Sunday 21 September 2008

Earl Palmer dies .....


Drummer Earl Palmer, who was described by rock 'n' roll pioneer Little Richard as "probably the greatest session drummer of all time" has died aged 84.
Palmer who played on Little Richard's hits including Tutti Frutti, died at his Los Angeles home after "a lengthy illness", his spokesman said. Other hits he drummed on include You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin' by The Righteous Brothers.
In 2000, he was inducted into the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He appeared on the records of artists as diverse as The Monkees, Elvis Costello, Frank Sinatra and Neil Young. Other records he performed on include Ike and Tina Turner's River Deep, Mountain High and I Hear You Knockin' by Smiley Lewis.
Ed Vodika, pianist in the Earl Palmer Trio - formed 10 years ago - said the drummer had "shaped American music for the '50s, '60s and '70s". "He worked with so many people in his career, you never knew who would be in the audience," he added. Palmer married four times and he is survived by seven children.

Wednesday 3 September 2008

Joe Meek Tapes to be Auctioned


Legendary music producer Joe Meek's private recording collection is to be auctioned off.
The thousands of tapes include unheard recordings of Tom Jones, Jimmy Page and David Bowie as singer and saxophone player with the Konrads.
The collection of over 5,000 recordings has been added to the It's More Than Rock And Roll sale to be held at London's Idea Generation Gallery on Thursday September 4. Their estimated value is £300,000.
Ted Owen, Managing Director of the Fame Bureau, said: "To describe Joe Meek as a rock and roll icon is an understatement - he was one of the most important figures in the industry for nearly two decades and these tapes provide a vicarious passage of the 1950s and 60s.
"Furthermore, custodian of the Joe Meek archive, Cliff Cooper has honoured the collection by keeping it intact all these years and cherished for British musical posterity."

Joe Meek became an icon of the recording industry with his experimental techniques in the 50s and 60s and was most famous for The Tornados' 1962 hit Telstar which won him an Ivor Novello Award.
Nick Moran is currently directing a film of Meek's life, called Telstar, starring himself and Kevin Spacey.


Sad news .......


... to report I'm afraid.


Two prominent musicians from our local groups of the Sixties passed away this week.


Les Coates was a former Lead Guitar with the Originells, and Dave Thornton was Lead Guitar with the Crusaders.


RIP lads you will be sorely missed by us all.