#British Skiffle Craze

[beatleshistoryblog]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Typical of so-called “jug bands” in the American South was WHISTLER’S JUG BAND, one of countless such acts that flourished across the region. Most jug bands were very lively, and involved a mix of professional musical instruments (guitars, horns, drums) and amateur ersatz musical instruments. including corrugated washboard scraped with a metal thimble or a bass constructed with a broomstick and a single string attached to a washtub, wooden box, or tea chest.  This genre of music flourished in the 1920s and early 1930s, but was largely eclipsed by the Blues as the 1930s drew to a close.  The British skiffle craze of the 1950s was direct descendant of southern American jug bands.

[scotianostra]

November 3rd 2002 saw the death of Lonnie Donegan, Scottish skiffle music star and Scotland's first pop superstar.

provided the original inspiration for John Lennon, Paul McCartney and a host of others. By the time the Beatles shook up the music world in the mid-1960s, Donegan's glory days were over, and he had retreated into comedy and cabaret, but, between 1956 and 1962, he notched up an incredible 26 hits.

Donegan was a musical phenomenon. As the leader of the skiffle craze in the late 1950s, he inspired the formation of literally thousands of do-it-yourself bands across the country, and was directly responsible for the 1960s pop explosion that was to severely damage his own career.

A 1976 heart attack forced Donegan into an uneasy semi-retirement in California. Two years later, Chrysalis Records organized an all-star recreation of his early hits Puttin’ on the Style. Produced by former British teen idol Adam Faith and boasting duets with Ringo Starr, Elton John, and Rory Gallagher, it was his last major-selling album. Follow-ups with respected session ace Albert Lee and Cajun-fiddler Doug Kershaw seemed to point him towards country music, but a series of heart attacks in 1979 ended his full-time career.

In later years Donegan made a series of guest appearances with old friend Chris Barber including a featured spot on Van Morrison’s Skiffle Sessions: Live in Belfast 1998. Just before his death, he returned to touring full time, exhibiting much of his classic verve and humour before standing-room-only crowds.

Lonnie Donegan died on this day 2002, in Peterborough, he was 71

[beatlesblog207]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Here is some remarkable footage of Lonnie Donegan performing “Rock Island Line” on British television in 1961. Note his accent, which sounds like an unusual hybrid of Southern United States, British and Scottish (with maybe a tiny bit of Irish sprinkled in for good measure). Donegan was born in Glasgow, Scotland, and spent much of his adult life in England, but he loved American music, particularly Blues and Folk music, and spent endless hours listening to it. You can probably also hear a heavy ROCKABILLY influence in the song.

[huntbeatles]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Lonnie Donegan’s “Rock Island Line” (1954) launched the British Skiffle Craze that lasted from roughly 1954 to 1959. The craze reached its peak in 1957-58, when some 30,000 Skiffle bands existed throughout the UK. The song “Rock Island Line” was originally written by African-American songwriter Clarence Wilson (based on an old spiritual hymn) and first performed by prisoners in Arkansas in 1934 (and recorded by legendary musicologist Alan Lomax).   Next came a recording by Blues/Folk political balladeer/singer LEAD BELLY (Huddie William Ledbetter). Finally, Lonnie Donegan’s version became the most famous, thanks to the massive Skiffle movement it inspired. Donegan played in several jazz bands before becoming a Skiffle superstar. He loved American Blues and Folk music, and took the name “Lonnie” from Blues great Lonnie Johnson (Donegan’s real name was Anthony James Donegan, and he lived from 1931 to 2002).

[bm2ab]

Arrivals & Departures 07 July 1940 Sir Richard Starkey MBE [Ringo Starr]

Sir Richard Starkey MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame during the 1960s as the drummer for the Beatles. He occasionally sang lead vocals with the group, usually for one song on each album, including "Yellow Submarine", "With a Little Help from My Friends" and their cover of "Act Naturally". He also wrote and sang the Beatles' songs "Don't Pass Me By" and "Octopus's Garden", and is credited as a co-writer of others.

Starr was afflicted by life-threatening illnesses during childhood, with periods of prolonged hospitalisation. He briefly held a position with British Rail before securing an apprenticeship as a machinist at a Liverpool equipment manufacturer. Soon afterwards, he became interested in the UK skiffle craze and developed a fervent admiration for the genre. In 1957, he co-founded his first band, the Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group, which earned several prestigious local bookings before the fad succumbed to American rock and roll around early 1958. When the Beatles formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool group, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. After achieving moderate success in the UK and Hamburg, he quit the Hurricanes when he was asked to join the Beatles in August 1962, replacing Pete Best.

In addition to the Beatles' films, Starr has acted in numerous others. After the band's break-up in 1970, he released several successful singles including the US top-ten hit "It Don't Come Easy", and number ones "Photograph" and "You're Sixteen". His most successful UK single was "Back Off Boogaloo", which peaked at number two. He achieved commercial and critical success with his 1973 album Ringo, which was a top-ten release in both the UK and the US. He has featured in numerous documentaries, hosted television shows, narrated the first two series of the children's television programme Thomas & Friends and portrayed "Mr. Conductor" during the first season of the PBS children's television series Shining Time Station. Since 1989, he has toured with thirteen variations of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.

Starr's playing style, which emphasised feel over technical virtuosity, influenced many drummers to reconsider their playing from a compositional perspective. He also influenced various modern drumming techniques, such as the matched grip, tuning the drums lower, and using muffling devices on tonal rings. In his opinion, his finest recorded performance was on the Beatles' "Rain". In 1999, he was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame. In 2011, Rolling Stone readers named him the fifth-greatest drummer of all time. He was inducted twice into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, as a Beatle in 1988 and as a solo artist in 2015, and appointed a Knight Bachelor in the 2018 New Year Honours for services to music. In 2020, he was cited as the wealthiest drummer in the world, with a net worth of $350 million.

[beatlesblog]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Typical of so-called “jug bands” in the American South was WHISTLER’S JUG BAND, one of countless such acts that flourished across the region. Most jug bands were very lively, and involved a mix of professional musical instruments (guitars, horns, drums) and amateur ersatz musical instruments. including corrugated washboard scraped with a metal thimble or a bass constructed with a broomstick and a single string attached to a washtub, wooden box, or tea chest.  This genre of music flourished in the 1920s and early 1930s, but was largely eclipsed by the Blues as the 1930s drew to a close.  The British skiffle craze of the 1950s was direct descendant of southern American jug bands.

[huntbeatlesblog]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Typical of so-called “jug bands” in the American South was WHISTLER’S JUG BAND, one of countless such acts that flourished across the region. Most jug bands were very lively, and involved a mix of professional musical instruments (guitars, horns, drums) and amateur ersatz musical instruments. including corrugated washboard scraped with a metal thimble or a bass constructed with a broomstick and a single string attached to a washtub, wooden box, or tea chest.  This genre of music flourished in the 1920s and early 1930s, but was largely eclipsed by the Blues as the 1930s drew to a close.  The British skiffle craze of the 1950s was direct descendant of southern American jug bands.

[anintelligentoctopus]

There was a documentary on BBC Four tonight presented by Billy Bragg about the song ‘Rock Island Line’, Lonnie Donegan’s recording of it and the British skiffle craze. And it looks like it’s part of a series of documentaries they’re doing on. roots-type music, I guess. and next week’s is about Woody! And in the trailer they showed a clip of that home movie footage of him that was in Folk America back in 2009, and in much better quality, too!

Look!

[alanjporterwriter]

Books read in 2022 #7 ”Roots, Radicals, And Rockers” by Billy Bragg.

Back in the early 2000s when working on the Before They Were Beatles book I did research into the roots of skiffle and its impact on the British music scene in the 1950s, but there wasn’t much around. I wish I’d had this volume, but as Bragg says skiffle had, unfairly, pretty much written out of popular rock histories. That was an oversight he set out to correct here - and he succeeded.

The three years of the British skiffle craze was in many ways an antecedent of the punk explosion of the 70s with its boundary breaking imperative to just get out there and make music.

Bragg’s book examines it all in great detail, and for some that may be too much detail as there is a long list of names* and references that would probably be unfamiliar to the casual reader not already versed in the foundations of the British music scene. It also has a London bias (partially understandable as that’s where skiffle originated and remained its epicenter) only really spelling out its broader influences in the last few chapters. An influence that informed almost every British pop and rock act of the 60s and 70s.

If you want to know the true roots of modern British rock than this is a great starting point.

(* One name that took me by surprise was that of Michael Moorcock - apparently the renowned SF writer produced his own skiffle fanzine as a teenager.)

[sshelovesyouu]

someone: *makes peace sign*

me: Richard Starkey, MBE (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English drummer, singer, songwriter and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for the Beatles. He occasionally sang lead vocals, usually for one song on an album, including "With a Little Help from My Friends", "Yellow Submarine", "Good Night", and their cover of "Act Naturally". He also wrote the Beatles' songs "Don't Pass Me By" and "Octopus's Garden", and is credited as a co-writer of others, including "What Goes On" and "Flying". Starr was twice afflicted by life-threatening illnesses during childhood, and he fell behind in school as a result of prolonged hospitalisations. In 1955, he entered the workforce and briefly held a position with British Rail before securing an apprenticeship at a Liverpool equipment manufacturer. Soon afterwards, he became interested in the UK skiffle craze, developing a fervent admiration for the genre. In 1957, he cofounded his first band, the Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group, which earned several prestigious local bookings before the fad succumbed to American rock and roll by early 1958. When the Beatles were formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool group, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. After achieving moderate success with that band in the UK and Hamburg, he quit the Hurricanes and joined the Beatles in August 1962, replacing Pete Best. Starr played key roles in the Beatles' films and appeared in numerous others. After the band's break-up in 1970, he released several successful singles including the US number four hit "It Don't Come Easy", and number ones "Photograph" and "You're Sixteen". In 1972, he released his most successful UK single, "Back Off Boogaloo", which peaked at number two. He achieved commercial and critical success with his 1973 album Ringo, which was a top ten release in both the UK and the US. He has been featured in a number of documentaries and hosted television shows. He also narrated the first two series of the children's television programme Thomas & Friends and portrayed "Mr Conductor" during the first season of the PBS children's television series Shining Time Station. Since 1989, he has toured with twelve variations of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band. Starr's creative contribution to music has received praise from other drummers such as Phil Collins, who described him as "a great musician", and Steve Smith, who commented: "Before Ringo, drum stars were measured by their soloing ability and virtuosity. Ringo's popularity brought forth a new paradigm ... we started to see the drummer as an equal participant in the compositional aspect ... His parts are so signature to the songs that you can listen to a Ringo drum part without the rest of the music and still identify the song." He was inducted into the Modern Drummer Hall of Fame in 1998. In 2011, Rolling Stone readers named Starr the fifth-greatest drummer of all time. Starr, who was previously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a Beatle in 1988, was inducted for his solo career in 2015, making him one of 21 performers inducted more than once.

[classicrockblog1]

Ringo Starr (born 7 July 1940) is an #musician, #singer, #songwriter and actor who gained worldwide fame as the #drummer for the Beatles. He occasionally sang lead vocals, usually for one song on an album, including “With a Little Help from My Friends”, “Yellow Submarine” and their cover of “Act Naturally”. He also wrote the Beatles’ songs “Don’t Pass Me By” and “Octopus’s Garden”, and is credited as a co-writer of others, including “What Goes On” and “Flying”.

Starr was twice afflicted by life-threatening illnesses during childhood, and as a result of prolonged hospitalisations fell behind in school. In 1955, he entered the workforce and briefly held a position with British Rail before securing an apprenticeship at a Liverpool equipment manufacturer. Soon afterwards, he became interested in the UK skiffle craze, developing a fervent admiration for the genre. In 1957, he cofounded his first band, the Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group, which earned several prestigious local bookings before the fad succumbed to American rock and roll by early 1958.

When the Beatles formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool group, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. After achieving moderate success with that band in the UK and Hamburg, he quit the Hurricanes and joined the Beatles in August 1962, replacing Pete Best. Starr played key roles in the Beatles’ films and appeared in numerous others. After the band’s break-up in 1970, he released several successful singles including the US number four hit “It Don’t Come Easy”, and number ones “Photograph” and “You’re Sixteen”. In 1972, he released his most successful UK single, “Back Off Boogaloo”, which peaked at number two. He achieved commercial and critical success with his 1973 album Ringo, which was a top ten release in both the UK and the US. He has been featured in a number of documentaries and hosted television shows. He also narrated the first two series of the children’s television programme Thomas & Friends and portrayed “Mr Conductor” during the first season of the PBS children’s television series Shining Time Station. Since 1989, he has toured with twelve variations of Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band.

[beatleshistoryblog]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Lonnie Donegan’s “Rock Island Line” (1954) launched the British Skiffle Craze that lasted from roughly 1954 to 1959. The craze reached its peak in 1957-58, when some 30,000 Skiffle bands existed throughout the UK. The song “Rock Island Line” was originally written by African-American songwriter Clarence Wilson (based on an old spiritual hymn) and first performed by prisoners in Arkansas in 1934 (and recorded by legendary musicologist Alan Lomax).   Next came a recording by Blues/Folk political balladeer/singer LEAD BELLY (Huddie William Ledbetter). Finally, Lonnie Donegan’s version became the most famous, thanks to the massive Skiffle movement it inspired. Donegan played in several jazz bands before becoming a Skiffle superstar. He loved American Blues and Folk music, and took the name “Lonnie” from Blues great Lonnie Johnson (Donegan’s real name was Anthony James Donegan, and he lived from 1931 to 2002).

[scotianostra]

November 3rd 2002 saw the death of Lonnie Donegan, Scottish skiffle music star and Scotland’s first pop superstar.

Lonnie provided the original inspiration for John Lennon, Paul McCartney and a host of others. By the time the Beatles shook up the music world in the mid-1960s, Donegan’s glory days were over, and he had retreated into comedy and cabaret, but, between 1956 and 1962, he notched up an incredible 26 hits.

Donegan was a musical phenomenon, as the leader of the skiffle craze in the late 1950s, he inspired the formation of literally thousands of do-it-yourself bands across the country, and was directly responsible for the 1960s pop explosion that was to severely damage his own career.

A 1976 heart attack forced Donegan into an uneasy semi-retirement in California. Two years later, Chrysalis Records organized an all-star recreation of his early hits Puttin’ on the Style. Produced by former British teen idol Adam Faith and boasting duets with Ringo Starr, Elton John, and Rory Gallagher, it was his last major-selling album. Follow-ups with respected session ace Albert Lee and Cajun-fiddler Doug Kershaw seemed to point him towards country music, but a series of heart attacks in 1979 ended his full-time career.

In later years Donegan made a series of guest appearances with old friend Chris Barber including a featured spot on Van Morrison’s Skiffle Sessions: Live in Belfast 1998. Just before his death, he returned to touring full time, exhibiting much of his classic verve and humour before standing-room-only crowds. 

Lonnie Donegan died on this day 2002, in Peterborough, he was 71.

[beatlesblog207]

LECTURE 4: INFLUENCES (PART 1): Typical of so-called “jug bands” in the American South was WHISTLER’S JUG BAND, one of countless such acts that flourished across the region. Most jug bands were very lively, and involved a mix of professional musical instruments (guitars, horns, drums) and amateur ersatz musical instruments. including corrugated washboard scraped with a metal thimble or a bass constructed with a broomstick and a single string attached to a washtub, wooden box, or tea chest.  This genre of music flourished in the 1920s and early 1930s, but was largely eclipsed by the Blues as the 1930s drew to a close.  The British skiffle craze of the 1950s was direct descendant of southern American jug bands.

[bm2ab]

Arrivals & Departures - 09 October 1940 Celebrate John Winston Ono Lennon MBE Day!

Arrivals & Departures - 09 October 1975 Celebrate Sean Taro Ono Lennon Day!

John Winston Ono Lennon MBE (born John Winston Lennon, 9 October 1940 – 8 December 1980) was an English singer, songwriter and peace activist who gained worldwide fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist, and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. His songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney remains the most successful in history. In 1969, he started the Plastic Ono Band with his second wife, Yoko Ono. After the Beatles disbanded in 1970, Lennon continued as a solo artist and as a collaborator of Ono's music.

Born in Liverpool, Lennon became involved in the skiffle craze as a teenager. In 1957, he formed his first band, the Quarrymen, which evolved into the Beatles in 1960. He was initially the group's de facto leader, a role gradually rescinded to McCartney. Starting in 1967, Lennon's lyrics began to espouse a pacifist message, and some of his songs were soon adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement and the larger counterculture. From 1968 to 1972, he produced more than a dozen records with Ono, including a trilogy of avant-garde albums, his first solo LP John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, and the international top 10 singles "Give Peace a Chance", "Instant Karma!", "Imagine" and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)".

Lennon was renowned for the rebellious nature and acerbic wit in his music, writing, drawings, on film and in interviews. He was controversial through his political and peace activism. After moving to New York City in 1971, his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a three-year attempt by the Nixon administration to deport him. In 1975, Lennon disengaged from the music business to raise his infant son Sean, and in 1980, returned with the Ono collaboration Double Fantasy. He was shot and killed in the archway of his Manhattan apartment building three weeks after the album's release.

By 2018, Lennon's solo equivalent album sales had exceeded 72 million units worldwide. In 2002, Lennon was voted eighth in a BBC poll of the 100 Greatest Britons, and in 2008, Rolling Stone ranked him the fifth-greatest singer of all time. In 1987, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Lennon was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, as a member of the Beatles in 1988 and as a solo artist in 1994.

Sean Taro Ono Lennon (Japanese: 小野 太郎 Hepburn: Ono Tarō, born October 9, 1975) is a British American musician, songwriter, producer and guitarist. He is the son of Yoko Ono and John Lennon. Over the course of his career, he has been a member of the bands Cibo Matto, The Ghost of a Saber Tooth Tiger, The Claypool Lennon Delirium and his parents' group The Plastic Ono Band. He has released two solo albums: Into the Sun (1998) and Friendly Fire (2006). He has produced numerous albums for various artists, including Black Lips, and the Plastic Ono Band.

[balladofamerica]

This is a great interview with Billy Bragg. They discuss his new book about skiffle music, a 1950s music craze in Britain that re-interpreted American folk and blues music with high energy and led to the British rock and roll invasion of the 1960s.

Billy Bragg On Forgotten Rock Roots And The Momentum For Change

Outspoken protest singer Billy Bragg wants you to know a bit more about rock's forgotten roots in America's heartland.