Vets from the 60's Shine On!

[The Funk]

Love the outfits! Your lead singer looks like he was about a year or two behind the rest of you.

[fryer]

Well, like 'obbm' I started with a Framus Star Bass, and I still have it, detailed in my introductions thread. Started playing in '64, and have a picture from around then when we were 15 ish. I recently met up with the guitarist, and he has given me a cd made from the reel to reel tape we recorded at the BBC in 1966. Memories. The local cinema in Slough ran gigs as well, and we got a regular spot on Saturday nights, playing to a few thousand people, which you couldn't see 'cos it was pretty dark. Amen Corner played in the same cinema, and we were in the front row.

Saw Georgie Fame at Pantiles, Geno Washington at the Ricky Tick, and others like Cream, Tyranasorus Rex, Led Zepellin, Curved Air.

[leschirons]

[quote name='bumnote' post='454375' date='Apr 4 2009, 08:55 PM']

This is the earliest picture I can find from about 1967 I am playing a danelectro belzouki 12 string [for the birds so you want to be a rock and roll star and eight miles high probably] through a marshall 100 watt stack. I also had a jaguar or a tele

Note the home made trousers from curtain material and shoes which were hand painted.

I was a crap lead guitar but a good rythm player.[/quote]

Great pic and cool strides, vocalist looks like he's going to be asking "Do you want fries with that?" someday. Some gear investment there too, did you have wealthy parents? Pretty ground breaking covers for the time what with 8 miles high and R & R star. You must've been pretty good. Nice one.

[YouMa]

[quote name='leschirons' post='454492' date='Apr 5 2009, 07:23 AM']Great pic and cool strides, vocalist looks like he's going to be asking "Do you want fries with that?" someday. Some gear investment there too, did you have wealthy parents? Pretty ground breaking covers for the time what with 8 miles high and R & R star. You must've been pretty good. Nice one.[/quote]


I think the vocalist looks like terry hall from the specials,or at least is wearing one of his jumpers.

[geoffbyrne]

We started 1962 in Barrhead, near Glasgow & became 'The Original Corvettes' (www.youtube.com/miller4065 for recordings made in 1963/4 & some pics).

We were doing this *before* the Beatles made it!!!

The bassist is holding a very rare (300 made) Eko bass & would love to get hold of another. Bassist is still in Paisley, I travel up now & then, rhythm was in Abu Dhabi where I went to hang with him for a week (interesting!!!) and the drummer is in Oz, BUT there's talk of a reunion & doing a gig back where it all started.







Pics from 1963.

Geoff

[bumnote]

[quote name='leschirons' post='454492' date='Apr 5 2009, 08:23 AM']Great pic and cool strides, vocalist looks like he's going to be asking "Do you want fries with that?" someday. Some gear investment there too, did you have wealthy parents? Pretty ground breaking covers for the time what with 8 miles high and R & R star. You must've been pretty good. Nice one.[/quote]

I lost touch with all bar one of the guys. I met the singer 35 years later. I got the job looking after a warehouse. When I was introduced round, this little semi bald old bloke [ and Im no better except Ive still got hair] said 'you dont remember me do you' and it was the vocalist Cliff.

No we didnt have rich parents, it was all on the never never, or a provident cheque. Im just tring to remember how much my Marshall cost me, about £300 if I recall which was about 4 months wages.

Gear was relativelyexpensive, I remember seing my first pink strat in 1960 ish and it was 157 gns [about £165] and i think my dad was earing about £8 a week.

Gig money wasnt very good. I remember with another band doing 2 nights in Birmingham in the elbow rooms [where our agent assured as we would meet Robert Plant,] and the Belfrey [where we were going to back the Who, but it turned out to be Julie Felix] we cleared £2 each after van costs.

However, I wouldnt have missed it for the world. Ive had 45 odd years with a 6 year break, gigging round. Ive met some nice people and some a...holes in that time, and music has really added to my life.

[OldGit]

100 Watt Marshal stacks in pubs and clubs? and before Master Volume amps, I suspect.
We used to get the "turn down or F.O." message on a regular basis with just an AC30 for lead.... I bet they died when you turned up with that lot.

[beerdragon]

I remember playing on the same bill as the Herd with Peter Frampton, it was a large hall in shrewsbury i think. i just a had a fifty watt Marshall and a 4x10. mind you that would have been a valve head.

[bumnote]

[quote name='beerdragon' post='454738' date='Apr 5 2009, 03:49 PM']I remember playing on the same bill as the Herd with Peter Frampton, it was a large hall in shrewsbury i think. i just a had a fifty watt Marshall and a 4x10. mind you that would have been a valve head.[/quote]

We backed them in Bognor or brighton or somewhere
The bass playewr only had three strings and no spare
Peter Frampton was rifdiculously young and ridiculously talented

[bumnote]

[quote name='OldGit' post='454734' date='Apr 5 2009, 03:43 PM']100 Watt Marshal stacks in pubs and clubs? and before Master Volume amps, I suspect.
We used to get the "turn down or F.O." message on a regular basis with just an AC30 for lead.... I bet they died when you turned up with that lot.[/quote]

I hadnt twigged about amp distortion, i used to think I would break it if i turned up too loud, wondered why I could never sound like EC

[EdwardHimself]

Wow some interesting stories on here, it's amazing to think you lot grew up in the 60s, i can only just remember 1995 when i was still 4 years old!

[chris_b]

[quote name='leschirons' post='453785' date='Apr 4 2009, 12:41 AM']....I was at the Marquee every week since the age of 15....[/quote]
Did you ever see Ten Years After on Sunday evenings? They had a weekly residency in about 1967. A few years later, about 1972 or 1973, the Average White Band did the Sunday spot with Robbie Macintyre. He was one of the best drummers I've ever seen.

[YouMa]

You mean robbie mcintosh i think,awesome drummer,im a huge AWB fan.Schoolboy crush and there version of work to do is brilliant.

[chris_b]

Yes, Robbie Mcintosh. The guy had such a fantastic groove. He was an accident waiting to happen though. I never saw him sober (staggering usually!), but it seemed to have no effect on the playing!

Edited April 6, 2009 by chris_b

[YouMa]

[quote name='chris_b' post='455091' date='Apr 6 2009, 01:19 AM']Yes, Robbie Mcintosh. The guy had such a fantastic groove. He was an accident waiting to happen though. I never saw him sober (staggering usually!), but it seemed to have no effect on the playing![/quote]


I heard he died of a heroin overdose early on,shame he was very very good i saw him on the whistle test,Alan gorrie said he was really into percussion,bells,gongs,etc. He also said he would do things like wet his finger and rub it along his snare skin to get different effects etc,i tried this on my tablas and it does actually work. I think he might have got this trick from eddie bongo brown who was one of the motown dudes.

Edited April 6, 2009 by YouMa

[bumnote]

[quote name='YouMa' post='455083' date='Apr 6 2009, 01:03 AM']You mean robbie mcintosh i think,awesome drummer,im a huge AWB fan.Schoolboy crush and there version of work to do is brilliant.[/quote]

We backed Alan Gorrie and Onnie Mckintyre wjhen they played in a band called Hopscotch, Ive always thought he had a great voice, I was never too taken with Hamish falsetto

[leschirons]

[quote name='chris_b' post='455076' date='Apr 5 2009, 11:56 PM']Did you ever see Ten Years After on Sunday evenings? They had a weekly residency in about 1967. A few years later, about 1972 or 1973, the Average White Band did the Sunday spot with Robbie Macintyre. He was one of the best drummers I've ever seen.[/quote]

Fraid not. Only saw Ten years after once, but not at the Marquee. Messy, but seriously exciting.

[spinynorman]

Talking of drummers, Jon Hiseman with Colloseum in 1970, hard to believe there was only one drummer playing. I'm sure he had a couple of dwarves hidden behind the kit to help out.

I saw the first outing of Derek & the Dominoes at The Lyceum in June 1970, I think the only gig Dave Mason played with them. Oh, and Ginger Baker's Airforce with Phil Seaman and Graham Bond, around the same time.

[leschirons]

[quote name='spinynorman' post='456420' date='Apr 7 2009, 02:10 PM']Talking of drummers, Jon Hiseman with Colloseum in 1970, hard to believe there was only one drummer playing. I'm sure he had a couple of dwarves hidden behind the kit to help out.

I saw the first outing of Derek & the Dominoes at The Lyceum in June 1970, I think the only gig Dave Mason played with them. Oh, and Ginger Baker's Airforce with Phil Seaman and Graham Bond, around the same time.[/quote]

Colloseum were great. I'd forgotten about them. they were always on at the Marquee. Think the bass player was called Dave Ambrose and used a huge semi acoustic bass from memory, maybe a Guild or something like that. Loved Dick Heckstall Smith as well. Think he possibly passed away in the not too distant past.

Wrong about Dave Ambrose, he was with Brian Auger. It was Mark Clarke.

Edited April 9, 2009 by leschirons

[bassace]

I booked Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames into a Cheltenham gig in 1962 for £45. Wish I still had the letter. I'd recently met him at Redruth where we had a gig and he was recovering from sunstroke. As we were setting up he came up onto the stage and we did an impromptu version of Dat Dere - and we were meant to be a trad band!

[Ray]

[quote name='bumnote' post='452593' date='Apr 2 2009, 05:23 PM']We have forgetten.... The hammond organ up 4 flights of stairs.[/quote]
I still do this regularly!!

[Balcro]

[quote name='spinynorman' post='456420' date='Apr 7 2009, 02:10 PM']Talking of drummers, Jon Hiseman with Colloseum in 1970, hard to believe there was only one drummer playing. I'm sure he had a couple of dwarves hidden behind the kit to help out.

I saw the first outing of Derek & the Dominoes at The Lyceum in June 1970, I think the only gig Dave Mason played with them. Oh, and Ginger Baker's Airforce with Phil Seaman and Graham Bond, around the same time.[/quote]

I can assure you there was only one Jon Hiseman. I watched him from the side of the stage on at least 3 occassions and took photographs. He and the band were regulars at my college in 69/70 or thereabouts, and especially during rag week. At he last rag week I saw them the hall was only half full. When the light went up at the end of the set and they could see the Students Union had lost money, he returned half his band fee! I wonder if that would happen now?

PS Dave Greenslade was the organist and I think on one occassion a Tony Kay played bass. Good times.

Balcro.

Edited April 8, 2009 by Balcro

[bumnote]

[quote name='Ray' post='457078' date='Apr 8 2009, 08:48 AM']I still do this regularly!![/quote]

Oh my Gawd

although the sound of a hammond always sends shivers up my spine

Edited April 8, 2009 by bumnote

[BigRedX]

[quote name='Balcro' post='457271' date='Apr 8 2009, 12:27 PM']PS Dave Greenslade was the organist and I think on one occassion a Tony Kay played bass. Good times.

Balcro.[/quote]

Actually it was Tony Reeves who also went on to play bass in Greenslade. As well as being the bassist in the latest version of Greenslade he's managing director of MTR professional audio and IIRC was involved with one of the British amp companies in the 70s who's name current escapes me.

[2x18]

Yep the good old days!

Started playing bass in mid 60s with A Leeds band called " the Prey "

We used to do a lot of Beatles numbers cos our Singer/ Rythm guitar Ernie was a dead ringer both in looks and sound for the Late Great John Lennon and it was Ernie who tought me how to play Bass.

Our last Drummer, Pete used to play with a band called " The In Crowd " and they had a minor hit with the song of the same name

Started of with a solid Hofner bass and progressed to a white Vox Phantom then a Baldwin Burns semi-acoustic and finally a nice fireglo Ricky 4001 ( bought for £125.00 )

My first amp was a small Linear valve amp through a home made 12" cab but I soon changed that to a Marshal 50 and Marshal 18" cab and ended my gigging days ( I joined the Merchant Navy )in the very late 60s with a Vox head and Matamp 2 x 18 Cab ( Guess where I got my Sig.? )

We used to do all the top pubs and clubs in the Yorkshire area. The Star and Garter and The Wykebeck in Leeds were full week gigs-- every night for a week,
Couldnt do that now!

Some of the Yorkshire clubs were massive at that time especially in the Mining areas

Our transport was an old Ford Thames van that regulary broke down on us.

Will.