BLACK AND WHITE NOTES

BLACK AND WHITE NOTES

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An early band or Noel McCalla (he was 15) in Coventry. Noel left and went back to London where he was born and joined Moon with Cov's Loz Netto - guitar (ex Nack ed en with John Bradbury 1970 later of Specials) and Ron Lawrence bass (Ex folk rock band April - 1970). They went on to join Sniff and the Tears 1979 and had a US hit with Drivers Seat. Noel went on to play with Partners in Crime, Manfred Mann's Earth Band in the 90's.Lox went solo and Ron sessioned with the Kinks and many more.

Noel singing later on with Sniff n the Tears on Drivers Seat 

Black Parrot Seaside

 

Black Parrot Seaside

BAND INDEX

Black Parrot Seaside - Folk with Attitude


Drummer Jim Pryal recalls -

" During this period, Arun and I did a recording via Chris King with 'Black Parrot Seaside' at Pathway studios, London. Wreckless Eric and Elvis Costello had done tracks there and Dire Straits had recorded 'The Sultans of Swing' album there. We were on hallowed ground. Just a small place with an eight track recorder as I remember. We recorded a very funny song about being reincarnated as a vacuum cleaner! I still laugh now thinking about it! I just had a mail from Geoff Veasey -so great to hear that The Parrot are still performing."
The current line up:

Eddie Jones, / Arnold Chave, / Mick Harris and Geoff Veasey


Their album is available on the above website

Line-ups have varied over time between a folk duo and a six-piece rock band.

 

Obviously some Parrots lasted longer than others. A BPS biographical flow chart would need to include the following:

Drummers:

 

Rob Lockington

Jeff Powles

Dave “Vance” Anderson

Jim Pryal

 

 

Lead or  Rhythm Guitar:

 

Arnold Chave

Tez Tehegee

John Walker

Dave Blundy

Vocals:

 

Graham Caldicot

Geoff Veasey

Arnold Chave

Eddie Jones

Mick Harris

 

Guitar - Electric / Acoustic / Bass:

 

Barry Ousby

Martin “Mandrago” Smalldon

Arun Bhandari

Keyboards & Accordian:

 

Mick Harris

Eddie Jones

 

Mandolin & Banjo:

 

Mick Harris

 

Fiddle:

 

Eddie Jones

Also from their excellent website - (now defunct)

The brief career of Black Parrot Seaside began in Richmond Street in Coventry where a few members taped an extremely silly version of Marc Bolan's Telegram Sam called Baggy Leaf Dwarf. The original line up consisted of drums, bass, lead, keyboards and two vocalists.

Influences - Alex Harvey, Bonzos, Edgar Broughton, Heavy Metal Kids and Monty Python. Many line up changes (see below) and at the time of the recording the band moved from Rock to Folk. but the stage act remained out of the ordinary. It featured sea shanties, monologues, Marston's Bitter, Rolf Harris impersonations, and much more. 

The immortal “Roll it Up and Eat It” was nearly a landmark in vinyl history. It was released, or rather escaped, in 1978. An early picture disc, it was recorded on Zama Records by Coventry band Black Parrot Seaside. The sleeve also credited “The Exploding Sheep” but they were in fact, entirely mythical.

At that time, the band had attracted a modest local following with self-penned tributes to working Midlanders such as “The Wag of Shop 14” or “On Bedduth Bank”. The Wag celebrated Coventry’s commuting armies of early morning assembly line workers, in the days when the city still had car factories. At the end of it, overalls and cow gowns were donned as the band clanked out a “Spanner Shanty” using monkey wrenches.

Of the album tracks however, the late, great John Peel liked  “I am a vacuum cleaner” so much he played it on his late night Radio One show. Record Mirror described this track as “A classic”, whilst Melody Maker advocated that another song, “The Whistler” should receive, “The Harpo Marx Award for the best whistling on record since The Rolling Stones - Walking The Dog ”.

 

Even the normally staid Coventry Evening Telegraph praised B.P.S. and their “Dull Wave” music as:

“ One of the silliest, craziest and most original ideas to hit the music scene in years.”

 

It was just the band’s luck after such rave reviews that the debut single should be launched in exactly the same week as the debut singles of Squeeze and Kate Bush. Though BPS shared a few column inches with them both in the Music Press that week, it was about the only thing they did have in common thereafter!

Blues featured heavily in the early years, and the band covered . “All Round Man “a Bo Carter original  which was mildly obscene. Another popular blues was “In the Wee Midnight Hour,” first recorded by Scrapper Blackwell.  John Lee Hooker’s “Dimples” and a version of “Bring It On Home,” also featured in early set lists.

BPS line-ups have varied over time between a folk duo and a six-piece rock band.

 BPS in the 70's

Pete Clemons brother in white.

The Black Diamonds

 

The Black Diamonds

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Black Diamonds

circa 196? Source Broadgate Gnome.

A Group with Sparkle.

BITTER TEARS

BITTER TEARS

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Martin Barter on keyboards Steve Day / Paul Jacques / Colin Barnes and Dave the drummer - played the Saxon Mill in Coventry regularly.

Bitter Suite

 

Bitter Suite

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Bitter Suite c 1968


One of Colin William's band before Indian Summer.


Colin Williams on lead guitar / Kevin Connolly - drums / Alan Payne - keyboards / Mick Keel - bass / A lad from Birmingham on Vocals.


They recorded four tracks at Labrook Studios in Birmingham - in December 1968.

The Big Idea

The Big Idea 

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Paul Kennelly of Peppermint Kreem tells us



The " BIG IDEA " 1970's/80's . came from Rugby. Played a lot at The Navigation Inn on Stoney Stanton Road ( among many other places ). In this image ( not including naked lady ! ) : from left to right : Brian Clough , Lead Guitar ( now with Pinkertons Assorted Colours) Alan Hocking , Bass Guitar and Vocals. Paul Barker, Rhythm Guitar and Vocals. Soran Allan, Vocalist. Barry Morby, Drums. Photo kindly shared by Patrick Garrett who was the roadie.

Betty Swollocks

 

Betty Swollocks

BAND INDEX

Punksters

Troy Forrest, a real character with the ear for a good tune. He played with Chainsaw and Jolly Dwarfs.

Don't know much else about this band - anybody? With ex members of Shady Deal.