What a helluva month ……

.     … this has been.
No sooner have I almost recovered from the shock of having Jet Harris sign our website guestbook than I get an email from another Sixties musician who was, and still is, a hero to many guitarists of a certain age.
Vic Flick is perhaps best known for his legendary guitar work with John Barry on the James Bond Theme. John Barry was impressed with the way he managed to combine showmanship with an amazing technical ability.
By 1960 he had become on-stage leader of the Seven, as Barry worked his way to composing more music off stage, and less touring with the group. Flick’s debut track as a composer was the outstanding “Zapata” including his highly innovative signature “fade-intro” sounds.

Writing new music, and increasing time as a session player, made him a highly sought after freelance artist, even as he toured with the Seven until August of 1963. Flick has worked alongside Burt Bacharach, Herman’s Hermits, Tom Jones, Henry Mancini, Jimmy Page, Cliff Richard, Diana Ross, Nancy Sinatra, and countless more legendary recording artists. Flick, who resides today in Santa Monica, California, has written for television and films since those British recording studio days, serving variously as both composer and conductor.John Barry-scored films also relied often on Flick’s lead work, including six of the first seven “Barry Bonds” for United Artists. Flick’s memorable Spanish guitar strains for “From Russia with Love’s” splendid gypsy camp battle and dance scenes, for one notable example, bring the film much of its provocative moody feel when combined with Ted Moore’s haunting cinematography and Sean Connery and cast’s stellar onscreen performances. Flick’s work on banjo gave a peppy feel to the “Goldfinger” soundtrack, which set numerous milestones as the most popular movie soundtrack album ever recorded, and the Barry/Bricusse/Newley title track is well covered here.For the top recognisable tune of modern times, John Barry had but a few short days to arrange and record “The James Bond Theme” with his Seven plus an orchestra, getting a phone call on a Saturday and cutting the first take the next Wednesday, just three weeks before “Dr. No” opened in 1962 to enchanted audiences worldwide. Flick’s lead on the tune helped drive three generations and half of the world’s population to see the Bond movies.
You can catch up with all the latest news about Vic on his excellent website at http://www.vicflick.com/ . I found the sound files containing reminiscences from the Sixties session scheme especially fascinating. You can find them here.

I have also reproduced his email to Vintage Sixties Live in full here

 

British Legion Poppy Day Appeal

Anyone who is in to our kind of music could do a lot worse that buy this CD/DVD package, originally released by a friend of mine two years ago for the 60th Anniversary of the end of World War II. It is being made available again to help raise much needed funds for the Royal British Legion Poppy appeal.

The package features Sheffield nostalgia group Pastmasters, who have been voted top live band in South Yorkshire for the last seven years and have there own web site here

Track List:

1 No Retreat
2 Sunset – featuring narration by Bobby Knutt
3 The Valiant
4 We’ll Meet Again

You can order direct by sending a cheque / Postal Order for £6.00 inc P&P. to

Dave Robinson
The Chalet Manor Road
Wales
Sheffield
S26 5PR
Yorks

Or you can even send the money via Paypal to daverobbo47@btconnect.com (remember to tell him what it is for)

Or you can order online from the excellent Leo’s Den website here for £7.95 inc P&P.

Go on then – treat yourself – and raise some money for a very worthwhile cause at the same time.

 

October Club Night – The best laid plans ……..

…… of mice ….. and men.

Well, where do I start?
It was Club Night with the clock just approaching 7.30 p.m.

The guest group’s equipment had been delivered in good time by Jos, their bass guitarist, the stage was set, the concert room was full, Have Mersey were at Heathrow Airport…… errr pardon?? …. HAVE MERSEY WERE AT HEATHROW AIRPORT?? .. OH S..H..I..T!!

The day started early for the lads with the bad news that all flights from Amsterdam were facing substantial delays due to fog.The revised time for their flight meant they would arrive at Newcastle Airport at about 10 pm.In desperation they ran around trying to make alternative arrangements and eventually discovered that, if they got the bus from Maastricht to Amsterdam, and a train from Amsterdam to Paris, they could get a flight from Paris to Teesside, arriving at about 6pm., where we could collect them and bring them straight to the club. It meant paying for another set of air tickets but the guys were prepared to do that so that no-one would be disappointed.

So far so good – except that, due to further delays, they arrived in Heathrow too late to catch the link to Teesside and were obliged to transfer to the link to Newcastle. The irony of it all was that they eventually got to Newcastle at – you guessed it – 10pm. – meaning that all the extra trouble and expense they had gone to had achieved achieved bugger all.

As the saying goes …some you win, some you lose.
We do, however, appreciate the effort the guys made to attend and we look forward to welcoming them next year when we plan to hijack an Arriva bus and get Kenny and Alan to drive to Holland and pick them up.

So there we had it.
Half an hour to Showtime, a room packed to capacity, and no entertainment.

What do we do now?
If all the world is a stage, where does the audience sit?
What hair colour does Colin the Orchestra put on his driving licence?
Why does sour cream have an expiry date?

Find the answer to these and many other questions in the next thrilling installment which will follow shortly ……….

Part 2 – The Saga continues ……

….So there we were – 30 mins to curtain up and, Have Mersey, our guest group were still stuck in Heathrow Airport.

Now if there is one thing I have learned to appreciate since Alan L and I started Vintage Sixties Live, it is the depth and variety of talent from the Sixties who are still around and are still “up for it”.Occasionally, we do have to resort to threats of violence, or infusion of artificial substances (nothing stronger than Phyllosan or Sanatogen) but, at the end of the day as the saying goes – “once a turn always a turn”.

Having said that, providing three hours of live entertainment at 30mins notice is a bit of a tall order, even for our lot.We need not have worried though. A quick look around the assembled throng told us all we needed to know. Scattered around the audience were some of the top acts from Clubland’s hey day, and when we asked “Is there a turn in the house?” we were delighted at the response.

What followed was one of the most spectacular and, for me, most satisfying evenings of entertainment I think I have ever seen.
This one night totally justified our reasons for starting the project in the first place, and illustrated exactly why it has been, and continues to be, so successful.

Thanks everyone. We really do appreciate your support.

Thanks to Have Mersey for trying their best to beat both the weather and the EU transport system.We hope you enjoy the rest of your visit.

Thanks to the audience for being so patient and understanding.

Thanks to guys who provided the musical support – some of them playing for three hours with hardly a break. Mark, Bill F, Colin the Orchestra, Billy Baker, Brian Luke.

Thanks to all of the featured acts who performed so willingly and so brilliantly.
Big Jim, Alan L, Kenny, Paula, Alan W, Pete “Van der Volk” Lodge, Robin, Alan Burnigill, Brian Jones, Dave Gutteridge, Marie, Billy Barr, “Awesome” Angie, Jackie Carey, Leo, Colin Ibbertson,and of course me.

A big thank you also to Tudhoe Victory Club Management and bar staff for being so co-operative and also for being so beautiful – (that’s the bar maids not the management).

We had a blast – Let’s do it all again next month – Vintage Sixties Live – November 8th – Tudhoe Victory Club – “B there or B square”

 

More News from the September Club Night

I must give Eric Whitehouse a mention as he kindly brought me a present – a Vintage sixties Live T-Shirt no less which I wore with pride all night much to the envy of the assembled crowd.

Eric also brought along Stan Laundon who is well known in the area for his “Country Time” programme on BBC Radio Cleveland which he presented for 21 years. What I did not know until the other night was that Stan also worked with the inimitable Joe Brown for several years.
Have a look at Stan’s web site – http://www.stanlaundon.com/ – for a wealth of interesting Sixties related information.

All in all we were treated to over three hours of top quality non-stop live Sixties entertainment none of which would be possible without the considerable number of extremely talented backing musicians who come along month after month and give their time, energy and enthusiasm.
Thanks guys – you all know who you are.

Next month – Thursday October 11th – features a guest spot from top Dutch Sixties tribute band Have Mersey plus our usual array of local talent.

Admission to the public must be on a first come – first served basis so get there early to avoid disappointment.

See ya there!!

 

Rumours Rife at September Club Night

The September Club Night opened amidst widespread rumours that Vintage Sixties Live were about to move to another venue and also that a cover charge was to be introduced.Both of these fabrications were quickly and firmly refuted by Big Jim, who we were delighted to welcome back as compere for the evening.

Organisers, the Two Alans, paid tribute to the Management and Staff of Tudhoe Victory Club, who have, along with the many performers and musicians over the last 15 months , done everything in their power to make Vintage Sixties Live the success it is. They assured everyone that there are no plans to move anywhere.They also confirmed that the club nights would remain free of charge, although due to Health and Safety requirements at the Club, it was necessary to strictly enforce a “first come – first served” policy for the audience meaning possible disappointment for late-comers.

As usual guests and supporters had travelled from a wide area including this month – Dunfermline, Yarm and Richmond.The formalities over with, the evening proper got under way with a couple of gags from Jim, which had them rolling in the aisles, followed by three hours of non-stop entertainment encompassing everything from instrumentals to harmony vocals, and even featuring Kenny “the Legend” Potts’ new voice box which he used on his version of the Peter Frampton hit “Show me the Way” and had to heard to be believed. It is a guitar processor which has a tube attached enabling you to control the guitar’s sound with your mouth.”Isn’t it amazing?” gushed Our Paula, “If you put that tube-shaped thing in your mouth and blow down it whilst Kenny is playing the guitar, you can make sweet, sweet music.”"Errr …. right, Paula”

Alan Leightell proudly showed off his new red guitar watched by Alan Brason himself – the amazingly talented local luthier (guitar maker to the uninitiated) who made it.On the subject of instrumentals, the lead and bass guitarists of the Shadowcasters, a well-known Shadows tribute band from Tyneside , delivered a couple of impeccable instrumentals supplemented by some of our regular musicians.

Colin Ibbertson and the guys even performed the little heard but excellent Dakotas instrumental the Cruel Sea for us.

Colin also brought along Emma and Joanne again. They were wrongly reported on here last month as sisters – which I got told off for. Neither are they Colin’s daughters which I also got told off for. To confuse the situation even further this month they brought Alice along – who is not their sister either.Anyway, supported by Colin, Mark, AlanL and Brian Luke the three of them performed a short set including Aretha Franklin’s “Think” and I’ll tell you what we think Girls – we think you should come back soon.

More to come ….

 

August 2007 Club Night

Well. We did not really know what to expect as we prepared for this month’s club night.We were in the height of the holiday season, the weather was absolutely beautiful and we knew in advance that several of our regulars would be replacing their love of Sixties Music with a more than healthy indulgence in at least one of the other famous S’s – Sun, Sand and Sanatogen!I was still out of action with a bad back so we were delighted when Big Jim kindly offered to MC again. Thanks a lot Jim – it is really appreciated.

In the event we need not have worried as it proved to be an evening of treats and surprises for the near capacity audience.Have you ever noticed how most of the best female vocal group names start with an S – the Scissor Sisters, the Spice Girls and Sister Sledge – well we had the angelic Spenny Sisters, Paula and Annie, appearing together for the first time since being asked to leave the convent.And there was more. We also had Emma and Joanne, brought along by old mate and regular performer Colin Ibbertson, together with Brian Luke on drums. The two girls weren’t even born in the Sixties but they seemed very happy to sing our songs and become a welcome addition to our ever increasing array of young talent on display.

Not content with introducing the girls, Colin then proceeded to introduce us to his new group, “the Surfriders” (some of whom looked distinctly familiar) and then surprised us further with a couple of cracking surf instrumentals Surf Rider and Ram-Buk-Shush.If you closed your eyes you could almost hear the coal tubs emptying on the beach at Blackhall Rocks.It was quite a night for instrumentals.In addition to Colin, we had AlanL’s usual impeccable performance on the Shadows’ hits Wonderful Land and The Savage, and Dave Hodges, Stray Dogs lead guitarist, gave such a brilliant version of Santana’s Samba Pa Ti that we have had no alternative but to withdraw his membership until further notice.Hmphh!! We’ll teach him – Young Upstart.

Another welcome new face was Sheena. She came along with Mel (he, of the two beautiful daughters from last month fame) and they introduced a bit of class into the evening with a unique vocal rendition of “Besame Mucho” – probably better known in the early Sixties as a Jet Harris instrumental – followed by Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight.Alan Wakes and the guys version of the Honeybus hit ” I Can’t let Maggie Go” even boasted an oboe solo brilliantly supplied by the synth of Colin the Orchestra.We even had a birthday girl present.

It was Kay’s birthday and she said she would like to sing with a live group, so Jim and the lads put one together for her. Not only did she get her wish but she did a cracking job to boot. Well done Kay.

In a brief report such as this, I have concentrated on introducing our new friends, but grateful thanks must also go to all of our regular band (pun intended) of backing and featured artists who turn up month after month to make the evening the success it is.I won’t mention everyone by name but you all know who you are and how much your efforts are appreciated.Pics of the night will be added hereand Video clips here as time permits.

Thanks again guys and gals – I’m already looking forward to next month.and don’t forget “B there or B Square”

 

July 2007 Club Night

The July Club night was packed again, with a lot of new faces present.

Big Jim kindly offered to stand in as compere as I was still having severe back problems.

The entertainment kicked off at about 8:15pm and went right through to about 11:20pm -without a break.It featured about 30 entertainers performing 40 songs/ instrumentalsWe had the usual mixture of styles, ages and personalities which we have come to expect.

One of the most gratifying things about this project is the way it increasingly attracts many “youngsters”, who were not even born in the Sixties, yet are quite happy to watch or perform Sixties material.
I have posted the usual photos with captions at http://imageevent.com/alanprudhoe/vsljuly2007 and some more new videos herehttp://www.vintagesixtieslive.co.uk/Videos.html