O/T -'The People's Songs' - "Telstar" (R2 Tonight)

[Arpeggio]

Tonight - Radio 2 - 10.00pm. 'The People's Songs' - "Telstar". Sure to be a great programme in a very interesting series. Plus..you get to hear me (LOL).....as well as many others....talking about "Telstar", Joe Meek & being a kid in 1962!! It all came about by chance when I sent just a general email to the programme's 'Blog' page before production started. A researcher (young guy in his 20s!!!! - but he'd heard of Joe Meek) came and talked to me (recording all of the conversations) for nearly 4 hours!! Of course - everything will be cut / edited...so heaven knows how much (or little) they'll use. Still - it all helps to keep Joe's name & music in the public consciousness!! As we all know - Bruce is great friends with Clem Cattini & is still 'annoyed' (LOL) that "Telstar" went to No.1 both in the USA & the UK!

Rob

[GoldenStreet]

Just listened on the iPlayer - a nicely informed contribution, Rob! In a way, Telstar, became a millstone round Meek's neck, with the reference to the French accusation of his 'stealing' the piece just about typical. I've no idea how much truth there is/was in that...

Bill

[martcaster]

Listened today on the i-player. Great programme full of Sixties cultural references. I was sat there thinking, " Hey! that's a mate of mine on't national wireless! How good is that?" See you in Birmingham, Rob? At the bar,naturally. Your round I seem to remember! Well done, that man!
Love to all, Mart.

[George Geddes]

Great stuff! And well done Rob...

I'd like to see Apache as the last in the series but I doubt that'll happen...

George

[Arpeggio]

Thanks Guys. It's interesting to hear how it all turned out. They've used other 'soundbites' of mine (LOL) and inserted them into other programmes in the series (unbeknown to me until other people who had listened in let me know after the event!). George - I did my best to get "Apache" and "M W T G Arm" in there somewhere....but I guess the people behind the series also have their own agenda. There were actually some dreadful incorrect facts uttered by Stuart MaConie (as a result of a previous programme he did about Joe Meek a few years ago) eg that "Life On Venus" was a follow up to "Telstar" (it was actually a 'B' side - but was, admittedly, almost "Telstar#2" LOL!), Joe died on Feb 2nd 1967 (boing!!!!!!!), "Telstar" was No.1 for half a year (eh????). Geoff Goddard was given a co - writing credit for "Telstar" (No No No No No!). "Just Like Eddie" - No.1? (NO). Joe's main pianist & studio musician before Geoff Goddard was DAVE Adams (not CLIVE Adams - D'Oh!!!). So many (if not ALL) of those errors could've been easily eliminated.

But....BIll....it is true that Joe Meek was sued for plagiarism by French classical / film composer Jean Ledrut. Financially - as the court case dragged on for nearly 5 years (finally settled AFTER Meek's death - in his favour!!!) - it ruined Joe Meek. By March 1963 he had banked £29,000 in royalties (an enormous amount of money at that time) for "Telstar" (c. £500,000 in today's money). It's been calculated that Joe Meek would have eventually pocketed about 10 times that amount by the end of the 60s - but it was not to be. "The Battle Of Austerlitz" was a very obscure film - not even shown in the UK at all before 1965. There was simply no way that Joe Meek could have possibly heard the "Austerlitz Theme" at all. In the end the courts concluded that Joe Meek had accidentally 'copied' about 2 bars of music (although how he is supposed to have copied something that he cannot possibly have ever heard is beyond me!!!!!). Ledrut bought his plagiarism suite shortly after "Telstar" was issued in France and went to No.1 in the French charts. He was awarded £11,000 in 1968. By then - Joe Meek was long dead & "Telstar's" other profits swallowed up by courts, lawyers, the offiical receiver etc., etc. To this day - Joe's descendants have received precious little with regard to royalties relating to "Telstar" - such a shame.

Bests....Rob

[GoldenStreet]

Yes, Rob, I wondered about the so-called Clive Adams! I see a "2nd stage" demo of Telstar by Dave Adams is included on disc 3 of The RGM Legacy - Portrait of a Genius 4CD box set.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Joe-Meek-Legacy ... l_3#disc_3

Bill