Incredible Sirin& Band
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INCREDIBLE SIRIN& BAND CONTENT·S No. 70 FEBRUARY 1969 SPECIAL ARTICLES Page EDITORIAL & ADVERTISEMENT OFFICES: 58 Parker Street, London, W.C.2. Telephone 01-242 1961 The Who 18 Publisher and Managing Editor: SEAN O'MAHONY Advertisement Director: CHARLES WOODS Frankfurt Spring Fair 24 Assistant Editor: RICK SANDERS Sound Recording Pt. 2 33 Features Ed itor: MIKE CLIFFORD Copyright© /966 by Beat Publications Ltd. All Rights reserved MONTH'S FEATURES Editorial John Dummer Blues Band 4 NCE upon a time, you could be a tremendous Groundhogs 6 group on stage, full houses at all your gigs, O Joe Cocker 12 and still come away with next to no money if your latest single wasn't in the omnipotent charts. Dave Davies 21 Although it's still true that a group's earnings Beatles 26 are affected by chart ratings, this is mainly con fined to the bands who aim for either a very Incredible String Band 30 young or all-round audience. Groups like Jethro Marmalade 35 Tull, the Chicken Shack, Nice and, until Albatross, the Fleetwood Mac, have been doing handsomely Peddlers 38 without chart-busting singles. Keef Hartley 42 What they do have is a reputation for putting on a really good act. This is what is meant by under ground-at least, as far as pop is concerned-a REGULAR FEATURES group who explore, experiment and play to their limits, rather than to some vague formula for Player of the Month- John Morshead 8 commerciality. The rewards come in the shape of heavy LP sales and a full date book. Peter Green Column 9 The audience for this type of music is largely The Tutor 9 made up of students, and since it is the colleges Stateside Report 10 who are prepared to spend the most for live appearances, isn't it a bit fatuous to insist that In The Studio 14 underground equals financial disaster? Chart Fax 17 In the US, the big groups there are the Doors, Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane and people of Instrumental News 28 similar quality. When you get singles by such as Your Queries Answered 34 these i~ the charts, you'd think that the powers in Britain would have woken up before. Songwriters' Column 36 After all, who ,vere the first underground The A & R Men-Gus Dudgeon 36 groups? The Who, the Animals, the Liverpool Profile-Judy Collins 39 groups, the Stones, the Yardbirds. So the answer for budding musicians would seem to be the same LP Reviews 40 as ever-play what you believe, and don't be Letters 41 fooled into thinking that success comes from playing down to the public. The Editor Printed by S. Tinsley & Co. Ltd., Churchill Industrial Estate, Lancing, Sussex. Distributors. Surridge, Dawson & Co. Ltd ., 136-142 New Kent Road, London, S.E.l. Telephone: ROD 5480 ■ Send this coupon to Rosetti · Adept · The House of Music ·138-140 Old Street · London E.CI I ■ .and you' ll get full details of ■ all the great Hagstrom guitars I Name .............. ............................................... .... .............. ........... .................................. .. •■ Address ... .. ........ ................................ ......................... ........... .............. ........... ... .......... ■ .................. ...................... .... ...................... .................. ........... .... ....... .... .................. .. 8././2 I■ ··············- 3 johndummer blues band album which was the most important thing for us." The single sold very well, and the album, just released, has created a tremendous amount of interest, with people remembering John's band as one of the first playing real blues in this country. ''We had various people working with us on this LP," said John, "including Steve Miller, Keith Tillman and Jo-Ann Kelly, .Dave's sister. It was really like a monster jam." european witchcraft The albun1 is called Cabal, a title dreamed up by John after reading books on European witchcraft and devil-worshipping. "I really became quite involved in it. That and Rupert books, which are very devilish." Plans for the band to be photographed in red jumpers, with checked scarves and tartan trousers for the album cover, were shelved for, in comparison, a normal picture of them in garish cloaks and other witch-like adornments, which in fact caused enormous printing Thumper 1homson, Dave Kelly, Putty and John Dummer problems. The first Dummer curse? In reality, the band had this first JUST over two years ago, John time they played there, John's band -important step interrupted, when Tony Dummer and some friends got started getting a large audience, and had an offer to front his own band. together at the Blue Horizon club in his policy of inviting any musician to John saw many problems. "We didn't Battersea to play country blues stand in and do a set, produced some have a guitarist, and I don't thjnk thinking, perhaps, that there was un of the most exciting and uninhibited there are too many good ones around. likely to be a further escalation period country blues this country had heard. A few people were suggested, but it was for the blues, after the mid-sixties R and John's band then included Dave, Dave who again found the answer. B boom. For John, it was merely an John O'Leary on harp, and Ian He'd seen this band from Bristol called extension of his hobby. "We were "Thumper" Thomson on bass, but this Deep, and reckoned the lead guitarist playing semi-blues things," he ex was just a foundation, as most of the was pretty fantastic. His name is Putty plained. "It was just a simple, basic leading blues musicians stood in at one nothing else-and we offered him the band, which we started because of the time or another. job. He accepted, and has been with us interest the music held for us. As the band progressed, they saw for about four months now. Now "We were just playing at this club, the need for another permanent guitar we're recording another album with mostly for our own amusement, but it ist, to compliment Dave's bottle-neck our present line-up- Dave, Putty, gradually became more important. I style. It was Dave in fact, who suggested Thumper and me. " don't really know what happened, but Tony McPhee, a guitarist gaining a lot What John is hoping from his band it seemed to be something we should be of respect since his sessions with John and music, is that they can take it back doing more seriously." With John at Lee Hooker, Eddie Boyd, Little Walter, to the roots. "I hope this happens for this time were Dave Kelly, guitar, Jimmy Reed, and many more of the us. Some of the bands which have Steve Rye, bass, Bob Hall, piano, with leading contemporary blues singers. sprung up since the increased interest of the blues are doing it a great dis John playing drums. Tony agreed to join, staying with the band for about six months. service. If we go back to the basic John saw a growing interest within "Since Blue Horizon's success," said music, those who've jumped on the the band-"We thought we should get John, "all the record companies decided bandwagon won't be able to follow. a weekly gig somewhere, and started that the blues was a recordable thing, You can't learn the music like home playing at Ken Collyer's club, doing and we had several offers. Mercury work. It's like a deep well- the more a Sunday afternoon session." The offered us the best deal, and we recorded you look down, the more you discover." impact was immediate. From the first a single, Travel/in' Man, to precede the ltl.{). ·~ ~ . ·----·-.,.,,,_ __,-._ )! ~ , ; j ;; ... b: ~/' ' ' t _ ✓· /_ . ' ., I • l I Those who reach the top demand the best Think of the best car in the world and r--------------------- 1 Please send me full details of Selmer amplification you think of a certain name. I NAME I ADDRESS Think of the best amplifiers in the I I world and you think of SELMER. I My usual Selmer dealer is 31/3/68. I THE SELMER SOUND IS THE iii> Selmer SOUND OF SWEETa SUCCESS I 114, Charing Cross Road, London, W.C.2. groundhogs OHN Lee's Groundhogs were one of the formed himself a company called Ground Jfew bands who achieved anything like hog Productions, and has re-formed the near-national status when R and B came old Groundhogs-"which has created a to prominence in the early 'sixties. The crazy situation," he said, "as people are band worked with many of the leading accusing us of jumping on the blues band blues musicians who toured this country, wagon." and landed themselves with an American The band consists of Tony, on lead and recording contract via John Lee Hooker, slide guitars; Steve Rye, on harmonica; who took a personal interest in their pro Ken Pustelnik, drums; and Pete Cruick gress. shank on bass. "Pete and I were in John When the R and 'B thing faded, the Lee's band," Tony explained. "Getting the Groundhogs split up, and the members Groundhogs together again is something went in various musical directions. For we've been thinking about for some time." lead guitarist Tony McPhee, this decision was disappointing, but allowed him free dom to move into new fields. He tried first album psychedelia, soul music, but could never Tony and the band have finished their completely cut himself off from the blues, first album for the Groundhog series. "We and was one of the innovators of the were only together for three weeks before acoustic country blues style guitar in this we made the LP. We didn't know how it country, finding himself playing in f0lk/ would turn out, or what sort of reaction blues clubs up and down the country, yet we would get.