Roddy Byers AKA Roddy Radiation

Roddy Byers AKA Roddy Radiation

by Pete Clemons

A Roddy Byers / Radiation song for the Specials

Look in a dictionary under 'maverick' or 'renegade' and you see those words described as a hard hitting rebel who plays by his own rules. A person of few words who don't take no nonsense off nobody. 

A rather remarkable picture found its way onto the internet recently. It shows a group of David Bowie freaks from around 1974/75. And it was taken in the Rose and Crown on the High Street, Coventry. Next door to Bear Inn. 

From left to right the photo shows, back row: Big Jim / John Wankling / Chris Byers / Rod Byers / John Shipley / Dave Wankling / Kevin Brown. Front row: Steven Connolly AKA Roadent / Paul O’Brien. 

And I kind of felt that the word 'mavericks' or 'renegades' fitted the people in that photograph. And I don't mean that with any disdain either. Far from it. More in admiration. From an early age, these people simply played life by their own rules. 

John Shipley went on to form and play guitar for the Swinging Cats,Dave Wankling went on to become vocalist for Urge while Roddy Byers featured in both the Wild Boys and The Specials. And between them they wrote, or were involved in the writing of several important songs. These included Mantovani, Revolving Boy, Bobby, Rat Race and Hey Little Rich Girl. This is indeed a priceless image and a gathering of wonderful talent. 

Most of the names in the photograph were already known but Roddy Byers kindly added the rest. And in doing so we had a rather interesting chat about that period. 

The conversation kind of started when I mentioned how much I had enjoyed David Bowie's music and lyrics. Particularly, for me, the period from 'Man Who Sold the World' through to 'Diamond Dogs'. Those albums are just so incredible. 

Rod: 'Yep a good time 72 till 76 then Punk happened'. 

Me: 'So this image was taken just prior to Wild Boys being formed maybe'? 

Rod: 'Yes around same time'. 

Me: 'Yet despite all of the good things that happened during the 1970s Coventry, and I guess other places, could be brutal and unforgiving for those who veered off the perceived straight and narrow'. 

Rod: 'Most Blokes thought we were a bunch of Puffs but we had all the best looking girlfriends. I married mine '. 

Me: 'And what you touch on there kind of shows that not all aspects from that period were not great to live through'. 

Rod: 'We got picked on quite a lot There were only certain pubs where it was safe for us to go to'. 

Me: 'I can imagine. I got 'done in' for wearing purple platform shoes once. Could also guess the safe pubs also. But, as far as I am concerned, you all had last laugh' . 

Rod: 'Most of us became punks or new wavers'. 

Just for some clarity, I became aware of punk rock as early as August 1976. October 1976 saw what was considered to be the release of the first punk rock single in the UK. So it you were aware of the onslaught to come before any of those dates, as the guys in that photograph clearly were, then you really were ahead of the rest of us. And not only that, those guys believed in it and realised the impact it would bring. 

Me: 'You were all very switched on and way ahead of the time, I do know that much'. 

Rod: 'Well when I came back from seeing the early punk bands in London not all the Bowie freaks were convinced. Same as when I started looking rockabilly some of my punk friends didn’t like it. Young Americans era that's why I got into punk, I didn't like the soul boy thin white duke stuff much'. 

Again, and for the purpose of clarity, the period Rod was talking about here was the first half of 1976....maybe slightly earlier. 

Me: 'Add me to those not convinced by punk initially. Took me a little while, but got there in the end'. 

Rod: 'Yes it was a revolution of sorts but when the Glam Rock thing started a lot of long haired rock guys felt the same way. I guess every generation had its own anthems'. 

Me: 'I remember being at Knebworth 76 and read about punk in a Sounds mag that was handed to you as you entered the venue. I remember that Pistols/Clash gig at Lanch being advertised. But the lads I knocked around with didn't fancy it. I did see both bands eventually but should have gone with my gut feeling that night'. 

Rod: 'I was at the Lanch but I'd already seen them both at the 100 Club in 1976 The sound was awful you couldn’t hardly hear the words But the attitude and way dressing was wonderful '. 

Me: 'Wow, just the thought of you seeing them in 76 simply blows me away. But twice !!. This was months before they became household names. You and that Scon (Steve Connolly) were way ahead of the curve'. 

Rod: 'Well I'd been listening to the Ramones and The Stooges , New York Dolls etc. so it wasn’t that radically different '. 

Me: 'See I didn't. I was too much into progressive rock I guess. I did catch up with them though. Particularly the Ramones. Was it through Bowie you heard the Ramones etc.'? 

Rod: 'Lou Reed the NYC stuff I suppose. I was into Hendrix & the Cream in my early teens too'. 

Me: 'I enjoyed Hendrix, Cream and Bowie but I didn't get into that NYC stuff. My brother, however, went to see Lou Reed in Birmingham during the early 70s'. 

Rod: 'Velvet Underground all that stuff. My older mates turned me on too a lot of stuff'. 

Me: 'I was too stuck into Yes and Caravan etc.'. 

Rod: 'Not my thing even though I saw Yes. I kinda switched to T. Rex n Bowie and Roxy Music after the rock stuff. But I listened too a lot of black blues as well and early Rock'n'roll '. 

Me: 'Got to say I have really enjoyed this chat. I find it all so interesting how it all developed for you'. 

I then asked Rod if he would mind if I developed our chat into a blog. And in true maverick/renegade style he said........ 

Rod: 'Yep why not nothing I’m ashamed of'. 

For the completion of this article my thanks go to Milan Stojsavljevic and Joe Kerrigan (Horizon photography) and John Shipley for making the photograph available. And, of course, to Roddy Byers for the wonderful chat. 

Lorrain Roddy Byers (Radiation) with his first punk band in Coventry The Wild Boys 

Hey Little Rich Girl Roddy Radiation and the Skabilly Rebels

The Wild Boys - We're only Monsters.

The Wild Boys - We're only Monsters.

Baker Gurvitz Army

Baker Gurvitz Army

by Pete Clemons

Not only did 2019 see the loss of renowned and charismatic drummer, Ginger Baker, it also saw an influx of reissues from a band who are only touched upon when the media focuses on Ginger's life.

Firstly, April saw the release of a box set collecting together remastered editions of the entire studio works from the Baker Gurvitz Army.

Then, during the second half of the year, and, in celebration of Gingers 80th birthday, as well as in remembrance of their manager Bill Fehilly, a previously unreleased live album by the Baker Gurvitz Army was set free.

And all of these albums are really worth investigation. In fact almost any release involving the Gurvitz brothers is worth a listen.

Ginger Baker was famed for being taught 'time' by fellow drummer Phil Seamen during the late 1950s. This led to Ginger having stints with Blues Incorporated, Graham Bond, Cream and Blind Faith.

Ginger also formed Airforce with jazz drummers Phil Seamen and Art Blakey at, it was reported at the time, huge expense. And it was apparently an incident at one of those gigs that set the scene for an ice breaker when he met the Gurvitz brothers several years later at the Speakeasy.

Following Airforce Ginger move to Africa to get into a style of music first introduced to him by Phil Seamen. While there he played and recorded with multi instrumentalist Fela Ransome-Kuti and Africa 70. But after three years in Nigeria, that included the building a recording studio, it all went badly wrong.

Returning to England, Ginger was absolutely broke, and needed to start working again in order to get some much needed money.

And it was at this point that Ginger met with Adrian and Paul Gurvitz at the Speakeasy in London during 1974. They invited him to a rehearsal with them. It was all he could get according to his wife. But it was also around this time that Ginger left his wife for his daughters first boyfriends sister. Married 18 year old Sarah Dixon.

By all accounts the bands manager, Bill Fehilly, was quick to see the potential in the Baker Gurvitz Army and also guided Ginger through a more settled period as he became a good friend and ally. The Baker Gurvitz Army also included Steve Parsons aka Mr Snips on lead vocals and keyboard player Peter Lemer.

Ginger Baker became fitter and healthier during most of his time with BGA. He appeared to have left the hard drugs behind. But that was all to change during the recording of the 'Hearts of Fire' album. 'Hearts of Fire' was the third and final studio album by BGA, released during 1976.

The crux of this set back for Ginger coincided with the loss of his new mentor Bill Felhilly who was killed in a plane crash during July 1976. It was a disasterous period for Ginger who decided to get away from everyone he knew and moved to Italy. During his time there he kept dogs and a couple of horses and lived in, what was described as a 'delapedated house'. Second wife, Sarah, ended up going off with a young local lad.

The Baker Gurvitz Army were no more. But they left us with a wonderful legacy that has, once more, been made available to us.

Incidentally, there is a tenuous link between the Gurvitz brothers and Coventry. Both Paul and Adrian Gurvitz were once members of rock trio, The Gun, who will always be remembered for their hit single 'Race With the Devil'. Coventry musician and songwriter, Johnny Goodison was credited as the producer of The Gun's self titled album from 1968. This was purely by the fact that John had worked for CBS records and had them up the band. That was about all he did by way of production work.

Pete Clemons Music Overview 2019

Pete Clemons Music Overview 2019

by Pete Clemons

Pete Clemons and Trev Teasdel at BBC Radio Coventry

2019 Overview

The Queen, in her Christmas message, acknowledged the "bumpy" path both the royal family and the nation has experienced this year. And she wasn't kidding as,in terms of health and well being, that bumpy path was also felt lower down the food chain as myself, and a number of friends and acquaintances, fell foul to ill health.

However, rather than dwell on it and feel sorry for yourself, it happened and you move on. But you cannot do that without help and support.

Fortunately I had plenty of that from family and friends, and I thank them very dearly. Additionally, and during a period of enforced rest, I found myself being comforted by music. No real surprise I guess as I listen to a lot of it. Watching the telly has never really been my thing.

That said these few words are not at all a best of, but more of an overview and a huge thank you, to those who, unbeknown to them, have contributed to the recovery I have made so far. And they really have !!.

Albums released, or new to me, during 2019 and made a real impact include those by No-man, Bruce Soord, Tim Bowness, The Specials, Freedom to Glide, Voodoo Kings, Matt Cattell, Stylusboy, The Trees and a magnificent compilation by The Flys. Each album, all very different and eclectic, have had seperate blogs written for most of them. But all of them were very distinctive and memorable in their own way. And of course, very special to those who created them.

On the live front I saw bands and artists as diverse as Stan Webb's Chicken Shack, Georgie Fame, The Strawbs, Tears for Fears, Tim Bowness, The Stray Cats and Mott the Hoople.

One gig I will always remember though is the one by The Specials at Coventry Cathedral. It was my first night out after my own faux pa and that period of rest. The Specials could quite easily of hired and sold out The Ricoh Arena for one night only. Instead they decided to create a series of four very unique evenings for the people of Coventry. And I am sure those dates will go down in folklore for a long time to come.

The night I went saw the Voodoo Kings supporting. And this three piece more than played their part in making the whole event so memorable. By the end of the evening it was raining and I was feeling a bit done in. But it had been well worth it.

That night was quickly followed, coincidently, with a gig by former Special Roddy 'Radiation' Byers. In fact I saw Roddy play several times during 2019. Not many musicians can claim that they influenced a generation and created a part of history. But Roddy can. His contribution to the sound of 2 Tone movement was immense by providing several timeless, and original, classics.

During my period of house arrest I found myself listening to a lot of old music. I immersed myself in a lot of records from the 50s/60s and 70s. And when I hit the 70s this including the music of Coventry band Indian Summer.

Confession time. Many years ago, at least a quarter century ago, Indian Summer organ player, Bob Jackson, let me have a cassette tape of some unreleased material. But I was on strict instructions to keep quiet about it. That music found itself onto an authorised release of demo's etc a few years ago.

One of the tunes on that tape 'For Everyman' simply floored me. It was one of the finest songs I have ever heard. A wonderful lyric, soaring harmonies and a glassy guitar sound that was just so infectious. It was one of those songs that doesnt last long enough. It has to be played at least twice in succession.

Bob Jackson wrote the song when he was around 19 or 20. But I recently asked Indian Summer guitarist, Colin Williams, what he remembered about 'For Everyman'. 'Everyman was written before we recorded the album. The choice of numbers to go on the album was down to the guys at RCA and the producer. We had no say at all or at least very little on which individual numbers went on the album. Bit like the aborted single when 'they' wanted us to record 'Ride a Pony', one of Free's numbers. We already had our number but they were not really interested. 'Walking on Water'. Just one of many reasons why I got out of the business'. - it all left me bemused and wondering just what was the record company had been thinking of at that time. All great songs have their day. And, who knows, maybe this is the year for 'Everyman'. 

Indian Summer with Everyman - courtesy of Bob Jackson

Seeing three of your favourite band live, one after the other, does not happen very often. But that's exactly what happened during October when firstly Soft Machine, then Caravan and finally The Pineapple Thief played in Sheffield.

My bucket list does not contain much. But it did have in it a gig at the Cavern Club in Liverpool featuring artists from the Merseybeat era. And that one was well and truly ticked off when I went there in September to see The Merseybeats and Beryl Marsden. Blown away doesn't come close. It really was a tremendous evening.

During the year I also attended some incredibly informative talks, arranged and hosted by Pete Chambers, at the Coventry Music Museum. So thanks to him and the volunteers there. And, of course, those thanks extend to all at the 2 tone village.

Of course there was also sadness during 2019. And this ranged from the passing of Ginger Baker, Neil Innes, Coventry legend Doc Mustard to the loss of music venue The Assembly – now recently reopened, and the Universal Music fire,

All in all 2019 was another tremendously memorable year, for one reason or another, and no doubt I missed something or someone. Apologies if i have.. I will try not to let my health event define me. But, at the same time, I certainly cannot ignore it.. I must respect those who went the extra mile on my behalf.

The Coventry Sound Show 1964

The Coventry Sound Show 1964
The Mighty Avengers

by Pete Clemons

It is incredible to think that mid January 2020 will mark 56 years since local band, The Avengers, 'stole the show' during a major Sunday concert at the Coventry Theatre. The band became known as The Mighty Avengers to avoid confusion with a band with a similar name.

Not long before this show, during December 1963, The Avengers had become the first band from the Midlands to play The Cavern Club, Liverpool. Under the stewardship of Harry Flick, they were already on something of a roll.

According to local press Teddy (Kevin) Mahon (rhythm guitar), Tony Campbell (lead guitar and vocal),Mike Linell (lead singer and bass guitar),and 'Biffo' Dave Beech (drummer) were greeted with loud cheers from a largely teenage audience before they began their first number 'I'm a Hog for You Baby'.

The audience continued to shout for The Avengers long after they had finished playing and right up until nationally famous , Brian Poole and the Tremeloes, took their places behind the microphones.

Brian Poole had been the big attraction but the show was really staged to introduce 'The Coventry Sound'. Apart from The Avengers others on the bill included The Sorrows, The Sabres, The Matadors, The Mustangs, The Midnights, Tony Martin and the Echo Four, and Lynne Curtis originally from Wales but then living in Leamington Spa and who also sang with The Mustangs as well as having her own solo slot. Lynne was also being managed by Larry Page.

Coventry trio, The Orchids and who recorded for Decca Records, were supposed to have appeared on the show but were prevented from doing so by a 1933 Act of Parliament – 'The Children and young Persons Act'.

However, they still participated in the show by clapping their hands to the music as they sat in a specially reserved box where they could be seen by the audience.

The whole evening had been arranged by Coventry theatrical agency, Top Variety, and compèred by Alan Field. Musical direction was by S. Calland. A number of record companies also sent representatives to hear our local talent.

Of course, for a lot of these groups, it didn't all end there. Several of them went on to achieve recording contracts. Later on during 1964 The Mighty Avengers released their first single 'Hide Your Pride'. Later on that year, a follow up, 'So Much in Love' was released.

This new song was specially written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones and was produced by Stones manager Andrew Oldham. Oldham was now guiding the band and was keeping them busy with dates up and down the country. Soon after its release, disc jockey Bob Wooler, featured the record on his Radio Luxembourg show ensuring it had good visibility and helped ease it into the charts.

Two further Andrew Oldham collaborations, 'When Blue Turns to Grey' and 'Walking Through the Sleepy City' sadly failed to have the same impact on the charts as 'So Much in Love'.

More about the Mighty Avengers from Pete Clemons https://coventrygigs.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-mighty-avengers.html

So Much In Love The Mighty Avengers 1964

Blue Turns to Grey - The Mighty Avengers 1964 (written by the Stones)

The Mighty Avengers - Sometime They Say - 1964

The above is the Rolling Stones original version of Walking through the City which the Mighty Avengers covered. 

The Mighty Avengers - Sir Edward And Lady Jane.

The Mighty Avengers - Hide Your Pride - 1964

The Mighty Avengers - Hey Senorita - 1964

The Mighty Avengers - I'm Lost Without You