music

SMART coffee meet report no 76

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The coming storm didn’t deter and we had a good turn out for our 76th meet at the White Rock Hotel. Among the newbies this time were Colin and Yvonne Mitchell. Colin was involved in many album covers, including Pink Floyd and The Beatles. Mo Elms had some Splash FM licence application forms and Eastbourne local radio 101.6 fm guide which included photos of Mark Briggs and Matthew Wheeler. Mo also had many photos of Radio Caroline, Mi Amigo and RNI Radio North Sea. Anthony ‘Nan’ Morland had a copy of The Beatles Please Please Me album with the brown and gold label, a Fracmo photo, another Collins and Hayes photo and a Steve Wright photo from the Radio One road show in Eastbourne. Merv Kennard had some Radio Essex, K.I.N.G Radio Invicta and Radio London badges and The One Shots Goodbye Caroline single and Radio Veronica 538 single. We have seen Ian Marketis impressive Freddie Mercury range before but this time he arrived with a bag full of Queen cd’s. Mick Thwaites had a copy of his sons autograph of Paul McCartney from The Monastery in Rye. He also had ‘Sticky Fingers’ cafe menu from Kensington and Bill Wyman’s matches! A bundle of Rolling Stones magazines, Rolling Stones 1976 tour programme and a ‘Lucky Stars’ magazine from ABC Television’s ‘Thank You Lucky Stars’ and a Froffy Coffee at The Pam Dor poster. Barry French was getting very festive and had with him Phil Spector’s Christmas Album, John Denver and The Muppets A Christmas Together and Don Estelle sings songs for Christmas LP. Pete Prescott was reminding people about the Jez Gillett tribute gig at The Carlisle on the 20th December with The Lost Boys, Stealer, Dead Calm and Vexed. I had a few more Melody Maker’s and a pile of sheet music. Pete Millington was talking about the ITT KP dance in 1975 with Ray McVay and his Orchestra and Spyke at The White Rock Pavilion. Chat was about Eric Harmer’s Christmas record, the new book by Jim McCarthy Flowers In The Rain The Move, Graham Nash coming to The White Rock Theatre, Soul Town Christmas soul party in memory of Phil Gill at The Angling Club on the 14th December, how wonderful the photos of the Bathing Pool are and our aches and pains!! This is just a small bit of what I remember. If you had anything interesting you were talking about or anything I missed out or got wrong! then please feel free to add or correct.

Claire Lonsdale… Lovely time as always. Thank you Alan for your time and effort in putting it on. Xx

Cris & Merv Kennard… Thanks Alan for organising another meeting .Always a good afternoon catching up with everyone.

Eric Harmer… Great meeting pal, you are the reason we all catch up. Thank you Alan

Keith Veness… Thank you Alan great afternoon

Monica Bane… Thanks again Alan, Always good to keep up with all the friends here. Again appreciate all the hard work you do!

Mick O’Dowd… With the forecast I wasn’t expecting such a good turn-out but I was proved wrong. Now sitting on the naughty -step!  Had a very interesting chat with Chris Gentry and Claire Lonsdale about our experiences with some of the acts that we had worked with in the 70’s on the Pier and elsewhere. Some great memories rekindled. As usual there were a lot of people to chat to. None of this could happen without the hard work and organisation of Alan Esdaile. Thanks a million Alan!!

Richard Burks… I probably had those copies on melody maker back in the day

Andy James Long… I used to buy Melody Maker, N.M.E and Sounds every week at one time, usually scouring for articles about John Martyn probably!

Carrie Downing-Waite Sawatzky… Sounds an amazing get together

Mick O’Dowd… Carrie, you are always welcome to join us! We meet approx every 6 weeks so next one should be in January. We’d love to meet you.

Peter Houghton… Phil Spector’s Christmas is a great Album I’ve still got this Album with two different covers

Pete Fisher… Great you kept the Melody Maker’s Alan. Sadly I had to ditch all mine when I left home in 1973. Do you have any from 1970/1971?

Alan Esdaile… Hi Pete, they belong to Andy Knight and have had a few on display at the SMART meetings.

 

 

 

SMART coffee meet 66 – Friday 5th May 2023

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Dave Reece… Would like to turn up if that’s OK. Cheers!

Alan Esdaile… Your most welcome Dave

Dave Reece… Thank you I’ll bring me old clippings album. Tons of old toot!!

Susan McHugh… What a nice idea, you’ll enjoy that Dave

Peter Ellingworth… Intend to attend from exile in Hertfordshire.

Vox Amps – made by grandma 1967

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photo: Production Nightmares Facebook

Ralph Town… I had one back in the day.

Colin Bell… Had a Vox in ’69, loved it!

Will Cornell… Electric dulcimers too. Come to think of it, who OTHER than Vox built electric dulcimers?

Bennet Kingston… They’re not “tubes”, they’re VALVES!!!!

Martin Richter… Bennet, happiness is a hot valve

Tim Moose Bruce…  Bennet, Called tubes across the pond.

Merv Kennard… I had a ac50 that had been tweeked in the 70s.

John Miles – Congress Theatre Eastbourne – 21st March 1978

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Jan Warren… Love the song Music! Found the single in a charity shop last week for 20p

Pete Fisher… saw him supporting Robin Trower that year – he did a grand job – great show!

Paul Morfey… Saw him at Reading fest. ’77 Great!! Thin lizzy were dancing in the moon light!!

Virginia Davis… Saw him at the Congress Eastbourne

Robert Searle… Still got Rebel album on vinyl

Alan Esdaile… So have I.

Iain Cobby… I was there at Eastbourne, was I with you Mr Davis or am I dreaming. I seem to recall overtaking Rod Hull in his RR on the marsh road in my little red mini,coming back to Hastings ……….. or was this a cruel dream?

Tony Davis… Cruel dream mate. I’ve never seen John Miles or your little red mini

Iain Cobby… That’s odd, wonder who it was then?, could have been Steve D. still you missed a really good gig. I remember the stage sets were excellent, and the band spot on. Music was my first love……………………

Tim Moose Bruce…. Was at the congress in 83 and 84 too

Mark Hudson… Listeniing to John Miles on R2 it reminded me I went to that concert at the Congress. I worked at the Burlington Hotel in Eastbourne and this was my first concert I ever went to. Interested to see The Stylistics and Candi Staton were playing at the Congress back in the day. How times have changed as I cannot imagine Eastbourne would get acts like that these days.

Alan King… he sang with Jimmy Page for a while, I did some stuff back in London at the same time with a Venezuelan bass player Durban Laverde (sp ?) who was on the same album/tour, Miller Anderson also worked with him in Germany for a while, nobody had a bad word to say about him

Paul Dallaway… He came to the Congress twice and i saw him live on both occasions. Superb under rated man.

Mark Little… I saw him, great player!!!

Colin Fox… I went to see that show. Can’t believe it was 1978. Time flies as they say.

Andy Qunta…Supported by John Cougar Mellencamp? Wow!

Who remembers buying piano music in Attwells 22 Grand Parade St Leonards?

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Josie Lawson… I remember the address now too. It was my first transistor radio I bought there. I used to listen to radio Luxembourg on it at night, and I believe the pirate stations, I think I was 16 years then so was in the 60s. Thanks Alan for finding it…

Barry French… My mum played Piano & would pop in there for sheet music , & I’m sure I bought guitar strings from there. (These were made by Cathedral & were always breaking)

Fiona Evans… I do & clarinet reeds !

Mark Hardwick… Black Cat Pub and Grill.

Part exchange your piano for a radiogram or television in 1965.

Was this still called Attwells in 1909?

Roy Penfold… in 1911 the shop was Hermitages, listed as a pianoforte dealer with branches here, Robertson Street, Eastbourne and Tunbridge Wells. (source 1911 Kellys)

supplied by Roy Penfold

Josie Lawson… I bought a transistor radio sponsored by my dad…It was called His Masters Voice

Matt Thomas… HMV

Kasa… I live in Hastings, and own an old PYE Valve Radio with an Attwells stamp on the side of it, So i started researching and there ain’t a lot i could find! Great to see those old ads too.

 

SMART coffee meet no.61 report

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A packed room for our 61st SMART coffee meet. Among the newbies this time were Roger Ferris, Ray Barry, John, Robin and Caroline Hayter, Paul Coleman, Tony Powell and others!!  Roger plays with popular blues jazz duo Smokestack. He had some wonderful stories to tell including when he was second engineer on The Beatles album Let It Be at Abbey Road Studios and Phil Spector gave everyone a present at the end of the recording and he got 200 Benson & Hedges! He also wrote songs for Arrows, Racey, Smokie and others and has Joe Meek’s 1963 Framus Star Bass guitar. Ray was in conversation with Eric Harmer and Dave Boutwood talking about the old town in the 50’s and the fishing community and also memories of Priory Road School. John had happy memories of The Witch Doctor, Robin was talking about the success of his recent film ‘Polo’s Dream’ which was recently shown at St Mary In The Castle Hastings Rocks film festival. Also the many films and tv series he has appeared in over the years and Caroline had happy memories of seeing The Rolling Stones on Hastings Pier. Paul was chatting about The Kult  and Unabridged Telephone Directory, and Tony who was manager of The Witch Doctor from 1964 to 1967 came along with lots of interesting photos, including a photo of him standing in front of The Who poster 1965, ‘I know’ The Witch Doctor flyer, photo of his group Texans, Stonefield Road bike mob and many more. Mo have Level 42 tickets from 1983 and more rare collection of DJ business cards including Sight & Sound Roadshow, The Golden Hind Roadshow, Al Cohol Disco, The Mik Kasey Soundshow, Domino Disco, Colin’s Pick a Disc Roadshow, D.C./Southern Sounds, The D.C. Discotheque, Second City Disco, Silver Sound, Johnny Francis roadshow.  Dave Jenkins had an great book called ‘Liverpool Music Roots memorabilia collection of Bob Wooler. Monica Bane had memories of The Rhythm Aces, 2 piece who played on Winkle Island on carnival days in the 1950’s. They were Arthur and Gordon Miles who run the lawnmower shop in George Street. Arthur played the piano and Gordon played the accordion and magic saw. (Anyone got any photos).  Rod Evans had a photo album of the many groups he has sung with and also a very early photo of The Swan Minstrels which featured him and others from Clive Vale Secondary Modern School, Githa Road. Merv Kennard  has found another business card from Terry James Arrow Fm as well as keyrings. Dave Muriel had some more publicity photos from his book and more details on the Hastings Art School and Mick Knight was talking about his ABC Acoustic Blues Club at The Jenny Lind. Nan was talking about albums that you buy just for the sleeve. Pete Prescott was reminding people that the Ray Fenwick tribute is on Wed 3rd August.  Too many other people to mention.  Thank you for your support and pleased to say the website had 12477 hits in June. If you had anything interesting you were talking about then please feel free to add and if I reported anything wrong then please advise.

Monica Bane… Enjoy this get together today. Thanks Alan. Monica x

Stephen Moran… I’m really sorry I couldn’t get to todays SMART coffee meet Alan, I look forward to reading your report.

Ray Barry… My first time made to feel very welcome , I’m not a musician ,I went for the retro talk and meet up with musicians, and some of these guys went to Priory Road, some before me, some after me, a great 3 hrs of reminiscing. My thanks to Colin Tapp who I went along with. Look forward to the next meet .

Lucy Pappas… Great meet-up today, Al. Thanks for organising it all x

Wendy & Graham Weaver… We didn’t sign in Alan. Every time you brought the list over you got called away😄. Nice to see so many people.

Mick O’Dowd… What a Meet! At first it looked as if no-one was coming and then it seemed as though a coach pulled up outside and there was a tsunami of people! Great to see so many newbies there. Some very interesting chats with several people who I haven’t really chatted to before. Thanks Alan you did us proud again! Bet your hands were sore after all that scribbling of notes you were engaged in. Get a dictaphone maybe!

Geoff Peckham… No, Mick. I’m sure his hands are perfectly adequate…. A most enjoyable afternoon. Thanks again, Alan. x

Cris and Merv Kennard… Might have to take over the theatre at this rate.

Mick O’Dowd… What an interesting guy that Roger Ferris is! I think the only thing he was not involved in was the invention of The Ferris Wheel, but then again he has only been to the Meet once so maybe this is for afters. Really nice guy.

Tony Davis… Sorry to miss it.