UK Decay

werewolf · Posted: Tue Feb 15, 2005 1:46 am Post subject: Does anyone remember Spider?

Does anyone remember Spider?

jay wolfendale · Guest

i remember that face, though i wouldn't have been able to put a name to it. I seem to recall a night out at Friars, with Bonzai, Brick Red, and it would seem Spider. Don't remember which gig, but then again there were so many at Aylesbury.
I went back there last year to see Arthur Lee and Love, and it was like a timewarp. The bar , the hall, all of it. Sadly i gathered they were planning to demolish it, to make way for something new.
One gig i do remember is The Clash on their London Calling tour. Plus mystery guests. The bar was packed, the 'Punk' disco filtering through from the near empty hall. Everyone geeting very much in the mood. We could hear 'Sweet Gene Vincent'. Someone ran in from the near empty hall, and said it was the Blockheads on stage. Noone took much notice. Didn't believe him. Then, as i recall, Plaistow Patricia came on. Someone else ran into the bar. It is the Blockheads. We all surged into the hall, and there was Ian Dury, in full flow. Leaning on his cane, pulling scarves out of his top pocket like a magician as he sang. Fuck me. What an excellent set. There was much hand clapping and long calls for encores at the end of their set. The Clash came on and called for more applause for the Blockheads. The Clash were the clash, excellent as ever, but i'm sure the Blockheads came on stage and played with them. Now that was worth seeing. Two seminal London bands playing together. At the top of their game.
I was talking to Ian Dury about a year before his passing, and reminded him of that gig. He hadn't forgotten it. At the risk of sounding too much, i said that i thought he wiped the floor with the clash that night, which i did, he laughed and said that that was funny, cause that's how he remembered it too. Happy days. x

blinkpoker · Guest

i went to see mick jones and tony james new band last night bloody awful they were.. Twisted Evil

jay wolfendale · Guest

Hey Blink, is Nick Hawkins still playing bass with mick ? I remember him playing bass for the outbursts at a glue ridden weekend at Monkey's farm.Oh dear. Last heard of playing bass for Big Audio Dynamite. J x.

Guest · Posted: Thu Feb 17, 2005 10:43 am Post subject: I remember Spider!

I was at a gig at the Electric Ballroom with my then girlfriend, I've a feeling it was one of those godawful Oi bands that I loved at the time ... AND Spider was there jumping around with youthful exuberance.

I know he put me to shame with his energy and enthusiasm!

Didn't he live in a caravan somewhere?

Fuck knows what happened to him!

Guest · Posted: Thu Feb 17, 2005 11:00 am Post subject: Nick Hawkins

Jay!

Last I heard of him he was living in the States and had a new band - do a Google for him - this is what I found ...

He moved to Las Vegas, US, to work on his own music. He recorded some demos under the moniker "Dynamo-Jo" and later "Cool Beanz". he is currently recording an album as "Nick Hawkins with Dusk till Dawn".

... I did have an all too brief email exchange with him where he said he was going to come over and possibly link up. Needless to say it didn't happen and contact fizzled out.

What happened to Tim and Mark? Does anyone know?

Guest · Posted: Thu Feb 17, 2005 11:22 am Post subject: More on Nick Hawkins

Oh the power of Google ...

http://home.online.no/~kriesmar/bad-sound.htm

Nick has turned forty!!! Blimey!!!!

CHOPPER DAVE · Joined: 04 Jul 2004 Posts: 7 Location: DUNSTABLE

SPIDER U ol Munter! What a crack this bloke was,his racious laugh and he was a good laugh to have around.
I remember he had this Transit motorhome and he lived in the Vauxhall car park!
We used to pile in and set off to London for gigs, what a crack it was.A laugh a minuete was had by all. Stoned out of our boxes trying to get bak to Luton without getting pulled by the bill!
Singing `Born in the L+D` to the music of Bruce Springsteen. Once back just crash out and in the morning bodies everywhere! lol.
When we walked into gigs his prescence just lightened up the place, he genuienly loved having young folk around and once he scared off some twats who tried to have a go at us outside one gig.
He used to tell me bout his ma in the States,who sounded as colourful as he was. Often wondered what happened to him? He had a mate at that time who was often disappearing on him and the rows were f`kin funny to watch!
Ah good `ol days.
_________________
Dunstable Punx. 77-82.
LUTON TOWN FC>CHAMPIONS

trotsky · Joined: 31 Jan 2007 Posts: 2

met the mad old bastard on the tracxk at Vauxhall - says in the clip he was 59 in 1999, no way he was well over 40 in 1980.

He came to UK to avoid doing time in Canada for Drug dealing. His ex-lover (Andrew) did several years for firing a shot gun at the police when they raided the house. So he came over some years later. Lived in transit van in vauxhall car park and and then a mobile home on the way to Dunstable.

Big and loud.

Went back to Canda when his mother was hurt and then died. Visited him there for a few months before the immigration people threw me out.

He moved to some backwoods place and put on hardcore Punk festivals in the Summer.

Cant beleive hes still alive after the abuse heinflkicted on his body.
trotsky

sandra · Joined: 04 Jul 2005 Posts: 5 Location: Flitwick

Yes I have some great memories of Spider. He came in the grapevine one night and asked if anyone fancied going to see Chelsea at the Marquee. Lol and I thought why not so of we popped. He took us to visit one of his mates called Peter Pink who lived in a basement flat god knows where in London. He was a drag queen at the Dorchester Hotel. A great character. Went to see Chelsea at the Marquee and got in on the guest list as Spider seemed to know everyone. He was definately 40+ when I knew him and that would have 79-80. By the way do you remember me Trotsky. Sandra from Flitwick. Hope life is treating you well.