East Midlands Divisional Youth Band - 1984 onwards

[Sonor]

I was wondering how many folks out there in "Bandworld" were members of the East Midlands Divisional Youth Band? This year marks the 20th Anniversary of the formation of the Band (EMYB to its friends).

The Band was formed in 1984 by Barry Johnson who eventually handed over to Mike Kirk a couple of years later. In 1986 the Band toured Scotland over Easter and 1987 saw the band go to France (the lads playing in a football tornament on Sunday afternoon much to the displeasure of the DC!!!!!!)

At the time the Band were probalbly the finest SA Youth Band around(miles better than East London ever were - they'd probably disagree!!!!!) and went on to play as a solo band at some of the big SA events at the NEC and Wembley as well as making an appearance at the RAH in a massed band.

If anyone was a member or has knowledge of whereabouts of former members or even has recolections of hearing the Band please get in contact and let us know if you're still playing and where. If there is enough interest we may be able to arrange a re-union later on this year and even put a band together for the event.

Please get in touch by either this forum or by e-mailing me privately.

 

[Bariman]

At the time the Band were probalbly the finest SA Youth Band around(miles better than East London ever were - they'd probably disagree!!!!!)

You bet we will. The East London Youth Band were one of the original Youth Bands in the country and the best. Always up for something different we even played Brian Bowen's Day of the Spiritual at the Barbican in London

 

[PeterBale]

At the time the Band were probalbly the finest SA Youth Band around(miles better than East London ever were - they'd probably disagree!!!!!)

You bet we will. The East London Youth Band were one of the original Youth Bands in the country and the best. Always up for something different we even played Brian Bowen's Day of the Spiritual at the Barbican in London

If I remember correctly you also had a higher upper age limit than most :wink:
(South London Youth Band, 1974-1975)

 

[Sonor]

You bet we will. The East London Youth Band were one of the original Youth Bands in the country and the best. Always up for something different we even played Brian Bowen's Day of the Spiritual at the Barbican in London [/quote]



Well I remember us doing a marching display thing at Wembley Conference Centre which one of the pieces was "Daniel" preceeded by the fanfare opening to "Heroes of the Faith"

I remember South London having a decent youth band as I went to their music schools at Sunbury Court between 1984 and 1987, although I think by then their youth band had folded.

 

[Razor]

I remember hearing the EMYB when they visited Scotland, think it was in Ayr.

For a youth band they were very good. If I remember correctly players included Andy Scott(Euph), Karl ???(Cornet), Nigel Love(Trom) and an enthusiastic percussionist! Loads of other good players but can't recall any other names. I'm sure I also remember a tidy blonde girl who I think played cornet, poss front row.

One piece I remember them playing was an arrangement of the songster piece "Candle of the Lord", featuring flugel I think. Great arrangement but never heard it since. "Daniel" by Barry Gott was also featured.

 

[Jules Cornet]

I was never a member of the East Midlands Youth Band but I did have the priviledge of making a recording of Cornet Solos and Euphonium Solos/Duets with Derick Kane in the early 1990's, accompanied by the band.

There are plenty of Peterborians who were members of the EMYB at this time and I'll point them in the direction of this post, Paul Ward, Rob Harvey, Malcolm Kirk, Neil Blessett, Martin Blessett, Teresa Kirk(previously Green), Mark Ledger and more.

The arrangement of the flugel solo, Candle of the Lord, mentioned by Razor, was made by the leader Mike Kirk, who was known for some very classy and sensitive arrangements in this ilk. He was kind enough to write a cornet solo for myself entitled They Need Christ which featured on the aforementioned recording.

As for the other comments about the London Youth Bands, well! The North London Band was clearly the best! The three London youth bands used to have an annual contest, I'm sorry, concert at The Regent Hall.
We would play our little party pieces and feature our best soloists. The East London Youth Band at the time has a secret weapon, Kevin Ashman, who was the young star player of the time. He featured Tucker, Golden Slippers, and Rhapsody for Cornet and Band on three consecutive concerts. Yes they did also play Brian Bowen's Day of the Spiritual a real challenge at the time. (Clarence Adoo sat next to Kevin in the cornet section and their were some very fine players in all the bands)

They had very smart red tunics and our band, North London, could only muster V NECK jumpers, but we played well none the less. We were led at this time by Ray Todd, (Chalk Farm) who instilled a lot of good musical habits into us.

The final concert was held at London's Barbican, shortly after it opened and was I believe, the first SA concert in this venue. Happy Days!

Yours ramblingly

Jules Cornet

 

[Sonor]

Thanks for your reply.

Yes we were in Ayr on Easter Saturday as I recall.

As for the whereabouts of some of the members of the band today these are the ones that I am aware of. Carl Hobbs was the featured cornet soloist who after not playing for some time returned to banding with the my current band, Travelsphere. Nigel Love is also at Travelsphere on bass trombone as is soprano player Gary Fountain, cornet player Graham "lofty" Smith and my fellow percussionist Clive Wears, although he was not in the band for the Scotland tour. Andy Scott is, as far as I know, in the RAF as is his brother Phil and principal cornet player Kevin Williams still attends the SA at Bedford but I'm not certain that he plays much anymore. Mark Covington played percussion with me and who also doubled up as the band's bus driver is the BM at Hemel Hempstead corps. Some of the band from that time are associated with other brass bands, notably Jaguar (Coventry) who I also have connections with.

The band was made up fom players from Coventry down to Bedford and from Peterborough across to Oxford. The three main corps represented in the band were from Bedford, Kettering and Coventry City as time went on I recall players from amuch wider area joining the Youth Band as the Division at that time was huge.

The tidy blonde you refer to would have either been Andrea Wears or Jo Lea (nee Russell). I don't know what happened to Andrea but Jo married the band's trombonist, Kevin who is now band manager at Jags. Jo played for Rolls Royce Coventry (now Jags) but no longer plays as she looks after their two children.

"Candle of the Lord" was actually arranged by cornet player Paul Brill as I recall and featured on many of the bands programmes as did Barry Johnson's "Happy Day" - a sort of SA "Hootenanny".

As for the percussionst who played "Daniel", I wonder who that could have been..............................

 

[RCraik]

Peterborian - Solo Horn

I am one of the EMYB members who was there right to the bitter end when some muppets at THQ, who were clearly threatened by how good the band was, exiled P'boro to the Anglia division (obviously under pressure from London region bands with overage members).

Only kidding just trying to start an online scrap!

Which EMYB would obviously win!

I remember vividly one of the last things we played at practice was kaleidoscope which left me with scars on my lip forever. :?

 

[BassTromBeast]

Me too! I was on the waiting list for about 2 years and finally joined the hallowed trombone section about 6 months before the reorganisation of the divisions.

Teresa Kirk (then Green), Matthew Spencer, Rachel (somebody!), me and then Tristan (legend) on bass trom. Fantastic.

Gareth Craik

 

[muppet]

EMYB

Well, not often I get mentioned on the internet !!
I was the cornet soloist for a few years with the EMYB having joined when with the Wellingborough SA Band and later with the Kettering SA Band.
My solos back then were A happy day by Leidzen and Rhapsody for Cornet and band by Bowes.
I did the Scotland tour and French tour.
Back then I was a bit of a boy and saw the band and its travels as a bit of an ' opportunity to pull' as sad as it sounds now if you were from Kettering we all rated ourselfs a bit.
I seemed to pick up a telephone number or adress of a girl in most places and went out with the horn player for a while, Andrea Jacobson, who is now an officer (minister) in the Sally Ann!!!!!!!!!!
I married a trom player in Lisa Manning, the B/Ms daughter from Kettering . Now divorced and guess what....I am on the pull again ha ha ha.

Kettering did indeed provide a majority of the soloists, my self on cornet (now Flugel at Travelsphere), Nigel Love on solo trom (now Bass trom at Travelsphere), Gary Fountain on sop, (Now sop at Traveslphere after a stint with the ISB as second man to David " i wish i had his lip" Daws), Andy Scott on Euph (now with RAF Central Band I think).

Kevin Lea , Coventry. On trom now with Jaguar and married to Jo who was on horn.
Jon Miller was on cornet. He is now principal horn with the ISB.
His brother Andy Miller was on Bass and after stints at Luton and Enfield is back at Kettering and with the Household Troops band he married the blonde girl Andrea Wears whos brother Clive was also in the band on Trom and is on percussion with Traveslpher.
Geoff Love was on horn and is with Travelsphere on horn now.
They were great days and we had some good times and memories. ( Who remembers the girls from Rushden!!!!!!!!!!!)
Karl Hobbs
karl_hobbs@hotmail.com

 

[Shommusic]

At the time the Band were probalbly the finest SA Youth Band around(miles better than East London ever were - they'd probably disagree!!!!!)

Sorry chaps! ELYB were, at several periods of its existence, the finest youth band in the country!
The Ashman/Adoo band was by far the best in its day, and i know for a fact that the B/M Max Weaver says that the band of 1996 was even better! :wink:

 

[BottyBurp]

At the time the Band were probalbly the finest SA Youth Band around(miles better than East London ever were - they'd probably disagree!!!!!)

Actually, as a point of fact, South London DYB was the best. Especially the flugel player!

 

[Sonor]

Carl

The Rushden girls would have been the Prince sisters. Annette was one but can't remember the other one. I believe they are still at Rushden.

And what about this rubbish that you were a bit of a lad back then....... nothing has changed in all those years!!!!

As for you Cliff........................ get real!!!!! To be fair EMYB was at its peak from about 1986 to 1989. It was a superb youth band and Carl was right when he said we had some cracking times.

 

[Bariman]

Sorry chaps! ELYB were, at several periods of its existence, the finest youth band in the country!
The Ashman/Adoo band was by far the best in its day, and i know for a fact that the B/M Max Weaver says that the band of 1996 was even better! :wink:

Thanks for the support Shommusic.

Anymore former ELYB members (or guests, Carl) out there got anything to say in support fo the finest SA youth band?

 

[Chuckles-tuba]

Great to see some comments on EMYB.

I played EEb bass in the band for a few years before going away to music college (although I still helped out on most of the jobs).

some good memories were to be had, especially on the march. One bandsman had his cap blown off marching over a flyover which ended up on the motorway below. On another occasion we took a wrong turning and ended up marching through a muddy field. Finally when in Coventry (I think!!) half the band marched off whilst the other half stood perfectly still (well they say they come in threes).

I still see alot of the band, all the Peterborough guys (and gal) and some of the Ketteing ones. I play in a tuba quartette with Andy Scott who is still in the RAF, saw Kevin Williams last year and often bump into people at contests/concerts etc

I too remember the Regent Hall concert with us, Birmingham and East London Youth bands. there were more of us on the platform than there were in the audience. We played Daniel with each bands percussion taking there turns at the 8 bar drum break.

A reunion would be good Bren, I and many others would be up for it.

Cheers Everyone