[Music] Brighton 1964 Rockers v Mods

[zefarelly]

Ernie ( got nicked after a burglary . . .left his hat there with his name written in it ) died of an overdose I think, years ago. Stuart, Natasha and little Dan, the other 3 are still around. I think mum was Philipino. She no longer lives in the same house if she's still around.

 

[zefarelly]

I first got into Rockabilly, then Psychobilly came along and one of the main places you could hear it and see bands was at scooterboy rallies, So I got myself a Vespa and joined a local scooterboy club in Wigan at the time, obviously Wigan was famous for the Casino and Northern Soul so there were plenty of revival gigs and clubs still going frequented by old soul boys, new wave mods a few skinheads and us the scooterboys in us army jackets, army pants or bleached jeans and steel toe cap boots.
The scooterboy scene was great fun and a mix of music and styles, so many funny stories, alot of the scooterboys later went into the rave scene and on to make music style of their own...

Like this fella Ian Brown who I actually knew and met at a rally and at a Stockport Crusaders party...
The photos show the real mix of Psychobillies, Skins etc, we used to wind the mods up something rotten because of what we did to their lovely clean machines.... it was a reaction to the boring stagnating mod scene I guess....

Mani still has a scooter, a mate of mine knows them both. there were a few psychobillies in Brighton, more in Hastings. there were virtually no mods by the late 80's, virtually all scooterboys, and as you say a real mish mash of styles, all anti predictable, shepherds not sheep!

 

[Boroseagull]

Britih Bike prices are simply mad. My BSA Rocket Gold Star (genuine RGS not a copy) got sold after complete rebuild for £2000 in 1987, last one I saw up for sale was £27000. Lovely bike to look at, not so nice to ride btw.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDeEsnNyv4Q

Truly a thing of beauty. The 'Goldie' was a wonderful piece of machinery but it brings too many memories back to me. My friend had a 500cc Goldie but sadly was killed by a drunken driver on the Old Shoreham Rd. in 1965. The aftermath led to me leaving the police force when the driver got off scot free.

 

[Seasidesage]

I was born on Monday 3rd August 1964, which was the last year the Bank Holiday was at the beginning of the month, it was all going on the day Harty arrived ��

I cannot tell you how happy it makes me that you are 25 days older than me!

I've always thought you looked older than me even back in the day

 

[oneillco]

doubt those cages would hold anyone who really wanted to get out

They aren't real mods, they are the 1980 wannabes who never quite got it right...

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

Interesting thread. I was just a kid in the early 60s. My yoof tribal hayday was 76-78, punk rock, and then to 82 as that morphed into 'post punk'. That later either went all Steve Strange, with some of my pals spending longer getting dressed up than going out, or proto-shoegaze and very minimal and understated (have a listen to early Section 25, Normial Hawaiins, Modern English....best I not start down that road). When I moved to Vancouver in 82 I was able to slip into the grooviest scene with a simple mix of different styles. Owning a pair of cherry red DMs was a boon - someone offered me $100 for them one time (they cost about £15 in the UK at the time).

What struck me was it (yoof scene from the early 60s) was all absolutely factional for some - you were defined as a teenager by what faction you aligned with. It wasn't like that in Vancouver at all, with just one all-encompassing alt scene (it being vaguely arty/alternative), with all the rest of the young being 'jocks' (meaning into sport, mainstream bars, sport, FM radio and sport). It seemed to me that when I moved back to the UK in the mid 80s its factionalism had also gone away somewhat. I mean, it was OK to be into different things. Maybe I'm being naive, and was merely seeing it from my older more mature perspective, past it, with a young family.

 

[rigton70]

It lived on . . .before I got on the road, the local scooter club was Southern inspiration SISC they had a significant run in with a biker gang, both used to use the Bridge in Shoreham. SISC ultimately disbanded, by the time I was 16 it was the Dirty Devils, Worthing way was the Talismen, and Hove was the Trojan Horses. All 3 survive to this day one way or another.

I'm the founding, and so far only member of SLAG. The Shoreham Lambretta Appreciation Group.

One thing that's always amused me is a lot of the scooterboys from the 80's embraced Americana and now all ride bikes, or massive slammed cars!

Three surnames come to mind with SISC Wise,Miles and Hatcher.

 

[rigton70]

Knickname. He lived at the end of mine and Zefarelly's street. His mum was black and he had at least one brother his age and a younger brother and sister. I once saw him walking behind a copper with a girl on his arm. Every time the copper tried to turn to look behind, Wise would shout 'keep walking, don't you f**king dare look round!'. Nasty skinhead - pretty sure he didn't survive the 1990s.

Ha

I knew Ernie,Stu and tash well never had a problem with them.

 

[rigton70]

Ernie ( got nicked after a burglary . . .left his hat there with his name written in it ) died of an overdose I think, years ago. Stuart, Natasha and little Dan, the other 3 are still around. I think mum was Philipino. She no longer lives in the same house if she's still around.

It was a overdose.

Not seen Stu or Tasha for 20 odd years now

 

[zefarelly]

Three surnames come to mind with SISC Wise,Miles and Hatcher.

I saw Joe a few months back . . . I don't think he's been into Scooters since before he was old enough to ride! I saw Tasha on a bus on the way home from Hove one night about 18 months ago. We both Did a double take but she didn't say anything, neither did I, I never really knew her.

I never really knew The Miles, but know they're still about . . .Jeffreys? (THSC)

 

[Comrade Sam]

There was another Mod in Shoreham that the kids were in awe of. His younger brother Nick Baker, became a top windsurfing champion. He wasn't a Mod for long, but the rumour was a copper asked him what he was doing and he said 'chewing brick!' The biggie was he had Acab tattooed on his chest. Over a decade later he was on the beach in his trollies, sans tattoo - I was genuinely disappointed.

 

[marlowe]

And Zefarelly helped me fall in love with ska - (football was a gift from Talula!) Being a Mod has continually seen me remain accidentally fashionable as everything else comes and goes. Whenever I meet people around the world that have heard of Mod, they assume I'm from Brighton anyway. I appeared in a Mod documentary many years ago called 'Do you believe in Mod?'. I got to meet the ultimate original Mod - John Cooper-Clark.

I recognise a few of those faces. Which is you?....

https://youtu.be/iAxFETibjPE

 

[Comrade Sam]

I recognise a few of those faces. Which is you?....

https://youtu.be/iAxFETibjPE

I refer to being a Mod before I had pubic hair. Which turned a few heads as it aired on telly on a Sunday lunchtime. A few years ago I walked into a classroom to find 30 15 year olds watching me in that very clip. Twas very embarrassing, but the kids decided I looked cool - especially with hair.

 

[zefarelly]

I recognise a few of those faces. Which is you?....

https://youtu.be/iAxFETibjPE

Bloody hell, I've never seen that before!

 

[rigton70]

I saw Joe a few months back . . . I don't think he's been into Scooters since before he was old enough to ride! I saw Tasha on a bus on the way home from Hove one night about 18 months ago. We both Did a double take but she didn't say anything, neither did I, I never really knew her.

I never really knew The Miles, but know they're still about . . .Jeffreys? (THSC)

Joe is in hospital atm.

i will assume we are about the same age and may know each other?

 

[rigton70]

There was another Mod in Shoreham that the kids were in awe of. His younger brother Nick Baker, became a top windsurfing champion. He wasn't a Mod for long, but the rumour was a copper asked him what he was doing and he said 'chewing brick!' The biggie was he had Acab tattooed on his chest. Over a decade later he was on the beach in his trollies, sans tattoo - I was genuinely disappointed.

Mmm i wouldn't say awe.

I remember Nick also surfing?

I remember the shop in Shoreham high street we tried to break into it.

 

[rigton70]

I saw Joe a few months back . . . I don't think he's been into Scooters since before he was old enough to ride! I saw Tasha on a bus on the way home from Hove one night about 18 months ago. We both Did a double take but she didn't say anything, neither did I, I never really knew her.

I never really knew The Miles, but know they're still about . . .Jeffreys? (THSC)

Del miles was the youngest one that i knew wasn't a mod.

His older two Brothers were along with Denise there Sister.

Sorry i don't remember there names old age etc.

 

[Gwylan]

There was another Mod in Shoreham that the kids were in awe of. His younger brother Nick Baker, became a top windsurfing champion.

Blimey, it's a small world. My mum was occasionally Nick's baby sitter when he was little. She was best of friends with his mother or grandmother (can't remember which). She didn't mention the mod connection though