FEATURE:
Pride of the Country
PHOTO CREDIT: BBC
The Legendary Bob Harris at Seventy-Five
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I have put out a few…
birthday-related posts this year already. They don’t come much more important than Bob Harris’ seventy-fifth on 11th April. Not only is he one of our finest broadcasters and voices; his The Country Show with Bob Harris is essential listening for every music fan. I think that the genre is so broad that it can be appreciated by anyone. The way Harris speaks about the music played and effuses is infectious! He is a legend who, through the years, has inspired me and so many others regarding music. He is also known for his work on The Old Grey Whistle Test in the 1970s. I am in my thirties, yet I have seen old episodes of the show. The series started on 21st September 1971. Harris he took over from 1972. It is a show that ran until 1988 and it is, without a doubt, a classic. It is a shame that we do not really have a show like that on the BBC (or anywhere) like that anymore. I want to source from a couple of interviews where Harris discussed Country music and its evolution (among other things). Before that, I found an article from The Guardian where, on 31st October, 1972, Martin Walker met Bob Harris on The Old Grey Whistle Test:
“Perhaps you need to be soft in the head to think that you can use the medium of speech to portray and interpret the medium of music and then use the visual tool of television to get the whole thing across. But it is being said that BBC-2’s late Tuesday night rock programme, “The Old Grey Whistle Test,” is the first television rock show which is a success in inter-media terms.
There have been successful programmes before: “Ready, Steady, Go” was one of the vectors along which Swingin’ London was supposed to oscillate, and “Top Of The Pops” has silenced all but the rattle of glasses in a lot of pubs for half an hour a week since it began. These shows tried to present rock in a pale imitation of its natural habitat the live audience - and filled the screen with gyrating dolly birds and expensive looking sets and the plastic spontaneity of the talk show.
As part of that throbbing audience out there in telly-land I always felt vaguely patronised: “We know you’re only going through a phase, son, but Auntie Beeb and Uncle ITV will feed you the pap anyway.” Even more annoying was the growing realisation that somehow television should be receiving and not just a transmitting system. Because nobody had seen television as anything but a super-radio, nobody presumed that the medium might have its own aesthetic logic. Rock was treated as sound to be broadcast with the added curse of needing visuals to fill the screen. So they gave us little stages, little lights, and little audiences and it felt wrong.
Some of the older shows had tried to give the music a visual backing with short films. Occasional sequences were fine; the Beatles’s dreamy film to “Strawberry Fields” and Roy Orbison’s street hunt for “Pretty Woman” were two of the more memorable things about “Top of the Pops.” “Whistle Test” has tried to develop a psychedelic television light show. So far this has tended to reinforce that point McLuhan forgot; the television screen is so very, very small that to watch it and focus upon it needs an effort of will.
The production team point out that the essence of the operation is cheapness. The show works on a budget of little more than £500 a week. The producer, Michael Appleton, was executive producer on “Late Night Line-up” and has some forthright opinions of his own about the use of television and the exigencies of the late night show. “We cannot do a ‘Ready, Steady, Go’ because we cannot afford it. I had to turn down a superb film clip of the old Yardbirds, because it would have cost more than a quarter of my budget for a week.
“Other shows could be spectacles of pop, but we are dealing with Rock music. Nobody else is doing this on TV,” he says. He also worked on “Colour Me Pop” and “Disco 2” which have each reflected the music and its stylistic implications for the social scene as it evolved. He talks of the “visual tricks” of the pop shows, and fondly remembers the “electric holiday” of “Disco.”
The gentle manner of Bob Harris and of his predecessor on Whistle Test, the rock journalist Richard Williams, reflects the primarily respectful way the show tries to approach the audience. Nothing pretentious, no extravaganzas, but the constant implication that this is serious music, worth intelligent attention. Harris himself, who spends most of his day between two stereo speakers listening to Rock, helped to found the magazine Time Out with Tony Elliot. He has written about radio, run record shows for the Royal Academy of Music, and worked with film. “The media has a responsibility to evolve its own forms, its art form if you like,” Harris says. “We know something of the process of entertainment, but not enough about the process of information. Can you just give information or does it have to be shared?” he asks”.
IN THIS PHOTO: Bob Harris in 1977
I want to introduce an interview Belles & Gals conducted in 2019. They discussed Harris’ huge involvement in the highly anticipated C2C Festival of that year and his time hosting The Old Grey Whistle Test:
“How do you introduce a man who’s done so much in his life? To be honest, he’s someone who I was completely in awe of interviewing, who has dedicated his entire career to his passion for music, a well-respected broadcaster and icon in the UK Country music scene. Of course, I could only be talking about Bob Harris.
Bob has had a huge involvement in the highly anticipated C2C Festival taking place next month, and has been interviewing musicians taking part on his radio show. Before starting Bob Harris Country on BBC Radio 2, he presented the famous Old Grey Whistle Test.
His YouTube channel, WhisperingBobTV, home to the Under The Apple Tree Sessions, has accumulated over a million views, giving budding artists a platform to share their music.
I had the pleasure of speaking to him about his outstanding knowledge of Country music, the Under The Apple Tree Tour, C2C, and who he believes is the “next big thing”.
You’ve been in music journalism for over 40 years so far, which is incredible! One of the shows you’re well known for presenting was The Old Grey Whistle Test, which focused mainly on Rock music. Since then you’ve moved onto Country music. What sparked your love of Country?
Whistle Test was a very eclectic show, we had lots of different styles of music – from Bob Marley to Curtis Mayfield and Freddie King. We were huge supporters of Country-Rock in the Seventies; bands like The Eagles, artists like Gram Parsons and Emmylou Harris, who did a live concert special for us.
By that time, I’d realised how much great music was coming out of Nashville – Blonde on Blonde by Bob Dylan was recorded there. There was a lot of Country-Rock in the early Seventies and I really latched onto that.
If you draw a straight line from that music in the early Seventies to what I’m playing now, there’s a direct connection. I realised when I got to Nashville, for the first time in 1999, that it was the place I’ve always wanted to be. I absolutely LOVE it there; the people, the community, and the music. I discovered how much depth there is to Country music and how much I love it, It’s really good!
That’s just incredible, especially with C2C 2019, which has got the most publicity yet! The line-up this year is fantastic and you’ve been interviewing artists like Ashley McBryde and Jimmie Allen who are performing on Bob Harris Country. Could you tell us a little bit more about your involvement in the festival?
I introduced the very first act that walked out on stage at the first C2C in 2013, Kristian Bush. The first session we recorded at Under The Apple Tree was with Kristian. He was over here for a songwriters round and he came down to the studio. My son Miles recorded an interview with him. This was the start of the idea of us getting these Under The Apple Tree sessions underway. There we were, on stage together, at C2C with me introducing him. It felt to me like Kristian was an important building block in it all. We’ve become good friends, and he presented me with my CMA International Broadcaster Award a few years ago; he’s been there at the key moments.
Looking out from the stage, seeing the festival grow year by year, has just been an incredible experience. That first weekend in 2013 had quite a nice vibe to it, but the turning point really was I think was the Zac Brown Band set a few years later. The traditionalists didn’t like the idea of them doing a cover of Kashmir by Led Zeppelin.
The following year it was Florida Georgia Line, and all the seats that had been vacated had been taken up by an entirely new generation who brought in a new energy with them.
The festival is so dynamic and really exciting. The main auditorium is packed. It’s a triumph seeing it grow from the stage; a fantastic experience. This year is going to be the biggest yet!!”.
Sticking with 2019 and, around the time of C2C, Harris chatted with Six Shooter Country. It is interesting learning about the artists he was listening to at the time (I am familiar with them) and where he felt U.K. Country was headed:
“I’m interested to know from you, Bob. You’ve pushed country in the UK for years, did you always have a feeling it would blow up like this and all it would take was maybe something like a C2C to help these fans emerge from the shadows?
I’m not sure there was a light bulb moment where we moved from the dark into the light and you could say “wow, that’s it, that’s the single reason this has happened”. There were a whole number of signposts that began to point in this direct, in fact I became aware of an arriving shift at the time when I first started doing the country show and started going to Nashville in 1999. When Alan Jackson and George Strait and people like that were ruling country music with an iron rod, however a new generation were just starting to arrive and I think of Brad, Sara Evans, then Keith Urban, more sort of broad minded artists who were prepared to think that there is something beyond the horizon line! There’s a rest of the world out there that actually might enjoy country.
I’m very interested to know if there’s anyone you’re listening to at the moment and think is going to break through in the next 12 months?
Molly Tuttle. I love Molly Tuttle. She’s just fabulous. She’s not dead-centre country, more bluegrass but she was the instrumentalist of the year at the Americana’s at the Ryman last September. I think she’s lovely, she’s got a really light touch, her music is very driftily creative. She’s coming over in April and I think she’s wonderful. The other name, actually recommended to me by Sam Outlaw, is Caleb Caudle. His album is beautiful, really really lovely.
It’s funny you say Sam Outlaw’s name, what a great artist. It’s funny how there are certain artists that seem to make a name over here but struggle back in the States. It’s a strange phenomenon.
And Sam is definitely in that category. He’s been struggling a bit in America whereas here we’ve really embraced him. I was will Al Booth, Mark Hagen and Millie Olykan at a little venue in Madison on the outskirts of Nashville called Dee’s Country Cocktail Lounge, Sam had a residency there playing 90’s country covers. It was one of the best gigs I’ve been to in years and yet he was basically playing as a cover band. He is sensational, I was very happy Millie came with us because, with her position at CMA, I really wanted her to see him.
Just to wrap things up, this is an open question, but what do you see for the future of country music in the UK?
I think it’s just going to keep on going. It’s interesting how broad a church it is but perhaps that’s more emphasised today than at any time. I do think that one of the reasons is the fact that some of the new artists have been listening to the radio, going on Spotify and exploring genres and picking off music they really like. They’re allowing the influence of things they like to bleed into music they’re making now. It’s like Keith (Urban) really, if you really really analyse his set at the O2 it’s not awash with pedal steel but it’s rooted in country music in a way that’s difficult to define. His music has grown out of Nashville, and alright it may have taken on board influences from other musical genres, but it’s based in country. I think we’ll gradually see more of the definition lines in musical genres blurring. I think that’s a long-term process in the next five to ten years but I think it’s going to happen. I don’t see that with any kind of dread. For the traditionalists, this is the end of country music as we know it! I say to people who moan; OK, well, turn the clock back to the late 50’s early 60’s, to Jim Reeves, Patsy Cline, Chet Atkins and the production of that, what were they doing? They were turning country into pop as a reaction to the rough and raw sound of rock n roll. The audiences were concerned what they were hearing when they heard the new Jim Reeves record was a pop single with a country basis. Now, the traditionalists are saying “music isn’t like it was when Jim Reeves was making records” – well he was making pop records! The people who are now saying country is going too pop – have we not heard this before?! I’m absolutely against the idea of resisting this change. I think it is a change, it’s an energy, it’s amazing fuel being poured into country and I’m 100% behind that!
I’ve quoted this a couple of times, but to me it summed everything up at that moment. We were broadcasting live at the Grand Old Opry and this is when we were doing literally the live coverage of the CMA Awards. Richard Wootten was with us and the door of the studio was open, Alan Jackson was stood literally just outside the door about 15 yards from me and my microphone. Richard said “oh, there’s Alan Jackson, I’ll go grab him for an interview”. I was privy to this conversation, Richard said “Hi Alan”, Alan knew who he was, he said “we’ve got the BBC here, with an audience of 15 million, they’d love to have a chat with you so that maybe you could talk to your fans in Britain for a couple of minutes, it’d be really nice”. He looked at Richard and said “why would I want to do that?” I’ve always remembered that. To me that narrow and closed mind, these new artists were beginning to blow it away. Lonestar, Rascal Flatts, these are the artists that paved the way and were the first of the newer acts that were coming here to build an audience. Then Taylor, the influence with the young girls like Catherine McGrath who were inspired by her. ‘O Brother Where Art Thou’ was very influential, I remember T Bone Burnett saying it was like a depth charge then a few years later all the bubbles starting coming to the surface – for us that happened with the likes of Mumford and Sons.
Then you get the likes of The Civil Wars, who inspired The Shires, they were the first outpost of British country. That all coincided with the arrival of C2C. It was a lot of filings that eventually began to point to magnetic north. It was a gradual process. Of course, don’t get me wrong, I’m not going to forget The Country Show. Right from day one I was the guy who was saying “have you heard of Gillian Welch? Rascal Flatts?” I think Millie Olycan was massively important to C2C and she was a huge supporter of my show, she saw it as a massive catalyst”.
I am going to wrap things up in a moment. Recently, Penny Black Music paid tribute to an icon who has been in broadcasting for over fifty years. Harris talked about how musicians have been affected by lockdown and which interview from his time on The Old Grey Whistle Test is his favourite:
“There aren't many icons of rock music with whom the broadcasting legend Bob Harris hasn't worked – and socialised.
When he was celebrating 50 years in broadcasting this summer, heartfelt tributes poured in from many of the biggest names in music. From his early 'Old Grey Whistle Test' days to his time on BBC Radio One and his more recent championing of country music, the 74 year-old 'Whispering' Bob has hung out with them all, from John Lennon and George Harrison to Marc Bolan, David Bowie and Led Zeppelin.
He once sang backing vocals for Bowie, he watched Arthur Brown set his hair on fire, had a scrap with the Sex Pistols, tracked down reclusive Beach Boy Brian Wilson, sat in on recording sessions with Bob Marley and Alexis Korner, and he once toured America with Queen.
So when Bob decided recently to assemble a cast of artists to record a Band Aid-style charity record to assist musicians hit by the coronavirus, the big issue wasn't who to involve, but who to leave out.
Bob ended up with a wish list of top performers playing a cover of his favourite song – Ben E King's 'Stand By Me' - with all the proceeds going to the organisation Help Musicians. The project celebrates Bob's half century in broadcasting and also marks the 60th anniversary of the song's original recording back in October 1960.
"Many musicians have had their income obliterated by lockdown", Bob says from his home in rural Oxfordshire. "Their careers have been decimated. They've not been able to earn money from live performance or getting new music published. It has been dire – and I just wanted to help them.
"The contributions to the record were mainly made remotely, of course. People on it include Mark Knopfler, Duane Eddy, Rick Wakeman, Leo Sayer, Peter Frampton, Paul Rodgers, Richard Thompson of Fairport, Beth Nielsen Chapman, John Oates, The Shires, and so many more!
"Each brought their own style and charm to the recording. My son Miles Myerscough-Harris mixed it here at my home studio and it is going out under our Under The Apple Tree label. I am so proud of it. And I am on there, playing the triangle! It's been a fantastic project and the crowning achievement of my 50 years in the music industry and on radio."
Who was Bob's favourite interviewee over all the years? “No question. It was John Lennon. My best interview with John was for The Old Grey Whistle Test back in 1975 in John's adopted New York home.
"He was candid, chatty, witty, open and honest. I asked if he would be getting The Beatles back together and I recall being delighted when he said that if someone organised it, he'd happily go along with it. Incidentally, John had recorded his own version of 'Stand By Me' in 1974, the year before. He loved that Ben E King song, too!”.
Ahead of his seventy-fifth birthday on Sunday (11th April), I wanted to salute a broadcasting colossus. From his hugely important and memorable T.V. work through to his endless dedication to and passion for Country music, there is nobody out there like the incredible Bob Harris! He had to take a break in 2019 after a heart scare. I am glad that Harris is okay, and we still get to hear his golden voice on the radio. I hope that this is the case…
PHOTO CREDIT: Jeff Gilbert
FOR a very long time to come.