The Shads but different

[ernie1958]

We all know lots about the Shads and how it all began up till now including the final reunion tour 2009 of Cliff and the Shads.
But there has also been a period in time(maybe more...I don't really know)that the Shads put their efforts "on ice" if you will.
What I am trying to get at is that during that time Bruce Welch and Hank Marvin worked together with John Farrar as "Marvin,Welch and Farrar".
They have made a few albums with a great many wonderful songs such as "Don't throw it all away",which actually was one of the contending songs intended
for the Eurovision Song Contest in 1975 in which in the end "Let me be the one" was chosen for the Shads to represent England by.
I have seen lots of good stuff here but to my surprise nothing about this period which I think also had some really great material made by
Bruce and Hank and of course John Farrar!

Let's hear some opinions guys!

Cheers,
Ernie

[drakula63]

My favourite era for the Shadows was the 1970s, beginning with Shades of Rock, in 1970, and ending with String of Hits in 79. Strangely enough, both albums of covers. In between were some of the most outstanding records they ever made. Rockin' with Curly Leads is the best, in my opinion, although I will admit to being obsessed with MWF's Second Opinion! Too many great tracks to mention, but suffice to say that John Farrar's influence on the band was nothing but positive. Favourite Shadows cover of all time, by the way, Superstar - recorded in 74, released in 77. And that reminds me, it was The Shadows 20 Golden Greats in 1977 that got me hooked in the first place! So the 1970s, definitely the best Shads decade for me!!

[Shad1]

The Shadows represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest. ;)

Malc

[Moderne]

There are a few Shadows fans who contribute to the message boads and who are interested in the artistry of The Shadows throughout their career including the Marvin, Welch, Farrar period and The Shadows when John Farrar was a member of the group. However these are dwarfed in number by fans who are mainly just interested in the classic 1960-61 Hank, Bruce, Jet and Tony era and the holy grail of "that sound". So threads or topics relating to the 70s seldom appear and result in limited interest.

[alewis41]

There are a few Shadows fans who contribute to the message boads and who are interested in the artistry of The Shadows throughout their career including the Marvin, Welch, Farrar period and The Shadows when John Farrar was a member of the group.

Moderne is correct and if flingelbunt and StuartD make a contribution to this thread then you will have heard from most of them! I am a John Farrar fan first and a Shads fan second and I listen to something from that era nearly every day.

[Peter K]

Dear all,

I also belong to the ( small ? ) group of fans who admire the Shadows for nearly everything they have done, no matter when it was. I feel that Marvin, Welch and Farrar were very much underrated and I remember a Cliff / Shadows concert
( Shadows were announced as " The Shadows featuring Marvin, Welch and Farrar " then ) back in the spring of 1971
when they performed some MWF numbers. The reception of the Berlin audience was great, I was under the impression that most of the people knew the songs and bought the albums, too.
When Cliff & The Shadows celebrated their 10th anniversary in 1968 and released the album " Established 1958 " I felt
that the Shad's were really burnt out, the songs written for this album ( with the exception of " Poem " ) were the worst they had ever done. After listening to this album I could understand why they had decided to call it a day at the end of 1968.
The next Shadows album was " Shades of rock ", still one of the most discussed albums. Some people love it, others doubt it. I always have mixed emotions when listening to it and in the end there's only song which I really love, that's "Something ".
( They performed " Something " live during their 1971 tour ).
In 1973 they released " Rocking with curly leads " and for me the old Shadows magic was back again. This album sounded so fresh and brilliant, I still love it today.
What I wanted to say is : There were some ups and downs during the Shadows' career but I have always followed them and am really glad that I had the chance to see them perform live in 1964, 1965, 1971, 1978. 1980 ( twice ) and 2005.
I also saw Bruce Welch's Shadows in 2007 and look forward to see Cliff and the Shadows again on November 28th at Cologne.
This will probably really be the final concert, but who knows what's going to happen in 2013 ?

Peter K

[BrianD]

Throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s I bought every recording the Shads made (apart from the interminable re-compilations that appeared on so many obscure labels). My least favourite was Shades of Rock, but I was overjoyed when Rocking With Curly Leads was released - The Shads were back with a really hard hitting set of tracks recorded with an edge in line with the times. My favourite LP / CD of the reformed Shads was, however, TASTY. Some great tracks and more in line with their original sound.

Brian

[rogera]

Inevitably certain periods of the Shadows/Marvin, Welch and Farrar appeal more to some people and less to others.

Like others I'm attracted to certain times in their career, but Marvin, Welch and Farrar feature strongly among my favourites. The MWF recordings have so many strong points - terrific vocal harmony, strong original melodies, good guitar work, and for me I've never heard such great sounding acoustic guitars. They have been recorded beautifully.

[StuartD]

Hi

Marvin, Welch and Farrar were simply fantastic. Great harmonies, good songs and a great deal of talent. John Farrar is one of the most talented people I have ever met. He is quiet, unassuming and modest but behind lies a musical maestro. His vocal range, song writing ability and guitar playing mark him out as someone special. I was lucky enough to be at Abbey Road when they were recording Rockin with Curly Leads and it was a fantastic experience. I think John, who had a different background, really stretched Hank as a player.

The thing about that period was that they were working all the time. You didn't need tickets for final tours then; they were out there every other week and I was lucky enough to spend a lot of time with MWF at their gigs. John Farrar's live versions of Let it Be and The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down were tremendous as was their version of When I'm Dead and Gone.

Regards

Stuart

[stratmantd]

As someone born (established?) in 1958, I never really knew The Shadows until Summer Holiday at which point the line-up was Hank, Bruce, Brian & Licorice. To me, Jet and Tony were another act altogether producing records such as Diamonds.

At that age, personnel changes are not really noticed that much; you just enjoy the music, so when John Rostill appeared in Wonderful Life it was just a different face. Only later was any musical style differentiated between the various artistes.

MWF was a great band which just didn't receive the attention it deserved. Their lyrics, melodies, harmonies, guitar-work were second to none but unfortunately it seemed that this was a move too far for Shadows "fans" who wouldn't allow them to progress in their musical styles.

The Shads have had their ups and downs like everyone else, ranging from the sublime, (such as Curly Leads, Tasty), to the ridiculous (any number of mid-to-late 80s "what can be covered next" albums).

To only be interested in the Hank, Bruce, Jet & Tony era is doing the whole band a disservice; they are so much more than that.