8. STAR CLUB
CAPERS.
Liverpool is world
famous not only for MerseyBeat but for its sense of
humour and put the two together with a drop of 'rocket
fuel' and you have an explosive combination. Just by the
Star Club was a bar run by a lovely couple called
Gretel and
Alfons it became our Local our little bit
of home, our Liverpool Shrine as it was the nearest thing
to a pub that we could find and we soon
educated Gret and Al how it was done. None
of this continental rubbish half a glass of beer and half
a class of froth ,no way, a full pint or nothing even
though it was litre glasses. One of the group would pop in
and say to Al , 20 pints by, say ,ten o'clock when we came
off stage and there is was our 'rocket fuel' it wasn't
real ale, only Lager but ,when in
Rome....
The sign out side
the bar said Bier which meant beer and it soon became the
world famous Beershop. (Ken on the left)
We were out there on
a six week contract as the resident house band and saw
many groups come and go but the Liverpool lads didn't get
on to well with the London bands apart from a couple
like Johnny
Kidd and the Pirates and Cliff Bennett and the Rebel
Rousers . John and the gang were
sensational a real power outfit and they got on well with
us and later back in England, Johnny and I became good
friends as we toured together. I was gutted when he was
killed I was playing in Manchester that night and I just
couldn't go on...so sad.
Back to happy
times.
John boy and the guys had a number one
hit 'Shakin
All Over' and his act was to jump up on top
of the piano and pull out his cutlass and at the bit when
it goes Doodly
diddum didum do... TWANG he would throw the sword into the
floor an jump down 'BRILL' until a gang of 'rocket
fuelled' scousers lent a hand. At the climax of the...
TWANG a certain Mr Geoff Nugent of the
Undertakers ,although he protests his innocence
to this day, cut the sound and issued a very loud
Raspberry over the mike. Bedlam... Johnny
went ape and chased us all round the Star Club weaving his
cutlass above his head shouting obscenities against our
parentage! The audience loved it ,they thought it was part
of the act and after several pints of rocket fuel Johnny
saw the funny side and laugh till he
cried
Spooky
in the picture of
the
Pirates Johnny
Spence, the
bass player ,had exactly the same Fender Bass as me only
one number after me, and Mick Green the Gibson Les Paul Junior well I
had the same guitar when I changed from bass to lead guitar
in a C&W band years later Spooky or
what?
Talking about Spooks
next time you will see real R&R spooks And I have the
picture to prove it!

At the Bier Shop (Ken is second from the
right)
Next
Carry on Star
Clubbing!
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