A compendium of musical delights by Alan and Margaret Ashworth
As a tribute to Les McKeown, who has died at 65, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-56848233 here is the Rollers’ version of I Only Want To Be With You (or, as they had it, I Only Wanna Be With … Continue readingBay City Rollers: I Only Want To Be With You
I’D like to take you back 56 years to an afternoon that changed my life. It was the spring of 1965, I was 15 and in the fifth form at … Continue readingShakespeare and me
This was written by group member George Williams with Bill Jackson and released in 1963. It was their first hit single, topping the US chart and reaching No 21 in … Continue readingThe Tymes: So Much in Love
IT’S BEEN very cold here for several weeks, and dry as well. Apparently this is caused by an area of high pressure stubbornly lodged over Northern Europe. (This type of … Continue readingBeware of the cat
I think Andy Fairweather Low had one of the best pop voices. This was their second single, released in 1967, and it got to No 24 in Britain. I don’t … Continue readingAmen Corner: The World of Broken Hearts
David Bowie wrote and produced this track. It was released by Mott the Hoople in July 1972, reaching No 3 in Britain and No 37 in America. It is No … Continue readingMott the Hoople: All The Young Dudes
The Pretty Things were sort of offcuts from the Rolling Stones, and it sounds to me as if vocalist Phil May modelled himself on Mick Jagger. Rosalyn, an obvious Bo … Continue readingThe Pretty Things: Rosalyn
This was written by Miller and released in 1957, when it did nothing. It was re-released in December 1962 and reached No 6 in America and No 2 in Britain … Continue readingNed Miller: From a Jack to a King
ON the other side of our stream is a steep bank which is covered with ivy. Occasionally I see a quick movement amongst the leaves and I immediately think it … Continue readingThe industrious Mr Wren
This was the Stones’ first single. It was written and released by Chuck Berry in October 1961. It didn’t make the charts but the B-side, Go Go Go, reached number 38 … Continue readingRolling Stones: Come On