VINCENT J. EDWARDS

HANDS OFF – with former South Shields singer & songwriter Vincent J.Edwards

/ Alikivi / 1 Comment

Now living in Ulm southern Germany, Vinny Edwards (Back Where We Started From, Love Hit Me, I Can’t Turn Back Time) spends time watching the sunset over the river Danube while recalling his youth living in South Shields.

In the music video for his song Hands Off are photographs of Vinny and his mates heading home after a night out at local club The Majestic, South Shields.

“They were fun nights listening to great dance music. We’d also pop in for a couple of pints in The Marine pub on Ocean Road near to where I was born. Most of the lads in the picture were around 17 year old and worked in the shipyards.” recalls Vinny.

The single was recorded by Vinny and the Survivors however a previous band he was in called The Invictors are pictured in the video playing in La Strada club, South Shields in 1963.

“The Invictors played every Sunday lunchtime. The atmosphere was like a posh workingmen’s club”.

Hands Off is a change from Vinny Edwards usual output of pop and Northern soul. 

“It was a sort of protest song – the Government, war, politics, the same rubbish news as people are protesting about today really. I wrote and recorded the song in the late 70s at PYE studios. The single was released in the UK on PYE records. It also got a European release on the Hans label and was in Germany, Belgium and Holland. Yeh happy days, loved that time. I’ve still got roots in South Shields. My brother has an allotment in Westoe. He sends me photos. They have great sunsets as well”.

Link to ‘Hands Off’ >>> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYluCqVg4wA

Alikivi   September 2025

I CAN’T TURN BACK TIME with Vincent J. Edwards

/ Alikivi

South Shields born Vinny Edwards has featured on this site a few times. Type his name in the search bar for previous write ups about his time in the music biz including international chart hit Back Where We Started From which reached #2 in the USA and #8 in the UK. Recently he got in touch and told me another story about one of his songs.

I was living in a flat in Wandsworth in London when I wrote and recorded I Can’t Turn Back Time in 1967. It was my second solo single for United Artists after The Answers broke up. We recorded the A and B side The Lively One at Olympic studios within three hours can you believe!

The B side was used for a commercial for Texaco petrol in the UK and USA. I Can’t Turn Back Time was played mostly on the pirate radio stations London and Caroline. I believe it charted on both stations it also broke into some Northern Soul charts.

In America it was released under the name Tim Love on the Ascot label so I would not be confused with the American actor Vince Edwards who played Dr Ben Casey in the TV series. It was just after this I changed my name to J Vincent Edwards. The ‘J’ I took from Jarra or Jarrow if you were posh.

Later there were two more records on United Artists – County Durham Dream and Aquarius then along came the musical ‘Hair’ and a new record company CBS. They were crazy happy days for a 22year old lad from South Shields’ Ocean Road school.

Link to the American release on the Ascot record label of ‘I Can’t Turn Back Time’

>>> https://youtu.be/79W6RtoJjDM?si=IGSL09KbaSvNN57v

Alikivi   September 2025

COUNTY DURHAM DREAM with South Shields born singer & songwriter Vinny Edwards

/ Alikivi
Vincent Edwards.

From his home in Germany, Edwards recently got in touch and talked about his career in the music biz.

Earlier posts have featured his 1976 chart hit Right Back Where We Started From and his smash in Europe Love Hit Me.

Vinny was brought up in the seaside town of South Shields where he listened to the ‘60s sounds of Sam Cooke before he joined his first band The Invictors.

Then he joined The Answers who recorded two singles and were managed by Tony Stratton Smith.

‘Just after The Answers parted, amicably I might add, United Artists record company signed me and I went into a studio in Tin Pan Alley, London and recorded the track ‘County Durham Dream’, that was 1967.

In fact it was the first song I wrote when I left South Shields, it reminds me as a kid every day at Shields beach looking out to sea – still makes me emotional’.

’Recording in the studio on drums we had the great Clem Cattini, on guitar was Big Jim Sullivan who later played with Elvis. Loved that time.

You know ‘County Durham Dream’ achieved everything I wanted – it opened lots of doors and most of all let me know where I come from, still does now’.

The choice for the b-side ‘It’s the Same Old Song’ was written by Holland/Dozier/Holland. During the ‘60s they were the masters of Motown who wrote classics recorded by Marvin Gaye, The Supremes, Martha & the Vandellas and The Four Tops to name a few.

‘This led me to the next single which was ‘Aquarius’. That record was also on United Artists and I got a contract to open the musical ‘Hair’ at the Shaftesbury Theatre, London’.

Hair is a musical focusing on the long haired hippie culture and sexual revolution of the late ‘60s.

The focus is a tribe of politically active hippies living a bohemian lifestyle in New York City fighting against conscription to the US army and the Vietnam war.

The show has been staged worldwide with a Broadway revival in 2009, a West End revival in 2010 and in 2019 the production staged a UK tour.

‘That 18 month run was the greatest time of my life. There was Paul Nicholas, Elaine Page, Maxine Nightingale – who sang my hit, ‘Right Back Where We Started From’. Tim Curry was in with Olivier Tobias, Marsha Hunt, Sonja Christina and many more’.

‘I remember the opening night like it was yesterday – I danced with Princess Anne on stage. Yeah ‘Hair’ led to more show biz doors opening as a performer, writer and record producer. It’s still performed around the world today. Check it out on You Tube’.

Link to previous interviews:

RUN TO THE SUN with South Shields born singer & songwriter Vincent Edwards | ALIKIVI : NORTH EAST UK (garyalikivi.com)

Interview by Alikivi June 2021