Kult – Hastings Pier 10th August 1968 and photo around 1969

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Cutting supplied by Sarah Harvey,  photo supplied by Robert Searle

With Sunshine, Robert Searle, Pete O’Driscoll and John Hales.

Geoff Peckham... An evocative picture! I was young at the time but this band made a strong impression on me. Sunshine had that incisive Led Paul sound and Pete a strong stage presence. The pic encapsulates how I remember them.

Sarah Harvey… This Day August 10th, 1968. Another appearance locally, this time on the pier.

The Who 30th Dec, The Kult New Years Eve 1967

30th-december-1967

Andre Palfrey-Martin collection

Mick Knights… Yep, was at this one, but as I remember the rest of the town,s youth had other plans that night!

Andy Qunta… Ah, those were the days alright!

Andre Martin… Well that was the way to get round the Sunday licencing rules in the day= create a Club night ! And look who has taken over the Pier Promotions on 6th January – John Schofiled with his Strand Entertainments.

 

Candy Choir – The Cobweb 21st September 1968

Pete Fisher… win a chicken?!!

Tony Court-holmes… dead or alive ?

Paul Coleman… The Kult! I thought they were a great band & they did actually release a record called “No Home Today” which I thought was good. Might even have got into the charts.
Led by by 2 brothers, Mick & Pete o’Driscoll who were friends of my brother, Martin. They were Ninfield boys if I remember right. They certainly played at the memorial hall there. Late 60’s I’m guessing. They had a great local following & used to lay on coaches for their fans to go to their gigs. Great times.

 

The Kult – 60’s promo photo.

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supplied by Jan Warren

Dave Nattress… Great photo – takes me back to the late 60’s and early 70’s – my underage drinking in various small venues where the Kult played loads of gigs around Bexhill. They were THE original local heavy/progressive/rock band back then and really should have become big.

Jan Warren… I been waiting for someone to mention The Kult, as you did in a post of a Hastings Pier gig from 1967 – I’ve had this B & W photo of The Kult since the late 60s, I remember the guy, 2nd left lived in Bexhill ……. does anyone have any more news of these guys??!! I hope we get some response as it would be interesting to know what happened to these guys??!!

Chris van Rock… Interesting ….. as the southern death cult became ‘ the cult ‘ in later times.

Alan Esdaile… Bob Searle will be able to tell you more about this photo Jan. Chris, Southern Death Cult (and then Death Cult I think, remember the Mickey ears) and The Cult have no connection with The Kult.

Chris van Rock… Yes I know , just the reuse of the name

Michael O’Driscoll… Photo taken shortly after I left and Bob took over bass. On the left is John Hale (Custer) who still lives in Essex.(drums). Next to him is Bob Searle who still lives in Hailsham.(Bass). 3rd from left is Pete O’Driscoll ( my brother) who lives in Scotland and just completing yet another house (Vocals) and on the right is Richard Melhuish (Sunshine) Lead guitar.He has lived in California, USA since the band split and has played in several outfits there. I was more than likely on the camera. When we became the Cult first, people changed the writing on the posters so we became The Kult. There was a band of youngsters in the west country who went under the name of The Kult and I think a couple of bands in the EU now have the same name. My younger son, Dan runs several businesses including Serenity Drums (they will hand make anything from a snare to a complete kit) and they export them around the world. He is a drummer or singer depending on the band he is with at the time. His 4 year old son is learning Guitar and his 18 month old daughter has drum lessons from him on Sunday mornings. She drums with her tongue hanging out like Mick Fleetwood. GOOD TIMES…….Happy New year to you all X

Chris van Rock… Brilliant memories

Robert Searle… Nice one Mick.

Dave Nattress… Nice for Michael O’Driscoll to post these interesting comments. The Cult/Kult were the band we followed back in those days in and around Bexhill. Jan, look around the SMART site and the www – there are certainly a few posts, photo’s and one (at least) recording to be grabbed. Personally speaking, the Cult/Kult was the local band from way back when that I had hoped to get some information on for such a long time and it’s been great to see the posts about them.

Jan Warren… Thanks for your comments Dave, I lived in Bexhill back then too so I’m always interested in memories/pics from the 60s and 70s!! 🙂

Jason Crest & The Kult – Record Collector Review 2015

Thanks to Mark Randall for finding this.

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© Record Collector

Mark Randall… This month’s ‘Record Collector’. Two local bands’ ‘hidden treasures’ from 1969 JASON CREST & THE KULT.

Alan Esdaile… Don’t remember Jason Crest but The Kult were excellent.

Stuart Huggett… I’ve got Jason Crest’s version of ‘Here We Go Round The Lemon Tree’ on a Bam Caruso compilation LP, top stuff.

Dave Nattress… Kult were indeed really excellent and ahead of their time. They’ve had a fair bit of coverage on this site for over a year or so and really brought back some memories. Saw them a good few times in and around Bexhill around 1969 – 1971. The difference was they were doing their own stuff and very rocky and I’m inclined to say on the heavy path and progressive.

Colin Bell… Jason Crest came from Tonbridge and I supported them at 2/3 gigs, they had a great single called Turquoise Tandem Cycle, as well as the mentioned ‘Here We Go Round The Lemon Tree’ another great single! Happy Trippy Days!….

JASON CREST

Nigel Ford… The KULT made several appearances at Battle Dances and were one of the most popular bands to do so, I thought they were great, probably my second favourite of those that appeared after KRISHNA KUDU from Maidstone.

The Kult – photo and Occult demo – around 1969

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supplied by Kerry Derbyshire

Pete  O’Driscoll, Richard Melhuish, John Hale, Robert Searle.

Unreleased demo by the Kult, recorded in Pye #2 Studios in Marble Arch, London in 1969. Written by Richard Melhuish and Pete O’Driscoll. Produced by Vic Mail.

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supplied by Kerry Derbyshire

Alan Esdaile… Excellent band, loved The Kult.

Robert Searle… Proud to have been a member of The Kult.

Dave Nattress… Kult have been referred to on and off on SMART for a while now and rightly so. Kult were indeed really excellent. I was 16 in 1969, left school that Summer, you did too Jaffa! Saw Kult many times around Bexhill area around that time. Mallet Hall, (London Road traffic lights), The Granville, and best one of all for me, supporting T2 at the De La Warr. Thinking back so long ago, there were of course so very few bands around, especially those playing heavy/progressive rock. This set them apart and it’s a shame they didn’t make it big. When I discovered SMART, one of the bands I hope would come out of the memories was Kult and I’m delighted that we have not only a good few photo’s but also some sound recordings.

Peter Linnett… Used to be part time roadie spent many happy times with them in Brentwood  and Bexhill last saw Peter back earlier 70s at his place in Battle  Sussex

The Kult – No Home Today 1969

The Kult’s only single, on CBS Records, 1969. Recorded in Pye #2 Studios in Marble Arch, London in 1969, the A side was written by producer Vic Maile. B side ‘Mister Number One’ was written by Richard Melhuish and Pete O’Driscoll. The Kult were based in the Bexhill-on-Sea area of Sussex, and included Richard Melhuish (guitar), brothers Pete & Mike O’Driscoll (vocals & bass, respectively), and John Hales (drums). Bassist Robert Searle replaced Mick O’Driscoll when he took over management.

Alan Esdaile… Hi Robert, I remember seeing this band a number of times and they were very good. This singles still sounds strong. Did the band or the brothers live in a house near Ninfield and the only way to get to the house was over a field? I think we brought an amp from them once?

Pete Fairless….Yeah, I like it. Did they ever play on the Pier?

Robert Searle….I lived at the O’Driscoll home at Moor Hall Ninfield. The Kult played the pier a number of times.

Andy Knight….Diversion supported Kult, AK Drums, Digger Rosewell Voc, Jeff Peckam Bass and Dai Harding Gtr

Tony Court-holmes….hartnells on hastings seafront next to courts on thursday nights

Alan Esdaile Johnny Mason…I saw them at Hartnells and other places, I was probably only about 15 or 16. The group ‘The Town Council’ manager Harry (father of the drummer Brian ‘Bear’) used to organise coach trips to follow ‘Town Council’ and see other bands in the area. Saw a few bands play in Ninfield.

Andy Knight….I remember TC, Bob Shipway Bass (joined Shaft later), Chris ? Gtr, Pete Robertson (married Gloria) Voc, Bear (Williams?) Drums)

Phil Gill…. really like this Kult song, it has that real trippy 60s thing going on. Nice find.

Rickie….Saw the original guitarist posted on a band from the States that covered the song. Worth checking out! The Underclassmen – No Home Today. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkAaibqvKxA

Read more

The Kult bet & more…

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supplied by Jennifer Grist via Robert Searle

Pete Fairless…..Did they manage it?

Have not been able to find out if this happened?

Andre Martin……I have a memory of The Kult being in the Regent a couple of times, playing with UTD, perhaps the were deps – can not recall much else, but with keep digging. I recognise the name KULT from Hastings Pier Adverts.

Geoff Peckham….I was a big fan of the Kult, Andre. I saw them many times in the late 60s in and around Bexhill. They played blues based rock, some Cream covers and long instrumentals. Great guitarist called Sunshine. Was thrilled to support them once at Ninfield Memorial Hall.

Andre Martin…..Thanks Geoff, that now all falls into place, as I said they were either depping a member of the UTD or perhaps they were replacing them for a night in the old Regent Thursday sessions – this would have been around late 1967, I just remember the brothers, somehow the mention of Moor Hall came into the conversation, all those years ago – too many to really remember. Ninfield Memorial Hall, was that not the wooden building on the road between Ninfield & Sidley – I think that I even did a gig there in the last 1960s. – Small world.

Robert Searle…..I was the bass player after Mick O’Driscoll left.

Geoff Peckham…….Yes. I saw you with them. And with Mick too. Didn’t (Paul?) Freeman play drums with them towards the end?

Robert Searle……Thats right .Paul played drums after John Hales (custer)left.

Andy Qunta…..Love The Kult! One of the first “local” bands I saw when we first moved to the Hastings area in late ’69. They seemed very professional for a so-called local band! My brother, Tony, & I had just l left boarding school at that time, and were just starting out being in a band (Static Emotion, with Chris Sambrook & Dave Austin). It was very inspiring to see how good The Kult were, & we hoped to be somewhere as good as that eventually!

Geoff Peckham…..I loved Whiskey Mac and UTD (great name!) too, but Kult were definitely my favourite local band. Pete O’Driscoll was a strong front man and they had something special. And DID they win the bet? Two grand was a lot of money then….it is now!

Sunshine aka Richard Melhuish… They did not win the bet…..that happened right before I joined the band. btw thanks for the memories too!

Dave Nattress… Kult, really great and seemed to play a lot around Bexhill in the late 60’s and early 70’s and I saw them a good few times in all the church halls around the area of the time, also the Granville in the “ball-room” down the stairs at basement level – I was underage but nonetheless used to get well oiled on stuff like Whitbread Tankard, mind you, you needed a lot of it. Best of all, supporting T2 at the De La Warr. Definitely set me on the way to liking Cream, heavy rock in general and so-called progressive rock.

Andy Qunta… Like Dave Nattress, I remember seeing the Kult at the Granville, and with T2 (another great band) at the DLW.

Geoff Peckham… Me too, Andy and Dave. T2 were brilliant. At the Granville gig, I remember Tom Jones getting up in his greatcoat and harp, singing a blues, possibly the Rock My Plimsoll. Can anyone confirm? I do remember playing there with Factory later, and the Kult’s Pete Driscoll was there. Afterwards, when pressed, he said my bass-playing was great but my G string was out of tune. S’funny what you remember!

Robert Searle… Geoff, I remember Tom Jones,a Geordie, great voice, whatever happened to him?

Alan Esdaile… I remember Tom Jones Robert, he sang with Effigy for awhile. Yes great voice, not sure what happened to him but difficult to search with a name like that!

Harry Randall… Remember talking to one of The Kult down the Regent while watching UTD he was full of chat but can’t remember his name always down there