Who Are These Shadows??

[Arpeggio]

Hi Everyone,
Some people may have received a message from Christophe Chen about, er...'The Shadows' (??) releasing (possibly downloads only???) new albums. Here's part of his message - slightly edited (with links to the relevant site) - because I would think that this might require investigation. Can't imagine Messrs Marvin, Welch, Bennett (& Goode!!!!!!!) being too pleased about it. Very modern, lots of synths / programming, different guitar sounds. All very well......but it's listed as being by The Shadows....which it patently isn't!!!


"Hi Dear Shadows fans,
Just before Shadowsmania, I’d like to get a response to my enquiry. Who is this new Shadows band called The Shadows who have been recording since July 2009 - many of The Shads' greatest and successful hits? Their new brand CD albums are all credited as The Shadows.I give you below the direct links to listen to their record tracks. I personally like ‘Blue Sky, Blue Sea, Blue me’ fuzz guitar version.

http://www.deezer.com/fr/music/result/a ... ows-415808

http://www.deezer.com/fr/music/result/a ... -on-422688


It seems according to my enquiries that Vanila records is a UK record label. Please let me know if you ‘ve got more actual infos about those Shadows I did not know.
PS : When In Paris Hank Marvin did not acknowledge this band using their former Shadows name.
The Shadows company is still alive ! Do not make any mistake using their name.
Best regards,

Christophe CHEN

Paris / France"

RB: Hmmmm...very interesting!! At the site you can listen to soundclips - but many of the titles do not match the melodies (even though they are all there - just all jumbled up!)

Over to our many experts here!!

Rob

[John M]

Definitely NOT impressed... some are travesties of the original pieces.

[JimN]

I posted a link to that "Dance On!" album (on Spotify) a couple of weeks ago.

Every track is a fresh re-imagining (as the media have it these days) of a classic Shads recording - some of the originals so reassuringly obscure (1963 B-sides, for instance) that the perpetrators are clearly huge fans of Hank and Co. probably with at least as much knowledge of the history of the group as the average punter at a UK Shadowmusic club.

It is true that some of the tracks are a bit 'ho-hum', awash with 80s-based synth-pad coloration, but some of them are excellent re-interpretations. I'll go so far as to suggest that the 1:45 country version of Shindig is every bit as good as the original version - as good, but different. And the same is true of Round And Round.

But no, I don't know who the group are... and I'd love to know...

JN

[StanfordTuck]

On the same website there is a CD with the name "Dark side of the Shadows" with some vocal numbers.
The faces of the guys are recognisable at the bottom of the picture.
And .... they are not "our" Shadows.

Cees

[Dance with Shadows]

The iTunes website indicates that the CD was originally released in 1991.

Michael

[Paul Creasey]

Absolutely NO idea who they might be..........but, as has already been said, definitely not "our" Shadows!
A bit naughty labelling the CD's as "The Shadows" - but I'll leave it to those with more tutored legal brains than mine to establish if it is "wrong".
Now - I've never been one to support slavish compliance with "that sound" and admit that I found the new rendidions ("re-imagining"!!) of Shads classics quite refreshing - put me in mind of Norrie Paramor's "Shadows in Latin" which I enjoyed many years ago.
FBI reminded me of "The Hellecasters play the music of The Shadows". As I LIKE the music of The Hellecasters, this was not a problem for me.
When is someone going to have the moxy to play alternative versions like these at a Shadows Guitar Club, I wonder?.....and what would the response be??
Regards
Paul

[BrianD]

Can't help noticing that the track they called "The Lost City" sounds rather like a fuzzed up version of Little Princess from the Aladdin Panto!!

Brian

[JimN]

Can't help noticing that the track they called "The Lost City" sounds rather like a fuzzed up version of Little Princess from the Aladdin Panto!!

Brian

Spotify (at least) has some of the titles mixed up.

JN

[Iain Purdon]

When is someone going to have the moxy to play alternative versions like these at a Shadows Guitar Club, I wonder?.....and what would the response be??

I'm all for it. At Watford there is a fabulous guitarist, Bert North, who can play very passable Mark Knopfler and Andy Summers material. When he gets up to play, he plays the Shads numbers his way and the fun for the rest of the band is to find suitable ways to accompany it. Copying the record arrangement is usually not the best thing to do. People always sit up and take notice, and I've never anyone muttering that he is playing it "wrong"!

[Paul Creasey]

Hello Brian (D),
"The Lost City" sounds more like "Peace Pipe" to me!
A nice "re-imagining" to my ears - in fact, these sets are growing on me the more I listen to 'em, despite the "mixed-up" nature of the track title-ing.
I've not worked-out yet (my "Francais" is limited!) if these are only downloads, or whether you can actually buy the CD's - if-so, I'd be quite tempted to exchange some of my hard-earned for 'em!!
Regards
Paul