Info: Davy Graham

Subject: Davy Graham - Hullabaloo
From: GUEST,Anthony Harland
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 05:07 AM

First, I've only just found this site and if I am repeating what is already widely known then I apologise, but after visiting many Davy Graham web sites, and looking at the titles of previously posted threads here on the subject, I think what I have to say is new.

As any fan of Davy Graham will tell you there is very little film evidence of Davy's playing in the 1960s, just a couple of clips and one of those is from 1959. Secondly, all his biographies (those that I've read) seem to say that he started work with traditional folk singers when he recorded 'Folk Roots, New Routes' with Shirley Collins. However, a year before that LP , in 1963, he was playing behind the American folk singer Carolyn Hester, and their playing together was recorded for a British TV programme called 'Hullabaloo' (not to be confused with the American pop show of the same name that ran in the mid 60s). Although sadly Davy has his back to the camera for most of the scemes in which he is featured.

This show also features Long John Baldry backed by the Cyril Davis All Stars, Rory McEwan (MC), Tommy Makem, The Clancy Bros, AND a very young Martin Carthy. I recommend it most highly to anyone interested in the British folk scene of the early 60s.

If you would like to see this programme then pay a visit to the Museum of Broadcast Communications, sign up as a member (it's free) and search their archives. You'll need to choose search TV, type in the search word 'Hullabaloo' without quotes, and select the option Digital Image Available. You should get three programmes come up, two are from the American pop series and the other is the folk show, incorrectly labelled as being Australian. (They were fooled by the Midlands TV logo - ABC)

The Link:
http://archives.museum.tv/login?from=archives

Note if you are interested in 60's music generally this site has some great treasures, but finding them is half the fun. Will give you one more tip, if you like Richard & Mimi Farina, then try typing in 'Pete Seeger' to the search engine.

Anthony Harland

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST, Sminky
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 05:17 AM

Many thanks for that, Anthony.

There was a recent thread in which several people expressed an interest in tracking down some of those old TV Folk programmes.

My understanding (per Colin Harper, the author) is that all 13 episodes of 'Hullabaloo' have survived.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Hootenanny
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 05:32 AM

OK, accuse me of nitpicking but John Baldry was not "backed by the Cyril Davies All Stars" he was a part of that group. Cyril himself also did much of the vocal work . Although John had been around the folk and jazz scene for a while he didn't come to the notice of a wider audience until he made his pop hit "Let the Heartaches Begin".
Incidentally for those inetrested there is a site dedicated to the late Cyril Davies with much information.

Hoot

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Anthony Harland
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 06:13 AM

Hoot

He may well have been a member of Cyril Davies's All Stars, he quite possibly was still a member when this show was produced, but he is introduced by the the MC as "Long John Baldry backed by the Velvettes" (a three piece vocal girl group), poor Cyril and his band aren't mentioned although there they are playing in the background. However, they are mentioned later, certainly in the credits.

'Tis an unjust world we live where 'good looking singers' who appeal to young girls (let's not say any more about that) get more star billing than great Chicago blues style harmonica players.


Anthony

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: MikeofNorthumbria
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 06:38 AM

What a treat! It made me feel half a century younger for 24 minutes.

But then, after the euphoria had subsided, I couldn't help thinking about how far we've come since then. All that stuff seems a long way away from the 'folk nouveau' of Kate Rusby, Seth Lakeman, Bellowhead & co. And the 21st century Martin is certainly very different from the smooth-voiced ex-chorister we see performing there.

Some might regard that version of 'folk' as nothing more an embarrassing anachronism that's better left in the archives. But even they should consider the possibiliy that without the efforts of those sixties pioneers today's folk universe and all its bright twinkly stars might never have happened.

Wassail!

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,JonR
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 07:09 AM

I'm about to check that link, but meanwhile I guess this is from the same programme...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QynodK3u0O8

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,JonR
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 07:31 AM

Isn't is funny how Martin Carthy has looked the same age for nearly 50 years....

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Anthony Harland
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 07:52 AM

With regard to last 3 postings:

JonR - Thanks for You Tube link that's a great clip but it isn't from the progamme I mentioned.

Mike Of Northumbria "All that stuff seems a long way away from the 'folk nouveau' " Yes it probably is but we still sing some of these songs in my local club (Pontardawe). And personally I hope they never die out.

Jon R again - You're right, I have it on good authority he made a pact with the Devil when he went down to the Crossroads where the A247 to Woking crosses the A246 to Guildford.


Anthony

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Will Fly
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 09:16 AM

Ah... those crossroads! Thanks for the link, Anthony. Marvellous stuff - took me right back - and just great to see Long John and Cyril D on peak form. I don't think DG added much to Carolyn Hester, to be honest, but it was good to catch a glimpse of the master...

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Maryrrf
Date: 08 Jun 10 - 10:53 PM

THAT brought back memories. GoGo boots! Brylcream...a little dab'll do ya..

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST, Mike
Date: 22 Mar 21 - 05:22 AM

I was in the audience and saw Davy Graham on Southern TV folk programme compered by George Melly in 1965 or possibly 1966

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Jim McLean
Date: 22 Mar 21 - 06:08 AM

My late wife Alison Chapman McLean took pictures of Day Graham with Louis Killen in the Troubadour, London, in 1963. The picture appears on many sites but she is not always given credit.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Tony Rees
Date: 22 Mar 21 - 06:15 PM

RE this old thread from 2010: I tried the link to view the show mentioned and reached the correct catalogue entry on the MBC website, but could not find a method to view it... however as mentioned on a recent thread Hullabaloo (UK TV 63-64) on DVD, the complete series has now been issued on DVD and a small number of short clips are available on youtube, including this one showing Davy Graham with Long John Baldry singing "Careless Love" - great stuff!

- Tony

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Jerry
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 05:33 AM

Unfortunately, I can’t recall the title, but there is a 1960s British crime film that keeps cropping up on the Talking Pictures Channel here in the UK, where Dave Graham is playing in a Soho bar or club. Compared to many such musical interludes, he appears for several minutes without being typically drowned out by dialogue by the actors. No doubt, others can name the film....

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Long Firm Freddie
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 06:14 AM

Guest Jerry - is the film The Servant?

The Servant

LFF

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Long Firm Freddie
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 06:21 AM

Davy Graham in The Servant:

Davy

LFF

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Jerry
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 08:10 AM

Yes, spot on, thanks. Not one of those obscure crime films after all, but actually a more mainstream film.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 09:29 AM

Interesting article here http://forgottenbands.blogspot.com/2009/10/screaming-lord-sutch-savages-in-60s.html which mentions how Cyril Davies recruited Sutch's Savages in November 1962!!

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Tony Rees
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 01:52 PM

A number of DG obituaries and elsewhere (all possibly referencing the same source, this Pete Frame tree) state that Davy was an occasional member of the earliest lineup of John Mayall's Bluesbreakers, alternating with another guitarist, Sammy Prosser, whose name unfortunately means nothing to me (we are talking Jan-March 1963 here, in London). Can any catters with long enough memories shed any more light on this this maybe??

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: The Sandman
Date: 24 Mar 21 - 03:05 PM

Davy Graham was such an important influence as a guitarist on so many people including Martin Carthy.
It is so sad that so many talented musicians such as Davy have their lives ruined .
there is a whole litany of names in the folk and jazz world that were casualties of drug culture

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Jerry
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 04:36 AM

I only saw him play live once, and it was disappointingly shambolic, probably because of drink or drugs, though some of us knew he was capable of so much more. However, the rest of the audience were very unimpressed and wondered what we ever saw in him.
I think he resented being a bit of a one hit wonder, with many in the audience calling out to him to play Anji, when clearly he wanted to play more adventurous and arguably more challenging pieces. Looking back, he was ahead of his time playing world music in unusual time signatures and open tunings, when most of us were still locked into standard tuning and common time.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,guest
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 06:13 AM

He shouldn't have resented the 'do Anji' thing, because after he played the lovely piece there was a whole concert to play several new pieces,old pieces etc. No concert ever consisted of one song.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 06:22 AM

I remember anticipating more music on Radio 2 and never thinking he was stuck in the anji/Angie rut. I have a tab book written by stephan Grossman and Graham had much more to offer.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 06:28 AM

I went to Davy Graham concerts for 40 years.The last few years he
was hardly capable of playing.
He was certainly a visionary ahead of other musicians.
The rolling stones, kinks and david bowie used to collect his records.
His legacy is the great records he left us.
Personally I don't think that the drugs or the electric shock treatment did him any favours.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 06:34 AM

I agree with you. Saw him at The Forge in the 90s and he was a bit shot. Most upsetting was at the Union Chapel when he got a young man to play Angie in his place. You'd have hoped his muscle memory would have kept him going.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 09:18 AM

I was lucky enough to see him at Les Cousins and I think at Studio 51 with others when the Dowliners Sect couldn't turn up for a Sunday afternoon gig. He was very good at that time.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 09:34 AM

By and large, when people turn up to see a guitarist. They have this idea in their heads of what a guitar sounds like.

Some people turn that proposition on its head - like Django with only two working fingers, Pat metheny with his sets of jazz sounds, Hendrix - of course. I supposethe strength of the syntheseis arrived at depends on having the charisma and commercial viability of the performance.

Davy Graham's proposition was that the whole shooting match was up for negotiation - tunings; time signature; ethnic origin of the piece; ethnic origin of the actual instrument and any other parameter you can think of.

This was in a period when some people in the folk revival were having hissy fits about Cockneys being allowed to sing The Rock Island Line.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: The Sandman
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 10:13 AM

al whittle , you are of course referring to peggy seeger. i agree it was a minor thing to get upset about.
however, i am grateful to MacColl and Seeger for directing us towards our own indigenous material, we discoverd some great material some great story songs. 12 bar blues have fairly predictable storylines [with a few excptions] and predictable chord progressions [with a few exceptions] as for the [present crop of songwriters] 50 percent of what is written is forgettable.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 10:19 AM

In a way, I think they both got it wrong. Peoples reactions to music aren't really that cerebral.

I saw DG down at Cousins round about 1967. He introduced one tune saying, "This piece is in 15/17 rhythm."

I remember thinking, well I'm not counting....

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: GUEST,Cj
Date: 25 Mar 21 - 03:21 PM

I saw DG a year or so before he died, he was on a bill with Bert Jansch and a younger guy. DG was all over the place, really. Sporadic moments of something that may have been brilliance, or it may have been fluke. But, it was busy, they sold a lot of merch afterwards, and he seemed happy to be there. I hope he got paid, and I hope the money helped his last few months.

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 26 Mar 21 - 05:27 AM

Subject: RE: Davy Graham
From: Bonzo3legs
Date: 26 Mar 21 - 06:20 AM

He was at an audition for a blues band I attended around 1980, and he was sadly awful. I was beaten to the guitarist job by a Les Paul & Marshall wielding oaf - I had a mere Strat!!