THE WHITE LIGHTNING BLUES BAND

Contributed 2 tracks to the Stoke Musicians Collective’s album CRY HAVOC – Neat Scenes, & Shake It Again. The band wrote these notes for the booklet that accompanied the album.image

“Stoke’s R & B band – 4 years of various line-ups playing electric blues to fairly empty rooms over rather ramshackle pubs. In the end even a love for the music wasn’t enough.These are the last offerings from a phantom band. One and a half highly untypical band songs indicating the direction just before the apocolypse of Oct 80. A lot cleaner and more funky than most will remember. A kind of coda and another dull thud in the history of British Blues.”

Line-up at the time of recording was JIM GILLESPIE – vocals, DAVE BOULTON – guitar, JOHN STONIER– guitar, DAVID SIMPSON – bass, & TIM SIMPSON (ex BEYOND THE WALL) on drums.
Former members included BOB HILDITCH, TONY EVANS, RANO, TREVOR PINSON, ROBERT PERRY aka PERCE, JANET AHMED, & ED LANE.
TIM SIMPSON later joined THE KILLJOYS. JOHN STONIER went on to play with THE HEADSET, and THE HIDDEN PERSUADERS.
JIM GILLESPIE, JANET AHMED and ROBERT PERRY also played with PERCE & THE PENGUINS, and GILLESPIE fronted THE GILLESPIE BLUES BAND.
BOB HILDITCH committed suicide in 2000.

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Live at the Cry Havoc gig, Victoria Hall, 1981

TSUNAMI

A jazz rock/funk 4-piece who played instrumentals only, gigged extensively around the Potteries. Formed sometime in the late seventies. Line-up: BILL MIDDLETON bass, BRENDAN DAY drums, BILL SUTTON keys, JOHN SINCLAIR guitar. JOHN SINCLAIR died on Xmas day 1982. BILL MIDDLETON ended up working as a gamekeeper in Wales, and passed away in 2006.

METROPOLIS

Formed about 1980, originally playing jazz/funk, evolved into more of a disco band after a couple of years. Line up was TREVOR SMITH vocals/guitar, DAVE BROADHURST lead guitar, STEVE PYATTdrums, KARL MILLER percussion, DAVE EDWARDS trumpet, WAYNE DAVIS saxaphone, and PETE BACANIN bass. DAVE EDWARDS also played with THE BATWING CHAPS. DAVE BROADHURST previously played with EXPOZER. PETE BACANIN now plays with Steely dan tribute band NEARLY DAN.