Flyer
The Royal Exchange
21st January 1979

From New Manchester Review Jan ’79. There’s nowt so queer as folk, as they say. This time X Steeleye Span people. I’m Sure I mentioned before about being taken along by my elders to a festival in Alexandra park, circa ’68, where I think Fairport Convention were the headliners, along with a band called Mr. Fox and a local rock band called Woden who my brother knew. I should add them to the list really; would be interesting to know more about the 60’s Manchester rock scene other than the likes of The Mindbenders, Hollies, Freddie & the Dreamers, Herman’s Hermits etc. Of course, being only knee high to a Wolf hound, what I remember most about that day was a cowboy act and feeding the ducks on the pond, especially the little Mandarin duck ones; I still want one!
Actually thinking about the Herman’s Hermits I have a story about them too! (Have you really? Yes, I have...). Round this same time, being about 8 or 9, we were out and about on bikes as kids are wont to do, when we came upon a big pile of sand dumped on a driveway down near Styal Road which was on the boundary of our “turf”.. Well of course, being eminently qualified at being young , me, my mate and his younger brother stopped momentarily to gaze upon this vision of earthly delight before immediately proceeding to jump and climb all over it; it would have been remiss of us not too. Next thing we know this big lump comes running and hollering out the door, and of course we scarpered on the bikes with him and his golden Labrador in hot pursuit. Well I was on the back of my mate’s bike with his young brother on the other. (Santa hadn’t been that year which is presumably why I didn’t have one). So this grown up just came bounding along after us and we’re thinking he’s never gonna catch us, he’ll give up soon; but no, like the Terminator he just kept going for what seemed like ages, till we reached my mate’s house and legged it round the back. He was the cock of our year and I reckoned he could probably 'ave 'im anyway.....ooh yeah!
Well a minute or so later he comes round the back with me mate’s dad (he must have spotted the bikes strewn across the driveway, possibly with the back wheels still spinning just for effect...), and we were proceeded to be given a right royal bollocking by the lump and his dad for whatever crimes against humanity we’d just committed. When he’d gone with his trusted canine in tow, me mate’s old man just laughed and told us not to worry about it. Anyway that bounding bugger, as we knew, was Karl Green from a pop band we’d seen on Top of the Pops called Herman’s Hermits. Every 10 years or so when somehow, unaccountably, that spectacle pops up in my head, it still puzzles me why a fully grown adult male, presumably in possession of his faculties would chase innocent little kiddywinks miles (well a mile anyway), just ‘cos they couldn’t resist a pile of sand? Shame on you mister! You should have been gettin’ high with Graham Nash and John Mayall in their Laurel Canyon home or playing spin the bottle with the Charles Manson Experience instead of chasing the lickle yoot’ dem who never did nuffin’ neither......Well that’s my “ getting chased by a popstar story”... will it never end? Answer- yes it will.
Another hippy rock band my brother used to mention were called Frog Box so I’ll put them on the list too. Actually drove up to Rochdale with our kid one time to see ‘em but by then they’d been reduced down to one man and his keyboard.....something to do with double digit inflation apparently.....
Other stuff mentioned in this issue:-Review of Object Music releases, as mentioned previously, Review of Funkadelic at Belle View, The Albertos at The Poly with John Dowie, and The Police as support, The Yo Yos at The band on the wall with photo included, and so on....