Month: December 2023

Delroy Williams Show, St Johns Wood & Chris Gentry Hastings Pier – 31st Dec 1968

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Andre Palfrey-martin collection

Mick O’Dowd… excellent concert, highly underrated.

Alan Esdaile… Managed Delroy in the 70’s, always puts on a great show and a really nice guy. Still going strong as part of Desmond Dekker’s Aces tribute.

Andre Martin… Remember the night well, unfortunatly not a very big crowd, so the ballroom was a little chilly even with the Gas fires working. Good programme and headliners were excellent.

Pete Fairless… What did Chris Gentry show, we wonder?

Andre Martin… Now that would be telling.

Alan Esdaile… style, flair, presentation skills and great music.

Hawkwind Gigs – 3rd August 1972, 18th June 1977, 1st Sept 1973

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all cuttings Sarah Harvey, autograph supplied by Roger Carey

Andy Qunta….Met Tex, bass player for Ace, at a Factory gig in Lancashire, Burnley I think. They had just signed their record deal. Was very envious of them of course, but Tex was a lovely guy, very encouraging & not at all big-headed!

Geoff Peckham….Yes, I remember him too. He came to see us back stage in Burnley (Black hill Miners’ Social Club I think). A really jolly guy and liked our music. I loved his effectively simple bass-line on “How Long”.

Mick O’Dowd….Ace were a good band if i’ve got the right one! How Long springs to mind.Paul Carrack was singer. Seems a strange support to Hawkwind though.

Clifford Rose…..June 18th,  Yes, the Hawkwind concert was 77 with Motorhead as the support group.

Yvonne Cleland…..That doesn’t sound right! Lemmy formed Motorhead after he left Hawkwind, didn’t he?

Tim Moose Bruce…..77 is right. I went to that gig.(my 1st time at the the pier. mum warned me to be careful with the loud volumes these bands can create. “Yes mum”. Yawn… Went to gig, Motorhead came on…….

Alan Esdaile… When Roger Carey said he had an autograph from the pier from Hawkwind in 1972, I thought it would be Lemmy but turns out to be the dancer Stacia.

Alan Oliver… I was at that Hawkwind 72 gig. Wish I could find the girl I went with, we lost touch in 1973. If anyone knows Jayne Beeson (as was) I’d love to see how her life turned out!

Lucy Pappas… I remember that gig, too. Loved it!

Kevin Burchett… I was there to.

Martin Richter… peace and love 🙂

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Who remembers Virgin Records shop in Brighton around 1973?

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source: https://www.mybrightonandhove.org.uk 

Martin Richter… really ? i remember Virgin being a small shop in queen’s road in the 80’s – i shared a flat with the manager

Martyn Baker… Yes I do remember going there around then. I was at Hastings Grammar school in those days, and I loved the relaxed easy-going atmosphere of Virgin Records – in fact the whole of Brighton town centre! I moved there from Hastings when I was 22. Never looked back, although I still have many friends and fond memories of Hastings.

Michael Gibbs… It was in an old bank building where Boots is now. You could sit on bean bags and listen to albums on headphones

Jim Breeds… Yes, I went there a few times. Went to Brighton by train sometimes to browse the Brighton shops and the Lanes. You could just drop in to Virgin and doss on the mattresses and scattered cushions that took up much of the floor space, while listening to whatever was on the hifi, if I remember correctly. Lots of, errrr, joss stick smoke in the air!

Shaun Pont… I remember buying Hawkwind’s In Search of Space in the Queens Road shop in 1978.

Reid McDuffie… Martin, I remember the smaller shop in the later 70s as well. Maybe there were two?

Michael Gibbs… It was in an old bank building where Boots is now. You could sit on bean bags and listen to albums on headphones

Jim Breeds… Yes, I went there a few times. Went to Brighton by train sometimes to browse the Brighton shops and the Lanes. You could just drop in to Virgin and doss on the mattresses and scattered cushions that took up much of the floor space, while listening to whatever was on the hifi, if I remember correctly. Lots of, errrr, joss stick smoke in the air!

Chris Meachen… I remember headphones hanging from the ceiling & giant floor cushions, possibly also the smell of dope smoke…

Mick Knights… I queued outside in the freezing cold for three hours to buy Led Zeppelin tickets. In spite of queue jumpers I was only a couple of spaces from the door when they sold out!

Paul Brunning… I went there a few times. It had a very relaxed atmosphere..! Must have been 71-72 though..? I also went to the shop in Oxford Street, London.

Who had a paper round?

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photo source:  Memory Lane UK https://www.facebook.com/Memory-Lane-UK-408060289608201/

Dennis Torrance… My paper round was for Mitchell s queens road hell of a round all weathers got papers of train first then the delivery s. So cold some mornings wet but Christmas time tips was amazing. I remember the carrying sack so heavy and bike ride home and school. I also remember my paper bag not water prove soaked papers sometimes papers soggy trying to push them into the doors falling apart lol and getting on my bike fast getaway. I did get many compliments lol. 18 shillings and sixpence a week I got and many a puncture in my tyres.

John Warner… one paper round, I had a morning paper round, an evening paper round, a Sunday paper round when I collected the money. I also had a shoe delivery round and a grocery delivery round. I was one busy kid.

Pete Prescott… 1968/69.Teynham in north Kent. It was dark when I started. I was so frightened. On my first day the wind took a lot of papers out of my hand am blew them across the front of several houses.i thought it was the end ! I got £1 per week. If I was out when I had collected the money on the Saturday it came out of my wages. One time I was £1.50 out so worked three weeks for nothing. It was a long round. I ended up In Lynsted lane. It took an hour and a half (In all weather’s) then I went to school. I ended up asking my friend Mick Deane to help. We got 50p each. If I then walked to school I saved the bus fare. I could then buy records or (gasp !) Levi jeans!

Lloyd Johnson… 1950s.I had a morning round ,an evening round and Saturday round for Gladwish’s in Ore,Hastings.The morning round was right out in Pett Village across fields over fences to farm yards and vicarages, lovely in the summer but the winter was awful and all before school.

Jeff Belton… My paper round was some of the roads in Blackfen / Sidcup Kent areas in the late mid 1970’s . Quiet along round. Sunday was the worst day , because mags and leaflets came with the papers so it made the bag heavy. Nice reward at the end of the year when I was allowed to pick an annual I would like. Was paid £10 for doing the round.

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Do you remember when Quality Street tins were this big?

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Martin Richter… a tin would last until easter !

Jim Breeds… But not the chocolates.

Peter Fairless… Drums!

Dennis Torrance… Somewhat smaller now like chocolate bars but quite expensive as well

Ernest Ballard…  Used to end up with hard gold wrapped toffees in the bottom nobody wanted

Dennis Torrance… I would have had them lol

Chris Baker… Send them to me! I love them!

Lloyd Johnson… Reminds me of 1950s/60s Christmas’s

Andy Pilkington… Good times! brother bit into one of the purple ones and hazelnut had not been shelled chipped a tooth, they sent him £10 and another tin of QS

Alan Esdaile… I prefer Celebrations now.

Pauline Richards… Yes not so many toffees

Roger Simmonds…  I still have one full of odds and sods now!! I loved the fudge ones!

Jacquie Hinves… My favourites are the green triangles!

Martin Richter… boycott nestle. Mackintosh’s, originally? it does what it says on the tin ?

Brian Scales… Proper size, not the half size you get today

Stuart Moir… And it was full to the brim fiddling bastards rip people off today

Judy Atkinson… And tin, not plastic

Fiona Evans… A proper tin !!

Jeremy Peter Harrison… Yes, better quality than today not owned by a multinational company. Today’s small tubs are way cheaper in real terms however. This tin may have been a present for the whole family!

Roland Clarke… And now!

Steve Fox… You know it’s full of buttons!

Els Wilcox… No and I’m old lol.

Linda McGregor… More importantly, it was proper chocolate and they all tasted different, today, the chocolate is cheap and cheerful and I can barely taste the difference between them all. Or maybe it’s just me

Dawn Campbell… I agree with all the above comments, so much better quality (get it) back then

Rick Baldwin… Now that’s what I call a sewing tin

David Edwards… And don’t get me going on how big Wagon Wheels used to be!

Roger Collier… Does it matter that the tubs are smaller? Nobody likes QS, and we only eat them because they need finishing off.

Elsie Wilcox… Love Quality street, especially the toffee ones.

Peter Houghton… The old Tins were Bigger and held more not like the Plastic ones which hold less now

Graham Sherrington… I bought a box here in Florida not the tin the tin was available but … all the chockies tasted the same there was not a Brazil nut in the middle of the purple wrapper….. well disappointed.

 

Tangerine Slyde – The Cobweb 28th December 1968

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Andre Martin… When the Witch Doctor was being changed into The Cobweb,for several weeks they used the Dolphin Ballroom to keep the punters happy but you see John Schofield and Strand Entertainments has just started with the Pier Ballroom.

John Warner… I was Manager of the Witchdoctor club back in the 60’s having moved from the Star Ballroom in Maidstone. I later went to Mr. Smith’s nightclub in Manchester as entertainments manager. The Grenadier club and casino was run by Eric Rennie.

Andre Martin… Welcome to the site John – long time since we last met! Look forward to some more stories from those days.😇😇😇😇😇

Tony Court-holmes… my mum went to the grenadier club

Steppin’ Out – Archery Tavern Dec 1977

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Wesley Magoogan, Kevin Hoad, Martin Baker, Roger Hubbard, Tich Turner, Pete Prescott, Ray Fenwick.

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all photos supplied by Pete Prescott

Wesley commented….I remember that gig well cos while I was singing my teeth flew out my mouth into the audience and I had to quickly jump down to pick them up and carry on playing !

Happy Christmas and very best wishes for 2024

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A Big Big Thank You to everyone, for all your support during the year, especially the people that regularly post and keep the SMART pages Alive. The SMART ninebattles.com website has gone from strength to strength and had one of its best month’s in October with view of 15,484. Also thank you to everyone that comes to the coffee meets, and a reminder that the next coffee meet is Friday 19th January 2024. If you are seeing friends or relatives over the Christmas period, we always need more old photos and cuttings that would be of interest and haven’t been posted before. One photo, can be so special for many many people. Christmas is a sad time for many but I hope some of the postings keep the happy times and memories alive. Very best. Alan

Karen Sweatman… Merry Christmas Alan

Cris and Merv Kennard… Thanks Alan for all that you do throughout the year and organising the meetings.

Colin Bell… Well done, I know how hard you work to put everything together, enjoy a well deserved rest over Christmas.

John Wilde… All the best Alan, may 2024 bring you all the happiness you deserve.

Dave Jenkins… Happy Christmas Alan have a good one

Eric Harmer… You are doing a great job Alan. Thanks

Claire Lonsdale… Thank you Alan for all your hard work, greatly appreciated ! All the best for Christmas and the new year! Xxx

Janine Hemsley… Merry Christmas Y’all

Stephen Moran… Wishing you a very Happy Christmas Alan, SMART is very special and something for which you should be immensely proud.

Leigh Mitchell… Although I have moved away from the area, I still enjoy being kept in the loop about what’s going on and also all the music related posts. Much appreciated Alan 😊 Have a lovely Christmas xx

Colin Norton… Merry Christmas, Alan! Thanks for all of the hard work that you do keeping the Seventies alive. It is really appreciated!

Lucy Pappas… Merry Christmas, Al! Thank you for keeping all if it going, you’re a real star! xx

Edward Adams… thanks and back atcha

Mick O’Dowd… Happy Christmas Alan. Thanks for all the time and effort you have put in over the past year(AGAIN!). It has paid off as at one time we met in the corner of the bar at The White Rock Hotel! Well done.

Peter Ellingworth… Thank you too, Alan, for all the hard work you do on this site and in organising the White Rock coffee meets. Trains permitting, I intend to be down for the next meet in Jan.

Tracy Birrell… Wishing you and everyone a peaceful time and thank you for your company.

Wendy and Graham Weaver… A Happy Christmas Alan. Thanks for all your efforts.

Dave Trodd and Rose… Thanks for introducing us to the SMART meetings – we’ve really enjoyed meeting old friends and new. Have a good Christmas. Love from Rose and Dave.

Ray Nickson… Thank you for all of your posts.

Tony Qunta… Happy Christmas and fabulous 2024 Alan!

Jacquie Hinves…Alan, Thank you so much for all your hard work by keeping us all updated and still in touch with each other throughout the 70’s, 80’s ,90’s and beyond. Have a wonderful blessed Christmas and a very happy new year. Xxx

Andre Martin… Good work Alan now have a well earned rest see you in 2024

Andy Qunta… Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to you, Alan and to all the SMART people!

Paul Crimin… Happy Christmas Alan.