Who really killed Ford Timelord?

One of my favourite blog pieces of 2019 was the final one, detailing the remarkable history of the KLF's famous Ford Timelord police car. After a year of extensive research and separating myth from fact the conclusion was that the car was most definitely dead, having been banger raced at Swaffham in June 1991 by Paul Bickers after an eventful few years in the hands of Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty. That seemed to be that and the case was finally closed after so many years of rumours, but now there have been fascinating further developments that shed some very different light on the situation and mean it may not be as straightforward as everyone thought...

Did Paul Bickers really kill Ford Timelord?

Who killed Ford Timelord?

It all started with a simple question: what happened to Ford Timelord? I knew nothing at all about that car or its owner but I do love a good mystery and was soon captivated by its incredible story. For those who don't know, Ford Timelord was the name of the 1968 Ford Galaxie police car (WGU 18G) owned by Jimmy Cauty, one half of the anarchic musical or artistic duo variously known as the KLF, the JAMs and the Timelords alongside Bill Drummond. The car rose to fame through their hit single 'Doctorin' the Tardis' and featured heavily in the pair's work for three eventful years but then disappeared without trace.

An icon and a very cool car but what became of it?

Rumours abound as to its fate: some say it was banger raced, some that it was destroyed by the KLF in the name of art, and others that it still exists in a storage compound somewhere waiting for the day that Drummond and Cauty resurrect it, but nobody knew for sure. As with everything KLF-related, the car's history is enigmatic and misinformation is plentiful, but after a year of many members hunting high and low and reaching out to people involved with the band, the Autoshite forum community have finally reached a definitive answer so read on to find out more about the exciting life and death of this iconic car.

New records from Ray

Record Review: Song for a Friend and Makes Me Think of Home by Ray Wilson

It is rare for an artist to release two studio albums in the same year, something that would normally leave them short of material, but Ray Wilson has done exactly that in 2016. July saw the appearance of Song for a Friend, followed in October by Makes Me Think of Home, meaning he has put out no fewer than twenty new songs in just a few months. Although these two albums are quite different in feel and were released separately, Wilson had originally intended them to form a double album (provisionally titled Backseat Drivers) and I bought them both at the same time so to me it makes sense to review them together.

Nora Kudrjawizki's World of Violin

A look through my music library can be an interesting experience. Alongside some world-famous artists that everyone knows are a growing number of obscure and unfamiliar names, and my ambivalence towards the modern mainstream chart scene means I take great delight in seeking out rare gems from lesser-known artists. You may have thought Ray Wilson was an unknown, but he is practically an A-lister compared with the subject of this piece, the delightful Nora Kudrjawizki. I guess that name means nothing whatsoever to you, and until recently it meant nothing to me either. Allow me to enlighten you.

The lovely Nora. So much more than just a pretty face.

A Genesis revelation

Retro Record Review: Genesis Classic: Live in Poznan by Ray Wilson and the Berlin Symphony Ensemble (2011)

 

 

My musical tastes are increasingly starting to favour artists many of my friends and contemporaries have never heard of, and today's subject is a particularly esoteric album that I would be surprised if any readers are even aware of, yet alone have ever actually heard. In my previous piece in defence of Ray Wilson, I made mention of his Genesis Classic shows with the Berlin Symphony Ensemble. Having seen various YouTube clips of these performances, I recently discovered that an official recording is available and have now purchased it.

Ray Wilson may not be a household name like his Genesis predecessors and hasn't appeared in the UK charts for many years, but he still has a cult following (which is especially strong in his adopted home country of Poland) and has been far from idle since leaving the band almost two decades ago. Alongside a solo career and a revival of Stiltskin, his other recent project has been the Genesis Classic, an innovative fusion of Genesis hits with classical instruments, and after years of listening to the band's own live and studio versions this album is a refreshingly different take and really is a revelation.

In defence of Ray Wilson

Genesis seem to be one of those bands that have a strictly divided fan base, with fans who either like the Peter Gabriel era or the Phil Collins era, but very rarely both (personally I fall into the latter camp as I'm not a huge fan of Gabriel, who is a little too bizarre for my taste). One of the few things both factions seem to agree on though is that neither of them think very much of Ray Wilson, and he has gained a reputation as the man who ruined Genesis and caused them to split up. Having spent a lot of time recently listening to Wilson's work, I've come to the conclusion that this reputation is entirely unfair and unjustified, and the unfortunate Wilson deserves much greater recognition in the annals of the band's long history.  

Is this man really guilty of ruining Genesis?

R.I.P. Glenn Frey

Just a week after David Bowie's death, another of my musical heroes has passed on. The name Glenn Frey may not mean much by itself to some younger readers, but I guarantee everyone will have heard of his band, the Eagles, and their biggest hit, 'Hotel California', as they are among the greatest of all on the American country-rock scene and have sold simply vast quantities of music over a period of almost 45 years. Even more so than Bowie, the Eagles, both as a band and as solo artists, have had a profound influence on me: they rank among my all-time favourite musicians and have provided the soundtrack to my life through good times and bad ever since I discovered them in my early teens, so Frey's death came as a great shock and I couldn't let it pass unmarked.

R.I.P. David Bowie

This week got off to a rather shocking start as I woke this morning to the completely unexpected news that David Bowie has passed away. I was reading through my Facebook feed and wondering why so many of my friends were talking about him, then I saw the announcement of his death on his official page and let out a few involuntary profanities, such was the shock. While I wouldn't class myself as a die-hard Bowie fan and there are parts of his work that I don't like, particularly some of the more bizarre material from his later years, I do enjoy listening to the classics and his music has had a great influence on me. It's not an overstatement to say the man was and is a legend: everyone has heard of him and he was very influential over a long period, not just through his music but also for his persona and stagecraft.

Jeff Lynne: is he Alone in the Universe?

Record Review: Alone in the Universe by Jeff Lynne's ELO

November 2015 saw the release of Alone in the Universe, the new album by Jeff Lynne, the creative force behind the Electric Light Orchestra, which is the first to bear the ELO name since the disappointing and largely forgotten 2000 album Zoom. After some years in the wilderness, the band have recently come to prominence again as a result of a critically-acclaimed concert for the BBC in Hyde Park during 2014. I am a fairly recent convert to the music of ELO, having heard much of their work without really knowing it was theirs, and have become very fond of their greatest hits compilation, Light Years, so I was curious to find out what Lynne's new music was like and asked for this album as a Christmas present. It isn't entirely what I would have expected from ELO and left me a little disappointed as a result, but is nevertheless an enjoyable little album and a welcome return for one of the greats of the seventies.

Calling All Stations

Retro Record Review: Calling All Stations by Genesis (1997)

 

Think of Genesis as a band and, depending which camp you fall into, you will either think of the vocals of Peter Gabriel or Phil Collins, so an album featuring neither of them seems unthinkable. Such a thing does however exist: the band's final studio album Calling All Stations was released in 1997 by the triumvirate of Mike Rutherford, Tony Banks and Ray Wilson, and it is the 2007 remastered version of this album I have recently purchased and review here as an antidote to all those Christmas songs currently being played to death on the radio.

"Who's Ray Wilson?" I can hear you asking. He is the forgotten man of Genesis, who had the unenviable task of replacing Phil Collins after his departure in 1996 to concentrate on his solo career, and was only a member for little over a year so his brief contribution seems to be largely ignored. I feel this is a shame really as Calling All Stations is a fine album in its own right but was not a massive commercial success and is so overshadowed by the fame of Gabriel and Collins as to be virtually invisible.

Welcome to Cass County

Record Review: Cass County by Don Henley

The release of new material by Don Henley is an all-too-rare occurrence so September 25 2015 was a momentous day for fans as his much-anticipated fifth solo album Cass County finally went on sale. Henley fans have been waiting a very long time for this as it has been fifteen years since his last solo release Inside Job and eight years since the Eagles' Long Road Out Of Eden, and in those eight years all three of Henley's bandmates have released new albums: Timothy B. Schmit's Expando, Glenn Frey's After Hours and Joe Walsh's Analog Man, leaving Henley as the last Eagle to commit to a new release. So what is this long-awaited album like and does it live up to the weight of expectation? Read on to find out what I think...

On a Wing and a Prayer

Retro Record Review: On a Wing and a Prayer by Gerry Rafferty (1992)

Although I have a large music collection, one album in particular stands out as a favourite that I keep coming back to for another listen. The late great Gerry Rafferty may be best known for his 1978 hit 'Baker Street' and his earlier work with Stealers Wheel, but he wrote and sang much more great material right up until his death in 2011. I enjoy listening to most of Gerry's work and there are very few tracks I dislike, but his seventh solo album On a Wing and a Prayer, released in 1992, is a particular favourite of mine.