Our visit lasted from Sunday 9th to Friday 14th and included several Shads connections, some of them predictable, others not...
I knew that we (my son and I) would visit a couple of Greenwich Village jazz clubs just around Fourth Street - and so we did, on Wednesday and Thursday, frequenting the Bar Next Door in McDougal Street (just off 4th). This was just a few yards from the world-famous Café Wha, renowned as the spot where Dylan played his early groundbreaking spots and where Chas Chandler (then late of The Animals) discovered Jimi Hendrix.
But a day or two earlier than that, and a few hours later than A Quarter To Three, we'd been privileged to be at the famous Iridium Jazz Club on Broadway to see a couple of world famous acts, the first of which was Gary "US" Bonds, with his band The Roadhouse Rockers. Gary, of course, was the originator of the song A Quarter To Three, as performed by The Shads on the "Live at the ABC Kingston" CD released a few years ago. I never dreamt that I would hear it sung live by Gary himself.
A few days later, we found ourselves at the upper west side apartment of former EMI recording engineer Malcolm Addey. Malcolm (whom we had first met some years earlier) is a font of knowledge on the Abbey Road recording practices of Norrie Paramor, Walter Ridley and George Martin - the main EMI producers of the day. Malcolm is in the early stages of writing his own book on his time at EMI, and we were treated to a preview of some of the sensational revelations which will be included - just watch out for that book (whenever it is finished). You won't be sorry!.
JN


