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Home , Acid jazz, Alex Ligertwood, Brian Auger, Julie Driscoll, Steampacket, Streetnoise

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Brian Auger The Flamingo. Oblivion Express. Acid . . Words Andy Thomas Portrait Tim Hans Photographs courtesy of

In the late 1980s the British Fantastics!, Boraman now runs prepares to bring Oblivion Express Hammond organ maestro Brian Auger Freestyle Records. Since its birth to Europe for a series of gigs in the became the ‘Godfather of Acid Jazz’ for in 2003, the label has been autumn, we catch up with him at a new generation of modernists inspired spearheading the new wave of deep his home in LA. by the past. His late 1960s and early , soul, Latin and jazz, and can 1970s albums with his bands Brian be seen as the natural successor to You were born in London in 1939. Auger & the Trinity (including his LPs Acid Jazz. And it has now released Where were you brought up? with singer ) and Oblivion the first serious Brian Auger anthology I lived in Latimer Road in north Express spawned club tracks such as to celebrate the many sides of his Kensington until 1944, just before ‘Indian Rope Man’ and ‘Whenever 50 years in music. Alongside those my fifth birthday, when we were You’re Ready’. “Oblivion Express were pivotal Hammond recordings from bombed out. A V-1 bomb dropped the band that invented the acid jazz the and fusion years, Back to the on a row of houses behind ours. My sound, that uniquely British movement Beginning also shines a light on his mum heard this thing and threw that came to prominence some 25 years lesser-known jazz trio recordings from me under the table in the living room, after this album was recorded,” wrote the early 1960s, as well as those from and the whole place came down around Eddie Piller, founder of the Acid Jazz the mod band Steampacket us. Fortunately for us, although the record label, in the sleeve notes to the (featuring , Long John house was totally destroyed, we were reissue of the 1973 LP Closer To It!. Baldry and Julie Driscoll). all unscathed. First becoming aware of the Hammond The second part of this revival player through Auger’s mod arrives later in the year, in the form Was it a musical household? connections in 1960s , Piller called of a live LP with Oblivion Express, Yes, there was music in the house all him “a real musical hero who helped featuring Auger’s son Karma on drums the time – my mum and dad really liked establish the Hammond organ as the and original singer . light operatic stuff. My dad was a very weapon of choice for a whole host The session was recorded in 2013 in Victorian guy and he had a player of players”. LA, where Auger has lived since the [self-playing piano] and a whole Greg Boraman (ex A&R man 1980s. And nearly half a century since cupboard of these piano rolls – an at Acid Jazz) was one of those he first picked up the Hammond B3 amazing collection, with all the operas, Hammond players to have been after hearing ’s Back at the some overtures and lots of , influenced by Auger. As well as playing Chicken Shack LP, Brian Auger sounds which I loved. From the age of about for the Soul Destroyers and the as fiery and funky as ever. As he three, I was totally in love with this >

171 MUSIC | Brian Auger

rent a bus and go with all their friends at pubs and clubs doing all the Jazz When did you first play it? think it was three or four chords and down to Southend to see the Messengers stuff. The people at the Flamingo decided that was about it. But when I actually illuminations. But it was really a good There was this club in Southall to lease the weekends to a couple of got into playing the real blues with excuse for all the guys to go on a pub called the Octave, and the Green Man guys called Rik and Johnny Gunnell. people like Clapton and Jeff Beck, I saw crawl. And they would take me along to in south London – all over the place in These guys started putting on bands things differently. This wasn’t the place play the piano and pass the hat around fact. This was a quintet with vibes, alto, like & the Blue Flames, to unleash every lick you know – it’s for me – so that was pretty amazing. piano, bass and drums, called the Dave ’s Big Roll Band, The a feel and if you don’t play the feel Morse Quintet. Playing that material Chessmen, Graham Bond and Chris right, it doesn’t work. So it taught me Were there any particular radio sorted out a lot of harmony for me. Farlowe. So it was tons of these R&B a big lesson and I began to look at all stations where you heard all the jazz? bands. I got a call one day from Rik and the amazing creative bands that were My brother had this huge radio – And you also had a trio that played he says, “Brian, you got to help me out, coming out and I quickly got over I think it was a Ferguson. It had the clubs of Soho. Georgie went down to Cornwall over my jazz snobbism. a big knob that you could turn to The original trio, which the weekend and fell asleep on the catch all the different stations. And I named the Brian Auger Trinity, was beach and he’s got sunburn. He had And this led to you joining the he gave me this when I was about 10. myself, Rick Laird on upright bass, and to be taken to hospital.” Steampacket? So I rigged up an antenna and hung it Phil Kinorra on drums. We played with So Rik told me to be at the Roaring Yes that was 1965 with Long John out of my bedroom window. I used to most of the guys on the scene – so Twenties in Soho at 8pm. When I got Baldry, an unknown Rod Stewart and wait until my parents had gone to sleep Tubby Hayes, Ronnie Scott, and then there and the guys were putting Julie Driscoll, with Micky Waller, Ricky and I’d be dialling around. Then all of at the Flamingo with all sorts of people. everything together, I said, “There’s Brown and . We ran that a sudden I heard this voice say, “This is They would call me and say they no piano, where’s the piano?” And they band for two years and we were the American Forces Radio in Germany wanted a piano trio to open for said, “That’s Georgie’s organ over there, covering so much material, including – we present Jazz Hour.” And the Stan someone or other. you’re playing that.” I looked at the Jimmy Smith and my own Kenton Orchestra came and on and Hammond with all these switches, compositions. Julie would sing some blew me away. And I used to bombard How was it playing at Soho clubs such knobs and dials and thought, don’t Tamla or , Rod my local record shop WG Stores in as Ronnie Scott’s and the Flamingo? would come on and do Chicago blues, Shepherd’s Bush Market and ask them Soho was incredible back then. And to and then John would do some gospel if they had this stuff. I actually asked actually play there was amazing because stuff. It was really a great success, and them for two years for Oscar Peterson’s it was like, wow, I’m playing in the ‘WHAT KIND if it wasn’t for the fact that we all had ‘Tenderly’ and they eventually found West End. But the Flamingo was different managers arguing for two JulIe Driscoll and Brian Auger, Brussels, 1968 a 78 for me. particularly special. OF DEVIL years, we might have gone in a whole other direction. But it broke up sadly. thing and learned how to put the piano When I got back they moved us to When did you get a band together? The Flamingo became known as one MUSIC IS roll in. It was driven by air and there Shepherd’s Bush. We had been away I got a scholarship to go to a grammar of the hubs of the mod scene. When THAT? IT’S The Steampacket were known as was a pair of pedals and I used to be for more than two years and it was very school. The first thing I spotted was did you become aware of the scene and a mod band, right? able to stand on the pedals, hang on strange for me. I knew my dad was this piano on the stage. It was how connected did you feel to it? CALLED Well yes, but towards the end the the underneath of the keyboard and my dad but I was so young I wasn’t sure a beautiful Bechstein piano and it In the beginning it wasn’t known as whole thing changed from Ivy League pedal away. I was just totally fascinated about the rest of it. But I went into sounded incredible. I was itching to mod or anything, but I was really into to the Chelsea Antiques Market look. – and that was it for me. the front room and there was the piano. get my hands on it but couldn’t figure the Ivy League look of the hip jazz All the old secondhand stuff became So all of a sudden I was like, yeah I’m how to do that. But then I waited players from New York. There was one WOOGIE SIR’ really popular. You had an older brother who had home. And then I would listen to more one day until everyone had gone home place in Shaftesbury Avenue – Cecil a big jazz collection. of the jazz records my brother had got. and I leapt onto the stage and started Gee – and they would import these That was very much the look of the First of all my two older sisters were I was about seven now. playing ‘Cross Hands Boogie’ by clothes. Or we could get a suit made panic, just try and make it sound as later period of the Trinity. What was totally in love with Nat King Cole Winifred Atwell. It sounded absolutely that would copy that. So these were close to Jimmy Smith as you can. So the thinking behind the new band? and Frank Sinatra. But yes, my eldest When did you start mimicking the amazing on this piano but around the the clothes I used to play in. that’s what I did. I remember coming Because I’d been playing across this brother had the most influence on me jazz you were hearing? corner came my headmaster. He was off the stage dripping in sweat, and one huge spectrum of music, I had a good because he had a collection of American It was one of those things that dawned this really old guy from the Empire and Obviously the Hammond organ of the regular guys came up and said, that I wanted my own band to jazz records. So I was listening to Duke on me when I would be wandering he had this insane voice that started changed everything for you. When did “I didn’t know you played organ Brian, reflect all these different feels. I knew Ellington, Count Basie, Louis around whistling to myself. After in a falsetto and came down. So he said, you first hear Jimmy Smith? how long you been playing organ?” what I wanted and that was a funk Armstrong, Lionel Hampton, Benny a while I realised I was whistling over “What kind of devil music is that?” I I was wandering past my local record And I said, “Well, about 45 minutes.” rhythm section, overlaid by what Goodman, and all these people. So that a 12-bar blues. At the time a replied, “It is called boogie woogie sir.” shop one day and I heard this sound. So that was my introduction to the I was doing with jazz, and then was the whole mix of stuff I grew up was an absolute non-profession, so Anyway the school would have And I thought, oh my god what is that? Hammond. And then I bought my own a guitar player who could do both around until we were bombed out. Then there was no effort to send me to piano a Friday solo given by a violin player The only other organ I heard was the Hammond B3 and that changed the jazz and rock. These were difficult I was evacuated away with my sister lessons or anything like that. I was just or something and amazingly he invited theatre one up in Blackpool Tower, and whole direction of everything for me. people to find at the time. I guess for two years to Batley [in Yorkshire]. left on my own. I picked things up off me to play. So I let forth with ‘Cross in the break at the movies when this big I wanted a drummer like Bernard Fortunately for me, the household had the radio and started to get it all Hands Boogie’ and instead of the usual Wurlitzer would come up and play ‘The So it was through the organ that you Purdie and a bass player like James a proper piano. I learned to play ‘In the together by ear. And then I heard some shuffling around there was like Dam Busters March’ or something. The really connected with the R&B and Jamerson, if I could find them, and Mood’ by Glenn Miller and they would boogie-woogie on the radio. Winifred a football roar at the end of it. And sounds of these organs were so foreign rock scene? a singer with a lot of soul. And that invite the neighbours in and I would Atwell was one of the great boogie- so I got to play regularly on Fridays. to playing jazz. So when I first heard There was so much jamming going on turned out to be Julie Driscoll. go through my party piece. woogie players and so I started to play Then I started to hear all the Blue Note Jimmy Smith I really couldn’t figure out in the 1960s that I completely changed boogie-woogie whenever I got near and in particular the of Art what this was. When I discovered that my outlook. I was originally one of How did you come across Julie? What was it like when you moved back a piano. People used to love that stuff Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. And I got it was a Hammond organ he was those jazz snobs who looked down on We had the same manager and I was to London? at parties. At the time everyone would myself into a band and we played playing I went, oh my goodness. the burgeoning rock society. I used to called in to do some sessions with her. >

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the strings and just experimenting. You it was something else and such a unique couldn’t buy this kind of equipment, but voice. I thought, where has this guy the British are really good at coming up come from? So then we became friends with something out of the shed at the and he’d come down to where we bottom of the garden. And our engineer playing, so maybe Blaises and the Bag Eddy Offord was only 18, but he made O’Nails, and would sit in with us. And this great big shoebox-sized thing with we would hang out at Zoot Money’s a great big knob on the front of the house at Barons Court and we’d listen needle. He said, listen to this. And to all the new records all night. It was played the phaser on the strings and like a meeting of everyone. turned the knob and I went, oh my god – keep that in. So there were all these Did Jimi influence you? things popping up not only with I liked the things he did because he fashion and bands, but also all the exposed me to the really exciting things studio guys who were helping us you can do with an instrument. But achieve what we were looking for. my soloing really came from all the saxophone players that I had listened to. When did you first go to America? So it was the hard bop blues-edged sax We first went out with the Trinity thing. Of the pianists, Oscar Peterson and Julie in 1969 and did a tour there. was an influence as well as Victor It went quite well considering the band Feldman, who was a fantastic player. was falling to pieces at that time. But when it came to the Hammond, The reason was the management really that really needed a different technique. drove Julie too hard. It caused terrible If you play it like a piano, that is what it repercussions. But the tour had some will sound like. So it was like travelling great moments – at the Fillmore East backwards in some way, because I had we got two encores. The only person to give up some of my technique in to have got two encores before was certain areas to make the instrument my good buddy . speak the way I wanted it to.

Can you tell me how Hendrix came How did Oblivion Express come Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express, London, 1971 to play with the band in London? about? Brian Auger Trinity, London, circa 1963 Photograph Lewis Morley I got a phone call one night in 1966 With the Trinity, we had all this And when I heard her I just thought, Where did the psychedelic influence and it was from the success that bordered into the pop that people were having these big I first played with him in 1990 in wow. And when I talked to her about come from? Animals and his manager. Just prior to thing. Julie was being chased by the parties and imbibing certain substances a band with . He was the singers and bands she liked It all came around Haight-Ashbury this I had put the Trinity together and paparazzi, which was OK for about and having a great time dancing to my hired as a roadie but meanwhile he I thought, here’s a find. So when time in San Francisco and the I knew exactly where I wanted to go six months and then it got really too music. And they were calling it acid was playing drums. There were always I heard she was interested in joining and Woodstock, with it. Anyway they said they’d much. So I thought, to hell with it, jazz. Then some of these bands who board tapes of the concerts we did. the Trinity I was really happy. And it brought this guy over from America I’m going to form a new band and were playing at these parties were And he would take them away and go then took off right away. After the Open who was a fantastic guitar player and I want to press on with this idea of saying, “Brian Auger – he is the into his room and play to them. One album it really moved up a gear, they wanted him to front the band. rock, jazz, classical and everything. ‘Godfather of Acid Jazz’.” And this afternoon Eric came around and Karma particularly in Europe. And we ended ‘THE ONLY What was I supposed to do, I had Julie I had all this energy to push forward kind of carried on. Then, when I found was upstairs playing drums. And Eric up headlining the Berlin Jazz Festival, and the whole band together and they so I got the first Oblivion Express out there was a label called Acid Jazz, I said, “Who the hell is that?” I told him the purest of all the jazz festivals. OTHER were offering me this guitar player together. I had Barry Dean on bass, finally met up with Eddie Piller and he it was Karma. Three days before we I had never heard before. I told them Robbie McIntosh on drums, Jim said, “Don’t you realise the template for were about to go, the drummer quit. What was that like? ORGAN I I wasn’t interested. I suggested they Mullen on guitar, and Alex Ligertwood Acid Jazz was the Closer To It! album?” So I suggested we bring in Karma. And That was amazing really. It was like the bring him down to the Cromwellian on vocals. The idea was to roll on and And I went to some of these parties and that was it, he’s been playing drums boundaries breaking down right in front HEARD WAS on Friday. That was a late club where push the envelope forward, but the they were playing stuff off the Trinity with me ever since. Karma has not only of you. I remember looking down into THE THEATRE all the bands would play. record company didn’t want that at album like ‘Indian Rope become a phenomenal drummer that the audience at the Philharmonic Hall I knew that anyone who’s anyone all. They wanted me to keep doing Man’ and ‘Listen Here’, the Eddie everyone loves, he’s also become a and there were all these kids there. So ONE UP IN would be there and said he could sit in the same winning formula we had with Harris number from the Befour album, tremendous producer and engineer. it cut across everything. I did wonder with the band. So the time came and the Trinity. So I thought maybe I’m and everyone was boogying away to it. He helps me a great deal, and I think at how it would go though. Because I had BLACKPOOL at the break they brought Jimi up and pushing against the commercial tide this particular stage in my life, if Karma lime green crushed velvet trousers on introduced me. He played this sequence here and maybe I’m going to oblivion – How did you feel when you heard it wasn’t around I don’t think I’d have and all this stuff from Chelsea Antiques TOWER’ of chords to me that turned out to be so to hell with it, I’ll call it the Oblivion connect with the new young audience? a band. It would all be too much. Market, and about 50 people in the ‘Hey Joe’. In the audience were Express. And the funny thing is, it’s Absolutely great. That is the whole crowd started to boo. I wasn’t having Clapton, Beck, , everyone was still called that after all these years. point in this, to bring the new A compilation album Back to the any of that so I told them, “Hey, maybe so we’d seen and heard all the stuff like there that night. Anyway he came on generations through. Beginning: The Brian Auger Anthology you don’t like what I wear, but until you that. When I recorded ‘This Wheel’s and he started to play. I did a double When did you find out Closer To It! is out in July hear what I play you have no right to On Fire’, for example, I tried to aim take because even though I really had become such a big influence on And the Oblivion Express that you are Brian Auger’s Oblivion Express: Live in Los Angeles is out in September boo.” Then there was loads of cheering the production to give it a kind of admired all the players, the acid jazz scene of the 1980s? about to bring to Europe now includes freestylerecords.co.uk and we did our set and people loved it. psychedelic sound – using a phaser on you could still hear the sources. In Jimi I was kind of shocked because I heard your son Karma on drums.

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