Not too many London A&E weekends can match this one . . . really, I’m still a few metres off the ground.
To start: we met a great Londoner (for a decade or more) Ray Bradley, the man from South Porcupine who played on the same line as Eddie Shack with the Guelph Biltmore junior team in the 1950s. Ray was watching with us as the London Knights triumphed 4-2 at the John Labatt Centre on Friday. The fun continued with a Downton Abbey DVD marathon on Saturday night . . . then (Sunday . . . whew . . . there was a lot on Sunday) Robert Fones guided us through his magnificent Greg Curnoe Cutouts exhibition at Museum London & Jack Chambers’ film about Greg R34 as the portal between the Curnoe exhibition and the magnificent Jack Chambers celebration Jack Chambers: the light from the darkness, silver paintings and film work (it’s organized by curators Mark Cheetham and Ihor Holubizky) . . . and then a house concert with Catherine McInnes & Emm Gryner who introduced us to singer/songwriter with verve Marty Kolls, a new & former Londoner who has been recording with Emm and (Emm gives him “all the credit”) Darryl Lahteenmaa.
Catherine & Emm are known greats . . . but Marty was a revelation. Plays the ukulele, piano, toy piano, great songs, husband helps out on glocksenspiel . . . hey (now that I think of it) Catherine & Emm have both been stellar Reaney’s Pick video guests. We should get Marty in there too. Ace bassist Steve Clark backed up Emm and Catherine, who were at the old family Steinway rawkin the house.
Here are set lists (the order is imperfect & titles are approx) for Marty Kolls & Emm
Marty Kolls
Decided — w/ glockenspiel
Spring — w/ glockenspiel
Mistake
Doubtful Day
The Affair
Don’t You Know That I’m Crazy?
Emm Gryner
Let It Snow
Aquarius
Get Brave
Bold Soul
Lose My Head
Tell My Sister (Kate McGarrigle cover)
Running Back (solo vocal Thin Lizzy cover)
So it was all great . . . & the EP Marty has recorded sounds just as splendid as hearing her live in that revelatory first time Sunday as we marvelled at the sunshine on a winter day.
Finally, on Sunday night, there was a good crowd for godmother of women’s rock June Millington at UWO’s von Kuster hall. She rawked about the end of the world and was lyrical about tropical days & read from her autobiography when she heard Albert King & Jimi Hendrix at the Fillmore & the young guy next to her was . . . Santana.
June Millington is at UWO’s Don Wright faculty Tuesday for popular music songwriting masterclass (9:30 a.m.) desktop music production (2:30) & then an RW interview in the evening. She rawks. She slams.
All of this was great . . . now who knows the name of the Guelph Biltmore franchise when Shack & Bradley played on the team . . . & why was this important to Sweet Daddy Shackie?
I think the name was the Mad Hatters – named after a hat manufacturer in Guelph that Eddie Shack used to sell in the off season after he was on the Leafs.
My father and grandfather had season tickets and watched guys like Andy and Frank Bathgate, Rod Gilbert, Harry Howell amongst others as they were on the team owned by the parent New York Rangers.
Thanks for sharing this, David. What memories. Mad Hatters it is — at least as far as I know. Was delighted to discover the team name over the weekend . . . they had some players, didn’t they?
The Shack-Biltmore story has the Great Entertainer selling the hats in his hometown of Sudbury for a tidy profit. He would drive up a carful of hats.
His Mad Hatters’ teammate Ray Bradley said Shack would buy the hats for 50 cents and selling them for $15 on the streets of Sudbury . . . after loading up a truck with Biltmore products.
Wow. What a nose for value, etc.