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Topic: Who Played Steel for The Hillsiders and Natchez Trace ? |
Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 19 May 2009 7:53 pm |
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| I was fond of the British C&W groups The Hillsiders and Natchez Trace, but I haven't heard anything of them for a while. Does anyone know who played steel for them ? Also, what about the Strawberry Hill Boys ? |
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Ray Kedge
From:
Middlesex, England
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Posted 20 May 2009 12:02 am
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Alan,
The Hillsiders are no more,disbanded quite a few years ago,Ronnie Bennett was the original steel player then Dave Rowlands took over untill they split.Very sad that Joe Butler passed away last year one of the founders of the group.
Ray |
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Barry Gaskell
From:
Cheshire, UK
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Posted 20 May 2009 1:59 am
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Hi Alan
All the lads from the various forms of the Hillsiders are and were great friends of mine. It's as Ray has said pretty well. The original steel player before Ronnie Bennett was a guy called Frankie Wann, who played a fender single eight. He originally played lead guitar. The Hillsiders metamorphosised (spelling ?) from a Liverpool sixties band called Sonny Webb and the Cascades, who were big in the Merseybeat era. Sonny Webb's real name was Kenny Johnson. Frankie died quite a few years ago and Joe (the bass player) died last year.
Regards
Barry |
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Ken Byng
From:
Southampton, England
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Posted 20 May 2009 11:03 am
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Kenny Johnson is arguably the best country vocalist to have come out of the UK. Superb voice. Kevin McGarry was an excellent replacement though.
The Hillsiders always epitomised professionalism for me. Always slick and well presented. Joe Butler's premature passing was a tragedy.
_________________
Show Pro D10 - amber (8+6), MSA D10 Legend XL Signature - redburst (9+6), Sho-Bud Pro 111 Custom (8+6), Emmons black Push-Pull D10 (8+5), Zum D10 (8x8), Hudson pedal resonator. Telonics TCA-500, Webb 614-E,
Last edited by Ken Byng on 21 May 2009 3:48 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Barry Gaskell
From:
Cheshire, UK
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Posted 20 May 2009 12:44 pm
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Hi Ken
Amen to that. Joe was a diamond.
Kenny alas is now solo with backing tracks, and Kevin hardly sings at all now. Dave Roland doesn't play much at all (he's to my mind, one of the best steel players in the country) Noddy,(Brian Redman) the drummer, plays occasionally with a band called Gaz and the Groovers, around the Liverpool area, and Brian the lead player has retired completely. As we all know our 'Ronnie' still builds steels and plays (occasionally) and is still active, and long may it be so.
Barry |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 29 May 2009 2:50 pm
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Bobby Bare was sent over to England during the Merseyside era with an instruction to check out the up-and-coming local groups so that his record company could sign them up and break into the Mersey Sound. He "discovered" the Hillsiders, and made an album with them, which I imagine was not the sound his US producers were expecting.... 
I used to have a copy of that album, but it was left behind in Birmingham when I moved and disappeared. I still have a tape of it, though, which I've copied onto CD-R. |
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Ken Byng
From:
Southampton, England
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Posted 30 May 2009 12:54 am
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I did a number of gigs on the same bill as the Hillsiders. One thing that my band learned from them was how few leads that you could see on the stage when they were on. The stage looked like spagetti junction when we were on, yet they routed all instrument leads around the stage to keep it neat and tidy - one lesson learned on that area of professionalism. Of course we also loved the scouse wit and banter backstage when we played with them.
_________________
Show Pro D10 - amber (8+6), MSA D10 Legend XL Signature - redburst (9+6), Sho-Bud Pro 111 Custom (8+6), Emmons black Push-Pull D10 (8+5), Zum D10 (8x8), Hudson pedal resonator. Telonics TCA-500, Webb 614-E, |
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Alan Brookes
From:
Brummy living in Southern California
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Posted 30 May 2009 10:01 am
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| On their recording of "Y'all come", I thought their passage of "yowl cum ter see us now and then" in Scouse sounded funny right next to Bobby Bare. |
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Paul Frank Bloomfield
From:
Greece
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Posted 31 May 2009 11:17 pm The Hillsiders
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Hi guys,
when I was with Frisco back in the '80's I seem to
remember a band on the Pontins circuit which we all
played called Kenny Johnson and Northwind, could it
be the same Kenny you are talking about ?
All the best
Frank. Corfu
_________________
" The problem with doing nothing is not knowing when you've finished "
ZBSD-10,ZB D-11/10, Franlin Tele,Epiphone customised Les Paul, 'Fender pro 185 amp. |
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Ken Byng
From:
Southampton, England
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Posted 1 Jun 2009 1:50 am
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That's the guy Frank. He formed that band when he left the Hillsiders.
_________________
Show Pro D10 - amber (8+6), MSA D10 Legend XL Signature - redburst (9+6), Sho-Bud Pro 111 Custom (8+6), Emmons black Push-Pull D10 (8+5), Zum D10 (8x8), Hudson pedal resonator. Telonics TCA-500, Webb 614-E, |
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Barry Gaskell
From:
Cheshire, UK
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Posted 1 Jun 2009 3:45 am
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Hi Frank
After the Hillsiders Kenny did form a band called Northwind as Ken said, and I was in that band for a year and a half.
We did a lot of the night clubs and cabaret clubs in and around Liverpool and covered all the American bases.We did a week at a time at the cabaret clubs and doubled all week as well. We'd do a week at the The Wooky Hollow cabaret club in Anfield, starting with band call on a sunday afternoon (when they also had a stripper on), and the show was timed and run through, and then we'd play all week finishing on the following Sat night. All week we'd double with a club called Allinsons in the Litherland area which was quite a few miles away and there was quite a panic to get all the gear down and into the van and high tail it to the other club to finish the night.It was a really tight band and Kenny was at his vocal best around that time.
It wasn't a real country band then, we had to do a lot of middle of the road numbers. We cut an album of those sort of songs at Morgan Studios in London.
He's still a great singer.
Barry |
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Paul Frank Bloomfield
From:
Greece
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Posted 1 Jun 2009 4:25 am
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Thanks guys !
you have admit they were the best times for the British Country Music scene, and Barry,we must have
appeared on the same gig somewhere along the line !
I still have a lot of the Pontins programmes somewhere with all the acts featured for the week/weekend,I'll try and dig 'em out when Bob Adams
and Olly have returned to the UK.
All the best
Frank. Corfu
_________________
" The problem with doing nothing is not knowing when you've finished "
ZBSD-10,ZB D-11/10, Franlin Tele,Epiphone customised Les Paul, 'Fender pro 185 amp. |
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Ken Byng
From:
Southampton, England
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Posted 1 Jun 2009 10:42 am
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Barry - that's really interesting stuff. I thought that City Lights might make the charts with enough exposure. I played at the Peterborough Festival with Rose Marie on the same bill as KJ and Northwind. I remember that all he wanted to do was get his set over and get back home.
_________________
Show Pro D10 - amber (8+6), MSA D10 Legend XL Signature - redburst (9+6), Sho-Bud Pro 111 Custom (8+6), Emmons black Push-Pull D10 (8+5), Zum D10 (8x8), Hudson pedal resonator. Telonics TCA-500, Webb 614-E, |
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Barry Gaskell
From:
Cheshire, UK
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Posted 1 Jun 2009 10:49 am
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Hi Ken
I played on City Lights. It was recorded at Strawberry Studios (10CC) in Stockport near Manchester.
Kenny wan't the best mixer at the time and often kept himself to hmself.
Cheers
Barry |
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