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Post by cameron on Sept 9, 2013 18:46:40 GMT
On the 7th of September, 1968 a special episode of Colour Me Pop was broadcast. On that particular date in 1968, The Hollies' own half hour special was broadcast. For those who don't know, Colour Me Pop was a TV show that ran from June 1968 to August 1969 on BBC 2. It was a late night show designed to show serious artists' latest efforts (a bit like a predecessor to the Old Grey Whistle Test) and allowed artists a half an hour slot to perform whatever they wanted. It was filmed in colour (hence, Colour Me Pop) and featured a multitude of artists including The Moody Blues, Jethro Tull, Julie Driscoll, The Nice, Ten Years After, Free, The Kinks etc...
Anyway, the vast majority of the episodes were wiped completely, sadly including the Hollies' performance. No photos of the Hollies' performance have surfaced either. There's about five surviving episodes out of 14 month's worth of weekly episodes - absolutely shocking! The highlights of the remaining episodes include The Move and The Small Faces.
The Hollies performed the following set:
1. Stop Stop Stop (live vocal only)
2. Very Last Day (live)
3. Carrie-Anne (live but using the live concert backing track)
4. Butterfly (live but using the live concert backing track)
5. A Taste of Honey (live)
5. Medley: Stay/Just One Look/Here I Go Again/I'm Alive/I Can't Let Go/Bus Stop/Jennifer Eccles (all mimed)
6. Listen to Me (live vocal only)
7. Blowing in the Wind (live)
Now, just putting it out there, but it has come to my attention that someone has discovered the audio for this within the past few years - a fan taped it at the time. Does anyone on the forum have it and would they be willing to trade? Send me a private message if so. Even if you aren't willing to trade, I'd just like to know that it's out there and someone still has a copy!
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Post by Deleted on Nov 27, 2017 17:43:39 GMT
Apparently the 2nd song here was filmed during The Hollies' Colour Me Pop performance (which is almost certainly the nearest we'll ever get to seeing the whole show!)...
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Post by cameron on Nov 27, 2017 18:33:42 GMT
I understand that the footage is of the rehearsal, they had smarter clothes for the main show. But interestingly NOT their cabaret suits that they were wearing by this point for live performances. The set has large cut out circles within a square with Allan and Graham stood in front of the first one, Bernie and Tony behind the first one and in front of the second one and Bobby at the back in the middle. Allan's wearing his patchwork psychedelic shirt, Graham, Bobby and Bernie wearing psychedelic scarves but Tony has a smart jacket.
Since I made this post I've heard the audio and here's some amendments to the running order:
1) Stop! Stop! Stop! (2:42) - taped backing track and live vocal. I think it's the same backing track used for their Top Of The Pops TV appearance in 1966 with the proper ending
2) Stay/Just One Look (0:56) - a brief segue of the two original studio recordings
3) Very Last Day (2:57) - this is the gem of the set, a totally live performance with the same guitar/banjo arrangement as seen/heard in the 1968 Yugoslavian Concert.
4) Here I Go Again (0:35) - the original studio recording
5) Butterfly (2:43) - the taped orchestral backing that they used in live performances with Graham's live vocal
6) I'm Alive (0:25) - the original studio recording
7) Carrie Anne (2:48) - a live performance. But interestingly it has the orchestra backing as heard in the 1969 "Hollies In Concert" though it sounds like a tape - maybe they had this new backing recorded especially? For the 1968 Yugoslavian concert they play to a tape but the solo is the original steel drum track as heard on the original record.
8) I Can't Let Go (0:27) - the original studio recording
9) Listen To Me (2:33) - sounds like the record to me, no live vocals
10) Bus Stop (0:29) - the original studio recording
11) A Taste Of Honey (2:24) - a live version of the 1968 studio recording. It has the orchestra on it though I believe it to be a tape recording that they're playing along to.
12) Jennifer Eccles (0:32) - the original studio recording
13) Blowin' In The Wind (4:01) - another live version with the orchestra, again, it sounds taped though their instruments and vocals sound live.
It's interesting to find that the Hollies obviously had some orchestral backing tracks made up at Abbey Road. Do you think perhaps this is why we have the 1968 version of "A Taste Of Honey"? Maybe they went into the studio and just put the whole track down for posterity? Perhaps they did "Blowin' In The Wind" at the same time. And maybe this means that there could even be a 1968 version of "Carrie Anne"?
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Post by gee on Nov 27, 2017 18:59:13 GMT
Excellent info above !
August 12th - 16th 1968 was the period over which 'A Taste of Honey' version two with orchestra, and the 'Nash versions' of both 'Blowin in The Wind' and 'Survival of The Fittest' plus 'Man With No Expression' were all recorded at Abbey Road
both 'A Taste of Honey' version two and 'Blowin in The Wind' 'Nash' verson one ( and indeed 'Sylvester' version two later) feature additional accompaniment arranged and conducted by ex-Manfred Mike Vickers so it's quite likely those other orchestral backing tracks were also recorded then (tho' no more are officially listed it appears)- is there any info re who was arranging those other backing tracks ?
if it's Mike Vickers that would seem to confirm it as clearly they did those two augmented tracks with big band & orchestral accompaniment together (Ronnie Scott and Ronnie Ross appear playing brass on 'Blowin' of course - quite likely on ATOH too)
'Listen To Me' featuring Nicky Hopkins on keyboards was recorded later on 28th August 1968 and then on 31 October 1968 the listings show they recorded versions of both 'A Taste of Honey' and 'Listen To Me' at Abbey Road especially for BBC radio - possibly putting new vocals onto the recorded backing tracks (?)
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Post by Deleted on Nov 28, 2017 11:27:51 GMT
Excellent info indeed, thanks Cameron (& Gee!).
Just to clarify, were many of The Hits actually performed incomplete, or is it just your tape that is incomplete? I find it very strange that they'd bother "performing" (miming) such short snippets between longer songs.
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Post by Gralto on Nov 28, 2017 12:55:50 GMT
Hi Peter - the truncated tracks were used as link pieces in the special and are played over rudimentary animated sketches of the band members. Reason - promotion of the 'Hollies Greatest' album.
The H are only seen in performance - there are no side interviews or footage of them away from the BBC studio where the numbers are presented. And as Cameron has rightly pointed out, the footage used for French TV is of the band on the way to BBC TV Centre and then a rehearsal of Listen To Me.
To slightly correct you Cam, the special features two costume changes - the multi-coloured clothes and bow ties, as seen during a moment of Peter's Jennifer Eccles clip above and then also in the full all-white cabaret clobber. Excellent work on your audio examinations.
It is a frustrating special in that - like the following year's 1969 'Hollies In Concert' special many of us have seen - you have a mixture of mimed, partially live and fully live performances (I believe as per UK Musicians Union rules of a certain percentage requirement of live music within a television show).
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Post by cameron on Nov 28, 2017 21:19:53 GMT
"Colour Me Pop" was a very low budget show, just a spoken intro then the band were left to it for half an hour, often with slightly awkward pauses between tracks. But it was the first show for 'pop' music that was broadcast in colour by the BBC, which is where the budget presumably went. That's also why the tapes were all wiped as they'd tape the new show over one from a few weeks before.
They use the same microphones/PA that Top Of The Pops used. In fact, I believe it was recorded in the same studio.
Cheers for the visual clarification Simon, I have the photos that I describe their look from labelled as "Colour Me Pop", so obviously they're from a different show. I did think it strange how they were still looking "psychedelic" in late 1968! If I could ever work out how to post them to this forum, I'd share them here. Photobucket has long since kicked the bucket and I don't know how else to share photos now!
It is true that the Hollies rarely seemed to perform absolutely live on British TV. It's a real treat when they do though. From what I've seen of them in the sixties, only their performances on the Tom Jones Show and Julie Felix Show were live. I think their lost performances on Ready Steady Go and the Morecambe And Wise Show would have been live too, but I guess we'll never know. Top Of The Pops was live vocals only except for 1966 when they totally mimed "Bus Stop". That's why the Yugoslavian concert was such a treat when it appeared - I can't remember anyone ever talking about it before it did appear though, like it was an unknown recording. I believe that live shows were also recorded in American in 1967 and Japan in 1968, though it remains to be seen what survives.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2019 20:56:36 GMT
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Post by Stranger on Apr 27, 2019 10:57:37 GMT
Very interesting Peter. Curious to think it turned up at all and more curious that it appears to have been knocking around for two years.
It would be nice for the BBC to show it if they can but perhaps they have the rights but not an actual copy.
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Post by moorlock2003 on Apr 27, 2019 11:14:23 GMT
The Move's Colour Me Pop set is an odd mixture of live and mimed performances.
The Hollies sure had their share of low quality black and white promo films, worth watching once or twice but there's a distinct lack of excitement present, with the majority of them being strictly mimed. Ho hum.
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Post by Stranger on Apr 27, 2019 11:20:22 GMT
Yep the setlist and the miming does make it seem like a bit of a missed opportunity!
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Post by cameron on Apr 29, 2019 9:28:37 GMT
How absolutely amazing that it's been found! I had a feeling that it would be out there somewhere. I'd have loved to have gone to the screening, but we're on holiday abroad at the time. Do these finds ever make their way into the public domain? Or is it a case of we have to wait for the BBC to use it for something. I find it odd how the Hollies Ltd had a problem with the footage being shown, when they don't actually appear to own any of their own footage. |
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Post by Gralto on May 4, 2019 12:36:18 GMT
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Post by Deleted on May 4, 2019 21:11:36 GMT
A B&W telerecording?
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Post by herriot on May 6, 2019 9:36:04 GMT
On the subject of Colour Me Pop, some here may be interested to know that the current issue of Shindig magazine (No.91) features my article on the making of Colour Me Pop, including director Steve Turners recollection of the Hollies show, as well as a half page photo of Turner with the Hollies in late 1969, taken when they met in the pub to discuss which of their numbers from their 1968 edition to use in the Christmas 1969 CMP compilation shows. Get it in most high street newsagents or here: www.silverbackpublishing.rocks/latest-issue/ |
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Post by Gralto on May 6, 2019 13:27:18 GMT
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Post by Sharon 22 on May 25, 2019 14:48:02 GMT
I hope somehow this makes it's way into circulation, so we can finally see this gem for ourselves.
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Post by herriot on May 27, 2019 17:16:29 GMT
Is anyone else going to Parkside Pop event at which the Hollies CMP is scheduled to be shown? I will be, and (all going to plan) can report back on how it looks for anyone not able to make it.
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Post by herriot on Jun 2, 2019 2:26:11 GMT
Well I saw the Hollies CMP at the Parkside Pop event yesterday. I thought it was truly fantastic, and although I must qualify that statement by adding that I’m a fan of the CMP format in its own right, and that the programmes mix of mimed and live elements, as well as a song selection that nearly entirely overlaps with other available shows will prove underwhelming to some fans, I do think the Hs CMP has unique visual content and flair that make it more than worth watching, and which I’ll try to describe in the following paragraph; (stop reading here if you want to hold out for whenever it may see wider release!)
The show started with a big surprise; basic caricatures of the band being ‘animated’ into existence, each accompanied by an audio quote from the relevant member. A big surprise cos this intro is NOT on the existing audio! The cartoons and caricatures of the band were (according to Steve Turner) drawn by Tony Hicks himself although basically animated by CMP staff. They recur throughout the show to illustrate the excerpts from the Greatest Hits LP and to introduce the next full number with humourous speech balloons. Though these ‘animations’ are VERY crude, I have to say they have great charm and get across the humour of the group in a rare way.
Stop Stop Stop is a basic studio performance intercut with some dramatic live stills on the chorus.
Very Last Day is a 3 way split screen of Nash/Clarke/Hicks throughout.
Butterfly is all solo shots of Graham Nash filmed in close up profile. Apparently this sequence featured a lot of colour effects sadly lost in this monochrome version. Incidentally I should add that that quality of the black and white telerecording is superb.
Carrie Anne is mainly straight band in studio, with a cutaway to the string players (apparently pre filmed the previous day) in the middle bit.
Listen To Me is fairly straightforward again, other than the use of some overexposed shots. Same for Taste Of Honey I think.
The closing Blowing in the Wind sees footage of the band crossfaded with repeated shots of the brass players (again pre filmed) to create a somewhat impressionistic composite image for most of the song.
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Post by Tony Wilkinson on Jun 2, 2019 7:31:14 GMT
From yesterday's showing
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Post by Deleted on Jun 2, 2019 7:41:41 GMT
Thanks for the review and video, great!
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Post by JamesT on Jun 2, 2019 8:20:46 GMT
Many thanks for that, Herriot and Tony! I wonder what else is languishing in a box in an attic?
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Post by anthony on Jun 2, 2019 22:40:24 GMT
Hope gets released or makes its way on youtube, would love to see the footage.
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Post by cameron on Jun 5, 2019 10:06:16 GMT
I'm gutted to not be able to see it. For me, 1967/8 Hollies are my absolute favourite, and I don't care if the footage isn't so well shot, I just want to see it. Most fans seem to absorb these discoveries on release, then never watch them again. I still find myself watching the 1968 Croatian Concert every few weeks (or at least listening to the audio), I often revisit the LTAW Documentary and generally have a YouTube spree of Hollies videos again and again. To have this CMP performance on DVD officially would be something I'd watch again and again, but alas I know I probably will never get to see it now in my lifetime.
It winds me up how so many people have rarities relating to the Hollies, and the real hardcore fans just want to see and hear them. But it doesn't seem that the Hollies themselves are interested in any of these - especially given how they thwarted the screening of CMP in 2017. I remember reading some kind of statement from Rob Haywood I think, urging fans to ignore "Shake With The Hollies" on Record Store Day in 2017 and buy "Radio Fun" instead, but to me, SWTH was a more cohesive and in places better sounding album than Radio Fun was in parts. But the Hollies don't seem to want to push for anything better for themselves. I can't think of many mainstream 1960s artists who haven't had amazing BBC Radio sets, with some artists like the Kinks having real lavish multi-disc sets showcasing their BBC material in immaculate restored quality.
Sticking with videos, the Hollies don't seem interested in their footage either. I think Andy Scott of the Sweet is a great example - he's bought all the Sweet's old TOTP and some European performances and put them in the best quality imaginable on YouTube. He often does little interviews and 'behind the scenes' videos explaining the clips and the discovery of them. Most of them have a few million views each, which is some nice YouTube advertising payments for Andy Scott and as a result, the "Best Of Sweet" is constantly popping into the top 100 CD charts here. It seems again to be another opportunity missed by the Hollies and another way that their devoted fans miss out.
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Post by cameron on Nov 25, 2022 12:44:33 GMT
At last, some footage from the actual show! Complete with Tony Hicks’ drawings at the beginning. They’ve replaced the audio for the studio track, the original audio was a live vocal over the studio backing track with the cold ending as used on the original 1966 TOTP performance and also the 1969 ‘Hollies In Concert’ performance.
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