When The Beatles released a set collection of their BBC sessions in 1994, (a second volume followed in 2013), it opened up the floodgates for other BBC session releases by artists like David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Queen, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Kinks, The Yardbirds, Cream and more. These recordings are all fascinating audio artifacts as they present the bands in a radio studio setting, sometimes with an excited, screaming audience, performing live over the BBC airwaves. A treat on many of these sessions are not only performances of the songs released on the various groups’ official records, but also live rarities of tunes that were part of their concert set lists that have never appeared on their own releases.
Besides the Beatles, The Rolling Stones and The Who, I’ve always had a fondness for the other early 1960’s British Invasion groups like Herman’s Hermits, Freddie & The Dreamers, Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas, Gerry & The Pacemakers and the early Bee Gees. There has been an official BBC Sessions release of Gerry & The Pacemakers which sounds great, the only downsides being the lack of a booklet of liner notes with photos and the in-studio interviews between Gerry Marsden and BBC announcer Brian Matthews are missing or just the song introductions were included. Part of the fun of the BBC sessions was the verbal interplay between Matthews and the various groups he hosted on these shows, they brought up insights, playing up the humor and offered interesting bits of information about the artists.
There are several legit BBC sessions releases. And then, there are others that, politely, could be considered a little in the “grey market” category due to European copyright laws. London Calling is a label that has put out several of these recordings by artists like Gerry & The Pacemakers, Herman’s Hermits, Billy J. Kramer and The Bee Gees. These cds come with nice artwork and booklets filled with some rare photos and brief liner notes. While the legality of these releases are a bit on the dubious side, there’s no question that they hold an historical importance in capturing these artist during the peak of their 1960’s popularity.
(For this article I’m going to highlight just some of these releases. If you’re interested in checking them out for yourself, there are outlets where you can seek them out on your own. I ain’t telling!):
Gerry & The Pacemakers
Next to The Beatles, Gerry Marsden & The Pacemakers were the second most popular band to come out of Liverpool. Their first hit ‘How Do You Do It?’ was given to them after the Beatles recorded it but refused to release it in favor of their own original material. The Pacemakers went on to have major hits on their own with such songs as ‘I Like It’, ‘It’s All Right’, ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ from the musical ‘Carousel’, ‘I’m The One’, and the classics ‘Don’t Let The Sun Catch You Crying’ and ‘Ferry Cross The Mersey’. They also recorded their fair share of BBC sessions between January 1965 to December 1966 for the shows Top Gear and Saturday Club. The cd release on the left is the legit BBC recordings with energetic performances of ‘Dizzy Miss Lizzy’, ‘My Babe’, ‘Slippin’ and Sliddin’, ‘Slow Down’ and a lovely rendition of ‘Ferry Cross The Mersey’. The London Calling ‘Ferry Cross The Mersey…Live’ release on the right includes some of the same tracks with some supplemented by interviews chats between BBC broadcaster Brian Matthews and Gerry Marsden that includes talking about the Pacemakers movie ‘Ferry Cross The Mersey’. Both are fine collector pieces with the London Calling cd having a bit of an edge due to the interviews and the booklet of liner notes with photos. Note that the official BBC release has 22 tracks while the London Calling cd has 21 tracks with a repeat of ‘Ferry’.
Herman’s Hermits
While many of the Herman’s Hermits BBC sessions can be found on video streaming outlets like YouTube, there has yet to be an official release of the BBC material. In this case, the London Calling ‘Live On Air In The Sixties’ cd is a welcome addition for a British Invasion collector. The sessions were recorded between December 1964 to October 1968. The hits are here like ‘Mrs. Brown’, ‘Henry The Eight’, ‘A Must To Avoid’, ‘Hold On’, ‘Just A Little Bit Better’, ‘Can You Hear My Heart Beat’ plus a few rarities like ‘Tell Her’, ‘Got My Mojo Working’, ‘Morning Dew’, ‘Love Is Blue’ and ‘Tally Man’ recorded during visits to the Paris and Playhouse Theatre’s in London. The in-studio patter between Brian Matthews and Peter Noone are a treat to hear as they talk about the Hermits’ popularity in the States. An interesting piece of information is the original title of their movie ‘Hold On’ as ‘No Place Like Space’.
Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas
Another Beatles contemporary, Billy J. Kramer was also part of the talent stable managed by Brian Epstein. Billy had hits written for him by John Lennon & Paul McCartney like ‘I Call Your Name’, Bad To Me’, ‘I’ll Keep You Satisfied’, ‘From A Window’ and ‘Do You Want To Know A Secret?’. Billy also scored a hit of his own with ‘Little Children’. The Billy J. Kramer & The Dakotas ‘Live On Air 1965-67’ collection is a two-CD set with 38 tracks from sessions recorded between January 1965 to May 1967. There are some repeat tracks like ‘Trains, Boats and Planes’ and ‘I’ll Be Doggone’ plus a few rarities, ‘Love’s Made A Fool Of You’, ‘If I Were A Carpenter’ and ‘Town Of Tuxley Toy Maker – Part 1’ written by Robin & Maurice Gibb of The Bee Gees. On the interviews with Brian Matthews, Billy comes across as very humble and pleased by his success at the time.
The Bee Gees
When The Bee Gees arrived late on the British Invasion wave in 1967 after local success in Australia, they charted high with their first hit ‘New York Mining Disaster 1941’ which many thought at first were The Beatles because of the close vocal harmonies. The ‘Live On Air Sessions, 1967-1968’ captures the Brothers Gibb and their original five man band configuration during their initial success in the late 1960’s culled from appearances on Saturday Club, Top Gear and Top Of The Pops. The sessions version of ‘New York Mining Disaster 1941’ is a unique listening experience in that it is done with just the band minus the orchestration from the studio recording. Their other hits are included like ‘To Love Somebody’, ‘Massachusetts’, ‘Holiday’ plus rarities like ‘Mrs. Gillespie’s Refrigerator’ and a version of ‘Cucumber Castle’ that includes vocals with Robin Gibb. An interview between Brian Matthews and Robin Gibb is interesting as they talk about the filming of The Bee Gees television movie ‘Cucumber Castle’ that by the time it aired Robin had quit the group and doesn’t appear in the film. The cd is a fascinating document of The Bee Gees during this early stage of their incredible career.
These London Calling ‘Live On Air’ releases are all enjoyable and worth seeking out if you’re a fan of the early 1960’s wave of British Invasion groups and artists.
Fred Velez, 2022.
Fred Velez is the author of the books ‘A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You: The Monkees From A Fan’s Perspective’ and ‘A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You 2: The Monkees From International Fan’s Perspectives’, as well as The Monkees themed Christmas CD ‘A Little Bit Christmas’.
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