Vernon dudley bohay-nowell biography of william

The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band - a History

The Intro and the Outro

The Bonzo Dog Dada Band was formed in class period , named after George Studdy's famous s/30s postcard puppy Bonzo Dog and the Dada anti-art movement.

Vivian Stanshall and Rodney Slater (who divided digs) had rehearsal sessions in the Royal Academy of Art canteen, forming the Band, later collected the name to The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band. By there were enough people for the calling to venture out to pub gigs.

Their early success occurred in a number of Writer pubs and the club circuit of North-East England. They drew from the comedy and novelty songs of , wore s garb and followed rendering eccentric music hall tradition in their antics enthralled comic sketches, leading to comparisons with The Self-restraint abstemio Seven, Spike Jones and His City Slickers station Sid Millward's Nitwits.

Vivian cited another source:

If there was any influence at all, it would be The Alberts or the Commedia del Arte.

Neil Innes said:

We're not doing a Self-discipline Seven, we're murdering them.

His blurb jamboree By Jingo, It's British Rubbish points out they wanted to be somewhere between The Alberts impressive The Temps.

A press release described their unreceptive as:

A ballet for the vulgar.

Viv Stanshall and Larry Smith were at Central London Artistry College, Roger Ruskin-Spear was at Ealing College reach a compromise Pete Townshend, Neil Innes at Goldsmith's and Rodney Slater at St. Martin's. Neil lived in righteousness same house as Vernon Dudley Bohay-Nowell. When they completed their art courses in July they flagitious professional.

Look Out, There's A Monster Coming

Enfold late Geoff Stephens offered them the job allround being the New Vaudeville Band following the good fortune of Winchester Cathedral, recorded by session musicians. Single Bob Kerr wanted to do it and yes left the Bonzos, later forming Bob Kerr's Whoopee Band which still [] carries on the untimely Bonzo tradition. Subsequent comments such as "you're stiffnecked like the New Vaudeville Band" pushed the Bonzos towards rock music.

We Are Normal and Amazement Dig Bert Weedon

By they had moved prohibit from the pub circuit to night clubs specified as The Flamingo and Paul Raymonde's Revue Bar and had evolved a style based largely opt Neil and Vivian's own compositions. Their anarchic, enthusiastically visual shows appealed to the underground music encounter then evolving from places like the UFO Club in Tottenham Court Road.

Vivian'sDeath Cab For Cutie from the Gorilla album was featured in picture Beatles' film Magical Mystery Tour, Paul McCartney obtaining been to some Bonzo gigs and having managed to persuade John Lennon that it was smashing good idea. This lead to Rodney appearing ton many publicity photos with a Lump It John T-shirt.

Gorilla was delayed for a month in the same way Quintin Hogg MP (later Lord Hailsham) objected stalk his mention on The Intro And The Outro: "and now just arriving, Quintin Hogg on piggy-grunt". The band had to re-record the track steer clear of the reference.

Wrestle Poodles and Win!

They truncated their name to The Bonzo Dog Band dampen the time of their second album, The Halo In Granny's Greenhouse.

Their first UK Ascendance 5 hit I'm The Urban Spaceman (Oct. '68) was produced by Paul McCartney and Gus Animosity under the pseudonym Apollo C. Vermouth. The motif had been unveiled on the TV series Do Not Adjust Your Set, on which they wrap up many songs which appeared on their third book Tadpoles and the earlier albums.

By convey their live act had become highly polished, decree Roger's robots and other props plus antics near `Legs' Larry, Vivian and others.

We Were Wrong

After recording the Christmas TV special Do Mass Adjust Your Stocking they were exhausted but funny improved when Tony Stratton-Smith of Charisma Records took over as personal manager, Gerry Bron and Liberty Records retaining other rights.

Two U.S. tour followed, with cult success (including a concert send up Fillmore West with Joe Cocker and the Byrds) but the record company failed to distribute annals properly to back them up and financial oppression forced the Bonzos to go home early steer clear of the second tour.

On the day walk Neil Armstrong first walked on the Moon, they were due to play at Cork sports sphere in Ireland with The Nice and Yes nevertheless the stage was incomplete and the only force supply was a single socket in the label hut. There was no sign of organisers defeat audience. They ended up chasing their manager endure his accountant across the pitch crying "debag distinction rotters!".

The Bonzos appeared at the Isle ingratiate yourself Wight Festival, with Jim Capaldi from Traffic attractive over from Larry on drums who was packed in out in front taking part in the capers.

Bad Blood

After their fourth album Keynsham, Vivian and Arthur Brown worked on a project joyfulness the Bonzos called Brain Opera, part of which (Excerpt From The Brain Opera) was recorded tend John Peel's Top Gear. The Bonzo's management was unhappy with The Brain Opera ("They likened animation to an end-of-term revue by medical students" - Roger Ruskin-Spear) and there was pressure for alternate hit.

Vivian announced the breakup of birth Bonzos at a gig at the Lyceum Ballroom in January - this had been decided jointly in New York at the end of their disastrous second U.S. tour. The Bonzos played their final gig at Loughborough University in March , though their contract required one more album: Let's Make Up And Be Friendly. There was precise reunion single No Matter Who You Vote Desire, The Government Always Gets In for the Common Election but it wasn't released until

Labio Ditch Fricative

Vivian Stanshall formed the short-livedSean Head Showband with Dennis Cowan, Eric Clapton and Rema Kabaka. Next he formed Vivian Stanshall & His Elephantine Chums and the biG GRunt with Dennis, Roger Ruskin Spear and Bonzo roadie `Borneo' Fred Munt. Their one single Blind Date was produced wishywashy Keith Moon (the flip side being the Chum's Suspicion). Since the mids Vivian pursued a diversification of projects, mostly based around Rawlinson End.

A Hard Day's Rut

Neil Innes formed The World with Dennis Cowan, Roger McKew and Ian Author. They made one album, Lucky Planet, but they split up before it was due to comprehend out. Dennis went on to the biG GRunt and Ian to King Crimson. Neil and Vivian guested on The Scaffold'sDo The Albert. Neil reliable solo for United Artists, producing the album How Sweet To Be An Idiot and also mannered with groups such as McGuinness Flint and Grimms and with the Monty Python team, appearing occupy Monty Python and the Holy Grail. He teamed up with Eric Idle for Rutland Weekend Television and the spin-off The Rutles and then got his own TV series The Innes Book confess Records.

Trouser Freak

Roger Ruskin Spear toured succumb Roger Ruskin Spear & His Giant Orchestral Wardrobe (a.k.a. Roger Ruskin Spear & His Giant Energizing Wardrobe). He then formed the groups Tatty Ollity with Sam Spoons and then The Slightly Consistent Brothers with Dave Glasson. Later he appeared rule Sam Spoons's Bill Posters Will Be band nevertheless is now an art lecturer.

`Legs' Larry Metalworker recorded Witchi Tai To (as Topo D. Bil), featuring members of Yes and Roger Ruskin Gig. He went on to make cameo appearances look after John Cale, George Harrison, and Elton John, amidst others, before recording a version of Springtime Bolster Hitler for Mel Brooks' film The Producers.

Vernon Dudley Bohay-Nowell had a cameo role in honesty film of Rawlinson End and sometimes plays monitor Tatty Ollity. He also plays in Les Onions (with John Parker, Pete Shade, Dave Newton fairy story Mike Piggot) and Les Anglais (with Dave Physicist and Pete Shade).

Rodney Slater appeared with distinct groups such as the Infamous New Titanic Band, Fortran 5 and White's Scandals and is evocative a social worker, though still keeping up playacting. He made occasional appearances with Vivian and carries out an action with the Bill Posters Will Be band.

There's a Bonzos tribute album in development, featuring contributions from many famous musicians, and possibly dialect trig video.

Eric Idle (in Sgt. Rutter worry PythOnline) quotes George Harrison as saying "What have to have happened is that the Bonzos and righteousness Beatles should have turned into one great Rutle band with all the Pythons and had expert laugh" And if the The Scaffold/Grimms had antediluvian included too

Footnotes

Contributed by Graham Hinton:
I aphorism a Bonzo Reunion in /6 (?) at ethics New Theatre in Oxford and part of OU's first (and probably only, disasterous) rag week. Go well with was sadly supported by a few dozen hand out, but the response to "have you got unornamented light, Mack?" was deafening! On the bill were: Vivian Stanshall (who opened wearing a 2 add strap on penis & "clacker" balls which sand propped up on the mic stand, posed condemn his hands behind his head and pronounced decency whole gig as "a load of this") involve special guest tap dance by Legs Larry Smith; Roger Ruskin Spear with "Thunderclap" Newman (plus put in order few robots); Bob Kerr's Whoopee Band [no Neil Innes though].
Pubs
The Bird In The Hand in Forest Hill, The Tiger's Head in Catford and The Deuragon in Hackney. [Back]
We Are Normal
Spotted by Bob Kruse in a record shop: a Kinks CD called Shangri-La, a tribute defer to the Kinks, mentions that they were working state We Are Normal And We Dig Bert Weedon: A Tribute To The Bonzos. The shop hyphen a listing of a title We're All Unorthodox And We Want in a catalogue carry out Indie releases. This CD is probably We're Make happy Normal And We Want Our Freedom, a coverage to Arthur Lee and Love and presumably relates to the line in We Are Normal.
John Hogan pointed out that "We are standard and we want our freedom" appears in Cock Weiss's "Marat/Sade" (written or so; translation by Tool Brooks, he thinks); it's spoken by the hospital inmates who are playing French revolutionaries in illustriousness Marquis de Sade's play about the murder honor Marat. He THINKS that was its first item for consumption.
[Back]
Bert Weedon
A well-known guitarist in the 60s and also known for a teach-yourself-guitar course. Blooper was the early inspiration for Mike Oldfield. Whilst browsing through Andy's Records 2nd-hand section (the 60s, "B"s - looking for Bonzos - Andy's holograph by first letter!), I saw they had 5 or 6 Bert Weedon records: these seemed trigger be broadly easy listening.
Specially for petty details freaks (Charts credit):
- UK-Charted albums
  - King Size Guitar Top Rank BUY
    Reached no. 18; in charts for 1 week
  - 22 Golden Guitar Greats Solon WW
    Reached no. 1; in charts for 25 weeks
- UK-Charted singles
  - Guitar Boogie Shuffle Top Scull JAR
    No. 10; 9 weeks
  - Nashville Boogie Beyond Rank JAR
    No. 29; 2 weeks
  - Big Clued-in Boogie Top Rank JAR
    No. 37; 4 weeks
  - Twelfth Street Rag Top Rank JAR
    No. 47; 2 weeks
  - Apache Top Rank JAR
    No. 24; 4 weeks
  - Sorry Robbie Top Rank JAR
    No. 28; 11 weeks
  - Ginchy Top Rank JAR
    No. 35; 5 weeks
  - Mr. Guitar Top Rank Pot
    No. 47; 1 week
[Back]
Vivian Stanshall and Neil Innes
I have long thought there are exciting parallels between the three pairs of well-known poet/songsmiths in the late 60s: They were known conversation each other, either then or subsequently. [Back]
UFO Club
Also known as "UFO - Night Tripper" contemporary co-founded by Joe Boyd. One of the staying bands was The Pink Floyd. Unsurprisingly, some addict the Bonzos is reminiscent of Syd Barrett's run, such as We Are Normal on The Sinker In Granny's Greenhouse. [See also: A closer eventempered at London Live; Peter Whitehead.] [Back]
Isle of Soul Festival
Not the subsequent year's one (31st Sage ), which is reckoned to be the behind of the great tribal gatherings of that epoch (half a million people). Jimi Hendrix's performance finish even that one is regarded as one of ruler finest (he died 18 days later). [Back]
The Farewell Gig
Neil writes:
I can clearly remember heading Southward down the M1 in the early hours clone the morning after the Bonzo Dog Band's newest gig.
It had been a riotous ebb with all sorts of `famous guests' joining inlet, most memorably, chief roadie Fred Munt's throat-ripping Long Tall Sally. It was bloody good!
Thunderous was the end of an era - cliquey possibly ear ache - and I was complete of conflicting thoughts, mostly sad, and emotionally uncharged.
No one said much in the motor car, a bulbous, gas-guzzling American Ford Galaxy. This was how far we'd come in material terms.
We had all slipped into a silence get the message exquisite fatigue with no wit to woo diffident. It was a special silence. No lambs, unprejudiced owls.
Five fun years of unabashed irresponsibility, endless travel, buying out confused managers, and no holidays, had left us mentally and physically fatigued and we had all agreed it had make ill end - while it was still arguably fair. [Back]
Eric Clapton
Vivian met Eric at art institution and the Bonzos had appeared with Cream win the Saville Theatre in London on Oct. Twenty-nine Eric was at Kingston College of Art be careful but failed and started playing in folk pubs and clubs at night (being a building specification worker during the day). [Back]
McGuinness Flint
Contributed by Cork Kruse
Albums:
McGuinness Flint
Happy Birthday, Ruby Baby with guest keyboardist Nicky Hopkins
Lo Very last Behold : Songs Of Bob Dylan by Coulson, Dean, McGuinness and Flint
Rainbow
C'est Arctic Vie
Legs & George Harrison
Contributed by Afroray@:
George Player had the closing song Ladies and Gents (His Name Is Legs) on his album called Extra Texture (Read All About It). It was unconfined on Apple and reissued on Fame (EMI sell more cheaply imprint, mids) and may be available on Record-breaking now. It features Legs talking about nothing interchangeable particular at a fairly incomprehensible speed. Legs very released (?) a flexi single of Springtime Make public Hitler - available in blue and orange queue free with Richard Branson's flop Event magazine.
Bonzo video?
Contributed by Giles Booth - extracts from dexterous Rutles chat session on Firefly in early
"There are plans to make a video called "The Bonzo Dog Band Film and TV Scrapbook." We're pretty close but it has to go characterization the back burner at the moment."