The beginnings of Paul McCartney's bass playing

[Bobber]

Who's the 'Davy Jones' mentioned in the posters, obviously not the pint-sized cutie from the Monkees?

[Bobber]

By the way Xose, I remember Astrid Kirchherr's picture book contains a lot of pictures of other Liverpool bands. I'll have a look if they're portraited with their bassguitars.

[Xose]

By the way Xose, I remember Astrid Kirchherr's picture book contains a lot of pictures of other Liverpool bands. I'll have a look if they're portraited with their bassguitars.

Oh yes please!!   I don't have that book...  

BTW: do you have pictures of other groups on 3 May 1960 at Liverpool Stadium?? 

Xosé

[Xose]

Mo Foster, Seventeen Watts?, London, Sanctuary, 1997, p. 90:

"...In 1958, by a twist of fate, The Chas McDevitt Group replaced US rock 'n' roll star, Jerry Lee Lewis on a nationwide tour (there had been moral indignation at Jerry arriving on this country with 13-year-old bride-to-be). On that same package was a black American vocal group, The Treniers, who had already successfully appeared in films. More significantly, their bass player played a bass guitar: this was the first time The McDevitt Group had ever seen one, and it prompted them to invest in the only available to them at the time: a Framus. At first, no one in Chas's group had a clue how to play the communal bass but Shirley Douglas, by default, became the bass player because she was the only member of the band who could sing and play it at the same time..."

Any video/photo of Chas McDevitt Group displaying Shirley playing her Framus Star Bass?? 

Xosé

[Bobber]

You can send an e-mail to Chas from here: http://www.chasmcdevitt.com/cmc_contact.php

There's some pictures on his website, but none showing a bassguitar in the late 50s.

[Xose]

You can send an e-mail to Chas from here: http://www.chasmcdevitt.com/cmc_contact.php

There's some pictures on his website, but none showing a bassguitar in the late 50s.

Thank you Bobber!!

Xosé

[Xose]

Tony Sheridan, Tokyo Beatles Fan Club Magazine, 19 (1998), (=apud Eric Krasker, The Beatles. Fact and Fiction. 1960-1962 , Biarritz, Séguier, 2009, p. 159):

"...Tony Sheridan explain why listening to 'Sweet Georgia Brown' really gives that impression: 'He [McCartney] sounds like a double bass, 'cause I told him to play like theat. I didn't like the new idea of Fender guitar bass. When I first heard Elvis singing 'Jailhouse Rock', that was the first time I heard the electric bass and I didn't like that. Before that, Elvis had always that big bass. I still think the big bass is the best, it has more sound. So I asked Paul to always play as deep (deep notes) as posible, and to play like a big bass player..."

Xosé

[cubanheel]

Thanks for pic, Bobber; John looks knackered in that one!

[Bobber]

Thanks for pic, Bobber; John looks knackered in that one!

What I was trying to point out is that Davey Jones is just Paul in disguise. ha2ha

[peterbell1]

Liverpool Stadium, 3 May 1960.

Gene Vincent (=who was the backing band??):

Gene Vincent toured the UK a few times in 1960 using a British backing band called "The Beat Boys" who had Georgie Fame on piano (before he got famous in his own right).



According to this page ...
http://www.roganhouse.co.uk/rh_gal071203p.html
... the line-up was Red Reece (drums), Georgie Fame (piano), Ray McVay (saxophone), Vince Cooze (bass) and Colin Green (guitar).

Only a couple of weeks before that Liverpool gig on 3rd May, Gene Vincent had been in a car crash - the crash that killed Eddie Cochran - but Gene refused to cancel his tour.

[peterbell1]

Gene Vincent toured the UK a few times in 1960 using a British backing band called "The Beat Boys" who had Georgie Fame on piano (before he got famous in his own right).



According to this page ...
http://www.roganhouse.co.uk/rh_gal071203p.html
... the line-up was Red Reece (drums), Georgie Fame (piano), Ray McVay (saxophone), Vince Cooze (bass) and Colin Green (guitar).

I just searched for The Beat Boys and found this site ....
http://www.myspace.com/beatboys65
... which has a different line-up for the band in 1960. It looks like Georgie Fame left them in late 1959, so that band with Gene Vincent isn't The Beat Boys after all (it is definitely Georgie Fame in that picture with Gene Vincent).
Georgie Fame was based in London by 1960 so it must have been a London band. (The Beat Boys were based in Lancashire.)

[Xose]

Thanks Peter!!

Let's go on search to find out that band...

Best!!

Xosé

[Bobber]

Found this old picture of Gene Vincent and his Blue Caps. Is that a bassguitar on the left?

[Bobber]

It seems that Gene was also backed by what became Sounds Incorporated later. SI joined the Beatles on their 1965 tour of the USA.

[Bobber]

By the way Xose, I remember Astrid Kirchherr's picture book contains a lot of pictures of other Liverpool bands. I'll have a look if they're portraited with their bassguitars.

There's a bassguitar hanging on the wall in the picture of Hessy's shop.