Ian winds up, Ian winds down, Bristol 1974

September 9, 2009 by Will Birch : This great photograph was taken by Alain Le Kim, minutes after a sweat-soaked Ian Dury came off stage at Bristol Granary Club in 1974 where he appeared with Kilburn and The High Roads. In the audience was Ian’s art college tutor and mentor Peter Blake, who spent most of the set in front of the stage, mesmerised by Ian’s performance. ‘Ian would wind people up,’ recalls Blake. ‘At one point he tried to get the other Kilburns to throw the man who ran the Granary Club off the balcony!’ Photo copyright Alain Le Kim.

There’s just about the best pop quiz in town at the Prom Music Bar every Tuesday. Al Read is one of the regular quizmasters posing an entertaining selection of questions to test your knowledge of pop & rock from the records of way back then to the downloads of right now. There’s cash to be won plus prizes of drinks and t-shirts and even other goodies for those who come last. It’s just £1 per entrant and you can form a team of up to six persons. Go on. give it a try. The Prom Music Bar is at 26, Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8AE Tel: 0117 942 7319. Al Read is quiz presenter on Tuesday 2nd March and Tuesday 30th March. Are you a smarty-pants or are you just pants?

Can it be bettered? We’re sincerely hope so. Make a note of the date of GRANAREUNITED 17. Same venue, same line up and same atmosphere. We hope to see you there.

THE PROM MUSIC BAR - POP QUIZ NIGHTS

There’s just about the best pop quiz in town at the Prom Music Bar every Tuesday. Al Read is one of the regular quizmasters posing an entertaining selection of questions to test your knowledge of pop & rock over the decades. There are cash prizes to be won plus prizes of drinks and t-shirts and other goodies. It’s just £1 per entrant and you can form a team of up to six persons. Go on. give it a try. The Prom Music Bar is at 26, Gloucester Road, Bishopston, Bristol BS7 8AE Tel: 0117 942 7319. Al Read is quiz presenter on Tuesday 2nd February.

An added interest in this feature is the rare footage of the Stranglers performing “Golden Brown” at the club. This was the first time that the Stranglers had played their iconic hit in public.

BBC presenter Ali Vowles is seen inside the Granary after it’s reconstruction from a club into an apartment block.

And there’s also Al Read fondly remembering the night in 1972 when he had booked Supertramp with Judas Priest supporting for a total of  £95.00.

Inside you’ll find

·       In-depth profiles of over 30 artists and coverage of many more.

·       Personal reminiscences from many of those on the scene.

·       34 pages of illustrations, including many previously unpublished photographs.

·       Histories of the numerous folk clubs and the two main local record labels.

·       A comprehensive discography listing more than 180 records.

·       A listing of CD re-issues and artists’ current websites.

In the late 1960s and early ‘70s, Bristol became nationally renowned for its powerhouse folk & blues scene, and was second only to London for the number and influence of its recorded artists. It’s an era still remembered with enormous nostalgia by those who participated, and is nigh legendary to those who came later.

Although focused on Bristol, Bristol Folk should be of great interest, not just to Bristolians, but to all fans of late 1960s and early 1970s British folk and blues music, not to mention that strange beast now known as ‘psych’ or ‘acid folk’, because many Bristol-based musicians became nationally-known and influential exponents of these various styles. Bristol, because of the national reputation of its folk scene, became a magnet for the brightest and best on the folk scene: established names such as Al Stewart, Stefan Grossman, the Incredible String Band and John Renbourn were enamoured of Bristol’s friendly folk scene and were frequent visitors to clubs, such as the Troubadour, where they were often given a run for their money by Bristol’s own resident musicians, many of whom went on to become national names themselves.

Bristol Folk, by music historian and discographer, Mark Jones, features painstakingly researched profiles of all the artists known to have recorded in and around Bristol’s vibrant folk scene in those two decades: from Ian Anderson’s country blues to the manic 1920s jug-based jazz of the Pigsty Hill Light Orchestra; from Adge Cutler & the Wurzels’ novelty rural folk to the sophisticated images of Shelagh McDonald; from the rustic rock of Stackridge to the finely-crafted ‘psych blues’ of Al Jones; from the magical ballads of Bob Stewart to ethereal pop hits by Sally Oldfield; from the inspired, original guitar work of Dave Evans to the ‘acid folk’ of Keith Christmas – and much more. These are discussed in the context of the wider music scene, with mention of the numerous and often vastly-popular groups and artists who either didn’t get to release records in their own right or had them issued outside of the years covered, from Canton Trig to the Deep Blues Band and many others.

Amongst those who contributed specially-written pieces – included in addition to their profiles – are Ian Anderson, Andy Leggett, Saydisc’s Gef Lucena, Rodney Matthews (yes, the world-famous fantasy artist started out designing LP sleeves and gig posters for Bristol’s folk set), Bob Stewart, Steve Tilston, Keith Warmington and Fred Wedlock, all of whose diverse careers either started in Bristol or were shaped by their time on Bristol’s folk scene.

The 34 pages of illustrations include photographs – many previously unpublished – promotional materials and memorabilia from the artists’ private collections and other archives to which the author had special access, plus over 80 record sleeves. Also included are cuttings from Bristol’s early 1970s arts and entertainments magazine, Preview, and Plastic Dog’s near-legendary Dogpress newsletter – one edition of which found itself being waved around at a Parliamentary hearing on obscenity!

For more information follow this link http://www.bristol-folk.co.uk/index.html Published November 2009, by Bristol Folk Publications, price £18.99 (+ shipping).