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Vinyl Long Play • Vee-Jay Records • VJ-1101.
1965-01 • U.S.A.
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Back cover.
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Inner sleeve.
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Inner sleeve.
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Saluting Their Return To Amercia
Labels.
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Saluting Their Return To Amercia
Labels, DJ advance copy.
The Merseyboys:
The Brumbeats.
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Graham Ashford: Lead vocal.
Roger Hill: Guitar, vocal.
Graham Gallery: Bass guitar, vocal.
Paul Carter: Saxophone.
Alan "Bugsy" Eastwood: Drums, vocal.
Liner notes:
SALUTING THEIR RETURN TO AMERICA
AND THEIR FIRST MOTION PICTURE
THE 15 GREATEST SONGS OF THE BEATLES
ALL COMPOSED BY
JOHN•PAUL AND GEORGE
AND SUNG BY THE MERSEYBOYS
Other than the great singing
accomplishments of John, Paul and George,
a fact which is oft- times overlooked,
is that all are fine writers, as evidenced
by the 15 great hits in this album.
SHE LOVES YOU * PLEASE PLEASE ME * ALL MY LOVING * FROM ME TO YOU
I WANT TO HOLD YOUR HAND * DO YOU WANT TO KNOW A SECRET
I WANNA BE YOUR MAN * IT WONT BE LONG * THANK YOU GIRL
I'LL GET YOU * HOLD ME TIGHT * MISERY * ASK ME WHY
DON'T BOTHER ME * ALL I'VE GOT TO DO
PAUL MCCARTNEY
Paul is sometimes called the "Nut Beatle" or "Beatle Nut" because he is the zaniest of the group-he has the quickest wit-loudest laughter and craziest sense of humor and is a habitual practical joker. Paul is the only Beatle with jet black hair-he has a strong straight nose and full lower lip and gleaming white teeth. He hates to shave and calls it the curse of mankind. He favors tight clothes and in case you'd like to shop for him his collar size is 15" and his waist size 30". He is indifferent to what he eats and can make do with very little sleep-he loathes pajamas and prefers to sleep raw- hates tub baths and loves showers. Oh yes and one more thing, he hates jelly beans.
JOHN LENNON
Although he was reluctant to allow himself to be called the Chief Beatle, John Lennon still refuses to accept the title of *Leader: "We've always been a group, not anyone of us worked any harder than the other! John is a natural born leader but none the less fun loving than the other Beatles. He is nearsighted and off stage wears glasses. As a child he lived a life of uninterrupted calm and cannot recall any childhood sadness- his mother died after his 14th birthday and this event remains the greatest tragedy of his life. After John met Paul McCartney they both began to teach themselves the guitar and after school they would "rush through their tea and practice the guitar! They called themselves the Nurk Twins- although they had no way of knowing it at that time, John and Paul had laid the foundation for what was to be- come in an astonishingly short time a group known as The Beatles.
GEORGE HARRISON
George plays the lead guitar, the one with the deadpan face working in the middle between John and Paul - he is also probably the best musician, having taken lessons which makes him the only one in the group with formal musical train- ing. George is more introverted than the rest and an interviewer would most likely get a lot of yes and no answers from George, George is the quietest of the Beatles and he is also the youngest of the group. His interests cover a wide spec- trum and he secretly nurses a desire to become a serious guitarist one day and would love to play a Spanish guitar unamplified. He is a devotee of the great guitarist Andres Segovia. George was the only one of the Beatles who had been to the United States before the group came here in February and he had the privilege of meeting President Kennedy at that time. The most striking thing in George's appearance is his lean face highlighted by large hazel eyes shadowed by his hair worn in the shaggy Beatle cut. Lamb chops are his favorite food although he is not very much con- cerned with food. His collar size is 14", chest 38", waist 30"-he is one of four children and was a better than average student in school.
ReplyDelete"The Merseyboys"
The band's profile also increased when a local newspaper at the time published a story with the headline; "It could be a really fab Feb. for the Brum Beats". The paper went on to say; "They are all good musicians - quite a rarity among modern beat groups - and Decca are considering using them as session men."
As well as providing support for visiting acts, The Brumbeats had performed on the same bill as The Beatles whenever they played in the Birmingham area. The Brumbeats similarity in their sound to The Beatles was not lost on Decca as they were soon involved in a recording project resulting in the release of a now-rare 15-track album of Beatles songs as performed by "The Merseyboys" who were really The Brumbeats under a different name.
While most Beatles fans would not be fooled by these recordings, the LP stands as a tribute to The Brumbeats as talented musicians and in particular guitarist Roger Hill who brilliantly duplicates both George and John's parts simultaneously as he probably usually did on stage! This album was also issued in the U.S.A. on the famous Vee-Jay Records label - one of the first American labels to promote records by The Beatles.
Despite making other recordings for Decca, the Brumbeats unfortunately disbanded in early 1965 when Graham Ashford left to go solo before further records could be released. The group later re-formed for a short time with new members Robbie Harper and Alan Buxton replacing Roger Hill and Bugsy Eastwood.
Graham Gallery briefly joined the Rockin' Berries and later became a member of "The Midland Light Orchestra". He also worked with the famous Move and Wizzard performer Roy Wood during the 1970s. Graham died in the 1980s at only 35 years of age.
Roger Hill went on to other Birmingham bands including The Uglys and later re-uniting with former Brumbeats drummer Alan Eastwood when they formed the pop/rock group The Exception. Roger enjoyed a successful career as a jazz guitarist until he passed away in 2011 (see Roger Hill). Sadly, Alan "Bugsy" Eastwood also passed away in 2007.
Buddy Ash (Graham Ashford) went on to form his own new group in 1965 that was named "The Bobby Ash Sound". Graham later moved to Hawaii and now lives in California where he still continues to perform and write songs. Saxophonist Paul Carter was recently discovered in South Africa where he still lives today.
Thanks to Graham Ashford for assistance in writing The Brumbeats story.