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October
2007
Hello Eddie I hope
that you don't mind me contacting you, I have been idly surfing the net, and
have have discovered your web site.
You will not have heard of me, but I was part of a
close harmony quartet that was active around the same time as The Crossbeats.
We were called The Kingsmen, and hailed from Blackburn. We sang a lot in
Liverpool at St George's Hall on a couple of Easter Sundays, and at places like
Crete hall, Gordon Hall, and Newsham Park Chapel. As you will have deduced, we
belonged to the Brethren, (Gospel Hall) and, as gospel beat groups were frowned
upon by them, we were just about tolerated and asked to sing at their
functions. I did hear you at Clitheroe, in the castle grounds
(bandstand), and at Melbourne St Christian institute Oswaldtwistle were I
ran a youth group. I think that Mike Flemming was the speaker, or it could have
been John Dyer, who used us a lot at that time. I couldn't find any record of
your booking there but I think it must have been around 1968, after our quartet
had broken up (date was 1 Nov 1969). I think the reason I missed your
appearances in Blackburn must have been because we were out singing somewhere
else. But we sang at the Ken
Terhoven Southport Project, and at the Coffee bar next to the swimming baths.
One of our members Brian Ainsworth, had moved to Southport in 1963, and thus
became involved with the Southport Project. I seem to recall singing in a tent,
and at Parbold. We signed a contract to make a record for the organisation, but
apart from Brian hearing us over the PA system at an open air gathering once on
Lord Street in Southport, nothing became of it.
We had some wonderful times, at places like
Capernwray Hall and Witherslack Hall with the NYLC. Many of the names that
appear as speakers on your list of engagements are familiar to me, indeed, one
or two of them I classed as friends. One of your songs that I liked a
lot, and stuck in my memory, had a Christmas message, and although I can't
remember much about it, some of it has stuck (this could be 'Only God's Son'). I was at a church in
Manchester some time ago, to hear some lads from Scotland who were excellent,
but who charged £500 a gig; how things have changed. Many was the time
that we didn't get owt', but we didn't mind, we just loved the work, and I miss
it still. Thankfully all we had to buy was music, unlike you lads, having to
buy amps and everything, that must have been hard work.
Anyway, I have
enjoyed visiting your web site, thank you very much for the privilege, and I
would love to hear from you should you get a minute. Incidentally, could the
surname of the chap "Norman?" (16 Nov 1963 - bookings page) have been
Dean? I think he was from Stoke on Trent. Best Wishes
Ken
Houghton from Blackburn Lancs
And later, Ken wrote the
following:
The Kingsmen started in about 1958 under the splendidly
ostentatious title of, 'The pilgrims for Jesus Quartet'. I'm afraid that
the quality of the singing, was not compatible with such an impressive name.
Founder members were, Brian Ainsworth, Frank Harwood, bass, JIm
Balderstone, first tenor and myself, second tenor. We must have had a
strange sound, because Brian's voice hadn't broken then. On reflection,
that is probably the reason that we didn't get any bookings. But we
didn't allow anything trivial as a serious dearth of talent to put us off, and
we subjected whoever we could corner, like sick folk domiciled in hospital and
unable to escape, to listen, without the slightest compunction or
embarrassment.
The big talent in our line up was Frank Harwood who had
a tremendous bass voice, without him in our midst, we would never have reached
the heights of mediocrity that we attained. Unfortunately, Frank died
last year of leukaemia, such a tragic loss of a great lad, and class one
crackpot, and one whose loss, I still find hard to get my head around
After I had completed my National Service in 1961, we reformed, and
became,The Kingsmen, our inspiration coming from 'The Crystal River Quartet'
from Belfast (who I heard sing when Eric Hutchings held his campaign in Preston
in the early fifties), and also from 'The Evangelaires', who hailed from
Preston, and who were frequent visitors to the churches, in and around
Blackburn.
We were taken under the wing of a rather severe, and serious
minded gentleman named Les Grimshaw, who forbad us to sing anything that he
didn't approve of. Somehow, he instilled some musical discipline into us,
and so, hiding behind Frank's bass, we sang together until he emigrated to
Canada around 1966. By this time the line up had changed by one, Peter
Houghton coming in, for Jim Balderstone. We were quite well received in
your neck of the woods (Liverpool), and enjoyed some marvellous times of
fellowship there.
We also sang in Sheffield quite a bit,and did a
week's campaign in a place called Gleadless in Sheffield with John Dyer, and
Don Hinchcliffe, where we lived in a caravan on the field next to the marquee
in which the meetings were held.
You made reference to the young folk
doing the outreach work in Southport (Southport project), I believe that
they were known as 'delegates', and had been trained in the weeks and months
leading up to the actual project. As a matter of fact I am almost sure
that Brian from our group, was one of them, along with his future wife Sara;
Brian had moved to Southport, a year or so previously. This meant, of
course that either he had to travel to Blackburn sometimes twice a week to
practice, or the three of us to Southport.
Happy days.
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