David McWilliams - an offshore radio phenominum
Mike Terry
created by Radio Caroline in the 60s, but who was largely ignored by the
BBC.
>From The Independent:
16 March 2002
David McWilliams, singer- songwriter: born Belfast 4 July 1945; twice
married (one son, seven daughters); died Ballycastle, Co Antrim 9 January
2002.
In October 1967, the Irish singer-songwriter David McWilliams was launched
in mainland Britain by his eager manager Phil Solomon, with a barrage of
publicity for the dreamy track "The Days of Pearly Spencer".
"The single that will blow your mind, the album that will change the course
of music" trumpeted full-page adverts in the New Musical Express alongside
enthusiastic quotes from journalists and other pop impresarios comparing the
22-year-old McWilliams to Donovan and Bob Dylan. Unfortunately, back in
1967, Radio 1, the BBC's new pop network, didn't add "The Days of Pearly
Spencer" to its playlist, maybe because Solomon was also a director of Radio
Caroline, the pirate station just outlawed by the Marine Broadcasting
Offences Acts passed by Harold Wilson's government.
Nevertheless, the single was played incessantly and defiantly on Caroline
while stations in continental Europe picked up on its strange "phoned-in"
chorus and pastoral arrangement. The following year, the track charted all
over Europe and impinged itself on the continental consciousness as the
soundtrack to Swinging London alongside the likes of "Nights in White Satin"
by the Moody Blues and Procol Harum's "A Whiter Shade Of Pale".
A reluctant stage performer, McWilliams recorded more than 10 solo albums
and eventually saw the torch singer Marc Almond, formerly of Soft Cell,
score the biggest hit of his solo career with a carbon-copy version of "The
Days of Pearly Spencer" which reached No 4 in the British charts in 1992.
Born in the Cregagh area of Belfast in 1945, David McWilliams moved to
Ballymena when he was three. He grew up with seven brothers and sisters and
as a teenager developed an early interest in the rock'n'roll music of Buddy
Holly and learned to play the guitar. He also developed a rebellious streak
and in 1960 was expelled from Ballymena Technical School for drinking
between lessons. Even when he returned, McWilliams played truant constantly,
spending days thinking up songs.
In 1963, he followed his father and became an apprentice fitter in a torpedo
factory in Co Antrim. However, he was always looking for a way out. Six foot
tall with blue eyes and unruly black hair, he cut a distinctive figure on
the football pitch; he excelled as a goalkeeper but an ankle injury kept him
out of the local Linfield football team.
He preferred music anyway and joined the Coral Showband. Not content with
performing covers, he began writing his own compositions such as "Redundancy
Blues" and "Time of Trouble", inspired by his surroundings. "I listen with
my eyes and I sing what I see," he later told journalists.
In 1966, he signed to CBS and released his début single, "God and My
Country", but Dylan and Donovan seemed to have the protest singer and
troubadour market sewn up and the track sank without trace. Undaunted,
McWilliams went into a Belfast studio to record some demos. The impresario
Mervyn Solomon overheard McWilliams's tapes and contacted his brother Phil,
who was equally impressed by the material.
The formidable Irish entrepreneur Phil Solomon had made his name with Them
and the Bachelors. He had also joined Ronan O'Rahilly's Radio Caroline
operation and was keen to establish a record company connected to the pirate
station. Having launched the Major Minor label at the tail end of 1966,
Solomon wanted to add McWilliams to his roster. Even better, since CBS
already manufactured Major Minor's releases, he could appear to do them a
favour by offering to take the singer off their hands. The scam worked and
Solomon brought his new signing over to London. He teamed up McWilliams with
the arranger Mike Leander.
McWilliams had found the perfect producer for his delicate and heartfelt
songwriting as well as his six- and 12-string acoustic guitars and the
partnership blossomed. In June 1967, his début album, David McWilliams Sings
Songs from David McWilliams, made the Top Forty. The second one, simply
called David McWilliams, fared even better, probably because it featured
"The Days of Pearly Spencer".
Thanks to Leander's orchestral arrangement, the track had evolved from a
poignant ballad about a homeless man whom McWilliams had met in Ballymena
into a haunting radio record and a considerable turntable hit. Though it
never charted in Britain, the single was re- released on three separate
occasions and remains a favourite on oldies stations around Europe.
The follow-up single, "Three O'Clock Flamingo Street", proved equally
evocative of the down-and-out milieu the songwriter had observed as a
teenager. And, despite the lack of hit singles, his third album, David
McWilliams Volume III, also charted in March 1968.
He joined the Dubliners on a package tour compered by the writer Dominic
Behan but never recaptured the heights of his first two years. He stuck with
Solomon and Major Minor for three further singles - "This Side of Heaven",
"The Stranger" and "Oh Mama, Are You My Friend?" - before switching to
Parlophone and then Dawn Records.
McWilliams recorded well into the Eighties but his career was mismanaged to
such an extent by the likes of the notorious London landlord Peter Rachman
that he lost an estimated £2m in royalties.
In 1982, McWilliams moved back to Northern Ireland. He remained an elusive
performer, only making the odd appearance in support of striking miners.
McWilliams's work deserves re-appraisal. The Days of David McWilliams, a
compilation issued last year by the RPM label, provides a good career
overview.
Pierre Perrone
Ian MacRae
Radio Caroline South at the time I can well recall playing (in high
rotation) the David McWilliams song. Some of the Major Minor releases
were very good but the on-air people rightly felt they were wrong for
the Top 40 format of the station. But, as Phil Solomon was a
shareholder, we had little choice but play 'em in the interests of our
broadcasting career.
Ian MacRae
www.allaboutradio.net
Mike Terry
Great to hear from you.
I believe you the Ian from "Auntie Mabel's show" on Radio City and the "Five
by Five" Beatles and Stones show and you now live in Aus and publish on the
internet a djs training guide.
I am a fan of yours from the 60s!!
Love and Peace.
Mike
Bournemouth
"Ian MacRae" <mak...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:d8c33abb.0203...@posting.google.com...
Paul Sexton
<mike...@ukrivals.net> writes
>Bournemouth
>"Ian MacRae" <mak...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
>news:d8c33abb.0203...@posting.google.com...
>> Mike...thanks for posting that bio on David McWilliams. As a D.J. on
>> Radio Caroline South at the time I can well recall playing (in high
>> rotation) the David McWilliams song. Some of the Major Minor releases
>> were very good but the on-air people rightly felt they were wrong for
>> the Top 40 format of the station. But, as Phil Solomon was a
>> shareholder, we had little choice but play 'em in the interests of our
>> broadcasting career.
>>
>
>Great to hear from you.
>
>I believe you the Ian from "Auntie Mabel's show" on Radio City and the "Five
>by Five" Beatles and Stones show and you now live in Aus and publish on the
>internet a djs training guide.
>
>I am a fan of yours from the 60s!!
>
Show on Radio City were some of pirate radio's greatest moments.
Radio Caroline went downhill fast when Mr. Solomons became a director &
they started playing all those soppy Irish ballads & other such crap on
the Major Minor label.
--
Paul Sexton Paul's Radio Museum
http://www.paulplu.demon.co.uk/radio/
Return address anti-spammed
email to Paul at paulplu dot demon dot co dot uk
Mike Terry
Ian were superb, not forgetting Paul who sadly was run over & died.
Mike
"Paul Sexton" <Pa...@shut.up.bloody.vikings> wrote in message
news:VcWjrgCJ...@shut.up.bloody.vikings...
eric
i am desperately seeking david mcwiliams unreleased on cd material , a
quite perfect scenario for the need of internet alternative music
sources for download i feel ..got some from audio galaxy but the
material is incomplete even there i think ..
Hans
I have his first LP on Major Minor and could rip some tracks for you, its an
old original LP so the tracks might have some background noise.