Des OReilly.com (A Musical Life)

You know by the time the Blackpool Summer Season was over we were ready for a holiday!!! And we got one… Another CSE Tour, this time to Aden and Bahrain, in the Persian Gulf. A Busy year 1965!

This show was called ‘High Time’. Don Munday was compere, and was once Mr. Pastry’s sidekick and, from what I remember, a funny man. I also remember we were blessed with two very glamorous ladies on the tour, one a six foot tall magician called Suzanne, who did coin, card and rope tricks, dressed in an assortment of very bright leotards! (The highlight of her act was when she stuck a dozen or so knives into the head of an un-primed member of her audience. Then she would show all that the knives were still present and accounted for, in their box, but with the head of the unsuspecting audience member completely vanished!!! She never revealed to us how she did it, though she threatened to make us disappear on more than one occasion!!)

 The other lady was a fabulous cabaret performer, very glamorous with it, by the name of Lee Leslie, who had some excellent song arrangements! I have to tell you she worked me pretty hard because she was an explosive artist and you just had to stay with her! Very disciplined!!

The star of ‘High Time’ was Michael Cox who had a top three hit with a song called ‘Angela Jones’. It goes like this Do ‘n do do, do ‘n do de do, do ‘n do do, Angela Jones… Remember it now? Mike was also very big in Sweden, touring successfully with chart hits in that country. But out there, in the Arabian desert, he killed ‘em… At one of the gigs we did, Mike was singing the song ‘Ah Ha, Oh No, Don’t Let The Rain Come Down’, which was a regular song in his act designed to encourage audience participation, by getting them to sing the ‘Ah Ha’ part. Well on this particular show, which was somewhere smack bang in that desert, the soldiers had erected a stage and created a ‘room’ under the stars, which was magical! But soon we became aware of a ‘noise’, sort of hovering above the show, so eventually we turned the music lower and lower, until we could identify it. You’ll never guess what the ‘noise’ turned out to be… Right at the back of the ‘room’ all the local Arabs had come out to have a look and, in fact, were actually responding to Mike’s song but they weren’t singing ‘Ah Ha’ they were just humming VERY LOUDLY!!! I also remember that my spare snare drum skin went missing and was found as part of a roof on an arab’s house in this small shanty town next to the camp in the desert!!

We first arrived in Aden apparently twenty four hours earlier than we should have done, and it caused a bit of a panic. An extra night had to be booked at the hotel, transport had to be arranged to take us to the hotel, there were about a dozen of us, so we just had to wait around in the heat. We had left England earlier that day, a cold and snowy November day, arriving in the heat of Aden about 2.00 a.m. local time. Heat? What was that? At 2.00 in the morning? Are you kidding ? I can’t remember how hot it was, but it was strange for us to feel the heat at that time of the day, to say the least, and to see soldiers working in shorts! Shorts ?? Somebody should have told ‘em it was November!!.

After a couple of hours of being entertained or looked after we were certainly relaxed! You see, one of the things about these CSE tours was that as you go from each camp and visit and do shows, each ‘Mess’ wants to give you the best possible time. And, of course, that’s the one you are going to remember long after you’ve gone home. So we got the best possible ‘piss ups’ you can imagine, plus the best eats etc. in every single place we went to.

 Now most of these places would be lucky to have ‘live’ entertainment a couple of times a year, and, after you’ve been on one of these tours a couple of weeks it becomes hard to know really where you are. It seemed to me at the time that wherever they were, they pretty much knew how to party!!!

We had our own assigned soldiers who looked after us, who did all the carrying, the setting up and down, and somehow managed to keep everyone going!! At some point someone said the transport was ready to take us to the hotel, so we went outside and saw a single decker army khaki bus, with iron mesh all along both sides covering all the windows and the back and the roof! Four, yes four, soldiers armed with sub-machine guns jumped into the bus first, one at the front next to the driver, two in the middle of the bus, one on each side with their guns poking out of a tiny opening in the windows, and a fourth guy at the back of the bus, scary eh? But wait there’s more… as our gear is being loaded onto the bus, we also became aware of two single armoured ‘Champs’ vehicles, with what looked like small canons mounted on board. There was one of the vehicles at the front of the bus and another at the rear!!

Obviously, we thought, the hotel we were staying in must have been many miles into enemy territory!! But no, we were told, it’s actually no more than about three miles. But you see, us guys were there to keep up the moral of the British troops, and if they could get one of us guys, we were told, it would make a terrific dent in the British morale. So as long as we were there, we were considered to be prime targets!!! That was nice to know!! They might have mentioned that before we got there… What do you think???

 We flew in all sorts of planes, to all sorts of strange out of the way places, I remember a place called Rhian, I think, which was just a supply refuelling dump, and had probably no more than 60 people stationed there. They were posted there for 12 months at a time. I can also remember sitting out all night, literally on the desert floor, watching what the soldiers said were   camel spiders crawling about. Apparently they only emerge after dark and these things are ‘huge’ folks. I’m talking dinner plate size bodies !!!

 Every now and again the night silence was broken with the sound of revving engines as two tractors raced around the compound - most likely as a result of a challenge to ‘I can go faster than you’. You know men and beer, it’s always been the same!!

We met the Sheik of Oman and this guy was rich!!! He used to give away Omega watches to visiting dignitaries, and on the watch face where the famous Omega sign was, there was a picture of himself right in the hoop part of the logo!!! This guy also used to have magnificent ‘Falcons’ and a whole fleet of Cadillac’s and Rolls Royce’s just to ferry the birds around!!

This is a Pic of Dave ,Don and Des in front of one of those vehicles outside the Sheiks Beach House. He also used to have elephant races, and that’s a strange sight I can tell you! The Sheik had his own private beach, and we were lucky enough to be invited to use it. When the Sheik appeared, all his servants would be in front of him, walking backwards and brushing the sand away and laying a red carpet. AND perhaps the strangest of all, for some reason, the Sheik adored  Mike Sarne’s version of ‘Come Outside’. He had the record playing constantly over the loudspeakers which were hung along his private beach.

When we were in Aden itself, we stayed at ‘The Rock Hotel’, a very swish hotel with a nightclub on the top floor. We were there most nights after the shows, and one time I went up to the roof to have a smoke and look at the stars and, with little street light glare to affect the view, it was magnificent. There I was, digging the stars when the silence was broken with a rather loud ‘Psst. Psst.’ I looked across to where the noise had come from and peering around a brick corner, presumably some kind of a chimney, was a local. ‘Hey’, he said, ‘You and Me, Jig-a-Jig?’. Now folks I don’t speak Arabic but somehow I understood what he meant, and even managed to answer him back in the local lingo. ‘Effoff’, I said… I think that’s Arabic?? In the circumstances it was close enough for me!!! And even with all that ‘danger’ and the occasional ‘misunderstandings’, it was a treat folks, to be able to travel and play music at that time!

Yes, 1965 was a great and interesting year indeed…

-------------------------------- To Be Continued…

The Puppets were always comfortable in the presence of ‘Stars’. It must have been something of our ‘up north’ natural warmth!!!  (Which is why I  think we clicked with Billy ‘cos he was the same.)

I liked Billy, I thought he was a good man. I always found him easy to be with, there was no edge with him. He was a funny guy with a great sense of humour and fun. He had a wide range of interests and would talk enthusiastically about everything.                             

I remember when he first started coming to our house regularly. At his suggestion, we invited all the near neighbours over to meet him. Billy happily chatted, had photos taken etc., and then he asked them all if they would basically lookout for him whenever he was here, and to please make sure that no-one touched his car!! The result was of course that  nobody ever did touch his car. In fact, our next door neighbours got quite used to Billy, and would often see us sitting on deckchairs at the bottom of the garden, around dawn, having just returned from a gig, usually tucking into toasted bacon sandwiches… A favourite early morning munchie!!

You know folks Billy loved his cars and he had a passion for speed. When he was living in Dorking, which was about 240 miles from Preston, and  on the other side of London, he would leave our house and be home  just four hours later! Man could he drive.!!

Obviously I had no idea that I would be writing about this in the future. Gee honest, I would have paid more attention!! However a few things do come to mind. I remember one time, in the field at the back of our house where all the kids played, our daughter, Jan, who was about 6 or 7 at the time, had fallen and cut her forehead open on a brick. Billy raced over to her, picked her up in his arms and went with her to the doctors, insisting he stay with her ‘till he knew she was OK!    Billy was certainly Jan’s hero that day!!

He was brilliant with birds, too, the feathered variety I mean, and showed his caring nature once again. I recall at one of his homes he had about seven or eight different injured birds, Falcons, Hawks etc. Hey,  I’ve just had a thought… Falcons… Hawks… It’s very 60s speak isn’t it? I wonder if there was a connection ?. He loved his birds, he even carried a portable ‘Hide’ in the boot of the car in case he saw a special or a rare one, and would think nothing of stopping, putting up the hide and staying  for a couple of hours hoping to take a ‘photo of the bird!! He talked of an idea to publish a book of his bird ‘photos, but I don’t think he ever did. Shame really because the one’s I saw, were very good.

I recall once Billy came with me in Preston to buy a new fangled stereo system!!! The guy behind the counter was a guy I went to school with. I think his name was Stephen Vandenholme, He was so chuffed at meeting Billy and having him in his shop he gave me an ‘upgrade’ on the speakers at no extra charge!!  Another of life’s lessons. It’s not what you know but who you know every time!!!  Billy and I then bought two albums by ‘Chicago’ and we listened to them non-stop for a couple of days on ‘THE Stereo’ with its EXCELLENT speakers!!! Chicago still remain one of my favourite bands to this day. (And, as an aside, those very speakers are still in use today as monitor speakers in a sound studio locally here in Aldinga Bay!)

As you can imagine, by now we, The Puppets, were well experienced in backing stars both big and small, but backing Billy was a totally different experience altogether! Billy attracted a ‘Billy’ crowd, and they were like no other crowd we ever played for. His fans would devise all sorts of ways to try to get to Billy before, and after, the shows, so many methods of getting him in and out of venues had to be invented!! Some worked, some didn’t, and we always knew when he’d been spotted – a huge cheer would erupt!!

A typical gig for us would be to arrive at the venue in the early afternoon, to set up and make sure that all the equipment worked OK. Billy would come along then in his own vehicle and do his ‘sound check’, (as we now call it). It was usually a couple of numbers and any new songs that were to be introduced into the act. After that, we’d all return to the hotel room to grab a bite to eat and relax for a while. We’d return to the venue about an hour before the show, and fight our way inside. Then we’d go to all sorts of elaborate methods to get Billy inside

too!!!

The excitement would continue in the dressing room, with an ‘air’ of ‘this is great, it’s going to be a good gig’. There are people everywhere  all wanting to talk to Billy, get a photograph, an autograph… It was such a buzz!!! And suddenly we’re on!!!

The Puppets take to the stage to do three or four songs to warm up the crowd, as if that ever needed doing on a Billy gig !! (The crowd that Billy pulled were always avid Billy fans.) Then as we would announce our last number before Billy would come on, the crowd would press to the front and you could feel, and almost taste,

the expectancy of something wonderful about to happen. The lights would dim, I would hit the deep tom tom just about as loud as I could with a drum roll, and the crowd would breath as one.

Then the voice would say, ‘Ladies and Gentlemen ….Billy Fury!!!!!’     

There would be an ‘ear shattering’ scream, a scream full of approval, and of anticipation, excitement and wonder!!  Billy ALWAYS had that effect on his audience. It was truly remarkable! It didn’t take long for Billy and I to work out explosive, percussive noises to compliment his hand and body gestures. He was the master of performance every time. He would move and I would respond on the drums with a cymbal crash or rim shot… or both!! The crowd loved it, and so did we as we rode along on the crest of this wonderful wave of ‘Rock’n’Roll’.

I thought Billy was a great singer… he was a good ‘breather’ too, He had great ‘vocal timing’ and could ‘ rock voice,’ just as easily as he could ’ballad voice And he always seemed to do it just right!! He always seemed to look just right too. He had fabulous stage clothes and was the epitome of ‘Rock’n’Roll. Yes, it was very exciting, and an absolute privilege, to be part of that ‘wave’… I thoroughly enjoyed myself.!!

Sadly, as time went by, Billy wasn’t too well. The gigs started to slow down so we had to move on, but Billy and I remained friends. I’ve just remembered. I once had to get hold of Billy for something and after a couple of calls to a couple of people I was given a telephone number and was assured that even though it was 2.00am, it would be OK to call. I did, and it turned out to be Kenny Everett’s number.

Kenny answered the ‘phone himself, with his laconic Liverpool tones, saying, “Hello Southport Hospital, hot swabs delivered”. I thought it was a very funny moment at the time. Onya Kenny, you gave me many a laugh. Thank You.

And Thank You Billy Fury, You were certainly the most charismatic star that I worked with during my time with The Puppets. Your fan base surpassed all others and every single time we took to the stage with you we had an exciting, exhilarating, experience. I personally am truly amazed at the extent of that fan base which prevails today, 20 plus years after Billy’s passing. It’s just as strong as ever.

For me Billy was a remarkable performer and a friend.

I remember the last time I saw him. My then wife and I went to see him at a clinic in Harley St. in London, a short time after he had had a rather large heart operation. Poor Billy, not well at all. He was cut from just below his neck right down past his waist, I remember thinking it was like the stitching on a football. Billy was never what you would call a large bodied guy and he had lost a lot of weight through this ordeal. He looked as they say in Preston, ‘proper poorly’.

He was talking to us fine though, and we had a good time. I’m glad we did, because I knew, as we said our goodbyes, that I would probably never see him again. (We were in the throes of emigrating to Australia.) BUT I did get to say goodbye face to face and I’ll always be grateful for that.

                                                                         Billy and Elvis.!!

We arrived in Australia in ’79 and I spoke on the ‘phone with  Billy  just a few times after that. Then one day I received a call from Albie, Billy’s brother, telling me that Billy had passed away.        

Billy was dead and it was just awful.!!

Then I received a note from Lisa , Billy’s partner 

I have just received this Pic of Billy’s grave.

Billy, passed away on January 27 1983, this pic was taken in 2005, I reckon he was well loved don’t you?

I'll tell you what...He was a good pop star.!!! They thought so in Liverpool, look at the statue,by 'The Mersey'

Lisa was attacked in her London Home on Jun 7th 2005 and was beaten so badly by her attacker that she almost lost her life.

Mos and I were so sorry to hear that.

.....................................To Be Continued…