FYI time - A pleasant 30 minute interview looking back at the mid 70s TOTP with Steve and Dave Bartram.



I suppose we will never see an autobiography, which is a pity when you listen to some of the recollections here.

Really interesting interview about the band's first appearance on Top of the Pops 23/5/74. Problem is that Steve's memory doesn't quite tally up to what actually happened. He said something about two performances for Judy Teen when in fact there was only one. The first transmission which Steve describes as (four guitars and a fiddle)was affected by the BBC strike but still went ahead. Some of which you can see on Roualt's video channel. That performance was then repeated the following week on a show that Paul Burnett hosted using videotape of previous shows performances.I think Top of the Pops was then completely blanked out for most of June 1974 because of this strike. With the February 1975 Make me Smile performance,the band did indeed fly in from the USA to appear on TOTP's to celebrate it reaching number one but they had already appeared on the show before leaving for the States.This performance 30th January 1975 is the one the BBC always show (the forgotten words,chewing gum etc)The group also had a video filmed which was also shown a few times. Ironically the 27th February 75 performance that the band flew back especially to do has long since been wiped by the BBC. Steve also talks about 'going away and writing Judy Teen' as a hit single to follow up Sebastian in November 1973. Surely Judy Teen had already been written and was being played live late 72 early 73...?? Perhaps an auto biography may not be such a great idea!! It's understandable, not everyone has the ability to remember exactly how everything panned out. A shame really because 'The Steve Harley Story' deserves to be told and would make a truly fascinating story and film.

Hi Mr. Raffles,

I don't think there is an inconsistency in Steve' recollection of the Judy Teen chronology. Working off ajsmith's excellent wikipedia entries Steve recalls there that it wasn't written until after HM.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judy_Teen

The principle of Ockham's Razor might hold (oh, get me!), if Judy Teen was around in 72/73 it would have probably appeared on HM? Maybe?

I have nursed an idea of a workable format of a biography for some time now, but it would need the approval of the man himself of course before I even mentioned it here (oh, get me x2) .

Must correct you there, on the recently released 'Cavaliers' Anthology CD it states Judy Teen (early version) was recorded on 1st March 1973 at Audio International Studios. It's quite well known that the song was also being performed live during the late 1972 and early 1973 period. Someone's getting confused here! It is a shame that things that happened during that early Cockney Rebel period have become slightly blurred over the years.

Cheers for the insight Mr. Raffles (and of course AIR was where HM was recorded). Hmmm, how odd. (Ockam's Razor indeed! ). Well that does knock things into a bit of a cocked hat if a working version of JT was around in '72.

....I just went back over the Pete Newnham interview, and sure thing, it would appear Judy Teen was being played/demo'd in '72. Bit awkward that.

Hi Mr Raffles and GedKen,
Stuart and I agree there was the demo of Judy Teen, recorded at Audio International studio. But Neil Harrison didn't think it fitted into HM very well!! When I say in interviews that I "went off to write a hit" after HM release, and Sebastian's lack of success in the UK, I really mean went off and re-worked the demo of Judy Teen and presented it to EMI, who hadn't heard it before. I think the man who signed us (Joop Visser) had heard it, but he had left the company by the time of its release. It was done at Abbey Road, with Alan Parsons co-producing.
But I am the first to admit my own recall is not the best, and that Stuart has the "elephant's memory" so I usually check with him. I am baffled that Big Big Deal was recorded at AIR, although the Mellotron was only available at Abbey Road. I believe I took the backing track there and over-dubbed the Mellotron.
It's an interesting thread. I'll be following, and no doubt re-learning some of my own historical moves!
Steve via
RACHEL