Barclay James Harvest

1 Barclay James Harvest: The Fandom of a Progressive Rock Band I certify that this dissertation is entirely my own work and no part of it has been submitted for a degree or other qualification in this or another institution. I also certify that I have not collected data nor shared data with another candidate at Exeter University or elsewhere without specific authorization. _________________________ _________________________ Sarah Warren 27th March 2015 620007154 Word Count: 9,902 2 Contents List of Figures: 3 Abstract: 4 Acknowledgements: 5 Introduction & Methodology: 6 Literature Review: 9 Chapter 1: Changes in the Fandom over Time 12 Chapter 2: Gender Imbalance 20 Chapter 3: Fan Objects and Behaviour 23 Conclusions: 25 References: 35 3 List of Figures Figure Description Page Front cover John Lees’ Barclay James Harvest 1 and fans at Metropolis Studios 2.1 Barclay James Harvest 1974, 22 Promotional photo for the release of ‘Everyone is Everybody Else’ 2.2 Barclay James Harvest 1981, 23 Promotional photo for the release of ‘Turn of the Tide’ 3.1 Photograph of Ian Alexander’s ticket 26 display 3.2 Photograph of Rob Price’s framed 29 tour programmes 4 Abstract Fandom is hugely underrepresented in geographical literature and this dissertation aims to begin filling that gap with a focus on fans of music; one of the least studied cohorts in existing fan studies. The case study for this research is that of the fans of a relatively obscure progressive rock band; Barclay James Harvest. Through a combination of interviews, questionnaires and participant observation this study examines changes that have occurred in the fandom over time. Further discussed is the difference that gender can make to the way in which a fan experiences the band and the important role that memorabilia plays in the fan community. The outcomes of the research demonstrate that the fandom is particularly sensitive to change and, to a large extent, based on personal meaning and memory. Age and gender are shown to be key to the involvement and attachment placed upon the band by fans, and demonstrated is the possibility to categorise fans based upon their relationship to fan objects. Evidence suggests that music fans present a very diverse subject of study and one from which a greater understanding of fandom can be gained. 5 Acknowledgements My grateful thanks go to everyone who has helped me in the process of this dissertation in any way. I would particularly like to thank the following for their contributions: Jill Wolstenholme and Keith and Monika Domone for their help and valuable insights and experiences as fan club leaders past and present, Catherine Leyshon for moral and academic support during the dark days, Tony Johnson for his invaluable knowledge and advice, Rob Price and Ian Alexander for discussing their collecting habits at length and allowing me the use of their photographs. To Jeremy Smith, Craig Fletcher, Kevin Whitehead and John Lees of JLBJH for their time and for humouring me for the last nine years, my dad for buying me my first BJH album and my mum for taking me hundreds of miles to concerts in all weathers. To the forty or so fans who completed my questionnaire or answered my questions on the forum and to Myke Lessiter for valued support and putting up with my obsessive fan behaviour on a daily basis without complaint. And of course to the original Barclay James Harvest line up, John Lees, Woolly Wolstenholme RIP, Melvyn Pritchard RIP and Les Holroyd; without whom there would have been nothing to study. 6 Introduction The study of fandom belongs predominantly to the realms of sociology and cultural studies, with the majority of research taking place within the fan communities of gaming, television or film. Surprisingly little work has taken place on the topic of music fans and so this dissertation seeks to begin filling the void of music fandom in geographical literature. I will employ a variety of sources including: fan club publications, interviews with fans and the band themselves, responses from a detailed questionnaire distributed to the fans via social media, observations at a live performance and in the online fan community. This study aims to investigate what it means to be a fan of Barclay James Harvest, a progressive rock band that has existed in some guise for almost half a century. Particular emphasis will be placed on areas that have been identified as significant to the fandom, such as the variety of behaviour surrounding objects of memorabilia and the differing role that gender plays in the way in which the fandom is experienced. I shall also attempt to look at the evolution of fandom over time, rather than discussing a snapshot view of how a fandom was at a set point in time or simply at the time of writing, as is almost universally the trend in existing literature. The overall aim of this research is to explore the key characteristics of the fandom of Barclay James Harvest and to investigate three key areas: How the fandom has evolved throughout the band’s history, how gender affects fans’ behaviour in the fandom and the ways in which fans interact with objects of memorabilia. A basic background on Barclay James Harvest and key people discussed in this dissertation: Barclay James Harvest (BJH) was formed in Oldham, Lancashire in late 1966 by John Lees (b.1947 - guitar and vocals), Stuart “Woolly” Wolstenholme (b. 1947 - keyboards, mellotron and vocals), Mel Pritchard (b.1948 - drums) and Les Holroyd (b. 1948 - bass guitar and vocals). This line up remained the same for the first nine studio albums before the departure of Woolly in 1979, after which BJH continued as a trio with an increasingly different and more 7 ‘commercial’ 1980s image and sound. This trio existed with the addition of several guest musicians, especially when touring, until they took a sabbatical from band activities in 1998. The trio never re-formed and instead split into two bands – John Lees’ Barclay James Harvest (JLBJH) which saw the return of Woolly, and Les and Mel formed Barclay James Harvest Featuring Les Holroyd (BJHFLH). Tragically, Mel passed away from a heart attack in January 2004 and Woolly, after a lengthy battle with depression, took his own life in December 2010 (Domone & Domone, 2013). The current line up of JLBJH comprises John Lees, Craig Fletcher (bass and vocals), Kev Whitehead (drums) and Jez Smith (keyboards and backing vocals). The original BJH fan club, entitled Friends of Barclay James Harvest (FOBJH) was founded in 1977 and run by Jill Wolstenholme; fan and then wife of Woolly. The club was taken over by Chrissie McCall, an employee of agents ‘Kennedy Street’ following Woolly’s departure from the band after which Jill stepped down. FOBJH continued until 1988 when it was replaced by the International Barclay James Harvest Fan Club (IBJHFC) run by Keith Domone and later his wife Monika. Both Keith and Monika have been fans since their teenage years and have seen various guises of BJH live several hundred times between them and, whilst the fan club no longer officially exists, they remain the figureheads of the fan community both on and offline today. Methods: In order to research the fandom over the past five decades, I have spoken to Keith and Monika Domone, Jill Wolstenholme and several fans via the fan forum, Facebook and personal email. I conducted an interview with the current line-up of JLBJH on 12/10/14 in Taunton and asked about their experiences with fans past and present. The fan club newsletters and fanzines formed the basis for observation of fan behaviour in the past, whilst participant observation via the band’s and fans’ social media platforms as well as audience participation at a live concert provided the comparable material. I undertook further observation through fan produced media such as two fan-published books – “The Barclay James Harvest Story” by Keith and Monika Domone and “The Fifties Child: The Songs of Barclay James Harvest” by Alex Torres – fan artwork 8 and song covers. I also produced a questionnaire for fans and shared it via social media covering a variety of topics about their feelings about BJH and their behaviour with regard to live performances, recorded material, fan interaction, memorabilia collection and memory. 9 Literature Review Fandom itself began to receive a moderate amount of attention in the academic world from the late 1980s onwards, with the peak in the volume of literature being produced occurring in the late 1990s and early 2000s. A resurgence in interest in fan studies appears to have been underway since 2009, encouraged by the appearance of an updated version of Jenkins’ much-cited text, ‘Textual Poachers’ (2012) which has paved the way for research in the field since its original publication date in 1992. Key to the intrigue behind fan studies appears to be the stereotypes with which they are almost invariably labelled. The word ‘fan’ is derived from the Latin fanaticus, meaning insane or mad (Wilcox & Cochran, 2008) which is not too far removed from how over-enthusiastic fans are seen in everyday society today (Duffett, 2013a).One such stereotypical trait of fans is that of an obsession whereby every single aspect of one’s life appears to be affected by the fan subject (Longhurst et al, 2007), as though the fan cannot think outside the realms of their particular area of interest (Jones, 2000). The ability to reel-off episode numbers, facts and recount events in the most minute of detail is also key to the widely accepted idea of a member of a fandom (Harris & Alexander, 1998).

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