The 80s: Photographing Britain show runs until May 2025

Above: Ingrid Pollard's photos of Brixton

 Above: Marc Boothe's photo of Benjamin 

Above: Dorian Crook visits the show

Above: Photo by Martin Parr

Above: Photo by Syd Shelton

David Devant at The New Cross Inn

 

David Devant And His Spirit Wife came to SARF London last night. The venue was packed with loyal fans and friends. It was great to hear a few songs I hadn't heard them play for a while such as My Magic Life, One Track Mind, Gentleman Jim and Ballroom. The crowd went wild for Ginger and I'm Not Even Going To Try. I think a splendid time was had by all.

Above: "Cheers" singer Mikey Georgeson backstage

Above: Graham Carlow on Drums

Above: Foz Foster on Lead Guitar

Above: Jem Egerton on Bass Guitar

Above: Mikey Georgeson and sons

On Amazon someone is selling a CD of David Devant's debut album for £64. 13 Reviers all give the album a mazimum 5 out of 5 stars. Here are a few of their comments...

 'Work, Lovelife, Miscellaneous' is still here and it is one of the Great British Pop Albums, up there with 'Country Life', 'The Who Sell Out' and 'Hunky Dory'. Mikey Georgeson's songs are brimful of vim, wide-eyed wonder and curiosity, and his vocals are declamatory and embracing.

"Brilliant when it first came out and still sounds fresh."

"It wasn't just their tricks that were magical. This album - their debut, and possibly their finest hour - sparkles with a thousand sequins, a glittering display of songcraft, musicianship and honest-to-goodness fun."

"Now the dust has settled on Britpop I survey the widespread wreckage of landfill indie CDs. Only four albums still resonate with the same energy and charm of yesteryear. Three of those albums are by Pulp. The other is 'Work, Lovelife, Miscellaneous' by David Devant and His Spirit Wife."

"Quirky, innovative, intelligent, funny, dancey...... Brilliant! One of my all-time favourites."

"This album is brilliant from start to finish. Just why weren't this band huge?"

See more Amazon reviews HERE 

Neil Innes's Imitation Song performed by Simon Love and The Andrew Petrie Orchestra

 Neil Innes Fans Of The World Unite And Take Over

Text by Harry Pye

Above: Drawing of Neil by Edward Ward

The Neil Innes I knew was a very polite, positive, cheerful and charming chap. However, like most musicians and songwriters he found things often didn’t go to plan and that things never got easier. He’d tell me how he’d arrived at a venue and there would be no one there to help him set up and no time for a soundcheck. Or he’d be told that a record label was re-releasing an album or DVD of his without his permission and that he hadn’t been paid for first time round. Or he’d say that his crowdfunding appeal to help pay for a new CD had been successful but then almost all the money was stolen as the company had gone bust and so on and so on. Neil’s albums post-1980 didn’t trouble the charts largely because no one knew about them. I feel he was definitely underrated as a songwriter. He was responsible for an awful lot of great lyrics and tunes and ideas that have been kept secret.

South London’s Indigo at The O2 is a 2,750-capacity live music club.  Mojo magazine has a circulation of 68,000 so I’m glad that last night Indigo was filled with happy fans enjoying Neil’s friends paying tribute to him and that the current issue of Mojo (with Neil Young on the cover) has a six-page feature on him. I wish he’d got more of that kind of attention and acknowledgment during his lifetime. C’est la vie. Last night Neil’s friend Martin Lewis (the brains behind the legendary Secret Policeman’s Ball events) told the Indigo audience that now is the time to stop thinking of what Neil can do for us and to start thinking what we can do for Neil. Keep spreading the word about all the good things the artist formally known as Ron Nasty did for us. A new CD Innes Prime has just been released which features songs Neil recorded live. And there is the superb book by Yvonne Innes about her life with Neil, Dip My Brain In Joy. And there is also the astonishing Bonzo Dog Box Set. So many Neil-related treats that would all make splendid Xmas presents. 

There were many great moments during last night’s show. Emo Philips (who looked absolutely splendid in his yellow jumpsuit) and the lovely Sanjeev Bhaskar both did very short but sweet sets. Ade Edmondson did a decent ‘You Done My Brain In’ and a nice rendition of Flanagan and Allen’s ‘Are You Havin’ Any Fun?’ Representing the Pythons were Terry Gilliam and Sir Michael Palin KCMG, CBE, FRGS, FRSL etc. While talking about Neil’s songs that were part of Holy Grail film Sir Palin revealed he relished the opportunity to talk about ‘Brave Sir Robin Ran Away’ as it meant he got to say the word ‘penis’ on stage.

Sixty-six per cent of what’s left of The Bonzo Dog Band (83-year-old Rodney Slater and  80-year-old ‘Legs’ Larry Smith) were there. ‘Legs’ Larry Smith performed ‘Look At Me I’m Wonderful’ and he was wonderful but sadly he explained the reason he was a bit out of puff was that he had the lung disease pulmonary fibrosis. Larry being Larry didn’t want to bring anybody down so he made jokes about his condition. (e.g. “I asked the doctor how much time have I got left. He told me not to buy any long-playing records.”) Rodney walks with a stick now but he seemed in good spirits. The super-talented Kevin Eldon joined them on stage to perform ‘Keynsham’. Mr Slater’s solo was sublime. At the end of the song he said: “That was my last ever stage performance.” 

Above: A bad photo of Legs Larry Smith with guitarist Rutlin' Ken Thornton.

Although it was the last Bonzo Dog performance it was the first live performance of The Spammed who were fab. Their bass player Horace Panter (a founder member of 2-Tone legends The Specials) is also a successful painter. He gave each member of the band a paint splattered apron to wear on stage. They performed ‘Humanoid Boogie’ which meant their new drummer Woody Woodmansey (best known for his work with Bowie) got to prove he could still play fantastic solos.

 It was a pleasure to see Roger McGough and Andy Roberts of GRIMMS perform together again. Andy Roberts played rhythm guitar on Neil’s most celebrated solo album How Sweet To Be An Idiot (1973) and is linked to many other Bonzo Dog related albums including Let’s Make Up And Be Friendly (1972), The Rutland Weekend Television Album (1976) and Bum Notes (2009). It was great to see Andy Roberts collaborate with Slovenian folk band Terrafolk.

Neil’s 2005 album Works In Progress features two classics ‘Friends At The End’ and ‘One Of Those People’. Both of these songs sounded fantastic tonight. There was also a great version of ‘Folk Song’ (from the Nearly Really album). Musicians who toured with Neil and John Halsey in the rebooted Rutles such as pianist Mickey Simmonds and Ken Thornton were both marvellous in the house band. The highly respected jazz musician, orchestra conductor, film soundtrack composer John Altman was the evening’s musical director and he provided several brilliant sax solos. He also made the very wise move of bringing on the fantastic Isabella Coulstock who performed the Rutles classic ‘I Must Be In Love’ brilliantly. 

Maddy Prior MBE of the celebrated folk band Steeleye Span sang a lovely version of ‘Lie Down And Be Counted’ which Neil first sang on his hit TV show The Innes Book of Records. I love Neil’s lyrics in this song (“There’s no song for the singer, No words for the tune, There’s a mess in the message And a man on the moon, There’s no plan in the planet, It’s all gone berserk, There’s a milk bottle shortage, And the traffic lights don’t work, Lie down and be counted, Don’t take any more, Lie down and be counted. What are we standing for?”). And it’s hard to think of anyone who could sing them better than Maddy.

Above: Bad photo of Tom McGuinness

Tom McGuinness ( who played bass with Manfred Mann in the 60s, had more chart success in the 70s as half of McGuinness Flint and from the 80s onwards has toured all over the world with The Blues Band) sang the poignant ‘Old Age Becomes Me’ from Neil’s last album and then a moving version of his big hit ‘When I’m Dead And Gone’. Tom was very good but maybe the loveliest moment of the evening was the set from Yo La Tengo who did an absolutely charming version of ‘I Want To Be With You’.

Above: Simon Love

The closest way we can get to being with Neil these days is to listen to his songs. Talking to fellow friends or fans of Neil is something I find very healing so I continue to collaborate with Gordon Beswick on making YouTube videos of people singing Songs of Innespiration. The most recent video I’ve had a hand in was for Simon Love and The Andrew Petrie Orchestra’s version of ‘Imitation Song’ which Neil wrote in 2009. This new version features Andrew on piano, drums, shaker, Moog, harpsichord, Mellotron flutes, acoustic guitars, and bass. Francis Macdonald added some tambourine. Ken Thornton contributed 12-string guitar, keyboard and backing vocals, Foz Foster played lap steel and saw, Susie Honeyman played violin, Johannes von Weizsäcker played cello and Kate Dornan played tuba.

Above: Harry Pye with Ken Thornton backstage at the O2

Here is a little Q & A I did with Simon and Andrew about Imitation Song...

Q: What do you think Neil's Imitation Song is about?

Simon Love: I think "Imitation Song" is about the artifice of the modern world and being tired of it.”

Andrew Petrie: “I think the song is about how everything around us now is a pale impression of something we’ve seen or experienced before. Cleverly, the song itself is intentionally an impression of a John Lennon ballad.”

Q: What are your favourite parts / lines from the song?

Simon Love: “My favourite thing about the song is that it sounds like it arrived all together. Occasionally I've had songs come to me with the lyrics and music all at once. Like laying an egg. This song sounds like it came easily.”

Andrew Petrie: “I like the lines “Never ending news / False economy” because of the wordplay: false economy is a well-known phrase, but it plays into the idea of not believing everything you read, from the previous line.”

Q: Do you think Neil Innes has been an inspiration to many musicians / songwriters? 

Simon Love: “Neil Innes is important to me because he showed that you could use humour in songs without writing "comedy" songs. From all the accounts I've heard of him from friends who he hung around with him, he also seemed like a lovely man. I'm sad I never got to meet him but I probably would've just said, "Love the songs" and then embarrassed myself somehow.”

Andrew Petrie: “The Rutles were great because Neil Innes made sure he wrote a proper pop song first before he worried about making it funny or Beatlesque. This is why the music still stands up today long after the audacity of daring to take the mickey out of the Beatles has lost its sting. It’s interesting that he found unlikely currency among American alternative types: Galaxie 500, Bongwater, Unrest etc.”

Q: What do you think was the best thing Neil Innes ever did?

Andrew Petrie: “For my money his greatest song is The Equestrian Statue from the first Bonzos album, closely followed by the title track from Keynsham.”

Simon Love: “I can't speak for the "best" thing but the song of his I love the most is "Another Day". It captures the 1968 McCartney sound perfectly but it also stands alone as a great song. It's also the only (I think) song to contain the word ‘Pusillanimous.’"

Watch the video for Imitation Song HERE

Miguel Zapata and The Bedsit People - Kickstarter campaign

 Help Miguel Zapata bring The Bedsit People to life!

The Bedsit People tells the story of a young musician who trades his sleepy, monotonous hometown in a far-flung corner of Europe for the buzz and chaos of London. Barely 20, armed with broken English and even more broken life skills, he dives headfirst into a world of cramped bedsits, eccentric characters, and surreal moments that only London can deliver.

Featuring over 30 new hand-made illustrations, The Bedsit People bridges the gap between a short novel and a graphic novel, capturing the absurdity, humour, and struggles of navigating adulthood in a city that doesn’t make it easy.

The goal? To produce a beautifully printed book: A4 size, approximately 80 pages. Your support will help turn this passion project into something tangible. The book will be a limited edition, with either 75 or 100 copies printed, depending on the success of this fundraiser.

As an added bonus, Miguel is offering the option to purchase an A3 print of one of the illustrations from the book. You’ll have several designs to choose from, including those featured on this blog post.

If successful, he aims to have all printed copies by the end of February - beginning of March. For those who know me or if you live in London or A Coruña, there's an option to purchase the book without shipping so I can give it to you in person.

Shipping charges are otherwise £5 for UK delivery or £10 for overseas. If you purchase the book and print bundle, shipping charges are £10 for UK and £20 for overseas.

For more info click: HERE

Happy Birthday John Cleese

Today is John Cleese's 85^th birthday. To celebrate Harry Pye is unveiling his new collaboration with fellow artist Rowland Smith. The title of the tribute is "Cleese and Chapman Diptych." Their artwork makes reference to two great artists of the past - Francis Bacon  and Agnola Bronzino, and two great comedy writer/performers John Cleese and Graham Chapman. Francis Bacon's intense portraits can currently be seen in the exhibition Human Presence at The National Portrait Gallery. Meanwhile, next door at the National Gallery you can see Bronzino's painting An Allegory with Venus and Cupid which partly inspired the famous foot from the opening credits of Monty Python's Flying Circus.

Whilst a student at Winchester School of Art in the 1990s, Harry Pye wrote his dissertation on the Monty Python team and has always been fascinated by the unique creative relationship Cleese had with Chapman. Their partnership resulted in such classic sketches as The Dead Parrot. Originally, Cleese wrote a skit about a dodgy toaster. It was Graham Chapman who suggested it would be funnier if the toaster was switched for a parrot.  

Pye says "For me, these paintings are about being in the spot light. Sometimes we all find ourselves in a situation where we can feel like a chat show guest that's under pressure to be interesting and amusing. If you go on You Tube you can find many fascinating interviews with both Cleese and Chapman. The two that really stick out for me are  the one where Chapman is with Michael Parkinson and he really opens up about his alcoholism and the other one is from 1979 when Cleese argues about the film Life of Brian with the Bishop of Southwark. One of the best things Cleese ever wrote was the eulogy at Chapman's funeral. He makes is crystal clear how important Chapman was to him and how much he was influenced by him. Francis Bacon said he wanted to make paintings that unlock people's feelings and change their views on life. I feel watching Python changed me and unlocked something in me. Also, Cleese said "what I love about writing with a partner is that you get to places you'd never get on your own" I relate to that too - It was great to work with Rowland Smith on this tribute to John and Graham. We'd both like to wish Mr Cleese a very happy 85^th Birthday."

Photo Above: Rowland Smith holding Chapman portrait.

Photo Below: Harrry Pye holding Cleese portrait.

Johnny Turnbull releases fantastic new album Never Mind The Frolicks

 

Johnny Turnbull’s brilliant guitar playing has featured on many much loved albums by The Blockheads, Bob Geldof, World Party, David Stewart, Paul Young, and Talk Talk. This month sees the release of his fab new solo CD “Never Mind The Frolics“ which is available from: paypal.me/Nevermindthefrolics 

Q: My favourite lyric from Never Mind The Frolics is “All the world is quiet, all the world is still, Everybody is praying that their God will pay the bill, Everybody Is Hoping For The Perfect Happy Pill” – how did they come about?

Johnny Turnbull: “The words to ‘Perfect Happy Pill’ came on a morning walk in Crouch End. Twas a still, calm morning and words just flooded in. Emma-Clare helped me a bit with the title. Dave Stewart told me Songs  are just post cards to yourself . I think he may have been quoting John Lennon but anyway it’s a good line of thought . Don’t fret too much when inspiration hits just go with the flow is always the right way."

Q: Everything Is Broken’ is an amusing song that reminds me of George Formby – are you a fan of Mr Formby?

Johnny: “I enjoyed writing ‘Everything is Broken’ on my drives to the studio. We had moved to an old cottage near Derby and most things needed attention. So it was all true. I had the tune on Ukulele for a while and yes I am a big George Formby fan."

Q  ‘Figure It Out’ is a sweet love song – have you been lucky in love and do you have any advice for young lovers?

Johnny: “Figure it out started at Karl Wallinger’s studio Seaview. He recorded me on acoustic and he played a bass on Moog. Karl also suggested I tweak the lyric here and there. He was a fabulous producer -arranger and a dear friend. My advice to young lovers would be to try to stay in love and to love like you’ve never been hurt.”

Q: The first 3 minutes of ‘Anniversary Bash’ is quite gentle music accompanying a singer whose pondering the rights and wrongs of a band who does a crown pleasing show that consists of trips down memory lane but then there’s a fantastic 2 minute jam at the end. Can you talk about what inspired the lyric or would you rather keep it mysterious and ambiguous?

Johnny: “Anniversary Bash is an out take from Blockheads album ‘Where’s The Party?’ I took a monitor mix at the end of the session .It’s good to have a mix even if the song doesn’t make it on an album. I love the jam on the outro. Gilad Atzmon plays beautiful Soprano lines and Dylan Howe on drums mashed it up nicely. Mickey Gallagher on electric piano, Norman Watt-Roy on Bass, Chaz Jankel on Moog. The lyric was originally about Eric Clapton. I played at his Hall of Fame event in New York at the Armoury. I was in Spiritual Cowboys with Dave Stewart. I spoke with Eric after sound check. He was kind and very relaxed even though his life must have been complex and tinged with sadness.  The other influence was Ian Dury at the Palladium. His last ever concert with The Blockheads and special guest singers.” 

Q: To my ears both ‘Little Ray of Sunshine’ and ‘Flirting With Mountains’ are quite Beatle-esq – they wouldn’t be out of place on later albums by The Fabs such as Abbey Road. Have you met any of The Beatles or worked with them? Do you get a little star struck when you meet your heroes?

Johnny: ‘Little Ray of Sunshine’ also started out at Karl Wallinger’s studio many years ago.  I had the tune and Karl was mumbling words including the title. We never finished it sadly … When Karl died I decided to write more words .The night before his funeral I finished it and sang it to his family. They approved so I tagged it on the end of the new album.   I may have borrowed a few Paul McCartney chords for this one but I don’t think he would object. The last time I saw Paul I told him I had bought all his records and he said thanks mate…I did meet all the Beatles. Paul and Ringo were very kind and relaxed. Ringo let me play his drum kit when I was recording Kai Olsen’s album at Tittenhurst studios. The snare drum still had a piggy packet taped on the skin from years ago. I was chuffed to bits... John Lennon asked me to help find his glasses late one night at The Speakeasy club London. We found them and he was grateful a little bit drunk at the time...Twas a late night lock in and most people had gone home….  George was always moody to me and I think I know why. We both fancied a beautiful woman.. I don’t want to mention the girl’s name so we will leave it at that. Bless him.”

Q: Karl Wallinger died in March of this year aged just 66. You played in World Party with him for quite some time. Can you share a happy memory of working with Karl and do you have a favourite World Party song?

Johnny: “The Beatification of Saint Karl….We were recording ‘The Whole of The Night’ I was using my Gibson Melody Maker guitar which is easy to play but to Karl’s ears sounded a bit thin so he put it through his latest bit if trickery and got a fantastic sound which inspired me onto bendy tricky licks .We celebrated with a fat one and a cup of Tea. On my first solo record ‘Quantum Frolics’ Karl loved the song ‘Love and Magik’ so he stayed up for hours sorting out my vocals and did a wonderful mix.' 

The Blockheads (whose line up is now: Chaz, Mickey, and Johnny with new boys John Roberts (drums), Dave Lewis (sax), Nathan King (bass), and  singer Mike Bennett) will be playing lots of live shows in  2025. If you can't wait till then... You can buy tickets for 

14/12/24: Dingwalls, London

22/12/24: Chinner's, Southend on Sea

28/12/24: Hub Club, Hampton

For more info go: HERE

           

Sleepless Artwork

Above: Nigel Planer (drawn by Francis Macdonald) on Lead Vocals 

Above: Francis Macdonald (drawn by Francis Macdonald) on Percussion

Above: Johnny Turnbull on Lead Guitar (drawn by Harry Pye)

Above: Clare Kenny on Bass (drawn by Harry Pye)

"Is it wrong to get it wrong sometimes and is it wrong to be confused?

Is it wrong to feel abandoned and feel like you’ve been used?

Is it ok to be angry, or foolish or naïve?

Is it ok to be frightened – is it ok to be me?

Just one slip and I let my feelings all come undone

now I'm someone feeling sleepless in South London

I heard the warnings but I chose to shun them

I'm just someone feeling sleepless in south London"

Above: Humphrey Ocean: Telecommunication. oil on canvas 73x92cm, 2004

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Above: Humphrey Ocean: Neighbour’s Wife

. oil on canvas 73x92cm, 2004

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Above: Cathy Lomax: 'Isolation Era Film Diary 4: 23.03.20 She was conflicted’, 2020, oil on paper

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 Above: Cathy Lomax: 'The Mike Todd Diamond Ear Pendants', 2017, oil on gesso panel.

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Above: Cathy Lomax: 'The Mike Todd Diamond Ear Pendants', 2017, oil on gesso panel.

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Above: Lee Maelzer: 

Hayden Looking Sideways, 2024, pencil on canvas, 40 x 31.5 cm

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Above: Lee Maelzer: Crossed Arms

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Above: Lee Maelzer: Asleep

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Above: Lee Maelzer: Red Hat

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Above: Marcus Cope: "The Lie" oil on paper

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Above: Marcus Cope: "One of the Lies" oil on paper

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Above: Harry Pye; Sleepless (a.k.a. "I Can't Forget Where My Lips Have Been") Acrylic on canvas

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Above: Harry Pye: 'Hard Times' Acrylic and marker pen on canvas.

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Above: Harry Pye: 'I Can't Get Out of Bed' Acrylic on canvas

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Above: Harry Pye: You Don't Have To Save You Love Me

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Above Harry Pye & Rowland Smith: Breakfast in Bed

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Above: Harry Pye & Rowland Smith: I Still Miss Someone

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Above: Julia Maddison

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Above: Julia Maddison

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Above: Julia Maddison

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Above: Seaton Sluice Woman

Marie-Louise Plum

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Above: Sandra Turnbull

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Above: "Sleep is not my friend" by Sandra Turnbull

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Above: "Bed is Torture" by Sandra Turnbull

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Above: "Sleepless" by Sandra Turnbull

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Above: Black Dog by Fabienne Jacquet

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Above: Clouds by Fabienne Jacquet

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Above: Twisted by Fabienne Jacquet

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Above: You Do Loneliness Really well by Fabienne Jacquet

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Above: John Heywood-Waddington

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Above: Lazy Day by Kathleen Thompson

Above: Bob London

Above: Bob London

Above: Bob London

Above: Bob London

Other artists who are hopefully going to make work for the video include; Georgia Hayes,  Geraldine Swayne, & Janette Parris.