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Information about John's Children

John's Children, formerly "The Silence", were a Leatherhead, England 1960s proto-punk band featuring future T. Rex frontman Marc Bolan, whose 1967 single "Desdemona" was banned by the BBC for the 'controversial' lyric, "Lift up your skirt and fly". Bolan was with the band for about four months. His main roles were to be the band's composer and play electric guitar (until then, he only played acoustic guitar). His singing voice is sometimes lead in "unofficial" recordings only (demos, BBC radio sessions).

Their manager was Simon Napier-Bell, who devised white stage outfits and an outrageous stage act which included fighting each other and Bolan whipping the stage with a chain.

John's Children in Germany

The group were put on tour with The Who in Germany around April 1967. A concert in Düsseldorf ended in a riot, and a later concert in Ludwigshafen created such a fuss that the Who nearly couldn't play. The group were promptly deported. The band returned a year later to the Star-Club in Hamburg, substituting for The Bee Gees.

The group's influence

Despite having little success, John's Children were a heavy influence on punk rock, with their shambolic stage presentation and headline-grabbing controversies. The group still have a cult following, and still play and record sporadically.

The band recorded in June 2006 with original members Ellison, Hewlett and Townson plus guitarist Trevor White (former member of Sparks).[1]

lineup

  • Andy Ellison: vocals born Andrew Ellison, 5.7.1946, in Leatherhead, Surrey.
  • Geoff McClelland: guitar born 1947
  • Marc Bolan: guitar (replaced McClelland in March 1967)
  • John Hewlett: bass guitar born 1948
  • Chris Townson: drums / also guitar after Bolan left in June 1967. born 24.7.1947, in Leatherhead, Surrey
  • Chris Colville: drums (only at live-appearances), after Bolan left the group, enabling Townson to switch to guitar.

Discography

Singles
  • "Smashed Blocked" (Napier-Bell/Hewlett)/ "Strange Affair" (UK A-Side title: "The Love I Thought I'd Found"; Germany B-Side: "Just What You Want..."; USA: Billboard Hot 100 and local (Florida) Top-10s; backing by L.A. session musicians) (UK: Columbia (EMI) DB 8030, October 14 1966, USA: White Whale, December 1966, Germany: Polydor 59069, 1967)
  • "Just What You Want - Just What You'll Get" (Hewlett, Townson, Ellison, McClelland) / "But She's Mine" (A-side: backing by English session musicians; Jeff Beck guests on B-side) (UK: Columbia (EMI) DB 8124, February 3 1967)
  • "Desdemona" (Bolan) / "Remember Thomas A. Beckett" (Bolan on A-side, McClelland on B-side) (UK: Track 604003, 24 May 1967; Germany: Polydor 59104)
  • "Midsummer Night's Scene" (Bolan) / "Sara Crazy Child" (release cancelled) (UK: Track 604005, June 1967)
  • "Come and Play with Me in the Garden" (Ellison, Hewlett)/ "Sara Crazy Child" (Bolan) (Bolan plays on B-side only) (UK: Track 604005, July 14 1967; Germany: Polydor 59116)
  • "Go Go Girl" (Bolan)/ "Jagged Time Lapse" (Hewlett, McClelland) (A-side is version of Bolan's "Mustang Ford" and features Bolan on guitar, B-side from remaining recordings with Geoff McClelland) (UK: Track 604010, October 6 1967; Germany: Polydor 59160; Greece: International Polydor 244)
  • Andy Ellison: "It's Been A Long Time" / "Arthur Green" (B-side only, Ellison solo single) (UK: Track 604018, December 1967)
Album
Notable Other Releases
  • "Incredible Sound Show Stories Vol.5 - Yellow Street Boutique" A Sampler featuring songs recorded by "The Silence".

External links

Leatherhead

Leatherhead ()
|240px|Leatherhead (

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Motto
Dieu et mon droit   (French)
"God and my right"
Anthem
No official anthem specific to England — the anthem of the United Kingdom is "God Save the Queen".
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T.Rex (originally known as Tyrannosaurus Rex, also occasionally spelt T Rex or T-Rex), were an English rock band fronted by Marc Bolan. The band founded in 1960s London and found success as a 1970s glam rock group.

Formation

T.
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Marc Bolan (born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 - 16 September 1977), was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist whose hit singles, fashion sensibilities and stage presence with T Rex in the early 1970s helped cultivate the glam rock era and made him one of the most
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19th century - 20th century - 21st century
1930s  1940s  1950s  - 1960s -  1970s  1980s  1990s
1964 1965 1966 - 1967 - 1968 1969 1970

Year 1967 (MCMLXVII
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A-side(s) "Desdemona"
B-side(s) "Remember Thomas A. Beckett"
Released UK: 24 May 1967
Format 7"
Genre Pop music
Length 2:27
Label UK: Track 604003
Germany: Polydor 59116
Writer(s) Marc Bolan

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The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)

Type Broadcast radio and television
Country  United Kingdom
Availability    National
International 
Founder John Reith
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Simon Napier-Bell (b. April 22, 1939 in Ealing Common, London, England) has undertaken many jobs in the music industry, including bandboy, manager, producer, songwriter, journalist and author.
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The Who are an English rock band that first formed in 1964, and grew to be considered one of the greatest[1] and most influential[2] bands in the world.
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Düsseldorf

Coat of arms Location

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Ludwigshafen am Rhein
Ludwigshafen
Coat of arms Location

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Star-Club was a music club in Hamburg, Germany that opened Friday April 13, 1962 (see also: Friday the 13th) and was initially operated by Manfred Weissleder and Horst Fascher. In the sixties, many of the giants of rock music played at the club.
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Freie und Hansestadt Hamburg
Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg

Flag Coat of arms

Details
Location

Coordinates
Time zone CET/CEST (UTC+1/+2)
Administration

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The Bee Gees were a singing trio of brothers — Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb — that became one of the most successful musical acts of all time. They were born on the Isle of Man to English parents, lived in Manchester, England and moved to Brisbane, Australia during
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Sparks is an American rock and pop music band formed in Los Angeles in 1970 by brothers Ron (keyboards) and Russell Mael (vocals), initially under the name Halfnelson. Best known for their quirky approach to song writing,[1]
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Andrew Ellison (born 5 July 1946, in Leatherhead, Surrey) is a musician and vocalist with John's Children, Jet and Radio Stars.

During the height of John's Children's almost nonexistent popularity, he carried a pillowcase stuffed with feathers onstage, throwing feathers
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A singer is a musician who uses their voice to produce music. Often the singer is accompanied by musicians and instruments. While many people sing for pleasure, vocal skill is usually a combination of innate talent and professional training.
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The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four, seven, eight, ten, and twelve string guitars also exist.
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Marc Bolan (born Mark Feld; 30 September 1947 - 16 September 1977), was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist whose hit singles, fashion sensibilities and stage presence with T Rex in the early 1970s helped cultivate the glam rock era and made him one of the most
..... Click the link for more information.
The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four, seven, eight, ten, and twelve string guitars also exist.
..... Click the link for more information.
The electric bass guitar (or "electric bass") is a bass stringed instrument played with the fingers by plucking, slapping, popping or using a pick. The bass is typically similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and scale
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Chris Townson (born July 24, 1947, Battersea, London) is a musician. He is the only drummer ever to replace Keith Moon on a Who tour while Moon was still alive. Townson also played with Marc Bolan in John's Children. In the 1970s, he was a member of the bands Jook and Jet.
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The Drum kit

1 Bass drum | 2 Floor tom | 3 Snare | 4 Toms | 5 Hi-hat | 6 Crash cymbal and Ride cymbal
Other components
China cymbal | Cowbell | Sizzle cymbal |
Splash cymbal | Swish cymbal |
Tambourine | Wood block | Rototom
A drum kit (or
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The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six strings, but four, seven, eight, ten, and twelve string guitars also exist.
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The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on airplay and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the airplay
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Session musicians are musicians available for hire, as opposed to musicians who are either permanent members of a musical outfit or who have acquired fame in their own right.
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The Columbia Graphophone Company was one of the earliest gramophone companies in the United Kingdom.

Early history

In 1922, Columbia Phonograph, as it was then known, sold its UK subsidiary Columbia Graphophone.
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October 14 is the 1st day of the year (2nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. There are 0 days remaining.

Events


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White Whale Records is probably best known as the record label of The Turtles. White Whale was started in 1965 by Ted Feigin and Lee Lassiff in Los Angeles. The label also released some very early singles by Warren Zevon (as part of the duo Lyme & Cybele), who was also employed as
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Polydor Records is a record label currently headquartered in the UK, and is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group.

Company history

Beginnings

Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft.
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