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If you have any news to share that is Patto-related, let me know |
| March 7, 2017 | Cherry Red Records and their label Esoteric Recordings have entered into an agreement with the legendary band
Patto, (John Halsey, Clive Griffiths and the estates of the late Mike Patto and Ollie
Halsall), to officially reissue all of the albums recorded by the band between 1970 and 1973. The reissues will all be re-mastered and feature liner notes written by journalist Sid Smith and exclusive interviews with John Halsey. The booklets will also feature previously unseen photos and drawings by the band taken from John Halsey’s personal archive. In addition, the releases will be expanded by the inclusion of BBC Sessions, all released with the approval of both the BBC and Patto. All of the BBC sessions are previously unreleased! “Patto” - new edition will be released on April 28, 2017 and will include the previously released "Hanging Rope" outtake plus "Love Me" and "Government Man" from the BBC Radio One “Sounds of the 70s” session (3rd November 1970). “Hold Your Fire” - new 2-CD set will be released on April 28, 2017 and will include the previously released "Beat the Drum" and "Bad News" outtakes and alternate take of "Air Raid Shelter." The following previously unreleased material will be included: Alternate version of "Give It All Away" and early version of "Hold Your Fire". "San Antone", "Government Man",
"Beat the Drum", "Sittin’ Back Easy", and "So Cold"
from the BBC Radio One “In Concert” session (4th March 1971). Can't wait to hear these releases! |
| September 2, 2013 | The Rutles just wrapped up a reunion tour with dates in England in Scotland. John Halsey was the drummer, of course, and as entertaining as ever. I can still hear the chants of the Barry Wom fan club. None of the shows were filmed, but there are a bunch of videos out on YouTube. The tour was great fun, so hopefully they won't wait another eight years to play again! |
| September 25, 2012 | On August 27, 2012, the Esoteric Recordings (Cherry Red Records) label reissued Boxer's Below The Belt and Bloodletting albums on CD. Below The Belt includes the "Don't Wait" B-side, available for the first time officially on CD. Both CDs feature expanded liner notes by Sid Smith, which include insights from a recent interview he did with Tony Newman. |
| October 17, 2009 | I just received official word from The Admiral that the The Hinkley's Heroes gig planned for next month has been cancelled due to poor ticket sales. Very disappointing news for the band and those of us that were planning to attend. |
| September 25, 2009 | Ralph from the UGLY
THINGS fanzine has contacted the site to let everyone know of an
upcoming three-part Ollie Halsall retrospective will start appearing
next month in UGLY THINGS. The first installment will cover the
Timebox days, ending with the transition to Patto. Part II will
cover the Patto era, initial work with Kevin Ayers, the Boxer years,
right up till when he leaves for Spain. Part III will tie it all
together. Be sure to get your tickets for the one-time Hinkley's Heroes reunion concert in London on 11/12/2009!!! A couple of items from Barry at the Ollie Halsall Caves site: The sold out Patto live "Warts and All" record is now available again as an mp3 download via the Ollie Halsall Caves website. Watch a fun Kevin Ayers clip from Belgian TV 1982. It is the band miming to the song Animals, and Ollie is on drums! |
| August 30, 2007 |  Orange
DVD has released "Beat ClubProgressive Times Vol.4 1970/71 DVD,
which includes Patto's performance of San Antone that was removed from
YouTube earlier this year.
Other artists on the DVD include The Move, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Iron Butterfly, Golden Earring, T-Rex, UFO, and others. Available now from various retailers in Europe and North America (try Google or eBay). Thanks for the heads up, Roger! |
| March 3, 2007 | I recently noticed that some of the
1973 television footage of Mike Patto singing backup for Alvin Lee and
Mylon LeFevre on Midnight Special has been posted on You Tube!
Thanks to Toni Franklin at alvinlee.com for writing to make sure I knew
about it, which prompted me to get the lead out and post this news
item...
Here are the links: Rockin' Till The Sun Goes Down Carry My Load The World Is Changing |
| January 25, 2007 | Several fellow fans have written to
let me know of the Patto video available on the French National
Audiovisual Institute's web site. This is, of course, exciting
news, and I do apologize for being so slow to post this notice.
The video is from Pop Deux, March 6, 1971. The band plays
"Time To Die" and "Money Bag" and a short interview
is also included. Bernie Holland is playing bass in place of Clive
who was in hospital at the time.
The web site is http://ina.fr. A search for Patto should return a link to the Pop Deux footage. Click on the hyperlink, wait for the footage to load, and enjoy! You can pay 6 Euros to download a DivX file of the show. |
| September 25, 2006 | Some very sad news this time.
Boz Burrell passed away due to heart failure on September 21, 2006 at
his home in Spain. Some know him best as the bass player for Bad
Company and, for a shorter period of time, King Crimson. Boz was
also a member of Dick and The Fireman, Hinkley's Heroes, Centipede, and
Steve York's Camelo Pardalis, so his name is mentioned on many pages of
this web site. Boz was one of Mike Patto's closest friends and
remained a good friend of the McCarthy family and the Halseys up until
his passing. I never had the pleasure to meet him but have heard
great stories about him from friends that played with him. He will
be greatly missed by many.
Boz (upper left) at a Heroes rehearsal with Poli Palmer, Mitch Mitchell, and Henry McCullough (kneeling). Photo copyright John Halsey. |
| August 22, 2006 | Great news! Previously
unavailable Timebox recordings from the BBC have been released!
More information about the release and how to order is available at the Top Sounds web site: http://topsoundsrecords.co.uk/intro.html. The prices as of today are £13.49 each for vinyl LPs and £12.99 each for CDs. Paypal and personal cheque payment methods are offered via the web site. This is an official release, approved by John Halsey, Chris Holmes, and Clive Griffiths, so don't hesitate! |
| January 21, 2006 | Akarma release of "Patto -
Ducks In Flight - The Lost Jazz Album 1970/1971." I've
received a few emails on this one. This release from Akarma is a
collection of the outtakes from the band's first two albums that were
originally released on the "Sense of the Absurd" CD plus,
strangely, "Teachers" from Boxer's Bloodletting
LP. Inclusion of a Boxer track hints at this being an unauthorized
release. But, at any rate, there is no new material here.
Over the last year or so, the band's Vertigo albums have been showing up as various reissues, including the outtakes included with "Sense of the Absurd." Repertoire has reissed them in Digipak packaging. The Japanese mini-LP issues look very nice. There is a Japanese mini-LP CD Patto box set, which strangely includes Kevin Ayers releases. The box includes "Patto," "Hold Your Fire," "The Confessions of Dr. Dream..." and "Sweet Deceiver." The front of the box is a replica of Patto's original "Hold Your Fire" Consequences cover. These releases are reportedly remastered in 24-bit. Some new bootleg releases have appeared on eBay, etc. One called "A Hard Life" is a 2-CD set that appears to be a repackaging of various BBC recordings from Patto, Tempest, and Boxer. Doesn't look like anything new, though. A couple of compilations consisting of tracks by bands on the Vertigo label have been released. Bands include, Patto, Black Sabbath, May Blitz, Gentle Giant, Colosseum, Uriah Heep, Juicy Lucy, and many others. A single CD release titled "Vertigo Mixed by Andy Votel" includes Patto's "Government Man." Another 3-CD release titled "Time Machine: A Vertigo Retrospective" includes Patto's "The Man." Some web site's have mistakenly listed Patto as playing "Who Do You Love?" on this compilation, but this is actually a Juicy Lucy track. Timebox tracks continue to appear on various compilations. This time, Decca has released a series of compilations: "The Mod Scene" includes "Girl, Don't Make We Wait"; "The Psychedelic Scene" includes "Gone Is The Sad Man"; and "The Freakbeat Scene" includes "Poor Little Heartbreaker." A limited edition pressing of Timebox's classic "Beggin'"/"A Woman That's Waiting" single was issued in 2005 on 7-inch vinyl. Appears to be a high quality reproduction of the original Deram single, though without the removable spindle hole. It seems this 45 was only available from eil.com and was limited to 500 copies. Mike Patto's son, Mike, has been playing/singing with British soul band, Reel People. New album due out in February, 2006. Check out their web site: http://www.reelpeoplemusic.co.uk/. I heard from Boxer's original drummer, Tony Newman, last year. He shared some recollections about his days with the band, and it was great to hear he is still playing. He was about to embark on a UK tour with the Everly Brothers. Thankfully, he put together something more formal for Barry Monks' Ollie Halsall Caves site, so be sure to check that out: http://www.olliehalsall.co.uk/newman.htm. |
| July 3, 2003 | Word has it that Terry Stamp's
Fatsticks album is remastered and available on CD. Check out
Terry's web site for details (WWW.GSLMUSIC.COM).
Ollie and Tony Newman played on Terry's 1975 Fatsticks album, and Boxer
also covered two of the songs from that album ("Town Drunk"
and "Dinah Low"). Check out Ollie's playing on
"Itchy Feet"! The web site also has information on Third
World War and other projects Terry has been a part of.
Unfortunately, there hasn't been much more to report on for quite a while. Akarma reissued the Vertigo Patto albums on CD in mini-LP covers, but I have not heard or seen them yet for myself. Timebox songs continue to appear on the odd compilation CD, but nothing unusual. Just a reminder - if you hear something newsworthy, let me know and I'll post it here! |
| October 7, 2002 | Still not confirmed, but latest word
is that Vertigo is not reissuing their 1970-1971 catalog. Instead
they are putting together a 2-CD compilation of recordings by various
Vertigo artists, including Patto, called "Early
Years."
The SPIN magazine article was published in the November 2002 issue. It turned out to be just one paragraph on Patto within an article titled "Super Doomed, The 13 Unluckiest Bands." It is basically just a listing of tragedies: causes of death for Mike and Ollie, the car accident that Clive and John were in, etc. |
| September 12, 2002 | Be on the lookout for Vertigo CD
reissues. No details yet, but word has it that Vertigo plans to
reissue their 1970-1971 catalog on CD including Patto's first two
albums, "Patto" and "Hold Your Fire."
A representative from SPIN magazine emailed and reported they are planning to publish an article on Patto in their November 2002 issue. |
| May 27, 2002 |  I
have finally received my copy of the "Monkey's Bum" LP
released recently by Akarma (Cat. # AK 201). I'm sorry to
report that the source used for this release is the Audio Archives
bootleg CD (or the same source used to make the CD).
Unfortunately, it appears to be an unauthorized release and does not
offer us anything new apart from the artwork. I haven't
confirmed it, but I'm told this release is also available from Akarma on
CD. See the Monkey's Bum page for
more details.
As previously reported, Akarma also released 180 gram vinyl issues of the first two Patto LPs earlier this year. While it is suspected that these are also unauthorized releases, Akarma did do a respectable job with high quality gatefold jackets that are similar to the original releases -- the vinyl sounds pretty good too. Akarma's release of "Patto" (1970) (Cat. # AK 105) has a textured gatefold cover and faithfully reproduced artwork. Their "Hold Your Fire" (1971) LP (Cat. # AK 190) cover was done like the original with the front cover cut into three separate panels to reveal sections of the character drawings on the inside of the gatefold. In comparison to the original Vertigo release, much heavier materials were used, the colors are not quite the same (for example, the Patto logo and the hunter's coat are red instead of orange), and the lines are not as fine so a little of the detail is lost in the drawings. As you would expect, all of the Akarma Patto vinyl releases feature their own custom label and not a reproduction of the Vertigo swirl. Akarma is a division of Comet Records (www.cometrecords.com). Diverse Vinyl is only a seller of some of Akarma's releases, so they are not really able to provide additional information about the LPs. |
| April 16, 2002 | Steve has written again to let us know that Akarma is now planning to release "Monkey's Bum" on 180 gram vinyl! Again, you can order from Diverse Vinyl in Newport, Wales (http://www.diversevinyl.com/). That site indicates the LP will be released on April 20, 2002. Guess we'll have to wait and see what kind of source tapes they will be using. Hopefully will be a big improvement over the Audio Archives bootleg CD release! |
| January 23, 2001 | Fellow fan Steve has written to inform us that Akarma is re-releasing the "Patto" (1970) and "Hold Your Fire" (1971) LPs on 180 gram vinyl! You can pre-order from Diverse Vinyl in Newport, Wales (http://www.diversevinyl.com/). According to their site, the debut LP is scheduled to be re-released January 25, 2002, and "Hold Your Fire" is due out on February 25, 2002. |
| December 31, 2001 | My sincerest apologies for not
making updates for quite some time now. It's not laziness -
honestly. Been very busy doing some recording, gigging, paying the
bills, etc. I even got the privilege of a lifetime and played with
John Halsey and Neil Innes in the Rutles Unrugged concerts back in
October! I have more to add to the site, and I promise I'll get
back into it in 2002!
A couple of news notes: A reminder that the Timebox Deram Anthology CD is apparently in print again. It should not be too hard to find a copy from on-line merchants like Amazon.com. Also, in the UK, it should be available at Virgin Megastores and HMV shops. Timebox's "Gone is the Sad Man" was included in the "Nuggets II - Original Artyfacts from the British Empire and Beyond" box set put out by Rhino in 2001. In the booklet is a previously unseen photo of the group. |
| September 1, 2001 | The Rutles Unrugged! John Halsey will be doing a couple shows in October with Neil Innes and friends playing primarily Rutles tunes! Also in the band on guitar and vocals will be Steve Simpson, who played with the Hinkley's Heroes jam band. Dates are Monday, October 29 at the Cambridge Corn Exchange and Tuesday, October 30 at the Regent Theatre in Ipswich. |
| July 23, 2001 | MOJO contacted the site last week, and it looks like the Patto article is on again! It is scheduled for the September issue (available in mid-August), so watch for it! |
| May 6, 2001 | Charles Preston wrote to inform us
that M.V.C. in the UK is having a Decca/Deram promotion and there are
some new compilations containing Timebox tracks. "The Mod
scene" [Deram 844 549-2] contains "Girl Don't Make Me Wait," and "Gone Is The
Sad Man" appears on the "Psychedelic Scene" [Deram 844
797-2]. Castle's "Jump and Dance - Doin' The Mod Vol 2"
[Castle CMRCD097] contain's Timebox's "Soul Sauce".
Charles also reported that M.V.C. was able to easily get the Timebox
Deram Anthology CD, though it supposedly went out of print late in 1999.
I also noticed recently that a compilation titled "The Go-Go Train (Doin' the Mod! Vol 1)" [2000, Sequel NEMCD 479] contains Timebox's "I Wish I Could Jerk Like My Uncle Cyril" as well as Felder's Orioles' "Turn On Your Lovelight", with John Halsey on drums. John Halsey was recently seen in Rutles uniform on the "Never Mind The Buzzcocks" television program in the UK on BBC2. The contestants had to guess which one was the real Barry Wom. John was also recently interviewed for a documentary on the making of Lou Reed's "Transformer" LP, on which John plays drums on four or five of the tracks. No information available on when the documentary will air at the moment, but keep an eye out. |
| April 20, 2001 | As you have probably noticed, the May issue of Mojo didn't have the Patto article. I have no additional information for the delay. We'll just have to keep watching for it. |
| February 23, 2001 | Just received word from MOJO that
the 5-page feature on Patto has been rescheduled for the May issue,
available in mid-April. Basically, guitarist John Fahey has just recently passed away, and they want to do a timely feature article on him for the April issue. |
| February 16, 2001 | Great news! Just received an email from Harry Shapiro, who is finishing up the promised MOJO article on Patto. Patto fans asked for it, and now the article is scheduled to appear in the April edition (available in mid-March)! |
| January 18, 2001 | Patto came in 2nd place in MOJO
magazine's cult heroes readers' poll published in the February, 2001
issue! They also mention that a Patto feature article is on its
way, as was reported back in November. The top five in the
poll: 1) Alex Harvey 2) Patto 3) Townes Van Zandt 4) Pixies
5) Roy Buchanan/Danny Gatton.
A new unofficial Boxer CD titled "Saved By The Bell" is making the rounds. I haven't seen or heard it, but it reportedly contains the 1977 "Absolutely" album, BBC tracks, and other rarities. |
| November 22, 2000 | MOJO magazine reports that it is working on a feature article on Timebox/Patto! Will let you know when more details on the article and its date of publication become available... |
| September 2, 2000 |  The
September, 2000 issue of MOJO magazine comes with a free 20-track CD
compilation of sixties music, including "Soul Sauce" by
Timebox.
However, due to copyright reasons, the CD may not be available worldwide. |
| July 16, 2000 |  BGO records in the UK has just
re-released Centipede's Septober Energy
album on CD. Last year's CD release on the What Disc? label
was mastered from a vinyl copy. This issue is from the
original master tapes with additional sleeve notes! The catalog
number is BGOCD485.
There is a rumor that a 1975 Boxer television special is going to be broadcast in France sometime soon. Hope someone has their video tape recorder rolling! Anybody have more information? |
| June 19, 2000 | Andy Partridge of XTC took an opportunity to endorse Ollie's playing in a recent interview for Guitar Player magazine (July 2000 issue). The short excerpt in question is included in the "How's Your Father" section. If only GP would do an article on Ollie... |
| January 17, 2000 | They've arrived! The new "Warts
and All" Patto live CD is now available and shipping from
Deadpan Alley Music for customers in the U.S. and Canada.
BUMMER! Apparently, the fantastic "Sense of the Absurd" CD set (compilation of the first 2 LPs with bonus tracks) is no longer being manufactured. Maybe it has been out of print for quite a while, but people are now starting to have a lot of trouble finding a copy. |
| January 11, 2000 | THE NEW
PATTO LIVE CD IS NOW AVAILABLE!
Click HERE for more
information!
For those having problems finding a copy of the out-of-print Timebox "Deram Anthology" CD, I have been informed that Tower Records UK still has some copies available (though they are calling it the "Dream Anthology"). Their web address is www.towerrecords.co.uk . Get one quick before they're gone! For those having problems locating Ollie Halsall's "Caves" CD, you can order directly from Market Square: http://www.themusicindex.com/marketsquare |
| December 19,1999 |
Some of the other musicians on the Hinkley's Heroes CD include Boz Burrell, Mel Collins, Tim Hinkley, Neil Hubbard, Henry McCullough, Mitch Mitchell, George Zoot Money, Alvin Lee, Poli Palmer, Mick Ralphs, Steve Simpson, Bobby Tench, and Ian Wallace. AKARMA has also released the Jody Grind albums on CD in Italy, both with bonus tracks. Tim Hinkley was a principle member of the band. 1969's "One Step On" [Cat. # AK 058] includes Ivan Zagni on guitar. Ivan co-wrote the Timebox B-side, "A Woman's That's Waiting". 1970's "Far Canal" [Cat. # AK 065] includes Bernie Holland on guitar. Bernie played with Patto for a while circa 1971, including the "In Concert" BBC program. He also played at the early Dick and the Firemen gigs, was a member of Rocks (with Mike Patto and Halsey in 1978), and played on the Rutles "Archaeology" album. New Patto live CD update: John Halsey will be making the new CD available to us fans as early as January of 2000!!! It is a Sheffield gig which features the only time Ollie ever sang "San Antone" live. John says it also includes an incredible guitar solo from Ollie that alone should be worth the price of admission. I will have a page with full details of the CD and how to order a copy as soon as John has them ready for sale. Over the next month or so I will be adding a bunch of new articles and photos that I have obtained recently. |
| November 22, 1999 | The splendid Ollie
Halsall "Caves"
CD has been released in the UK by
Market Square Music! The Cat. # is MSMCD103. It includes 12 of Ollie's demos from 1979 on which he plays all of the
instruments and handles all the vocals. The album is a mix of laid
back melodic tunes and upbeat pop tunes. Cover art from Ollie and
liner notes from John Otway and Barry Monks.
Centipede's 1971 "Septober Energy" album, which included Mike Patto on vocals, has just been released on CD in the UK on the What Disc? label. Cat. # is WHAT5CD. Word has it that Tim Hinkley is planning to release a Hinkley's Heroes CD sometime in December of 1999. The Heroes included Mike Patto and John Halsey along with a host of all-stars. Mike reportedly sings lead on several of the tracks. Available is a recent CD reissue of the Tempest "Living In Fear" album featuring Ollie. It is from the UK on the Essential Records/Castle label, Cat.# ESM CD 724. It features the original cover art and photos unlike the last CD issue that packaged this album and the first Tempest album on one CD. The Timebox "Deram Anthology" CD has gone out of print. If you've been contemplating getting a copy, find one now before they start going for collector prices! Most important, however, is an upcoming live Patto album!!! I cannot the disclose the details yet, but soon a limited edition Patto live show will be made available to us that promises to sound much better than any of the live shows currently available to us fans. Stay tuned... it won't be long! |
"SHAPES AND SOUNDS - ‘Orange and red beams from the BBC archives 1967 - 1969’"
was released last week on CD and LP by Nigel Lees' TOP SOUNDS
label (catalog number TSLP / TSCD 002).
The
Hinkley's Heroes CD is now available! It is titled Hinkley's
Heroes Volume One. It has been
released in Italy on the AKARMA label [Cat. # AK 080]. The
CD is made up of studio recordings (plus one live track) which feature
various members of the jam band. Of the 10 tracks, Mike Patto
sings lead on three tracks: two previously unreleased plus the
A-side of his 1974 single, "Sitting in the Park", which is 30
seconds longer than the original single. John Halsey also plays
drums on the same three tracks.
