COVENTRY MUSIC ARCHIVE

HOBO WORKSHOP - About

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 19:15:57 +0000

The HOBO Music and Arts Workshop 1974 / 75 was community based venture that was the culmination of a number

of threads and a desire to develop more support and facilities for local bands, artists and poets in Coventry and resources for young people with problems such as homelessness, drug or alcohol dependencies, unemployment and so forth. It was both a culmination of previous work and (with hindsight) a defining moment leading to new developments on the Coventry music and arts scene. Also it was a kind of bridge between the fading hippy music scene and the developing punk scene (although one would not know that punk was about to happen, there was a sea-change in the air with a Bowie and Lou Reed sensibility).

There were two main threads to to it -

A crying need for more facilities for bands, artists and poets in the city - rehearsal space, equipment, venues to get started at, venues to experiment with new material, cross-art forms, musician cooperation etc.
Advice and Support for young people with problems. (Photo by kind permision of Pete Chambers - from his book The 2 -Tone Trail see books in the side bar for more details)

The Hobo Workshop, based at the Holyhead Youth Centre and later upstairs at the Golden Cross

The first thread was for band facilities etc. came from -

My involvement with the Coventry Arts Umbrella Club from 1970 onwards. The Umbrella provided a venue and rehearsal space but was limited by space. On advice from the Umbrella Executive I had called on the local authority for help with providing rehearsal space and venues to no avail. When the Umbrella Club in Queen Victoria Rd. was condemned, the Umbrella found itself homeless or drifting from temporary base to temporary base before being given space at the Charterhouse in 1974. It was clear the band scene was not going to be part of the new Umbrella. This left a huge support gap for upcoming and existing musicians. The Hobo Workshop took up the mantle.
In 1970 Broadgate Gnome and the Diggers movement did much inspirational ground work for local musicians and artists, with reviews of gigs, articles on local bands, concerts and the digger's 'hole' - an artists collective in the bomb hole (outside the Golden Cross.). Although I wasn't involved with it, the Gnome published an article (re-published on this blog) about the Tribal Rock Music Co-operative. It seemed to be a national underground musician network which had synergies with the later Music Collective ethos. The initiative was lost in Coventry (at least) when the Gnome folded in 1971 but the idea of it stayed with me in the creation of the Hobo Workshop. Both Neol Davies and Arole had been involved both with the Tribal Rock gig and the Umbrella and both got involved in some way with the Hobo Workshop.
Hobo magazine itself had started off by campaigning for wider facilities in its pages and in it's press releases.
In terms of format was influenced by the experimental Humpoesic Happenings I organised at the Coventry Arts Umbrella and the Birmingham Streetpress gigs already blogged about here.

The second thread was for Youth advisory support which came out of -

The petition against the RU 18 squad busting underage drinkers without the local authority looking at the issue of a modernised youth provision for young people who were disatisfied with the traditional youth provision, who were intersted in bands and creative pursuits which were only available in City Centre pubs. Collection of signatures for the petition which also called for more facilities for bands, poets and artists led to the creation of Hobo.

Bo (John Bargeant) who became the first co-editor of Hobo and it's co-founder had worked for Release in London and took up the advisory thread by creating Central Point as a second thread to Hobo Magazine. It was advertised in the first edition of Hobo and in the Coventry Evening Telegraph Article. We had practically secured the use of a room in Bardsley House for Bo's Central Point when Bo left Hobo to be Road Manager on Khyyam's European tour.

HOW THE HOBO WORKSHOP CAME ABOUT

The Broadgate Gnome and the Diggers had taken a more confrontational stance to secure facilities given that the Local Authority didn't see the needs (as often they still don't) to facilitiate youth and creative initiatives coming up from the grass roots. Young people had long hair and an ethos that challanged blatant commericalism. A few like Ron Morgan, the Labour Councillor, had the vision to see the positive side and help facilitate but campaigning for facilities was going mostly against the grain.

Hobo was mostly me and a few changing co-editors and supporters. We weren't back up or supported by a national organisation like the Diggers movement. Confrontation is much harder for individuals. I figured if we could get somethings up and running ourselves (albeit with limited resources) and show the value, demonstrate the need, then maybe the powers that be may just be impressed enough to help a little with facilities and support. Probably not but I thought it worth a try and nothing much else was happening. Most of Coventry's top bands had split up and the new emerging bands were becoming demoralised by lack of decent venues to get started at and rehearsal space.

The first step toward the Hobo Workshop came in 1973 when I approached the Coventry Arts Umbrella for help

Umbrella - Hobo

with printing Hobo. Unlike Alternative Sounds later on who managed to persuade the Lanch Poly to print their magazine free, we had no free printing facilities available to us. The reason it came out irregularly was because of the cost of printing. I hated the duplicated affair, prefered it to be Offset Litho'd but beggars can''t be choosers so rather than nothing coming out, some issues were duplicated at the loss of quality. Ideally I wanted a production like Streetpoems (exampled on this blog somewhere).

Letter from CCVS

With the loss of the Umbrella's premises, the Excutive meetings were held at the Coventry Voluntary Service Council HQ in Lower Holyhead Rd. It's Chairman Henry West was also on the Umbrella executive. He was aware of my involvement with the Umbrella band nights and had followed the development of Hobo Magazine, Bo's idea for Central Point, and that the magazine was (to an extent) the voice of young people in the city centre area interested in creative pursuits and that we had identified some important needs. Henry was aware that the situation had worsened with the loss of the Umbrella. He told me he had just employed a Detached Youth Worker for the Voluntary Service Council to be an informal advisor facilitator for young people in the city centre area. He felt that we could help each other. Bob Rhodes, the youth Worker needed to be able to reach and interact with young people in order to do the job and Hobo had direct contact and involvement and we needed facilities - printing, office space, a venue, PA, rehearsal space and a grant! He suggested we meet

Letter from Bob Rhodes

Although the Hobo Editorial were annoyingly treated (in documentation) as receipients of 'help' in order to justify the worker's time and involvent in the project, we at least were able to get use of the Holyhead Youth Centre every Monday night to put on bands / mixed media gigs and network. Bob would attend to operate his informal advice service. A type writer and desk was offered at CCVS for the production of Hobo and Bob also gave me a reference that got me onto a Social Studies Course at Henly College and a temporary job as a Play Leader on an Adventure playgound. I was thus able to get the Social Work Placement element of the course to be with CCVS shadowing Bob Rhodes as an informal advisor at the Hobo Workshop!

Although the object of the Hobo Workshop was not to make 'stars' many of the struggling young bands we fostered encouraged, became recording artists.More on that in the Hobo Workshop Bands Section.

WHO WAS INVOLVED AND WHAT WAS THEIR ROLE

We formed a Committee consisting of - (although it wasn't strictly adhered to with comings and going) -

Trev Teasdel and Bob Rhodes co-ordinaters (and administered the informal detached Youth work elelment.)

Liz Scott (music fan) - Chairwomen - Typing

Trev Teasdel, Paul Samson (musician in Trigon - ex Mick Green Blues Band and later Reluctant

Reluctant Stereotypes

Stereotypes), Gordon, and Digger Arol (Ex co-founder of Broadgate Gnome - Bands

Gary Kirton (Musician in Trigon (Ex Whistler) - Transport

Joe (music fan) - Decorating and Door

Mick (music fan) - Advertisments

Finn - Door

Julian Adams (Umbrella Club Executive memeber) - Electronics

Bo (John Bargeant) (Hobo co-founder and promoter / DJ)- Publicity / Disco

Julie Clark (from CCVS) and Liz Scott to run coffee bar

Paul Sampson (musician) to organise Talent Comp

Bo to organise poster competition.

Neol Davies (Lead Guitarist Mead- later Two Tone co-founder) - Jam Sessions

Lynn Hardcastle
Colin Cripps - (musicians and editors of Willenhall Free Press - Later The Mountain Ash Band) musical and publicity support

Phil Knapper (Stu Knapper of Riot Act's older brother) - support and musical accompaniment for poetry and music session.

Colin Armstrong (Singer Song Writer - Ex Music Box with Rob Armstrong) - Musical and publicity and oraganisational support

Neil O'Connor (Musician - Midnight Circus - later The Flys and Hazel O'Connor band) - musician support.
Neil O'Connor My Space Neil O'Conor site

Arthur Brown (not the famous one

(Flys Formerly Midnight circus

this time!) Singer songwriter and Hobo co-editor.

Andy Cairns (Lead guitarist in Breaker with Horace Panter) - musician and technical support

Kevin Buckley - Researcher with CCVS

The advice element led to the creation of a Drop in House for Young People called S.H.A.C.K. in 1975.

From Bob Rhodes CCVS report June/July 1974
"The most notable feature of this period has been the development of my involvement with the Hobo group.....
on the activities side, which is the focal point for this group, they have produced their first magazine since February,

Draft of Hobo's Urban Aid Bid

using my office for typing facilities and my contacts for obtaining cheap duplicating paper. Also I have been able to obtain use of the Holyhead Rd. Youth Centre, with its theatre facilities, for them to use as an Arts Workshop - the first evening, when a local rock band played for expenses, was attended by 60 young people and this appraoch is proving very successful in extending my network of contacts. I hope to obtain L.A. grant aid for this project as two obvious necessities are a PA system and a van for transport of people and plant."

Although we never managed to get an LA grant or an Urban Aid grant, CCVS did pay for a second hand 50 watt PA for the workshop.

FROM HOBO NO 5 unpublished November 1974

THE HOBO WORKSHOP - Let's Get it On!

Where is it?
The Hobo Workshop, which started in June 1974 at the Holyhead Youth Centre, has moved recently to upstairs at the GOLDEN CROSS in Hay Lane. The workshop operates every Monday night and is free to get in, althugh we pass the hat around to cover the petrol expenses of the bands.

What is it?

It is a creative workshop, as opposed to straight concert, where not only bands (newly started or more established) can come and play their brand of music but anyone came along and 'Do their thing' , be it music, poetry, street-theatre, fire eating or whatever! If you'd like to do something; if you have any ideas about things you'd like to see happen at the workshop; if you'd like to organise a Jam session or anything else - give us a call. Our aim is to provide a place where you can do these things, or get together whatever you want (within reason of course!).

We've Made our Effort - It's Up To You Now.

So come along and take advantage of it or come along and enjoy it. Come in fancy dress if you like, use your imagination and help us break down the 'them and us' scene that seems to exist around here. We provide a basic co-ordination to avoid total chaos but it is loosly applied to accomodate whatever anyone wants to do.

So come along and and put away your 'do it yourself concert critic set' Kick out your Jams and come and helps us get a creative and friendly scene going.

Anyone wishing to know more write to HOBO or come up to the Golden Cross on a Monday night and ask for Trev Teasdel, Liz Scott or John Bo.

We'd like to thank Midnight Circus, Fisson, Trigon, Analog, Khayym and all the other bands that have played for us so far and Colin Armstrong, Dave Bennett, Moonraker Disco, Andy Cairns, Julian Adams, John Rushton, Ann Barton, Tony Unwin Bob Rhodes and Oh - too many to name.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

HOBO WORKSHOP - THE BANDS AND MIXED MEDIA

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 19:12:45 +0000

Analog at Hobo Workshop74 Holyhead Youth Centre

The Hobo Workshop operated for roughly one year between June 1974 and

Hobo Wokshop

June 1975 (ish). The regular Monday night mixed media music concerts, first at the Holyhead Youth Centre and subsequently upstairs at the Golden Cross, were the central focus of the Hobo Workshop. Although I co-ordinated it with Bob Rhodes, there were a range of people involved with the workshop (listed on the about the Workshop post) on a co-operative basis who were invovled in all aspects eg I even cleaned the toilets out and took a turn on the door as did others. Although many of the musicians below later made it in the music business, the intention was to provide a venue for bands to get started at, try out new material and get support.

Among the bands who played there were - Fission, Midnight Circus, Trigon, Analog, Under the Sun, Schizoid, Memories, Phoenix, Marantha, Breaker, Just Before Dawn, Warrior, Khayyam, Fisty, Vallhallah.

Solo or other artists that played in some form included singer songwriter Colin Armstrong, Phil Knapper, Dave

Hobo Workshop CET

Bennett, Bob Rhodes, Johnny Adams, John Alderson, John Gravenor, Neol Davis, Colin Cripps, Lynda Hardcastle, Nikki Hawkswell, Bill Jackson, Andy Cairns, Ricky, Trev Teasdel, John Rushton, Horace Panter. (This is not all embracing - just names I remember or on the gig lists etc.)

Hobo Workshop cutting

That there was a dearth of places for bands to get started or supported at that time was illustrated when one young band - maybe Under the Sun (can't remember) almost begged for a gig - they were a teenage band and about to give up) of course we gave them a gig and encouraged them. I think it was Gary Kirton who described us one night as the only human beings in the city - as we gave them a regular spot. Such was the state of things, that the Workshop for some bands was like an oasis. Many of the top Coventry bands had split up, the Umbrella had gone along with some of the other venues and new bands were struggling for survival.

Fission were one of the early bands we had one but split up soon after with Guitarist Rick Thawn joining Trigon. The other guitarist - Johnny Adams played solo for us. (He later played with Squad)
Trigon became one of our regular bands with jazz rock feel. (Paul Sampson would go on to play with Ens /

Trigon

Reluctant Stereotypes with Paul King / Pink Umbrellas and became one of the country's top producers, producing the Primitives and Catalonia.
Analog were another regular and very innovative band who hadn't played a gig until the Hobo workshop, having spent a year perfecting a 40 minute suite called Custers last stand, they were at last ready try it out in front of an audience. Mick Hartley, Steve Edgeson, Paul Brook all went on to form Reluctant Steroetypes with Paul Samson - the band that had Paul King as lead singer. The band King was a break away for the stereotypes in the 80's.
Midnight Circus - were again a regular and very popular band at the workshop, led by singer / guitarist Neil O'Connor. Nobody would know at that time that his sister Hazel O'Connor would be such a huge success in five years in time. Bob Rhodes, the youth worker at the Hobo Workshop, himself a musician, took to managing them. later in 1979 (ish) I saw them after a punk concert at Warwick University, dressed in punk gear. They told me they had changed their name to The Flys and had just made a single - Molotov Cocktail and were going to promote it on The Old Grey Whistle Test. A year later Hazel broke through and Neil became the guitarist / producer in her road band.
Colin Armstrong had gone solo after spliting from Music Box with Rob Armstrong. Rob of course became reknowned for his guitar making, producing guitars for George Harrison and Bert Jansch. Colin was a great supporter of the Hobo Workshop and played for us many times. We even formed a little band with Colin, Bob Rhodes and myself but it didn't go anywhere!
Colin Cripps and Lynda Hardcastle (later of the legendary Mountain Ash Band) came along to play and sing and always brought a crowd. They are written about elsewhere on this blog.

Hobo Ads

Neol Davies came along. I wanted Neol to organise a jam at the workshop like the one he'd done earlier at the

Hobo Workshop cutting 2

Umbrella club. Downstairs in the basement of the Holyhead Youth Centre was a group of West Indian musicians. I went down to invite them to join us. They said they would think about it - the group were unsure of the response I think at the time. In the end it was Neol Davis who went down and jammed with them on the blues and built a rapport with them. Apart from Charley, there was Desmond, Silverton and Lynval. In 5 year stime these musicians developing their confidence in the basement of the Holyhead Youth Centre would be causing a sensation as part of the Selecter and Specials. They still didn't play for us but Neol persuaded them to come along when we moved to the Golden Cross. A year or so later I worked with Neol for a temping agency at Argos in Daventry. He used to pick us up in the band van at some unearthly hour in the morning. By then he had formed a band with them called Hardtop 22. After a bit more evolution the Specials and Selector would emerge and the rest is history!

Hobo Workshop

We got to have the jam session when we moved to the Golden Cross some time in 1975. Neol was there and a lot of musicians from now defunct top Coventry bands. Among the musicians who jammed at the Golden Cross were John Gravenor and Nikki Hawkswell who both sang some blues, Neol on guitar, Andy Cairns, Bill Jackson (former vocalist with April, Roy Butterfield (Ex Indian Summer, Tim James (I think), John Rushton of Analog, Horace Panter, Ricky, Phil Knapper, Carl , John (Brad) Bradbury (about 13 musicians took part).

Phil Knapper - was a regular supporter and a really good friend. A singer-songwriter who could play pop / rock

Stu Knapper

Classical and Bert Jansch. He would often back me on some poetry and music experimental pieces and we did form an informal band - mostly covers, with Andy Cairns. Phil's younger brother Stu Knapper would later head the punk band Riot Act. Phil has since passed away but I have some songs of his I recorded which I hope to up load in tribute to him. Phil suffered from Schizophrenia which held him back but he was actually a very talented guitarist and he taught me loads.

Andy Cairns - was another Hobo Workshop regular - a lead guitarist who I met at Henley College and got involved

Horace

with the music scene. Andy became a great friend and again some one who taught me loads guitar wise and vice versa. Andy formed a band with a guy we used to jam with called Ricky. It had Andy's friend Carl in it (I think) and Horace Panter (later of the Specials). They did Jazz rock material and I think they were called Breaker. They played for us at the Golden Cross. Horace had written to Hobo as early as 1973 to place an ad for a 'Happy Band'. As Hobo didn't always come out on schedual

Hobo Band List

owing to lack of finance, Horace had found a band by the time the ad appeared but he did later come to the Hobo Workshop at the Golden Cross which I think is where he met Andy and Ricky. Later I formed a Pentangle type group with Andy c 1979. The bass player was Selecter's roadie and Van driver.

Horace Panter's Letter to Hobo Magazine in the 70's

o wever Andy went off to Aberystwyth to do a Phd in Biology and became a folkie and I moved up to Teesside to do a BA in Humanities so that was the end of that band! Although we were folk, we did do a ska version of my song Mrs Stress and Strain I seem to remember. You had to get a gig after Two Tone broke! We also covered Pentangles Cruel Sister.

Bo (John Bargeant) who I co-founded Hobo with returned with Khayyam

Hobo cross2

from their european tour. Bo did the Moonraker disco for us at the Cross and Khayyam gig for us there, leading to a residency their. Other band nights were beginning to take off at the Cross before the Hobo Workshop finished after the summer 1975, with the Coventry supergroup - Monster Magnet

Hobo Workshop - Midnight Circus

taking a regular spot as well as Khayyam.

HOBO presents, Monday July 8th, a double bill at lower Holyhead Road

Hobo Workshop with Fission

Youth centre, near Coventry Garage, Trigon and an Acoustic Workshop, featuring Johnny Adams, John Alderson & Trev Teasdel. 10p

(Small ad From Coventry Evening

Hobo Workshop with Midnight Circus +

Telegraph July 8th 1974)

Leter from Bo

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

HOBO WORKSHOP - Underground Films,Street -Theatre, Trench Coat

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 19:08:47 +0000

I's fortgotten until I looked thrugh the letters I sent to the unedited versions of the letters I sent to the Coventry Evening Telgraph in relation to the Shut Down Coventry Shopping Precinct Concert, there more things being planned. A few got through but some of the ideas didn't. This post is to logged the the ones 'that got away', mainly through lack of funding and wider support, not to mention time llocation. It was an intense and active period.

Underground film club - idea came from the Umbrella's Transcendental Cauldron - the first event I'd

Hobo Workshop Movies

attended coupled with the fact that there was a request from some of the users for a alternative film night when we petitioned them for their own ideas and views of what the Workshop should do.This was achieved - each friday night a projector was cranked up and a film group recruited from those attending the monday music nights watched a range of films. Bo (John Bargeant) organised and operated the projector both for this and his discos at Hobo in which he played films as the music was playing. The film club started with a few old comedy movies too.
Street-theatre Group - The ground floor of the Holyhead Youth Centre was actually a theatre with a stage and

Hobo Wokshop - Drama

dressing rooms. It had been use for rehearsals by the Belgrade Theatre. Some of the group were interested in dram. I wanted to mix the medias and liked the idea of having a street theatre group that might perform during the band nights and also go out on the streets and generate publicity for the Hobo Workshop. To get the ball rolling - I used to raid the costume deptment behind the stage, dress up strange and perform Dylan songs on the door as people came in and paid their money, to set the tone that it was (hopefully) a creative venue and people could be creative in various ways - where fancy dress, dance wildly / creativley. A small group formed around this but I don't remember it taking off as well as I would have liked. I can't remember who they were (it's so long ago) but a Sarah and Andy took charge of organising this acording to a duplicated poster you see on here.
Trenchcoat - I'd forgotten this until I re-read the unedited letter I sent to the editor of the Coventry Evening Telegraph over the shut down concert incident. I was planning another magazine - Trenchcoat - that would deal with wider issues than Hobo but might also incorporate Hobo magazine. These may have been environmental, life style, campaigning issues (for better facilities) and features.
Coventry Arts Festival - We also announced plans in the letter for a Coventry Arts Festival in 1975 'incorporating local talent of all varieties, with some events being organised by Hobo and other organised by other organisations but incorporated into the programme. It will be intended to appeal to as many people as possible without mercenary objective." This never materialised ( well not through Hobo anyway - there was one in the 80's).

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

HOBO WORKSHOP - Shut Down Precinct Concert

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 19:05:46 +0000

THE HOBO WORKSHOP COVENTRY PRECINCT SWITCHED OFF POP CONCERT (Photo shows where the bands played)

Covcafe33

On September 1974 on a Saturday, the Hobo Workshop organised a a morning concert in Coventry city centre near the

Hobo shut down concert Cov Journal

Hobo shut down concert CET

ountains. Youth worker Bob Rhodes, in his official capacity, took care of the permissions, from the Chamber of Commerce and the Council etc. We took care of the creative side. The object was to publicise the work of the Hobo Workshop and get more people involved.

We had a number of artists lined up including the middle of the road pop band Memories, (which we thought might help balance things out with passers by) Phoenix (a rock band) and
Folkies - Rod Felton and Dave Bennett (Ragtime Guitarist). We figired there was a good cross-section of music that would appeal to all ages and taste. Using an 80 watt PA the show

Shut Down Hobo Concert

kicked off with the pop band Memories doing pop covers. We got a really good audience around us both on the ground and up on the stairs of the shopping precinct. Memories were helpful in helping to appeal for lost persons, children and various people were happily reunited. We had not sense that anybody at all was upset bu the concert - quite the oppostie - there was a really good vide and great turn out.

So it was a complete shock to us

Hobo shut down concert F. Page CET

when the police turned up half way through Memories set and told us turn the amps right down, claming there had been comlaints by paasers by who had to put their hand over their ears. They calinmed they could hear the music half a mile a way at Little Park police station. (Lucky them!). We'd hardly got started and we had done all the

Hobo shut down concert Liz Letter CET

right things, got all the right permissions.Word on the street was they'd seen our long hair and reacted. Later the Sally Army and a choir played using a 100 watt amp - much louder than ours - but they were respectable - we were not apparently. Then someone brough along the luch time editon of the Coventry Evening Telegraph. We'd hit the front page - 'Concert Deafens

Hobo shut down concert EditorialCET

Shoppers' read the header! 'What!' This galvanised us into action. In actual fact they did us a favour shutting it down - it got us a weeks publicity which included a front pager, two letters to the edito, an editorial dedicated to us and several smaller inside pieces in two papers - The Telegraph and the

Coventry Evening Telegraph letter

Coventry Journal - the Telegraph's rival of the time. We would have been lucky to get a small column mention on the Saturday if it hadn't been shut down. All the same a lot of work had gone into it and people were disappointed and it seemed that even when young people do good things, the iron-hand of the law comes down on them. We

Hobo shut down concert Trev letterCET

resolved to bombard the newspapers with complaints, letters, phone calls and encouraged all our supporters to do the same. I sent three long letters (one full of TS Elliot quotes about the Wasteland in order to make our feelings plain. It was also a good opportunity like the RU 18 petition, to get over some of our wider aims and objectives. A petition was another strategy the Bob Rhodes organised. Bob went in to the Newsaper office in an offical capacity. We got 6 or 7 peices in the paper over one week and turned a negative into a positive!

Just after HOBO - the magazine began - and we were in the paper Trev and Bo on the Music Scene - Virgin Records held a concert in their store with Virgin band Gong. They too had been shut down and somebody wrote in to the Coventry Evening Telgraph with a protest quote from Both Hobo and the articel about us - hence -

Hobo CET

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

HOBO WORKSHOP - Detached Youth Work

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 19:01:38 +0000

Although Hobo was about music, poetry and Art, it also began with a social conscious. Part of the petition that led to

Central Spot

Hobo was a complaint about the RU 18 squad (and local authority only busting underage drinkers and not doing anything to provide alternative venues for them where they can attend music events rather than the often rejectd tradition youth club affair.

Bo (John Bargeant) co-founder of Hobo, used to work with Release in London and set up Central Spot as part of Hobo - we tried to get a room at Bardelsey house for him to operate and maybe also city centre base for Hobo. Central spot didn't really take as Bo took off himself to roadie on Khayym's euro-tour.

The Hobo Workshop began with a similar perspective, as can be seen from the letters on the intor to the Hobo Workshop, the CCVS had employed a Detached Youth Worker to look into these type of problems in the City Centre area and establish an informal advice service for young people. Apart from facilitating for the Hobo Workshop, Bob used to chat to people informally at the workshop and identifiy any problems. He provided a reference for me to get in to Henley Coolege to

CCVS letter

do a Social Studies course. As my 'Social work placement' I worked alongside him at the Workshop which was pretty neat! One of the objectives was to establish a drop in house for young people called S.H.A.C.K.

SHACK

and in 1975 I was invited to do some training in giving advice at Canley Teachers Training college - more of a day school. I was one of the volunteers when the house opened up. By 1976 I'd gotten involved with the Coventry Unemployed Workers Centre at Bardsley House as a Welfare Rights advisor and the magazine editor after Hobo folded . Although I still wrote and went to gigs I moved more in to advice and community work for a few

SHACK2

years after 76, coming back to the music scene in 1979 - just prior to

Unemployed Worker

moving up to Teesside in the autumn of 1980 to do a degree.. On Teesside, althugh I had a band and played gigs, the work became more focused on Creative Writing developments as can be scene on the Outlet and Writers Cafe sites..

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

VIRGIN ALBUM CHARTS - Coventry Store 74-75

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 17:00:54 +0000

The Virgin Record store in Coventry was a far cry from the impersonal, walk through mega-stores of today. This was

Virgin Records (Coventry)

the first-born venture of Richard Branson and the 60's ethos still permeated his business approach. The Coventry store was relatively small run by Mike and Malc. You could hang out in the store and listen to grooves through the headphones or chat to the guys about music. The guys lived and breathed the music, enthused and argue over it around serving the customers. They weren't sent by the Job Centre with a certificate in sales speak!

Upstairs was Pete Waterman with his mate Tilly, in the Soul Hole spouting enthusiatically and selling rare soul imports. Both Pete and Mike and Malc were very supportive of Hobo (running as it was on a shoe-string budget but inflected by a similar enthusiasm). We sold copies of Hobo through both the Virgin and Soul Hole stores; both placed ads in the mag to help us, wrote reviews and articles for us and compiled charts for their stores. The Peter Waterman Soul chart has been covered but here are the Virgin Record Album Charts (Covnetry Store) as compiled for Hobo.

VIRGIN RECORDS ALBUM CHART (Coventry Store) August 1973
Compiled by Mike and Malc)
1   Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
2   David Bowie - Hunky Dory
3   Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
4   Faust - Tapes
5   Santana - McLaughlin
6   George Harrison - Material World
7   David Bowie - Aladdin Sane
8   Genisis - Live
9   Clifford T Ward - Home Thoughts
10 Roy Wood - Boulders
11 David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust
12 Cat Stevens - Foreigner
13 Terry Riley - Rainbow in C
14 David Bowie - Man Who Sold the World
15 Lindisfarne - Live
16 Alan Hull - Pipedream
17 Mott the Hoople - Mott
18 Genesis - Foxtrot
19 Pink Floyd - Meddle
20 Beatles - 67-68

OCTOBER 1973
1   Rolling Stones - Goat's Head Soup
2   Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
3   Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
4   Status Quo - Hello
5   David Bowie - Ziggy Stardust
6 David Bowie - Man Who Stole the World
7 Pink Floyd - Meddle
8 David Bowie - Aladdin Sane
9 Beatles - 66 / 70
10 Yes - Yes Album
11 Led Zeppalin - 5
12 Uriah Heap - Sweet Freedom
13 David Bowie - Hunky Dory
14 Yes - Yes Songs
15 Van Morrison - Hard Rose the Highway
16 Slade - Sladest
17 Budgie - Never Turn Your Back
18 Beatles - 62 - 67
19 Faust
20 Steely Dan - Countdown to Ectasy

FEB 1974

1 Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
2 Leo Sayer - Silverbird
3 Roxy Music - Stranded
4 Yes - Tales from Topographical Oceans
5 ELP - Brain Salad Surgery
6 Who - Quadrophenia
7 Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
8 Bob Dylan - Dylan
9 Gong - Angels Eggs
10 David Bowie - Pin Ups
11 Fripp and Eno - No Pussy Footing
12 Elton John - Yellow Brick Road
13 Santana - Welcome
14 Alice Cooper - Muscle of Love
15 Wings - Band on the Run
16 John Lennon - Mind Games
17 Faces - Faces Live
18 Donovan - Escence to Escence
19 Ringo Starr - Ringo
20 Nazareth - Loud n Proud

MARCH 1974
1   Free - Free Story
2   Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
3   Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark
4   Deep Purple - Burn
5   Bob Dylan - Planet Waves
6   Wings - Band on the Run
7   Steely Dan - Pretzel Logic
8   Roy Harper - Valentine
9   Slade - Old, New and Borrowed
10 Incredible String Band
11 Eno - Here Come the Warm Jets
12 Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
13 Pink Floyd - A Nice Pair
14 Steeleye Span - Now we're Six
15 Sutherland Bros / Quiver = Dream Kid
16 Montrose
17 Lou Reed - Rock n Roll Animal
18 Mick Ronson - Slaughter on 10th Avenue
19 Carley Simon - Hot Cakes
20 Temptations - 1990

June 1974
1 Gong - Camembert Electrique

Virgin Charts

2   Mike Oldfield - Tubular Bells
3   Rick Wakeman - Journey
4   David Bowie Dianond Dogs
5   Wings - Band on the Run
6   Uriah Heap - Wonder World
7   Sparks - Kimona
8   Tangerine Dream - Phaedra
9   Bonzo Dog Dog Do Dah Band - History of
10 Bad Company

June 1974 - Singles Chart
1 Sparks - This Town Ain't Big Eough for the Both of Us
2 Bad company - Can't Get Enough
3 Montrose - Bad Motor Scooter
4 Brian Ferry - The In Crowd
5 Allman Bros - Jessica
6 Captain Beefheart - Upon the My oh My
7 Kevin Coyne - I Believe in Love
8 Jan Akkarman - House of the King
9 ELP - Jerusalem
10 Black Oak Arkansas - Jim Dandy

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

COVENTRY TOP OF THE SINGLES CHARTS 1972

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 17:07:16 +0000

It was strange. In November 1972, two Coventry recordings both reached No one in the NME singles charts.

NME

Lieutenant Pigeon's instrumental Mouldy Old Dough reached No 1 October 14th 1972 and remained there for an amazing four weeks until 4th November. At the end of November Chuck Berry's single, My Ding a Ling, recorded live at Tiffany's Ballroom Coventry (now the library) as part of the Lanchester Polytechnic Arts Fest. It reached No 1 on 25th November and remained there for three weeks until 9th Dec 1972. Many students of the Lanch and people from the Coventry scene are on that record.

Totp15

In the 40 Years of NME Charts it says of these records -

"A novelty instrumental was the month's runaway best-seller. Mouldy Old Dough, which had 'slept' for months before

PIGEON

charting, featured the beaming middle-aged fugure of Hilda Woodard, mother of the group's full time keyboard player Rob Woodward, well to the fornt on TV appearences."

Read Pete Chamber's article on them

"Chuck Berry's My Ding a Ling, his first hit for nearly eight years, topped both the British and US charts and was his all time biggest seller. Recorded in the UK, during a live performance at the Lanchester Arts Festival, this risque audience-participation novelty was despised by many Barry fans, and upset Mrs Whitehouse who tried (without success) to get the BBC to ban it. Chuck merely laughed all the way to the bank."

However I don't think Chuck knew they were going to issue it as a single, or approaved it!

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

A LOTTA RAIN IS FALLIN - Songwriting at the GEC

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 18:02:53 +0000

I met Pete Waterman in 1970, while working at the GEC Stoke Works in Coventry. I was an Electrical Inspector at

Pete Waterman Disco 1974

19, testing telephone racks in the Telecommunications dept. It was a 7am start in a smelly factory (although as Pete notes in his autobiography - it was least polluted part!). While most of the workers had an unofficila 'smoke' break in the toilets (in between the offical breaks!), I used to have 'Write breaks' being a non-smoker and more interested in writing songs than testing telephone racks!

One day the boss was out and I sat at my rack writing a new lyric - It was called A Lotta Rain is Fallin'. It was kind of Bob Dylan / King Crimson (Epitaph inspired - what I was listening to at the time). About that feeling where you doing a lot of things but getting no results - both on a personal basis and a global basis. I constructed symbolic images that expressed or re-inforced that feeling. I'd got the first verse (a longish one and the Bridge, when one of my work mates asked what I was doing. I told him I was writing a song and he said 'You should have a word with Pete Waterman'. The only thing I knew about Pete was that he was the shop steward on the next section and his voice could often be heard ringing out at meetings. He told me Pete used to sing in an R&B band in the mid 60's - Tommorow's Kind and was Coventry's top DJ, at the Locarno and many other places.

Pete Waterman in the Coventry days

Next thing I knew Pete was standing over me and asked to see what I was writing. I told him I put on the band nights at the Umbrella club and wrote song lyrics (I didn't play guitar Myself until 72). Pete took the lyric away (even though it was unfinished) and said he put some music to it. A week later, again while the boss was elsewhere, he brought in one of those small mono cassette players they had in the 70's and played the song. His voice sound to me like a cross between Paul McCartney and Bob Dylan, playing it in 7ths. It sound great to me. He said he's repeated the line 'There's a lotta rivers flowing but the sea's learned how to fly' because he particualry liked that line and asked me to write another verse, which I did, so it patterned, technically speaking, ABAB Verse Bridge Verse Bridge. I don't think it ever got played anywhere that I know of and he didn't have a record company back then but here is the lyric - NOTE - THE AUDIO VERSION HERE IS WITH MY MUSIC NOT PETE'S AND WAS RECORDED ON CASSETTE 1981 WITH STEVE GILLGALLON ON LEAD GUITAR. I DON'T HAVE A COPY OF PETE'S EARLIER VERSION OR ANY SAY SO TO USE IT IF I DID.

A LOTTA RAIN IS FALLIN’

A Lotta Rain is Fallin' (Gnome 2)

Trev Teasdel (Steve Gillgallon on lead guitar)

A lotta rain is fallin’, but the earth has moved aside

There’s a lotta bullets flying but the victim’s found somewhere to hide

Pete Waterman smiley 1973

There’s a lotta rivers flowin’ but the seas learned how to fly.

There’s a lotta clouds a wondering which rockets knicked the sky

‘cos the roads are moving fast but the cars are standing still

and so much is happening yet nothing’s ever done

Oh we want to see the light but we’re dazzled by the sun.

(Bridge)

And some people’s only sunshine

Are their Cornflakes in the morning time

And the age of instant sunshine
In packets of bright display
I know will be dawning, in some future day.

There’s a lotta tears a fallin’, and more are being cried

There’s a lotta people trampled on as man takes another stride

There’s a lotta smoke a rising but the sky’s learned how to swim

Pete Waterman's Walsgrave

There’s a lotta faces smiling but their hearts are feeling grim

Cos a lotta tension’s forming and the bags about to burst

There’s gotta be an answer cos the world is getting worse.

A lotta help is needed to get that truck back on the road

Cos too many people are pullin’ too heavier a load.

(BACK TO BRIDGE)

Pete was working at the GEC by and by night DJ all over the option in Coventry. He invited meto come down to the

Pete Waterman Walsgrave 3

Tn_rose3

Walsgrave Pub (seen in the pic albeit with a new name) on a Tuesday night to his Progressive music venue, where he DJ'd and put on bands. I used to go every week, get there early, help the bands load in their equipment, do odd jobs and sit on the door in the early part of the evening. Pete introduced me to some of the musicians, like Rod Felton and I'd often book some of the bands for the Umbrella club. Some of the bands I already knew from the Umbrella but I got the contact details for Indian Summer and Dando Shaft from there. Some times we'd to town or the Earlsdon Cottage or his house to get equipment before the gig. On one occasion he sat on the lawn outside the Earlsdon cottage accompanying Rod Felton on flute. At the gig itself Pete sometimes got on stage - a memorable occasion was when Pete got on stage with R&B band Gipsy Lee and belted out Rock me Baby - adding in some Jethro Tull like percussive flute riffs. This may astound some of you who only know of Pete Waterman from Pop Heros or SAW

connections! There is more to the man than meets the media eye! Further on in this blog you'll some of the range of

Pete Waterman's Walsgrave

Pete's acitivites and work on the Coventry Music scene - he was Coventry's top DJ and promoter, later he ran the Soul Hole laready blogged about and won a Radio one competition to go over to the USA to find out first hand how the Philly sound worked. it was obvious back then that Pete was going places, had tremendous drive and was marshalling his record producing skills on Coventry's dance floors. But who would of guessed he would virtually take over the music business and charts with SAW in the 80's?

At the GEC Pete was a Shop Steward for TGWU - during one of his big meetings, explaining the strike action and why our sections would be laid off, I wrote this, ironically, as we stood en masse on the green near the Binley Rd.It was my first introduction at 19 to the labour movement but my mind clearly wasn't on politics at that stage.

LIKE A HAIRPIN BEND

Sometimes the road’s so dark and lonely

Shaded by the overhanging trees

Sometimes the road’s so long and winding

Guided by a violent breeze

And sometimes my road’s lined with forests

And confusion breathes

And sometimes the fords are deeper

Than my motor car.

Bridge

But when I get to thinking

That my seas are raging torrents

The wind seems to change direction

And blow the other way

Like a hairpin bend – Like a hairpin bend

And things start happening

As directions change

Like a hairpin bend- Like a hairpin bend

Sometimes the paths I wander

Bare no fruits of life

Sometimes the patterns I encounter

Are painted by the brush of strife

And sometimes my mind is lined with sadness

And reason squirms beneath

And sometimes the cauldrons seem more real

Than just figments of my mind.

(back to the Bridge)

By Trev Teasdel, May 1970

Another one written in 1970 at the GEC captured the alienation felt working in such an environment when you wanted to be doing something more creative with your life. As Pete says in his autobiography, mostly young women worked in our section and the protagonist in the song is female despite being in the first person!

GOOD DAY TO YOU MRS JONES

Alarm clock rings and with it brings a sleepy head that feels like lead on rising.
Throw back the sheets and draw back the curtains and look at the frosty streets.
Put on your clothes, everyone loaths getting up in the morning.
Your mind seems to settle as you put on the kettle although still sleepy.
Frying the bacon, fried bread and eggs, it seems there's a mountain upon your legs.

Brush down your hair, taking great care to paint on the make up, still trying to wake up

but you know that you can't

Slip on your coat, pick up your bag and off to the daily drag.

Open the door and a cold wind bites, go back on your woollen tights

Rush for the bus in the usual crush, collapsing on the seat.

Run to the gate, in case you know you're not really worried.
Look at the clock, must have got stuck, doesn't the time drag by.
"Roll on today, Roll on tommorow" wishing your life away.
Nothing gets done, you're not having fun, you're needing a holiday.

Working for the rich man as hard as you can
and you don't get nothing for it.
He's getting rich while you're living in a ditch
but he don't do nothing for it.
Hometime comes, your head still drums at train beat tempo.
Lay on the sofa, thinking over but you're much too weary to know.
Maybe there's an artist somewhere in you with plenty of things to do
but he never gets a chance

Good day to you Mrs Jones
Good day to you Mrs Jones.

By Trev Teasdel - April 1970

Billy Campbell also worked in that department of the GEC. Bill was a bass player who had played in the group Eggy in the late 60's with Roger and Nigel Lomus (who had been in the Sorrows) and Bill Bates. They made a single

You're Still Mine/B: Hookey (Spark SRL1024 1969) - althugh I knew nothing of this at the time! I did know that Bill, at the time (1970) was playing in a band called Coconut Mat with Martin Barter on Hammond Organ. Pete Waterman suggested I write a 'heavy Song' for them as they were a 'heavy' band. It was the days of Led Zepplin and Black Sabbath. I wrote a song called The City Fires (purely to try and suit the band - I wouldn't have written this one otherwise.) However they took umbridge to the word Beelzebub in the lyric, saying that you could have a hit with the word Beelzebub in it. I had no idea it wa for a single - I didn't know of Bill's recording background at the time and thought it was for the stage. Satanic images were vogue at the time with Black Sabbath. He used to call me Beelzebub after that but 5 years later Queen took Bohemian Rhapsody to the top of the charts with, yes that word Beelzebub in!! Ok my song can't compare with the brilliant Bohemian Rhapsody but they did have a hit with that word Beelzebub in! i fell about when that hit the charts!

It's not my best or favourite lyric from that time but here is the infamous satanic song about the evil of industrialism -

THE CITY FIRES

Amidst the conflagrations

Living substances survive.

Squandering their energies

In the furnaces they thrive.

Making haste that’ll only guarantee

Eggy-01

An early grave.

Bridge..

And the cities burn

You’re gonna die

You’re gonna slowly die

You’re gonna slowly die too young

In the city fires

In the city fires.

Preachers scream from the steeple

That we’re heading for hell

But tell me people if this place ain’t worse than hell.

Making waste that'll only guarantee an early grave.

Bridge..

The evil witch has cast her jinx

Beelzebub now rules.

Pandemonium’s the song he sings

As he swallows all you fools.

And he’s gonna drink your blood

As your bodies slowly burn

Bridge..2

As your bodies burn

You’re gonna die

You’re gonna slowly die

You’re gonna slowly die too young

In the city fires

In the city fires.

Bill was a good lad thugh and Martin Barter became friends. I used to hang out with him at the Plough club on a Sunday night. He was very into Elton John who had just emerged at the time and we talked about a kind of Bernie Taupin Elton John collabortion but it didn't pan out. Martin went on to play with John Alderson in Just Jake and a host of other bands since and I think is still going strong.

Trev's Music My Space - Trev and the Collective Unconscious

Trev Teasdel's New Album on Gnome label

COVENTRY DAYS - Trev's Bootleg Album on Vox

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

PETE WATERMAN'S SOUL ARTICLE FOR HOBO 1974

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Wed, 24 Jan 2007 01:50:09 +0000

Pete Watermand article

I Wish I Was Me: Pete Waterman - The Autobiography

Pete Waterman

In 1973 Pete Waterman opened his new shop (with his mate Tilly) - The Soul Hole - in the basement of I AM - a hippy boutique in Hales Street Coventry. It specialised in rare soul imports not available in this country. Pete had connections through his DJ work and had apparently supplied imports to the Beatles on their first visit to Coventry c 1963. The basement was very cramped and soon the Soul Hole moved to upstairs at Virgin Records. I knew Pete from the GEC and the Walsgrave. Pete supported Hobo by giving us an ad, a Soul Hole Singles Chart and the article

Virgin Records (Coventry)

below published in issue 4 of Hobo - August 1974.

As you know by now our small shop (The Soul Hole) has now moved to the top of Virgin Records in the City Arcade. Our new shop will, we hope, bring more people into the faith. We had a good time at the shop in the I AM boutique but the stock was getting too big for our small shop. The move will not, we hope, change the service that we are so proud of. The new shop will give us more room to serve and talk. Also you can stand up! (The Soul Hole was originally in the cellar of the I AM boutique with a low ceiling!!)

Soul Hole

Anyway, down to business. As most of you know by now, I spent the 5th and 6th of March with the Three Degrees.

3 DEGREES

Sheila, Fay and Valerie. On Monday the 5th I went to the Mayfair Hotel in London to see the girls do their own thing. The girls got on and did When Will I See You Again. The first thing that took our breath away was their see through dresses, but they are from just good looking foxes. At dinner I sat with Peter Winfield (for all those who don't read sleeve notes) Peter is the cat who played keyboards for BLODSTONE on both Natural High and their new album. For all the foxes and cats not into our faith, Pete also plays for COLIN BLUNSTONE, and writes for a National rock paper.

The Three Degrees - When Will I See You Again 1974

Pete is soul freak, like myself and we both agreed their harmonies were the tightest we'd heard for some time. The voices were fantastic, Sheila takes the lead most of the time. The next in line was Dirty Old Man, this was fantastic, with the girls showing they can handle the audience with fun and firmness. Then they did "A Woman Needs Love" proving they can sing ballads as well as up tempo Nos. Their footwork was as god as any I've seen before, and if any in the audience weren't sold on that, the next was they're single Year of Descision. I t had everybody on their feet shouting for more. But it was all over, Pete and the Colin Blunstone band went off to record the Old Grey Whistle Test, and I went to the girls bedroom to have a chat.

Soul Hole

Just as a boost to our egos, David Bowie was there to pay homage to the

I Can't Stand the Rain

three ladies of soul. It seems that Rock stars are getting back to their roots with Bowie telling me that he is soon to be recording with top black acts in the states and John Lennon saying Ann Pebbles I can Feel the Rain is the best record for two years.

New Sounds to Look Out For The Ojays new single is a track off their latest LP (as are all the new Philly singles) and

Article by Pete Waterman

is called For the Love of Money. The Intruders - I’ll Always love My Mama (2 Pts)
Trammps new single is a track off the 1970 British Motown company picking the slower track. USA Marvin Gaye scores with his controversial single You Sure Like to Ball taken from the Let’s Get it On album. A new single soaring up the American charts from the M.F.S.B. band on Philly International is called Tsop, taken from the TV series Soul Train. The end five bars feature the 3 Degrees.

LP of the month - too many really to pick one but look out for Blue Magic and import Out Here on my Own Lamont / Dozier. Superb LP’s. Next Billy Paul single The Whole Town’s Talkin’ .

Also check out - Rock me Baby - George Mc Crea / Help Yourself - Undisputed Truth / Dancing Machine - Jackson 5 / I Lied - Bunny Sigler / Mighty Mighty - Earth, Wind and Fire / Be Thankful For What You’ve Got - William Devaaughn / Chameleon - Herbie Hancock / Sagittarius - Eddie Kendicks / If You’re Ready - Staple Singers / Got To Get You Back - Sons of Robin Stone / Pepper Box - The Peppers

See ya soon. Keep the faith right on
Pete Waterman (1974)

DAVE SIMMONS DJ of Radio Ones Saturday soul programme, dedicated last weeks program

Soul Hole

exclusively to the Philadelphia Sound, thanks to the efforts of our own Pete Waterman, who has just returned fromt he very place with a hoard of interviews and information about the music. Pete was interviewed throughout the program by Dave and his interviews were also aired. Next issue, providing Pete gets it together, we'll have an article on the Philly sound from the expert!
(Note - this didn't happen, apart from anything else Hobo folded owing to increasing difficulties in affording the cost of printing)

SOUL HOLE ADVERT FOR HOBO (AS SUBMITTED BY PETE)

Soul Hole ad 1

BLACK MUSIC IS OUR BAG
WHAT’S YOURS

SOUL HOLE RECORDS
UPSTAIRS IN VIRGIN RECORDS
CITY ARCADE
PHONE 58004
ALL TOP 50 SINGLES AND LPS

Soul hole ad 2

BEST SINGLES SERVICE IN THIS CITY
SO COME AND SEE US.

Pete Waterman’s Soul Hole Top 14
(First published in Coventry’s Hobo Magazine by Trev Teasdel - Issue no 2 August 1973)

1. Bok to Bach – Father’s Angel

Pete Waterman and Philly

2. Oh Pretty Baby – Al Kent
3. Queen of the Go Go – Rex Garvin
4. Blowing my Mind to Pieces – Bob Ralph
5. This is the House – First Choice
6. What you Gave Up – Continental 4
7. Lets have a Lovin’ – Windgate Strings
8. Queen of Fools – Barbara Mills
9. Times a Wastin’ – Fuller Bros
10. Love on a Mountain Top – Robert Knight
11. Groovin’ at the Go Go – 4 Larks
12. Satisfy me Baby – Sweets
13. Count Down (Here I Come) – Tempos
14. Little Togetherness – Young Hearts
(All of these were imported records not normally available in the UK)

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

MADCAP PAINT FEUD

nobody@vox.com(HOBO - Coventry Music Magazine) — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 21:59:35 +0000

Although I wrote this, I was there to see it - this was reportage by Niki and various Hobo associates so I can't vouch for it's

3am-01

accuracy. It became a piece of Coventry scene folklore and strangely Roger Albion who has responded to the site, mentioned the incident 9 how did he intuit I had an article to put on about it from Hobo!) Of the protagonists, I knew Rodney Joyce - he visted us at the Shilton cottage in 72 with other musicians and I met him again when he played with Khyyam at the Earlsdon Cottage. He was the the percussion player. I knew Nikki from around but he sang some gritty blues for a jam I organised at the Hobo Workshop when it was upstairs at the Golden Cross. Among the people who took part in the jam were John Gravenor, Andy Cairns (who was playing with a guy called Ricki and Horace (later of the Specials) in a Jazz rock group - think they were called Breaker / Bill Jackson of April; Neol Davies; Phil Knapper (who younger brother later fronted the punkish Riot Act) and you know there maybe more! C1975.

Anyway in 1973 Niki and Rod Joyce obviously had some creative differences which led to an 'Incident' . According to this newspaper cutting from the 60's Niki was bass player of 3 am with Rodney Joyce as manager.
Niki is the one in the long coat in the newspaper pic.

This article is from Hobo No 3 Feb 1974

MADCAP PAINT FEUD (Live Art!!)

Khayyam

Above - Khayyam at the Earlsdon Cottage - Rodney Joyce on congos, Chris Jones -Lead guitar - Steve Tayton (also of Stavely Makepiece on Sax and Dave Wicks on Bass. In the foreground audience yu the back of Trev and Bo's head - only just noticed it - didn't realise. It's more recognisable on the original black and white pic.)

A finger snapping / foot tapping audience wer groovin' to the sounds of Khyyam at the Earlsdon Cottage. Unnoticed, a

Madcap Paint Feud

character creeps through the crowd carrying a can of brown emulsion paint (waterbased), then leaps up and suddnely annoits the congo player (Rodney Joyce) with paint. Rod knocks the paint can away unwitttingly spraying the audience with droplets of paint, while madcap artist Niki Hawkswell slips away through a stunned audience., to be apprehended by an angry landord., who called in the sherrif and his deputies, who arrived with blue strobe lights freaking.

Bullshit? No straight up! It really happened in Coventry - BAD SCENE, people's clothes, here and there were stained with paint; one or two people wer upset by it, the band, who continued to play throughout the incident could've been electricuted had the paint reached the sockets. Rod's congo skins will never be the same again.

The police called it 'Assault', Niki calls it 'Insult' .. 'This is a creative war,' Niki said, pacing the floor, 'not a social war' "I didn't mean to disgrace Rodney or upset the band or the audience' 'it'sjust between me and Rodney, it's nothing to do with the Sherrif' Niki used to paly bass in a band (3 AM) with Rodney (the manager) and gave up music to become an artist. 'I was announcing myself as an artist and giving him a touch of Speedy Keene - an african congo player that Rod admires).

Crazy, but Niki is a very neurotic artist, to say the least, but it's this abundance of nervous energy that makes him a good artist. His approach is not studied but one stemming from feel. He gets into the pulse of the music and translates its rhythms into colours and patterns on paper. But only certain types of minds will comprehend this. To Niki, this was a happening; poetry in motions; an extention of the music. DON'T MISS NEXT MONTH'S THRILLING EPISODE!!

Read and post comments | Send to a friend