Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please

Subject: Harry Boardman Documentary
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 05 Apr 07 - 07:47 AM

Ali O'Brien, Bernard Cromarty, Chris Harvey and myself are about to undertake a project for Radio Britfolk about the great Lancashire folk pioneer Harry Boardman and how people were influenced by him in the revival of the 60's and 70's.

I know there are several 'catters out there who either remember Harry from the 60's and knew him personally from those days or saw him perform on a regular basis.

I would like anybody who has memories of the man to PM or email me with their thoughts – the clubs you saw him at that he was running, the songs he was singing – Lancashire or otherwise – before the Lancashire stuff he was a bluegrass banjo player and performed with a group called "Yonko and the Texas Drifters" – see Harry's pages on www.folknorthwest.co.uk for a picture! In his later days he didn't perform many of the Lancashire songs for whatever reason. The Unicorn in Manchester was his last club before his untimely death – anybody know of other places he ran a club before then?

We'd be interested in any recordings you may have either in concert or on the radio – I have all his LPs from "New Voices in 1965 to his cassette "Personal Favourites" in 1986 including an LP from 1978 that he made for an Open University Arts Foundation course.

I also have recordings of "Ballads of Occupation" and "Ballads of Britain" that he made with our own Mary Humphries and others in 1985 for BBC Radio Manchester, plus an interview about the "Manchester Ballads" that he compiled with Roy Palmer in 1983

We would like to record people talking about Harry to use as soundbites in the programme so let me know if you're up for that please – we have the facilities for telephone interviews to be recorded although a direct contribution would be better quality. Technology these days has improved to allow good quality recordings to be made on a PC and emailed to us – there are several options available for people to contribute.

Please let me know what you think and if you are willing to make a contribution with written or spoken memories and thoughts of the great man.

Cheers
Mark
[e-mail]

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 05 Apr 07 - 01:15 PM

Sorry Mary - spelt your name incorrectly there - should of course be Mary Humphreys. Please accept my apologeys err apologies

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST
Date: 05 Apr 07 - 02:30 PM

Clubs,
Waggon and Horses - 'Wayfarers'. (with Terry Whelan, Terry Griffiths, Tom Gilfellon, Dave Hillary
Pack Horse (I think still Wayfarers, with most of the above + elderly Irish singer Eddie Lenihan)
Blue Anchor (somewhere off Deansgate) with Barry Taylor and me.
He also ran a club in Droylsden (with 'The Beggarmen'???).
Anybody knew and admired Harry will remember that in unaccompanied songs he had a tendency to rise in pitch.
In the latter half of the sixties (at the height of 'Flower Power' he was booked to sing at the students Folk Club at M/c University. He launched into the extremely rangy version of 'Flying Cloud' and began to rise steadily in pitch.
During the performance, two students were squatting down at the back of the stage attempting to light a joint and in doing so, managed to set alight to the curtains.
Totally unaware, Harry finished the song, red about the gills, straining for the top notes, against a magnificent backdrop of blazing floor-to-ceiling curtains - good days!
Jim Carroll

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Apr 07 - 02:58 AM

PS
Failsworth-not Droylsden.
Jim Carroll

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mary Humphreys
Date: 06 Apr 07 - 05:04 AM

Hi Mark,
Have just PM-ed you.
Jim, what a wonderful story. I wish I had been there - how did I ever miss that one?
I rememmber many happy days exploring and learning about traditional song in your company. It has been too long!
Mary Humphreys

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST
Date: 06 Apr 07 - 03:36 PM

Hello Mary,
I always think that these forums are a nice way of keeping in touch - and knowing everybody we knew hasn't died.
Here's to the days when we all knew everything - would that we still did!
Best wishes,
Jim

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 06 Apr 07 - 05:56 PM

Hi Jim

Thanks for the info and the story - that will no doubt appear in the prog!

Cheers
Mark

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,Peter Hood
Date: 07 Apr 07 - 03:39 PM

I'd of thought Pete Farrow was your man. A great source of stories as well. Didn't Harry run a club at the Magnet in Stockport? Also in the Cavalcade in Didsbury?
Peter

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 08 Apr 07 - 04:03 AM

This looks like spam

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 08 Apr 07 - 12:09 PM

What looks like Spam Les?

Cheers
Mark

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 08 Apr 07 - 12:34 PM

Sort of pink and attractive, but the spam in question has been removed, de-spammed I guess.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mary Humphreys
Date: 08 Apr 07 - 12:59 PM

I remember the club at the White Horse in Didsbury - maybe it was the Cavalcade then, the name has been changed so many times. It was on the junction of Barlow Moor Road and Oxford Road and a great barn of a place.The club was in the upstairs room .
I remember one night we were there, Steve Mayne sang "O good Ale" which has the line in it: "how soon I would give her two black eyes" and the room erupted with catcalls from a large group of very angry women. I don't know how he ever got off the stage that night.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 08 Apr 07 - 01:17 PM

Harry came to our club in Ellesmere Port, The Pennyfarthing, on the second occasion I brought my copy of Deep Lancashire and asked him to sign it. He wrote, only in dialect:

If you had any more mouth you'd have no face to wash. I saw a copy of Deep Lancashire, today, in a record shop near Delemere Forest it was £14!

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 09 Apr 07 - 02:59 AM

More spam?

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 09 Apr 07 - 03:58 AM

Am I the only person spotting phantom spam?

Just because your paranoid ........

Spotting Phantom Spam! New ventures in folk-rock? No, a traditional folk custom from deepest Cheshire.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,Brian Peters
Date: 09 Apr 07 - 05:58 AM

" I remember one night we were there, Steve Mayne sang "O good Ale" which has the line in it: "how soon I would give her two black eyes" and the room erupted with catcalls from a large group of very angry women."

Steve, although a good fellow in so many ways, wasn't well-known for PC filtering of his material. Harry himself once complained that a woman in an audience had taken offence about a remark he'd made about his mother having been a 'traditional Lancashire matriarch' and thrown a pint over him. I found this amusing since that particular statement was actually far less sexist than some of the other stuff that Harry would come out with routinely.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Bernard
Date: 09 Apr 07 - 04:42 PM

When a Mudelf or JoeClone finds spam in a thread, they delete it... nowt to panic about, Les!

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,Dave Bishop
Date: 10 Apr 07 - 09:47 AM

I first met Harry at the National Folk Music festival in Loughborough (about 1969, I think). I heard him do a set with another Lancastrian whose name I forget. I went up to Harry afterwards for a chat - but can't, for the life of me, remember what we chatted about. I do recall, though, that he was an extremely approachable and affable person.

I next met him c. 1972/3 at the folk club in the Cavalcade pub in Didsbury. I moved to Manchester, from Peterborough, in late 1972. I remember doing a floor spot but as the room was lined with a dark red, floc 'Indian restaurant' type wall paper the acoustics were awful! At some point I seem to recall having a conversation with Harry about regional accents. I must have mentioned to him that, in my new job in Salford, I was getting a bit of a gentle ribbing about my Fenland accent while, at the same time, I was beginning to be able to distinguish between the various Lancastrian accents around me. I do remember Harry pointing out that many urban (as opposed to rural) accents tend to have a rather 'clipped' quality to them.

I have to say that, regrettably now, I didn't go to any of Harry's clubs very frequently. After going to the Cavalcade a few times I started going to the Song Carriers club at the Bay Horse and later the Millstone. I remember that the two clubs had a brief 'falling out' because we inadvertantly started running our club on the same night as Harry ran his (he was furious!). Nevertheless, I don't think that he ever blamed me for this 'faux pas' and we remained on good terms until his untimely death.

I will always remember Harry as a great singer and a fine person.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 11 Apr 07 - 08:42 PM

Thanks for the memory Dave. Please let me know if you want to be recorded talking about Harry for the programme. Email or PM me - [e-mail]

Cheers
Mark

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Apr 07 - 03:33 AM

Also in Manchester at the time of, and following 'The Pack Horse', and closely associated with Harry were Packie Byrne and Christie Moore.
The first time I met Kevin Conniff was at 'The Blue Anchor' on the night we booked Dave Scott from Belfast as a guest. Kevin turned up along with a banjo player (now dead) who made the headlines a few years ago by being accused of being Lord Lucan (name escapes me).
Jim Carroll

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST
Date: 12 Apr 07 - 03:40 AM

Barry Halpin a.k.a. as Lord Lucan.
Jim Carroll

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 15 Apr 07 - 08:27 AM

Refresh

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Alio
Date: 15 Apr 07 - 06:41 PM

It's all looking good, isn't it? Thanks for all the contributions!

Ali

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Bernard
Date: 18 Apr 07 - 03:53 PM

We're in the middle of a meeting about it right now - anyone got anything for us?!

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Bernard
Date: 18 Apr 07 - 05:47 PM

I guess that was 'No'?! Okay, meeting over. We've got a cunning plan...

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: The Sandman
Date: 18 Apr 07 - 06:26 PM

I remember playing the unicorn one saturday night,About 1980.I remember, it was a good night,unfortunately I have no interesting stories about that night,no nudist nymphomaniacs,no smoking jointers,no kilted kite flyers,but thankyou Jim Carroll for your story.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 10 May 07 - 08:03 AM

To give you an update on things - I have been in contact with several people who are willing to contribute including Roy Palmer (folk historian and family friend), Baz Barker (one time music editor for Radio Manchester and Chris Cole (member of Gorton Tank) along with anyone on this thread who has offered their services as it were, and we shall be getting around to contacting them again after next Monday. "Why next Monday" do I hear you ask?
On Monday 14th May Ali O'Brien is running a programme of Sounds of Folk on Oldham Community Radio exclusively about Harry and will be a bit of a precursor for the Radio Britfolk programme. Involved in the show will be John Howarth and Gerry Kearns of the Oldham Tinkers, Chris Harvey and myself, we will be playing tracks mainly by Harry but also the Tinkers, Brian Peters, and Chris and me as examples of people who were influenced by Harry's work. I'm sure there are other people's tracks we could play but lack of time is the problem.

OCR has a listen live facility on the internet and can be found here: OCR

The programme goes out at 7-03pm after the news until 8-00pm


Cheers
Mark

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Bernard
Date: 11 May 07 - 02:25 PM

If you miss it on Monday, it's repeated on Friday!

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 15 May 07 - 03:04 AM

What time on Friday Bernard?

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Edmond
Date: 15 May 07 - 09:09 AM

My (Bryn Pugh's) favourite memory of Harry : at the Waggon & Horses, Bridge St one Good Friday, I think. It was a singaround, and Harry made the throwaway line about playing 'Foggy Mountain Breakdown'.

Being half-p*ssed (no surprise there, then) I said 'Go on, then'.

He did !

Greetings to Jim Carroll - they were good days in that ale-house on High Street.

Bryn Pugh.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 08 Jun 07 - 02:16 PM

It's good to see that harry's influence has spread so far!

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 11 Jun 07 - 06:02 AM

Just to keep people informed:
We're now getting our act together on this one. Chris has interviewed Alan Bell and will be interviewing Bernard Wrigley. We shall be talking to Bill Leader for his thoughts and bringing together the relevant bits from various interviews and songs we have on tape from other programmes. I've had a very interesting letter from Harry's widow Lesley answering a few questions I had put to her.
We still need to contact a few people to organise an interview in the next week or so and then we need to put it all together. That's the point where we find we have ten hours of material to put into 59 minutes of programme time! All good fun.

Cheers
Mark

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: greg stephens
Date: 11 Jun 07 - 07:17 AM

Mark
Did you ever find any other references to Harry playing piano accordion, apart from my recollections(I wouldn't want to appear completely senile!)

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: greg stephens
Date: 11 Jun 07 - 07:39 AM

AS you're looking for reminiscences, I'll just add here a relevant paragraph from my sleevenotes for "Beggar Boy of the North"(2007 CD reissue of 1978 LP).

1968, SAM SHERRY AND HARRY BOARDMAN
In Paris, French students were rioting. In Galgate, just south of Lancaster, singers Bill and Delia Glaister ran the Plough Inn. Also living in the pub was Delia's father Ted Hoban, banjo player, exhibition dancer and monologuist extraordinaire. The pub was just by the railway bridge carrying the main west coast line. In front of the pub was the A6; behind it the Lancaster canal and the boat yard run by Sam Sherry the famous veteran clog dancer. I lived immediately through the railway bridge, my front door opening onto the A6; the M6 was just beyond my back yard.
We had regular raucous traditional music sessions in the pub, as well as goodtime jazz nights when Delia sang "Bill Bailey" and "Nobody Knows You". Folk clubs at the time seemed to be getting a bit introverted, with the navel-gazing songs coming in, and a lot of us were looking to the pub session for musical salvation.
Harry Boardman, noted Lancashire singer, turned up from time to time, and Sam, Harry and I made a sort of informal pact, to preserve and revive northwestern folk culture.
Sam would take care of the dance, Harry the songs, and me the tunes. The trouble was, I didn't know many northwest tunes, and neither did anyone else that I knew.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,Chris Miller
Date: 13 Jun 07 - 03:07 PM

My first job after leaving school in 1970 was as an office junior in the advertising department of John Noble Ltd. Harry was the Manager and told me later that as soon as I had greeted him with the words "'Ow do?" at my interview the job was mine! We all used to go to the pub every lunchtime (The Moulders or the Crown and Sceptre)and Harry was great company. I remember once that the B.B.C. were coming to film one of his folk evenings so to swell the numbers he invited a gang of us along with the promise of a free pint each. Needless to say the night was a roaring success although my memory of it is rather blurred! A great bloke.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Mark Dowding
Date: 13 Jun 07 - 03:19 PM

Thanks for those notes and stories chaps.

Greg - As far as I know Harry only played melodeon and concertina as far as squeezables go. Lesley told me he never played the accordion.

Chris - who was John Noble Ltd? Was it a printers? Interesting to note that the BBC filmed one of Harry's evenings. Bet they haven't got it now!!

We interviewed Bill Leader the other night and got a good insight into early days of Topic records. Apparently they only produced 99 copies of a record to avoid paying purchase tax which was prohibitive - it was a similar situation to the amount of tax we pay on petrol today.

Cheers
Mark

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Herga Kitty
Date: 13 Jun 07 - 04:21 PM

Harry was driving a Ford in May 1976, and his car key helped us to get into the boot of our Escort to retrieve our car key from the pocket of the jeans which my other half had locked into the boot after changing into his Herga Morris breeches (when Lesley was dancing with Poynton Jemmers on Ann and Dave Mettam's wedding day tour).

I think he was the first person I heard sing (and translate, for Southerners like me) "We're reet down in coal 'ole where mud slaps at winders".

Kitty

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: greg stephens
Date: 13 Jun 07 - 07:23 PM

Well, I'm glad I can add a bit of history. He had a big red piano accordion in the Plough in Galgate. Now, as too how well he played it...it was a long time ago!

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,Chris miller
Date: 14 Jun 07 - 01:30 PM

Hello Mark,

John Noble Ltd was a small mail order firm based just off East Travis Sreeet behind Piccadilly Station. It was really very old fashioned, a mixture of Grace Brothers and Shadrack and Duxbury. As a lowly office junior I was not allowed to use the front entrance. You had to reach the dizzy heights of clerk before you were allowed this privelege. I used the warehouse entrance along with the rest of the Great Unwashed!
The advertising department was responsible for producing the catologues. It was actually jointly managed by Harry and a bloke called Dave Perry. Dave was responsible for the photography, Harry for the printing. I believe the firm was eventually taken over by GUS.

I seem to remember that the filmed folk night took place upstairs at the Crown & Anchor, near Stevenson Square.

Cheers.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: greg stephens
Date: 09 Sep 07 - 05:24 PM

Hmmmmmmm! Very interesting.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,John Fidler
Date: 02 Aug 20 - 10:12 PM

Did Harry not run a club or host for a club at Manchester Sports Guild (MSG)? Late '70's, early '80's.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: Brian Peters
Date: 03 Aug 20 - 08:01 AM

John, MSG was run by 'Jenks' (L. C. Jenkins), Frank Duffy and Bryn Pugh - who sometimes posts on here. I remember Harry ding a guest night there in the early 1970s, but by the early 80s he was running his club at the Unicorn, where several participants in this thread were residents.

Subject: RE: Harry Boardman Documentary - memories please
From: GUEST,SB
Date: 05 Aug 20 - 05:22 PM

Here's a tribute doco. from The Well (now long defunct):

http://www.mediafire.com/folder/8eqadbzls2bbn/Harry_Boardman

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