group cancelling a tour. The
singer was found living rough in Paris,
France.
2004 - Former Pogues
frontman Shane
MacGowan was attacked in a
London pub. The singer was assaulted at the
Joiner's Arms pub in central London and
suffered a fractured cheekbone after being
kicked, punched and hit with a metal bar. Two
men, aged 20 and 21, were arrested and later
released on bail.
2007 - Doris Richards
died of cancer. The 91-year-old mother of Rolling Stones
guitarist Keith
Richards bought her son his
first guitar for his 15th birthday. He learned
some chords from her father, Gus Dupree, a
musician who instilled him with an early
passion for music.
2013 - Calvin Harris
made chart history by becoming the first
artist to have eight top 10 hits from one
studio album. His track 'I Need Your Love',
featuring singer Ellie
Goulding, climbed to No.7 on
the Official Chart. The DJ and producer from
Dumfries, had overtaken Michael
Jackson, who previously held
the record with seven top 10 hits from both
his 1987 album Bad and his 1991 record
Dangerous.
2015 - Phil Rudd,
drummer of AC/DC,
changed his plea to guilty on a charge of a
threat to kill, in a court in Tauranga, New
Zealand. The court heard Rudd was unhappy
about his album's launch party and asked for a
former employee to be "taken out". He had
previously denied the charge. He also pleaded
guilty to cannabis and methamphetamine
possession. The court heard that he had fired
a number of employees last August after the
launch of his solo album, Head Job.
1968 - Apple Music ran advertisements soliciting
tapes from unknown artists, offering financial
grants as part of a deal to release records on
the Apple label. Artists such as Badfinger, James Taylor,
Mary Hopkin, Jackie Lomax, David Peel and Elephant's Memory
were signed up.
1968 - Deep Purple
made their live debut at a gig in Tastrup,
Denmark. Formerly known as
Roundabout, guitarist Ritchie Blackmore
suggested a new name: Deep Purple, named after
his grandmother's favourite song (which had been
a hit for Peter De
Rose), after his grandmother had
repeatedly asked if they would be performing the
song.
1979 - Lighting director Billy
Duffy was killed in an accident
during a Kate Bush
concert in Southampton. 21-year old Duffy fell
twenty feet through an open trap door on the
stage. Kate Bush held a benefit concert on 12th
May with Peter Gabriel
and Steve Harley
at London's Hammersmith Odeon for his family.
1991 - Steve Marriott
leader of Small Faces
and Humble Pie,
died in a fire at his home in Essex. His work
became a major influence for many 90s bands.
Small Faces had the 1967 UK No.3 & US No.16
single 'Itchycoo Park', plus 1968 No.1 album
'Ogden's Nut Gone Flake', Humble Pie, 1969
No.4 single 'Natural Born Boogie'. As a child
actor he played parts in Dixon of Dock Green and
The Artful Dodger in Oliver.
1992 - 'A Concert For Life' took place at
Wembley Stadium as a tribute to Queen singer Freddie Mercury
and for aids awareness. Acts appearing included;
Elton John, Roger
Daltrey, Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath), David
Bowie, Mick Ronson, James Hetfield, George
Michael, Seal, Paul Young, Annie Lennox,
Lisa Stansfield, Robert Plant, Joe Elliott and Phil Collen (Def Leppard),
Axl Rose and Slash.
2001 - A memorial concert for former Small Faces and Humble Pie
frontman Steve Marriott
took place at the London Astoria with Peter Frampton, Midge Ure,
Chris Farlowe and Humble Pie.
Week commencing
April 14
 1970
- Steel
Mill (featuring
Bruce
Springsteen) played
in the Main Gym at Ocean County
College in New Jersey. Tickets cost
$2.00.
1975 - Four Bay
City Rollers fans
were taken to hospital and 35 others
required on site treatment after
they attempted to swim across a lake
to meet their heroes. The group were
making an appearance at a BBC Radio
1 fun day at Mallory Park.
1995 - Oasis
drummer Tony
McCarrol was told by
phone that he was being sacked from
the group. McCarrol sued the
Manchester group for millions in
unpaid royalties and in 1996 Oasis
agreed to pay him a one-off sum of
£550,000.
2004 - R&B singer from New York Eamon
started a four week run at No.1 on
the singles chart with 'Fuck It (I
Don't Want You Back)' his debut
single. The song earned a listing on
the Guinness World Record for "the
most expletives in a No.1 song" -
with 33.
2012 - An original and extremely
rare 1963 mono copy of The Beatles
‘Please Please Me’ album, signed by
the Fab Four, sold on an eBay
auction for nearly $25,000. Paul
McCartney and John Lennon both
signed their names with “love” in
royal blue ink whereas George
Harrison and Ringo Starr signed
their names in midnight blue ink.
The autographs were signed in May of
1963.
2013 - Storm
Thorgerson, whose
album cover artwork includes Pink Floyd's
The Dark Side Of The Moon, died aged
69. A childhood friend of the
founding members of the band, he
became their designer-in-chief. His
credits also include albums by Led Zeppelin,
Peter Gabriel and Muse.
In 2003, Thorgerson suffered a
stroke, from which he recovered. He
was later diagnosed with an
undisclosed form of cancer, which he
battled for several years.
1960 - Touring in the UK, 21-year-old
US singer Eddie
Cochran was killed when
the taxi he was travelling in crashed
into a lamppost on Rowden Hill,
Chippenham (where a plaque now
commemorates the event). Songwriter Sharon Sheeley
and singer Gene
Vincent survived the
crash. Cochran's current hit at the
time was 'Three Steps to Heaven'. The
taxi driver, George Martin, was
convicted of dangerous driving, fined
£50, disqualified from driving for 15
years and sent to prison for six
months.
1965 - Bob
Dylan's second studio
album 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan was
at No.1 on the chart. The album opens
with 'Blowin' in the Wind', which
became an anthem of the 1960s, and an
international hit for folk trio Peter, Paul &
Mary.
1971 - All four Beatles
had solo singles in the charts, Paul McCartney
with 'Another Day', John Lennon
'Power To The People', George Harrison
'My Sweet Lord' and Ringo Starr
'It Don't Come Easy.'
1974 - Vinnie
Taylor guitarist with
US rock 'n roll revival band Sha Na Na
was found dead in a Holiday Inn hotel
room in Charlottesville, Virginia from
a drug overdose. Sha Na Na played at
the Woodstock Festival, their
35-minute appearance in the Woodstock
film brought the group national
attention. The group appeared in the
movie Grease as Johnny Casino &
The Gamblers.
1987 - Reggae drummer and percussion
player
Carlton Barrett of The Wailers
was shot dead outside his house in
Kingston, Jamaica. Joined Bob Marley and
The Wailers in 1970,
wrote the Marley song 'War'. Barrett
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