Post by wingsj0 on Dec 27, 2005 12:45:25 GMT
Interview with Tony Rivers
Tony Rivers has lived his life in Harmony from his days of performing at the Royal Oak pub Dagenham, with the Cutaways, to becoming a member of Sir Cliff Richard’s vocal harmony backing band, and currently a long serving member of Shakin’ Stevens band. To say Tony Rivers has been there, done it, seen it, got the t-shirt would be the only way to describe this unique singing talent from Shildon, Co Durham. I managed to catch an interview with Tony Rivers during his busy schedule and we found out more about the vocal harmony ‘legend’ from Shildon, Co. Durham.
Where did you grow up?
Tony Rivers: I was Born in Shildon Co Durham, UK. Lived there for a few years, then moved to East Ham in London for several more years.
What was the first record you heard that made you want to learn the guitar?
Tony Rivers: Probably Buddy Holly That’ll Be The Day, although I was more interested in what was being sung in the back ground.
Describe to us the music scene back then at the time you where learning the guitar?
Tony Rivers: American rock ‘n’ roll doo wop/Four Freshmen, I wasn’t learning guitar at all early on, I was far more interested in the background voices than guitar. It wasn’t important in the late 50’s, It became important when Buddy Holly was seen making this amazing sound with this funny thing he was holding (Electric Guitar). By the time I met up with the Castaways/Cutways in 61, Cliff Richard and The Shadows were everywhere, so when I joined The Cutaways in 1961 I started to learn the guitar and Ray Brown showed me 3 chords from a Buddy Holly song.
Can you tell us how you come to be a member of Tony Rivers and The Castaways?
Tony Rivers: Bit of a long story! But I met someone called Joe Wheal whilst I was working at Butlins Holiday Camp in Clacton On Sea, about 1960! It turned out that he was the singer with a group in Dagenham, called Joe and The Teens. Palled up for a week with him and his friend Terry Venables (yes that one). When he saw me get up and sing in one of the bars at the camp he suggested I come to see them when the session finished, which I did. Every Sunday lunchtime at this pub called The Cherry Tree, Joe would have a break, he’d then call me up to sing a couple of songs (usually a Rick Nelson, and Cliff Richard song). One Sunday after doing my ‘little spot’, Ray Brown (it turned out to be) asked if I’d be interested in going to sing with them that evening at another (infamous) pub in Dagenham called the Royal Oak, after which they asked me to join, I did, and that as they say was that!
You then went on to form a band called ‘ Harmony Grass’. Was that band inspired by The Beach Boys, Four Seasons etc?
Tony Rivers: This was after we’d been Tony Rivers and the Castaways for several years, as a group we were very successful but as for making hits, not too brilliant!!! Bottom end of the charts for a week or so! But we were totally inspired by The Beach Boys, Four Seasons, Association, Spanky and Our Gang, Critters, The Happenings, The Tradewinds, all those American groups. And we played this kind of music at The Marquee club!!! Every other band were blues or maybe Jazz, not us, we sang four part harmony, bam take that!
How did the above bands meet?
Tony Rivers: We never really met as a group, we just evolved over time, people come and go. At the end of 1968 we decided to try a change of name and immediately got tons of airplay which in turn lead to a hit record Harmony Grass – ‘Move In A Little Closer Baby’.
What was it like making your name during the British Invasion and who where your musical heroes around that time?
Tony Rivers: Well I think the British invasion passed us by, as it did many groups who weren’t from Liverpool or Manchester. The Beach Boys became our inspiration.
Can you tell us the story of how you came to work with Sir Cliff Richard?
Tony Rivers: I came to work with Cliff after getting a call from Bruce Welch one day. He said he’d heard a song that I’d written, loved the background vocals, who had sung them (us, John Perry ex Castaway and me). He suggested I come up with vocal arrangements for three Cliff songs he was going to record at Abbey Road. The songs where, Miss You Nights, Devil Woman, and I Can’t Ask For Anymore Than You. All were ‘hit’s Devil Woman the biggest reaching top 5 in UK and USA. From there we were asked to join his band, recorded the album I’m Nearly Famous which gave Cliff his first touch of ‘street cred’ in many a year.
Describe what life was like working on the road with Cliff?
Tony Rivers: Life on the road was good, best hotels, flying around the world playing the best concert venues, playing golf and tennis, water skiing could you ask for more? Oh yes we were well paid too!!
What memories do you have from the time you worked with Cliff and what was he like to work for?
Tony Rivers: Getting dumped by his manager for no other reason than Cliff, whilst working on his ‘Time Machine’ musical, had met some younger singers!!! No matter that we’d helped bring him back from ‘Disappearsville’ in 76, and had been with him constantly from then. He didn’t even call to thank us for our work over the years. He got his manager to call with the DMC ‘Don’t Come Monday’ award!!!! What a business. Working with him was good though. We got to sing great songs (at least they were when I worked with him!!!) Travel the world, continued recording with him and many others who caught on to our sound via Cliff Hits.
Tony I remember going to see Shakin’ Stevens in concert during the early 80s can you share any memories with us from those tours (I bought all the albums, singles, ED)
Tony Rivers: I expect the Shaky connection came because of our Cliff success, or maybe it was Richard Hewson who co-produced the song on which I first met Shaky in 1984, recording A Love Worth Waiting For which reached about 2 in the charts. I’d worked with Richard on Cliff’s Dressed For Occasion album recorded at The Royal Albert Hall 1981 with the London Philharmonic Orchestra’. The song was a hit record which was a good start. I joined Shaky’s band and have been with him almost all the time since then. He’s not doing anything like as much work as he should, but it’s his choice. Who am I to tell him? Shaky on stage was the best performer, he made Cliff look like a robot when he moved onstage, Shaky looked the business!!! We played the Iron Curtain countries before the wall came down, this was very interesting. We also played Russia with Cliff Richard in 1976, before Elton John (he’s credited as being the first Western star to have appeared there but he wasn’t Cliff was.
Can you tell us the story of Top Of The Pops albums?
Tony Rivers: These albums were of great help to us in the studio experience. Every 6 weeks we had to record 12 of the songs that a panel decided would be the next ‘hit’ records, most times getting it right I think. Anyway it gave us hours of studio time recording all these songs. We had to try to be Alvin Stardust one minute, Donny Osmond the next, maybe followed by Johnny Rotten, very interesting. If you hear tracks that we were on you’ll hear the same or very similar sound that we later made on these other hits with Cliff etc. Great experience. I must admit I was staggered to see the Top Of The Pops albums featuring in MOJO, and even a BBC documentary about the popularity of them!!! Staggering, like anything some tracks worked great others not so great but in the time constraints placed on you, you learned to be good and QUICK!
How did you come to be involved with the making of those albums?
Tony Rivers: Back to Butlins Clacton 1960! The guitar player with the band I’d got up to sing with in the bar one night (although fairly regularly) was Bruce Baxter (on bass was John Rostill who was to become the Shadows bass man for a while. Anyway I bumped into Bruce many years later at a session somewhere got talking, took my number, called me a few days later and we were in the studio recording our first vocals for the TOTP’s albums.
Why do you think these albums became so popular during the 70s (I own one of them! ED)
Tony Rivers: I accept they became popular because it was a cheap way to hear the latest records. Stick it on at a noisy party and maybe no one would notice that they weren’t hearing the latest record by whoever, give me another beer!!!
What do you think of the music industry today?
Tony Rivers: With exceptions I think its crap. Pop Idol seems to rule. Pete Waterman/Cowell and the idiot from Capital radio should all be shot or at least made to appear before a panel of judges, made up from ‘people with talent’ and ability, sing a song, and lets hear their attempts! (I agree Tony ED)
Can you tell us about the Harmony Grass Reunion how did that come about and will there be any more?
Tony Rivers: International Pop Overthrow is run by David Bash based in Los Angeles. It turned out that he was/is a huge HarmonyGrass/ Castaways fan. He invited me and Anthony my son to appear in Los Angeles at the Troubadour. We sang my original songs from HG/Castaways days, Anthony sang his songs, and Brian Wilson came to see us!!! It seems unlikely there’ll be another reunion on the horizon, there was talk that Tower Records in Piccadilly (London) had expressed an interest in us doing an ‘in-store’ appearance, but this seems to have gone quiet so who knows, no one else has been on the phone!
What are your hopes for the future?
Tony Rivers: I’ve done more than I expected to and don’t have any real ambitions left. I’d like Anthony and I to be part of Brian Wilson’s band, but doesn’t look likely he’s about to ask, so I’d like to see
Anthony’s songs get their chance in this ‘hit and miss’ business. Mark Wirtz has flipped over Anthony’s abilities and song writing talent so I’m keeping my fingers crossed for him (And so are we! Ed) that’s all folks!
Describe Tony Rivers to us: Tony Rivers: Harmony loving, hard taskmaster (so I’ve been told), golf playing, football mad, (sport mad actually), kicks with both feet, still got hair, (and plenty of it) cat loving, married for 39 years (to the same one Pat) healthy to the best of my knowledge and long may it continue.
I’d like to thank Tony for taking the time out of his busy schedule for talking to TBGOAO Fanzine and it was a fascinating interview. I would like to wish your son all the best in music for the future; we hope will be carrying on the harmonies following in his Dad’s footsteps!
Jo Rishton With
Tony Rivers (C) TBGOAO Fanzine issue 7 approved by Tony Rivers.
Please note all articles on this site are (C) to The Beat Goes On And On Fanzine and may not be used without permission.
Tony Rivers has lived his life in Harmony from his days of performing at the Royal Oak pub Dagenham, with the Cutaways, to becoming a member of Sir Cliff Richard’s vocal harmony backing band, and currently a long serving member of Shakin’ Stevens band. To say Tony Rivers has been there, done it, seen it, got the t-shirt would be the only way to describe this unique singing talent from Shildon, Co Durham. I managed to catch an interview with Tony Rivers during his busy schedule and we found out more about the vocal harmony ‘legend’ from Shildon, Co. Durham.
Where did you grow up?
Tony Rivers: I was Born in Shildon Co Durham, UK. Lived there for a few years, then moved to East Ham in London for several more years.
What was the first record you heard that made you want to learn the guitar?
Tony Rivers: Probably Buddy Holly That’ll Be The Day, although I was more interested in what was being sung in the back ground.
Describe to us the music scene back then at the time you where learning the guitar?
Tony Rivers: American rock ‘n’ roll doo wop/Four Freshmen, I wasn’t learning guitar at all early on, I was far more interested in the background voices than guitar. It wasn’t important in the late 50’s, It became important when Buddy Holly was seen making this amazing sound with this funny thing he was holding (Electric Guitar). By the time I met up with the Castaways/Cutways in 61, Cliff Richard and The Shadows were everywhere, so when I joined The Cutaways in 1961 I started to learn the guitar and Ray Brown showed me 3 chords from a Buddy Holly song.
Can you tell us how you come to be a member of Tony Rivers and The Castaways?
Tony Rivers: Bit of a long story! But I met someone called Joe Wheal whilst I was working at Butlins Holiday Camp in Clacton On Sea, about 1960! It turned out that he was the singer with a group in Dagenham, called Joe and The Teens. Palled up for a week with him and his friend Terry Venables (yes that one). When he saw me get up and sing in one of the bars at the camp he suggested I come to see them when the session finished, which I did. Every Sunday lunchtime at this pub called The Cherry Tree, Joe would have a break, he’d then call me up to sing a couple of songs (usually a Rick Nelson, and Cliff Richard song). One Sunday after doing my ‘little spot’, Ray Brown (it turned out to be) asked if I’d be interested in going to sing with them that evening at another (infamous) pub in Dagenham called the Royal Oak, after which they asked me to join, I did, and that as they say was that!
You then went on to form a band called ‘ Harmony Grass’. Was that band inspired by The Beach Boys, Four Seasons etc?
Tony Rivers: This was after we’d been Tony Rivers and the Castaways for several years, as a group we were very successful but as for making hits, not too brilliant!!! Bottom end of the charts for a week or so! But we were totally inspired by The Beach Boys, Four Seasons, Association, Spanky and Our Gang, Critters, The Happenings, The Tradewinds, all those American groups. And we played this kind of music at The Marquee club!!! Every other band were blues or maybe Jazz, not us, we sang four part harmony, bam take that!
How did the above bands meet?
Tony Rivers: We never really met as a group, we just evolved over time, people come and go. At the end of 1968 we decided to try a change of name and immediately got tons of airplay which in turn lead to a hit record Harmony Grass – ‘Move In A Little Closer Baby’.
What was it like making your name during the British Invasion and who where your musical heroes around that time?
Tony Rivers: Well I think the British invasion passed us by, as it did many groups who weren’t from Liverpool or Manchester. The Beach Boys became our inspiration.
Can you tell us the story of how you came to work with Sir Cliff Richard?
Tony Rivers: I came to work with Cliff after getting a call from Bruce Welch one day. He said he’d heard a song that I’d written, loved the background vocals, who had sung them (us, John Perry ex Castaway and me). He suggested I come up with vocal arrangements for three Cliff songs he was going to record at Abbey Road. The songs where, Miss You Nights, Devil Woman, and I Can’t Ask For Anymore Than You. All were ‘hit’s Devil Woman the biggest reaching top 5 in UK and USA. From there we were asked to join his band, recorded the album I’m Nearly Famous which gave Cliff his first touch of ‘street cred’ in many a year.
Describe what life was like working on the road with Cliff?
Tony Rivers: Life on the road was good, best hotels, flying around the world playing the best concert venues, playing golf and tennis, water skiing could you ask for more? Oh yes we were well paid too!!
What memories do you have from the time you worked with Cliff and what was he like to work for?
Tony Rivers: Getting dumped by his manager for no other reason than Cliff, whilst working on his ‘Time Machine’ musical, had met some younger singers!!! No matter that we’d helped bring him back from ‘Disappearsville’ in 76, and had been with him constantly from then. He didn’t even call to thank us for our work over the years. He got his manager to call with the DMC ‘Don’t Come Monday’ award!!!! What a business. Working with him was good though. We got to sing great songs (at least they were when I worked with him!!!) Travel the world, continued recording with him and many others who caught on to our sound via Cliff Hits.
Tony I remember going to see Shakin’ Stevens in concert during the early 80s can you share any memories with us from those tours (I bought all the albums, singles, ED)
Tony Rivers: I expect the Shaky connection came because of our Cliff success, or maybe it was Richard Hewson who co-produced the song on which I first met Shaky in 1984, recording A Love Worth Waiting For which reached about 2 in the charts. I’d worked with Richard on Cliff’s Dressed For Occasion album recorded at The Royal Albert Hall 1981 with the London Philharmonic Orchestra’. The song was a hit record which was a good start. I joined Shaky’s band and have been with him almost all the time since then. He’s not doing anything like as much work as he should, but it’s his choice. Who am I to tell him? Shaky on stage was the best performer, he made Cliff look like a robot when he moved onstage, Shaky looked the business!!! We played the Iron Curtain countries before the wall came down, this was very interesting. We also played Russia with Cliff Richard in 1976, before Elton John (he’s credited as being the first Western star to have appeared there but he wasn’t Cliff was.
Can you tell us the story of Top Of The Pops albums?
Tony Rivers: These albums were of great help to us in the studio experience. Every 6 weeks we had to record 12 of the songs that a panel decided would be the next ‘hit’ records, most times getting it right I think. Anyway it gave us hours of studio time recording all these songs. We had to try to be Alvin Stardust one minute, Donny Osmond the next, maybe followed by Johnny Rotten, very interesting. If you hear tracks that we were on you’ll hear the same or very similar sound that we later made on these other hits with Cliff etc. Great experience. I must admit I was staggered to see the Top Of The Pops albums featuring in MOJO, and even a BBC documentary about the popularity of them!!! Staggering, like anything some tracks worked great others not so great but in the time constraints placed on you, you learned to be good and QUICK!
How did you come to be involved with the making of those albums?
Tony Rivers: Back to Butlins Clacton 1960! The guitar player with the band I’d got up to sing with in the bar one night (although fairly regularly) was Bruce Baxter (on bass was John Rostill who was to become the Shadows bass man for a while. Anyway I bumped into Bruce many years later at a session somewhere got talking, took my number, called me a few days later and we were in the studio recording our first vocals for the TOTP’s albums.
Why do you think these albums became so popular during the 70s (I own one of them! ED)
Tony Rivers: I accept they became popular because it was a cheap way to hear the latest records. Stick it on at a noisy party and maybe no one would notice that they weren’t hearing the latest record by whoever, give me another beer!!!
What do you think of the music industry today?
Tony Rivers: With exceptions I think its crap. Pop Idol seems to rule. Pete Waterman/Cowell and the idiot from Capital radio should all be shot or at least made to appear before a panel of judges, made up from ‘people with talent’ and ability, sing a song, and lets hear their attempts! (I agree Tony ED)
Can you tell us about the Harmony Grass Reunion how did that come about and will there be any more?
Tony Rivers: International Pop Overthrow is run by David Bash based in Los Angeles. It turned out that he was/is a huge HarmonyGrass/ Castaways fan. He invited me and Anthony my son to appear in Los Angeles at the Troubadour. We sang my original songs from HG/Castaways days, Anthony sang his songs, and Brian Wilson came to see us!!! It seems unlikely there’ll be another reunion on the horizon, there was talk that Tower Records in Piccadilly (London) had expressed an interest in us doing an ‘in-store’ appearance, but this seems to have gone quiet so who knows, no one else has been on the phone!
What are your hopes for the future?
Tony Rivers: I’ve done more than I expected to and don’t have any real ambitions left. I’d like Anthony and I to be part of Brian Wilson’s band, but doesn’t look likely he’s about to ask, so I’d like to see
Anthony’s songs get their chance in this ‘hit and miss’ business. Mark Wirtz has flipped over Anthony’s abilities and song writing talent so I’m keeping my fingers crossed for him (And so are we! Ed) that’s all folks!
Describe Tony Rivers to us: Tony Rivers: Harmony loving, hard taskmaster (so I’ve been told), golf playing, football mad, (sport mad actually), kicks with both feet, still got hair, (and plenty of it) cat loving, married for 39 years (to the same one Pat) healthy to the best of my knowledge and long may it continue.
I’d like to thank Tony for taking the time out of his busy schedule for talking to TBGOAO Fanzine and it was a fascinating interview. I would like to wish your son all the best in music for the future; we hope will be carrying on the harmonies following in his Dad’s footsteps!
Jo Rishton With
Tony Rivers (C) TBGOAO Fanzine issue 7 approved by Tony Rivers.
Please note all articles on this site are (C) to The Beat Goes On And On Fanzine and may not be used without permission.