Oscar the Frog or Magus - Yorkshire acts

Subject: Magus
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Jan 07 - 08:43 PM

Anyone remember 'Oscar the Frog' or 'Magus' ? Both yorkshire acts I believe. One album each circa '81, both well worth a listen..What ever happened to...?

Subject: RE: Magus
From: GUEST,Nigus McPigus
Date: 14 Jan 07 - 09:16 PM

Dark Magus - a brilliant album of Miles Davis at carnegie hall circa 1971

Subject: RE: Magus
From: GUEST
Date: 14 Jan 07 - 10:06 PM

Not the Magus I had in mind, unless it was, per chance Miles masquarading as 2 yorkshire folkies live at Carnegie Municipal Hall, Slaithwaite!

Subject: RE: Magus
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 14 Jan 07 - 10:53 PM

Possibly "Nagus", or were they Welsh?

Subject: RE: Magus
From: katlaughing
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 12:22 AM

Brief mention of Magus in the paragraph after "Leaving behind Mr. Fox," or just do a Control-F and find it faster, on this page. Might that be the one? It mentions the Yorkshire Dales and all.

kat

Subject: RE: Oscar the Frog or Magus - Yorkshire acts
From: r.padgett
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 11:22 AM

Oscar the Frog were Barnsley based Steve Sutcliffe driving force had a terrific ear for tunes on fiddle
Sue Banks on English concertina had been in Ratcliffe stout band

Started off a school band also had Dave 'Harry' Lauder was employed as a technician in Drama at Barnsley college

Couple of brothers in earliest incarnation

Had I think Stephen Linstead at one time I think as a singer (now a prof at Durham Univ)

Dave Malkin was a dance caller with them for a period

Subject: RE: Oscar the Frog or Magus - Yorkshire acts
From: GUEST,Steve Linstead
Date: 28 Jun 21 - 05:11 PM

Oscar the Frog were founded by Ian McMillan, Martin Wiley and Steve Sutcliffe as a school band. Ian and Martin left fairly early - to paraphrase Ian's own account "musical differences" - the band was musical, they weren't. Steve Sutcliffe played fiddle and guitar, Billy Creasey (mandoline) and his brother played accordion.Sue Banks played flute as well as concertina.As the band developed various members came and went and many were multi-instrumentalists - Dave Lauder (bass, guitar, accordion, keyboards) Nigeria Pease (drums) Eddy Green (bass)and the band also worked with callers for ceilidhs, including Dave Malkin and Roy Atkinson. In 1980 they got a 2 week tour to Derry, but not all the band members could go, so a line-up for the tour was Steve, Sue, Mark Walker (bass) Roy Whyke (drums) Jim Thompson (guitar, keyboards) and Steve Linstead (caller). When we got there we found that most of the gigs were in venues where there was no room to dance, so we quickly rehearsed song sets. We went down a bomb - literally - we are our last performance in the open air at the back of the Guildhall and shortly after it was blown up.The success of the tour led to recording the eponymous album that summer, and a single "Saturday Night" penned by Steve Sutcliffe. We gigged throughout the following year but personal and professional relocations meant theine-up had to change in 1982. Duncan Waller replaced Mark Walker who went yo Uni.The band reverted to mostly ceilidhs but continued with a smaller line-up with Jim and Sue at the heart of it for many years. Steve S. became a translator and now lives and plays in Phom Penh. Jim, Sue and Steve L. performed a musical and spoken word one off with Heather Hopfl in 1992 at the Lancaster Nuffield Theatre using tracks prerecorded by Jim to form a 10 piece band, just with less beer and no need to raise bail for the drummer. Roy and Duncan joined Jon Strong in the mid 80s and are still the Jon Strong Trio. Steve played with Silk Roots in Hong Kong, collaborated with Finn Castle Mill and one of the Robertson Brothers in Australia, and more recently has worked as the Black Snow Roadshow project with Geordie legend Jed Grimes. Dave Lauder did solo work but devoted his efforts yo jazz, and has retired to Marche in Italy.

Subject: RE: Oscar the Frog or Magus - Yorkshire acts
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Jul 25 - 12:34 PM

Sadly Steve Sutcliffe died of cancer around May last year (2024)

Subject: RE: Oscar the Frog or Magus - Yorkshire acts
From: r.padgett
Date: 24 Jul 25 - 12:50 PM

Dave Malkin has also died recently ~ fine dance caller and quite an age

Ray