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Posted: Wed Aug 19, 2009 7:00 am
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JT- That's a great bride story. You lucky bastard!

Did anybody else in this band get laid?

You should look up the happy couple and pop-in for their 40th anniversary with a great story. Assuming that they are still together, which may be doubtful, noting the circumstances. LOL

Great story. Keep the chapters coming.

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Posted: Wed Aug 19, 2009 10:07 am
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Hi Bill

Your question about the other band members getting laid.
I know that Aussie never did. he was courting a very attractive girl and they were in love,

Tony Didn't, except with , the girl he married, Joan, his first wife.
I believe he made up for lost time later.

Stan did stray with an ex girlfriend of mine, but that's in one of the later chapters.

Mal Thory was going out with a gorgeous girl, so I don't blame him for not straying.
I fancied her myself but she was already taken.

Damn

I am thinking now of the next chapter. and how to persuade a Publisher to read this thread.

If I did manage to get published, I might even send a copy to Rita.

Just wishful thinking.
Wouldn't it be great to be a published author sending signed copies to his "fans"
Dream on.




JT






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Posted: Sat Sep 05, 2009 4:44 pm
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We were playing at Hamilton Hall that weekend and so were the Beatles

It had become obvious that the Beatles were now the most popular band in the city.
Since they had returned from Hamburg in Germany they had started to do vocal harmonies as well.
I was a bit pi**ed off by this because The Hi Cats, up ‘til then, had been one of the very few groups who did it.

Hamilton Hall was in Huyton, a district of Liverpool, and not far from where I lived.

We were on stage first, that night, so we set up our equipment.
I had a Vox AC30 blond amp wired up to our PA system speakers.
I had removed the backboard of the amp and replaced it with an identical board, fitted with jack plug sockets. I kept the original backboard safe at home.
I plugged the leads from the speakers into these sockets, which automatically disconnected the original speakers, to prevent feedback.

The huge speaker cabinets, I had constructed, were based on the Vox Transistor Bass Amp.
Each had two eighteen-inch speakers fitted and two tweeters and this produced the best PA system in Liverpool. They were both covered in black vinyl.

The crowd outside were very noisy and we could hear them occasionally banging on the locked front door.
The Beatles van was parked at the back of the hall and their equipment was being unloaded, although they had already brought their guitars in.

George Harrison asked me if he could plug his guitar into my Vox amp so he could tune up.
Of course I said yes.

We had a drink of coke while the rest of the Beatles equipment was loaded onto the stage and set up.
One of the bouncers, at the side of the stage pulled on the rope and closed the curtains.

It wasn’t long before the manager asked us to get ready to start the show.
The disc jockey began to play his records, as the front doors were opened and the noisy crowd began to file in, pay at the kiosk, and then begin to fill the main hall.

We got into position while the compare grabbed his microphone and introduced, "Johnny Templer and the Hi Cats".
The main hall lights dimmed
The curtains opened
The show began.

We played our forty-five minute spot then it was the turn of the Beatles.
We normally went for a drink at the nearest pub when we had finished, but this time I decided to stay and stood in the wings, at the side of the stage, and watched the show.
I had heard rumours that they had improved their act and I wanted to see what was different.
Their new drummer Ringo Starr was playing.
He used to play with a Liverpool group called Rory Storm and the Hurricanes.
I could never understand why they had ditched Pete Best. He was very good looking and was a hit with the ladies.
I was there at The Cavern just after Ringo had joined, when the girls were chanting, “We want Pete” over and over.
They soon got used to it though.

The Beatles played their usual act that night. A Chuck Berry number, “Roll Over Beethoven” was one I liked them doing. Their act was mostly Rock, and Rhythm and Blues music.
I remember they played their own version of “A Taste of Honey” in harmony and it sounded good. I was very impressed with the arrangement.
There was a rumour that they were going to make a recording with a big Record Label, but they were tight lipped about that.

I went home early that night.
I was still recovering from my episode with Rita.

(Just kidding)


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Posted: Tue Sep 08, 2009 3:30 pm
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I love history and have especially enjoyed this thread. There is nothing like hearing how it happened from the person who lived it.


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Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2009 6:34 am
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Hey J.T. - Did you all get any attention from the record companies that didn't get the Beatles?

Did the Hi-Cats play on any bills with the Rolling Stones?

Good story so far, I was just wondering about this stuff.

Bill

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Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2009 5:51 pm
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Hi Bill

No, we didn't meet the Stones.
They mostly played in London which would be like me living in New York and the Rolling Stones living in San Fransisco.
Although the distances are much greater in the USA of course.
We did play "First act" (as you describe it ) with lots of famous stars.

There were representatives of record companies coming to Liverpool looking for talent, but not many of them bothered to visit the clubs in the city to actually watch the bands in action.
They seemed to depend on word of mouth and recommendations, also top flight auditions among the more popular groups. (which I think we were regarded)
We were asked to attend one of these auditions along with several other Liverpool groups, who all later on, had top ten hits in the UK and also got into the top ten in the biggest market of all, the United States.

That, I'm afraid, is were the story became a sad one.

I am, at the moment, re-writing this story, but I am going back, further in time and including all the "boring bits"
I am starting from the very beginning.
I will have to correct the time line, and some of the facts, which means quite a bit of research to get it right.

This is why I haven't had the time to add to this thread, although I will when I find the time.

I don't understand why the "Views" are going up even though I haven't added to the thread for a while.

JT

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Posted: Tue Sep 15, 2009 7:38 pm
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Its a great story and I think the word is getting around to that effect.

Mark


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Posted: Thu Sep 17, 2009 4:36 am
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Thanks Mark, I hope so.

An interesting link here.
Shows how we just scraped into the top 20 most popular groups on Merseyside in 1962.
http://www.geocities.com/fabgear6366/merseypoll.htm

Not bad out of all these bands. (We were listed as "The Hi Cats")
http://www.sixtiescity.co.uk/Mbeat/mb1A.htm

In 63 we dropped one place because the Searchers had released "Sweets for my Sweet" which had got to number two in the UK charts.
The year before, they hadn't even got into the top 20 bands.

We used to socialize with the Searchers, if we played on the same venue.
They later became one of the bands in "The British Invasion"

p.s.
I haven't reached that stage in the story yet.


JT

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Posted: Sun Oct 11, 2009 10:16 pm
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I just discovered this post today and I find it to be a really great story. I've always had an interest in the music from that time and place (my top favourite bands include the Yardbirds and the Animals) and it's really cool to hear about it from someone who was there "in the trenches."
I noticed that you mentioned Watkins amplifiers; well there is a website dedicated to them http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/ as well as others (Bird, Selmer, etc.) I don't know if you have been there or anyone else has, but I'd thought I'd pass it on since I found it to be very interesting.

Here's another site which I thought was cool, too. http://www.sixtiescity.com/

Cheers,
Paul


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Posted: Mon Oct 12, 2009 6:31 pm
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Please continue this story its really good even its a sad one.


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Posted: Tue Oct 13, 2009 5:37 pm
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I haven't deserted the Fender Website and I'm still writing
(all stored in my documents)

When someone posts here, I am informed on my computer, and will always reply.
I'm glad that you like the story though.

Regards

JT


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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2009 12:32 pm
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JT- I hope you are doing well.

I think it would be great if you arranged a reunion of the Hi-Cats and tried to play some of your favorite music again.

The whole notion that you are too old to play rock and roll has been shot down by all of the old Rock era groups in the USA revisiting their glory days with all kinds of reunion shows which many times don't have the original members in the band. Sometimes that can't be helped but they do it anyway.

I hope you can arrange it and post about it here.

I think it would be cool, but of course you may have your own reasons for not doing it.

Take care,

Bill the bassplayer

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Posted: Tue Nov 03, 2009 9:17 pm
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Hi Bill
Nice to hear from you.
Tony (The the Hi Cat's bass player ) once mentioned in an article he wrote for the Merseybeat newspaper. That the Hi Cats could be re-formed because all the members are still around.
Unfortunately that is not now the case,
My life long friend and fantastic lead guitarist, Stan Smith last year succumbed to the dreaded cancer and died on 29th June 2008.
His funeral was like a complete reunion of all the Mersey bands.
Stan was one of those guys who never had a wrong word to say about anyone and as a result was extremely popular.
There were radio personalities and members of many bands from the 60s.
My right hand was worn out shaking the hands of guys I hadn't seen for years. It was very nostalgic. Stan's wife, Sue, had hired a local social club and there was a succession of bands and singers doing their acts on stage. The place was packed and the show went on 'til late.

After the Hi Cats split up Stan had joined a US Style Country Band and when Tammy Wynette came to England, she was looking for a British band to back her on her tour. She chose Stan's band.
The outcome of this tour was that Tammy was so impressed with Stan's guitar playing that she asked him if he would be interested in coming to the the USA and playing lead guitar for her.
(Her actual words were "You can come and be my very own Chet Atkins")
After discussing it with Sue they both decided to accept her offer and up-root the family and start a new life in America.
The whole deal fell through when Tammy Wynette married George Jones, who had his own band.
I actually read a hand written letter from Tammy to Stan apologizing for letting him down. Who knows what would have happened if he had gone.
Stan being the guy he was, took it in his stride, and just got on with his life.

As for your suggestion about re-forming the Hi Cats. Tony and I have discussed it a few times and had even began to make moves in that direction. I had even asked Stan if he would be interested, he was, and had started to practice for a Hi Cats style repertoire of songs, however events took over, and, sadly, it wasn't to be.
I would still like to have another go at reforming though, there are plenty of good guitarists in Liverpool.

I am still writing chapters on my word processor and storing them in 'My Documents'

regards

JT


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Posted: Sat Nov 07, 2009 1:07 pm
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JT-

I'm very sorry to here of Stan's passing.
My sincere condolences to you, his family members and the rest of the Hi-Cats.

-Bill


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Posted: Mon Nov 09, 2009 6:37 pm
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Thanks Bill


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