Great news from the U.K. This months Record Collector magazine (August 2010) contains a very nice two page interview with Mr Superyob himself Dave Hill.
There is also a chance to order a copy of a very limited edition 180gm vinyl re-issue of Ambrose Slade's Beginnings l.p. limited by Record Collector to 750 copies only! It comes with its completed numbered certificate of authenticity signed by Ian Shirley, Editor of the Rare Record Price Guide.
There are also Ian Shirley's notes on Beginnings enclosed with the record. It also comes with a four page booklet featuring press cuttings, photos, and alternative artwook etc. This item is made as closely as possible to the original specifications, with care and attention to detail.
This is the fourth release in the RC Rare Vinyl series. The price a mere £ 19.99 + p&p. Go on get this months RC before they are all sold out. We have ordered ours today!
Rod Fox & Wendy Evans, Hereford, UK
Birmingham Mail interview part 1: Dave Hill talks about his roots
24.07.2010 Birmingham Mail, Steve Bradley
"IT COULD be said that Slade owe it all to Dave Hill’s parents. Had his mechanic father and office worker mother not encouraged him, the 64-year-old grandfather could still be working at Tarmac in Wolverhampton, closing in on retirement.
But the couple, from the Potteries, realised the wisdom in not crushing the dreams of this fledgling guitarist, who had bought his first instrument for around £7.50 from the Kays Catalogue.
Just a few years later, Dave would be climbing to the top of the Mander Centre for a heavily symbolic photo shoot, next to an arrow sign pointing skywards, as he and fellow Black Country working-class heroes Noddy Holder, Jim Lea and Don Powell celebrated their first number one in late 1971.
The characteristically mis-spelt Coz I Luv You would kick-start an amazing run of six number ones and a further seven top ten records in a wildly exciting four years, then following a dip in fortunes which saw them play what Dave calls “the chicken-in-a-basket circuit”, a dramatic return to the top in the eighties after a fortuitous late call to deputise for Ozzy Osbourne at the 1980 Reading Festival.
Their music was wild, raucous, concise and fun – with a glitter-festooned, platform-booted Dave the consummate, extrovert showman – but also boasted considerable craftsmanship which explains its enduring appeal.
...
“I learned to play guitar when I was 13 or 14,” the affable, effervescent star remembered during an interview in the newly-named Slade Rooms in the city centre just weeks ago. “I had found an instrument which I had fallen in love with. It was from the Kays Catalogue and came in a cardboard box. I played it upside down because I was left-handed. The Beatles hadn’t made it [with a left-handed Paul McCartney in their ranks] and so there were no left-handed guitars.
“Brian Close, a biology teacher who also taught guitar, got me to play right-handed.”
Dave said playing the wrong way round meant he developed an unusual and distinctive downward note-bending technique which he calls the “back wobble”, which would be heard later on several Slade hits.
...
The new N’Betweens’ line-up had earned an estimable reputation by late 1968, having gigged regularly in town at the Lafayette, at the Woolpack restaurant, the Ship And Rainbow, and on Monday nights at the Civic Hall, as well as at Brum venues like the Tyburn House, building a solid fanbase as they churned out a perplexingly wide-ranging repertoire of covers, from Marvin Gaye to the Moody Blues, Frank Zappa to Ted Nugent. They had blistering power and real stage presence.
Dave said: “I’ve been in this for most of my life, although I had a job. But I left that job – my parents let me do it. People thought that a group wasn’t a proper job, but this was a decision I made with my parents. Dad said ‘we’ll give it a go’.
“I think I ended up in the Tarmac Monthly when I made it!”
Birmingham Mail 24.07.2010
Dave Hill interview in Record Collector August 2010
Record Collector magazine August 2010 contains a very nice two page interview with Mr Superyob himself - Dave Hill. There is also a chance to order a copy of a very limited edition 180gm vinyl re-issue of Ambrose Slade's Beginnings LP, limited by Record Collector to 750 copies only. It comes with its completed numbered certificate of authenticity signed by Ian Shirley, editor of the Rare Record Price Guide.
There are also Ian Shirley's notes on Beginnings enclosed with the record. It also comes with a four page booklet featuring press cuttings, photos, and alternative artwook etc. This item is made as closely as possible to the original specifications, with care and attention to detail.
This is the fourth release in the RC Rare Vinyl series.
Thanks for the info to Wendy Evans and Rodney Fox in Hereford once again!
'Mad, Bad and Dangerous' - The Book of Drummers' Tales
While waiting for Don's biography, here's something for the friends of drummers written by Spike Webb. Release date 5th July 2010.
"Never have so many famous drummers been gathered together in one place! Drummer and writer Spike Webb has spent more than three years meeting fellow drummers in bars, clubs and cafes, shooting the breeze for a couple of hours and extracting anecdote after anecdote for posterity.
In this book you'll meet drummers like Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Don Powell (Slade), Adam Facek (Babyshambles), Steve White (Paul Weller), Topper Headon (The Clash), Woody (Madness) and world-class session players like Toto's drummer Simon Phillips. Sometimes hilarious, sometimes poignant but always entertaining."
Amazon
