MEET THE RAPIERS! The line-up, left to right: Colin Pryce-Jones (lead guitar, vocals), Nathan J. Hulse (bass, vocals), Neil Ainsby (rhythm guitar, vocals), John Tuck (drums). Also: Dave Lawes (rhythm guitar, vocals).
16 December 2009
Rave Men Rave Friday in London
CALLING ALL BEAT-INCLINED LONDONERS: Only 48 hours to Friday's Beat Bonanza benefiting cancer research with Rapier Neil Ainsby and former Rapier Brad Dallaston joining ex-Kaisers Matt and Johnny in The Rave Men, at London's Boston Music Room, 178 Junction Road, Tufnell Park. Tickets only £8.50. Details here.
Jot it down as the first ever co-mingling of two beloved combos, truly brothers in British '60s Beat. Plus you'll get to witness (Shazam!) our Neil handling lead guitar duties, surely worth the price of admission. During breaks, Rapiers and Kaisers producer Liam Watson spins sides. And there's a twist contest. Sounds a right gas.
Rapiers Join Hit Parade Heroes for Spring
Perusing our lads' busy 2010 spring calendar, I spy the appropriately heralded Hit Parade Heroes with John Leyton and Jet Harris on tap Saturday, 6 March at the Thameside Theatre, Grays, Essex, a fine double-header dose of early '60s Pop Britannia backed by The Rapiers.
Tickets: £18.00. Box office: 0845 300 5264.
Here's hoping currently sidelined Jet makes that date.
07 December 2009
27 November 2009
23 November 2009
Rapiers Advertised as "Most Authentic" '60s Band
Well, it ain't bragging if you can back it up, swings the old swaggerism.
Scan the promotion for Made in Britain from the Villa Marina & Gaiety Theatre, Douglas, Isle of Man, which hosts the production on 28 November.
"Backed by the world's most authentic '60s band... The Rapiers."Oi! That oughta put an extra step in your winkle-picker.
22 November 2009
Standing Ovation for Jet the Soldier
Scrubbed from last night's bill at Warners Bembridge Hotel on the Isle of Wight to focus on his treatment for cancer, Jet Harris nevertheless made a mighty, impromptu appearance, reports Nathan J. Hulse.
"Even though he wasn't getting paid, he still made the effort to turn up and watch us. He performed Theme for Something Really Important and his No. 1, Diamonds. Just two songs, but the crowd gave him a standing ovation. I think they saw the great effort Jet put in to be there. He clearly wasn't feeling in tip-top condition, but that didn't stop him putting in a sterling performance.
"Well done, Jet. He expects to be back on form and the road next year. We look forward to it."
From eyewitness Audrey Knapp, commenting on the ShadowMusic forum: "... the audience were thrilled when Colin Pryce-Jones announced that Jet hadn't wanted to let them down, despite being unwell... Jet got up on stage to cheers from the audience... It was a very emotional moment for everyone. Jet's partner, Janet, and I both had tears in our eyes to see Jet back where he belongs. Even though Jet is feeling very weak and still has more chemotherapy to undergo, he played brilliantly and everyone in the audience leapt to their feet to give Jet a much deserved standing ovation. When Jet came back to sit down at our table he, too, was almost in tears. A very special night! What a trooper!"
NB: Details on the show's audio set-up and peculiar issues at Nathan's The Rapiers Sound blog... Frustratingly fascinating, year-old Daily Mail article on reunited Shadows not inviting Jet to 2009-2010 tour with Sir Cliff Richard.
21 November 2009
Rockin' on the IOW
The joys of Twittering and Facebooking: 3 hours ago Nathan H. Hulse reported the lads en route to Portsmouth to catch a ferry over the Solent to the Isle of Wight for a show at Warners Bembridge Hotel supporting singer Kytsun Wolfe, subbing for Jet Harris, sidelined the past few months while undergoing cancer treatment. Get well, Jet!
19 November 2009
18 November 2009
Made in Britain by The Rapiers, Douglas, Halliday & King
Courtesy YouTuber-in-the-seats 19betty50, let's preview The Rapiers' current touring show Made in Britain at its October visit to the Wyllyotts Theatre, Potters Bar.
Quadruple duty is the order of the night for our lads, who knock out their own set, then back '60s pop singer Craig Douglas (who famously rode the UK Hit Parade covering American pop numbers like Only Sixteen, A Hundred Pounds of Clay, Pretty Blue Eyes), Steve Halliday as Cliff Richard and Michael King as Billy Fury.
Highlight of the clips quartet below? Surely Colin Pryce-Jones soloing hard on Nothin' Shakin', admitedly one of his all-time fave-rave British rockers.
Nothin' Shakin' (But the Leaves on the Tree)
Pretty Blue Eyes
Move It, Living Doll
Wonderful Land
Nathan J. Hulse Deconstructs The Rapiers Sound
Switch on!
If phrases like "output to house system via XLRs", "amplifying the whole back-line through the PA", "timing the guitar echo" and "jack connections" pump up your pulse rate, dive into Nathan J. Hulse's enlightening new blog The Rapiers Sound, nirvana for certified gearheads, boffins and lay persons curious how The Rapiers make their beautiful noise, improvise when gremlins get into the machinery, and swap out hardware based on venue acoustics, set list and other criteria.
Nathan doesn't mince words. Here's a candid excerpt from the post Doesn't just happen to The Rapiers Then:
In the past The Rapiers have done shows with one particular sound engineer who would switch microphones off. Quite a few will do this to stop instruments spilling into vocal mics and eliminate feedback due to too many mics being live. Most decent sound guys keep an eye on the performance and switch them on if they are required, sometimes missing the first word or so. This particular sound guy didn't just miss the first word or so, he'd miss the whole song. What is really worrying is the audience will think it's the band fault.
17 November 2009
Photo Call: A Shaker Meets The Rapiers in Lancashire
Backtracking to late summer finds fine Liverpudlian and Shakers sticksman Tony O'Keeffe with Nathan J. Hulse, John Tuck, Colin Pryce-Jones and Neil Ainsby at Marine Hall in the seaside resort of Fleetwood, Lancashire (10 miles north of Blackpool) on 14 August, where The Rapiers delivered their Made in Britain stageshow starring '60s singer Craig Douglas, Michael King as Billy Fury and Steven Halliday as Cliff Richard.
Rapiers+Kaisers=Ravemen Beat Super Group?
Now word of this Uber Beat Bonanza is leaking out: The deliciously monikered Ravemen (scheduled to feature our Neil, ex-Rapiers bassist Brad Dallaston, Kaiser Johnny and Kaiser Matt) play a one-off show for charity at the Boston Music Room (aka Boston Arms aka Dirty Water Club), 178 Junction Road near the Tufnell Tube, on 18 December. Why even boss producer Liam "Toe Rag" Watson will be spinning wax for the punters.
Basic details here and at a Kaisers MySpace outpost. Stay tuned for more. NB: Kaiser George Miller did the groovy flyer artwork.
Dave Lawes Parts With Fender Amp Heard on "Breakfast at the Ace", Now Prefers to Twang With Vox
My oh-so-bad.
Before I could tip the wider world, founding Rapier Dave Lawes put up for eBay auction his "Silver Face" Fender Twin Reverb amp, the same hardware that featured on early Rapiers EPs, the LPs Straight to the Point, 1961 and Return of The Rapiers, live gigs and four years backing Freddie Garrity.
Winning bid was £370.
Says Fender-less Dave: "I need the space now, and we have switched to Vox anyway."
From his original eBay post, we learnt:
"I bought this amplifier in 1984 and it has been used exclusively by me with the premier early sixties band The Rapiers until recently when we switched to Vox. I fitted Celestion G12 H speakers in 1988 and they have been extremely reliable ever since. The amp was overhauled by Fender about six years ago, and has had a recent health check from legendary "Shadows enthusiast" Geoff Strachan. I replaced all valves about four years ago. The reverb needs replacing, and I don't have the original footswitch any longer. Additionally the vib trem is not working at the moment. The amp itself is in reasonable condition for the age, considering the amount of use it has had. It has been and is incredibly reliable, it is very loud, clear and has a lovely, rich, well-balanced tone."
03 October 2009
Fashion Sense: Pirates v Beatles
Sir Neil Ainsby graciously accompanied me to see Cliff Richard and The Shadows' "Final Reunion" stop Monday night at London's O2 Arena, the former Millennium Dome, next to the North Greenwich Tube on the Jubilee line.
Two happy-go-lucky-local-blokes (hearing the originators of Shadoogie and We Say Yeah will do that), here are we are during the interval. Seems I'm displaying a Johnny Kidd-ish motif, whereas Neil fancies a black-on-black Beatles '65-ish get-up. Photo by fellow Rapiers and Shadows fan Linda Krokou.
Rewind 90 minutes, and here's a look 'round the O2 ground floor queues and merchandising, commentary by Neil.
30 September 2009
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning in Madrid
Hola, muchachos y muchachas!
Forget my 96-hour mini-break-to-Madrid-and-London details for un momento, massive travel, passport and equipment snafus for our lads, let's jump right in with the burgundy-suited Rapiers y Los Madrilenos locos at Festival Surforama, Club Gruta 77, Madrid, between (yawn!) 2 and 3:30 a.m. Sunday, 27 September 2009.First, behold the awesome rat-a-tat rhythm guitaring from Neil Ainsby, on a borrowed Fender Jaguar no less, bashing out The Snobs' reckless Buckleshoe Stomp. Que maravilloso!
Now don't be L7, come and learn to dance like they do in Madrid when Wooly Bully rears its head and shredmeister Colin Pryce-Jones transposes Sam the Sham sax solos for Stratocaster.
For Merseybeat's sake, they've got some Hippy, Hippy Shake, Rock and Roll Music and Money:
Nathan J. Hulse sings a lead on I'm a Hog for You Baby:
Full vocal throttle, Neil channels John Lennon on Do You Love Me:More fast rhythm guitar down to New Orleans:
For a mini-"Best of British" section, out comes Saturday Night at the Duckpond and the oh-so-rarely heard Baby Sittin', recorded for the Straight to the Point LP.
25 September 2009
23 September 2009
22 September 2009
British Music Experience at O2
"From Trad Jazz to pure Pop, get up close to original handwritten lyrics, famous outfits, instruments and other amazing personal artefacts from The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie, Sex Pistols, Culture Club, Motorhead, Stone Roses, The Spice Girls, Coldplay, Amy Winehouse and 100s more."Typically, not a mention of pre-Beatles rock 'n' roll in the marketing blurb; nevertheless, sounds like I'll do myself a BritCool favour to arrive at the O2 early Monday evening to sample the pop pickers promise of the BME, which, to its credit does feature photography exhibits like "Halfway to Paradise: The Birth of British Rock", so mustn't grumble.
21 September 2009
"Telstar" DVD Launch
Synchronistically, London's biker paradise the Ace Cafe gets the last public screening of the Joe Meek biopic Telstar—featuring Rapiers in walk-on parts—on Sunday, 27 September, 3 p.m, before the DVD—with additional scenes, extended performance clips and an "inside look" at director Nick Moran's directorial debut—goes on sale the next day.
British acting legend Rita Tushingham earns a Telstar credit as "Essex Medium", which brings things full circle, as she famously starred in director Sidney J. Fury's ultraboss early '60s Kitchen Sink teen drama The Leather Boys, filmed at the Ace.
Alas and alack, I won't make the Ace shebang. My consolation? Snagging a shrinkwrapped copy of Telstar at HMV's flagship Oxford Street store, assuming the release hits the shelves the day advertised.
96 Hours
Well, I've never been to Spain but I kinda like the music.
In fact, I'm jetting Friday night from San Francisco, on my father's birthday, landing at London Heathrow Saturday morning, waiting two hours, then boarding a flight to Madrid, where I'll be self-caffeinating until midnight, when Los Rapiers take the stage at Gruta 77, part of a Festival Surforama Weekend.
Next day I'm Channel-hopping right back to London to map out my London Monday, when I'll Tube it to the O2 Arena to see the last stand of Cliff Richard and The Shadows, est. 1959, a very good year.
Tuesday afternoon I'm skipping back to the West Coast, hoping the musical notes last a lifetime.
01 August 2009
Barbara Sue Ogarrio (Mama)
My mother died four weeks ago, on Saturday, July 4, 2009, her Independence Day, after battling and suffering cancer for three years. She was 76.
She died in Burleson, Texas, due south of Fort Worth (where she grew up), and 60 miles north of Whitney (where she moved with my father in 2004, after 50 years in California).
Day and night for two weeks, first at a hospital then a local hospice, my father, my brother and I had watched over her as she slowly withdrew from us and this world, a heartbreaking vigil relieved only by food and sleep.
Just after noon on that Saturday, she left us. A strong, hot wind was blowing outside, "carrying her soul to Heaven", I wrote.
No more doctors, no more hospitals, no more medicine, no more injections, no more treatment, no more options.
No more pain.
Free.
I loved her so much. I love her now.
I grieve every day.
Friends, work mates and family say the ache will subside, leaving only happy memories; it hasn't. Every day when I leave work I want to call Mama, tell her where I am on my drive home through San Francisco, my hometown. I can't.
I would trade one day of my own life for one more call.
Two months ago, on my birthday, May 9, I called Mama from a backstage corridor at the Amersham Rock 'n' Roll Club, between Rapiers sets at the North London venue. She must have been in pain but didn't let me know; she was cheerful and wished me happy birthday. By chance, or Providence, Colin Pryce-Jones happened to walk by. I thrust my mobile into his hand.
"Here, say hello to my mom," I said. They had never spoken. On occasion, away from musical topics, I told my mom how important Christian faith had become to Colin. In her later years, it was important to her, too.
"Hello, Greg's Mum," Colin said. "Are you a good Christian woman?"
I don't know what she replied. I was content they connected for that brief time, thousands of miles and continents apart, after so many years.
Music connected my mom and me.
She let me use her classical guitar when I first learned to play the instrument. She faithfully read my Rapiers email updates, even if Vox amps, Flamingo Pink and string gauges meant nothing to her.
Before I could legally drive a car, Mama kindly ferried me and my younger brother to record stores new and used around the Bay Area: San Jose, Redwood City, San Francisco. I loved those Saturday mornings, as a teenage record collecting passion took root, 45 by 45, LP by LP. Uncomplaining, she patiently sat in the car while we shopped for treasured vinyl. Although her own musical era was the '40s and '50s (Tommy Dorsey to Patti Page), she liked early '60s folk music (Peter, Paul and Mary, Joan Baez), Dion, Johnny Cash, Emmylou Harris and many records I brought home, especially by John Fogerty singing with Creedence Clearwater Revival: Proud Mary, Lookin' Out My Back Door, Bad Moon Rising. "They have a good rhythm," she said.
Two weeks before she died, while in a Fort Worth hospital, on a night when she and I talked of many things—her life, marriage, love, money, family, inspiration—she brought up rock 'n' roll and, specifically, how so many songs she remembered hearing referenced religion, "especially Bad Moon Rising... that's so much about Apocalyptic times", she said, in a hushed voice, almost a whisper.
"I think John Fogerty has always said it was about a werewolf," I said.
"No, it isn't," my mom insisted.
At the moment, blankly, I could recall only a few lines like "I see earthquakes and lighting, don't go 'round tonight", etc., even though I'd played that 45 over and over in my room. Online with my laptop I looked up lyrics I should have known by heart, shuddering that I'd forgotten the song's final verse: "Hope you got your things together, hope you are quite prepared to die..."
That night I couldn't bear to recite those words back to my mom; now, in retrospect, I feel she knew them anyway, because she had told me, my brother and my father that she knew she was going to die.
She was quite prepared. But I asked anyway, "Mama, are you afraid?"
"Of course I am."
On July 4, just after midnight, I awoke, I don't know why. I looked over to Mama, sleeping, breathing. "She made it to July 4, God, thank you," I thought. I fell back asleep on the sofa bed across from her hospital bed. Twelve hours later, perhaps waiting until her brother and nieces arrived to join my father, my brother, my wife and me did Barbara Sue ("Miss Barbara" to one of the hospice nurses) finally let go, and leave us.
I walked outside into the wind and cried.
My mom's final words a day or two earlier had been: "What on Earth?"
"Her life has just reshaped itself, it'll be all around you now," a friend later told me. Maybe with time I can understand.
Oh, Mama.
About the Artist
Barbara Sue Ogarrio taught art; she painted all her life. The image above, The Promise, is part of her "crowning achievement", a series of abstracts inspired by the Book of Revelation titled 21st Century Apocalpytic Visions, hanging in the Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. A quick glimpse is here.
Here are links to my mom's obituary in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram and a feature article on her life from the Half Moon Bay Review, based in the Northern California town where our family spent many years.
Reflection
I leave you with two beautiful performances from guitarist Marcelo Panzoni, who revisits two tracks from Colin's Guitar Heaven CD, Peaceful (with a backing track assist from Robby Januarsa) and Amazing Grace.
Rapiers Are Go!
Rapiers Links
Recent Posts
- Rave Men Rave Friday in London
- Rapiers Join Hit Parade Heroes for Spring
- Cheers to Our Nathan!
- Q: Where in the World Are The Rapiers Tomorrow?
- Rapiers Advertised as "Most Authentic" '60s Band
- Rapiers Calendar 2009-2010
- Standing Ovation for Jet the Soldier
- Q: Where in the World Are The Rapiers Tonight?
- Rockin' on the IOW
- Made in Britain Tour Dates 2009-2010
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Rapiers Favourites
- Ace Cafe London
Great English fry-ups on the North Circular, real Rapiersland. - Ace Records
Re-issuers of "1961", originally issued in 1987. - Amersham Rock 'n' Roll Club
See the stars up close and personal at this Buckinghamshire hot spot. - Fury Records
The rock 'n' roll specialty label behind most of The Rapiers' recordings. - James Wilsey
Chris Isaak's former lead guitarist melds Hank Marvin and Duane Eddy into his mix. - Joe Meek Society
Delve into the life and times of Britain's 1st independent record producer. - Joe Meek Yahoo! Group
Ongoing discussion of Meekdom news and happenings. - John Leyton
"Johnny Remember Me", "Wild Wild" and "Son This Is She" are his hits, spectacularly rendered by The Rapiers. - Kaisers
Musical kin to The Rapiers, pride of Scotland, Beatmeisters first class. - Liam Watson
White Coat proprietor of Toe Rag Studios, our lads' preferred recording studio. - Mike Berry
Another original from the Joe Meek stable of stars. - My Generation Yahoo! Group
Focusing on '60s BritPop stars like The Searchers. - Official Monster Raving Loony Party
Founded by Screaming Lord Sutch, OMRLP offers voters sense and sensibility at each by-election. - Palm Door Films
LA-based documentarians behind "A Life in the Death of Joe Meek". - Pipeline Magazine
The instrumental rock review also sponsors an annual Easter convention. - Shadow Music
Ground Zero for all things Shadows: music, comment, clubs and more. - Telstar The Movie
The Rapiers make bit cameos in director Nick Moran's 2009 biopic of the rise and fall of producer Joe Meek. - YouTube
Saving you the trouble of keying in "Rapiers".
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