What ever happened to the Spinners ?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: vectis
Date: 11 Nov 07 - 07:54 PM

Thank you to the GUEST that started this thread. It was nice to find that they are all alive and three of them are kicking however gingerly.
Hughie is at Seaford Folk Club in the new year and is still a quality performer.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Chris J Brady
Date: 11 Nov 07 - 05:59 PM

I saw them in Concert in Auckland New Zealand in the 1970s. I have a tape of this somewhere. Wonder if they'd mind if I digitised it and uploaded it to my archive website? Chris B.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 11 Nov 07 - 04:52 PM

One of these years I'm going to learn "Stockholm Tar".

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: The Sandman
Date: 11 Nov 07 - 10:32 AM

I have seen Hughie Jones perform at least six times in the last five years.
His performances were excellent,His presentation was good,his material had more depth,and on each occassion his performances were very well received.Dick Miles

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Becky (who's a long way from the Albert dock
Date: 11 Nov 07 - 05:50 AM

I remember the Spinners from when I was a child - and they were instrumental in getting me into folk music. Well...... them and the Houghton Weavers.

Both great bands and so very 'north-west'!

I saw Hughie at my local club, down here in the south, over a decade ago. Very polished performance, an enjoyable evening... but the spark wasn't there (more reputation than content) - the magic ingredient that, to paraphrase another song, '...lift's me up where I belong...'.

That said, I have a number of Spinners albums running on shuffle play and they always cheer me up!

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Herga Kitty
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 03:36 PM

Blimey, I wasn't intending to keep such a low profile that I lost my cookie! Kitty (testing for reset)

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 03:33 PM

IIRC I embarrassed the boy who treated me to a Spinners' concert at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, London when I was 17, when they invited members of the audience to contribute a verse to Cosher Bailey, and I did..... it might have been the verse about Uncle Reggie, I think (sorry Phil). I last saw Hughie when he performed at Herga, some years ago (great night!), and Tony Davis at a National Festival in Sutton Bonington.

Kitty

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,FAN
Date: 29 Aug 07 - 02:44 PM

DOES SOME ONE KNOW BILLY"O", WHO USED TO SING WITH THE SPINNERS BETWEEN 1965 AND 1967?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Colin Randall
Date: 28 Aug 07 - 11:58 AM

I share the goodwill of most posters towards the Spinners. They were not especially my cup of tea but did what they did with honesty and a certain amount of style, and helped enormously in directing some people towards a deeper exploration of folk music. The point is that many of us would not have started that journey of discovery had it not been for the likes of the Spinners and Clancys.

It must have been Hughie Jones, I think, who rang me just before the group disbanded to ask if the Daily Telegraph, for which I worked, would run a piece about it. I cannot at present trace the resulting cutting since I am surrounded by cartons after successive moves, but I will never forget his opening gambit: "Are you a Spinners hater?"

(apologies if a similar posting to the thread has already appeared from me...I hit the Submit button and it just disappeared)

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST
Date: 28 Aug 07 - 09:57 AM

Saw the Spinners a couple fo times as a child in St albans with my Mum and sister. I still sing to myself, 'The Board is Black, the chalk is white, together we'll learn to read and write...' (or something like that.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Bernard
Date: 23 Apr 07 - 09:43 AM

Lovely to hear from you, lad!

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Cliff Hall
Date: 23 Apr 07 - 02:07 AM

Just found the site and thought I would let you know that I am alive and well and living in Adelaide South Australia but visit U.K. as often as I can. My wife and I went over for Mick's 70th birthday last November and we will be returning in another month. It's lovely to think that we are still remembered. Thankyou all, God Bless Cliff Hall

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Alec
Date: 27 Feb 07 - 11:42 AM

Mouthwatering link Mr Happy,though what I was alluding to is the fact that Jean Richie & Mudcat Member Kytrad are one and the same person.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Mr Happy
Date: 27 Feb 07 - 11:30 AM

his son Colin used to do a great version of the Chinee Bumboatman[Wing Chan Loo] - sometimes with piano accompaniment.

See here:http://www.eddisbury.net/acatalog/Contact_Us.html

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Alec
Date: 27 Feb 07 - 11:18 AM

Have just been listening to "Folk at the Phil!" (on vinyl) and noticed the following in the sleevenotes:
HERE'S TO CHESHIRE. By Leslie Haworth-fruit farmer,
    folk singer,Morris dancer and now song-writer.
    Also cricketer. This is a remake of a traditional tale,
   "Mr Froggie," with a special plug for Cheshire and fruit farming.
    Dedicated to his friend Jean Richie,the great Kentucky singer.

Really is a small world isn't it?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Mr Happy
Date: 27 Feb 07 - 07:15 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c6v2jRqjHzg

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Alec
Date: 27 Feb 07 - 07:03 AM

He played at the Cavern in Liverpool...long before that other group...
Use of the word "long" is maybe a little relative here.
The Cavern opened its doors for the first time on 16th January 1957 with the wonderfully named Merseysippi Jazz Band topping the bill.
The Quarrymen (as were) made their debut on the 7th August.
This was the first Cavern Skiffle Evening.Lennon was the only Beatle-to-be in the group at that time.McCartney would not make his debut for several weeks & Harrison wouldn't do so for several months.
Also on the bill that night were Ron McKay's Skiffle Group,Dark Town Skiffle Group & The Deltones Skiffle Group.
I have always loved The Beatles and The Spinners.
The fact that both could emerge from such a small area more or less simultaneously says something about the importance of Skiffle to postwar British Music as well.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,ib48
Date: 27 Feb 07 - 06:04 AM

yes,whatever happened to the spinners.The aussies were never troubled by the ball turning,where is our Shane Warne when you need him?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,DocJ
Date: 26 Feb 07 - 04:51 PM

Tony Davies did indeed start as as a jazz musician altho'I think he was a teacher during the day. He played at the Cavern in Liverpool,then a jazz club and long before that other group - what was it, the Bugs or something - appeared there. He and Mick Groves started the Lonnie Donegan skiffle club at the Cavern and encourged interest in Lead Belly etc. When this club soon faded away, they formed the Spinners and performed at Samson and Barlow's, a Liverpool restaurant. They called themselves the Spinners after the Weavers and because they were from Lancashire and that was the cotton spinning county. I particular remember Tony Davis saying that when the group first formed.
DocJ

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 26 Feb 07 - 01:20 PM

Ok the Spam has gone and we are all(?) bothering Mike Harding to get the Spinners a Life-time Achievement Award. The feeling is he is positive about it.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Schantieman
Date: 26 Feb 07 - 01:20 PM

Only if it's pink.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,sailorboy
Date: 21 Jan 07 - 07:35 AM

As I've said earlier in this thread. I have Micks recent solo album of Ewan Mcoll songs. The accompianment is plain simple Spinners style guitar playing with some string bass an a few bits of fiddle and other instruments. Very uncluttered and to the point. The songs and the vocal performance are just fine and any more sophisticated musical approach would in my opinion be wholly unnecessairy and even detrimental. I enjoy the musical sophistication of many younger folk musicians but feel there is often a case for direct simplicity. No one expected these guys to be virtuoso musicians but they got it across to a lot of folks over the years.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Shimrod
Date: 21 Jan 07 - 06:11 AM

"It was fashionable to knock them mainly because of their popularity.."

No it wasn't! It was because some people considered them to be a bit bland and uninteresting. There is no doubt that 'The Spinners' were very professional, and very popular in some quarters, but that didn't, necessarily, make them very interesting. As some people keep telling me, "it's all a question of taste".

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Alan Bradley
Date: 20 Jan 07 - 02:14 PM

reading through these posts brings back some very nice memories of the folk in the 60's Diane Swindlehurst was indeed a great influence and her group the Swindlefolk one of the best of their type, met them when they were formed at in Kirkby had their records but alas now lost and have been unable to obtain new copies. Great grout though i wonder what they are doing now and if any continued singing when they left school

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Flash Company
Date: 20 Jan 07 - 11:15 AM

I think the possible cause of the 'anti Spinners' feeling was that Jaffa Cakes commercial!
That said, they still sounded like four ordinary blokes singing folk songs, and along with Pete Seeger, The Clancy's and the Dubloners made a lot of us think 'Hey, I could do that!'
Sorry to hear that Tony is in a wheelchair, but a few of us with hip problems are heading that way, I guess. Hughie was always the one who was likely to keep going on his own. Good luck to all of them.

FC

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 20 Jan 07 - 04:35 AM

Oh, Ellen Vannen
Of the Isle of Man Company
Oh! Ellen Vannen, lost in the Irish Sea.

Philomonic Hall 1964?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Fliss
Date: 19 Jan 07 - 05:27 PM

I saw them a couple of times at the Fairfield Halls in Croydon in the early 70s. They were always great fun. Still have the one album I bought.

I still sing Ellen Vannen at folk evenings.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Bernard
Date: 19 Jan 07 - 03:57 PM

Yup - good idea. Whilst they are still alive, which would be even better!

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: VIN
Date: 19 Jan 07 - 08:46 AM

Be a fab idea that Les - honest

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 17 Jan 07 - 10:08 AM

Perhaps we should bother Mike Harding and Smooth Opps to give them a life time Award?

OK steady now ..................

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: VIN
Date: 17 Jan 07 - 09:12 AM

Get your point Scrump, but i don't reckon you can 'pinch' a folk song as i believe passing songs on or even allowing your songs to be 'passed on' is what makes folk music, errrrrr well... 'folk'. Tho i understand there could be copyright and maebbe royalty probs and all that stuff especially with contempory songs .

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Scrump
Date: 17 Jan 07 - 09:01 AM

IMO The Spinners were not (by and large) great musicians or singers, but as others have said, they conveyed their enthusiasm for the songs they sang, and encouraged audience participation, which had become a bit of a rarity back then, except in folk clubs, so they caught on with the mainstream public.

They had a knack of finding good songs too (although I didn't like all their output, by any means) - maybe if they 'pinched' other peoples' songs, it could explain some of the animosity towards them from certain quarters of the folk world. This is just speculation on my part, I hasten to add, and I don't know of any examples where this happened.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: VIN
Date: 17 Jan 07 - 08:46 AM

Nice one Banjoman. They were a great influence, turned me on to folk music probably more than anyone - great atmosphere at their Free Trade Hall gigs - usually a sell-out. Great thing about them was theire warmth and how they liked to direct their music at a whole family audience 'the family of man' to quote one of their album titles. Saw Hughie last year and he's as good as ever - great yarn 'spiinner' too

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: danensis
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 03:48 PM

I've been trying to recall all the folk clubs I went to in Liverpool. There was one round the back of the hotel opposite St George's Hall, and one above the fire station in Canning Place. Yet another was in something like a student union bar across a bit of waste ground behinf Tithebarn Street.

Then of course there was Atlantic House - what was that amazing guy called who ran it?

John

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,banjoman
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 03:29 PM

Great to see so many still remember the sixties in liverpool and the contribution made by the likes of the Spinners to the Folk Revival.
It was fashionable to knock them mainly because of their popularity, but they were one of the all time greats to me and my wife Maggie who were part of the scene in liverpool in the sixties & seventies.
Somewhere I still have my membership card (N0 2 I think) for the Spinners club at the Gregsons Well. I recall one occasion when fan adulation went over the top there, when the Spinners were on a tour of Sweden (I think) but a local group of youngsters (Swindlefolk) were on at the Gregson. At 10.pm, they were bustled off stage and a television wheeled on so that the fans could watch "The Spinners Live " from somewhere or other. Thats what you call adulation. No one there complained although I would have prefereed to listen to more from Diane Swindlehurst and her group of youngsters

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Bernard
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 01:57 PM

I've never denied that the Spinners kick-started me into performing. Well, I have to blame somebody!! ;o)

Hughie Jones is still gigging - we had him as a guest at the Open Door (Oldham) last year, and he hasn't lost any of the fire or enthusiasm.

Hughie explained that Cliff Hall lives in Australia these days, Tony and Mick have been mentioned above, so I won't repeat it, and Jacqui McDonald occasionally gigs with Hughie. Jacqui (of Jacqui and Bridie) was in the Spinners prior to Cliff.

The reason why we have the Detroit Spinners over here, and the Liverpool Spinners over in the US is because of a contractual agreement to avoid confusion between two bands both called 'The Spinners', despite being completely different genres. At least, that's Hughie's story, and it sounds right enough.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Big Al Whittle
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 01:37 PM

Hmmmm!

all the traddies were really nasty to them at the time.


I remember, there was a poll in the Melody for your favourite female folk singer, and one wag nominated 'the tall one in The Spinners'.

I'm not sure what the animosity was about. there was an interview in Froots a few years back with Ian Campbell and apparently they were Ian's professional rivals at one time. I was never aware of the rivalry. can't remember Ian's exact words, but they weren't exactly a ringing endorsement.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Schantieman
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 12:26 PM

I should add to yesterday's post that it was Stan Hugill's 100th birthday party I was referring to, not Stan Ambrose's!   That happy event is still a few years off.

;-)

Steve

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Scrump
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 11:45 AM

No, just their own TV series, which is more than most of today's top folk acts can expect :-(

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 16 Jan 07 - 11:32 AM

Did they get any gongs?

Or any BBC Awards?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Schantieman
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 12:37 PM

Hughie is indeed still active on the folk scene in Liverpool. He's the leading resident at the Everyman FC in the bar of that theatre in Hope Street (Tuesday nights, 8ish) that Sally mentioned above. He is also still writing and performing new songs and doing clubs and festivals.

(Christine, Hughie's wife, was a founder member of the Bothy FC in Southport in 1965 and, with Stan Ambrose and the late lamented Tony Wilson/Molyneux and Stan Boardman, formed "The Bothy Folk", the original resident band. Hughie and Chris still turn up occasionally).

Tony Davis was indeed at Stan's 100th, in which Hughie also played a part. Sad to see him in a wheelchair, but he was still singing well.


Hard to overestimate the importance of The Spinners in the folk revival. I wasn't really aware of it at the time, being nobbut a lad, but they were the secondary source for a lot of singers' repertoires, including mine later on, in the 70s and, no doubt, earlier. This as well as publicising it all on TV and radio.   We all owe them an enormous debt: without them many of us wouldn't have come into folk and many of the songs would have been ...well, if not lost then certainly not widely known and sung. Thanks, guys.


Steve

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 12:26 PM

Is it time they were recognised in the same way the Dubliners and the Clancy Bros. and Tommy Makem? They also went in and out of "fashion"

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Sailorboy
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 12:22 PM

I have a copy of Mick Groves album (Journeyman) of Ewan Mcoll songs as I mentioned earlier. Its a good album. He's still in very good voice and does gigs locally.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Tootler
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 11:26 AM

My wife (girlfriend in those days) and I used to go to Spinners Concerts regularly in the 1960's.

We saw them at Middlesbrough Town Hall on their farewell tour in the early 80's. They were still as good then.

I saw Hughie Jones last Summer at the Festival on the Moor - a good evening. Pity there weren't more there, though the FotM is admittedly quite a small festival.

I first got interested in Folk Music via Peter Paul and Mary and Bob Dylan. The Spinners were my introduction to the folk music of my own country. Their style was always very accessible, but I don't see them as ever having "sold out" as some seem to think. They set out to entertain their audiences and unlike some, were not too purist or precious about the music. Their repertoire was pretty much the same in they type of songs they did the first time I saw them and the last time.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Skipper Jack
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 10:32 AM

Hughie does quite a bit on the maritime scene these days. He has written some fine songs on the aforesaid theme.
A great performer - well worth seeing if you get the chance.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: GUEST,Billbunter
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 09:03 AM

Hughie just recorded a another collection of songs I believe with amongst them a monologue on the Hillsborough disaster called 'Red and Blue' by Bernie Shaw local banjo layer. I met him once in Liverpool playing - really decent guy with an infectious smile. Still sounding good

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: the lemonade lady
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 08:31 AM

Like i said www.tonystradtime.co.uk

sal

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 08:16 AM

They sang a bit of everything so that always vexed some. The played guitars and not squeeze boxes and sometimes sang silly songs. They even did African songs as I remember - a bit of "World"?

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Scrump
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 07:31 AM

The Spinners did get criticised by many folkies because of their very popularity - often a problem for folk stars who cross over into the mainstream, even today. They did do a lot to popularise folk music in the 1960s and 1970s, even if they weren't to everyone's taste.

Subject: RE: Origins: What ever happened to the Spinners ?
From: Les in Chorlton
Date: 15 Jan 07 - 05:56 AM

I'm not sure if fashionable is the right word, but it was certainly common to knock the Spinners from about 1964 onwards.

Like thousands of others they brought me to folk music. I had seen Robin and Jimmy, Pete Seeger and various others on TV. But an article in the Liverpool took a gang of us to Liverpool Phil and so to the folk clubs of Liverpool.

Jaqui and Bridie, Pete McGovern, The Bothy, The Kings Shilling, the amazing Tony Wilson(?) who ran a singers club on a Saturday night naer the tunnel entrance, Willy Russel, Andy Seagroat, Bernie Davies, Tom Brown and John Howson and so many more. I guess we would have disvovered them with out the Spinners but they did create a public face of folk music that led to all the other things that were going on.