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   CLUB SANDWICH 67

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BUDDY'S BIRTHDAY BASH

What have Emile Ford, Bruce Welch, Chris Dreja, Arthur Brown and Bobby Vee got in common? The answer: they could all be found in the bar of London's Victoria Palace Theatre on 8 September. The occasion was the final of the Rock 'n' Roll Brain Of Britain competition, and the man behind it all was MPL's publishing mainman Alan Crowder, who says...

            "Every year, we organise an event to mark Buddy Holly Week; every year, I have to think of something different. This year, I thought of a rock 'n' roll quiz."
            And so local radio stations were contacted, and the search for Britain's most tutored Teddy boy (or girl) began.
            The eight finalists who took to the stage at the Victoria Palace had each won a regional heat organised by a radio station. That got them a trip to London, with tickets to the hit musical Buddy, a night in a hotel and the chance to win the first prize of £1000 and become the very first Rock 'n' Roll Brain Of Britain. Club Sandwich 67
            Of course, Alan's job didn't stop there: to make the event more than just a competition, he scoured his music business contacts for stars of the '50s and '60s; not to perform or give prizes, just to meet each other and the contestants, hang out and mingle. This involved a certain amount of detective work: Chris Dreja (the former Yardbirds bassist) is now a photographer, Arthur Brown has only just returned to touring after years in the wilderness (that's what comes of setting your head on fire for a living), and Emile Ford - well, no one had any idea where to find him.
            In the bar beforehand, you could spot the contestants easily: they were the ones with glasses of mineral water, Coke or juice, gripped firmly in white-knuckled hands. Not that they were all nervous: Dave Burnett from Dundee was looking suave in a white tuxedo and jeans, and having the time of his life. "We just had a run-through, and I'm not expecting to win," he chuckled, "there are a couple of serious guys here. I don't mind: we've had a great time, the show last night was terrific. And checking into the hotel to be greeted as 'Mr. McCartney's party' - magic". Dave admitted being old enough to have got into rock 'n' roll when it first started; and still plays guitar in a Blues Brothers-type band. Others' tastes were less broad: Mick Hamilton from London was wearing the same checked shirt, drainpipes, fluorescent socks and black suede creepers he got married in, topped off with a carefully tended, Brylcreem-laden DA. Leeds' Paul Robertson sported a black and leopardskin bomber, and a fine grey pomp and sideburns: "Rock 'n' roll's just the best music - the only music – for me. Always has been." Motor engineer Richard Scott, from Cornwall, and the only lady finalist, Lyn Jeffs, were more conservatively dressed: Richard in particular would've passed for a bank manager. But they all know their rock 'n' roll backwards.
            The final showdown was held on the stage, still decorated with huge '50's advertising hoardings for that night's Buddy performance. Paul arrived a few minutes before, and chatted with everyone as they made their way through to the auditorium. He's never missed one of these events, making sure each year that he's there to honour Buddy Holly's birthday. This year he sandwiched it in before an afternoon of business meetings in London: a measure of his genuine love and respect for Buddy's unique talent. DJ Tony Prince introduced the contestants one by one and the quizmaster (and deviser of all the questions for the heats and the final) Mike Read. The first round comprised twelve questions to each contestant in turn: the three highest scorers would go forward to the second round. Mick Hamilton had the unenviable task of going first, and responded with a very creditable ten out of twelve. I say very creditable because I scored less than half that: you could hear the audience gasping at some of the questions – and these were the people who were actually making the music! By the end of the first round two clear front-runners had emerged in Mick and Birmingham's Ray Mills, who had the square jaw and quiet determination of a man with a lot of revision behind him. The third spot had to be decided in a sudden-death tie-break between Nick O'Toole from Merseyside and John Taylor from Peterborough; bad luck for Nick, who was just edged out.
            The second round involved identifying ten Buddy Holly songs from short clips. I was patting myself on the back for getting four, but all three of the contestants beat that easily. Going into the final, quick-fire round ("fingers on the buzzers, ready...") Ray was leading, but the gap was narrowing, with Mick and John no more than three points behind. In the last round, though, it was Ray all the way: this man was undoubtedly the fastest gun in some Western town in a former life, and he romped home with a handsome lead to become the first winner of Rock 'n' Roll Brain Of Britain, and recipient of a plaque and the cheque for £1000. Mick, in second place, got £500, and John, third, netted £250. But the abiding impression, as Ray choked back the tears on accepting the first prize from Bobby Vee, was that everybody had had such a good time taking part, it almost didn't matter who ended up with the most points. Paul nipped up on stage to congratulate all the contestants, sign autographs and pose for the inevitable pictures, and then it was back to the bar for the post-mortem; washed down with a liberal application of cold beer and Tex-Mex food. Zoot Money was talking animatedly with Henry Spinetti, drummer Blair was celebrating the birth of his second child that morning, and the contestants were winding down like good 'uns. It was only the need to clear the theatre for the evening performance of Buddy that brought proceedings to a close. Alan Crowder was last seen arm in arm with Arthur Brown, trying to hail a taxi. He's got all year to think about the 1994 event: suggestions on a postcard please. . .

MARTIN SCOTT

            Here are a few questions from the Rock 'n' Roll Brain Of Britain heats. A mystery prize to the first correct entry pulled out of a hat on 1 December. Simply send a postcard (or sealed-down envelope) bearing your name, address and club membership number to: Rock V Roll Quiz, The Paul McCartney Fun Club, P0 Box 110, Westcliff, Essex, SSO 8NW. Please do not use an entry to convey any other Club request or correspondence.

  1. What is Bobby Rydell's real name?
  2. Who had a US top 10 hit in 1957 with 'Mr. Lee'?
  3. Harold Robbins' book A Stone For Danny Fisher became which Elvis movie?
  4. Which US rock 'n' roller recorded ‘Lights Out'?
  5. Complete the group name: Otis Williams & the...
  6. From which song do these lyrics come? "Got me a date and I won't be late, picked her up in my eighty-eight."
  7. What was Little Richard's first UK hit?
  8. What was Neil Sedaka's first UK hit?
  9. From which song do these lyrics come? "The cats are stompin' on their heels and toes, I grab my baby try to give her a squeeze."
  10. Who had a US hit with '16 Candles'?
Club Sandwich 67