Line Up
Sambassadors of Groove.
Formed in 1998, the Sambassadors of Groove are a community samba band of drummers and dancers from Leamington Spa in Warwickshire, England. They play, we learn, we perform, we have fun!
They perform across the West Midlands, the UK and Europe.
Their website is http://www.sambassadorsofgroove.org.uk/media.html
Find them on facebook https://www.facebook.com/sambassadorsofgroove/
Sacrifice.
Circa 1969 ‘..direct from a recording session…’ CET ad October 1969 Source Broadgate Gnome.
This was the entry on the Broadgate Gnome but no further information – but I’m thinking this could be a Birmingham band rather than a Coventry one – not sure – Brumbeat says
“Norman Haines formed a band called “Sacrifice” with whom he recorded another (now rare) album in 1970. They later became known as “The Norman Haines Band”. Norman still lives in the Birmingham area to this day and can occasionally be found performing in local line-ups.” Read more here http://www.brumbeat.net/locomoti.htm
Sabina
Not sure about this band or where I got the name from now – the nearest I can find is the tenuous link that Coventry’s Modie Albrighton of peppermint Kreem and New City Sounds toured Germany in the late 70’s with a band called Sabina.
According to Pete Clemons ” Modie began to make contacts in Germany and in 1976 he went over to there to tour with a band called Sabina. He must have taken to life in Germany because by the end of 1977 he had emigrated there. Initially, and through to the 1980’s he toured the German circuit with many different bands including Bullfrog and Trysapter.”
Band Members –
A Quail & A Quail (Terry Quails)
Gus Gary ‘Judge’ Chambers (Vocals)
Trevor Evans (Keyboards)
Johnny Rex (Drums)
Kevin Turner (Bass)
Stuart Maclean (Guitar)
Single – “21 Guns” b/w “Ambition Rock” – Neville Staples Shack Label 1981.
In 1981, following in the footsteps of Specials drummer John Bradbury‘s Race Records, vocalist Neville Staples and his then girlfriend Stella (from The Bodysnatchers) launched Shack Records. Their first signing was ska/reggae band 21 Guns and the single included the songs “21 Guns” b/w “Ambition Rock“. The songs were also produced by Neville, and peaking at No46 on the UK Charts after 3 weeks.
21 Guns, formed by ex-Specials roadies Trevor Evans (Keyboards) and Johnny Rex (Drums) and included Kevin Turner (Bass), Stuart Maclean (Guitar) and Gary ‘Judge’ Chambers (Vocals), had previously recorded a three song session for John Peel in early February 1981 based in their connection with Lynval Golding and The Specials. The session included the A and B side of the single as well as the song “Dark Night“.
The tracks are mentioned on this site and below are these very tracks as they appear on youtube http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/johnpeel/sessions/1980s/1981/Feb0221guns/
21 Guns by 21 Guns. John Peel Show BBC Radio 1 02/02/1981
Ambition Rock by 21 Guns. John Peel Show BBC Radio 1 02/02/1981
21 Guns / Dark Night (Unreleased) BBC Session 1981
The band scored a support slot opening for Hazel O’Connor and their short set list included their three original songs plus 2 covers (“Too Hot” by The Specials and “Johnny Too Bad” later covered by UB40).
21 Guns had connections to The Specials as their lead singer
Gus Chambers had beenGus Chambers passed away in 2008 – Tribute here on Hobo site
Memories from Trev Teasdel
” I never got to see 21 Guns live as I left Coventry back end of 1980, but I met Stuart
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| Ceramic guitar
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Mclean, the guitar player, at an EMF (Mojo (Tony) Morgan’s Sky band) gig when they playing in a pub in Tile Hill. We walked back into Coventry after the gig and he told me about his Ceramic guitar. I never got to see it but obviously it was special. (I found a picture of a ceramic guitar on the net ).
Line Up
John O’Sullivan – vocals & guitar
Simon O’Grady – bass & vocals
Peter Burke – drums & vocals
Originally a school boy band John O’Sullivan – vocals & guitar, Simon O’Grady – vocals & guitar, Peter Burke grew up together and developed into ’20 Days’ who have prolifically released excellent pop/rock music including this track ‘Freefall’ which features on the Sonar music album.
20 days self titled 12” EP featuring this track together with ‘Night–time’, ‘Heavens High’ and ‘Into the Open’ are available as a download OR as a 12” 33 rpm vinyl EP on vinyl.”Memories from John O’Sullivan via Rex Brough
“We released a 12″ EP in 1985, recorded at Cabin by Paul Sampson and released by John Lord’s Sonar label. We were a good little guitar band, but for some forgotten and inexplicable reason there is very little guitar on the record (it’s there plinking quietly in the background a few miles below the drums & keyboards!) I blame the 80s! We used to do an alternate residency with the Giraffes at a pub across the road from the Wedge bookshop/cafe. That was a lot of fun.”
From their My Space
Who or what are 20 Days / MFT? Well, it all started in 1978 in Coventry, when three 13 year old school boys, John, Simon & Peter formed a band called The Shades. With one cheap electric guitar, one even cheaper classical guitar and a cardboard box for a drum, they made tapes in bedrooms, playing I am the Walrus and A Day in the Life, soon writing their own songs, influenced by the Rut…Beatles & Syd Barrett.
In 1979 they were joined by two bigger boys (John’s brother Denis on vocals & his mate Martin Burke on bass). Despite rehearsals taking place in his own house, Denis was soon shown the door, (he couldn’t sing or play guitar, but he knew how to walk through a door and, at the time, that seemed the most important thing!) He went on to form his own band, the Sons of Pleasure, in a different room. In 1980 the band, now called Eclipse(for no apparent reason), played their first gig as a 4 piece, in the living room in front of 20 or so school mates. Their next gig was to be their biggest gig, in the school hall. A charity gig (actually two gigs in one dinner time, charging 5p a gig). They made quite an impression on the kids and teachers, with original songs as well as covers such as Message in a Bottle & Jumping Jack Flash, legends in their own lunch time, you might say.
By Sept 1980 they were old enough to play the local pubs. A bigger boy, Graham Hopkins, became their manager, arranging their first studio demo with John Rivers at Woodbine Studios in Leamington Spa (thanks Graham, wherever you are), and live gigs in town (just before it became a Ghost Town!) Their biggest gig was another charity gig, supporting the Reluctant Stereotypes at the Lanchester Polytechnic(Coventry University now) in 1981, which went so well that bass player Martin left the band the very next day! The lads reverted to a 3 piece once more, Simon taking over on bass and spent a long time working on new songs and arranging their trousers. They returned to the studio in 1983, this time to the newly opened Cabin Studios, with ex Reluctant Stereotype Paul Sampson producing. They were so polite that they were soon signed to the in-house label, Sonar records in 1984, releasing one 12″ vinly EP Freefall in 1985, which was favourably reviewed in NME & Zigzag and received airplay from good old John Peel on his late night BBC Radio One show (thanks John, wherever you are). Regular gigs with mates like the Furious Apples & the Giraffes, brought them a reputation as one of the best live bands in town (if not the universe…no, probably not the universe, just town).
More recordings followed, including a session sponsored by a particularly supportive fan, Horace Panter of the Specials (thanks Horace, wherever you are). In 1989 they were invited to become part of ‘super group’ the hungry i, put together by Steve Dullaghan(RIP) from the Primitives & Martyn Bates of Eyeless in Gaza. During this time, John also toured Europe a number of times as guitarist/backing vocalist with Martyn Bates, who also continued to work as a solo artist. The hungry i signed to Nursery records and released two EPs (on CD & vinyl), all the usual stuff happened, Radio, Press, Video, sandwiches, etc. Unfortunately, in 1992, after two weeks in the studio recording their debut album, Martyn & Steve
decided to part company (They showed each other the door, we don’t know what sort of door it was, or what was behind it…) Throughout the life of the hungry i, 20 Days had continued as a separate band and now, armed with the greater experience gained from working as the hungry i, they decided to re-launch & re-name themselves, with a view to playing somewhere beyond the Midlands, Bedford perhaps?
In a nod to the Byrds & John Coltrane (both big influences on the band’s live use of improvisation and the 12 string Rickenbacker), the boys took the name My Favourite Things. Between 1992 and 96, they blazed a trail from Coventry to London and back again, generating a great deal of interest from industry and fans alike. Fan mail came in from all over the known world, (via the postman of course, this being long before the invention of things like electricity & email! By eck!) But ultimately, despite getting very close and constantly being referred to (mostly by themselves) as the next Cov band to make the big time, no banana sandwiches were forthcoming. They decided to sign themselves on the dotted line and released their own record, Fruit Machine / Memphis on 7″ vinyl. Another song, Daydream Violence, was released on 7″ EP by indie label 25 Records, but nobody knows too much about that, not even the band. Many fine gigs were played in Coventry, London, Brighton (sometimes all on the same day!) Their biggest gig was not a charity concert, it was as sole support act to Australian bigger boys INXS. Michael Hutchence said to them “Ah, there you are!” and they have never since forgotten, or understood, his mystical words. Their last record and arguably their finest moment was Syd (one side of a joint 7″ single with Coventry legends the Nocturnal Babies). Syd was inspired by long time hero of the band Syd Barrett (so…not Sid James then?) The band played their last regular gig at the Golden Cross in Coventry in 1996, to much whaling and splashing of fins, but…legend said they would return…and they did! Nov 4th 2009, the lads played live in Coventry once again. The legend lives on in it’s own lunchtime! p.s. To anyone one who’s actually read as far as here…thanks for stopping by, come back and see us soon, we’ll get some tea & biscuits in for next time! Cheers!
Tuxedo Junction c1967 – 71 (A Coventry band, also listed on Brum Beat – http://www.brumbeat.net/tuxedo.htm
From Tom Lane
Tuxedo Junction played locally in the Coventry and Birmingham area.
The spring of 1967 saw the coming together of Coventry’s prime blues unit, The Tuxedo Junction Blues Band. I recently got loaned a number of amazing posters for the museum off my friend Tony Beard.
One of the posters is for a gig at Rugby College of Engineering Technology at Ferndown Hostel.
The concert took place in 1968 and featured two local bands, Peppermint Circus and Tuxedo Junction for just five shillings. It’s a wonderfully rare find, as both bands had a strong pedigree, with Peppermint Circus being signed to A&M Records and Tuxedo Junction being as true blues as you could get in the area.
The spring of 1967 saw the coming together of Coventry’s prime blues unit, The Tuxedo Junction Blues Band.
Guitarist Andy Daly placed an advert in the Coventry Evening Telegraph for blues loving musicians looking to form a band. John Hammond fan Brian Stone was the first to answer and in doing so gave the band a vocalist and superb blues harp player. Come the summer the line-up was complete and looking something like this: Andy Daly, Brian Stone, Brian ‘Butch’ Butler, David Oughton, Tony Nelson and Roger Tonge. Like many Coventry and Warwickshire bands they used Friars Promotions as their promoters and soon secured a once a month residency at The Chesford Grange as well as gigs at the Walsgrave and Cheylesmore public houses in Coventry, The Pump Rooms in Leamington, Benn Hall in Rugby and noted Rugby blues house The Woolpack.
The Woolpack in Rugby had such a strong reputation in the blues world that New Orleans Blues king Jack Dupree played there on two occasions, while the Ben Hall has staged gigs for the likes of John Lee Hooker and John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.
The boys (with new members Keith Jaynes and Terry Hobson) were branching out now and playing the likes of London, including the famous Marquee, where the Five Live Yardbirds was recorded.
Meanwhile back home the band went into The Midland Sound Recorders studio in Balsall Common and recorded a Demo EP. Tracks included “Crossroads”, “Key To The Highway”, “Moving On”, “Evening” and an Andy Daly original “Take Time Out”.
It was never intended as a commercial product but it does act as a ‘moment in time’ for the band, much the same as the other demo they recorded a take on the Yardbirds fave “Mister You’re A Better Man Than I”.
This recording was sent to John Peel and they still have the hand written card that he sent with his reply, it reads: “I listened to them several times, the band is obviously good, the solo part in Better Man I really liked. Unfortunately there isn’t a great deal I can do now as I have got as many people as I can cope with. Tuxedo Junction are obviously better than many bands already recording so I shouldn’t despair, give them my love anyway. If they stay together they should make it. Love John Peel.”
Sadly the band didn’t stay together, and the natural course of the band was run and they called it a day in 1971.
Pete Chambers – Coventry Telegraph
Comment by Paul Kennelly 2014
“In 1972 , Keith Jaynes joined my band Peppermint Kreem and brought his special kind of bass playing to the sound. It was the second incarnation of Peppermint Kreem and by the end of 1973 it all faded away , the last Coventry gig being the concert in the War memorial Park that year.” Paul.
c 1970 A heavy rock band playing the Cov Scene in the late 60’s early 70. I first saw them at the Transcendental Cauldron at the Umbrella Club October 1969 and at the Plough and Colin Campbell at various times after.