When talking about the legendary Isle of Wight festivals, then undoubtedly, the one held in 1970 generally crops up in. But equally as important was the one held during 1969 and headlined by Bob Dylan.

Bob Dylan had been out of action, as far as the live scene was concerned, following an accident in 1966 and chose the island for his comeback gig rather than an offer to perform at Woodstock. Speculation was rife beforehand. It was suggested he could be onstage for a full three hours and that even The Beatles would reform to support him.

Those ‘lost’ three years had been spent writing reams of new music. A documentary film had also just been produced. George Harrison had even offered Apple Studios as a place for him to record.

Bob Dylan flew into London on 23 August and, after time in the capital, travelled direct to a 17th century manor house on the island which had been offered for his disposal. He stayed on the island for around 5 days and, such was the interest, brought with him an entourage of around 300 press men and photographers.

In addition to the hordes of UK music fans, hundreds of American fans also flew in for the gig as the crowd numbers, estimated at 200,000, grew to three times the population of the island.

Sunday 31st August 1969 and the festival had been in full swing for a couple of days. But the crowd noticeably swelled as first couple of bands, Liverpool Scene followed by Third Ear Band, hit the stage.

Gary Farr, brother of compere Ricki, was next up performing songs such as ‘Good Morning Sun’ and ‘The Vicar and the Pope’.

Following Gary came singer songwriter Tom Paxton who received one of the biggest ovations of the entire festival. It was totally unexpected but honestly deserved. Paxton is a craftsman and clearly won a whole host of new fans with songs like ‘Can’t help but wonder where I’m bound’, ‘Rambling Boy’ and ‘Last thing on my mind’. Obviously overwhelmed, Tom returned for several encores.

The Pentangle, however, didn’t fare so well. Low flying aircraft spoiled the ambience and a fire at the perimeter fencing caused the interest of some of the audience to wane. Members of The Rolling Stones unwittingly chose The Pentangles set to make their entrances. That meant the photographers refocused their lenses – much to the obvious annoyance of the band.

Next up was Julie Felix with a selection of songs that included ‘I want to be alone’ and Leonard Cohen’s ‘Bird on a Wire’

As dusk set in Richie Havens made his appearance accompanied by a guitarist and a Congo player. They performed a dynamic version of ‘Strawberry Fields Forever’ and warmed the crowd up with what was to come by way of a version of ‘Maggie’s Farm’.

It was now the turn of Bob Dylan and by now the atmosphere was charged. As Dylan took to the stage, albeit briefly, a few missiles were aimed at the photographers who were clearly blocking the view of some.

But Dylan’s appearance was brief. Bob’s backing group, The Band, then performed for almost an hour. Testing the WEM PA apparently. Still, they managed to showcase a lot of their own debut album.

Bob returned to the stage to rapturous applause. The Band stepped aside allowing Bob to perform acoustic. ‘It ain’t me Babe’ and ‘Mr Tambourine Man’ followed. The Band returned and accompanied Bob on ‘Like a Rolling Stone’, ‘Lay Lady Lay’ and ‘I’ll be Your baby tonight’ but clearly things were not going well.

We are going to do one more Bob announced and ‘Mighty Quinn’ followed. Bob did do an encore but the whole thing was nowhere near the rumoured three-hour set. And with a ‘thank you, thank you’ he was gone.

At the end of it all, none of the pre-gig predictions came to fruition. Bob Dylan’s shortened set lasted for around an hour. Maybe he had been ill as rumoured. But he certainly disappointed many. Bob allegedly netted 50,000 dollars for the performance and CBS capitalised as Bob’s then latest album Nashville Skyline which, despite all the publicity, was never harmed at all in terms of sales.

https://kscopemusic.com/

I was recently reminded of the days of classic budget sampler LPs such as ‘The Rock Machine Turns You On’ and ‘You Can All Join in’ by way of a CD celebrating 10 years of the Kscope label.

Admittedly, the 10-year celebration was a year ago now, but the CD came as an additional freebie I received as being part of an order I made through distribution mail order outlet Burning Shed.

Rock Machine and You Can All Join in, were compilations released by their respective labels, CBS and Island, as part of campaigns to turn people on to the exciting new sounds of the late 1960s. As opposed to this Kscope release that has been released to celebrate a decade of the label.

Rock Machine sold over 140,000 copies and entered the charts during June 1969. It featured and introduced us to bands such as The Byrds, Moby Grape, Blood Sweat and Tears and Spirit. And it was described at the time thus…’it’s the happening sounds of today. It’s all here – the talent, the product and the big concept to make it all happen. Now, doesn’t that turn you on?’

Similarly, You Can All Join In was instrumental in giving bands such as Free, Jethro Tull, Spooky Tooth and Traffic exposure to a wider audience as it reached number 18 in the charts.

And this Kscope release has been designed to showcase the more underground sounds of today. And the importance of this unassuming album can’t be overstated.

Kscope, now an independent company, was formed during the very late 1990s. It was Steven Wilson of Porcupine Tree who thought up the name which came from a play on the word Kaleidoscope. Plus, it reminded Steven of that old TV promoted budget label of the seventies, K-Tel, which also appealed to him.

Initially Kscope was an outlet for the music of Steven Wilson’s own band Porcupine Tree. In fact, the first release on the label was an album called ‘Stupid Dream’ by Porcupine Tree released during 1999. But the Kscope label went dormant when Porcupine Tree signed up for Lava Records at the time of their 2002 album release ‘In Absentia’.

May 2008, however, saw the Kscope name revived after Steven Wilson suggested that the label be opened for new releases by new talent and allow the bands to develop musically. It provided a home for the growing post-progressive genre and an evolving, flexible and adventurous style of music without boundaries.

As such The Pineapple Thief became one of the first of that new talent to be signed up and the bands seventh album ‘Tightly Unwound’ became the first album released on the newly revived Kscope label.

Kscope albums are available via an on-line distribution company called Burning Shed. Burning Shed is run by artists and musicians for artists and musicians. Given that, you are always guaranteed a first-class service. Additionally, however, I have even noticed that our own relocated HMV has a good number of Kscope products available on their shelves.

You Can All Join In was chronicled at the time as ‘one of those seamless compilations that simply cannot be improved upon. A dozen tracks highlight the best – and that is the best – of Islands recent and forthcoming output’.

This was exactly the feeling I experienced on first hearing the Kscope compilation containing the work of No-Man, Engineers, Blackfield, Gazpacho, Lunatic soul, Tesseract and many others.

Andrew Rolland Oliver, variously know in musical circles as Ollie, Doc Mustard, The Rhythm Balladeer, Slim Dog Chilli and more, was born near Matlock. He passed away in 2019 down in Penzance. I met him when he moved to Coventry in 1973. I was typing an issue of Hobo (Coventry’s Music and Arts Magazine) in the office of  the Sunshine Music agency in Gulson Road Coventry. Sunshine was run by Craig Ward, Bob Young and others and Ollie walked in, looking less eccentric than he did in later years – I think he had a suit on!! He was playing bass in a rock band called SMACK and I gave the band a write up in the magazine. My biggest memory of Ollie was in the late 70’s / early 80’s in a a ska band called Machine – Hot Snacks. he went on to busk in Coventry and Cornwall and play in reggae bands and more. Doc Mustard did the sound and played at The Stoker venue, organised by Steve Ashwell in Coventry. Pete Clemons offers some interesting insights into the DOC’s musical influences. Trev Teasdel

It is fair to say I think that Andrew Roland Oliver, or Doc Mustard or Ollie as more widely known, led an alternative lifestyle. Ollie was non-mainstream, he believed in conspiracy theories, particularly those involving aliens, and, in general, lived outside of the cultural norm.

Ollie moved to Coventry during 1973. Coventry folk of a certain age will remember Doc Mustard as a busker who pitched up, with his dog Paxo, around various locations in the city centre. This led to a partnership with former Tubulah Dog and Crokodile Tears guitarist, Jerry Richards, who became known as the Cobalt Kid.

Ollie then moved onto Cornwall during the early 1990s. Firstly calling in at Mousehole and then eventually settling in at Penzance.

Despite his life style, and the fact they clearly enthused him enough to get up and play, Ollie’s musical influences would suggest that he was not that different from you and me.

The following are a few of Ollie’s quotes on albums that had an effect in his early years:

‘Flowers of Evil’ by Mountain: ‘Back in early 70’s Matlock I was bass player in a rock trio called The Doughnut Band. We got a gig at The Cavern. As I walked down the steps into the basement club there was what sounded like PA feedback and I’m thinking it’s the sound engineer setting up. Wrong. It was the DJ who was spinning the Dream Sequence from this album and I’d arrived at the point where Leslie West holds a sustained note before breaking into Roll Over Beethoven. I was ecstatically blown away’.

‘Tons of Sobs’ by Free: ‘Whilst living in The Horse Shoe, Matlock Green during respite from boarding school, my friend a few doors along towards Tansley, Tom, who is wholly responsible for my guitar obsession thanks to his Watkins Rapier if my memory serves me well and also his album collection, would regale me with tales from his college adventures including rave reviews of this amazing band he’d seen called Free’.

‘The Eagles’ by The Eagles: ‘Back in the mid 70’s I saw Horace (Panter) in Gosford Street, Coventry on his way to Hits, Misses and Vintage records to part with some Eagles albums so we came to a satisfactory financial arrangement. Even before Joe Walsh they were awesome’.

‘Babylon by Bus’ by Bob Marley and the Wailers: ‘Living in multi-cultural Coventry from ’73-’91 I was blessed with an infusion of uplifting music. Here’s a top live album that helped to steer me towards the post of Keyboard player for an awesome Cov reggae band ‘The Ring’.

‘96 Degrees in the Shade’ by Third World: ‘I don’t take holidays as travel advertising in the name of global consumerism doesn’t appeal to me also I’m not a slave in need of respite despite having to report to the taxman annually. This album takes the mind on a vacation so here we are with the sun blasting away outside’.

‘Can’t Buy a Thrill’ by Steely Dan: ‘I was living in Coventry when I heard this. Utterly ground-breaking harmonies, melodies and rhythms seriously fed my musical appetite. Can’t imagine how life would have been without them’.

‘Talking Book’ by Stevie Wonder: When I moved to Coventry in ’73 as a bass player in a trio we were introduced to a drummer, Nick, who put us up temporarily in his flat in Radcliffe Road. Earlsdon. His dog Freddie always went apeshit every time the ‘Crossroads’ title theme came up on ITV. Nevertheless, this is an album that was a popular spin on the turntable.

Ollie had just recently put together a trio called The Cobalt Kids. This involved former Coventry residents Alan Varney on bass guitar and Robert Brown on drums.

According to Alan ‘Doc Mustard and the Cobalt Kids were just ready to do gigs and we had a lot booked and even got 26 songs recorded 13 of which are on a CD, but just as it was about to be unleashed on the public Ollie took ill and within 12 weeks sadly passed away’.

Alan continued ‘Of the 26 songs we put together for gigs and recording, about 13 are Ollie’s lyrics, with my bass and Robs drum parts. Just up to date versions of Ollie’s busking songs which are a mix of Boogie/Reggae/Ballad/rock feel songs’. ‘I met up with Ollie here in Penzance this year the last time we met was in the 70s in Coventry. He called it Serendipity the way we met again after so many years. We jammed for an hour or so and then found we just clicked and had a great sound and Ollie loved it’.

……………………………..

Here is a recent tribute from Cornwall Live https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/one-cornwalls-best-loved-buskers-3204360?fbclid=IwAR3obkBrIAJXbJS3cW2Nx97srImjd4OH-ipTgo60FZmCK6Pw2vuxWHEjxF4

Doc Mustard playing bass with Machine / Hot Snacks in the early 80’s. The original drummer of the band was Silverton Hutchinson who was also the original drummer of The Specials before John Bradbury joined. The band performed Two Tone band The Selecter on occasions.

Below – Ollie with a tale about his busking career!

The Ring – Reggae band

Doc Mustard’s appearance on May the Best House Win.

More of Doc Mustards musical videos here

https://www.youtube.com/user/ibrowze/videos

https://sites.google.com/site/bandsfromcoventrypart2/home/hot-snacks-machine?pli=1 More about Machine / Hot Snacks on this link. 

The Ring

Craig Ward’s publicity sheet with Sunshine Music Agency Coventry 1974 for SMACK – Ollie played bass and sang vocals in the band.

The following are two news items from Hobo Coventry Music and Arts Magazine (edited by Trev Teasdel) 1974.

SMACK! …MISS UNDERSTOOD (From Hobo Jan 1974)
“SMACK! formed from the now defunct Pug-ma-Ho, are now completing a tour of Germany. a single is due out around Christmas time on the Bell label.

The number is entitled “Miss Understood” and was written by Bob Young. The line up of the band consists of Gordon Reaney on lead guitar; Ollie Oliver on bass guitar; Nicky Trevisthick on drums and a female vocalist by the name of Margo- Buchanan-Reid-Smith (Later a backing vocalist with Mud).”

From Hobo  (February 1974)

SMACK! PLAY GERMANY
Just returned from a successful tour of Germany are SMACK!. The group who are Coventry based, hail mainly from Matlock. This phunky rock band who play original material, consists of these curios Smackeroos – Gordon Reaney – lead guitar, Ollie Oliver – bass and vocals, Margo-Buchanan-Reid-Smith on Vocals and smiles and Nicky Trevisthick on drums.

Doc Mustard at the Stoker venue in Coventry c 1989 / 91, organised by Steve Ashwell

Doc Mustard with Simon Baker at the Stoker.

The following are Ollie’s press cuttings sent to me by Al Varney.

Discordia – Eris

With the 2 Tone music genre rightly being applauded during 2019 for its fortieth anniversary, another branch of the movement will, this year, also have a fortieth anniversary to celebrate.

Although they were formed as The Invaders during 1976 and having had a turbulent early settling down period together, those nutty boys from North London, Madness, had to wait a while before they had their first chart success with ‘The Prince’ which was released on the 2 Tone Label during August 1979.

Legend has it that after a Specials gig in London audience member, Suggs, spoke afterwards with Jerry Dammers about the creation of the 2 Tone label. Jerry ended up staying the night at Suggs Mum’s flat. Madness recorded ‘The Prince’ and its B side ‘Madness’ and it unexpectedly peaked at number 16 as the single captured the moment perfectly.

A month after the singles release Madness had signed for a different label. A clause apparently existed in the 2 Tone set up where bands could leave after just one single. And that is exactly what happened by Madness as their next single ‘One Step Beyond’ was released on Stiff records during October 1979. Stiff records label manager Dave Robinson using his wedding day as a chance to audition the band.

Despite the label change Madness appeared on the legendary 40 dates 2 Tone tour alongside The Specials and the Selecter, during October and November 1979. However, they were replaced by Dexy’s Midnight Runners after, presumably being pulled from it by their new management.

On the 8th November 1979 each of the three two tone touring bands appeared on top of the pops. The Specials performed ‘A Message to You Rudy’ in the studio, The Selecter did ‘On My Radio’ via a previous TotP recording while Madness showcased ‘One Step Beyond’ – again, from the studio.

In just a few short months the 2 Tone movement, along with its label and music, had gone from an indie operation to a nationwide giant.

As a point of interest, also appearing on top of the Pops that evening was Matchbox with ‘Rockabilly Rebel’, Herb Alpert with ‘Rise’ (danced to by Legs and Co.), Sham 69 with ‘You’re a Better Man Than I’, Lena Martell ‘One Day at a Time’ and many others.

Madness were undoubtedly a charismatic and great visual band. All dance and movement. Musically they were sax heavy with very few guitar riffs. And they had an abundance of ammunition in their armoury of talent.

‘One Step Beyond’, by all accounts, was not intended to be a single and the band had only recorded a 30 second version of the tune. It was apparently, Stiff’s Dave Robinson who, after hearing it, suggested adding some studio magic to expand the riff and releasing the three-minute hit, top 10 hit.

The band’s debut album, also titled ‘One Step Beyond’ was also released during October 1979. And those with sharp eyes will notice that only 6 of the band featuring on the iconic ‘Nutty Train’ album sleeve. Well that was because Chas Smash, who came up with the ‘Hey you, don’t watch that! Watch this!’ phrase was not yet an official member of the band at the time that image was taken.

The next single was ‘My Girl’ released toward the end of 1979 which, by early 1980 had reached Number 3. This was the song that arguably shaped the future of the band as it thrusted lead singer Suggs to the fore as the accompanying video gave him the front man image.

Incredibly Madness’s first 20 singles all made the top 20. More surprisingly was that it was only ‘House of Fun’, released during 1982, that became the bands only number 1.

That aside, Madness were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s, having had 15 top 10 records and totalling more than 200 weeks in the singles chart.

All these facts and figures coming about because Madness were a multi-talented band with many of its members being credited in the song writing process.

Having said that, after keyboard player Mike Barson left in 1984 the band, apart from the odd reissue, failed to break into the top 10 again. Madness announced they were splitting during 1996.

However, the nutty boys regrouped once more during 1992 and have since remained an extremely popular touring band and with Suggs still fronting the band alongside Mike Barson, guitarist Chris Foreman, saxophonist Lee Thompson, drummer Dan Woodgate and bass player Mark Bedford still finds itself mainly intact from the days of its classic line up. Trumpeter and dancer Chas Smash leaving during 2014.

August 2019 sees the 50th anniversary of the Woodstock Music and Art Festival held in Bethel, a suburb of New York. By the end of the festival, and possibly on the back of the resulting Woodstock film released a year or so after the festival, the musical careers of so many of the bands and artists involved suddenly took off massively as their talents reached an even wider audience.

Overall, the film captured the mood, spirit, and music of the times wonderfully. The film has also, been described, as being one of the very best commentaries ever. The depth and breadth of coverage is nothing short of spectacular. In between the musical acts the camera wanders through the audience where it just seems to eves drop on various scenes. Together with on stage announcements the entire magic of the festival has been preserved for all time.

One of the bands that without doubt gained from all the publicity was Santana. After moving to San Francisco from Tijuana in Mexico, guitarist Carlos Santana was in at the beginning of the Haight-Ashbury music explosion of the late 1960s.

Initially a fluid band, in terms of line-up, the Santana band by the time of the Woodstock festival had settled on Carlos Santana, lead guitar, Gregg Rolie, keyboards, David Brown on bass, and Michael Shrieve on drums. To distinguish themselves, and add a Latin flavour to the music, the band added congas and other percussion instruments. These being played by Mike Carrabello and Jose ‘Chepito’ Areas.

And it was the above line-up that cut the self-titled debut album, titled Santana, during the summer of 1969. It immediately established the band as one of the most exciting and energetic groups to emerge from the San Francisco scene.

The music and rhythms created by Santana were compelling for their uniqueness at that time. And this debut release coincided with a memorable appearance at the Woodstock that, even today, remains as one of the astonishing stories from that festival.

At 2pm on Saturday 16th August 1969, the Santana band were relatively unheard of outside of San Francisco. Less than an hour later they had conquered the whole of America as news of their incendiary performance spread like wildfire.

A year later, after the release of the film, people from other parts of the world, who had yet to discover this band, were blown away by the version of Santana’s ‘Soul Sacrifice’ included within it.

The Woodstock film’s editing highlights so many memorable musical performances. From Richie Havens wonderful festival opener through to Jimi Hendrix finale there is so much magic within. Canned Heat, Country Joe and the Fish, Joe Cocker, The Who and Ten Years After. So many early performances were captured, for example Crosby Stills Nash and Young were playing only their second ever gig together. Even Sha-Na-Na, who took everyone back to the 1950s, were revered afterwards.

Guitarist Miller Anderson tells a wonderful story of his then band, The Keef Hartley band, and their first gig in America. It happened to be at the Woodstock festival. Miller mentions how they were standing at the side of the stage before it was their turn to go on. The stage announcer then introduced the band who were scheduled to be on immediately before them. A new band from San Francisco called Santana. Watching Santana so closely was jaw dropping, says Miller and it quickly dawned on the Keef Hartley band that they had to follow them. Fortunately, says Miller, John Sebastian turned up and the organisers let him do 20 minutes. This came as a relief to the Keef Hartley band as John calmed the audience down somewhat.

As for the Santana band, the above line up went on to record the acclaimed ‘Abraxas’ album during 1970. ‘Abraxas’, kept the Latin influence but was boarder in as much that the album began to dip into other influences. Carlos Santana had seen Peter Green’s Fleetwood Mac perform and was taken by his tune ‘Black Magic Woman’. Santana included their own version on ‘Abraxas’.

By the time of the third Santana album, Carlos Santana began to introduce more newcomers to the band in the shape of Coke Escoveda and guitar protégé Neil Schon.

Then began a series of excursions away from the main band, for Carlos, as he began to work with the likes of Buddy Miles and John McLaughlin.

Extensive reshuffles of the Santana band began as it only followed its own rules. They produced a series of albums where Latin and jazz were fused together. Some say successfully, others would beg to differ. The band would however return, at times, to its roots.

At their best Santana were totally distinctive. Famed for guitar improvisations, purity and sweetness of tone. That was combined with Carlos’s own ability to sustain notes of feedback for almost any length of time.

Had it not been for the film, would the Woodstock festival have been remembered about as fondly today? Who knows. One thing is for sure though, it opened the ears of the listening public to a whole host of bands and wide range of music.

No sooner had the current version of The Specials stepped off the stage for the last time, after holding court at the old cathedral for 4-nights, when another one-time key member of the band was about to step onto his, for another of his solo gigs. This time it was at the Jaguar Club just off Browns Lane.

Guitarist, and former member of the Specials, Roddy Radiation, has been assembling his own sizeable tour for 2019. And this includes several gigs in and around his home city of Coventry.

Some of these gigs, as seen recently at the Godiva festival and Jaguar Club are intimate affairs. Just Roddy and his guitar. Solo gigs, such as these, are not easy things to do especially when you are used to having a band around you. But, to be fair, Roddy does them really well. The songs he performs are familiar, and, are all his. Well almost. Some are covers and some he had a hand in. The set for the Jag Club was as follows:

Gangsters

Sunny Afternoon (The Kinks)

Hey Little Rich Girl

His Cat Needs a Kitten

Do Nothing

Forgive and Forget (Neil Hunter)

Rat Race

Johnny

But where Roddy appears to be most comfortable is with his band, The Skabilly Rebels, where he appears with Joe Harcourt – guitar, Lee Pratt – drums, Connor O’Connor – bass and Adrian R Lee – sax. Between them they produce a very mixed sound that draws from Rockabilly. But with an extra added twist. My best description of ‘Skabilly’ is that the music is a mix of rock, blues, ska and punk with a 50’s/60’s beat. Additionally, The Skabilly Rebels are very uplifting, and have that rare ability to get your feet and body moving spontaneously.

I imagine that a lot people reading this will have already discovered the delights of The Skabilly Rebels but for those who have not well this is a genuinely excellent band that brings with them an incredible feel good factor.

Most recently The Skabilly Rebels have released two EP’s titled ‘Fallen Angel’ and ‘Losing Control’. And if these had been released by Dave Edmunds or The Stray Cats then the music critics would be falling over themselves to churn out superlatives by the dozen.

As mentioned Roddy has a stack of dates lined up. And you can see the band at several venues, up and down the country, before the year is over. Expect a similar set list as above but with the addition of tunes like Another Rusty Nail, Black Zodiac, Doldrums and Judgement Day and many others.

After a recent Specials gig I was talking with friends about how their songs, from 40 years ago, still sounded good despite the passage of time. My only conclusion was that they were simply brilliant. Being not that far out of my teens, I didn’t appreciate that during 1979/80, but I certainly do now.

I mentioned this to Roddy, during a brief chat we had over social media. Roddy, despite having his struggles since quitting The Specials, came across as more philosophical nowadays. ‘I’ve been pretty lucky health wise’ he said. ‘But at 64 things are starting to wear out. I’ve lost a few close friends recently. Life is far too short I’m very aware of that now’.

Roddy’s songs will be around long after we have all disappeared. Very few can claim the kind of legacy that he can. And he can be very proud of his achievements.

If you google ‘Roddy Radiation tour’ you will see lists of his current activity. Or if you fancy any of his CD’s or other merch then go to roddyradiation.com

What I found impressive about the recent gigs by The Specials in the old cathedral ruins was the fact that, on each of the four nights, there was a different local support band.

And, on the evening I went, that band happened to be Voodoo Kings – a three-piece skiffle come rockabilly band. There was a tenuous connection to The Specials. Each member of Voodoo Kings had previously been in bands with one-time Specials guitarist Roddy Radiation such as The Bone diggers and The Skabilly Rebels.

It is easy to forget that Voodoo Kings have been together for around ten years now. Guitarist Dave West, drummer Terry Downes and Sam Smith on double bass apparently formed Voodoo Kings after the 50th anniversary gig of Coventry legends The Zodiacs. This being held at Christ the King social club during February 2009.

If one of the rules to putting on a live gig is to try to grab the listeners attention immediately, then yes, Voodoo Kings certainly did that. They put a great shift in and were more than a worthy support band.

Dave West carries a rich and soulful voice. Add to that, and like a metronome, the upright bass is being constantly slapped with the drums supplying a kind of glue to it all.

‘Rollin’, the band’s latest tune, was also given an outing. And, of course, in true tradition, that Midnight Train hit the tracks.

Given today’s music scene, I think that Skiffle / Rockabilly is a tough genre to define. 1920s country music and bluegrass revived during the 1950s. Hank Williams and Americana along with days long gone by all spring to mind. But when it was king, skiffle laid the foundations for much of what was to come. And, clearly, it continues to influence today.

After their set I bought a copy of Voodoo Kings excellent CD ‘Systems Green’. Yes, I know, it is around five years old now, having been released during 2013, but hands up, it had escaped me.

Part of this albums charm, and throughout it all, is that there is a rough growly edge to it. There is also a constant energy and tempo. It contains 12 original tunes and, as one tune suggests, it has a rock ‘n’ roll heart.

The album is filled with melodies and rhythms intended on getting you up there dancing, or at the very least, stomping your feet. An amazing energy is contained within this recording.

The future is bright the future is green.

“An iconic band playing iconic music in an iconic venue.” Not my words, but those repeated by many of the folk who were among the 8000 attendees that turned out at the old cathedral where The Specials recently held court.

Now that they have passed into history this series of four sold out dates will, without doubt, enter city folklore. It was an inspired choice to hold these gigs in the ruins.

The old cathedral is a place of peace and reconciliation. And, 40 years ago, The Specials began a campaign that united people in a way few others have. They were at the forefront of the fight against racism and fairness. And that mission is as valid today as it was then. As such, it made absolute sense to hold the gigs there.

Guitarist Lynval Golding mentioned that there was no better place within the city to celebrate their 40th anniversary. And it is true. The Specials could easily have taken the easy option of one night at the Ricoh Arena, for example, if the intention was to just attract a big audience. Glowing with pride Lynval also mentioned that the look, feel and vibe of the old cathedral was just so incredible.

But the comment that resonated the most with me was that made by bass player Horace Panter. He pointed out correctly that, nowadays, so many things are very different since 1979. But in some ways, things are still very much the same. And with that in mind this band are still relevant.

Their most recent release, ‘Encore’, although not created from out and out pent up anger and passion, still carries many messages and themes. Particularly those surrounding issues we face today such as the politically divided country we find ourselves in along with a glimpse into private personal issues.

Vocalist Terry Hall concedes that technology has surpassed us and that, in a way, we have lost control. We are now led by goats he quips. In that respect ‘Encore’ can be viewed as a gentle reminder that maybe we need to take stock and reboot ourselves.

2019 has been a very good year indeed for The Specials. Up until the start of the Ruins gigs they had so far completed, more than 70 dates all over the place, with almost all of them being sold out. And, to top it all, they had a number 1 record which had since, more recently, gone silver.

As for the gig. Similar, to 40 years ago, it was still high energy and frenetic. I have to say that the band, although very different, were high energy. The stage was a snapshot of protest. Placards adorned it highlighting some of the issues addressed in the ‘Encore’ album. And the set contained tunes like ‘Embarrassed by You’, ‘Vote for Me’ and ‘BLM’. But the evening wasn’t swamped by ‘Encore’.

This was indeed a celebration. And we were also treated to a nostalgia trip by way of ‘Gangsters’, ‘Rat Race’, ‘Man at C&A’, ‘Friday Night, Saturday Morning’, ‘Ghost Town’, ‘You’re Wondering Now’ and many others.

The gig was a resounding success. An overjoyed audience was evidence of this. Even as the ruins emptied out this unique atmosphere seemed to flow out with it. Memories made from nights like this are priceless and ingrained within you for life.

Terry Hall’s final words were typically barbed. He mentioned how, in Los Angeles, May 29 had been decreed as The Specials day. ‘What does Coventry City Council give us?’ – he questioned. ‘Fucking Argos vouchers’.

Pink Floyd had looked all but finished after Roger Waters had left them during 1985. However, less than a year later, the remaining 2 members, David Gilmour and Nick Mason, had reconvened along with the previously sacked keyboard player Richard Wright. This then sparked a court case over the band name with Waters claiming that Pink Floyd were ‘a spent force creatively’.

David Gilmour responded by saying that ‘the strength of Pink Floyd lay in the talents of all four members. Naturally, we will miss Roger’s artistic input. However, we will continue to work together as in the past. We are surprised at recent claims that Roger believes the band to be, ‘a spent force, creatively’, as he had had no-involvement with the current project. The three of us are very excited by the new material and would prefer to be judged by the public on the strength of the forthcoming Pink Floyd album’.

And with that, during 1986, Pink Floyd went back into the studio to begin work on what would an album titled ‘A Momentary Lapse of Reason’. ‘The last time we made a record it was during a pretty awful time. The Wall was more of a static show but now, they wanted to take ‘A Momentary Lapse of Reason’ out onto the road’, Said David Gilmour at the time.

Asked, at the time if he and Roger Waters were talking, David Gilmour responded that they were ‘not at all friendly at that moment’ and how it was ‘hard to stay friendly when someone who is trying to completely fuck you up’.

The court proceedings had even spilled into the rights to famous stage effects. And this was hampering tour preparations. The inflatable pig, for example, was fought over until it was discovered that the original order for the porker had been for a sow. So, to get around that issue, the band ordered in their own version. It was a boar that had massive testicles fitted to it.

Gilmour and Mason also found it hard to raise the cash to fund the tour. So, they had to invest in it themselves. This involved the selling off, of various personal items.

However, by September 1987 off they embarked on the first of three tours that took them through to July 1989. They had completed just shy of 200 shows. The last but one of these being a televised extravaganza held on a floating pontoon in, a hundred metres or so off St Mark’s Square, in Venice.

Initially the show had due to have been staged on the square itself. But the fact that it clashed with a celebration called the Feast of the Redeemer, along with fears that vibrations from the PA could possible damage ancient architecture, meant that the gig had to be moved.

All in all, the show became quite a scandal in Italy with demands for resignations at the local council. But that didn’t deter an estimated audience of up to 150,000 locals turning up along with the estimated 100 million that watched the spectacle on TV from 20 or so different countries.

David Gilmour remembers it all as follows: ‘The Venice show was great fun, but it was very tense and nerve-wracking. We had a specific length of show to do. The satellite broadcasting meant we had to get it absolutely precise. We had the list of songs, and we’d shortened them, which we’d never done before. I had a big clock with a red digital read-out on the floor in front of me, and, had the start time of each number on a piece of paper. If we were coming near the start time of the next number, I just had to wrap up the one we were on. We had a really good time, but the city authorities who had agreed to provide the services of security, toilets, food, completely reneged on everything they were supposed to do, and then tried to blame all the subsequent problems on us’.