Umbrella Band Nights 1970 / 71

After the successful mini fests - Transcendental Cauldron and Music Marathon, the Umbrella began to  feature regular / semi regular band nights on a Friday 9pm to 11.30 with a late night disco often lasting until 2pm run by Al and Steve Varney (later known variously as Atom Disco or Alstepeda (when Pete Webb joined), Purple Haze. Mostly local electric or acoustic bands but some from the wider Midlands such as Birmingham, Leicester and Derby.

CBR Music Agency

Prior to this the live music mainly consisted of Jazz or folk or rock n roll. The live music coordinator was Cliff Cowling, a boogie woogie pianist with a rock n roll band called (I think) Rockit. Al Docker (Drummer and band leader of Tsar) organised the band nights early 1970 with Trev Teasdel assisting on door and support. Trev took over about December 1970 when Al concentrated on gigging, until about May 1971 when Trev became engaged in organising a second Music Marathon. We came by bands through personal contacts, bands that wrote or phoned the Umbrella for a gig, bands that rehearsed at the Umbrella (April, Asgard, Nack ed en, Love Zeus, Mick Green Blues band, Slitnitzer, Whistler or for Birmingham bands we used CBR Music Agency - also in Queen Victoria Road. The Live Music programme was overseen at the time by Tony Cross who was on the Umbrella Committee and a fine piano / keyboard player himself.

Most of the band nights took place in the lounge or on some occasions in the small theatre which held about 50 people.

I don't have all the dates of the bands and some Fridays there were no bands owing to the lounge being booked out to other groups or when the Lanch Poly and Warwick Uni Arts Festivals were on. Here are the bands I have cuttings for or can remember. It's not a full list. Birmingham bands were booked via CBR music agency which was also based in Queen Victoria Road.

Al Docker

Jan / Feb / March / April 1970 - I can't pin point any dates for this period but I'm certain Al Docker organised bands during this period and I did the door. Among bands I remember were -
Crystal Ship, Whistler, Last Fair Deal, Wandering John, Chris Jones Aggression, Rocking Chair Blues Band, Nack Ed En, Slitniza Modern Jazz Trip.

May 1970 - Postcard ( I think this was a contemporary folk band or duo)
July 1970 - Trad B Jefferson + April 
                - Asgard
August 1970 - Steve Tayton and his Jazz Quartet
Aug 14th       - Vic's (Neol Davies) Heavy Rock Jam Session (see separate post on here)
Aug 21st        - Tea and Symphony (Birmingham band) + April
September 1970 - 11th - Indian Summer
Sept 18th            Ghost (Birmingham band) + Asgard
Sept 25th             Children
No entries for October and November that I can find
Patchy as it is  - that's all I can recall or find on Al's bands. The Newsheets and ads in the reference library might throw up more.

In December Trev Teasdel organised the bands

December 1970 - 11th Judas Goat ( Heavy band from Sapcote near Leicester)
December 18th     Gentle (Heavy band from Derby)
December 15th     Ra Ho Tep (Tim James's Avant Garde Jazz trio)
January 1st            Fresh Maggots (Acid folk duo from Nuneaton - album on RCA Neon)
January 8th           Jessica's Theme (Progressive Rock)
(In diary for 1971 I invited Dando Shaft and Whistler in January - can't remember if they did or not at this stage - also arranged for Whistler to rehearse at the Umbrella).
The other Fridays in January were taken up with AGM and the Lanchester Poly Arts Festival.
February 1971 19th Jessica's Theme (Return visit owing to popularity)
26th - Live band (Not specified)
Information sketchy after February until May 1971 but bands included Indian Summer, Rogation Sunday (formerly Acorn), April, Asgard, Whistler, Tsar, Love Zeus, Ameoba, Creation, Mick Green Blues Band. Medicine Head were asked but we couldn't afford them. From July 1970 Trev was doing the door for Pete Waterman's Walsgrave Progressive gig also and some contacts were made there or Umbrella based bands played the Walsgrave. eg Asgard / April.
From May, Trev and Lyndie became involved with organising the 2nd Music Marathon.

Notes on Bands
Band profiles are or will be on the Hobo A to Z of Coventry Bands 

Crystal Ship - Acoustic / psychedelic band that had a cool sound. No further info.
Nack Ed En - A three piece Rock blues band featuring John Bradbury on Drums ( later of The Specials), Loz Netto guitar - later with Sniff and the Tears 1978, Neil Richardson bass (later with Drops of Brandy).

April - were Cov's answer to Fairport Convention, rehearsed at the Umbrella and did a mix of Fairport and James Taylor and their own Numbers. Bassist Ron Lawrence later played with Sniff and the Tears and sessioned with bands like the Kinks.
Asgard - were Cov's answer to Pink Floyd - a three piece with whom Neol Davies (later of Selecter) guested on sitar sometimes. They rehearsed at the Umbrella and were being courted by John Peel who got them a gig at Mothers in Erdington where Floyd had recently played. The band split up before they got to the recording stage sadly.
Chris Jones Aggression - Three piece blues outfit around the virtuoso playing of Chris Muff  Jones. Chris toured Europe with residencies at Ronnie Scott's and The Speakeasy later with jazz Rock outfit Khayyam.
Whistler - Kevin Harrison's avant Garde Jazz rock outfit before Urge.

Wandering John / Last Fair Deal - Popular rock blues outfit with a smaller country blues trio that were very popular.

Indian Summer - Another highly popular progressive rock band who recorded a class album for RCA Neon. Bob Jackson - keyboards - went on to play with Badfinger, Pete Brown Piblokto, The Fortunes and more. Trev, who also did the door for Pete Waterman's Walsgrave Progressive night mid 1970, booked them for the Umbrella when they played there.
Fresh Maggotts - Acid folk / progressive duo from Nuneaton. Made album also for RCA Neon that became a cult progressive album later.
Tea and Symphony and Ghost were both Birmingham bands promoted by John Peel. Ghost were gothic rock as the name suggests and T & S were off beat progressive with a fantastic lightshow.
Judas Goat - from Sapcote near Leicester - rock band.
Gentle - rock band from Derby - associated with Pug Ma Ho  / SMACK who later settled in Cov with Ollie Oliver (Doc Mustard) and several musicians who joined Horace Panter's Breaker c 1976
Love Zeus - band formed at Umbrella - Al Docker drums / Tony Cross keys / Loz Netto lead / Neil Richardson bass? / violin player from Tsar.

UPDATES NOV 07

Bands organised by Cliff Cowling until Al Docker Took over 1969-1970 and then Trev Teasdel 1970-1971

May 1970 Postcard

July 1970 Trad B Jefferson & April

July 1970  Asgard

August 1970  - Steve Tayton and his Jazz Quartet

Fri Aug 14th 1970 Vic's Heavy Rock Jam session (See Transcendental Cauldron post)

Fri Aug 21st Tea & Symphony and April (Groups wishing to practice should see Al Docker)

Fri 18th Sept  1970 Ghost and Asgard (Contrasting Styles)

Live Music May 1971

Live Music by Al Docker's group Tsar with Atom Disco (Al and Steve Varney) - Al Varney later became the bassist with Fission c1973. A piece in the Umbrella programme read "A freaky night for anyone who wants to listen to some good sounds!"

April 1971 Toadstool - John Brown's folk duo.

May 11th 1971 Don't Pick a Flower - John Leopold's folk duo. Poetry and Folk session. Contemporary and own songs.

May Tues 18th 1971 Poetry and folk with ROGER WILLIAMSON

Oct 19th 1971 Heron (London based contemporary folk group)

Members joining at this time Early 70's (although some of them had been coming to events a while before becoming members.

Jan Gage and Jan Coombs (Helped with publicising bands when Trevor was organising them in 1970 / 71)

Rosemary Jones (involved with the Folk and Poetry) Charles Bullen (Guitarist with Tsar) (Joined Sept 1971. Also Andrew Court and Nick Day.

Sectretary of the Programme Committee in 1971 was Lindy Watson (now Lyndie Brimstone) and on the committee were Esther Breakwell, Jim Ashworth, Maggie Heath, John Pinder and Gaynor Penton.

Other regular members at that time include Tes Walker, Malvin Preece (later DJ at the Village), John Scott, Jim Porter, Mick Cuttifoot, Lance Goodey, Sally Birch, Jenny Bowden, Doug Deakin, Pete Webb, Heather Lovatt

South Side Greeks - this was an early Jerry Dammers band. We know a couple of the members of the band attended the Umbrella club. Drummer Kim Howard says he practiced drums there and bassist Andrew Calcutt - now an author and academic, attended in 1971.

 

Advert form for Judas Goat in Cov Telegraph

Contract for the band Gentle.

From The Umbrella Programme.

Ra ho Tep

Asgard

Cliff Cowling Trio

Jessica's Theme

Judas Goat

April

Love Zeus

Fresh Maggots

Drops of Brandy practices at the Umbrella

Rogation Sunday Letter

Ghost - Birmingham Band

Tea and Symphony

Al and Steve Varney's Progressive Disco

Umbrella Newssheet - 1971 Live Music summary

Al Varney - bass player with Fission 1973 - 5, also ran the disco at the Umbrella 69 - 72

Purple Haze etc.

The Neol Davies Jam Session 1970 - And Some Roots of Two Tone.

Picture from The Broadgate Gnome 1970

On face-value, this might seem to be an obscure Umbrella event happening 9 years before the Specials and Selecter put Coventry on the high altar of rock n roll but it hides some subtle developments in early Two Tone musical relationships, lost in the mists of time. 

Vic's Heavy Rock Jam Session was an all night jam at the Coventry Arts Umbrella Club, featuring local Coventry musicians, most of whom frequented the Umbrella club.

Although the title referred to 'Vic' as the organiser, it was drummer Al Docker that organised the Friday night band nights at the time. Later in the year I took over when Al left to form his band Tsar but this was one of the last events Al organised at the Umbrella. As for Vic, no one, including Neol Davies, knows who he was! I seem recall Al being annoyed when he saw the flyer, and we regarded it as error!

Al Docker

However, one thing is clear -  Neol Davies was in charge on the night as the band leader. He coordinated the musicians throughout and negotiated the rock blues number they would jam around.

 "Bring your instruments or just your ears" read the duplicated flyer. It was an all night session starting at 10pm on Friday 14th August 1970 and raging on well past daybreak. We charged 4/- to get in and it formed one of a series of special events around 1969 / 1970, that had included The Transcendental Cauldron and The Music Marathon. The musicians jammed their way through many of the well known rock and blues numbers popular at the time, including Catfish - a staple of the Chris Jones Aggression, who were based at the Umbrella. They would choose numbers the musicians all knew or that were standard 12 bar configurations.

Musicians Involved

Musicians were drawn from bands that practiced at the Umbrella or came to band nights or hung out there. I can't recall all of the musicians who took part but they included Wandering John Vocalist - John Gravenor; members of the Chris Jones Aggression ( a 3 piece blues band) including drummer Terry Flanagan (who also played in Morning Freedom) and lead guitarist Chris Jones himself. Al Docker played drums and Bill Walker - organist and composer with Asgard (a 3 piece in the style of  Nice and Pink Floyd,) and to whom John Peel was associated with. Nack Ed En (of whom we'll hear more of later), comprising of  Loz Netto (lead), Neil Richardson (bass) and John Bradbury (Drums). John Deacon and Larry Hutson. Members of April - a folk rock band and the avant garde jazz rock outfit  Whistler led by Kevin Harrison and more.

Umbrella Jam Session flyer from the Neol Davies collection.

The Jam Session Gets Started

The Umbrella Club was really just a small town-house in Queen Victoria Rd, but its significance to the Coventry music and arts scene was quite sizable. Coventry never had a purpose built arts centre like Birmingham and yet the close-knit nature of this little building brought musicians, poets, artists together in quite an intimate way, often over a midnight coffee and hot-dog in the cramped coffee room.

From 10pm on a Friday night, musicians and music fans would amble in from the town pubs and up the stairs to what was the largest room in the house. These were the days of long hair, beards, trench coats, and young ladies with long skirts, braided hair and Patchouli oil. At these sessions, I sat at a table by the door, taking the money while the bands trailed wires into plugs and tuned up. A flourish of drums, a bass solo and the bending of guitar strings were heard while roadies moved things around and musicians argued about whose amps should be loudest!

This night was a bit different though. This session would consist of musicians, many of whom hadn't played together before and who we often playing on instruments and equipment that wasn't there own. There would be a slow start as musicians warmed up and a random 12 bar would turn into a familiar number. Jam sessions were often a means of trying out new musicians for bands or generating new numbers.


                                                                   Coffee Break
About 2am the band took a break. No alcohol was allowed on the premises (or any other substance - at least officially! ) but coffee and hots dogs were available. The coffee bar was often a cauldron of heated discussions between hippies, bearded folkies, business men and women, and teachers. Different lifestyles clashed but all in a friendly manner. Sitting in the coffee bar, you'd get an education on every topic under the sun from politics to religion. Sometimes Neol Davies would come in with his acoustic guitar or sitar and play. Neol had been a member of the Umbrella since the late 60's and although he played in a blues band called Cat's Grave and later in 1970 - Mead, he also used to guest on sitar with Asgard.

Head in the Drums

On this occasion, during the break,  Twink, a character well known at the time, curled up inside the bass drum, with his trench coat over him, and fell asleep. The drums, which belonged to Terry Flanagan of the Chris Jones Aggression, didn't have a skin on the side that faced the audience. When the musicians reassembled, Twink slept happily on with his head in the bass drum as the band stuck up the next number, we can only guess what kind of dreams (or nightmares) he was having!!

Neol Davies Meets John Bradbury 1970

As Neol points out on his website, (after finding the above flyer for the jam session) it was at this session that he first met and played with John Bradbury.  In his own words Neol says "I have known John Bradbury longer than I thought....".  This connection is significant in that it was Neol and Brad who produced the first official Two Tone track - The Selecter in 1977. The Selecter, as many people will know, was an instrumental written by Neol, with John Bradury on drums and recorded and produced on Portastudio in 1977 by Roger Lomas. The track finally appeared as the B side of the first Specials single - Gangsters. The Selecter, as a band were not formed until after its release in 1979.

The Original Selecter

Although John Bradbury ended up in the Specials and Neol in Selecter, the two played in an earlier band called Transposed Men prior to The Selecter. Transposed Men rehearsed songs later associated with The Selecter, like On My Radio, (which can be heard here on  Kevin Harrison's site). Transposed Men weere Neol Davies / Kevin Harrison (later of Urge), Desmond Brown, John Bradbury, Steve Wynne (later of Swinging Cats)

A long haired Neol Davies playing Sitar - (from his website.)

How Did John Bradbury and Neol Davies Came to be at the Umbrella Club at that Time?

I can throw some light on that: - Neol of course was a long standing member of the Umbrella as mentioned.

Trev Teasdel

In March 1970, Coventry drummer Steve Harrison turned up at the Umbrella to watch a band. I grew up over the road from Steve in Willenhall Wood. In catching up that night, Steve mentioned he was drumming for the Mick Green Blues Band with Tony (Mojo) Morgan on bass. I told him I was writing lyrics and he asked me to bring some lyrics over for his band. I wrote a few new ones and brought my song book along.  Tony Morgan (Mojo) had set one of my lyrics to music - The Elusive Metallic Idol - at least, but the band split up not long afterwards!

Nack-Ed-En

Steve Harrison

In May 1970, Steve Harrison asked me once again to bring along some lyrics Nack Ed En.  I turned up for their practice at the Queens Hotel in Primrose Hill Street on the Sunday afternoon.  The rock / blues band were in full swing when I arrived but Steve was not the drummer and none of the members were familiar!  The band explained that Steve had been replaced by a new drummer called John Bradbury.  The other guys in the band were  Loz Netto (later lead guitar with Sniff and the Tears) and Neil Richardson (later bass player with Drops of Brandy).
for a new band he'd joined called

Nack ed en 1970

When the session had finished, we went across to the Dive bar (Lady Godiva) for a pint and we met up with Chris Jones whose blues band played at the Umbrella. After John and Loz had read through some of my lyrics, the guys mentioned that the Queens Hotel was too expensive to hire on a regular basis. I pointed out that if they joined the Umbrella, they could rehearse there free, as did Asgard, Chris Jones and other bands. And so, from May onwards, Nack Ed En rehearsed at the Umbrella.

I would watch them practice in the coffee bar. John was a great drummer, even back then; tight, skilful with jazz overtones. He was also a big fan of Northern Soul and had that Paul Simon hair cut when the rest of us sported long hair . I would watch him break the songs down into sections and get the band to work on the transitions between verse, chorus and middle 8 and while it was the trend for drummers to perform 15 minute drum solos, John's solos were always short, tight and skillful - as exemplified by the solo in Gangsters.

Nack Ed En also played a gig or two during the Friday night sessions at the Umbrella. So by August 1970, the guys were well involved with the Umbrella and in the right place to be asked to join in the jam session. Not long after, Nack Ed En also split up and Loz Netto joined Al Docker's new band Tsar and later Love Zeus. John Bradbury turned up in a range of  bands on his way to being asked to join The Specials in 1979 including playing in an early version of Selecter called Transposed Men as mentioned.
.....................................

The Holyhead Youth Centre - The Cradle of Two Tone

There's another reason why I think this jam session was important in the formation of early Two Tone relationships:-

After the Umbrella club premises in Queen Victoria Road was demolished towards the end of 1972, I was determined to find a way to continue to support the local band scene. While the local authority finally rehoused the Umbrella in 1974 at the Charterhouse, it was clear there was no place for the band culture. The Umbrella executive weren't happy about this but they had a hard fight to get even this concession from the powers that be and they did support my efforts create Hobo Magazine (Coventry's Music and Arts magazine) and it was after attending an Umbrella board meeting that the Vice Chair - Henry West - also head of Coventry Voluntary Service Council offered to assign his new Detached Youth Worker - Bob Rhodes to our cause and offer us use of the Holyhead Youth Centre for a weekly 'Umbrella like event' which became known as the HOBO WORKSHOP.

Neol Davies and Charley Anderson Jam - Summer 1974

The Hobo Workshop opened July 1974 at the Holyhead Youth Centre, Lower Holyhead Road,Coventry with the aim of providing a venue for upcoming local bands to get started. We had use of the theatre on the ground floor (sometimes used for rehearsals by the Belgrade Theatre).

On Monday July 22nd we gave the floor to a new band Midnight Circus, led by Neil O'Connor (Hazel's brother). Hazel of course would appear on pop scene for another 5 years by which time Midnight Circus were known as The Flys and appearing on Old Grey Whistle Test and John Peel with their single Molotov Cocktail. We also advertised 'a raving  jam session'! Remembering Neol's jam session back in 1970, I rang him to see if he would organise a similar session for the Hobo Workshop. Neol was up for it. 

We'd set Hobo Magazine and Workshop for a number of reasons but it was part inspired by the Mersey Beat and the Birmingham Midland Beat magazines that helped to promote the music scene in those towns. What we didn't realise at the time that Coventry's musical future was literally beneath our feet! As people came through the door, down in the cellar we could hear the early Jamaican ska rhythms that would over the next 5 years develop into Two Tone. My first thought was to invite them up to join in the jam session that I hoped Neol Davies was going to organise later in the evening. Eventually Charley Anderson emerged from the cellar to collect some equipment and I asked him if the guys would like to join in. Charley went down to ask - the guys declined - they were still a bit shy about their music then. I didn't realise at the time but Charley was the youth worker and the guys, Desmond, Aitch - i didn't know all the names at that stage, ended up in The Selecter.

When Neol arrived, I told him about the guys in the cellar and told him i had invited them to join in. Neol said "leave it to me" and disappeared with his guitar down into the cellar. I figured that at some stage he re-emerge with the guys and the jam would commence. We didn't see Neol for the rest of the night - he stayed down there jamming and talking to the guys. I think this was the beginnings of those early jam sessions with Neol and Charley's band that later led to a number of bands and the eventual formation of Two Tone. 

Analog at the Hobo Workshop 1974 -
From Coventry Evening telegraph

Meanwhile upstairs we put on new bands every Monday, including giving first gigs to jazz rock bands Analog and Trigon - whose members later combined to for another Two Tone band The Reluctant Stereotypes - with Paul Sampson (later producer of the Primitives), Steve Edgson, Paul Brooks and others. A young Dave Pepper (later of the X Certs) had his first gig there with his first band Phoenix. and many more. Fission - another jazz rock band with medieval / classical and Hawkwind influences in played several times for us - led by Johnny Adams, who later played guitar for Squad after Terry Hall left, they were on the verge of a possible Island label contract but split up instead!!

The full story of the Hobo Workshop is covered on another of these Hobo sites, but by early 1975 we had moved venues to upstairs at the Golden Cross, where many of the musicians drank. In recent years they had established music gigs and discos upstairs and the Hobo Workshop set up upstairs on a Monday night. The place was often packed. On one night, and I think it was shortly before the hobo Workshop closed - thinking it was doing the business, we literally had the future in that little room - although no one would know it until later.

One of the bands was yet another jazz rock band (the trend at the time) featuring Horace Panter on bass. This band doesn't feature in his autobiography - Ska'd For Life. It was before Horace joined Breaker, and I knew the band as Ricky's Band, featuring Ricky on acoustic guitar and vocals, Horace Panter on Bass and Andy Cairns on lead and rhythm guitar. I can't recall who the drummer was now. I'd been jamming with Ricky and had met Andy Cairns at henley College - we'd been jamming too, sometimes around some of Ricky's riff's and Horace had advertised for a "Happy Band" in Hobo and after this unit formed asked if they could play at the Hobo Workshop in 1975, upstairs at the Golden Cross. Neol Davies came along to that session with Charley Anderson and I think Desmond. John Bradbury was also there according to my notes. They weren't all playing together at that stage - it was still very early as far as Two Tone was concerned but at my request, Neol organised another Umbrella style jam session. Luckily there were some great local musicians in the audience who took part. John Gravenor of Wandering John was back in Coventry and did some blues vocals. Nicky Hawkswell, an artist and former  R & B singer with 3AM joined in, Andy Cairns, Ricky, Phil Knapper (older brother of Stu Knapper) later of punk band Riot Act, Bill Jackson, singer with folk rock band April, John Rushton formerly of jazz rock band Analog and many more.

So the Umbrella Club jam session in 1970 led to much more!

Here are the letters to Hobo from Horace Panter in 1973 and 74.

Hobo No3 in which Horace's advert for a band appeared Feb 1974 

with it's appropriate Two Tone Blue cover!

Coventry's First Folk Club - at the Umbrella Club

According to an article in FOLKS magazine (edited by Pete Willow c 1979) and written by Ben Arnold, the Coventry Arts Umbrella Club hosted Coventry's very first folk club.

Ben Arnold

" It wasn't until 1962 that moves were made to organise a folk music venue where people who did want to hear folk singing could go in peace. The venue was the Coventry Arts Umbrella Club, which existed for the benefit of those who enjoyed art and music in general. It provided an opportunity for the pioneers of Coventry Folk including Ron Shutttleworth ( http://www.folkplay.info/Ron/Biography.htm) and Barry Skinner to generate an interest in folk music.

The regular get together's at the Umbrella Club only catered for a minority interest but it did serve as a starting point for dedicated individuals to plan Coventry's very first folk club. This was opened one Thursday in May 1963 at the Binley Oak, Paynes Lane and was called, suitably enough, the Coventry Folk Club.

Ron Shuttleworth

To quote Ben Arnold, "Coventry's first folk club was formed out of a common love of what at that time was an esoteric form of expression and desire to bring to the public at large something which had been theirs for hundreds of years." The hosts were the Troubadours, a group formed by Barry Skinner and consisting of John Allen, Lee Soloman, Pete and Marlene Roberts, Terry Illingworth, Brian Sutton and Bob Bruce, although not all at the same time. Also involved with the band were Brian Curtiss and Dick Newton who later joined the Down Country Boys."

Although the folk club went on to develop further at the Binley Oak in 1963, followed on by a range of clubs in the city in the 60's and 70's and beyond, a tradition Saturday club was still active at the Umbrella until 1970.

Of course up until the Umbrella closed at Queen Victoria Road back end of 1972, there were various combinations of folk and poetry sessions at the Umbrella blogged about in the post entitled Humpoesic Happening on this site.

Jazz and Poetry at the Belgrade Theatre

The Jazz Scene was a major part of the Umbrella Club up until about 1969, and this quote from Jazz Journal indicates it's importance as a venue -

"Jazz Journal are once again sponsoring a jazz symposium at the Umbrella Club in Coventry. Dates are 13th and 14th April and full details are available from Don Lindon, The Umbrella Club, 18, Queen Victoria Road, Coventry." 

Found on the Storyville site here 

http://archive.nationaljazzarchive.co.uk/archive/journals/storyville/storyville-016/52430

POETRY AND JAZZ AT THE BELGRADE 1961

This book is now out of print but a few second hand copies on Amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Poems-Poetry-Concert-Jeremy-Robson/dp/0285502409

"Coventry was therefore at the beginning of what led to hundreds of Jazz Poetry concerts around the country in the early 60's. This was no small movement" -

Although this event wasn't directly associated with the Umbrella Club, it is interesting contextually, to show the spirit of the times. Spike Milligan who joined in the event at the Belgrade had opened the Umbrella Club with the Goons in 1955 and the Umbrella maintained a relationship with the Goons - there are pictures of the Goons visiting the Umbrella at Little Park c 1960 after a performance at the Coventry Hippodrome and poetry and Jazz formed a large part of the Umbrella's itinerary.

In the book POEMS FROM POETRY AND JAZZ IN CONCERT, Jeremy Robson, mentions that in 1961, after an initial concert at Hampstead Town Hall and another at the Royal Festival Hall, he was invited to organise a Sunday concert at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry. "At the Belgrade Theatre (Sunday 25th February 1962), the Michael Garrick Trio, with trumpeter Shake Keane as guest artist, participated for the first time. Arnold Wesker was in the audience and later asked me arrange a series of concerts for his forthcoming Center 42 Festivals."
Coventry was therefore at the beginning of what led to hundreds of Jazz Poetry concerts around the country in the early 60's. This was no small movement - of the Royal Festival Hall gig the Daily Herald wrote "The poets went to the Festival Hall yesterday, read their poems...and three thousand people gave them the reception normally reserved for the great names of music. I call that a bit of history!" Audience remained large throughout the country averaging about 400. The early concerts were naturally rough edged but soon assumed a more ''ordered and purposeful shape" with generally four poets reading, two in each half, with specially written interludes of Jazz played as 'bridges' between readers - also a few poems with Jazz.

The Jazz provided a relaxed and unpretentious atmosphere in which 'straight' poetry can be listened to and enjoyed. For the musicians, the advantage is a new and attentive audience. Michael Garrick, the brilliant pianist-composer whose original compositions greatly contributed to the concerts' success, underlined this point in the Poetry Review. "People who love Jazz and hate poetry are learning something new; people who like poetry only, begin to find 'there's something in Jazz' " .. if we've proved nothing else, we have shown that people are not so easily categorised as is often assume. 

Some of the main poets involved include - Dannie Abse; Thomas Blackburn; Edwin Brock; Pete Brown (who later wrote lyrics for Cream and Jack Bruce); Alan Brownjohn; Michael Hamburger; John Heath Stubbs; Douglas Hill; Anselm Hollo; Ted Hughes; Bernard Kops; Laurie Lee; Christopher Logue; Spike Milligan; Adrian Mitchell; Dom Moras; Perter Porter; Jeremy Robson; Vernon Scannell;Jon Silkin; John Smith; Stevie Smith; Nathaniel Tarn.

"The tour began at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry with a line up of Dannie Abse, Laurie Lee, Spike Milligan, Adrian Mitchell, Jeremy Robson and the Quartet, with Shake Keane on trumpet and flugelhorn, bassist Johnny Taylor, and Colin Barnes on drums….A little later Jeremy was able to extend the budget so we could also have Joe Harriott – at £10 a gig the money was good. Many musicians were derisory about poetry and jazz but Shake and Joe had a natural feeling for what was going on and a willingness to be involved in something which audiences
found novel and fresh”

Excerpts for some of the poems : -

The Life We Do Not Lead
The life we do not lead
looks down on us from both these banks and laughs
as Westminster delivers us into this tossing boat;

the life we do not lead
has the sleek hulls of ships moored to each bank
strange in our need as women and just as ignorant.

Nathaniel Tarn

THOUGHTS ABOUT THE PERSON FROM PORLOCK
Coleridge received the Person from Porlock
And ever after called him a curse,
Then why did he hurry to let him in?
He could have hid in the house.

It was not right of Coleridge in fact it was wrong
(but often we all do wrong)
As the truth is I think he was already stuck
With Kubla Khan.

He was weeping and wailing: I am finished, finished,



I shall never write another word of it,
When along comes the Person from Porlock
And takes the blame for it..

Stevie Smith

NO SENSE OF DIRECTION

I have always admired
Those who are sure
Which turning to take,
Who need no guide
Even in war
When thunders shake
The torn terrain,
When battalions of shrill
Stars all desert
and the derelict moon goes over the hill:


Eyes chained by the night
They find their way back
As if it were daylight.
Then over, on peaceful walks
Over strange wooded ground
They will find the right track,
Know which of the forks
Will lead to the inn
I would never have found....

Vernon Scannell

You can hear sound bites from the concert album here - http://www.artistdirect.com/nad/store/artist/album/0,,3666602,00.html

Some of these poets read at the Umbrella club or the Lanch and Warwick Arts festivals. Combining poetry and music

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Poetry-Jazz-Concert-Before-Night/dp/B000ECWY30


Audio here https://soundsoftheuniverse.com/sjr/product/the-michael-garrick-quintet-poetry-and-jazz-in-concert-1963

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/music-obituaries/8897446/Michael-Garrick.html

http://www.molevalleypoets.co.uk/docs/POETRY_AND_JAZZ.pdf

Bernard Kops 1962

Jeremy Robson 1968

Douglas Hill 1968

Thomas Blackburn

Danny Abse 1968

Vernon Scannell 1967

Laurie Lee 1964

Adrian Mitchell 1962

Backcover of Poems from Poetry & Jazz in Concert.

Inside Poetry and Jazz in Concert

Contents of poetry & Jazz in Concert 1

Contents of Poetry & Jazz in Concert 2

Introduction pt 1 to Poetry and Jazz in Concert

Part 2 Introduction to poetry and Jazz in Concert

Introduction to poetry and Jazz in Concert part 3.

A track from the 1964 Poetry and Jazz in Concert LP (Record Two)
Written by Garrick, with Harriott and Keane and John Taylor (bass) and Colin Barnes (drums)

Recorded not long after Harriott and Keane had created and recorded their Free Form music and when you listen to the interplay between them it shows!





Pete Brown was one of the poets and later in the 60's went on to write lyrics for Cream like this one performed with his own band - White Room. Coventry keyboard player Bob Jackson - formerly with Coventry progressive band - Indian Summer who played at the Umbrella club several times, went on to play with Pete Brown's Piblokto band in 1973 / 4 before joining Badfinger.

In the white room with black curtains near the station.
Black-roof country, no gold pavements, tired starlings.
Silver horses run down moonbeams in your dark eyes. 
Dawn-light smiles on you leaving, my contentment.
I'll wait in this place where the sun never shines; 
Wait in this place where the shadows run from themselves.

 You said no strings could secure you at the station.
 Platform ticket, restless diesels, goodbye windows.
 I walked into such a sad time at the station.
 As I walked out, felt my own need just beginning.
 I'll wait in the queue when the trains come back;
 Lie with you where the shadows run from themselves. 

At the party she was kindness in the hard crowd.
 Consolation for the old wound now forgotten.
 Yellow tigers crouched in jungles in her dark eyes.
 She's just dressing, goodbye windows, tired starlings.
 I'll sleep in this place with the lonely crowd;
 Lie in the dark where the shadows run from themselves.
Lyric Pete Brown - Music Jack Bruce.

Here's one of Pete Brown's early poems from the jazz / poetry tour.

Andy Croft of Smokestack Books has recently published a new volume of Jeremy Robson;s poems.

"Blues in the Park is Robson’s first collection for many years. Moving, witty, wide-ranging and contemporary, it combines melancholy beauty, surprised middle-age and a compelling commitment to the Horatian virtues of friendship and family and hearth. Blues in the Park will be welcomed by readers of Jeremy Robson’s early volumes, as well as by all those who have heard him read over the years."

Available here http://smokestack-books.co.uk/book.php?book=92