Showing posts with label Captain Beefheart. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Captain Beefheart. Show all posts
Wednesday, 25 April 2012
Who Wrote the Book of Love
Last Saturday I went to Liverpool to see the amazing giants, created by Royal de Luxe. I had been looking forward to going for some time, and it didn't disappoint - nothing like a piece of street theatre to bring people together, and it really was an extraordinary spectacle.
I met up with my sister and my cousin. My cousin lives in Liverpool, and was able to take us through some unexpected twists and turns in our route to catch the Giants - the Little Girl, her uncle the Diver and the dog.
Our walk took us past an old Banksy piece, discovered on a building being redeveloped somewhere near Chinatown. It took us down to Pier Head, and outside St George's Hall.
As a Mancunian, I hadn't really appreciated the memories Liverpool holds for me.
We went past the hotel where I had breakfast with Rockette Morton, after Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band played the stadium, promoted by Roger Eagle. I'd seen Sha Na Na there earlier the same year, and ended up living in a house and singing in a band managed by Roger as a result. The band was Drive In Rock and the Rockettes ,a 50s rock'n'roll revival band, and some of us are still around and in contact. We played the university circuit for a few years, and I have a recollection thet the Average White Band supported us in our hey day. We may simply have shared a bill, but it's a niggling memory.
The Sea Odyssey event was about the Titanic disaster. There's a possibility that I am related to the Captain of the Carpathia, the first rescue ship on the scene.A young man gave me his seat on the packed train home. Conversation followed, which meandered through Titanic family connections - his great grandfather was stoker in Engine room 2 - through shaman stones in Finland, to music we both liked and a forthcoming Philip Glass concert he had tickets for. Somewhere in the conversation Roger Eagle was mentioned ( Eric's is legend in Liverpool), and I told him about Drive In Rock and AWB. His parent were friends with one of them. All that seemed coincidence enough.
On the Sunday morning I lay in the bath, pondering on the meaning of life and the kind of amazing conversations travel and public transport can offer, ones that could never take place travelling solo in a car. And the Monotones 'Book of Love' came on the radio - one of our favourite Rockette numbers - I can still remember the harmonies and choreography!
Sunday, 19 February 2012
Reasons to be Cheerful, Part 2
I posted something quoting this Ian Dury song a couple of weeks ago, and it set me thinking about the man and his music.
Back in I think 1972, I became friends with the Edgar Broughton Band and their wives, girlfriends, roadies and families.
They had done a live on a lorry gig in Redcar, and had been arrested. A good friend and founder member of On the 8th Day in Manchester, Brian Livingstone, was their solicitor. He had a reputation as a sympathetic and radical man of law. At the turn of the year 1971 to 1972 he was invited to spend new year with the band and their friends and families at East Down Manor, just outside Barnstaple. The band were recording an album there. I'd had a bad time after leaving school. I had to take a gap year before I went to University (too young at 17), and I had found myself a very unsuitable drug dealing boyfriend. I needed a bit of rescuing, so Brian took me to Devon to meet the Broughtons, along with a couple of other friends from Manchester. It was a wonderful time. Gina Broughton and I became good friends, bonding over the coincidence of having gone to rival boarding schools in Matlock ( you thought this was going to be about rock 'n' roll didn't you?). There were other similarities in our respective fates at this stage of our lives, and we established a friendship which lasted over a number of years. I used to go and stay with them when they moved back to London. I took Captain Beefheart's tour manager round to meet them, taking a copy of their album back to Beefheart.
In the summer of 1972 they were appearing at the Rainbow, and as already mentioned, I had been part of a dance troupe in Manchester. I was asked to open the show as a broken down ballerina, and then myself and another dancer were at each side of the stage dancing for the rest of the set. I remember it being filmed, but have no idea if any footage still exists.
Backstage I was introduced to a friend of theirs, who had polio. It was Ian Dury.
Some years later I was at the funeral of the amazing Les Prior, star of 8th Day and Alberto y los Trios Paranoias. He had lost his battle with cancer. His funeral was held in Heptonstall, where he had lived. He is buried in the same churchyard as Syvia Plath. It was a snowy January day. And Ian Dury came to pay his respects.
The Albertos were on Stiff records, a family of extremely talented and rather eccentric artists. I saw Ian Dury and the Blockheads on the Stiff tour when it hit Rochdale, sometime between these two meetings. Wreckless Eric was on the bill too.
It all seemed so unremarkable at the time.Of course I don't mean that the characters and music were unremarkable, but that I took these adventures and opportunities for granted.
Back in I think 1972, I became friends with the Edgar Broughton Band and their wives, girlfriends, roadies and families.
They had done a live on a lorry gig in Redcar, and had been arrested. A good friend and founder member of On the 8th Day in Manchester, Brian Livingstone, was their solicitor. He had a reputation as a sympathetic and radical man of law. At the turn of the year 1971 to 1972 he was invited to spend new year with the band and their friends and families at East Down Manor, just outside Barnstaple. The band were recording an album there. I'd had a bad time after leaving school. I had to take a gap year before I went to University (too young at 17), and I had found myself a very unsuitable drug dealing boyfriend. I needed a bit of rescuing, so Brian took me to Devon to meet the Broughtons, along with a couple of other friends from Manchester. It was a wonderful time. Gina Broughton and I became good friends, bonding over the coincidence of having gone to rival boarding schools in Matlock ( you thought this was going to be about rock 'n' roll didn't you?). There were other similarities in our respective fates at this stage of our lives, and we established a friendship which lasted over a number of years. I used to go and stay with them when they moved back to London. I took Captain Beefheart's tour manager round to meet them, taking a copy of their album back to Beefheart.
In the summer of 1972 they were appearing at the Rainbow, and as already mentioned, I had been part of a dance troupe in Manchester. I was asked to open the show as a broken down ballerina, and then myself and another dancer were at each side of the stage dancing for the rest of the set. I remember it being filmed, but have no idea if any footage still exists.
Backstage I was introduced to a friend of theirs, who had polio. It was Ian Dury.
Some years later I was at the funeral of the amazing Les Prior, star of 8th Day and Alberto y los Trios Paranoias. He had lost his battle with cancer. His funeral was held in Heptonstall, where he had lived. He is buried in the same churchyard as Syvia Plath. It was a snowy January day. And Ian Dury came to pay his respects.
The Albertos were on Stiff records, a family of extremely talented and rather eccentric artists. I saw Ian Dury and the Blockheads on the Stiff tour when it hit Rochdale, sometime between these two meetings. Wreckless Eric was on the bill too.
It all seemed so unremarkable at the time.Of course I don't mean that the characters and music were unremarkable, but that I took these adventures and opportunities for granted.
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