A FREE entry five band ‘punk’ spectacular took place at The Phoenix, High Wycombe on Saturday 10th March 2018.
The Blunders – Phoenix Bar flyer for 10th March 2018
To give you an idea of what to expect the following was posted before the gig – in no particular order and with descriptions as quoted from their respective websites/social media outputs – here’s a list of the bands:
The Blunders
“Hard hitting biting lyrics with a driving yet understated beat that lets you scream at the worlds faults while dancing ya arse off.”
They impressed at The Phoenix on their previous appearance in November 2017.
“3-piece indie post-punk explosion hailing from High Wycombe. Our message is audacious, bold, subversive, witty and is an exciting new branch to the post-punk alternative indie”
“Woking’s favourite rebel sons Carter Daze’s DIY approach mixes a punk ethos with rock ‘n’ roll storytelling to create a diverse sound that’s somewhere between ‘Blue Album’ Weezer and ‘Up The Bracket’ Libertines, with a socio-political twist. With a whole host of gigs coming up across Surrey and London this spring, their live show is always intense, chaotic and not to be missed!”
I was again honoured to be asked to guest on local radio station Wycombe Sound – this time by Andy Aliffe for his ‘Emperor’s Bits’ show broadcast on Wednesday 21st February 2018.
Andy, assisted by his friend Stevyn Colgan, launched the show earlier in 2018, with the website description claiming : ‘The Emperor’s Bits’ is an eclectic mix of music and chat and looks at the quirkier side of Wycombe history. It is not wrong!
The Emperor’s Bits – Wycombe Sound radio show featuring Andy Aliffe (right) and Stevyn Colgan (left).
I was extremely grateful to be called in to promote the wycombegigs.co.uk website and also give from some background to High Wycombe appearances by a few of the iconic artists featured to date – including The Rolling Stones, The Who, David Bowie and The Move.
It was also amazing to share the studio with fellow guest Barbara Arucci. Barbara attended The Rolling Stones gig at Wycombe Town Hall in December 1963 aged just 13 and was lucky enough, through a family connection, to be allowed backstage with members of the group. A photo of this meeting appeared in the Bucks Free Press and an original survives as a prize possession of Barbara until this day.
Backstage photo of The Rolling Stones taken at High Wycombe Town Hall – December 1963
Back in 1999, Barbara and her friends were invited to attend a re-launch of Wycombe Museum in Priory Road, where a blown –up version of the photo was proudly displayed.
The three girls featured in the 1963 back-stage picture with The Rolling Stones are re-united at a re-launch of Wycombe Museum in 1999 – picture from swop.org.uk
It was fantastic to hear from somebody who was actually at these great moments in the history of the town and her recollections of other music venues. Barbara also brought along another picture of The Rolling Stones, with a complete set of autographs on the rear – including the sadly departed Brian Jones.
Barbara in February 2018 with her treasured signed Rolling Stones picture.
An enjoyable hour or so in the company of Andy and Stevyn. Both gentlemen can boast an fascinating history of working in all manner of walks of life – Andy spent 20 years with the BBC, Stevyn spent 30 years working for the Police in Cornwall but has more recently worked as researcher on the QI TV show and also written several books. You can read more via the link at the foot of this page.
They warned me I might be invited back to track through memorable music moments from the 1970’s, 1980’s and beyond. So keep an eye and ear out for that and tune in for an hour of random fun.
You can use the ‘listen again’ feature on the Wycombe Sound website to hear the show again for up to a month after the original broadcast date.
Bracknell rockers Rage DC topped a five band event at The Phoenix bar in High Wycombe on Friday 9th February 2018. Entry was just £5 and was billed as ‘An evening of good old Punk Rock’n’Roll.’
Rage DC and plenty of support at The Phoenix on Friday 9th February 2018
Plenty of info on Rage DC via their Facebook group, including links to the supporting bands too.
Due on first at 7.30pm were The Useless Eaters – they are a punk covers band and are no strangers to High Wycombe having played several times at The Hobgoblin (since renamed back to The Three Tuns).
Read more about The Useless Eaters on their Facebook page.
The passing of The Fall frontman Mark E Smith on Wednesday 24th January 2018 cannot be left without comment on this website. If I don’t write something, I fear my mind will literally explode with all the thoughts and memories of the Fall in the preceeding 40 years.
Mark E Smith – 1957 to 2018. Some Fall memories. Main photo taken at HMV records Oxford Street, 1988, Photo pass from The Garage 2002. Fall badges. Paul Lewis
The Fall have played a huge part in my discovery of music and sadly (for me and many other Fall fans in the area), despite a live career spanning more than 40 years, The Fall never made a live appearance in High Wycombe – hence I offer them up as the greatest band NEVER to have performed in a town where so many other iconic names in the music industry have graced the likes of The Nag’s Head and Town Hall stages.
Firstly, I would like to pass on my sincere condolences to Mark’s family and friends. Plus, my heart goes out to the many Fall fanatics who will see Mark’s loss as potentially leaving a significant void in their lives.
In the days following Mark’s passing I have read numerous tributes and it is perhaps ironic (but not surprising to Fall fans), that he and The Fall will now gain wider recognition for their 40 years of constant output.
It was as recent as 12th January 2018 that I was able to ‘joke’ on Wycombe Sound’s Punkarolla radio show for suggesting a two hour Fall special. I was therefore grateful to host Andy Chalk for allowing me to indulge in The Fall on his show and on that particular occasion, send my best wishes to Mark, before playing the title track off the ‘New Facts Emerge’ album, released in the summer of 2017
Most Fall articles will pretty much write themselves. The check list/The Fall bingo, will read something like:
One constant name
X number of band members in Y number of years
Z number of albums
One of John Peel’s favourite bands, always different, etc
Girlfriends/Wives in the band
Punch-ups and knob twiddling on stage
So, bearing that in mind, I don’t intend to write a tribute as such. There are trained journalists who will be able to collate the necessary words and pictures and I’ll give some links at the foot of this article to a few of the many that I read in the first few days since Mark’s passing.
I discovered The Fall in 1978, via John Peel of course, (oops, one off the Bingo list) but despite keeping an eye out for local gigs involving the Manchester band, it wasn’t until the early 1980’s that I managed a trip to The Hammersmith Palais to witness them in person for the first time. I travelled up from the Wycombe area with my friend Martin. It was the first gig I drove to having passed by driving test a few days before.
For Fall fanatics (and I know there are plenty), they will appreciate this was their ‘Hex Enduction Hour’ period. However, I soon learnt that The Fall, unlike the majority of the other bands, didn’t ‘tour’ an album with a ‘standard’ set-list. They would also throw in unreleased songs – with many still a work in progress.
The Fall – my poster from gig at Hammersmith Palais – 25th March 1982
Fascinated by their Palais appearance, a month later I drove to some weird nightclub venue in Oxford – getting there around 7pm to give me more chance of getting in without a ticket but then had to wait for more than a hour before the doors opened and then until about 11pm before the band came on stage. The set at Oxford included at least three songs that were completely new to me. I particularly remember the mesmerising bass lines. I wanted to hear these songs again. I had to wait a few months before they were back in area for another gig (a marathon four or five bander Sunday night at The Lyceum) but needless to say the set-list had changed dramatically again and it was Monday morning before I got home.
The non-conformist set list, the random stage times and as I had now realised, an introduction at literally every gig by Mark E Smith during their opening number with his iconic slur – ‘Good Evening WE ARE THE FALL’, would become a trademark.
I was pretty much hooked from those first few gigs. All so different – The Palais gig seeing them able to sell out a major London venue and then a month later playing a dingy nightclub where you could, if you chose, stand as close to the stage as you dared. It is a quality to be proud of and one that lasted throughout their career.
So, how many time have I seen The Fall? A question that I’ve been asked a few times over the years and several times since we lost MES. I’ve actually lost count but from an old list I found while writing this article, the figure was well in excess of 50 by the mid 1990’s. Yet, even that figure would not get me into ‘Fall nutter’ category. Fall fans embraced the internet right from the early days and the lovingly created and maintained website http://thefall.org/ is a remarkable archive and ongoing discussion place for all things The Fall. Prior to this, the Fallnet mailing list proceeded all the Facebook and Twitter malarkey. It was still going strong at the time of this post, close to 25 years after it was first set-up.
So, back to my point about The Fall being the greatest band NEVER to have played High Wycombe. The nearest venues to High Wycombe The Fall played at were in Slough (birthplace of famous Wycombe promoter Ron Watts). The rather unassuming Slough Centre on the Farnham Road in the summer of 1986 was the first chance. I recall being quite disappointed with the set and crowd reaction but went to The Town and County Club in Kentish Town the next night and they played seven encores!
The Fall returned to Slough for a festival in July 1992 and it wasn’t until 1996 that they finally made it to Aylesbury to play the Civic Centre – the same venue as used by Friars but a venue, for whatever reason, they had never previously played.
Slightly further field from High Wycombe, Reading was a regular location for Fall gigs – ranging from various appearances in front of 1,000’s at Reading Festival, to gigs in front of a few hundred-people crammed in at venues such as The Alleycat and The Fez Club. It was during a 1998 gig at one of those latter venues that I witnessed the shear tenacity of MES to carry on regardless. Unfamiliar, at that stage, with what had gone on a few days earlier in the USA, the gig was played out with a completely unfamiliar line-up and when the songs fell apart, a guitar was handed around the front row to help out.
I have to confess, the chaos of that night, temporally put my fascination of The Fall on hold. I attended a few gigs in London in the next couple of years but like watching a football team I came away thinking that I didn’t really enjoy it that much but I’ll just go along to the next game and hope things got better.
It was after travelling to see Wycombe Wanderers play their final game of the 2001/2 season at Swindon that myself and a few friends decided that seeing The Fall could be a perfect antidote for seeing our team enter that ‘difficult period’. We arrived in London from Swindon by train and made our way to The Garage venue at Highbury Corner. Approaching the doors sometime around 7.30pm, it was obvious the gig was in high demand. The problem was we had no tickets and The Fall, by this stage, were not the band to attract the usual low life London ticket touts – although I would have appreciated them at this stage. I joked to the others that I had attended Fall gigs previously and the band had gone for drinks in a bar close to the venue. They might have spare tickets. We randomly selected a fairly awful pub/wine bar just across the road from the venue. It was relatively quiet – most gig punters were now in the venue. We ordered our drinks and then realised that Mark E Smith was sitting across the room with a non-band member. I can’t say I was star-stuck to say something but perhaps more shy or afraid of a negative reaction. A friend in our group, better known to us as ‘Oily Sailor’, was less shy. Being considerably younger, he was less of a Fall fan and wasn’t bothered what response he would get from MES. The next thing we know is that ‘Oily’ is having a conversation with MES, explaining that the two ‘old gits’ at the bar are massive Fall fans but don’t have tickets. Almost without hesitation, MES pulled out two photo passes for the gig and handed them over. It made the two ‘old gits’ very happy and I felt it only fair that I took a few photos of a gig that completely restored my loving of the band.
It was the beginning of another period of amazing creativity for The Fall and one where MES would eventually settle on a fairly stable line-up (by Fall standards) for his band. Fall fans will argue forever about what their favourite album or track is but from that period the ‘Fall Heads Roll’ long player is generally regarded as a classic. I never tire of seeing and hearing the version of ‘Blindness’ on Jools Holland in 2005 and wondering what on earth Mr Holland is thinking about the sound emanating from the keyboard.
The Fall may not have been everyone’s cup of tea and of course musical tastes are very much subjective. I once ‘treated’ my partner Jane (pregnant with our daughter) to a Fall performance at Cricklewood. For me it was right at a high point of The Fall’s musical output. I have to confess the sound that night was loud. The bass was thudding away so much it vibrated right through your stomach. Jane had to leave some of the gig because she said she ‘felt sick’. Her post-gig review was that it was, ‘just a noise’. Pretty accurate and perhaps a complement? I didn’t admit that I had seen other Fall gigs that had made me feel sick.
I recall MES describing Fall fans as ‘Salt of the Earth’ and it is Fall fans who will be best placed to attempt to explain the diverse range of output of the past 40 years. However, remember, if you are a non-Fall fan then don’t consider criticising The Fall – only Fall fans have that option. We will defend the band to the very end – and returning the football analogy, that’s exactly what we often do with the football team you support.
However, it always seems strange to me that The Fall sometimes were on the end of criticism from those that confessed to be lovers of ‘punk’ and other diverse musical genres. Perhaps it was the characteristic of Mark E Smith never to be drawn into the importance of style or image? MES and The Fall were very much anti-fashion. It is certainly a credit to MES that The Fall never became a lame tribute to themselves, playing ‘greatest hits’ set-lists or following the usual rock conventions. He performed, created and evolved constantly in the 40 plus years since he formed The Fall. The Fall influence has been and will be felt for years to come – for Fall fans we know that already, for others you have that to come.
Goodbye Mark. It was an absolute pleasure to have been a small part of witnessing The Fall journey.
Swindon based XTC released their debut album White Music on 20 January 1978. The Virgin record release came just over six months after they had made two appearances at The Nag’s Head. Their debut at the London Road venue came on 16 May 1977, with promoter Ron Watts bringing them back again on 6 June 1977.
White Music included classic pop singles ‘Radios in Motion’, ‘Statue of Liberty’ and ‘This is Pop’, plus their take on Bob Dylan’s ‘All Along the Watchtower’. The album, recorded at The Manor Studio in Oxfordshire, was put to tape at the time of their Nag’s Head appearances and produced by John Leckie.
The XTC line-up for White Music was Andy Partridge (guitar and vocals), Colin Moulding (bass and vocals), Barry Andrews (keyboards and piano) and Terry Chambers (drums). That line-up would record follow-up album Go 2 in October 1978 before a change of personnel saw Barry Andrews depart – eventually opting not to replace him with another keyboard player and instead bring in second guitarist Dave Gregory. XTC would go on to record the straight pop album Drums and Wires – recorded at Townhouse Studios in West London and produced by Steve Lilywhite after the band were apparently impressed with his work on Siouxsie and the Banshees debut The Scream. The second single from the album, ‘Making Plans for Nigel’, would become a Top 20 UK hit just a few weeks after a May 1979 appearance at High Wycombe Town Hall.
February 1967 saw the gig scene in High Wycombe continue with a string of dates at The Town Hall, plus what appears to be a new venture held at the Royal British Legion building close to the Town centre. These are brief details of gigs that I have traced and backed up by advertising evidence found in the Bucks Free Press. If you have any further details of these gigs or can add more dates, please get in touch.
February 1967 – gig adverts from the Bucks Free Press
Tuesday 7th February 1967 – Geno Washington – Town Hall
Geno Washington and The Ram Jam Band took to the stage of High Wycombe Town on Tuesday 7th February 1967 for a gig billed in the Bucks Free Press advert by the strapline: “We’ve given you The Small Faces, Spencer Davis and now we present the greatest act in the country!” At the time of this performance Geno Washington was aged 23 years old, having starting performing with The Ram Jam band in 1965. Washington was a former US airman based in East Anglia.
Admission was 7 shillings and 6 pence (37 ½ p) with DJ Don Jordan playing ‘Top Discs’.
This is Geno and his band performing on TV during the era of their Wycombe appearance
Saturday 11th February 1967 – Tom Jones – Town Hall
Thursday 16th February 1967 – Ginger Tom Set – The Stereo (Legion Rooms)
The Stereo was a club night held at The Royal British Legion building opposite Wycombe College. The Ginger Tom Set were described in the gig advert as ‘A Strange name but a really good group well worth seeing’. Admission was 4 shillings and 6 pence (22 ½ p). At the time of this post I’d found no further background on this band.
Saturday 18th February 1967 – Stacey’s Circle – Town Hall
Billed as a ‘POWERHOUSE OF SOUND’, 5 shillings (25p) would have gained you entry to this Saturday night gig featuring Stacey’s Circle supported by Coffee Set (from London’s Clubland).
Stacey’s Circle – photo as published in Ilford Recorder in 2010
My brief research suggests that Stacey’s Circle were a band from the Ilford area of London and consisted of George Stacey Taylor (vocals), John Campling (guitar), Dave Hawkins (bass) and Frank Edwards (drums). Guitarist John ‘Ducksy’ Reardon also states he was in an earlier version Stacey’s Circle through his autobiography ‘Birth to Reunion’ published in 2015.
Tuesday 21st February 1967 – The Who – Town Hall (CANCELLED)
This was intended to be the long awaited return of The Who to High Wycombe. 8 shillings (40p) was the asking price for entry to the regular Tuesday night slot – with DJ Rod Welling billed set to play ‘Top Discs’. Sadly the gig was cancelled, with organisers placing an advert in the following week’s Bucks Free Press stating: ‘We apologise for the non-appearance on Tuesday of “THE WHO” for reasons beyond our control. The group will appear at our next dance on MARCH 28th.’
DJ Rod Welling replaced Don Jordan, who had left High Wycombe for Nottingham. An article published in the Bucks Free Press during the Spring of 1967 explained the history behind Welling’s arrival on the DJ scene. Welling claimed that his first public performance with pop music was when neighbours called in the police because of the ‘racket’ from his record player. The then 20 year old hoped that the Tuesday evening DJ slot at the Town Hall would be the beginning of a ‘career on the pop world’.
Friday 24th February 1967 – Pink Sam and The Shakers – West Wycombe Village Hall
This gig was billed as ‘HANGOVERSVILLE ‘67’ in the small advert carried in the Bucks Free Press. A quick search on the internet at the time this article was published, reveals that well know High Wycombe musician Steve Darrington was a piano player with Pink Sam and The Shakers.
Admission was 5 shillings (25p).
Saturday 25th February 1967 – Growth – Town Hall
Midland based band Growth appeared at The Town Hall on Saturday 25th February 1967 with support from ;London, New Faces, Great Sound, Derek Savage Foundation. Admission was 5 shillings (25p). At the time of this post I’d not found any details of Growth but The Derek Savage Foundation released a single on CBS during 1967
Breakin’ Through – Derek Savage Foundation – 1967 single release
Less than two years after their infamous High Wycombe debut, The Sex Pistols took to the stage for what would be their last ever live appearance for the foreseeable future.
Their appearance at San Francisco’s, Winterland Ballroom on 14th January 1978 came at the end of an ill-fated debut mini tour of the USA. The Pistols line-up at the time was Johnny Rotten (vocals), Steve Jones (guitar), Paul Cook (drums) and Sid Vicious (bass). By the end of the evening, Rotten’s contempt for the situation was summed up by his farewell quote: “Ever get the feeling you’ve been cheated?”
Debut single Anarchy in the UK was released in November 1976, Bill Grundy wound them up on live TV in December 1976 and the rest is history (as they say). They have since become the most written about ‘punk’ band of all-time and the measure that all subsequent controversial bands have been judged.
Following the split-up, Johnny Rotten reverted back to his original name of John Lydon and later in 1978 formed Public Image Limited (PIL). Steve Jones and Paul Cook would form The Professionals, while Sid Vicious played one live concert as part of the Vicious White Kids (August 1978), before a heroin overdose in February 1979 would take his life. Original Pistols bassist Glen Matlock (replaced by Vicious in February 1977) had already formed The Rich Kids by the time of the Winterland gig and his new band would play High Wycombe on two occasions in 1978.
My old school friend Andy Chalk started the Punkarolla radio show on Wycombe Sound in November 2016 – and I was privileged and honoured to be invited as a guest on the very first show.
The show plays ‘Punk Rock’, old and new and has also been another means to celebrate the live music history of High Wycombe. The show includes regular studio guests, phone-ins and interviews pre-recorded on Andy’s travels around watching and listening to the punk rock scene.
By January 2018, the show had continued into a fifth series – broadcasting between 9pm and 11pm on Friday evenings. Andy invited me in again for the show broadcast on Friday 12th January 2018 where the featured album was ‘Can’t Stand The Rezillos’ and other music with Wycombe connections, including Generation X, Damned, New York Dolls, Wire, Adam and The Ants, Joy Division, TRB and Basta Roc. If you get a chance, please listen in and give Andy feedback through the links below.
It is possible to listen live in the High Wycombe area via 106.6 FM, via the internet and mobile app. Shows are also available to ‘Listen Again’ for four weeks via www.wycombesound.org.uk
The direct link to the Punkarolla ‘Listen Again’ page is:
Wire returned for a performance at The Nag’s Head on Friday 9th December 1977 for what is believed to be their first headline appearance at the High Wycombe venue. The London based band, formed in late 1976 as part of the original ‘punk’ scene, had supported The Jam at The Nag’s Head in May 1977.
Wire/Trash advert from the Bucks Free Press – December 1977 – note the alternative entertainment at Baileys in Watford – Drifters, Tony Christie and Marty Wilde – take your pick!
Formed in October 1976 by Colin Newman (vocals, guitar), Graham Lewis (bass, vocals), Bruce Gilbert (guitar), and Robert Gotobed, real name Robert Grey (drums).
Their influence has outweighed their relatively modest record sales. Robert Smith has described how, after seeing the group live, influenced The Cure’s sound after their first album. Wire and The Cure played a double header at Aylesbury Friars in early 1979.
A plagiarism case between Wire’s music publisher and Elastica, over the similarity between Wire’s 1977 song “Three Girl Rhumba” and Elastica’s 1995 hit “Connection“, resulted in an out-of-court settlement.
Their December 1977 date at The Nag’s Head came as part of a nationwide tour to help promote their latest single – Manequin/Feeling Called Love/12XU and debut album – Pink Flag. Dates on the tour also included two nights supporting The Tubes at Hammersmith Odeon (6th and 7th December 1977).
Aside a period of solo activities from 1981 to 1985 Newman, Lewis and Grey continued to perform together as Wire and in January 2017 they released a new album called Silver/Lead – their 16th studio album.
Support act, Trash, appear to be a band with members from Weybridge and Reading. The link below to the excellent boredteenagers website gives more background – including a mention of their gig in High Wycombe supporting Wire.
Having played The Nag’s Head less than two months previous, the Tom Robinson Band made a triumphant return for a Town Hall gig on Monday 28th November 1977. The Nag’s Head date had been at the start of their ‘TRB Delivers’ tour set up to promote their debut single, ‘2-4-6-8 Motorway’. The success of the single had thrown the band into the spotlight, with a Top of the Pops debut on Thursday 27th October 1977 and the single subsequently reaching the top 5 of the UK singles charts.
Tom Robinson’s promise to the audience of October 1977 gig at The Nag’s Head to return to the town was honoured with another Ron Watts promoted affair at The Town Hall. Tickets for the gig had been sold at the recently opened Scorpion Records.
Buckshee Press cuttings from TRB gig at Town Hall, November 1977 – many thanks to Martin63 for passing on his copy of the debut edition of the High Wycombe fanzine
A review of the gig was included in the debut edition of High Wycombe fanzine, ‘Buckshee Press’ where Peter Cottridge wrote: “[TRB’s] return [to High Wycombe] illustrates just how far [they] have come since playing The Nag’s Head. From local favourites to pop-stars in just eight weeks! A single in the top five, vast amounts of equipment back drops and young girls (?) hankering for autographs at the stage door. An inevitable process richly deserved by the Tom Robinson Band.”
The fanzine confirms the set list for the gig at The Town Hall was much the same as The Nag’s Head and included the following:
Long Hot Summer
Don’t Take No For An Answer
2-4-6-8 Motorway
Martin
Winter of ‘79
Better Decide Which Side You’re On
I’m All Right Jack
Right on Sister
Glad to Be Gay
Power in The Darkness
Up Against The Wall
Encores were, Bob Dylan’s ‘I Shall Be Released’ another play of ‘2-4-6-8’ and Lou Reed’s ‘Waiting For My Man’.
The whole gig was recorded by the Island Mobile and the track ‘Right on Sister’ was included as one of four tracks on the ‘Rising Free E.P.’, released in early February 1978 as a follow to ‘2-4-6-8’.
