[This digest is the copyright of the Move "Useless Information" Mailing List. Re-publication or re-distribution of "Useless Information" content, in any form whatsoever, is expressly prohibited without prior written consent.] USELESS INFORMATION The Move Mailing List Digest Issue #369 July 2, 2002 In this issue: * Carl Wayne's Tuesday show on Radio WM * Article: "New role on the air for Carl" * Questions for Ace Kefford * Song Of The Week (week of 7/1): "Keep Your Hands On The Wheel" * US Singles Discography (cont.) * Tony Visconti * Quote for Carl * Brum Beat Article from NME, 1974 ============================================================== To POST TO THE LIST: Send an e-mail to: move-list@eskimo.com Useful Web addresses: TheMoveOnline: http://www.themoveonline.com Official Roy Wood site: http://www.roywood.co.uk Face The Music Online: http://www.ftmusic.com Join the ELO List: http://www.eskimo.com/~noanswer/showdown.html Move List Info & Archives: http://www.eskimo.com/~noanswer/movelist.html TO UNSUBSCRIBE: Send an e-mail to move-digest-request@eskimo.com with the word "unsubscribe" (no quotes) in the subject line ============================================================== Subject: Carl Wayne's Tuesday show on Radio WM Date: Tue, 2 Jul 2002 10:34:29 -0700 From: Lynn Hoskins I know a lot of you aren't able to tune in BBC Radio West Midlands (WM) so here's just a little info on what happened on today's show. A lot more details to come when Rob gets back to his computer. If anyone on the list caught the Dave Dee interview, can you please let us know how he's doing? I'm a bit behind in getting this info to you - I've been busy redesigning The Move Online website (http://www.themoveonline.com) and ended up working way too late last night. You'll find a "Schedule of Guests" on the site, which will be updated daily. Once each show airs, I'll list the tracks that were played. Tuesday's musical guests were: Dave Dee talking about Dave Dee, Dozy Beaky, Micky & Tich, his involvement with the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy charity and his battle against prostate cancer. Colin Larkin - author of The Virgin Encyclopedia of 60s Music (with Carl correcting the errors on The Move entry "Ulysses Adrian Wood" for starters!) Rob Caiger (who is in-studio with Carl through the week) - chatting about his forthcoming Midland Beat project and forthcoming releases, which will be expanded on every day. Tracks played were: Work It Out (Jim Horn / Jeff Lynne) - intro music Her Majesty - The Beatles Hold on Tight - Dave Dee, Dozy Beaky, Micky & Tich The Legend of Xanadu - Dave Dee, Dozy Beaky, Micky & Tich Midnight Blue - Carl Wayne (with Roy Wood) Blackberry Way - The Move Paperback Writer - The Beatles Coz I Luv You - Slade Please Mr. Postman - Mike Sheridan and the Nightriders Roll Over Beethoven - Pat Wayne and the Beachcombers Music to Watch Girls By - Andy Williams Wednesday's musical guests will be: Danny King, legendary Birmingham singer Don Gould, keyboard player with the Applejacks who had the first "BrumBeat" hit single, "Tell Me When" Thursday's musical guests (so far): Ace Kefford - in studio Friday's musical guests (so far): Richard Tandy - in studio ********** Subject: Article: "New role on the air for Carl" Date: Tue, 2 Jul 2002 11:44:44 -0700 From: Lynn Hoskins Just finished typing this up for the lists... nice to see the press taking notice! New role on the air for Carl Evening Mail Birmingham (UK) June 29, 2002 Birmingham singer Carl Wayne is turning his talents to broadcasting by taking Malcolm Boyden's place on Radio WM. Shard End-born Carl, lead singer with the Move, will be on air from noon to 2pm, next Tuesday to Friday, July 5, while Malcolm stars in the play Wallop Mrs. Cox at Birmingham Rep. As a former member of The Move, Carl has used his extensive contacts list in the music industry to line-up some top guests. Scheduled to take part over the four days are Jeff Lynne of ELO fame, Roy Wood, Richard Tandy, Bev Bevan, Dave Morgan, Ace Kefford, Danny King and Don Gould of the Applejacks. A Brum Beat theme will run through Carl's presenting stint as he is anxious to spotlight Birmingham's musical heritage. On Friday he will lead a discussion on whether the city makes the most of the fact that so many top musicians are from Birmingham. "Worldwide, Birmingham musicians and artists are recognised and respected but where are the landmarks, the blue plaques, the tourist guides to Birmingham's music and important events? "There are so many puzzled enquiries from fans of The Move and ELO, especially from Japan, Germany and America, who arrive in Birmingham and are baffled there is nothing to direct them around the City's musical history." (c)2002 Birmingham Post and Mail Ltd. ********** Subject: Questions for Ace Kefford Date: Tue, 2 Jul 2002 20:57:28 -0700 From: Lynn Hoskins Move history is about to happen... Ace Kefford will be live on BBC Radio West Midlands this Thursday. And we get to be a part of it. Carl will be asking Ace the questions that you send to me. This is going to be a very relaxed, open, candid chat about Ace's music career and also his personal life. He will be talking frankly about his various illnesses and addictions, and how they impacted his work. This is your chance to ask him anything you like. Anything. I'm not sure if we'll have this opportunity again. Dave Morgan will also be in the studio on Thursday. As you know, The Move recorded two of his songs, "Something" and "This Time Tomorrow." He'd love to answer any questions you have about his work with The Move and ELO. Richard Tandy will be on Friday. Richard, as you know, played harpsichord on "Blackberry Way," and also stood in for Trevor for a bit. Send your questions to me at lhoskins@earthlink.net. Tomorrow's in-studio musical guests will be legendary Birmingham singer Danny King, and Don Gould of the Applejacks. Danny says he's going to bring a song for Carl to play that no one has ever heard...! Lastly, in case anyone was wondering about this part of the Birmingham Evening Mail article about Carl I posted to the list today: "Scheduled to take part over the four days are Jeff Lynne of ELO fame, Roy Wood, Richard Tandy, Bev Bevan, Dave Morgan, Ace Kefford, Danny King and Don Gould of the Applejacks." I asked Rob about Jeff's participation and he said that Jeff was pleased to have been asked, but couldn't do it due to studio commitments. If the format is successful and there are more shows planned for the future, Jeff would very much like to be involved. ********** Subject: Song Of The Week: "Keep Your Hands On The Wheel" Date: Tue, 2 Jul 2002 13:46:25 -0700 From: Lynn Hoskins Song Of The Week: July 1, 2002 "Keep Your Hands On The Wheel (Said Marie To The Driver)" from the album "On The Road Again" Possible discussion topics: Vocals Lyrics Instrumentation Songwriting Arrangement Production Personal interpretation Strong/weak points *********************** "Keep Your Hands On The Wheel (Said Marie To The Driver)" (R. Wood) Out in the bay it's a beautiful day As we drive to the sea I wander down to the front of the bus With my eyes on Marie I'm thinkin' over I go back for my car Then it happens CHORUS: Keep Your Hands On The Wheel Said Marie To The Driver If I'm feelin' what you're thinkin' How d'you think I feel? Keep Your Hands On The Wheel Two forty one we'll be high in the sun Surfin' out on the waves Havin' fun with the radio on Through the haze of the day Now I'm still thinkin' To what I could enjoy even better CHORUS (repeat) It's goin' dark at the skateboard park As we run to the shore With me and Bill rollin' over the hill To a crowd of applause What does it matter If she knew all the time what I'm after CHORUS (repeat) All of us in the back of the bus Singin' loud goin' home But as I peer through the froth in my beer See Marie on her own I ask her over We end up in my car Then it happens CHORUS (repeat) Keep Your Hands On The Wheel Said Marie To The Driver Keep Your Hands On The Wheel ********** Subject: Re: US Singles Discography Date: Sat, 29 Jun 2002 13:53:34 -0700 From: "chris roberts" Following Joseph's discography listing and with reference to: > ... and Mustard was re-issued in 1981 as "One Man Band". I asked: >Would this be the same the UK release 'The Wizzard'? The UK one has >a close-up head & shoulders photo of 'warpainted' Roy on the cover. Is >the US "One Man Band" the same in content & decoration? A 'non-list' friend was also asked and came up with this: >...... my "one man band" has a red cover with a small pic of Roy's face >... in a square with no make up ... it is one of the pictures inside >Mustard's cover ... a red tinted one... the one without glasses!!! So there is my answer - No! ********** Subject: Tony Visconti Date: Wed, 26 Jun 2002 20:07:08 -0700 From: Harold Montgomery Does anyone know if he (Tony V.) is still married to Mary (Apples' "Those Were The Days") Hopkin? ********** Subject: Re: Tony Visconti Date: Thu, 27 Jun 2002 09:31:23 -0700 From: Plastic Ono Dream last i heard, "tony visconti" was married to "may 'i slept with john lennon' pang" ********** Subject: Re: Tony Visconti Date: Thu, 27 Jun 2002 09:31:46 -0700 From: NotSam He recently broke up with girlfriend Mai Pang of John Lennon fame. ********** Subject: Quote for Carl Date: Sun, 30 Jun 2002 13:48:45 -0700 From: Kevin Kunreuther Lynn, you might want to pass this quote I heard yesterday to Carl and all the Brummie musicians we know and love. It was from Garrison Keillor, spoken during the opening comments of the 29th June 2002 broadcast of "A Prairie Home Companion". A few people might want to have it engraved on a plaque and put on their bedroom walls! "Being a musician is a great career if you give up the idea of being an artist first." Kevin Kunreuther Dallas TX ********** Subject: Brum Beat Article from NME, 1974 Date: Sun, 30 Jun 2002 12:20:54 -0700 From: Lynn Hoskins Re-posting this excellent NME article to give you some ideas for general Brum topics or Move-related questions for Carl... Subject: Brum Beat Article from NME, 1974 Date: Mon, 12 Feb 2001 19:19:32 -0800 From: Lynn Hoskins A special treat, courtesy list member Alan Heath, editor of the now defunct "King of the Universe" fanzine. Alan recently shut down his Web site and sent me a few things he thought the Move list would enjoy. (The Move takes form about halfway into the article.) - Lynn BRUM BEAT ARTICLE - NEW MUSICAL EXPRESS 1974 by Rob Partridge "Liverpool Today - Birmingham tomorrow. That's the forecast for the beat business in rock music. Yes, the Brum Beat is all set to take over from the booming Merseyside market." - TV Times, 1965. BIRMINGHAM is a natch for rock 'n' roll. It is dour and grubby, the biggest industrial city in Britain. Birmingham is flanked by coal fields, steel mills and car and engineering plants. Something a little like Detroit, in fact. And Birmingham is also the pivotal centre of the country. Stuck right in the middle. Just a handful of miles away is the Black Country: Wolverhampton, Smethwick, Dudley. To the north lies Manchester, Liverpool, Sheffield. To the south, a hundred or so miles down the M1, is London. But most of all Birmingham is a strong working class community producing a culture which has found contemporary substance in high energy rock 'n' roll. Too close, perhaps, to form it's own unique identity, but situated just right to catch whatever happens to the north or south. And so it was in the early-Sixties. First off, there was Liverpool and "Mersey-beat." Then the r & b groups in London. As sure as night follows day, it was certain that Birmingham would soon catch fire. It was a time when everything was neatly categorised, when even Dave Clark found himself as principle exponent of the "Tottenham Sound," whatever that was. Up in Birmingham it was called, with true inventiveness, "Brum Beat." At it's height, around 1964 and '65, this meant a staggering 500 or so beat groups who just happened to come from the same town. There was no one linking sound, no unifying style. Sure, all the bands had a few numbers in common, they'd all listened to Chuck Berry records, but only their backgrounds and that high energy characteristic seemed essentially Brummie. There were the Planets, the G. Men, the Con-Chords, John Bull Breed, Gerry Levine and The Avengers, the Beachcombers, the Dominators, U.K. Bonds, the Hounds Dogs, the Renegades, the Shakers, Mark Stuart and the Cresters, the Mountain Kings, Dave Lacy and the Corvettes, the Kavern Four, the Strangers, the Senators, the Redcaps, Danny King's Mayfair Set, the M & B Five, Denny and The Diplomats. Most of them never made it, the vast majority were just sterile and unoriginal. But it was a bit of a giggle. They say you need a sense of humour to live in Liverpool. Well, you need a sense of endurance to stay the course in Birmingham - Denis Detheridge, editor of Midland Beat. And some did endure. After the record companies had run berserk signing up every no-hope Liverpool band, they turned their attentions to Brum. Local journalist Denis Detheridge recognised the burgeoning Birmingham scene and formalised it with a new paper along the lines of Mersey Beat, and called it Midland Beat. It helped to give some sense of identity to the whole thing. The very first Brum single was "Sugar Baby" by Jimmy Powell and The Dimensions, issued on March 23, 1962. That was followed, in '63, by "Wah Wah Woo" by the Rockin' Berries, Powell's old group. But still there was no strong hype about "Brum Beat." That was to come in 1964 with the release of two albums. In February 1964, a local company called Dial Records released "Brum Beat," billed as the "biggest showcase" of Birmingham talent, and all for 19s 7d. The album featured 14 tracks by different groups, none of which went on to better things. There were the Senators, for instance and the Sinners, the Shakers, and Mark Stuart and The Cresters. The big companies, too were becoming interested in the possibilities. And, in May '64, Decca came out with their "Brum Beat" album starring the Mountain Kings, David Lacey And The Corvettes, the Blue Stars, the Strangers and the Kavern Four. That wasn't all. Polydor was later to go completely bananas about Birmingham and sign up Bobbie Ember, The Con-Chords, U.K. Bonds, Michele, the Nightriders, the John Bull Breed and the Stringbeats. Meanwhile, right in the middle of all this, Birmingham scored it's first major hit record. Ironic, perhaps, but it was a limp pop effort called "Tell Me When" by the Applejacks, a group distinguished only by the fact they had a girl bass player called Megan Davis. Finding a start to all this is like unravelling a tangled ball of string. But anyway, back in 1964 there was a Brum band called Keith Powell And The Valets. A big local band, they even had a few singles. Powell, however had visions of Stardom and left the band after recording a dire cover of Hank Ballard's "Tore Up." So the bass player/vocalist took over as front man and the group became Carl Wayne and the Valets, soon to change their name once again to Carl Wayne and the Vikings. At some stage during their life-span the band also included a drummer called Bev Bevan and a bass player by the name of Chris "Ace" Kefford. They were competing with a group called Mike Sheridan and The Nightriders for the honour of being Brum's top band. The Nightriders were Roger Spencer (drums), Dave Pritchard (rhythm guitar) Greg Masters (bass guitar) and Roy Wood (lead guitar, harmonica). But there was another band in the running, Denny and the Diplomats, which also - for a time - had Bev Bevan on drums. The group was fronted by Denny Laine. "I remember seeing Denny Laine and the Diplomats on a bill in Kidderminster with a group called Cliff Ward And The Cruisers. In these days the Diplomats all had dyed blond hair and they wore black crocodile-skin suits, looked very effective. Cliff Ward, of course, is now Clifford T. Ward - Dennis Detheridge. Denny And The Diplomats never did make a record, although they auditioned for EMI. Without a contract, however, the band split up and Laine went with another local band, the Moody Blues. But anyway, back to the narrative. There was another big local band called Danny King's Mayfair Set. King was something of a Brum hero, the musician's musician. But he never made it. That band, however, had a guitarist called Trevor Burton. None of these Birmingham bands had exactly succeeded. Big in Brum, perhaps, but everywhere else, well, forget it. The Moodies had rocketed to the top at the beginning of '65 with "Go Now," and although they had to wait another three years for a big follow-up single. And the Spencer Davis Group - Spencer Davis (rhythm guitar), Muff Winwood (bass guitar), Peter York (drums) and Stevie Winwood (guitar, organ, vocals, piano) - broke through in December 1965 with a number one hit, "Keep On Running." So the following year, Ace Kefford and Carl Wayne from the Vikings joined forces with Roy Wood from the Night-riders, Bev Bevan from the Diplomats and Trevor Burton from the Mayfair Set. That was it, The Move. Right through 1967 they hit paydirt with "Night Of Fear," "I Can Hear The Grass Grow," "Flowers In The Rain," followed by "Fire Brigade." "They looked mean as hell. Eternal Brummers, dour and monosyllabic. And Carl Wayne their lead singer, did a nice line in mike throwing and Ace Kefford was the singing skull itself, his flesh eaten away, his jaws clamping endlessly on gum, his face set rigid in infinite boredom. So they were the nastiest looking bunch you could hope to meet and they sang well, they made a big noise"... - Nik Cohn from his book Awopbopaloo bop. They were brilliant and their hustler - manager Tony Secunda was brilliant. First off, they were moody rockers, chomping TV sets. Then they were flower children, bells strung around their necks. But Birmingham is no place for peace and love and, when the craze passed, the band gratefully converted to their former image. But then came the splits. Early in '68. Ace Kefford left the band, to work on a single. "William Chalkers Time Machine," with a band called the Lemon Tree. Lemon Tree failed and Kefford went on the form a band called Ace Kefford Stand. That too flopped, although Ace surfaced again with Big Bertha and then Kefford/Bonham before dropping completely from sight. Today he's believed to be running a boutique. The Move continued as a quartet, although their next single "Wild Tiger Woman," failed to make the charts. At this point Tony Secunda left the band behind and things looked a bit grim. But then the band came back once again with "Blackberry Way," in January 1969. Only trouble was that Trevor Burton decided to leave the group to join another Birmingham band, the Uglys. Now, the Uglys has been going since the mid-Sixties even notching up a sizeable Australian hit, "Wake Up My Mind," in 1965. The Uglys included Steve Gibbons and, for a time Dave Pegg - the latter now with Fairport Convention. But then, a few months after Burton's arrival, Denny Laine also joined the band. Laine had left the Moodies after "Go Now," formed the Electric String Orchestra, a similar concept to ELO - and tried to make it as a solo artist. With Laine in the band they changed the name to Balls, did a few gigs and then split up. But a year later, after several record projects which were never released, Laine and Burton joined by drummer Alan White in the Mark Two version of Balls, recording a single "Fight For My Country," released in January 1971. That ain't nothing compared to what was happening with The Move. Rick Price was brought in as replacement for Burton. Price too, was from Birmingham, playing with a band called Sight And Sound who are now doing the cabaret rounds. So, with Price in the line-up, The Move had another chart single, "Curly," in late '69. But then came the splits again. This time it was Carl Wayne who decided to go, wanting to be a cabaret star. Anyway, Wayne was replaced in The Move by Jeff Lynne who at that time, was fronting another Birmingham band called the Idle Race. Lynne had already turned down an offer to join The Move when Burton left, the Idle Race at the time being called "the most exciting group since The Beatles." And indeed they were a superb band. Lynne was one of Britain's most under-rated songwriters. Still is, in fact. And with him in the band were Greg Masters, Dave Pritchard and Roger Spencer. His first gig with The Move was on February 28, 1970, although, perhaps, it wasn't The Move that interested him so much as Roy Wood's new rock/classics concept the Electric Light Orchestra. And so, when, Wood dropped out of the ELO project to form Wizzard, Lynne took it over completely. Rick Price, who had branched out on a few solo projects on the side, including a Sheridan/Price album with, yes, Mike Sheridan, went with Wood and so two distinct bands were formed from the embers of The Move. What happened to the rest of the Brum bands? Well the Spencer Davis Group also had problems when Stevie Winwood left to form Traffic. In fact Spencer Davis has never recovered from that traumatic departure. Davis, with Winwood notched up five mammoth hits in two years, following "Keep On Running" with "Somebody Help Me" "When I Come Home and "Gimme Some Loving" in 1966 and the superb "I'm A Man" in '67. It was a good run, producing much more than Traffic's ever been able to come up with. And, of course, the Moody Blues finally surfaced with a new line-up in 1968, coming up with "Nights In White Satin" and a new epic quality in rock muzak. Today they're one of the world's biggest rock bands, which must mean something, I suppose. There was also a band called Earth who late '69, changed their name and came up with a monster first album. Today they're called Black Sabbath, perhaps the logical extension of that high energy rock they once produced in Birmingham. End of Useless Information #369 ******************************* [This digest is the copyright of the Move "Useless Information" Mailing List. Re-publication or re-distribution of "Useless Information" content, in any form whatsoever, is expressly prohibited without prior written consent.]