Vintage photos of The Jam, Small Faces, The Sex Pistols, Tom Jones etc. feature in Carnaby Echoes exhibition

Tom Jones walking down a London street stroking a cheetah? Now, that is unusual. The Welsh crooner is with actress Christine Spooner near Carnaby Street in a photograph from a collection of previously unseen images of the area’s Sixties heyday.

The pictures also include Cat Stevens leap-frogging a bollard, the Sex Pistols leering in the street and a more recent image of Boy George revisiting former workplaces The Foundry and Street Theatre as part of a project by artist Lucy Harrison called Carnaby Echoes, which celebrates the musical and cultural history of Carnaby Street.

A mobile phone app has also been created that will give users a walking tour and includes interviews with famous faces about their memories of the street.

The app aims to bring stories, sounds and performances from the street’s history vividly back to life. A series of plaques have been placed at key locations, such as the site of jazz club Murray’s in Beak Street which kicked off the music scene in 1913.

There will also be an exhibition at 20 Foubert’s Place which will feature original clothing from The Foundry. It will run from September 5 to October 6, while the app will be available from the Carnaby Echoes site, the App Store or Google Play from September 2.

'Mods & Sods' Night in Tamworth on 16th August

MODern History SE1 – 14th September

Word from Bob Morris is that there is to be a massive festival in SE1 on 14^th September where you can expect “Vintage Galore”.

He says that ‘Scoot The Thames’ will be taking place on this date and will end up at this festival.

Bruce Foxton & From The Jam announce the 'All Mod Cons' Tour

As well as 'Down In The Tube Station At Midnight' and 'A Bomb In Wardour Street' the band are also excited about playing 'Billy Hunt', 'Mr Clean' and the second single released from the album 'David Watts' originally penned by Ray Davies of The Kinks. 'The energy in rehearsals is great and we're really looking forward to getting back on the road!' says Foxton.

The Jam exploded onto the punk scene in 1977 delivering their ferocious mission statement - debut single 'In The City' ' and in 1978 released their third album 'All Mod Cons'. The Jam became the sound of The British youth and one of the greatest and biggest selling bands in British history. In 2000, Q magazine placed 'All Mod Cons' at Number 50 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever.

From The Jam have gained a reputation for the kind of incendiary 'live' performances that sealed the reputation of The Jam all those years ago. From The Jam will be performing All Mod Cons in its entirety followed by a selection of the classic hits and great album tracks from across the fantastic catalogue produced by one of Britain's' seminal bands.

Talking about the tour singer and guitarist Russell Hasting says 'Bruce has often commented on the general vibe in the studio and the feeling that "they were onto a good thing" as every track stood out and was fun to do! When we were recording his 'Back In The Room' album, the recording process was likened to that of All Mod Cons and we thought, why not play the album front to back as it had never been done before. Also tracks like 'The Place I Love' and 'Fly' were never in the live set.'

September 2013

Wednesday 11th 'ALL MOD CONS' Kilworth House Theatre, Leicestershire £25 www.kilworthhousetheatre.co.uk/ 01858 881939

Thursday 19th 'ALL MOD CONS'. Birmingham Town Hall £19 www.thsh.co.uk/

Friday 20th 'ALL MOD CONS'. The Komedia, Bath £18 Seetickets.com / ticketweb.co.uk

Saturday 21st . 'ALL MOD CONS' The Globe, Cardiff. £17 Seetickets.com ticketweb.co.uk

October 2013

Thursday 3rd 'ALL MOD CONS' The Rothes Hall, Glenrothes, Scotland £20 www.onfife.com 01592 611101

Friday 4th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Concert Hall, Motherwell. Scotland £20 01698 403 120 www.northlanarkshire.gov.uk/entertainment.

Saturday 5th 'ALL MOD CONS'. The Picture Dome, Holmfirth. £20 Seetickets.com ticketmaster.co.uk

Saturday 12th 'ALL MOD CONS' Portsmouth Pyramid Centre, Fund raiser with special guests Terry Hall and Neville Staples.£23 / £25 ticketweb.co.uk ticketmaster.co.uk

Friday 18th 'ALL MOD CONS'. 02 Academy, Oxford £18 Seetickets.com ticketweb.co.uk

Saturday 19th 'ALL MOD CONS'. The Leadmill, Sheffield,. £19 www.leadmill.co.uk

Sunday 20th 'ALL MOD CONS'. Skamouth Fest, Great Yarmouth www.skamouth.co.uk Festival tickets

Thursday 24th 'ALL MOD CONS' Quarterhouse, Folkestone, £20 www.quarterhouse.co.uk 01303 858500

Saturday 26th 'ALL MOD CONS' AFC Wimbledon, Kingston upon Thames £20 www.wimbledonheritage.co.uk

November 2013

Friday 1st 'ALL MOD CONS' Clapham Grand £20 https://agmp.ticketabc.com/

Saturday 2nd 'ALL MOD CONS' Newcastle Academy £20 www.ticketweb.co.uk

Thursday 7th 'ALL MOD CONS' Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal £20 www.breweryarts.co.uk

Friday 8th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Corn Exchange, Hertford £20 www.seetickets.com

Saturday 9th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Forum, Billingham £20 www.forumtheatrebillingham.co.uk

Friday 15th 'ALL MOD CONS' Meres Centre, Grantham £22 www.guildhallartscentre.com

Saturday 16th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Epic, Norwich.£20 www.ueaticketbookings.co.uk

Sunday 17th 'ALL MOD CONS'. Corn Exchange, Exeter £20 http://www.exeter.gov.uk/cornexchange

Thursday 21st 'ALL MOD CONS' The Met, Bury £20 www.themet.biz

Friday 22nd 'ALL MOD CONS' The Tivoli, Buckley £20 01244 546 201 www.seetickets.com

Saturday 23rd 'ALL MOD CONS' The Cockpit Leeds £20 www.thecockpit.co.uk

Sunday 24th 'ALL MOD CONS' G Live, Guildford £23 www.glive.co.uk

Tuesday 26th 'ALL MOD CONS', The Musician, Leicester. 0116 251 0080 £20 www.seetickets.com

Wednesday 27th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Cavern, Liverpool £20 http://www.cavernclub.org/

Thursday 28th 'ALL MOD CONS' Evoke, Chelmsford

Saturday 30th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Grand Clitheroe £20 www.thegrandvenue.co.uk/

December 2013

Thursday 5th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Brindley, Runcorn. £20 www.thebrindley.org.uk/ 0151 907 8360.

Friday 6th 'ALL MOD CONS' Rock City, Nottingham £20 www.rock-city.co.uk/ 0845 413 4444

Saturday 7th 'ALL MOD CONS' Bristol details tba

Thursday 12th 'ALL MOD CONS' The Slade Rooms, Wolverhampton Civic Hall £20 www.wolvescivic.co.uk 0870 3207000

Friday 13th 'All MOD CONS' Concorde 2, Brighton £20 www.seetickets.com 01273 673311

Saturday 14th 'ALL MOD CONS' Concorde 2, Brighton £20 www.seetickets.com 01273 673311

Madness to appear at Blackpool’s ‘Switch-On Weekend 2013’

Iconic British chart toppers Madness will complete the line-up for Blackpool’s first ever Illuminations Switch-On Weekend.

The legendary band from Camden Town will headline at The Tower Festival Headland on Saturday August 31 for the second full concert celebrating the official Lights Switch-On.

The announcement follows news that Irish rockers The Script will headline on Friday 30 August with a full concert before TV chat show host Jonathan Ross comes onto stage to mark the official start of the Blackpool Illuminations season. Special guest Eliza Doolittle will also perform that night.

It will be the first time Blackpool’s biggest night of the year has been extended into a weekend event and Madness front man Suggs said he is looking forward to playing at another unique and quintessentially British landmark

Phil Daniels finds Soho track suits for a quick cameo

Quadrophenia legend Phil Daniels has been tempted out of musical retirement after recording a song about the tailors of Soho.

It is the first time the 54-year-old has lent his vocals to a track since his turn on the 1994 Blur hit ‘Parklife’. ‘Ain’t Made To Measure’ is a quirky number about the importance of being suited and booted, and features on The Soho Hobo, an album by London singer/songwriter Tim Arnold.

Arnold, 38, also enlisted the help of his partner, EastEnders star Jessie Wallace, and Spandau Ballet’s Gary Kemp, both of whom feature on the album. He said: “What people don’t realise is that Phil is a phenomenal musician. It was a song that I had written with him in mind and it was only through good luck that he wanted to do the song. He hasn’t done anything since ‘Parklife’, so I feel very lucky.

“It was a really incredible experience. We went into a tiny studio in Soho and he just knew and understood the subtext of the song.” Arnold is the son of former cabaret girl Polly Perkins, 70, who now plays Rose Cotton in EastEnders. He added: “My family’s from Soho and I’ve pretty much lived here for most of my adult life. “I began writing a book 18 months ago called Soho Heroes all about the colourful characters around here, and the album just evolved from there. Soho and its heroes are the real stars.”

Daniels, Kemp and Wallace will join him for a performance of the album at The Soho Theatre on Tuesday.

Lecturer at university of Northampton joins up with museum for a 'mod' twist to exhibition

A senior lecturer from the University of Northampton has been collaborating with the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery on its current Mod exhibition, which covers the history, music and style of the movement.

Dr Nathan Wiseman-Trowse, Senior Lecturer in Popular Music within the University’s School of The Arts, researched and authored the textual narrative that accompanies the clothes, scooters, fanzines and other artefacts in the exhibition. It is one of the most enduring sub-cultures of the 20th Century and one which continues to influence music and fashion worldwide.

The narrative tells the story, not only of the Mod movement nationally, but also of Northampton’s own scenesters and faces. One of the University’s BA Media Production graduates, Richard Johnson, contributed to the exhibition by putting together filmed interviews of Northampton Mods past and present, including current BA Journalism/Popular Music student, Jimmy Bowman.

 

Dr Wiseman-Trowse commented: “It’s been fascinating uncovering the sub-cultural history of Northampton. Mods are almost the archetypal British sub-culturalists, and there is still a vibrant national scene that continues to evolve. The exhibition is a great opportunity, not only to tell that story, but to uncover Northampton’s role in that evolution.

“We hope that this will be just the start of a continuing set of exhibitions that focus on Northampton’s popular culture throughout the decades.”

Jimmy Bowman added: “Mod is something that is very close to my heart so I was thrilled to be asked to take part. I believe it is important for areas of British culture to be acknowledged in this way, especially Mod culture, as it is still as relevant as ever and this can be seen in the exhibition as contributors rage from original Mods right through to my generation. The exhibition looks great!”

The exhibition runs until September 29 at the Northampton Museum and Art Gallery on Guildhall Road.

The Who's Roger Daltrey Says He's Considering Making a New Solo Album

The Who‘s Roger Daltrey played a solo benefit concert Saturday in Costa Mesa, California, to raise money for the Teen Cancer America charity he helped found with band mate Pete Townshend.  With The Who already finished with its Quadrophenia and More Tour, the show is the last scheduled event on the singer’s 2013 itinerary, and Daltrey tells Rolling Stone he’s now thinking about recording a new solo album.

He says he’s interested in the project “mainly because I want to keep singing and I don’t want to keep going out and doing Who songs, though that’s what people want at the shows I do.”

Roger explains that since he’s had his solo backing band together for a while, he’d like to use them for a new recording. One hurdle he says he’ll have to overcome is finding worthy songs from writers besides Who mastermind Townshend.

“Whatever I do the songs will be criticized unless they’ve got The Who’s meat and potatoes, because I’ve sung Townshend all those years,” he maintains.  “If I can get the songs, I’ll do something.”

Daltrey adds that he has “an idea that I’m working with” for the record, although he doesn’t reveal specifics about the concept.

Meanwhile, regarding the possibility of making a new Who album, Roger says it’s all up to Townshend.

“Pete’s the kind of guy who could suddenly write a load of songs and he’ll say, ‘Let’s go in and record them,’” he notes.  “And then there’ll be another album.”

Daltrey points out, however, that more than 23 years separated the release of the band’s last studio effort, 2006′s Endless Wire, and its previous one, 1982′s It’s Hard.

“I haven’t got 23 years now,” the 69-year-old rocker laments, “but you never know.”

The Charlatans drummer, Jon Brookes, has died, aged 44

Jon Brookes, the drummer with indie band The Charlatans has died age 44.

He had suffered a seizure on tour with the band in 2010 and had been receiving treatment for a brain tumour. Brookes had undergone several operations, but had still been working on new material with the band over the summer. He died in hospital on Tuesday morning with his family at his bedside.

Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess tweeted that the band was "torn apart" at the news and sent love to Brookes's family. "Jon Brookes, my friend, our drummer and inspiration to so many, passed away this morning. We are torn apart. Love & thoughts to Jon's family," he said.

A further statement from the band read: "Jon was a brilliant drummer, an inspiration, a founding member of The Charlatans, part of our family and a friend to everyone in and around the band. Losing someone who was always so full of life is a tragedy that will be shared by so many. Our thoughts are with Debbie and all of Jon's family."

Brookes was diagnosed with a brain tumour after collapsing during a Charlatans gig in Philadelphia, in the United States in 2010. He briefly stopped breathing and was helped by a doctor attending the show, before being taken to hospital for emergency treatment. The rest of their US tour was cancelled as Brookes was flown to the UK for treatment.

Speaking afterwards he described how he "saw lights" in the corner of his eyes before collapsing at the concert and said he was at the "start of the long road of treatment for cancer" but was "feeling fit and positive". In July this year the band revealed that he had undergone further surgery for the brain tumour. They said he had recovered well from the operation but would remain in hospital for additional treatment.

Brookes, of Burntwood, Staffordshire, was a founding member of the band that formed in the West Midlands in 1989. The band have had 22 UK top 40 hits, including 'The Only One I Know', 'Can't Get Out Of Bed' and 'One To Another'.

“Which House Of Lords Peer Rides A Quadrophenia-Style Lambretta?” asks The Huffington Post UK

“The House of Lords has a reputation as a stuffy place of business which is steeped in traditional and formality.

But it seems those days are over after a pimped up Lambretta scooter was spotted parked in the specially reserved parking on the Parliamentary estate.

The Mod bike was seen on Thursday night and so far no Peers have owned up as the owner. Here at HuffPostUK we live long in the hope that Lords will be ditching their anonymous Bentleys for vintage Italian scooters. We could be waiting for some time.”

The Who Convention - a replica of Jimmy's Quadrophenia scooter will be on display!

The Who Convention 2013 is set to take place in London in September.

The two day event will commence on the 7th of September, marking 35 years to the day of the great Keith Moon's early passing... so the organisers are really wanting to make this special weekend a memorable one.

The event will be held in "Who Territory" at the Bush Hall, Shepherds Bush, London, which is a fantastic venue that was used for the very successful 2006 Convention.

All profits raised from the weekend event will be donated to Teenage Cancer Trust. Like previous conventions, we will be holding an auction of Who memorabilia. So far they have received some fantastic donations, which will create a lot of interest and help raise money for TCT.

There will be live music by artists that you will not want to miss, guest speakers telling some of their sordid tales, Q&A sessions with some of the infamous Who Family, rare memorabilia on show, screenings of vintage footage, and lots more!

An exact replica of the famous "James Michael Cooper's" Lambretta scooter (also known as "Jimmy") that was featured in the Who’s cult movie Quadrophenia will be at the convention! The scooter is from the Quadrophenia Collection and has been used for band and magazine photo and video shoots all over the UK. Jimmy's original scooter was hired to The Who Films Ltd in 1978 while filming the movie, and was sold at auction for a whopping £36,000, making it the world’s most expensive scooter!

Thanks to Graham Webb for bringing it to the convention!