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CAROUSEL HOTEL, NOVEMBER 9-11, 2001 |
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Stars In Their Eyes winner Dean Memphis as Shakin' Stevens was on top form. Richard Leeman played a solid set of rock 'n' roll numbers. Albie joined Colin on stage on Saturday night and proved what a great performer he is. Dancing? Loads of it. Dress? Some of the costumes were out of this world but the people were so friendly - as long as you didn't try to sit in their seats.
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CAROUSEL HOTEL, NOVEMBER 10-12, 2000 |
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Barely fifteen feet away stood the boys' Mum. The words of the songs were on her lips, but the real message was unvoiced. It could be read in the sparkle of her eyes and the delight on her face, as pride simply radiated from her. The weekend festival at the Carousel Hotel, Blackpool, was a brilliant, joyous celebration of Billy's life and work. For me, the payoff was the experience of being with a couple of hundred happy, kind and friendly people, and the privilege of sharing that experience with Billy's family. Mrs Jean Wycherley is a grand, very approachable lady and Albie is one heck of a performer.
Their set is 100% live music - no drum machines, no voices appearing out of the ether - and it packs an almighty punch. Colin has a voice that he can deliver with several juggernauts of power, but with a full palette of colour and total control. After the Persuaders' first set, Justine, a Liverpool lovely in leather, kept the packed hall entertained for an hour with an assortment of hits from the 1960s to the 1990s. The Persuaders' second set featured a duet with Albie - Frankie Connor's poignant song Helpless, which is featured on Albie's excellent CD, I Never Met Colette.
The Persuaders' second set led into a 40 minute parade of Billy's hits by Albie. He is a real professional, who is in control of his both his presentation and his material. His performance was a celebration of his brother's talent, infused with personal dignity, and presented with respect for himself and for Billy. He produced a set of real significance, hung on a massive emotional peg, and left us all impressed with the depth of his own personality. It was a night to savour and remember.
FOOTNOTES The Persuaders are Jeff Morgan, guitar; Martin Davies, bass; Tony Bolton, keyboard; Paul Atwell, drums. However, Martin missed the Saturday spot because his wife was giving birth to his first child, daughter Anna. His place was taken by Des from Vantage, who plugged the gap exceptionally, despite never having performed with the band before. Maureen and I were with the Billy Fury e-group - Sandra, Donna, Paul, Adrian and Maggie.
The weekend raised more than £1,000 towards the Bronze Fund, thanks to Chris Eley's stall and auctions. Paul splashed out £126 on Chris's auction of a print.
Adrian (Paul's young son) won a raffle and was thrilled when I told him I had 130 Billy Fury photographs - but I didn't have the one he had won.
On Saturday evening, a few of us adjourned to the television room, to watch Guy Clover's performance on Stars In Their Eyes.
One of the most heartening aspects of the weekend was that there were so many younger people there having a great time.
The 2001 calendar, the first material joint venture between this site and the Sound Of Fury fan club, was launched at the event. The first five, hand-printed, individually-numbered copies were sold in aid of the Bronze Fund. Click here to see the programme cover and here to see the programme details.
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Geoff Howlett writes: Colin Paul and the Persuaders (pictured left with enthusiastic backing singers) were brilliant.
Albie was giving everything, as he caressed the ballads and belted out the rockers in a comprehensive parade of Billy's hits.
On Saturday, the Persuaders opened again, and were followed by Garry Slade, who was a revelation - six feet and a lot more of thundering rock and roll. He belted out a set of standards and had the crowd calling for more.