Reflections on the Shadows at 60.

[abstamaria]

That was a lovely, very interesting show. It left impressions on me that probably differ from those of most of you, as I was never really a musician. Apart from an interest in electric guitars in the every early 1960s, I was just part of the herd of teenagers then, like the audience at the Newcastle City Hall that Bruce mentioned, moving from musical preference to preference, not as an avocation, but more as background music for the other interests we pursued.

In some ways, that is an advantage, as my memories were not overlaid by what the Shadows did in later years and afford me a broader view of their music, all from the perspective of a not-too-serious listener. (Until I joined Shadowmusic, I had never heard of Marvin, Welch, and Farrar.)

I believe David Gilmour described Apache accurately and, at the same time, the reason for its success: a simple melody, played beautifully, that everyone can learn. A more flamboyant guitarist , with a more complicated style, full of riffs that would impress a musician, would not have had the same success. The same is true with the Ventures’ Walk Don’t Run, If Nokie Edwards had played it in the style he preferred, we might never have heard of the Ventures. And in either case, many may not have been encouraged to run out and buy a guitar.

Bruce Welch placed the end of the instrumental era at 1966. I would place it earlier, probably at end 1963. When the British Invasion (which Bruce referred to as the “American Invasion,“ I suppose reflecting the perspective of an invader) began, the war was over. The BBC narrator seemed to agree with this, and, indirectly, Bruce. When the Beatles appeared, the Shadows faded quickly from the focus of the market, especially of young people. “We belonged to another era, we were like an act from Las Vegas,” to paraphrase Bruce. That’s pop music, he explained. Tastes change almost in an instant.

When I play with friends who had bands throughout the 60s, I am sometimes surprised that some never heard of Shadows pieces recorded closer to the mid-1960s, and certainly hardly anything after that, except for Cavatina and Don’t Cry For Me Argentina (but my non-guitarist friends in general never heard of those two pieces). By 1966, the cut-off Bruce mentioned, I was graduating from high school and Shadows and Ventures music were memories and no longer mainstream. Perhaps that is why, when I began to try to learn the pieces of the Shadows and other guitar bands, I identify with the style and sound of that very early era.

Best,

Andy

[Gatwick1946]

Very true. I think that unless we are close in age and background, we come across The Shadows at different times and all get something from it, depending on our individual preferences.

My dear wife of 50 years, (who has had to put up with a lot from me, often she remarks "not them blinking shadows again!") watched the documentary with me (interrupted by a supermarket delivery at 23.45 hours). The next day she wanted to play "a Shadows CD" - after a long chat I worked out that she meant a Marvin Welch and Farrar CD. So I dug out The Best of Marvin Welch and Farrar (MFP EMI 7243 8 59735 29), (24 excellent tracks).

We played it, and I was struck that many tracks seemed a bit sad, and referred to childhood days, loss, and things that could be remembered but never reclaimed.Then I recalled that Hank and Bruce both left the north east of England aged 16, and never lived there again. In fact after a short time their lifestyle was very different, and after a while it would have been difficult to return.

I enjoyed the documentary very much (memo. must look at the number plate of Bruce's rolls royce again (CBW****) and see if it is still around. Bruce had a white Rolls Royce when I got his autograph at the Dome Theatre in Brighton, in the 1980's.

Kindest regards,
Christopher

[drakula63]

I think if the Shadows had wanted HUGE chart success after 1963/64, then they probably should have taken George Harrison's advice and recorded and released more vocals. There were always a smattering of great vocals on their albums, but so few made it to single A sides. When they did release vocals, they often got it wrong - I'm thinking of putting 'Dear Old Mrs Bell' on the A side instead of 'Trying to Forget the One You Love', which was vastly superior.

I was pleased that they incorporated the 20 Golden Greats advert into the documentary. I was a teenager in 1977, when this album came out, and I remember that advert so well. It was this ad that got me into the Shadows, plus a friend of my mum's lending me The Stranger/Man of Mystery single. I will hazard a guess that, after 1960, 1977 was the year that brought the biggest influx of people to the alter of the Shads. I was just about the right age to find them fresh and exciting and to be subsequently caught up in the whole 'renaissance' period with Don't Cry For Me Argentina, Cavatina, Riders in the Sky, String of Hits, etc... etc... etc... A lot of 'youngsters' got into the Shadows between 1977 and 1980, but I'd be willing to bet that considerably fewer after that. The photo of me on the right was taken in July 1979. So it's probably 40 years now since there was any appreciable intake of new Shadows fans. And yet the documentary was the third most watched programme on BBC FOUR this year - and probably the most watched of the week. Not bad at all.

[Gatwick1946]

Hi Drakula63(to chris from chris)

I agree and what you say confirms IMHO what Andres says above. Personally I am a bit puzzled as to what young people get from the music of The Shadows.
I think this is because, whereas I find it easier to relate to things which happened in my lifetime; when I listen to say, Glen Miller or the Gilbert and Sullivan Savoy operas, or the old traditional melody Greensleeves (Henry VIII claimed to have written it?) I have to appreciate them through the filter of another person's opinion, or an old recording, or an old film or photo, or something written down.

But there was so much in the Shadows at 60 I enjoyed i.e. to see them walk forward and start singing songs, where I only knew them from the disc or an old, blurred photograph - and so much detail, because one can now record, and freeze frame, and note things that back in the 1960s, were there on the TV screen and then gone!

Kindest regards and keep safe,
Christopher

[Monty]

The show was fine but really needed to be longer and with more detail regarding the later band members, the albums, and the overall history of the band

No mention of Jet Harris and Tony Meehan duo, the solo careers of members, or a bit more re their influence was an oversight, while saying they were washed away by The Beatles and the Beat Boom just was NOT historically accurate at all - They had decent UK chart hits up to 1965 and The Swinging Blue Jeans covered two Shadows vocal tracks on their debut LP 'Blue Jeans A Swinging' in 1964 while Cliff/Shads had a UK hit with their great cover of The Rolling Stones 'Blue Turns To Grey' in 1966

Jet, Tony, Brian Locking and John Rostill deserved more than a brief mention and tho' it was great to see John Farrar from Hollywood it was a very brief clip of what I hope was a longer interview

Alan Hawkshaw was never mentioned at all nor the fact 'String of Hits' album topped the UK album chart in 1979

however you could see how image wise after the (very dated even at the time) Cliff musical films they became far too 'conservative' over 1964-68 and although they made fine music then they drifted away from being a 'fashionable' band one could admit to liking - as John Peel was quoted as saying - due to their very staid image, doing pantos or being puppets in 'Thunderbirds Are Go' - Cliff could get away with becoming a very safe 'all round entertainer' (tho' even he required rescuing musically by Bruce in 1975) but that did The Shadows few favors with younger fans - tho' Hank, Brian were top or near top of sixties NME Music fans polls and The Shadows were always very deeply respected by other bands all through their career

re the show a bit more vintage clips perhaps a few complete numbers would have been great in any extended DVD version - I think BBC did it on a shoestring budget and had to be convinced to do the hour version at all...!!

that said the formative years and early halcyon period were covered well and it was GREAT to finally see any such salute to the band's history as those Cliff/Shads things always tend to become a Cliff 'squee fest' by OTT fans with barely any mention of the Shads I find

HOPEFULLY this may inspire a more detailed extended future such retrospective overview of The Shadows full history

[RayL]

re the show a bit more vintage clips perhaps a few complete numbers would have been great in any extended DVD version
HOPEFULLY this may inspire a more detailed extended future such retrospective overview of The Shadows full history

There was such a video. Bruce compiled it with Trevor Popple about twenty years ago. Vintage material, with the tunes complete. It was shown at an early Shadowmania without fanfare on a screen to the side of stage. Why was it never released? The royalty payments were too costly. As I mentioned on the 'Shadows at Sixty' thread. the big film libraries who own the rights charge enormous amounts and they charge by the minute and often by the second.
Ray