MALCOLM CAMPBELL'S SHADOWS WEBSITE

* vocals

Preliminary Note By MC

This translation from the Japanese (with valuable explanatory comment) of Susumu Matsushita's copious sleeve notes to the above '2 on 1' CD was made by Mike McWilliams, and is reproduced here with his kind permission; thanks are due too to Jim Nugent for contacting Mike on my behalf. Shadows fans are bound to agree that the subject-matter, written from the perspective of a Japanese enthusiast and conveyed in a lucid and elegant translation, paints a fascinating picture.

Me And My Shadows By Susumu Matsushita

Translated By Mike McWilliams

I was in my first year at junior high school¹ when I first came across The Shadows. I was in my friend's house, sitting on the windowsill, watching him putting a 45 on his beige portable record player whilst humming a tune.

When the music started I froze. It was as if I had been bound hand and foot. It was a shock. I had never had such an experience in my life. It was as if my blood had stopped flowing, I felt hot from head to foot, and I couldn't utter a word.

What I was hearing was a ten second or so intro to a song. I was completely bowled over by the sound. "What on earth is this?" I asked my friend. "Cliff Richard's The Young Ones", replied my friend nonchalantly. To tell the truth, until then I had never really been impressed by any music. In fact I used to complain when my older brother played his Presley and Fabian records. I walked home from my friends place repeating "The Young Ones, The Young Ones", over and over again.

It was this experience that prompted me to go to a record shop for the first time. I came back home with the Cliff Richard and The Shadows single which I played about 10 times in a row. I remember that the credits were printed in silver, which shone as the disc turned round.

That was 28 years ago...

Tributes To The Shadows: Eric Clapton²

"In my guitar playing my fundamental aim and interest is to concentrate on the quality of the tone. I strive to get my guitar to sound as close as possible to a human voice. For instance, when I play acoustic guitar I want it to have the voice characteristics of Leadbelly or Jesse Fuller. There is someone who really has this knack and that is The Shadow's Hank B Marvin. He accomplishes it by producing a very pure sound and avoiding any hint of awkwardness in his playing.

"The Shadows music mixes Hank's deft touch and clear tone applied to a sweet melody, with a strong rock beat and a superb drum sound.

"The final touch is that Hank looks for all the world like a reincarnation of Buddy Holly and is the perfect Stratocaster player. No one can emulate him.

"My playing has been subject to constant changes and over the last few years there have been some severe up and down swings. However Hank's ability to continue challenging himself to achieve his musical aims is an inspiration to me.

"For me The Shadows continue to be the ideal rock band. They have been going for more than 30 years, and their music will last for eternity.

"Hats off to Hank and his colleagues."

Tributes To The Shadows: Pete Townsend (The Who)

"I am still a Shadows fan even now. They are a legend. They will always exist in my heart. They have a stronger image for me than even The Beatles. That is because they are not just pop stars, but a real living band."

Tributes To The Shadows: Brian May (Queen)

"For me The Shadows produce a most heavy and metallic sound. Like other fans, I used to listen to their hit instrumentals, frantically practising note after note, trying to capture Hank Marvin's style. However, I couldn't capture that sound. That mellow, creamy sound with a top end growl always eluded me.

"Hank never plays carelessly, even for one bar. He creates his own original style and sound, by playing close attention to each note. There is nothing just thrown into his sound purely for effect, it is skilfully crafted, with great taste producing powerful contrasting light and shadow effects. It is technically perfect.

"Bruce Welch has also created his own completely original rhythm style. His acoustic staccato rhythm playing is the perfect accompaniment to Hanks' guitar sound. Hank and Bruce's sound together is really a beautiful thing to listen to. It's miraculous."

Also, Mark Knopfler from Dire Straits has always had a deep respect for Hank Marvin. He had had a lifelong dream of playing Wonderful Land with Hank. During the "Silver Tour" to commemorate The Shadows 25th anniversary, he at last managed to make this dream a reality at London's Dominion Theatre on the 20 October 1983 when he was asked to be a special guest performer.

The Shadows were the jewel in the crown of the early pop music scene in England and had a profound influence on many burgeoning rock artistes.

The story of this legendary group started when Hank B Marvin, who had been born in Newcastle on the 28th October 1941, and Bruce Welch, who had been born in Bognor Regis on the 2nd November the same year, met almost by chance.

In those days in England, skiffle music was at the height of its popularity and when they were at school both Hank and Bruce played in different skiffle groups. In the end Hank joined Bruce's group. That group broke up soon after they left school. However, Hank and Bruce, confident in their own musical abilities, headed for London with the intention of making a fresh start. This was early spring 1958 and they were both only 16 years old.

Before long they met up with Peter Chester and The Chesternuts were formed. Soon their debut single was released on the British "Columbia" label. The "A" side was Teenage Love written by Peter and the "B" side Jean Dorothy, written by Hank. But the single was not very successful. The group played in the Soho 2 Is coffee bar for a while but soon broke up. After that Hank and Bruce met up with Cliff Richard with whom they were destined to have a long-term musical association. Cliff's debut single Move It/Schoolboy Crush in August 1958 had sold more than 250,000 copies earning him a Silver Disc.

Hank and Bruce joined Cliff Richard and The Drifters as they were about to embark on a nationwide tour with The Kalin Twins. Thereafter they had a steady number of hits and tours and they became well known in a number of countries.

At this time there were lots of changes in personnel, but by the end of 1958 the members were Hank B Marvin (lead guitar), Bruce Welch, (rhythm guitar), Jet Harris (bass guitar), and Tony Meehan (drums). The founder members of The Shadows were now all present in The Drifters.

Until then The Drifters had been known only as Cliff Richard's backing band, but this fresh line up signalled a departure from that. In January 1959 they signed up with Columbia records for their own recording contract.

Their debut single was Hank and Bruce's vocals Feelin' Fine /Don't Be A Fool With Love. This was followed up with two instrumentals Jet Black / Driftin'. They returned to vocals for their third release Saturday Dance / Lonesome Fella.

However, at that time, there was also a vocal group in the US called The Drifters and Jet Harris suggested that they should change their name to avoid confusion between the two bands. In the autumn of 1959 The Drifters became known as The Shadows. It is been suggested that this name was intended to convey that although they would have their own releases they were also committed to continue being Cliff Richard's backing band.

Cliff Richard's sixth single Travellin' Light / Dynamite was the first time The Shadows name appeared on the credits. This single sold more than 250,000 copies and earned the band a silver disc.

In February 1960 Cliff and The Shadows embarked on a six-week tour of the USA.

During the concert at Lubbock Texas there was an event, which would be unforgettable for the band, especially for Hank. Lubbock was the birthplace of Buddy Holly. The instant Hank walked on to the stage, in front of the capacity crowd with his Fender Stratocaster, and his horn-rimmed glasses, there was a stunned silence. Hank looked so much like Buddy Holly that the whole audience gasped. It was as if their local hero had been resurrected. After this very successful show, Lawrence Holly, Buddy's father came to visit Hank in the dressing room. This story has become famous, as even now, when The Shadows play a Buddy Holly number on stage they tell the audience about this unforgettable experience.

After returning to England after this very successful tour, The Shadows recorded a fourth single on the 17 June 1960. This new instrumental had been written by English songwriter Jerry Lordan and was titled Apache.

Apache was released in July of the same year. This was the first instrumental number 1 for the group.

As each day passed Cliff and The Shadows were cementing their popularity on the British pop scene.

With their following single Man of Mystery, and the 1961 F.B.I., The Frightened City and Kon-Tiki, The Shadows had a steady string of hits which established them as an instrumental group in their own right, rather than just Cliff Richard's backing band.

The young fans went wild for The Shadows, with their matching red Fender guitars, their immaculate grey suits, black neckties and shining black patent shoes.

As part of their performance they did a dance step, which became known as the "Shadows Walk" which went down very well with the fans.

When we see those performances now we realise that they are a reflection of how western society was developing at that time.

More and more bands with The Shadow's line up of lead guitar, rhythm guitar, bass guitar and drums appeared on the scene. Hank B Marvin was the UK's first guitar hero.

However, just as everything was going along smoothly, their first real setback occurred.

In October 1961 drummer Tony Meehan left. Tony was the youngest member of the band, handsome and very popular, and his departure was a great shock to the other Shadows members and fans alike.

However in the same year he was replaced by Brian Bennett, who has continued to perform an anchor role in the band up to the present day.

This was the line up for the recording of Wonderful Land early in 1962, which gave the band their third number one, and remained in the charts for 19 weeks. This was quickly followed by the smash hit Dance On! which has become a Shadows classic.

However they hadn't yet dispelled all the clouds on the horizon. The next problem was that Jet Harris left to take up a solo career. He followed Tony to Decca records. Jet and Tony recorded instrumentals as "Jet Harris and Tony Meehan". Their debut single in 1963 was Jerry Lordan's Diamonds. Jet's replacement was Brian Locking from The Wildcats, the group Brian Bennett had come from.

Although he played on The Shadow's second album "Out of The Shadows", and appeared in Cliff Richard's film "Summer Holiday" (Japanese title "Taiyo To Asobou")³, he left the group after only a year.

The next person to join the group was John Rostill who was chosen at an audition. John played with the group for five years, from Christmas 1963 to December 1968. John's contribution to The Shadows' music cannot be underestimated. He had a very individual style of bass playing and I think his technique was unsurpassed. He also displayed a great song writing talent. On many of The Shadows' original numbers and Cliff Richard's hit songs Marvin/Welch/Bennett/Rostill are credited, and after the Shadows disbanded he wrote Olivia Newton-John's million sellers Let Me Be There and If You Love Me Let Me Know. Sadly, before these two songs were big hits, on the 25th November 1973, John Rostill passed away in his home studio, with his guitar in his arms. It is said that it was Bruce Welch who found him.

The tracks on this CD come from the John Rostill era.

I can honestly say that as far as I am concerned this line up of Hank, Bruce, Brian and John was The Shadows at their greatest. This line up created the masterpiece 1964 "Dance With The Shadows" album, "The Sound Of The Shadows" in 1965, "Shadow Music" in 1966, "Jigsaw" and "From Hank, Bruce, Brian and John" in 1967, and an album with Cliff Richard "Established 1958".

Just as this commemoration album was finished the most shocking event yet occurred. Bruce Welch, who with Hank Marvin had been the main creative force of The Shadows, and had been there for all those years through thick and thin, left the band. Bruce had been the de facto leader of The Shadows and the remaining three members must have felt extreme difficulty in carrying on. The Shadows, who in the ten years between 1958 and 1968 had been partners in popularity with Cliff Richard, and had reigned as the world's top instrumental group, had been dealt a heavy blow.

It seemed that the concert at the London Palladium on the 14 December 1968 would be the last time this stage, which was so full of memories, would reverberate to the sound of The Shadows.

There was a vacuum for several months after that. Then in October 1969 a Shadows reorganised specially for the occasion, made up of Hank Marvin, Brian Bennett, John Rostill and Alan Hawkshaw on keyboards, visited Japan with Cliff Richard. The tracks on "The Shadows Live In Japan" come from the opening set of the concerts.

In 1970 The Shadows released "Shades of Rock", with this same line up, but then everything went quiet again.

At this point in time, perhaps because Hank and Brian came to realise that Bruce's rhythm guitar was indispensable to The Shadows sound, they all went separate ways, Hank to pursue a solo career, Brian to production, John to be a session man and Bruce to music publishing.

However in the summer of 1970 a new band formed with Hank Marvin, Bruce Welch, and Australian guitarist and arranger John Farrar. In 1971 "Marvin, Welch and Farrar" was released on the Regal Zonophone label, which was part of the Columbia recording group. This album focused on acoustic guitars and vocal harmony and was so different from the previous Shadows era music that it must have presented Hank and Bruce with quite a challenge. However when I saw that line up, and especially when they were joined by Brian Bennett and Alan Hawkshaw, I felt as if I was seeing a reincarnation of The Shadows.

Marvin Welch and Farrar, in 1973, released "Second Opinion" and "Marvin and Farrar" and three singles, and it can be said that this year truly saw The Shadows third rebirth.

Hank Marvin, Bruce Welch, Brian Bennett, and John Farrar were joined by session musicians on bass and keyboards in the "Rockin' With Curly Leads" album released the same year. This line up produced a slightly different style, and for me it wasn't yet a revival of the real Shadows.

At this time The Shadows were probably spending more time appearing with Cliff Richard and Olivia Newton-John, than doing their own performances.

In 1975 "Specs Appeal" and "Live at the Paris Olympia" were released. The Shadows line up and music then enjoyed a period of stability, and in 1977 "The Shadows 20 Golden Greats" was released.

This was an album whose tracks spanned many years, and it threw into sharp focus the many great achievements of the band. It reached number one in the album charts, and was the subject of many feature articles in newspapers and magazines. For the second time their first number one Apache was released as a single and the group embarked on a large-scale concert tour. From every angle this was a true Shadows revival.

After this John Farrar was to leave The Shadows to become Olivia Newton-John's producer, but he did perform on the 1977 album "Tasty". Whether by design or not I don't know, but there seemed to be a premonition of his departure in the fact that only Hank, Bruce and Brian appeared on the back cover photograph.

Then, in 1978 the Shadows returned to the stage of the London Palladium after a long absence, to perform a joint concert with Cliff Richard. This was a celebration concert for their 20 years of successful joint collaboration.

This resulted in the live recording "Thank You Very Much - Cliff Richard and The Shadows" and a never to be forgotten film was made of the event and released as a video. Since then they have notched up anniversary after anniversary.

After that, Cliff and The Shadows had two more 5-year anniversary reunions, "Together" to celebrate 25 years and "The Event" for 30 years.

Rock and pop fans are used to seeing groups being formed, and either breaking up or gradually disappearing, and it is amazing that a group can be together for 32 years. Pop and rock groups are generally made up of people who come together with a dream of becoming tomorrow's heroes, but in reality they are often strangers to each other, from differing backgrounds, only held together by a common musical thread. Arguments can break out over differing tastes and diverging creative ideas. To keep a musical career going for so long despite these crises and obstacles is beyond most fans' imaginations.

The music on these CDs bridge the period from just before the formal disbanding of The Shadows and just after.

On the 13 June 1967 The Shadows came to Japan for their first public performances there. The line up was Hank Marvin, Bruce Welch, Brian Bennett, and John Rostill.

In those days, with a friend, I was running The Shadows Fan Club Japan, and I was lucky enough to meet The Shadows many times and I was always very impressed by their incredibly gentlemanly nature.

I had been pestering Hank for one of his picks. He kept promising, "When the tour is over I will give you one of them". He was true to his word and gave me a pick just before his return to England. We also wanted to give the boys a present from Japan and with money we had collected from all the fan club members we gave each member of the band a specially designed "happi" jacket, with "Shadows"⁴ in Japanese on the back. The design can be seen on the photograph on the back cover of this CD and I am very proud that this was my idea.

Live In Japan

This live set is from the Sankei Hall concert on the 12 October 1969.The opening number Shazam! is greeted enthusiastically by the capacity crowd and is followed by a string of numbers very familiar to the fans. The second number is Dance On! The third, Nivram (Marvin spelt backwards) is a Shadows jazz style original composition and features a solid John Rostill bass guitar solo. This is followed by The Shadows trademark Apache, Exodus (the only track to feature Alan Hawkshaw on this CD) and the nimble Foot Tapper. There is then a change to an acoustic sound when Hank and John sing A Little Bitty Tear from the "Sound Of The Shadows" album. There is then a humorous vocal number Putting On The Style, unusually featuring Brian Bennett on washboard. This is followed by Richard Roger's Slaughter On 10th Avenue where Hank very skilfully uses the Burns Marvin guitar and acoustic guitar to bring out all of the feeling in the number. We then have the 1965 hit song Don't Make My Baby Blue which is unusual among Shadows vocal numbers. It is said that this was the first Shadows recording where Burns guitars were used. During The Rise And Fall Of Flingel Bunt which was penned by Hank, Bruce, Brian and John, they throw in a phrase from Dance Heaven⁵ which was a big hit in Japan at that time. In Somewhere from "West Side Story", with skilful use of the tone pedal, Hank produces some beautiful tone colours. The 1979 hit Theme From The Deer Hunter inherited this particular Shadows sound.

As usual, when The Shadows play Brian's drum solo Little 'B', the fans know it's getting near the end of the set. The "B" is Brian's initial, and there is also a drum solo number called Big 'B'. After Brian's exciting solo the familiar F.B.I. rounds off the set. I'm sure you will enjoy this finale, with the audience clapping their hands and stamping their feet.

Pops In Japan

The Shadows recorded this album soon after their return to England after their first visit to Japan. This album was released in England as "From Hank, Bruce, Brian and John" but with some track changes to suit the British market.

This album was very popular in Japan, as The Shadows had recorded some Japanese songs, which were big hits at that time.

The album opens with The Wild Rose's [read: The Wild Ones': MC] Omoide No Nagisa ("Shore of Memories"), which gets a light bossa nova treatment. (During the tour of Japan The Shadows opened with this number). This is followed by Yuzo Kayama's⁶ monster hit Kimi To Itsumademo⁷ "(Forever With You). A track that must be listened to on this album is The Wild Roses. The Shadows have taken the original melody of Nobara Saku Michi ("The Road Where Wild Roses Bloom") composed by Somegoro Ichikawa (later to become Kooshiro Matsumoto)⁸, and given it their own wonderful arrangement. Hiroshi Ichikawa's [read: Miyagawa's: MC] Gin-Iro No Michi ("Silver Road")⁹ includes a very pleasing transition from its sharp opening rhythm to a flowing waltz as the track develops.

The Tokaido Line¹⁰, is a Shadows original number inspired by their impressions of Japan, specifically the Tokaido bullet train. From the sound of things, Japan had quite an effect on them! This performance has a very pure light and pleasant sound. This is a number where any wrong notes will be obvious to the audience.

Also we have the very evocative Londonderry Air, where Hank uses his tone pedal to great effect, Alentejo which has an acoustic bossa nova feel, the light rock number Evening Glow composed by Domei Suzuki. We also have Naughty Nippon Nights which reflects their impressions of night-time Japan, which makes me wonder exactly what sort of impressions they had! There is only one vocal: Let Me Take You There. Hank's skilful improvisation over a heavy rhythm in Holy Cow further adds to the great variety in Shadows sound on this CD. A priceless listening experience!

With his ceaseless smile and horn-rimmed spectacles, Hank Marvin is the face of The Shadows. In those days The Shadows were playing the "Hank Marvin Model" Burns guitar manufactured by the Burns company in England. There is a metal plate behind the bridge of these guitars on which "Designed and Handcrafted for Hank B. Marvin", and Hank's autograph are engraved. The production run was limited to 200 and these days it is virtually impossible to get your hands on one in Japan.

This design of this guitar is very reminiscent of the original Fender Stratocaster design, but with special modifications. The tremolo arm is Hank's own patent, and it is perfect for his particular vibrato technique, and is very easy to use. I had the great privilege recently of playing one of these guitars, which belongs to a Shadows fan, and it was fantastic! I couldn't believe I was playing the same guitar as they used on this Japan tour.

The pure and clear tone produced by The Shadows was a surprise to Japanese audiences at the time as the impression then was that instrumental bands were very noisy. Hank Marvin's guitar playing in those days, and still now, attracts all sorts of praise. Hank's melody work and precise guitar playing sounds easy to produce, but anyone who tries to play like Hank soon realises the true depth of his technique. Having said that Hank's sound is superb. I have no idea why Hank's sound has such a great fascination for me when there is such a huge number of other great guitarists.

I have given this some serious thought. The answer I believe comes down to taste and good musical sense. What I mean is that when I listen to Hank I feel as if he is pouring his whole heart into his playing and this is what produces such a profound response in me.

Bruce Welch is also a superb player, combining nimble technique and good musical taste. Despite the fact that the spotlight tends to be firmly anchored on Hank, putting Bruce somewhat in his shadow, it is Bruce's incredibly stable rhythm guitar that allows Hank's lead to shine.

Also Brian Bennett is rare among rock band drummers, in that as well as having excellent technique and laying down very accurate rhythm patterns, he is also a gifted composer. Other groups who try to mimic The Shadows are not successful, because this music is created out of a unique combination of the individual musical tastes and creativity of Hank, Bruce and Brian.

Their stage performance is very enjoyable, mixing humour with their music, pure entertainment. When they play a rhythmic number, they will always be doing the "Shadows Walk" with big smiles on their faces. They seem to be saying "This is so much fun" and the whole performance looks so casual. This impression was reinforced when I saw them performing with Cliff Richard at the 25th anniversary concert at London's Wembley Stadium, and on their recent concert video.

I work as an illustrator, and The Shadows' music has had such a great influence in my life that I find that I often try to capture the spirit of their music as much as possible in my pictures and I am grateful to them for this inspiration. My company is called "Light and Shadows Inc." but of course there is no connection to The Shadows.

The other day I heard some good news from on of my fellow Shadows fans. Last October he had managed to get to a Shadows concert in Aberdeen on the east coast of Scotland. I was very envious.

He sent me a photograph. On that photograph Hank is on stage with Bruce in the background. Hank is holding in one hand, a magazine, with one of my illustrations on the front page. (Hank had been the inspiration for that illustration). My friend had explained that to him. I was ecstatic.

I am very grateful to Hank, Bruce and Brian, and the other members who have supported The Shadows over the years. Today I am still happy to be an ardent Shadows fan.

Even now they are continuing to give powerful concerts and releasing an album every year. Hank, Bruce and Brian are going a little bit grey these days but I want to thank them with all my heart and hope that The Shadows continue to be a great band forever!

Author's Note

I have quoted from "Rock and Roll, I Gave You The Best Years Of My Life" by Bruce Welch and "The Story of the Shadows" by Mike Read.

The Best Of The Shadows Album (Advert)

CD TOCP-6831: 15 tracks including Apache / Lonely Bull / F.B.I. / Guitar Tango / Spring is Nearly Here / Perfidia / South of the Border / 500 Miles / Blue Star / In the Mood

Caption Under The Photograph

Just the usual warning about how to store CDs without damage.

Translator's Footnotes

1. 12 – 13 years old.
2. The quotes from Eric Clapton and others have been translated into Japanese for these sleeve notes, and then back to English again [for this translation] and therefore cannot be accurate. I understand they have been taken from Mike Read's "The Story of the Shadows" which will be the better [English language] source document for these quotes, but I have left the translation to illustrate how these comments have been interpreted for Japanese fans.
3. Literally "Let's play in the sun".
4. The character that can be seen on the back of the jacket is actually "kage" the Japanese word for shadow.
5. " Dance Heaven" had been a huge hit in Japan for "Finger Five" modelled closely on the "Jackson Five".
6. I have followed the convention set by Mr Matsushita in his title, of putting the family name last for all names in this translation.
7. Yuzo Kayama is still a household name in Japan and can be seen on TV at least once a week. "Kimi To Itsumademo" has a status akin to "My Way" or "Yesterday" in the west. He is also famous for being a great instro guitarist in his own right, and still plays a mean guitar. His Mosrite is as famous in Japan as Hank's Strat. Instos are a regular feature of his concerts and he guests with The Ventures when they visit Japan.
8. Kooshiro Matsumoto is a very famous Kabuki actor. In Kabuki tradition, actors change their names, as they get older.
9. Hiroshi Ichikawa [read: Miyagawa: MC] is another household name, a prolific composer, regularly seen on TV particularly conducting the NHK orchestra during the annual New Year's Eve "Red and White Song Contest". "Gin-Iro No Michi" is meant to evoke snow in the listener's mind.
10. The Tokaido Shinkansen (bullet train) runs between Tokyo and Osaka via Kyoto, and takes the route of the ancient Tokaido road, Japan's equivalent of the A1.