Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 26, 2020 1 hour ago, Sir Creep said: Rather a fun side project coming up w some memorable and/or obscure UK pop names. Clearly every name mentioned in here is covered in other threads. You’ve just contradicted yourself in the space of two sentences. Look at page one. We are unearthing names of people in their 70s-90s who have not previously been mentioned elsewhere (as well as collectively highlighting others). The UK Singles Chart used to be huge in Britain before the introduction of digital downloads just over a decade ago. I don’t expect many non-Brits to understand that because it’s likely not something they’ve been exposed to. This thread acts as an alternative place to collectively bunch people and post news / obits. Once I get the A–Z of 50s and 60s musicians done I’ll proceed with the following decades, and then when the thread has “complete” records people can refer to, it will make a lot more sense and hopefully be very useful. Much of this info takes a lot of digging online and it’s time consuming. You’re very welcome to contribute. And on your final point, extra curricular means non related. This is related to deadpooling as we’re trying to work out who is alive vs who has died. If you still disagree with me, then why not just take it up with a moderator privately rather than repeatedly trying to cause friction on here? 5 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
msc 18,565 Posted March 26, 2020 I am just old enough to remember the thrill of a new UK chart count down each week (and number one is...Wet Wet Wet again). I used to watch TOTP with Mum, and be amused by her "rubbish, rubbish, Bowie did it better, rubbish, oh that's a good one actually" reactions. Hell, if they hadn't axed TOTP (stupid decision) and not replaced it with a similar chart count down show on the Beeb (stupid decision) then I'd probably still follow the UK charts better now. And my reaction would like be: rubbish, rubbish, Bowie did it better, rubbish, oh that's a good one actually. I like this thread and its cavalcade of unearthed gems. 3 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maryportfuncity 10,706 Posted March 26, 2020 3 hours ago, Sir Creep said: Why isn’t this in extra curricular? The creator admitted the purpose of this thread in his first post. It wasn’t meant to fill a gap in our lists, rather a fun side project coming up w some memorable and/or obscure UK pop names. Clearly every name mentioned in here is covered in other threads. I've never received an answer to this as anything other than its moving the thread by a Moderator to where it belongs is a non answer. SirC A fair point but... It tends to get used properly every once in a while when the drummer of some bunch of dipshits who had a #12 hit before stumbling into the twilight hell of eternal cabaret carks. In other words, it's kinda been hijacked much like my Deadio Times thread which was originally put up to allow us all to alert each other of forthcoming broadcasts of interest to dead poolers before it became the default dumping bin for death announcements of marginal figures from the starry world of radio announcement and television presentation. Four hit wonders, Racey - drummer Clive Wilson remains alive and I haven't a fucking clue which one he is! 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Death Impends 8,065 Posted March 26, 2020 It's a good project and a good way to expand one's horizons. At this point I've listened to my radio's 50s/60s stations very comprehensively which rely on a limited pool of songs so this project has inspired me to go through the Billboard chart equivalents gradually to acquaint myself with the tunes that don't get as much airplay. (msc was right about the crooners, though, thank fuck I'm at the point of Elvis now... ) It's also interesting to see which names who enjoyed US success were successful on the UK charts and which ones weren't... and chillingly fascinating which names who had a hit or two in the day otherwise have nonexistent information about their lives. Eventually I'll use the lists in this thread to familiarize myself with the UK performers who made little or no splash in the US. Peter Noone has a weekly show on the 60s channel and some of the UK-only hits turn up then but that's really the only time they appear. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Clorox Bleachman 2,484 Posted March 26, 2020 15 hours ago, Ulitzer95 said: Thanks for pointing this out. I may have confused her with the Suzy Miller b. 1949 on Wiki! The Collins book in front of me says she was born “Renee Lester”, though it’s full of spelling mistakes (literally on just about every artist!) so Lister is probably correct. As that’s her real name, the GRO is a good place to start. If you had just one other piece of info (such as her age in any given year, or a husband) then you could probably identify her quickly. Without that it will be hard. According to this German forum she was born on 12 January 1929 in London. That birth date led me to this Spanish blog which claims she was born in France. They agree that she married a pianist named Willy Solomons. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 26, 2020 3 hours ago, Clorox Bleachman said: According to this German forum she was born on 12 January 1929 in London. That birth date led me to this Spanish blog which claims she was born in France. They agree that she married a pianist named Willy Solomons. Great find! I've filled out her bio on page one. I reckon she was born in France as can't find her in the GRO index for England and Wales for circa 1929! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 26, 2020 I've now listed the names of all acts from 50s-60s on page one. I will populate the bios in the next few weeks as quarantine in the UK inevitably leads to more time on my hands. I got bored at lunch so I did the letter "I"... because it's nice and short. Bios with "complete" info: Frank Ifield, Big Dee Irwin, The Isley Brothers, Burl Ives, The Ivy League Missing bio details for members of The Impalas, The In Crowd and The Ink Spots. Any help with these appreciated! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bibliogryphon 9,654 Posted March 26, 2020 10 hours ago, maryportfuncity said: A fair point but... It tends to get used properly every once in a while when the drummer of some bunch of dipshits who had a #12 hit before stumbling into the twilight hell of eternal cabaret carks. In other words, it's kinda been hijacked much like my Deadio Times thread which was originally put up to allow us all to alert each other of forthcoming broadcasts of interest to dead poolers before it became the default dumping bin for death announcements of marginal figures from the starry world of radio announcement and television presentation. Four hit wonders, Racey - drummer Clive Wilson remains alive and I haven't a fucking clue which one he is! When we were looking at houses one we went in had a Gold disc on the wall. The bloke had been a member of Coast to Coast. Then he was a stone mason Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungWillz 21,275 Posted March 27, 2020 The Impalas Right, I could be waaaaay off here but here's the information I seemed to have gathered, which might help your further research. The band were all teenagers at high school in 1958, right? This site http://doo-wop.blogg.org/the-impalas-1-a116514998 mentions that Tony Carlucci drops off the face of the earth. I don't believe that. Now remember the band were formed in Brooklyn. Gotta be some mention of his folks there. Richard "Dick" Wagner moves to New Mexico to become a phone company lineman. Now I've traced an obit for a Richard Wagner that would fit - died 2009 aged 66 would make him born likely 1943 - same dob as Frazier! Sadly, the obit is so sparse there's no information, but if you could trace this bod back through El Paso back to Brooklyn.....https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/richard-wagner-obituary?pid=134097747 Lenny Renda becomes a cop on the mean streets of NYC. Now, here on page 17: https://www.rennamedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/aapjune08.pdf there is reference to a retired cop named Lenny Renda who patrolled Elizabeth, New Jersey for 25 years prior to 2008. Now I don't believe cops retire after just 25 years, so where was this Lenny Renda before that? Possibly NYC? Additionally, the New Jersey Lenny's father Salvatore dies in 2005: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/salvatore-renda-obituary?pid=3322316 which might help in finding Salvatore in NYC in the 1950s? Some family information there. Anyhow, that's all I got. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 27, 2020 42 minutes ago, YoungWillz said: The Impalas Right, I could be waaaaay off here but here's the information I seemed to have gathered, which might help your further research. The band were all teenagers at high school in 1958, right? This site http://doo-wop.blogg.org/the-impalas-1-a116514998 mentions that Tony Carlucci drops off the face of the earth. I don't believe that. Now remember the band were formed in Brooklyn. Gotta be some mention of his folks there. Richard "Dick" Wagner moves to New Mexico to become a phone company lineman. Now I've traced an obit for a Richard Wagner that would fit - died 2009 aged 66 would make him born likely 1943 - same dob as Frazier! Sadly, the obit is so sparse there's no information, but if you could trace this bod back through El Paso back to Brooklyn.....https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/richard-wagner-obituary?pid=134097747 Lenny Renda becomes a cop on the mean streets of NYC. Now, here on page 17: https://www.rennamedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/aapjune08.pdf there is reference to a retired cop named Lenny Renda who patrolled Elizabeth, New Jersey for 25 years prior to 2008. Now I don't believe cops retire after just 25 years, so where was this Lenny Renda before that? Possibly NYC? Additionally, the New Jersey Lenny's father Salvatore dies in 2005: https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/name/salvatore-renda-obituary?pid=3322316 which might help in finding Salvatore in NYC in the 1950s? Some family information there. Anyhow, that's all I got. Agree with your sentiments on Carlucci. There must be something. Maybe he doesn’t want to be found but Ancestry records will still reveal him if I can get ahold of a few rough details to match him. As for Wagner, I think you’ve got that one wrong. On one of their YouTube vids, somebody claiming to be his granddaughter commented in 2015 and speaks about him as being alive. Renda - this is all useful indeed. I did a quick Ancestry search for a Leonard Renda (assuming that’s his first name!). Found nothing, but the father’s name may reveal him. I’ll have a look tomorrow, cheers! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungWillz 21,275 Posted March 27, 2020 Wild goose chase better than nowt I say, ha! If Wagner is still alive in 2015, there must be some mention of him, assuming he stayed in New Mexico. They'll all be born circa 1942-44 if they were all at school together. Finding Ant(h)ony Carlucci, an Italian name from Brooklyn in the 1940s/50s going to be a stretch. For all we know, he might be sleeping with the fishes.... 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 27, 2020 20 minutes ago, YoungWillz said: Wild goose chase better than nowt I say, ha! If Wagner is still alive in 2015, there must be some mention of him, assuming he stayed in New Mexico. They'll all be born circa 1942-44 if they were all at school together. Finding Ant(h)ony Carlucci, an Italian name from Brooklyn in the 1940s/50s going to be a stretch. For all we know, he might be sleeping with the fishes.... DL needs to hire a private investigator for these things 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungWillz 21,275 Posted March 27, 2020 Good news! Isaac Royal of the Ink Spots born Florida, August 31, 1918 according to this: http://www.uncamarvy.com/RhythmKings/rhythmkings.html. Dead? Leon Antoine was actually Antoine "Lucky" Leon, acknowledged by Uncamarvy and also mentioned on this number: Unfortunately, nothing else about his life or death because I'm off to bed. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 27, 2020 29 minutes ago, YoungWillz said: Good news! Isaac Royal of the Ink Spots born Florida, August 31, 1918 according to this: http://www.uncamarvy.com/RhythmKings/rhythmkings.html. Dead? Great find. Ancestry says: Isaac Julius Royal b. 31 Aug 1918 Daytona Beach, Florida d. 06 May 1994 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maryportfuncity 10,706 Posted March 27, 2020 11 hours ago, Bibliogryphon said: When we were looking at houses one we went in had a Gold disc on the wall. The bloke had been a member of Coast to Coast. Then he was a stone mason So, there was this scary bloke who sat in the corner of a local pub and went on about all kinds of stuff. When he told people he used to be in a band and had some hits people tended to say think he was full of shit. I only found out about this afterwards when I filed the obituary on him - he'd been one of the Pretty Things - and someone in the office saw the photo and said; "What? He was telling the truth all along!" 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Youth in Asia 1,088 Posted March 27, 2020 1 hour ago, maryportfuncity said: So, there was this scary bloke who sat in the corner of a local pub and went on about all kinds of stuff. When he told people he used to be in a band and had some hits people tended to say think he was full of shit. I only found out about this afterwards when I filed the obituary on him - he'd been one of the Pretty Things - and someone in the office saw the photo and said; "What? He was telling the truth all along!" Brian Pendleton? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
maryportfuncity 10,706 Posted March 27, 2020 2 minutes ago, Youth in Asia said: Brian Pendleton? The very man, fairly sure I discussed his demise hereabouts at the time. Tbh, I'd no idea he lived a few miles down the road and would have ventured into his favoured watering hole at least once to discuss their sparky early releases if I had known. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 27, 2020 Completed "Q" and X, Y & Z". Bios at "completion": ? and the Mysterians, Tommy Quickly, The Yardbirds, Jimmy Young, The Young Idea, The Young Rascals, Helmut Zacharias, Tommy Zang, The Zombies Requiring bio info: The Quiet Five, Zager and Evans, The Zephyrs Additionally a little confused about Karen Young. Reasonably satisfied with the murmurs online that she is alive and now living as a bed and breakfast host... but someone edited her Wiki page recently to say she died in 2013? I'm not convinced. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungWillz 21,275 Posted March 28, 2020 The Zephyrs: You probably know all this already. Here's Mike Lease's YouTube About: https://www.youtube.com/user/mikesilurilease/about?disable_polymer=1 which led me to the Ceilidh Band Site: https://www.murphys-law.org.uk/ and his phone number puts him in or around Newport in Wales. YouTube page indicates he was from South Wales originally. His comment on the video is about 2 years old, but hasn't posted a video for donkeys. LinkedIn Page here: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/mike-lease-10277a39 Here's John Peeby's IMDB page: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1169335/ Nothing of much help there. It's such an unusual name though, I'd have thought he could be found, I'm guessing born in the mid-late 40s. Carpenter and Hinde(s) elude me. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungWillz 21,275 Posted March 28, 2020 The Quiet Five. I think Hailey drummed on the 1965 single and that Collins is right about Marsh drumming on Homeward Bound. The link you point to doesn't actually say Hailey hadn't left - this site is fairly comprehensive about Marsh, when he joined (NYE 1965), etc: http://www.whiteplainschronicles.com/2018/07/tex-marsh.html which also confirms Marsh was born 1944. According to sources, Ray Hailey briefly drummed for Simon K And The Meantimers, after which I can find nowt. John Howell - my sources are dry on him after the group dissolve in 1967. The Facebook page and Kris Ife home page are run by the same person who uploaded the vids to YouTube. She says she remains friends (albeit some time ago) with all of the survivors. Facebook doesn't look like it's been updated in 5 years, but possible to contact her through the other for some general info? Assuming she's not given up or snuffed it. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
YoungWillz 21,275 Posted March 28, 2020 Zager And Evans. Just listening to Mark Dalton's interview from a couple of weeks ago here: https://www.blogtalkradio.com/magicalmusicent/2020/03/12/musician-mark-dalton-from-zager-and-evans-and-richard-pryor-jr He says he was 21 when the song was recorded in 1968, about 10 minutes in to the interview. That would make his year of birth no later than 1947 and no earlier than 1946, born in Nebraska. The interview also says he worked as a mental health support worker in Seattle (now retired), where he also performs today, indicating he has been there since 1973. Also: http://markdaltonbass.com/Marks_Music/About_Me.html 3 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 28, 2020 Thanks YW! From your finds... The Zephyrs: Lease states he lives in Cwmbran, Gwent on his website. It's a new town with a small population. According to Ancestry the only Lease from Wales full stop is a Michael F. Lease (residence: Cwmbran in 2004). His birth was registered in Oct 1945. The Quiet Five: Quite correct. Hailey on first single, Marsh on second. Added Roger "Tex" Marsh to member list. Zager and Evans: Dalton –annoyingly can't find him on Ancestry. His school graduation page is online and states that he left in 1965. Yanks graduate in May/June?? And they're 17-18?? So being born in July likely he wasn't quite 18 when he left. I'll put c. 1946 for now! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 28, 2020 "O" is up on page one. "Complete" bios: Obernkirchen Children's Choir, Dermot O'Brien and his Clubmen, Des O'Connor, Esther and Abi Ofarim, Ohio Express (because there's no record of who appeared as session musicians on Yummy, Yummy, Yummy), Oliver, Roy Orbison, Tony Orlando, The Orlons, The Tony Osborne Sound, Johnny Otis, Reg Owen Missing info: The Olympics (3 members), The Outlaws (1 member), The Overlanders (1 member) Pretty successful section. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 29, 2020 "U" is done. Complete bio info for: The Undertakers, The Union Gap feat. Gary Puckett, Unit 4 +2 or Phil Upchurch Combo It was going so well. And then reggae group The Upsetters upset me dearly. Can't find info for several members and not even 100% on their lineup. Supposedly their hit "Return of Django" is the most successful reggae hit ever according to one of the sites I used?! Surely that cannot be right? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ulitzer95 12,924 Posted March 31, 2020 "V" completed. Complete bio info for: Ricky Valance, Ritchie Valens, Caterina Valente, Dickie Valentine, Joe Valino, Leroy Van Dyke, Vanilla Fudge, Vanity Fare, Various Artists (1, 2 & 3), Frankie Vaughan, Malcolm Vaughan, Norman Vaughan, Sarah Vaughan, Billy Vaughn, Bobby Vee, The Vernons Girls, Gene Vincent, Bobby Vinton, The Viscounts Missing info for the following: The Velvets, The Ventures, The Vipers Skiffle Group Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
