A NIGHT WITH JETHRO TULL – with former Pirahna Brothers drummer, Tony Hodge

/ Alikivi / 1 Comment

In previous posts Tony has talked about the influence Ginger Baker had on his drumming, and the many nights with friends going to watch bands like The Nice, Tina Turner, Jimi Hendrix and The Animals at Newcastle’s Club a’Gogo.

Before joining the Pirahna Brothers, Tony drummed for North East band Turm with Micky Balls (lead guitar), George Sturrock (guitar), Alf Passmore (bass) and the late John Lawton (vocals). He remembers the night they got a gig opening for Jethro Tull in a County Durham club.

‘It was an amazing experience to play on the same bill as the legendary Jethro Tull, unfortunately, the venue we were booked in was the Argus Butterfly in Peterlee. I say unfortunately because The Argus Butterfly was and still is a difficult venue for two bands to play as the stage and concert room are really small and there was an even smaller dressing room at the back of the stage’.

‘We arrived first and set our gear up  and heard that Jethro Tull and all their equipment were travelling up from London in a small Thames van’.

Turm at the Cellar Club, South Shields

Before big names including Cream, Pink Floyd, Deep Purple, Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin packed out halls around the UK, they built their reputation playing smaller venues including Bay Hotel in Sunderland, Club a’Gogo in Newcastle, Cellar Club in South Shields,  Kirklevington Country Club in Yarm and Argus Butterfly in Peterlee.

‘When we got the booking I hadn’t heard of them as they were yet to hit the big time but when they entered the club, we were all fascinated by the lead singer. He was very thin, wore unusual hippy type clothes and had very long hair. This was becoming the fashion in London but was yet to be a fashion on Tyneside. Here was Micky and me wearing brightly coloured satin shirts in pale blue and fluorescent pink – so last year darling!’

‘All the guys were very friendly and were taken by our Geordie accents. They piled their equipment out of this small van, we wondered just how all their gear, four band members and a roadie got in the van – never mind drive 200 miles up the A1 dual carriageway. Note – there were no motorways yet’.

‘We were ready to play our set. Our fourth song in was a rousing number called Amen which had three or four sing along choruses with clapping to accompany it. This was a perfect song for John’s voice and the girls loved it’.

‘Each time the chorus started I would jump off the drums and go back stage clapping as I did. It sounds ridiculous, and it probably was, but it seemed to work well for the show’.

‘However, Mick Abrahams, the lead guitarist of Jethro Tull, was in the dressing room catching a well-deserved snooze on top of several amp covers. The first time I rushed in he jumped up in shock but then he saw the funny side when I ran back on stage for the opening riff after the sing along chorus. The next time I did it, Mick was laughing a lot as he had watched me returning just in time to start up after the chorus. The third time however he was ready. He grabbed me by the arms and didn’t let me return at the end of the chorus’.

‘The looks on the rest of my groups faces was a picture when they started with no drums. I can still see the vision in my mind today. Fortunately, he let go of me and it didn’t ruin the whole song, great guy, and a great laugh’.

‘After our opening set it was time for Jethro Tull to go on and they just couldn’t have been more different to us and were truly mesmerising. Their music was unlike anything I had heard before and their style was far away from anything I had seen before on the various stages in the North of England’. 

‘Another first for me was that Ian Anderson, the main vocalist and front man, played a flute that was a huge surprise. He also played harmonicas which he kept in small leather pouches around his waist and there was a funny side to this. He also kept his cigarette tobacco in these pouches and this meant he had to knock the tobacco out of each harmonica each time he was about to play them which was really very funny to watch’.

‘The visuals of the band were like nothing I had seen before and Ian sang many of his songs on one leg. This became his trademark as time went on and still is today. The drummer and bass players were very solid, had a great sound and the band was well received’.

‘Turm and Tull had a great time together as fellow musicians even if we probably looked a bit out of the current fashions in London. After this meeting they released Living in the Past a song that started my romance with my wife Jane many years later’.

‘They became rock superstars filling massive stadiums all around the world to thousands of people. I wonder if they ever thought back to the good old Argus Butterfly in Peterlee, the Turm and the 200 plus audience – somehow, I doubt it’.

Words: Tony Hodge

Edited: Alikivi   May 2025

More stories on the site from Tony Hodge including Jimi Hendrix, Cream, Tina Turner and Club a’Gogo.

Link to previous interview with Tony >>>

LUCKY MAN – part one, with North Shields actor & musician Tony Hodge. | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

THIS CLUB’S A’GO GO with former Pirahna Brothers drummer, Tony Hodge

/ Alikivi

This second part of Tony’s memories feature his pilgrimage to Newcastle’s Club a’Gogo where he saw many bands who were on their way to a successful career in music. They included Amen Corner, The Nice and a young guitarist from the United States – Jimi Hendrix.

North East venues for the Hendrix tour in 1967 included dates at Kirklevington Country Club in North Yorkshire on January 15th. The Cellar Club, South Shields on February 1st and February 2nd at Imperial Hotel, Darlington with a gig at Club a’Gogo in Newcastle on March 10th.

‘We were right at the front and only a few feet away from the great man himself. He was tall and looked very young. His style of guitar playing was like no other I had ever seen – even playing with his teeth on some numbers. At one point Hendrix dropped a ten shilling note and the guy next to me rushed to pick it up and hand it back to him. He thanked him saying that was for the bands supper’.

‘He went on to finish the night with a long guitar solo and then thrust his guitar into the ceiling leaving it there with the feedback screaming as he left the stage. On many subsequent visits we saw the hole still in the ceiling. A great memory of a great night’.

‘Over the following months we saw many emerging London based bands play at the a’Gogo like ‘Amen Corner’ with Andy Fairweather Low, Jeff Beck with a very young Rod Stewart as his main vocalist wearing an extremely long college scarf and of course our very own local mega band ‘The Animals’

‘This club forged mine and many other local musicians’ tastes for the years to come and we got to see megastars playing only a few feet away from us’.

‘While I’m talking of being right up close to your idol musicians there are two more instances of things that could never happen today. On these occasions my brother Barry and I went to music events at the Sunderland University students Union’.

‘On one night ‘The Nice’ played and my brother was sitting on the edge on a two-foot-high stage only a foot or two from Keith Emerson and his famous Hammond Organ when he did the world renown stabbing of the keyboard. We also saw Tina Turner when she was still performing with Ike. She wore a one-piece lemon coloured jump suit and looked amazing. Once again, only feet away from us, wow!’

‘We didn’t know it at the time that only a few months after these events these bands would play in much bigger venues and stadiums so the days of being within a few feet of your idol were gone for ever’.

Plaque for Handyside Arcade and Club a’Gogo in Newcastle.

‘Sadly, the Club a’Gogo itself was only open for six years, it became a bingo hall as the game was becoming all the rage in the North East. Finally, the club and the surrounding buildings were demolished in the 1980’s making way for the Eldon Square shopping complex. The club was only open for a short time but the mark it left on the Newcastle music scene was amazing’.

‘These venues were where I started to love that different style of music, but it wasn’t until we formed bands that I got the chance to play it not just listen to it’.

Words: Tony Hodge

Edited: Alikivi  May 2025.

Link to previous interview with Tony from February 2021 >>>

LUCKY MAN – part one, with North Shields actor & musician Tony Hodge. | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

AN ANIMAL IS BORN with former Piranha Brothers drummer Tony Hodge

/ Alikivi

On 1st February 1967 on his way to becoming one of the most influential guitarists of the 1960s, Jimi Hendrix played the Cellar Club in South Shields.

A previous post (19 March 2025) looked at the impact this gig had, also mentioned was the opening of the new Cellar Club in December 1966 by Cream.

Reading the article stirred up some memories for North East musician and actor Tony Hodge, he recalled the time he was introduced to the band and in particular the drummer Ginger Baker and how influential he became in his life.

‘In the sixties my good friend Ray Laidlaw played in Downtown Faction along with Rod Clements and Simon Cowe – all three became famous in the amazing band Lindisfarne. Ray and Rod had an excellent bass and drums connection, driving the band’s music with real power – I loved to hear them play’.

‘On many occasions we went to see each other’s bands play at various venues including the Briar Dene Tavern in Whitley Bay and The Nautilus Pub, a short walk from my house that became a regular haunt from 1964 onwards.’

‘I would often go with Micky Balls and meet Ray and other likeminded musicians like Billy Mitchel, Will Browell and Billy Dunn. We always had great meetups and all types of music were discussed’.

Micky Balls and Tony in Newcastle.

‘One night near Christmas 1966 Ray mentioned he had heard of a drummer that played with two bass drums. This drummer apparently could play a drum roll with his feet!’

‘A drum roll is hard enough to play with your hands using sticks, never mind with your feet using foot pedals. I found it hard to do a fast double beat that was required in some pop songs of the time never mind a full drum roll. I said I couldn’t see that it was possible and we had quite a heated discussion about how impossible it would be’.

Fortunately, the band were due to play at Newcastle Club a’Gogo and Ray saw this as a chance to convince Tony. The Club a’Gogo was a popular venue housed in two upstairs rooms above Handyside Arcade in Newcastle.

It opened in 1962 as a jazz club but broadened its musical style and became better known as a Soul, Rhythm n Blues and Rock venue attracting big stars like The Who, The Rolling Stones, Jeff Beck and local stars The Animals.

Tony explained ‘It was split into two separate rooms each with its own stage three feet up from the floor. One room was called ‘The young set’ for under eighteens and the other was called ‘The jazz lounge’ for everyone young and not so young’.

‘When the big stars played there, they would play a set in each room. This must have been a nightmare for the road crew as during the interval everything needed to be set up in one room then taken down and set up in the other’.

‘If you got in early, you could be right at the front and literally a couple of feet from the stars. That was amazing for a fan. On every visit I always got to the front and had the most amazing view of people who were to become megastars’.

‘We had come to see the band that we had discussed in the pub with this special drummer. It was a newly formed band from London. Unusually they were just a three-piece group, lead guitar, bass guitar and drums and had no separate singer as was the popular set up of the time’.

‘The club had an amazing atmosphere, it was dark and you were all packed in together. Small lights lit the stage which was only big enough for artists to play and not a lot of extra room for big theatrics. The stage was absolutely packed with equipment’.

‘To each corner were two sets of PA speakers and on the right-hand side were four Marshall 4×12 cabinets and the same on the left-hand side. In the middle was a set of Ludwig drums with two tom toms, two floor toms and two bass drums showing the name Ginger on one drum and Baker on the other. Yes, this band was Cream and the amazing drummer Ginger Baker. At this time of course, I had no idea who he was – but that was about to change’.

‘On came a man dressed in a long purple Teddy boy jacket and a ginger quiff with a half pint glass of rum (I think) in his hand. He sat down picked up his sticks and hit all four tom-toms then did an amazing roll on the two bass drums. He stood up and left through the back door of the stage, his sound check completed. This was the one and only Ginger Baker’.

‘Both Ray and I just stood and looked at each other in amazement. The speed and technique were just amazing and so different to us two young drummers, I heard nothing like it before’.

‘I was still recovering when two other guys entered the stage and came to the microphone. Ginger came through and sat down behind this huge kit. They started to play with no count in just heavy tom-tom beats, then guitar, then the man in front of me who was Jack Bruce started to sing ‘Driving in my car, smoking a cigar, the only time I’m happy is when I play my guitar’.

‘The opening to N.S.U. was like nothing I had heard or played – ever! The drums rolled around the kit the volume was deafening and when the guitar solo came in by Eric Clapton the hairs on my neck stood up. It was loud, very loud. It was something you never forget’.

‘The rest of the set was also amazing playing in a style I could never have imagined. Ginger played a drum solo that was again long and loud but it ended with him playing the two bass drums and his tom toms in a chest thumping roll that went on for several minutes.

That was the famous twin bass drum roll Ray had been talking about, it was true, a drummer could play a drum roll with his feet. I had to learn that, I had to be able to play drum rolls with my feet. I was hooked’.

‘The trip back on the bus was all about the miracle we had just seen, a drummer like no other. I was changed overnight, by this one-man, Ginger Baker. Without my friend Ray persuading me to go to the Gogo to see him I would not have become the mad drummer I became. That night ‘Animal’ was born’.

‘I had to have a double bass drum kit and if possible, a Ludwig one. Off again to the music shop and more debt but I got a lovely Ludwig drum kit with a pearl finish just like Ringo Starr. It looked and sounded fantastic’.

‘Once I got this kit my whole style changed. I was more brash and started playing a drum solo at the end of The Pirahna Brothers first half. It was long, loud and not very technical but this new style and the notoriety it brought with it opened many doors. My nickname was ‘Animal’ and people shouted it out at venues’.

More stories from Tony Hodge coming soon including Jimi Hendrix, The Nice, Jethro Tull and Tina Turner.

Edited: Alikivi   May 2025

Link to previous interview with Tony from February 2021 >>>

LUCKY MAN – part one, with North Shields actor & musician Tony Hodge. | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

SOUTH SHIELDS SCHOOL DAZE with former Westoe pupils Ian Taylor & Malcolm Jensen

/ Alikivi

These recollections are from two former pupils who attended Westoe County Secondary School over 50 years ago. The South Shields school was on Iolanthe Terrace and closed down in the 1980s. It had a fearsome reputation amongst schools in the town.

MJ: You could walk past the outdoor toilets, get nabbed and have your head stuffed down the bog with the chain flushed. Plumes of smoke rose from the roofless toilets – I made a Prefect report on the smokers. I knew if I did, they’d kick my head in.

New boys could be thrown over the 6ft wall into the girls school next door. They were unable to climb back over as the girls would de-bag (pull trousers down) them and threaten them with used sanitary products.

Our most dreaded teacher had a bald head onto which he applied some strange lotion that left him wafting carpet cleaner as he went by. Pupils hidden at a distance would shout his nickname whenever he went by in the playground and he’d produce a little note book and jot in it pretending that he knew the culprit to be dealt with later.  

He was once seen kneeling in front of his desk as if it were a sacred shrine. He told the kids he had his hair pulled out in a Japanese prisoner of war camp during the second world war. Other teachers told us to ignore him.

IT: There was obvious staff room conflict regarding his sadistic attitude to the kids and over use of the cane. I recall our English teacher deriding him to us a few times. I remember teachers rowing with him in the dinner hall on a couple of occasions.

MJ: We had an equally dread teacher, when you went into his classroom you’d stay absolutely silent throughout. Although sober he was like an inebriated Oliver Reed on a live chat show, you were on edge from the start fearing his unpredictable behaviour as he’d make it clear from the start, behave or he’d ‘crease you’ or ‘ruddy do you’.

IT: He was a terrifying man, well built with little patience, and there’d be a sudden burst of anger to any pupil he perceived to be play acting – as if anyone would dare – or gave the wrong answer during the lesson.

He kicked my desk on one occasion and it lifted a couple of feet in the air. I was terrified when he started walking towards me and feared he would lay into me.

MJ: Then there was another teacher who’d top up his earnings as a taxi driver. After handing out maths books he’d write out 10 sums on the board complete with answers and get us to copy them out then tell us to do the next 10 on our own.

We couldn’t do any to save our life so when we handed our books in for marking he’d mark the first 10 as correct and the other 10 with a cross. If you dared go to his desk and ask for help in doing one of the remaining sums he’d look up from his newspaper and say ‘Go away – you’re barmy.’

IT: I don’t remember him ever smiling. He was a humourless man. Seemed to me to be just waiting for retirement.

MJ: We only ever went on one school trip early one Saturday morning, a coach trip to Fountains Abbey. From the moment we left we were rowdy and when someone threw a shoe out the window after 20 minutes the teacher had the coach turn round and that was that.

Whenever rumours went round in an afternoon that nearby school Ocean Road were coming round at home time to scrap with us we’d break legs off wooden chairs in preparation but they never once turned up. The teachers never understood why in the morning they’d find all the chairs broken.

We once got involved in an inter-schools quiz – a posh lot turned up as challengers. We thought we’d have no chance but they weren’t all that hot and somehow we had equal scores right up to the last and potential winning question.

‘What sport is played at St Andrews?’ An arm shot up from one of ours. ‘Football’. ‘Incorrect’ came back the answer, they answered ‘Golf’.

We didn’t know about golf at St Andrews only that Birmingham City’s ground was another St Andrews. We wanted our hands on the winners but they received a hurried escort out the building.

IT: The fact that there are no Westoe School class photos  spoke of the low value attached to schooling and futures of those in the lower education system. I reckon there must have been a Caning League mentality amongst some of the staff and a culture in which status was earned based on flair or disciplinary prowess. Maybe some had a City & Guilds qualification in caning. Perhaps the staff room walls were plastered with framed certificates.

MJ: When the school closed down I wonder if they left all their canes behind in a cupboard?

Ian Taylor & Malcolm Jensen

Edited by Alikivi   May 2025

SHORT BACK & SIDES  – with South Shields veteran barber Vernon Gray.

/ Alikivi / 3 Comments

A post on this site back in December 2019 featured memories of Billy Roberts, known locally as Billy Meths (link below). They were written by a 63 year old South Shields resident operating under the pseudonym Tinwhistler.

Recently he got in touch about another well known character from the town somebody who could be in the Guinness book of records.

79 year old Vernon Gray lives in Washington, Tyne & Wear and for four days a week works as a barber at Westoe Bridges in South Shields.

Vernon Gray in his barber shop, South Shields.

‘According to research on the Internet I’m the joint longest surviving barber in the UK! The other fella is 3 years my junior so I’m at least the longest surviving senior barber in the land!’

‘I left school at 15 year old and started as an apprentice way back in 1961. My mother was a hairdresser so that gave me the motivation. I learnt my trade at Melvins on Dean Road, South Shields. Neighbouring businesses were Quigleys, Robertsons who were both fruit and veg and Tissemans the watchmakers and jewellers.’

‘I was at Melvins for a year and a half and then did about a year with Norman Craig at my current Westoe Bridges address. Then went on to do a further two years or so with Ross Neal who had two shops – one at Gaskell Avenue and the other at Whiteleas Way. When Norman Craig retired, he offered me first refusal on the Westoe Bridges business. That was in November 1968’.

‘My favourite part of being a barber is meeting and chatting to customers and members of the public. The hardest part is often having to stand for up to 4 hours per shift without a break. If yer wondering, it’s my sister who cuts my hair!’

Having a bad start to the day or dealing with some awkward customers has brought challenging moments, Verne remembers a couple of incidents.

‘I recall a situation during a Christmas period, the last customer of the day. ‘What are we having?’ I asked. ‘You tell me’ he replied. ‘It doesn’t work like that’ I stated. His reply was that he didn’t like my attitude. I then removed my gown and told him to fuck off! ‘You’re losing money’ was his response and he left the shop’.

‘On tidying up I noticed he’d left an XXL sweater behind, so, hoping he’d return for it I held onto it. I would have asked for a description of it so as to confirm ownership. He never returned but I had a response prepared to say that it wasn’t an XXL but an FB – Fat Bastard.’

‘One morning I turned up possibly not quite alert. I opened the shop up and when I went over to the chair, I suddenly kicked a brick on the floor. ‘That’s funny’ I thought, ‘I don’t remember putting that there.’ Turns out some likely pissed lout had thrown it though the shop window during the night and I hadn’t noticed the massive hole in the window.’

One customer of Verne’s didn’t want a haircut he requested a singing barber.

‘That would be when local town celeb and friend Wavis O’Shave had a non-musical troupe called The Borestiffers. He talked me into being recorded singing ‘Obladi Oblada’ in the shop after hours. Under his instruction I played the scissors, clippers and hair drier. He put it on a cassette album!’

‘Wavis would call me ‘Sweeney’ for fun and when I once went to Malta I saw a barbers there actually called ‘Sweeneys’ which I found amusing.’

The scorching heat during summer 1976 brought some unwanted guests to the shop.

‘Three whopping great rats had come out of Hornsby’s bike shop garage next door to my shop. They hid under a parked car so I’m told and then trooped into my packed out shop which emptied in a second. Two blokes tried to hit them with rolled up newspapers and I came out armed with scissors and a trimmer. I saw two fellas who I knew sitting on the nearby wall and asked if they’d sent them in!’

Verne talked about today’s barbers and his plans for the future.

‘Modern day barbers have their place and seem to suit people. I’m not interested in offering advice to them as this is a totally different era. For me, I never thought of quitting. The job suits my personality.’

Original interview by Tinwhistler.

Edited by Alikivi  May 2025.

Link to feature on Billy Meths >>>

BILLY’S STORY -The artist formerly known as Meths. | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

OPPORTUNITY KNOCKED for musician Chris Morris

/ Alikivi

There is a saying that you make your own luck, I’ve found that to be true and this story underlines that. Throughout his life Chris Morris made the most of his opportunities and still is today. He still has a passion for music.

From the 70s to the early 90s Chris was playing in various line up’s of pop band Paper Lace. “However, in the new millennium I decided it was time to concentrate on writing and pursue a solo career. In 2020, I teamed up with fellow songwriter and singer Mark Aynsley Hay – together we have written over thirty new songs”.

Chris Morris & Mark Aynsley Hay

When growing up in Nottingham Chris’ only ambition was to be a musician and his mother fully supported him by buying him a guitar and encouraging him to enter into talent competitions, but his father had other ideas. Chris remembers him asking ‘when are you going to get a proper job?’

A young Chris focused on forming a three-piece band and worked the pubs and clubs around the Nottingham area. One of the first bands was ‘Infant’, the name reflected the fact that the members were so young.

His reputation as a guitarist and singer spread throughout the music industry and opportunities were presented that were too good to turn down. First, he was asked to play guitar and sing backing vocals for 60’s pop legend Billy Fury – then by 1973 he had joined Paper Lace. His mother’s enthusiasm and encouragement had paid off.

Paper Lace

The original line-up was Philip Wright on drums/lead vocals, Mick Vaughan on lead and rhythm guitar, Cliff Fish on bass and Chris Morris on guitar and vocals. In the 70s a few bands had drummers who were also lead vocalists and programmes like Top of the Pops positioned them at the front of the stage.

Their big break came when Paper Lace won TV talent show ‘Opportunity Knocks’ broadcast on ITV with regular audience figures of 7 million. The entertainment show was the forerunner of today’s X Factor and Britain’s Got Talent.

Based on their television success the band released ‘Billy Don’t Be A Hero’ in March 1974.The single spent three weeks at number 1 in the UK charts.

Chris recalls “I was 18 years old still very naive when Paper Lace had their first number one record in the charts. I’d never been on a tour bus never mind on an aeroplane and the band were booked for a six week tour of Australia – the plane journey seemed to take forever”.

“During the flight I had no concept of time and distance. Two members of the band seemed to be very worldly and connoisseur in cuisine compared to myself and bassist Cliff Fish. We were two boys who preferred our mothers home made Yorkshire pudding, meat, potato and two veg.”

“The inflight menu offered a choice between salad and curry and other dishes that I’d never heard of. I didn’t like lettuce and tomato so I asked the stewardess for the curry. The flight was long possibly 22 hours with one refuelling stop”.

“After dozing off all I remember is that every time I opened my eyes it seemed to be time for food again. I was very reluctant to try anything else on the menu so I just asked for curry again. I’m not exaggerating when I say that during that flight I must have had at least four curries”.

“We finally landed, were picked up at the airport in pop star style and taken to a luxurious hotel. A porter took our bags and we followed him in the elevator. That’s when nature took over”.

“I sneezed and the worst happened which needs no description. I’ll leave that to the imagination of the readers. Let’s just say it was an incident that would never be used by our publicity team”.

Chris & Phil Wright on Top of the Pops.

Following on from the success of ‘Billy Don’t Be A Hero’ was ‘The Night Chicago Died’. A song about a shoot out between American gangster Al Capone and the Chicago police. The single reached number 3 in the UK charts. In America it reached number 1 – the single was awarded a gold disc.

Later that year a third release ‘The Black-Eyed Boys’, took Paper Lace to number 11 in the UK and number 37 in the American charts.

Chris pulls out more memories from his time in Paper Lace ”During our Australian tour the band were flown to different venues in an aircraft which could only now be described as vintage. It had two side propellers and looked like something from the 1960’s TV program the Australian Flying Doctor”.

“This was 1974, and although I was a smoker in those days I’d never seen anyone smoking or using soft drugs. We noticed the pilot was rolling his own cigarettes which carried a distinctive smell. He was obviously smoking cannabis or marijuana or as the Aussies would say “that funny French stuff”.

“Needless to say, I was nervous every time we flew and considering the flights were always very close to the ground, I was a little worried that the curry syndrome could happen again”. 

“One good thing about flying close to the ground is that I saw lots of beautiful wild animals that I would never have seen had the plane flew at the normal altitude”.

“To finish on a lighter note, in the hotel we all had our own room with a balcony overlooking the pool. There was a beautiful looking parrot which would fly around the pool every day”.

“Each morning it would land on our balconies expecting food. I would give the parrot some food and sing ‘Billy Don’t Be Hero’ in the hope it might repeat our hit to following guests. It never did, or maybe I never heard it, I’ll never know”.

“Looking back one of my proudest career moments was when I invited my parents to see me perform at the Royal Variety performance in front of her Majesty the Queen Mother in 1975”.

R to L. Chris Morris, Mark Aynsley Hay and Malcolm Rescorle just finished a recording session.

Final words from Chris “I’m a very fortunate man, but if you’re listening Dad, I’ve still not found a proper job!”

For further information or listen to a compilation of music by Chris Morris & Mark Aynsley Hay plus family, friends and associates check out the official website >>>

chrismarkmusic.com | The joint music of Mark Aynsley Hay and Chris Morris

Check out the interview with Mark Aynsley Hay, March 2025.

Alikivi   May 2025

GEORDIE HUNT SABS BENEFIT GIG

/ Alikivi

All needles are gonna be in the red zone at Newcastle Trillians this Sunday for the Geordie Hunt Sabs benefit gig. Sin City Rockers, Extinction of Mankind, Cazimi and Bastard Face are the four face peeling punk bands who’ve promised this’ll be the only show in town.

GHS member Rosie Brock “We are really grateful to all the bands who dedicated their effort and time to the upcoming gig”.

The GHS recently received some great news as they are now officially approved by the Hunt Saboteurs Association.

“After our hard work we have been recognised for our dedication and commitment to protesting wildlife and taking direct action against bloodsports. We’re proud to stand alongside other HAS groups in the UK” explained Rosie.

Throughout the summer the GHS continue their vital animal rights work by fundraising. On the door for the gig is £10 for this important cause.

“All the money that we raise now goes towards keeping us on the road, we need petrol and money for repairs after tyres are slashed and windows broken. Be part of the resistance on Sunday May 4th at Trillians in Princess Square, Newcastle”.

Further insight to the work of the Geordie Hunt Sabs >>>

HOWAY THE SABS – GEORDIE HUNT SABOTEURS WANT YOU | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

GIVE THE FOX ANOTHER GUN – with Geordie Hunt Saboteurs member Rosie Brock | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

GIVE THE FOX A GUN – with Teesside musician Bob Campbell | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK CULTURE

Alikivi   April 2025

CHASING THE RAINBOW – new album from North Tyneside musician Phil Caffrey

/ Alikivi

‘Chasing the Rainbow’ is my debut solo album and at the age of 72 I feel a real sense of achievement to have done this explained Phil. I first made music in 1959 when I was 7 year old with my two brothers Pete who was 10 and Paul who was 5. We’d give concerts in our parent’s garden, we loved singing in harmony. I’ve been so fortunate to make music with my brothers.

Arbre were signed to DJM records in 1975 and released two albums and four singles in the mid to late 70’s. By the 2000s The Caffrey Brothers formed and released four CD’s.

Phil added Lately I’ve worked with a number of musicians and recorded a new album in Stuart Emerson’s studio. The first track Rollin Thunder is about how life can be frantic and not having time to take stock. It can also be about how the weather is changing and we need to do something before it is too late.

The Lion Share is about someone who wants and takes more out of a relationship and Measure asks questions as somethings are not always easy to work out or see. There are things that are difficult to measure, love being one of them.

Meet Me in Heaven is about meeting someone somewhere at sometime, maybe in the future. Final track Chasing the Rainbow is about striving to reach a goal in life. I think we are all chasing a rainbow of some description.

Musicians on the album are Phil Caffrey – lead vocal, backing vocals and acoustic guitar. Stuart Emerson  – acoustic and electric guitars, bass, piano, keyboards and backing vocals. Paul Smith – drums, percussion and congas. Michael Bailey – bass guitar, Rachael Bailey – accordion and violin.

For more information contact The Caffreys on social media/facebook. The CD is also available on all music platforms to download or stream.

Alikivi   April 2025

A SPOONFUL OF WILLIE DIXON – new album from Teesside’s Rhythm & Blues singer Emma Wilson

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Following on from the success of her debut in 2022 ‘Wish Her Well’ and the highly acclaimed 2023 release ‘Memphis Calling’, which was recorded at Sam Phillips Recording Studios in Memphis, Teesside singer Emma Wilson releases her third album ‘A Spoonful of Willie Dixon’.

The recording is always a joyous experience and not like work at all said Emma if I could be in the studio every day of my life I would – well so long as I could gig in the evenings!

After recording Willies’ Hoochie Coochie Ma (ma) on ‘Memphis Calling’ – prompting pianist Archie ‘Hubbie’ Turner from the Hi-Rhythm Section to exclaim “She’s not from Middlesbrough, she’s from Mississippi!” Emma was inspired to sing more of Dixon’s songs and record them with her British band. 

Even though I have a distribution deal with ‘Select-O-Hits’ and a great publicist in Frank Roszak, I do the rest of the work myself regarding the release of the record, such as PRS, PPL, coding, mastering and publishing which I have had to teach myself – I’m like my own record company.

Returning to her beloved Memphis in May 2024, Emma performed at the inaugural Riverbeat festival with The Bo-Keys – who’s bandleader Scott Bomar produced ‘Memphis Calling’.

The Riverbeat Festival in Memphis was amazing, it’s held right beside the Mississippi in Tom Lee Park, I felt so thrilled to be there, even checking into the backstage was an experience. I think I was the only British artist there, you become a bit of a novelty “Wow you’re from England!”

Everyone was very welcoming particularly the musicians I played with – Scott Bomar – who produced my album ‘Memphis Calling’. My pal Archie ‘Hubbie’ Turner who also played piano on ‘Memphis Calling’ and the wonderful Bo-Keys.

The stage was openair and even though the heat was sultry there was a cool breeze coming off the river giving it an even more cinematic atmosphere, everything felt sort of slowed down, or maybe that was me trying to take it all in or the ‘Purple Rain’ wine Hubbie gave me!

The audience was vast and I was buzzing to get on. In fact, when we did What Kind Of Love it lasted so long I think we played the 12 inch remix! I also got to watch all the other bands from the VIP area including The Fugees who were pretty spectacular.   

Emma then drove down the Blues Highway to Clarksdale to sing at the legendary Ground Zero Club at the invitation of the Pinetop Perkins Foundation. 
Playing at Ground Zero the iconic club in Clarksdale, Mississippi – which is owned by Morgan Freeman – was a different experience again. It’s a super cool club seating around 300. I was invited to sing at the annual fundraiser the Pinetop Perkins Crawfish Boil.

I performed with the Pinetoppers – students from the Pinetop Perkins Foundation – they were fantastic, full of soul, groove and most of all blues. Backstage they asked so what do you want to play? got a key? got a groove?

Look out for Harrell ‘Young Rell’ Davenport, Danny ‘Guitarwood’ Garwood, Wyly Bigger and Six String Andrew, they really are the blues stars of the future. 

We played five blues standards including House of the Rising Sun where I managed to get in a plug about being from the North East of England and mentioning The Animals.

The club itself is great, it looks like a really old vintage venue with cool graffiti on the walls, flags hanging from the ceiling and long wooden tables which the gorgeous waitresses seem to glide between serving beer and wings.

It’s a special place and I loved it. Everyone should go to Memphis and Clarksdale it’s easy just drive down the Blues Highway.

Emma & Hubbie Turner at Riverbeat Festival, Memphis.

You have a few UK gigs scheduled – anymore in the pipeline?

Yes, we have a lot in the UK and more coming in all the time, thanks to the new album release which has boosted our profile. We have a headline at the Texel Blues Festival in the Netherlands, I’m also going to Germany to do some guest spots and then back to USA to promote the record in September.

‘Good to the Last Drop’ 2025 UK tour dates >>>

Saturday 21 June ‘Blues & Soul Revue’ + Trevor Sewell & Lola-Rose, Hutton Rudby village hall, North Yorks. 7:30pm

Tuesday 24 June ‘Bletchley Blues Club’ special guest Terry Marshall (sax) Bletchley, Milton Keynes. 8pm

Sunday 13 July ‘Flying Circus’, Newark. 4pm

Tuesday 29 July ‘The 100 club’, London. 8pm + Thomas Heppell

Sunday 3 August ‘Tyne bar’, Newcastle 4pm

Saturday 9 August “Blues & Soul Revue” + Robin Bibi & Lola-rose Hutton Rudby village hall, North Yorks 7:30pm

Saturday 13 September ‘Flying Circus’ ‘Not the Newark Blues Fest’ 4pm

Friday 10th October Texel Blues Festival, Netherlands

Friday 17 October ‘Crawdaddy club’ The Turk’s Head, Twickenham 8pm

Sunday 7th December Looe Blues Festival, Plymouth

Thursday 18 December ‘Leeds blues club’ Christmas party.

For further information contact >>>

emmawilsonmusicuk@gmail.com             

www.emmawilson.net

Instagram : EmmaWilsonMusicUK                      

Facebook : EmmaWilsonMusicUK

Alikivi   April 2025

DRAWING NEWCASTLE’S LIT & PHIL – with Blyth born cartoonist David Haldane

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David Haldane appearing at the Lit & Phil, Newcastle on 23 April 2025.

David Haldane’s work has appeared in a number of national newspapers including Punch, The Express, Mirror, Guardian, Telegraph, Daily Mail and The Times. On Wednesday 23rd April he is booked at Newcastle’s Lit &Phil where he will be sharing stories from his life.

Now living in Morpeth he said “It’s been an incredible 50 or so years learning about drawing cartoons and then creating them for the leading newspapers and magazines in the country.”

Born in 1954, David started his career in the 70s working for the Shields Gazette “I was working for the art department at the Gazette. I received my first pay packet there, every Friday, in cash. It was so busy with three editions of the paper every day. It was like Fleet Street!”

During the 1980s David contributed sketches to the original series of Spitting Image. Now retired from The Times, his latest cartoons regularly appear in the satirical magazine Private Eye.

Playwright Ed Waugh is hosting the evening at the Lit & Phil “I’ve known David for over 20 years and he’s both very sharp and very funny. You have to be to create top-class satirical cartoons every day, often at very short notice, for national newspaper front pages”.

He continued “David’s career stories are both deep and hilarious. It will be a fantastic evening for people who want a laugh and those who want to find out about some of the stories behind the many thousands of tremendous cartoons David has created and had published.” 

Tickets for the Lit & Phil are only £5 and can be bought on line 

https://www.litandphil.org.uk/event/david-haldane-in-conversation-with-ed-waugh/ 

or via (0191) 232 0192.

The Blyth Library event is on Monday, May 12, and tickets are available from 

Blyth Library – David Haldane In Conversation with Ed Waugh Tickets, Mon, May 12, 2025 at 6:00 PM | Eventbrite

David will also be staging his ‘Evening With’ at The Word, South Shields on September 24 and at Gosforth Civic Theatre on September 30.

Alikivi  April  2025