New Victory Band
Encyclopedia
English Country Dance
English Country Dance is a form of folk dance. It is a social dance form, which has earliest documented instances in the late 16th century. Queen Elizabeth I of England is noted to have been entertained by "Country Dancing," although the relationship of the dances she saw to the surviving dances of...
band during the late 1970s/early 80s.
The original line-up consisted of the members of Muckram Wakes
Muckram Wakes
Muckram Wakes was a folk band from the north-west midlands of England.The original line up of Muckram Wakes was Roger and Helen Watson and John Tams. Their album Map of Derbyshire, on Trailer Records, contributed greatly to the promotion of folk music from that county...
(Roger Watson, Helen Watson, John Adams and Suzie Adams), Pete and Chris Coe, and Ian and Linda Wordsworth.
There were several bands during the '70s looking for a different approach to playing country dance tunes and dancing than was current in the English Folk Dance and Song Society
English Folk Dance and Song Society
The English Folk Dance and Song Society was formed in 1932 when two organisations merged: the Folk-Song Society and the English Folk Dance Society. The EFDSS, a member-based organisation, was incorporated as a Company limited by guarantee in 1935 and became a Registered Charity The English Folk...
dances. Going back to listen to traditional musicians like Bob Cann and Scan Tester
Scan Tester
Scan Tester was an English folk and English country musician.-Overview:Lewis "Scan" Tester was born in Chelwood Gate, near Horsted Keynes, Sussex. At about the age of five he acquired the nickname "scantelope"...
was a good start. Remembering that these were social dances, not a precious art form, gave licence to all sorts of creative cavorting. Of these new bands, Old Swan Band
Old Swan Band
-Early years:Its origins lie in the early 1970s with the English country dance band Oak, one of a tiny handful at that time that combined melodeon with fiddles. Two members of Oak, husband and wife Rod and Danny Stradling , went on to form The Cotswold Liberation Front, which became The Old Swan...
, Flowers and Frolics, Umps and Dumps, Pump and Pluck seemed to concentrate more on Southern English styles and repertoire. The New Victory Band developed a more Northerly aspect, listening to recordings of George Tremain, Ned Pearson, Adam Gray, Willie Taylor & Will Atkinson
Will Atkinson (musician)
Will Atkinson started off as a player of the English diatonic accordion, but became a harmonica player and a contributor to the Music of Northumbria...
.
The New Victory Band recorded just one album, One More Dance & Then, for Topic Records in 1978. It was re-released on CD by Backshift Records in 2000 and included six extra tracks recorded live on a continental tour towards the end of the band's existence.
During the life of the band, drummer Ian Wordsworth was replaced by Pierce Butler and additional members included Mel Dean on concertina and Peadar Long on sax.
The original instrumental line up was:
- Pete Coe - MelodeonMelodeon (organ)A melodeon is a type of 19th century reed organ with a foot-operated vacuum bellows, and a piano keyboard. It differs from the related harmonium, which uses a pressure bellows. Melodeons were manufactured in the United States sometime after 1812 until the Civil War era...
- Chris Coe - Hammered DulcimerHammered dulcimerThe hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings...
- John Adams - TromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, fiddleFiddleThe term fiddle may refer to any bowed string musical instrument, most often the violin. It is also a colloquial term for the instrument used by players in all genres, including classical music...
, melodeonMelodeon (organ)A melodeon is a type of 19th century reed organ with a foot-operated vacuum bellows, and a piano keyboard. It differs from the related harmonium, which uses a pressure bellows. Melodeons were manufactured in the United States sometime after 1812 until the Civil War era...
, harmoniumHarmoniumA harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new... - Suzie Adams - banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
- Roger Watson - tubaTubaThe tuba is the largest and lowest-pitched brass instrument. Sound is produced by vibrating or "buzzing" the lips into a large cupped mouthpiece. It is one of the most recent additions to the modern symphony orchestra, first appearing in the mid-19th century, when it largely replaced the...
, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, mouth organMouth organA mouth organ is a generic term for free reed aerophone with one or more air chambers fitted with a free reed.Though it spans many traditions, it is played universally the same way by the musician placing their lips over a chamber or holes in the instrument, and blowing or sucking air to create a... - Helen Watson - harmoniumHarmoniumA harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, whistleWhistleA whistle or call is a simple aerophone, an instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means... - Ian Wordsworth - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Linda Wordsworth - tap dancing
Note
The original Victory Band was actually several bands who recorded 7-inch 78s for WoolworthsWoolworths Group
Woolworths Group plc was a listed British company that owned the high-street retail chain, Woolworths, as well as other brands such as the entertainment distributor Entertainment UK and book and resource distributor Bertram Books...
between 1928 and 1931. They sold for sixpence and the recording quality was dire, even though the musicians were distinguished (one band included Mantovani
Mantovani
Annunzio Paolo Mantovani known as Mantovani, was an Anglo-Italian conductor and light orchestra-styled entertainer with a cascading strings musical signature. The book British Hit Singles & Albums states that he was "Britain's most successful album act before The Beatles .....
).