Folk Roundabout - Memories of Jack Routledge & Tony Gilman and The Bay Hotel Folk Club at Cul

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MEMORIES OF JACK ROUTLEDGE & TONY GILMAN & THE BAY HOTEL FOLK CLUB AT CULLERCOATS

By Ken and Sandra Hudson

Jack & Tony were partly responsible for my introduction to folk clubs – and a life-long interest in the music. I first heard Jack & Tony at a community hall in the Cowgate area of Newcastle-upon-Tyne (just under 3 miles from the city centre) – it would be around 1965. I enjoyed their music, songs and banter so much, that – when they said they had a Monday night folk club at Cullercoats - I resolved to go to find out what this was all about. I had been singing for a while – accompanying myself on guitar - and I then met up with a likeminded ‘singing-buddy’ called Ray. It was Ray and myself who began to frequent Jack & Tony’s folk club at The Bay Hotel at Cullercoats.

The first visit was an interesting experience – upstairs, at the back of the hotel - the place was buzzing – it was quite a large function room which seemed to be packed with people sitting around small tables – and there was a small stage in the corner of the room. Usually, there was no entry charge for anyone who put their name on the singers/ performers list. Jack & Tony sang songs like Ella Speed and Philimiooriay – with Tony playing guitar and Jack singing and accompanying on ‘the bones’. We enjoyed that first night. Ray and I were asked for a couple of songs, and – since we first met Jack & Tony at that Cowgate event – we were introduced as The Cowgate Ranters. Depending on Jack’s mood – we were occasionally introduced as The Cowgate Muck Spreaders - in the weeks that followed.

It was a time when we were absorbing songs with great alacrity. Many of us had a little notebook in which we collected the lyrics of songs that we found interesting – and might choose to sing. Ray and I usually sat near to the stage among the group of musicians and singers who would be providing the music that night. Along with Jack & Tony and ourselves – among the regulars were Eddie Pickford, Peter Brack, Herb Greener, Harry (who was always talking about wood – particularly the Caribbean Lignum Vitae – the wood of life), and a young man who just listened at that time (but had his first gig at The Bay in 1968) – Stu Luckley.

There was also singer/songwriter Ian Mills – who churned out numerous songs – many of them rather risqué. This was noted in one of his songs which had a line in the chorus ‘We’re singing hymns on Monday night; we’re cleaning up the Bay’. Occasionally I would ask for some words to be written in my notebook – Jack & Tony were always encouraging and would add some humorous comment – Ed Pickford contributed a song which he has long forgotten about. It was at the time that his dad retired from the pit, and he called it the Canny Seam. It’s still there – written in his own handwriting. Not long ago, I sent him a copy of the page.

Ray lived at Fawdon. I lived in Gosforth.

Each Monday night, we took the train from South Gosforth station to Cullercoats to experience the delights of The Bay Hotel Folk Club. It must have been a time when there weren’t so many performers – because I can remember that we were asked on some occasions to sing 3 songs in each half. This did mean a lot of learning of songs – usually on a Sunday night at Ray’s home in Fawdon.

We had books of songs sung by Ewan McColl, Pete Seeger, the Dubliners, Clancy Brothers, the McPeake Family – 100 Scottish Songs and 101 American Folk Songs. Our repertoire was quite varied. Trying to learn at least 3 new songs each week did lead to problems. I remember having the words for The Four Marys on a crib sheet stuck to my guitar.

The large number of verses meant that the writing was very small – and the lighting on the stage was poor –so that did not really work!

Jack & Tony booked the occasional guest performer – some provided by Doug Cadwell – organiser of the Ashington Lampglass Folk Club and also tour arranger. On a couple of occasions, one-man band Don Partridge with his snake-skin jacket, twelve-string guitar, kazoo, harmonica and big bass drum on his back was a very entertaining guest.

I stopped going to ‘The Bay’ when I began college in Sunderland in September 1967. While at college – training to be a teacher at Langham Towers College of Education – I somehow got involved with the organisation of the college folk club (surprise, surprise!).

Among the guests we booked were The Fife Reivers, Cyril Tawney and ...... Don Partridge.

It was all properly organised – with contracts etc. The fee for Don Partridge was £12.00 – I suppose it was quite a lot of money in those days. The contract had been written prior to him becoming famous. The week that he came to us – February 1968 – he just happened to have a hit record. He reached No. 4 in the charts with Rosie! Needless to say – the common room where we held the folk nights was packed to over-flowing.

The agreed fee was £12.00 – but I think he got a little extra that night! During my time at college, Jack & Tony invited me back to ‘The Bay’ – to do a paid guest spot as Kentucky Ken - travelling from Sunderland to Cullercoats by bus – with guitar and Stetson hat! I think they knew that students had very little money to spare – and it was their way of trying to help. So – is there anybody else who has memories of Jack Routledge & Tony Gilman – and the Bay Hotel Folk Club at Cullercoats? It would be great to hear from you!

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