John Cale flew in to Barcelona from NYC and wouldn't play a note until he'd been paid. The camera crew had to stop work by about 1400hrs because of union rules, so RTVE had people desperately scurrying out to banks to get cash. It was getting close to time and Kevin was pleading with Cale to get started. I remember him saying 'RTVE is practically a government agency ... it's not going to not pay you' but Cale did not concur and stuck to his position. Eventually, the dosh arrived and I have NEVER seen anyone put a band together as fast as Cale did that day. Heartbreak Hotel was absolutely electrifying. - Jerry Hart
Yes, Cale when told that RTVE was a Government agency, only strengthened his resolve not to budge until he had been paid in US Dollars. I recall him stressing to me that Government agencies were NEVER to be trusted. After the taping of the show I had the job of minding Cale for the next 36 hours or so....Phew!!! - Ian Carpenter
Shooting At The Moon: The Collected Lyrics Of Kevin Ayers
The complete Kevin Ayers lyrics plus hundreds of photos including a large number featuring Ollie which you will not hava seen before.
I
was gigging regularly with Kevin in the late 60s/early 70s the gigs
would be totally unpredictable and that's what attracted me to his
music in the first place I guess - the fact that there was no set pattern
to what would happen. I recall one gig where I was soloing and spotted
Kevin gesturing me to end the solo so I stopped and Lol Coxhill said
'why are you stopping?; I pointed to Kev and Lol shouted 'oh don't
take any notice, you carry on!' Since two or three others were also
soloing at the time I stepped away!"
-
John Altman
Let
There be Drums!
'Starvin'
Marvin Siau has unearthed a marvellous clip of Kevin Ayers from Belgian
TV in 1982.
The members of his touring band decided
to play musical chairs with the instrumentation. This resulted in Ollie
being reunited with his first love, the drum kit . Whilst girlfriend
Zanna Gregmar does a Hendrix impersonation with his Gibson SG guitar.
"Kevin
would play on any piece of wood that 's in tune and to save time in
between gigs play on the same gear as the band before, " says
Marvin.
"It
encouraged me to play without pedals on an odd instrument in uncomfortable
circumstances sometimes, see how long I would hold out, hihi, learned
a lot from that!"
Bassist
Bolle Gregmar recalls: " We all switched around on the instruments
because Ollie didn't care to pose for a guitar solo he wasn't actually
playing, so He's on Drums, Zanna on wicked Guitar, and Pedro Colom
[bass player] on keyboard and me [drummer] on bass.
We
did the whole thing in one real take and one rehearsal. wish it were
better quality. but This is a fun moment in the Bruxelles TV station.
On that same Billing were The Jam and they did A Town Called Malice.
There was a guitar incident with a forgotten Rickenbacker 12-string
for Paul Weller and he refused to even play Kevin's 6-string Rickenbacker
which was offered. So the result was that Mr Weller performed in the
video sans guitaire."
Thanks to 'Starvin' Marvin Siau
Playing with someone like Ollie makes the whole tedious process of going out on the road worthwhile."
- Kevin Ayers
Kevin Ayers memorial plaque laid in the churchyard at Deia, Mallorca, 16 August 2003
The incription along the bottom reads, "Well, that was something, as opposed to nothing."
For
more information about Kevin Ayers, please visit:
Hyde Park, London 29.6.74 • May I • Shouting In A Bucket Blues • Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes • Didn't Feel Lonely • Whatevershebringswesing • We Did It Again (with Gong)
Nottingham University 11.74 • May I
• Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Stranger
in Blue Suede Shoes
• Didn't Feel Lonely
• Lady Rachel
• Interview
• Sweet Deceiver
• Guru Banana
• Observations
• Whatevershebringswesing
• Stop This Trainl
BBC Radio (Rock On) 11.11.74 • After The Show
Manchester
Free Trade Hall 15.11.74 • May I
• Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Stranger
in Blue Suede Shoes
• When Your Parents Go to Sleep
• Didn't Feel Lonely
• Lady Rachel
• Interview
• Guru Banana
• Sweet Deceiver
• Observations
• Stop This Train
• Falling in Love Again
• Don't Be Cruel
Paris Salle Wagram 24.2.75 [Radio] • La Ville De Paris • Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes • Hat Song • [Interview] • The One Chance Dance • Dr Dream Theme
BBC Radio 27.3.75 • Shouting in a Bucket Blues
Kevin Ayers live
1980-1982
Hurrah's Club New York
24.4.80 • Banana Intro • Didn't Feel Lonely
• May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues
• Stop This Train
• Everybody's Sometimes
• Supersalesman • Why Are We Sleeping
• Idiots
• That's What You Get Babe
• Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Animals
• Ballad of Mr Snake
• Beware of The Dog
• See You Later
• Falling in Love Again
One of the rare live shows with Ollie playing a Gibson Les Paul Junior with an extraordinary 'violin' tone.
Trax, New York 9.5.80 • Didn't Feel Lonely
• May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues
• Stop This Train
• Everybody's Sometimes
• Supersalesman • Why Are We Sleeping
• Idiots
• That's What You Get Babe
• Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Animals
• Ballad of Mr Snake
• Falling in Love Again
• See You Later • Take Me to Tahiti
• The Hat Song
The other rare show! Not as good sound as Hurricanes. Only known live versions of Take Me to Tahiti and The Hat Song
Hurrah's Club, New York, May 1980
Photo: TF
It was the Gibson Les Paul Junior guitar , pictured here, that was responsible for the extraordinary 'violin' tone[previously assumed to be a Fender Stratocaster] present on the New York recordings.
Puerto de Soller, Mallorca Discoteca El Patio December 1981
• May I
• Shouting in a Bucket Blues
• Take It Easy [Run]
• Didn't Feel Lonely
• Everybody's Sometime
• Super Salesman
• Howling Man
• Beware of the Dog
• Animals
• Cocaine in My Brain
• Budget Tours Part 1 [Africa]
• Stop This Train
• Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes
German Radio broadcast 11/3/82. Very good quality 'audience' recording. This show has been issued as abootleg CD Sweet Dreamer - so DON'T buy it! - listen online to better quality versions here.
A rare
recording from this period of their career. Featuring Zanna Gregmar
on keyboards and vocals and Ollie in spectacularly heavy form!
Listen out for Ollie and Kevin's extraordinary and inexplicable rendition of The Teddy Bear's Picnic at the end of Beware of the Dog.
The
Zaragoza gig in March was among the first gigs with Ollie & Zanna
in my two years working with Kevin. The TV special with John Cale and Andy
Summers was towards the end of the year. During 1981 we did quite
a few gigs in Spain including a bullring in Alicante with Dr. Feelgood,
the Teatro Martin in Madrid with the Sex Beatles, the Magic in Barcelona
and quite a few in Mallorca." - Ian Carpenter
Kevin Ayers live
1986-1988
Deia Parke Municipal
30.8.86 • Why Are We Sleeping • Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes • Big Bamboo • Didn't Feel Lonely • Animals • Shouting in a Bucket • Steppin' Out • Everybody's Sometimes • Flying Start • Supersalesman • Stop This Train • Do What You Feel Like • Cocaine Blues • Flying Start
A quite staggering funk version of Didn't Feel Lonely, with an incredibly inventive solo building to a wonderful `chickin pickin' climax.
Amsterdam 4.3.88 Poor sound - not worth listing
Tilburg 6.3.88
[Poor sound - not worth listing]
Zeche, Bochum 8.3.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Didn't Feel Lonely • Steppin' Out • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman • Animals • Stop This Train • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Am I Really Marcel
Munich 10.3.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Didn't Feel Lonely • Steppin' Out • Saturday Night • Another Rolling Stone • Everybody's Sometime • [Supersalesman] • Animals • Stop This Train • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Am I Really Marcel
Aachen 13.3.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Didn't Feel Lonely • Saturday Night • Another Rolling Stone • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman • Animals • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Am I Really Marcel?
A rare complete Am I Really Marcel together. Elsewhere, Ollie throws the Superstition riff into Didn't Feel Lonely.
Recording courtesy of Joerg Reinicke
London,
Queen Elizabeth Hall 28.3.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Saturday Night • Everybody's Sometimes • Champagne & Valium • Stop This Train • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Am I Really Marcel • Why Are We Sleeping • See You Later • Stepping Out • Animals • Don't Fall in Love With Me
Kyoto or Mido Kaikan Hall, Osaka 19.12.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Steppin' Out • EveryBody's Sometimes • Decadence • Supersalesman • Animals • Champagne & Valium • Why Are We Sleeping • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Am I Really Marcel
Tokyo 21.12.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Steppin' Out • Everybody's Sometimes • Champagne & Valium • Supersalesman • Decadence • Animals • Why Are We Sleeping • Stop This Train • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Am I Really Marcel • Don't Fall in Love With Me • Stop This Train
Poor sound for most of the recording, but one track [Champagne & Valium] that contains what must rank as one of Ollie's finest ever solos! Tokyo show is Included in the bootleg CD Spanish Troubadour
Fukuoka 23.12.88 • May I • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Steppin' Out • Everybody's Sometimes • Champagne & Valium • Supersalesman • Decadence • Animals • Why Are We Sleeping
•
Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes
• Am I Really Marcel
• Don't Fall in Love With Me
• Stop This Train
Unfortunately the end of the recording is cut short as is the beginning, but "Smile a while," says Kevin as Ollie launches into his May I solo. And he does.
The first solo in Didn't Feel Lonely manages to reference both Rhapsody in Blue and Sabre dance within four bars
Shouting in a Bucket Blues, which can only be adequately described as the musical equivalent of plate spinning.
Kevin Ayers
1992
Bordeaux 6.4.92 • May I • Steppin' Out • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman • I Don't Depend On You • There Goes Johnny • Why Are We Sleeping • Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes • Ghost Train
Paris 4.92 • Feeling This Way • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Animals • May I • Thank You Very Much • There Goes Johnny • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman • Ghost Train • I Don't Depend on You • Why Are We Sleeping
The Elderly Brothers
VARA Fm, Hilversum, Netherlands 2.4.92 • M16 • There Goes Johnny • Thank You Very Much • Goodnight Irene
A rare acoustic session from Kevin and Ollie [on borrowed right-handed guitar]
Thanks to Jorge Souto Bartolomé
Richard Skinner Show (GLR) 30.4.92 • I Don't Depend on You • May I Another acoustic duo session by Kevin and
Ollie
Amsterdam Paradiso
3.4.92 • Feeling This Way • Shouting In A Bucket Blues • Animals • May I • Steppin Out • Thank You Very Much • There Goe Johnny • EveryBody's Sometimes • Supersalesman • Ghost Train • M16 • I Don't Depend on You • Stranger in Bliue Suede Shoes • Irene Goodnight (yes, really!) • Stop This Train
Cheval Blabc, Shiltigheim, Strasbourg 14.4.92 • Feeling This Way • Shouting in a Bucket Blues • Animals • May I • There Goes Johnny • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman • Ghost Train • I Don't Depend on You • Stranger in Blue Suede Shoes • Why Are We Sleeping • Thank You Very Much • Two Goes Into Four
Again, basically the whole show but particularly Don't Depend on You. I'm not ashamed to admit to the odd tear during the final notes of the solo on this now exquisitely ironic piece. Not as good a sound as Rennes but my favourite concert overall. By the way, how many of you geetar players have managed to master the deceptively simple riff in Here Comes Johnny.
• Feeling This Way • Shouting In A Bucket Blues • Animals • May I
Thank You Very Much • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman • Ghost Train • I Don't Depend On You • Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes • Why Are We Sleeping
London,
Shaw Theatre 30.4.92 • Feeling This Way • Shouting In A Bucket Blues • Animals • May I • Thank You Very Much • There Goes Johnny • Everybody's Sometime • Supersalesman
I Don't Depend On You • Stranger In Blue Suede Shoes • Why Are We Sleeping • Stop This Train • Two Goes Into Four
The obvious companion to the album Still LIFE With Guitar. These live versions are the best quality recordings in existence. DAT straight from the sound desk [how could that happen?] and include the very best 'May I' solo of all - acknowledged by Kevin as The Ollie Halsall Experience! ['Goodnight Irene' is actually from the Amsterdam Paradiso but added to complete this superb show.]
I was the drummer in Kevin Ayers' band on the 1992 Still Life With Guitar tour and had the privilege of playing with the great Ollie, although it wasn't the first time I played with him (before that, we did a Spanish TV video and some concerts in Spain with Kevin Ayers' band).
Ollie played awesome during the tour, I couldn't believe my ears.The band sounded great most of the time (there was Claudia Puyó on keyboards and vocals and Marcelo Fuentes on bass). Roy Wood, the road manager, recorded all the concerts. Unfortunatly, the tapes were stolen in Paris, while we were having dinner at a restaurant. [The Archive does hold some of the recordings courtesy of Roy Wood - Ed.]
Ollie was such a humble person, he never used to talk about himself or the people he had played with. Actually, I learned all about his career after his death.
We got along very well. He used to come every time we played in Madrid with Claudia's group (Los Románticos de Artane). Kevin's tour finished in London (Bernard Shaw theatre). I remember Ollie (and us) singing some daring lyrics to a famous opera leitmotiv, during dinner at a London restaurant.
A couple of days before coming back to Madrid, Ollie took Claudia and I to an Indian restaurant and after that he called a taxi and took us to see London Bridge and Tower Bridge. It was late at night and there was nobody around. It was a foggy night and the scene was very oneiric. Ollie told us about the 1666 Great Fire of London. I think it was his way to say goodbye to us, although he wasn't aware of it.
We were so shocked when he died, we couldn't believe what was happening, we had had great moments playing together during the 30 day tour. Now I can say I feel better sharing these memories with Ollie's fans. I'm one of them.
Quique Villafañe, Madrid 2012
Besides his work as a teacher at the Escuela de Música Creativa, Quique is working in a project with his own compositions, mixing instrumental music, mixing and rhythms from North, Central and South America.
Shooting at the Moon: The collected lyrics of Kevin Ayers The complete illustrated lyrics.
Kevin Ayers: August 16th 2013 Deià by Susan LomasFans, family and friends gathered to celebrate Kevin's life and music. Susan Lomas captures the atmosphere in words and pictures.
Tuning Up at Dawn A Memoir of Music and Mallorca
by Thomas Graves
Includes a lengthy chapter on Ollie and his association with The Pa Amb Oli Band.
The Way Too Weard Roy Weard toured with many bands in various capacities from T-Shirt seller to sound engineer, production manager and tour manager. Notably including Kevin Ayers
bfix-480x360.jpg)
plus-480x360.jpg)
fix-480x360.jpg)
Didn't Feel Lonely
