RAPIERS ARE GO!

OT Triple Video Play: Beatles Classics

Peter Sellers recites A Hard Day's Night.

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Peter Cook and Dudley Moore wash up at the Ad Lav Club.

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The Beatles enter A Midsummer's Night's Dream.

Joe Meek Biopic Talent Call

Flash! Wanna be an extra in a film about the man who made Telstar, Johnny Remember Me and Have I the Right? Now's your chance.

Lookee what's on the Joe Meek Society website:

EXTRAS CASTING FOR ASPIRATION FILMS
We are looking for people of all ages to take part in an exciting new feature film: a '60s biopic chronicling the life of legendary music producer Joe Meek, adapted from Nick Moran's award-winning theatre production. Filming around London July and August. Please send or email a photograph of yourself with your contact details to [email protected], 61 Charlotte St., London, W1T 4PF.

NB: Photo of theatre sign taken outside London's New Ambassadors Theatre, July 2005

Great by Association

A London photo every day. Some pictures will be there for their own sake, some because they are places you may like to see, all because they are part of what makes London what it is. Requests welcome!

So promises the masthead of London Daily Photo, a Brit blog that does one thing and does it right: capture the spirit, character and panache of the Capital in a single, evocative image every 24 hours.

Wednesday's LDP post spotlighted a Rapiers hotspot, the venerable Ace Cafe. And, bless 'em, Rapiers Are Go! and our lads rate mentions, too.

A closely associated band [of the Ace] are The Rapiers, if you like rock 'n' roll you'll enjoy their music here or here. (And it looks like they link here, so they MUST be great).

Post o' the Week: Fore to the Beat

Quietly pinched off Neil Ainsby's MySpace comments scroll...

Hi, Neil:

I see that you are in The Rapiers. Heard a lot of good things about you from Liam Watson. If you ever need support at a gig, we would love to be on the same bill as we think you guys are fab.

Matt Hardy
The Fore

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If the sound of chiming Gretsch and Rickenbacker guitars, A Hard Day's Night- and Help!-style harmonies plus 1962 Hamburg spunk ignites your DNA, check out the Kent-based Fore. Definite pick to click: their luverly Love for Sale, illustrated in video form no less for Merseybeat dreamers.

Double Songbirds

Songbirds for a night, veteran studio singers Kay Garner and Sue Glover join Julie Gillingham and Imogen Miller Porter behind Billie Davis during Jet Harris and The Rapiers' Me and My Shadows date at the upcoming Somerton Arts Festival.

"Listen to Son of a Preacher Man—Kay was with Dusty Springfield for 15 years," says Billie D. "Listen to the doop-da-doop on Lou Reed's Walk on the Wild Side—that's Kay and Susie."

Live in Skeggy DVD Released

Quality is only "6 out of 10", I've no idea the source and I haven't seen it with my own eyes, but The Rapiers Black & White Days, a 21-song live set from Skegness circa 1991, just went on sale at Bim-Bam Records, the rock 'n' roll retail specialist based in Eastleigh, Hampshire.

Performances include classic instrumentals (Saturday Night at the Duckpond, The Savage, Green Jeans), two from The Pirates' book (Please Don't Touch, Growl), plus Baby Sittin' from The Rapiers' debut LP Straight to the Point. Line-up would be Colin Pryce-Jones, John Tuck, Dave Lawes and Brad Dallaston.

Only £10.00 plus postage. Order here. Hint: Scroll to bottom of page, plug in Rapiers in search field.

Press Clipping: Butlins Backstage

I know whence this uncredited image comes, reproduced in the March-April 2007 Joe Meek Society newsletter. I snapped it on my meek-ish 2.1 megapixel Canon digital camera after a Rapiers-John Leyton shindig on the England South Coast last fall.

For the record, here's my recollection of said evening:

Americans in Bognor Regis. Ha, ha!

Sounds incongruous, near twaddle to native Brits, but I stalk The Rapiers where I must, enduring yobs drinking, smoking and yammering in our train compartment down from London Victoria, near freezing, wind- and rain-swept pavement outside the Butlins gates, 90-minute taxi rides back to Notting Hill, London round midnight.

Mere trifles when I can savour two minutes of Buckleshoe Stomp firepower from Colin, Neil, Nathan and John during their precious two-song solo set before they welcome John Leyton to Butlins' downstairs stage during the camp's Festival of the '60s weekender.

Eight days removed and the jet lag hangover fading, I still have Neil's chopping, Mick Green-like chording attack and Colin's stinging, metallic soloing teasing my head. Plus those near maniacal, massed group vocals on the chorus.

"Lehhhhhhhhhhhtttttt's staaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmpppppp!"

Intoxicating.

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Press Clipping: Pryce-Joneses to the Rescue

Mark Newson wasn't enjoying his exile to the foyer at the Wyllyotts Theatre in Potters Bar back on 3 February during a tribute marking the 40th anniversary of the passing of producer Joe Meek.

In the latest ish of the Thunderbolt, the Joe Meek Society's quarterly magazine, Mark, its editor, throws a fair wobbler in print. Fortunately, some friendly faces from Rapierdom offer brief relief.

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Let's Hear Rapiers Do Rapiers

It's not always cracking tea and toast in Rapiersville.

"I think it is high time The Rapiers were recognised in their own right at theatre shows and should treat audiences to their own marvellous numbers," wails long-time Rapiers observer Ralph Gowling.

"I know from manning their merchandise table that fans often ask why The Rapiers don't do more material, especially original instrumentals, from their own CDs, either because they've heard the numbers and love them or because the track listings are a mystery and they want to hear them before making a purchase.

"My top choice would be Breakfast at the Ace—what a rollicking number to get the audience going. I'm hoping for an 'Oi!' or two of support. I declare this debate open."

Hear, hear, Ralphie boy! I'll pile on then...

Personally, I'd dispense with a predictable Wipe Out in favour of Neil Ainsby's smooth-as-silk Robbesque, shelve a Shads chestnut or two in favour of the rollicking Return of the Rapiers or—yes!—Colin's roaring Breakfast at... Imagine Col setting the pace by challenging the punters like so: "Anyone a fan of classic British motorbikes and classic British caffs? Hold on then, this one's for you. Wind it up, boys!"

Wayne Left His Mark

The tragic passing of Rapier Wayne Nicholls and his wife Jackie, in a North London traffic accident two years ago this week, elicited a poignant stream of consciousness memory on my Rapiers MSN site from one Babygal1990021:

this week has not only been hard for me but also the nicholls family, i actually remember the call i got the day these lovely people died. i did indeed pass out, they were such loving people aand only the good die young. it's been 2 years and has gone so fast, and up above i hope wayne likes the fathers day card i put upon his grave, it has on the front "your like a daddy to me". which he was. he is the father of my close friend wayne jr nicholls. and he looks so much like his dad. the truth is im still not over their death, i think about them everyday without fail and i fight back the tears, my goal in life is to help my friend and his grandad brian nicholls. this is actually the most iv ever told anyone how i feel, i havent told no1 how i feel. wayne was like a dad to me and jackie was like a mother. she used to give me cuddly toys and i still have a pair of boots she gave me :) and as for jet harris, he is a really good mate , and a really close friend of the nicholls, and JET my mums a bit young for you :), mum and jet r close friends. its surprising wat ur parents chldhood friends can do for you:) i love talkin bout rock n roll because i feel like its a big part of my life. anybody who wants to talk please add me on [email protected] :)

Rapier Neil in Denim

It's Wednesday night, so Mr. Ainsby was probably down the Railway Pub in Bognor Regis, exhorting local musos into action during his regular open mic night, and leaving the quiff checking for later.

Photo by Nathan J. Hulse

Post o' the Week: 49th Parallel Wishes

Dear Rapiers:

Nice to find you on MySpace. I saw you many times in the '80s at Weymouth and Brean rock 'n' roll weekenders. Now I live in Canada (for the past two years), but I'm French.

I invite you to my MySpace page. I have two players with 14 songs.

Keep on rockin',

Michel "Hot Boppers" Cousin
Montreal, Quebec

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Tres bien! Michel's online hangout is a guitarrockandrollerama chock-a-block with his recordings of '50s standards like Matchbox, Move It and Brand New Cadillac. Have a listen.

4 MySpace Tracks

Call me a slowcoach.

I've finally reshuffled the four-tune musical deck on my Rapiers MySpace outpost. For your sampling pleasure are:

• On My Mind. This B side of Buckleshoe Stomp is a beat-fantastic remake of a neglected Mike Berry 1964 single.
  
  
• Move It Baby. One of the standout tracks on Return of The Rapiers, this Simon Scott rocker shows our lads in a sure groove.
  
  
• Lies. Merseyside drive at its finest, this Remo Four classic recycles a Walk, Don't Run chord progression under vocal harmonies straight from the Cavern.
  
  
• Saturday Night at the Duckpond. The Rapiers' calling card, this Fenderised updating of Swan Lake never fails to dazzle live—quite rightly, it's taken from a night at the London Palladium.
  
  

Wayne Nicholls, 1967-2005

Remembering Wayne Nicholls

Looking Back on 1961 from 1999

Eight years ago, The Rapiers toured another Me and My Shadows show 'round UK theatres with singer Ricky Aron helping audiences "re-live the wonder years when the quiff was king".

Shadsfax Magazine, reviewing a March 1999 stop at Ashton-under-Lyne, reported: "... if you closed your eyes it could have been the original early Shadows on stage... Make no mistake, Ricky Aron and The Rapiers are more than just mere imitators. On stage, they are the sound of Cliff and The Shadows."

Why the memory? Rummaging on eBay this afternoon, I spotted this handsome, autographed tour flyer for sale, only £0.99.

Somerton Summer for MAMS

A Market Fair in the Square, Skittles Competition, Free Family Fun Day, jazz, rock, pop, organ recitals, walking and rail tours, comedy...

The annual Somerton Summer Arts Festival, 13-21 July, boasts the proverbial "something for everyone" hook, including punters partial to Jet Harris and The Rapiers, who toast opening night with their Me and My Shadows show.

Somerton, proudly known as the Ancient Royal Town of Wessex, lies in the heart of Somerset. Here's a town map. For more information on the fest, ring 01458 274148.

Going Postal

He might as well say he's the very model of a modern major luddite.

MEMBERS PLEASE NOTE—I HAVE NO COMPUTER, SO YOU CANNOT E-MAIL ME, I HAVE NO FAX MACHINE, SO YOU CANNOT FAX ME, I HAVE NO MOBILE PHONE, SO YOU CANNOT TEXT ME, I HAVE NO ANSWERING MACHINE, SO YOU CANNOT LEAVE ME A MESSAGE. PLEASE SEND ALL CORRESPONDENCE TO ME THE WAY THINGS WERE SENT IN THE 1960S—BY POST.

That's the way Rapiers fan supreme Mark Newson, newly installed editor of the Joe Meek Society Newsletter, welcomes his flock to Issue No. 143. Romney Marsh, Kent-based Mark inherits the post from Rob Bradford, another long-time Rapiers supporter.

Jet Blue

Fleet of foot, Terence Harris earned the sobriquet Jet from his North London school chums.

Fittingly, after burner tracers flare behind the former Shadow bassist (probably) during a recent Me and My Shadows concert outing with The Rapiers.

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Photo by Nathan J. Hulse

OT Video Triple Play: Smashing Time in Soho!

Pre-007 John Barry goes twang in Beat Girl.

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The nascent Shadows and Cliff find Love in Expresso Bongo.

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Lynn Redgrave makes a record in Smashing Time.

Post o' the Week: Take Rapiers for What They're Worth

When is somebody going to put The Rapiers on a '60s tour package? They are more authentic sounding then many of the '60s bands doing the rounds.

RC Pinsa
Leeds, England

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No argument here! I've raved for aeons that John McNally and Frank Allen's Searchers bring The Rapiers on tour for a one-two dose of '60s beat magic. Bet RC, a keen follower of the first-generation Liverpudlian rockers, would agree. Says his MySpace profile: "Been mad about The Searchers since I first heard Sweets for My Sweet..." At right: RC in step with 1964 cool.

Search Your Feelings, Colin!

Never a flamingo pink lightsaber when you need one...

Besides Dr. Who nemeses at Saturday's City of London Police annual awards dinner, benefiting a local children's charity, The Rapiers encountered the man in black from a galaxy far, far away, none other than Lord Vader.

"The bash had a futuristic theme based in the year 3007," explains Dave Lawes, "hence Daleks and Stars Wars stormtroopers all over the place. It was a little tricky introducing The Rapiers into the mix (yes, we played). But cleverly we travelled back in time with the countback of years from 3007 to 1961 shown on a big screen behind the band, to music from an Austin Powers film."

Was the force with our retro Jedi lads?

"The feedback from everyone was tremendous," Dave says. "Apparently we stole the show, which is a bit strange considering the theme! Although I don't have the figures, I understand we helped raised a lot of money."

Terrestial images smuggled by Nathan J. Hulse, member, Rebel Alliance, Enfield Division.

Dalek Meets Rapier

A dire fate best avoided at all points in time and space, as John Tuck learned at a City of London Police charity gala Saturday at the Grange Hotel.

Wisely, our John escaped percussive extermination by ducking into a Tardis (coordinates: Soho, 1961) discretely tucked behind the Tower of London.

Photo by Nathan J. Hulse

Rapiers Sampled on MP3.com

On the fence about which Rapiers CD to buy? Download music site mp3.com has 45 sound snippets from three choice albums: 1961, You're Never Alone With and best-of Spotlight on The Rapiers.

So your sound choices include fab tracks like Saturday Night at the Duckpond, Spanish Armada, Move It Baby, Jack's Good and Go Back to Daddy.