Wednesday, 16 March 2011
Michael Edwards
The video is an interview with founder members of the Electric Light Orchestra way back in 1974. Mike Edwards is the rather shy man who is third to speak.
He was one of the two cellists in the original ELO and the one who always presented himself in full evening dress for their concerts.
My parents lived in the West Country from the late 60s and I first heard about Mike when my mother (a classical violinist) mentioned her horror at a rock band having two cellists and a violinist as part of their group. The sheer audacity of electric guitar players thinking they could blend with what, she fervently believed, were instruments mean only for classical music production was enough to give her the vapours - many times.
Around 1973, during a parental visit, I had the pleasure of hearing the ELO at their best in Bristol. Nowadays I have little time for electronically produced music, but the ELO didn't make their sound digitally, they adapted their instruments to emit the sounds they wanted. They were unique and never bettered, although many have imitated them over the years.
Michael Edwards left the group around 1975 but by then I'd heard much about his talent. My mother was even impressed and met him several times over the years as Mike became a cellist of note. I never quite discovered if he left the rock scene because he became a Buddhist or he'd just had enough travelling or perhaps his girlfriend wanted a more settled existence. He continued his musical career by teaching the cello and giving much of his spare time to voluntarily playing for charity.
In early September last year all that came to an end. He was killed in Devon, when a 50 stone bale of hay rolled down a sloping field, burst on to the road and hit his van.
Yesterday the inquest into his death was held in Plymouth and the jury's verdict was accidental death, despite questions from independent health and safety experts over how the bale was secured to the tractor while it was transported.
Mike was 62. RIP.
One of the pieces they played at that concert way back in 1974. For anyone over the age of 60 it may bring back memories.
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6 comments:
Ah, lovely memories SR.
I remember listening to Showdown in my bedroom, candle lit due to Ted Heath’s three day week.
Bristol eh!
Colston Hall?
I remember seeing them live soon after they were formed in the gym at Chelmsford College of Further Education. This was while there were still about ten in the line up. This must have been 1972ish.
I was living in Germany in the 70s BJ but saw them on a short holiday visiting my parents. Aye, the Colston Hall. :)
Did they have the strings then Buckingham? I think they came in around 72.
Interesting that in every report, the size of the bale is given in stones.
Is this a farming thing?
After a bit of mental shuffling I find it equates to about six hundredweight in fact (Ah, 6 bags of cement, now we're getting somewhere), or for the younger generation, around 300Kg.
Definitely more than you want crashing through your windscreen.
In a few of the reports I came across kgs were mentioned WY, however in this one it is stones.
I'm noticing more and more we're going European with the cm instead of inches for snow just one example.
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