Who remembers Karl Denver?

Subject: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 08:00 AM

Stemming from the Obit thread for Nigel Denver, who remembers Karl Denver? They were not related but coincidentaly Karl's real name was Angus Murdo McKenzie and Nigel's full name was Nigel Douglas Mackenzie Denver' So, as well as folk music, they had a common name, albeit spelled differently!

I remember Karl Denver playing at a local school garden party and now that I know he died in Manchester it makes sense that he played in Swinton where I lived at the time. I guess he must have had some contacts there as I reckon it must have been in the mid 60s while he was still well known for Wimoweh. He also had a resurgence recordming and appearing with The Happy Mondays in the late 80s so another Manchester connection.

To save the mods moving posts across, here are the last 2 posts on Nigel's thread -

Subject: RE: 2018 Obit: Nigel Denver, Scottish folk singer
From: Big Al Whittle - PM
Date: 10 Apr 23 - 07:30 AM

Carl was doing the bar round the corner from me when I was gigging in Benidorm one year. I know he did extra work for the TV studios aswll. Though I never met him, I come across several people who did.

He had phenomenal guitarist in his trio, Played one of those L series jazz guitars. He wound up playing behind John Stokes in The Bachelors.

I always admired Carl when I was a kid. Loved his records.

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Subject: RE: 2018 Obit: Nigel Denver, Scottish folk singer
From: GUEST,Tom Patterson - PM
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 07:42 AM

Perhaps Karl Denver deserves his own thread?!!!!

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Geoff Wallis
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 11:52 AM

Unfortunately, I remember this (and I wish I didn't).

Wimoweh

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: GUEST,Ray
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 12:10 PM

I seem to remember that he lived in Stockport (Reddish) but it could have been somebody else.

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 02:27 PM

He is certainly buried there Ray.

Good version I thought, Geoff, and the early 60s video is no worse than many others :-) Just watch with your eyes shut!

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 03:55 PM

That was the only version of Wimoweh I knew, for many years.

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: GUEST
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 04:06 PM

First LP I had after seeing him at Cleethorpes Ritz Cinema.

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: GUEST,Lang Johnnie More
Date: 11 Apr 23 - 05:08 PM

I do, but only for a single song.

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Jim McLean
Date: 12 Apr 23 - 05:16 AM

I was fortunate to be a friend of both Nigel Denver and Karl Denver (Gus McKenzie).
I produced and arranged a few LPs for Nigel and also released an LP called The Karl Denver Trio on my NEVIS label in 1978. It featured Karl, Gerry Cottrell and Kevin Neill who had a solo hit with his guitar version of The Harry Lime theme in 1974.
Karl/Gus was a regular visited to my home in North London. When I was first introduced to him in the mid 1970s we spoke in Norwegian. We had both been merchant Navy sailors, he in the Norwegian and I in the Swedish and I pretended to be a Norwegian seaman…..but only for a few minutes!
He told me a funny story how he was arrested in South Africa. He could “throw” his voice and in a bar he pretended to speak into his watch which replied in a small high pitched voice. The South African cops arrested him so they could examine his watch. They considered it some kind of spying device!

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 12 Apr 23 - 12:01 PM

I loved all of Carl's recordings - well the hit records. Marcheta, Still, Mexicali Rose and and of course Wimoweh!

I never saw him apart from on telly.
My sister saw him. Her first boyfriend took her on his vespa to see a rock package show in Peterborough. She brought back the programme and I pored over it.

The biographical details in the programme were that he was Scottish. He had been a merchant seaman, but jumped ship in the USA. and made his way to Nashville. That's what it said in the booklet. No idea if its true.

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Sol
Date: 12 Apr 23 - 12:20 PM

Around 1968, my mates & I once met a bloke who claimed to be Karl's brother. He told us a few funny stories about Karl's experiences playing clubs in the North of England.

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 13 Apr 23 - 02:01 PM

Thanks for the memories folks. I have looked for when I may have seen him but cannot find any details at all. I am pretty sure it would have been the mid 60s and it was a summer fair at Cromwell Road Secondary School, Swinton, during a summer fete there. I was a mid teen and did not know much about him but my Mum raved about him and I remember being very impressed by the music he played. maybe I can blame him for my subsequent interest in folk :-D

Subject: RE: Who remembers Karl Denver?
From: Acorn4
Date: 14 Apr 23 - 04:01 AM

The first LP I ever bought was the Karl Denver one with "Wimoweh" on it and I've still got it. I used to try to imitate the vocal as I remember.

The song was released at the same time as "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" by US quartet The Tokens, although their version was completely different and became a hit some years later when revived by a band called Tight Fit - possibly named after their underpants?