NOEL TRENT

A solo act, real name NOEL LEESE, performed with the bands TWO’S UP, SEE-SAW, PLAYGROUND, & WHY NOT. Full history here:
http://www.noel-trent.com/index.htm

STRANGE FOX

DES PARTON – vocals. TERRY FOX and MIKE STRANGE were also members. The band were taken under the wing of Tony Hatch in the early 70s.
More information required.

KENNY STEVENS

Club/pub singer/comedian, real name KEN KNOWLES, played almost everywhere throughout the 70s and 80s. Ran the Bumble Studio in Penkhull along with BARRY CARTLIDGE. Played in THE ESCORTS in the 60s, don’t know for sure if this was the same band who were big faves in The Cavern. Also played in THE CHANGING TIMES.

SPLIT THE DIFFERENCE

LEGENDARY LONNIE played guitar in this nineties club act.

DAVE ROBERTS

Significant in the ’60s fronting bands TERRY KING & THE SAINTS post ROY GRANT (line up TERRY KING, TONY HOPPLEY, DAVE ROBERTS, BARRY SERGEANT), THE KINGPINS post LANCE HARVEY (line up: DAVE ROBERTS, DAVE STIRUP, KEITH and COLIN TURNER, and ROGER WOOD), HARVEY’S TEAM (line up: MICK MATHEWS, DAVE ROBERTS, IAN RILY and EWART BELL). Played at the Star Club, Hamburg with these three bands. Fronted THE KENSINGTON MEWS (line up: DAVE ROBERTS, BARRY CARTLIDGE, GRAHAM BAGSHAW, GEOFF OWEN)

Duo’s: GODCHILD – DAVE ROBERTS and JAMES LAZZARI (1969), MASON AND YOUNG – DAVE ROBERTS and GEOFF HALL (1971). Toured US and Turkey with this duo.

DAVE ROBERTS solo career: as DAVID McLAINE – toured Europe and Turkey, recorded on Rampage records a Tony Todd penned single ‘Rosie’ b/w self-penned ‘Cie Lamour’, which became the A side in Germany on the Bellaphon lable.

Finished touring in 1974 and concentrated playing the local pubs.

RANDY

JOHN ASKEY & DEAN HALL – both ex DARK HORSE, formed this popular club/pub duo that appeared on the ”Potteries Pop”, and “Made in Stoke” albums.

PETER & THE PERSUADERS

ALAN BENNETT – bass, LONNIE COOK – gtr, GRAHAM COOPER – gtr, PETER GROCOTT – vox, DAVID IONS – drums, Stoke-on-Trent was this band’s home patch and they specialised in cover versions of late fifties rock’n’rollers like The Wanderer, which was included on their four track EP released in 1965. Other tracks were Oh My Soul, LONNIE’S Wine Glass Rock, and Cross My Heart, which was written by JACKIE TRENT, which was an uncharacteristic excursion into beat-pop territory.
DAVID IONS went on to become general manager of DJM’s publishing branch

PASSPORT SMILES

Rock/new wave band led by TIM HOWLE who wrote most of the music, featuring JEFF on vox and lyrics, STEVE drums, MARK BRAMMAR on bass – replaced by CHRIS BOWKER (BEN), and PEG on guitar. JEFF worked in LEGENDARY LONNIE’S record shop in Stoke. They changed their name to MIGHTIER THAN KONG in 1981.

DAVID (DES) PARTON

He started his career with GREEN GINGER in the late 1960s, fronted and recorded with STRANGE FOX, HUNTER, and COLOUR SUPPLEMENT in the mid 1970s, and for more than five years was lead vocals with THE CYRIL DAGWORTH PLAYERS (1976 Album) often sharing the stage with LONNIE COOK.
Song-writing success came in 1974 with Sad Sweet Dreamer reaching number one in the UK charts performed by top band Sweet Sensation. This successful partnership produced a second hit, Purely By Coincidence, charting at number eleven.
DES sang his own way to success in 1975 when he stormed the UK charts at number two with his cover of Stevie Wonder’s classic Isn’t She Lovely and released his first solo album, Snaps, recorded with the Rubettes.
He continued to sing, record and produce into the 80’s and 90’s and is still writing and recording today from his studio in Cheshire.

THE LYRIC

Mid-sixties combo, ALAN JONES/gtr, JAKE PLANT/bass (ex DANNY & THE RAIDERS), GEOFF WATTS/drums. The band auditioned unsuccessfully three times for the T.V. show Opportunity Knocks.  PLANT subsequently played in a number of pub & club acts in the 70s & 80s.