Here’s a bit of fun – see if you can identify all of the ephemeral cultural references (mostly British individuals) in this novelty record by Wendy Richard and her pal Diane from 1963. I came across a review, and the rather scary pic that’s first up in the montage, in a 1963 NME recently and looked the song up on YouTube. I can get almost all of the references (one is very creepy), but I’m sure someone here will get them all…
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Black Celebration says
OK Colin – here’s my stab at it:
Cliff and Frank (Sinatra?) and the Shadows
Jack and Tony was there (Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis? )
Gerry (Marsden?) and Joe (Brown?) and the Bachelor boys
(Johnny?) Winter to (Billy) Fury
David Jacobs and Ken (?)
Alan Freeman
Lonnie (Donegan) Tommy (Steele)
The Beatles
Adam (Faith) rolled along with you-know-who
(Pete) Murray came along to Thank our Lucky Stars (his TV show)
Easy Beat radio show along with Brian (Mathew) and Keith (Fordyce)
Jimmy (S*v*** perhaps), Jack and Barry (don’t know)
Sniffity says
Jimmy (S*v*** perhaps), Jack and Barry (don’t know)
Jack de Manio?
Barry Alldis (Radio Luxembourg DJ)?
mikethep says
Frank is more likely to be Ifield of that ilk, given the parochial nature of the enterprise.
Jack will be Jack Jackson from Radio Luxembourg.
Adam Faith’s you know who will be Sandy Shaw, whose er, ‘mentor’ he was.
Black Celebration says
So could the Tony with Jack be Tony Blackburn?
Rigid Digit says
Ken ? = Ken Dodd
(possibly)
NigelT says
Kenny Lynch maybe..?
Juke Box Jury is in there – I’m sure everyone knows that was David Jacobs’ Saturday tea time show.
Think I heard a reference to Elvis….no ideas there at all I’m afraid…
Rigid Digit says
Costello?
Black Celebration says
I’m not happy with Johnny Winter up there. On reflection, it’s probably a reference to VIBJH Mark Wynter
Carl says
I agree about Mark Wynter. Johnny was a long way from being known in the US, never mind the UK.
Mick50s says
Or maybe Mike or Bernie…
Mike_H says
Deffo not Johnny Winter.
Agree Mark Wynter a good candidate.
Colin H says
Good comments so far. Given that I’ve been trawling through 1983 NMEs recently I know the ‘pop landscape’ of the period pretty well – Frank Ifield was current, as was Mark Wynter, and yet ‘Jimmy, Jack and Barry almost certainly refer to Radio Luxembourg DJs – S****e and doubtless the others mentioned above.
However, the one big mistake you’ve all made is ‘Jack and Tony’ – it’s ‘Jet and Tony’ (Harris & Meehan) who got huge coverage that year in pop papers, and three Nos 1 or 2.
Moose the Mooche says
I think you mean 1963, unless I’ve totally misremembered early 80s NME. “This week – Gregory Isaacs, SPK, Ian McCulloch and Ian Penman meets Frank Ifield”
Moody portrait of Bernie Winters on the front page, taken by Corbijn in Highgate Cemetery.
Black Celebration says
What about David Jaocbs and Ken? Who’s Ken do you think!
Colin H says
Yes, that’s a tricky one – I’ll be trawling through a few more 1963 NMEs today or tomorrow, so I’ll keep an eye out for likely candidates.
Kenny Lynch, as mentioned already, was certainly prominent in 1963, but I don’t think anyone referred to him as ‘Ken’…
Rigid Digit says
Could be Kenneth Tynan (unlikely, but sort of possible)
Kenneth Kendall was reading the BBC News around then
Timing wise, could also be Kenneth Horne or Kenneth Williams
(it’s Beyond me (dyswidt?))
Colin H says
Yes, but really, Rij, do you think those people fall into the teenage swooning well from which Wendy & Diane are drawing in the song? Were any 14-year-old girls dreaming of Kenneth Kendall back in the day? Kenneth Williams?!
Rigid Digit says
Applying that logic (which I should’ve done in the first place), it’s probably not going to be Kenny Ball or Ken Colyer either
Sniffity says
Kenneth Cope – wasn’t he one of the TW3 mainstays?
Rigid Digit says
Kenneth Connor – was Hengist Pod (married to Senna) in Carry On Cleo in 1963.
Another possible candidate?
Twang says
Dodd?
Colin H says
I refer you to my teenage swooning comment above!
Black Celebration says
I think Ken Dodd was on Juke Box Jury as a panelist and I am sure he was very funny. So a young Doddy might well have been swoonsome – he had some big hit singles too.
Moose the Mooche says
These songs were written by 40 year old blokes who clearly had no idea what girls find attractive. Recently I watched a creaky old British thriller called The 20 Questions Murder Mystery in which the girls were swooning over Jack Train – then pushing 50 and a bit of a “dog’s-bum-with-a-hat-on” even at his best.
Black Celebration says
After watching On the Buses as a kid I was convinced that once I was a red-eyed, yellow-toothed fifty year old, I could have my pick of the young clippies. This isn’t true.
Sniffity says
Slight change of subject – but who was Diana Berry? Looking for her in Google didn’t seem to bring up anything about her, so presumably she didn’t go on to bigger and better things.
Black Celebration says
This is a very, very tiny hunch but Mike Berry (Mr Spooner from Are You Being Served?) was produced by Joe Meek. He had a few hits at the time. Berry had three siblings and was from a showbiz family…one of his sisters? That’s about the best I can do.