press articles- uk music papers

Elvis Presley: "Loving You".
This was the first time I'd heard any rock'n'roll. It was the late fifties, and against my will I went to see the film. Up until then I'd thought Elvis was a very silly person. Anyway, when I got there, I literally spent the whole time standing on my seat, leaping and cavorting about. From then on, all I wanted was a guitar and a check shirt and to play "Loving You."

Everly Brothers: "Cathy's Clown".
This was an influence because I'd never heard anyone singing like that before. Their vocal sound completely knocked me out. It was fresh air at the time.

Tommy Steele: "Singing The Blues"
Not much to say about this one except that he had a great voice and sounded like he meant it.

Shadows: "Apache"
I liked this simply because it was a new sound, a very clean sound at that. Every time it came on the radio I whipped it up loud. All I wanted to do after this was to play guitar like Hank Marvin.

Beatles: "Please Please Me"
Their "Love Me Do" didn't have any impact on me, but "Please Please Me" had so much power and vitality and a certain aggression in the voices.

Yardbirds: "Good Mornin Little Schoolgirl"
Before I heard this I'd started liking R and B. So many great players went through bands at this time, especially the Yardbirds. I always thought Keith Relf had a demanding voice and there was an incredible guitar sound on this particular single.

Cyril Davis: "Chicago Calling"
I hadn't heard harmonica played like this before and Davis was probably the best white R and B harmonica player in the world. Listening to him also made me interested in others, like Jesse Fuller and Sonny Boy Williamson.

Bob Dylan: "Blowin' In The Wind"
I went to see Dylan in the early sixties - I think it was 63 - when he did a two-hour, one-man concert at the London Festival Hall. I only went because it was a very groovy thing to do at the time and hitched up from Weston-super-Mare. So when I got there I was half asleep, Sounds silly, but afterwards I was a changed person. His music really turned me around because he was saying so much.