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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 12:26 am
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Hi BC
When I said democratic I didn't mean that we took a vote on every decision.
I meant really, that I made most of the decisions but kept a weary eye the reactions of the rest of the guys and if I saw any signs of disagreement I would find out what the problem was and explain why I was taking that particular route.
Most resentment is caused by losing sight of the ball and not listening to what the others have to say. In fact acting like a little Hitler and riding roughshod over everybody else.
I very rarely had to explain my decisions because I always made sure that the others knew why I was making them.
In fact I sometimes changed direction because someone had said something that made better sense.


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 5:32 am
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The first booking with Roy Wood went down quite well considering that it was his first gig with us.
He had asked us to call him Jay and not Roy (Don’t ask me why, I think he just wanted a stage name, or maybe he didn’t want to be confused with another Roy Wood).
This suited us because we already had a Roy, our driver.
Anyway Jay played all the Shadows music and backed the vocals with not many mistakes.

We had earlier that week got together in our new evening practicing venue. It was a bakery, managed by the Hi Cat’s ex drummers Dad. And he let us use a small, disused storeroom because it was isolated from the rest of the bakery and had an outside door, so it was ideal. It was also isolated and away from passers by who might have interfered with our practice sessions.

I had picked up Jay and his equipment, using my estate car, with was Ideal for carrying group equipment.
I noticed at the practice session that he had a habit of drifting off from the job in hand and starting to impress everyone with his party pieces. This was very enjoyable but we needed to get a show worked out, I had a hell of a job getting back to rehearsing without causing offence.

The first booking with Jay was at The Odd Spot Club. A small crowded place with good acoustics and a small stage but the only trouble was that the stage was low and the singer was within reach of the audience.
Some of the girls, crowded near the stage would grab hold of the microphone lead and pull it towards them knowing that you couldn’t let go of it because it would probably get broken and they were expensive, so you had to go down with the mike, still singing into it and trying to look unruffled.
I used to panic a bit when they did this, because I’d had an experience once before in a club in Bootle (A district of Liverpool) near the town hall.
This club had hardly any lights on except on the stage and you could hardly see the audience.
I was wearing sunglasses on stage and looking real cool. They were expensive, with bright silver rims. I was singing a real Beatty rock song, when one of the girls grabbed the mike lead (They didn’t have radio mikes in those days) and pulled it down. I had to follow and about five of them grabbed me and pulled me off the stage and into the darkness. The audience, mostly female, started laughing and screaming surged towards me. I was struggling, trying to get up off the floor. One of the girls weighing about 14 stone (196 pounds) had me pinned down. I heard her say “Come here you handsome bastard” smothered me with her lips and planted a big sloppy wet kiss on my mouth. I could smell gin on her breath. It was not a pleasant experience.
That was bad enough but what the rest of them were doing with their hands I will leave to the imagination. No it wasn’t pleasant it was painful. Not gentle caresses. But rough grabs and hard squeezes.
The Club bouncers, (Security) with broad grins on their faces, eventually came to my rescue and dragged me from under them and allowed me to struggle back on stage to join the group, who were, by now, falling about with laughter. My expensive sunglasses were gone forever. I never bothered wearing them after that.
Believe me women are much worse than men, in circumstances like that when they can remain anonymous and get away with it.

Anyway. Getting back to the Odd Spot.
As I was saying.
Jay did a good job and we had dropped another Cliff Richard song and replaced it with “Runaway” from the singer Del Shannon who was one of my favourites.
We were slowly beginning to change our repertoire to one that the audience liked and one that we enjoyed doing ourselves.

I have been trying to load an image without success.
Perhaps Nik could tell me how to do it


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 10:59 am
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You need to open a photobucket account.
http://register.photobucket.com/
When you create an account you can upload pictures. Once you have uploaded a picture if you hover your mouse pointer over it you will see some computer codes appear. You need to copy the one that begins [img]and%20ends[/img] with a load of gumf in the middle. You enter that code into your post and it produces your picture. If you press the quote button in the top right hand corner of this post you will see the image code for this picture
Image

Remember them old watkins amps from the time your talking about.

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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 12:21 pm
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Thanks for that nik.
Will try later.


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 12:28 pm
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Wow a Watkins amp. That was the first amp I ever owned, when I bought my Arnold Hoyer.
My second amp was a blonde AC30. (I've still got it), and also a black one.
I believe they are worth a lot of money now.
The blonde Voxes are very rare. They have leather handles instead of plastic


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:05 pm
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Yep thats from59 bought lastyear for £140 hopefully worth enough to retire on when i come to retirement age in 28years. It should be approaching antique status then rather than vintage.
Both of those vox's are worth a good bit of dough mate. Its worth contacting collectors about. I'd say your looking at an easy £3k+ each for 64's in good condition. Dont quote me on that, its a guess at best.

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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:05 pm
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Here is a copy of the local advert that was Used iwhen we were playing that night.

Image

A bit more complicated than your explanation Nik but I managed to work it out.

Thanks again

JT


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:05 pm
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Merseykid wrote:
Wow a Watkins amp. That was the first amp I ever owned, when I bought my Arnold Hoyer.
My second amp was a blonde AC30. (I've still got it), and also a black one.
I believe they are worth a lot of money now.
The blonde Voxes are very rare. They have leather handles instead of plastic



:shock: you still have your AC30 :shock: You dont know how much I envy you :D


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:07 pm
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Merseykid wrote:
Here is a copy of the local advert that was Used iwhen we were playing that night.

Image

A bit more complicated than your explanation Nik but I managed to work it out.

Thanks again

JT



:shock: ok another shock YOU AND THE BEATLES SAME NIGHT!!! :shock:


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:09 pm
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By the way this episode was really cool, kinda funny when the large lady grabbed you off stage and made you hers LOL well in a way :wink:


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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:15 pm
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I also have a Fender Coronado 12 stringer from the same era. Swapped it for a Telecaster, but later I was sorry I'd swapped.
We didn't do many songs that required a 12 stringer. I also liked the sound that the Telecaster made.
I see you have a Telecaster in your photo.
As the story unfolds you will see that I had to start playing an instrument and work for a living.


Last edited by Merseykid on Sun Apr 26, 2009 2:07 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 1:26 pm
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Hi Synk

Yes, but it wasn't funny at the time. What happened that night was a bit scary.
The things that those girls did while I was helpless was also scary.
It was dark and they knew that there would be no comeback because no one could see who was doing what.
If I was to do that to a girl singer I would be in a police cell before I could blink. and the bouncers would be the first to sort me out instead of grinning.
It aint fair.
Believe me it wasn't in the least bit as enjoyable as you might think.
They might have been trying to take a souvenir home with them. At least that's what it felt like.
Don't forget some of them were drunk and underage.


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Post subject:
Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 2:54 pm
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I have no doubt that being smothered and violated by a bevy of drunk, overwseight females is no fun in that circumstance. I think the mob psychology that takes place in crowd situations like you described is nothing to make light of, and yet it is treated very lightly by many who don't understand how vulnerable a performer is in that situation.
Those type if situations are remembered as a harmless feature of Beatlemania yet I am sure that it is no fun if you are the person(s) being persued.

One question I have for you in regards to the Hi-cats and other groups at that time.
Was there any shared equipment or practice spaces among the bands or were you all on your own as competitor's?

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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 3:40 pm
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Yeah I agree being ravaged by overweight girls is no fun at all.
Still its horribleness is of the best kind :wink:.

Yep i've a tele nothing special but i like it. Theres something very appealing about the old twangbanger. Can we see them Vox's? Its hard to believe that 2 guitars and a bass would all plug into one of them at the same time.

BcBassman. In the UK its quite commonplace to share rehearsall space to keep costs on rent down, and equipment and dressingrooms when performing. Its been like that since the mid 80's to my knowledge as thats when i started. I strongly suspect it was like it before. Theres several stories of bands from the 70's doing it.

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Posted: Sun Apr 26, 2009 3:47 pm
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Yes, since you know how to post pictures now we would all love to see those vintage amps! I know I would! No excuses now! :) :wink:


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