(Lance): My memory was
jogged by a recent email from Howard Davies requesting info about Sid
Smith - A.K.A. Colonel Crint who for a brief period enlivened the northeast
scene in, I think the mid-sixties, leading his band Colonel Crint and
the Regimental Band of the Foot & Mouth Deserters.
I
recall "The Colonel" occasionally sitting in at the New Orleans club
and buying reeds from me when I worked in J.G. Windows music shop - "Do I
get a discount if I buy two reeds?" Undoubtedly a character's character!
Howard
informed me that Colonel Sid died about 14 years ago.
Dave
Kerr provided further information on this larger than life character...
"I
remember them being more or less stranded in Newcastle. Apparently they had won
an
Australian Opportunity Knocks type competition. They were sort of a forerunner
of Bob Kerr's Whoopee Band with a little of the Temperance Seven
thrown in. All good musicians but not in the same league as the
Temps.
Most
of their work was doing short spots in working men's clubs and on slack nights
you could see one or two of them in the upstairs room at Bambra's Music Hall
moonlighting with Peter Gascoyne.
They
eventually broke up and went their separate ways. Sid was an amusing character
who played soprano sax. I think he was originally from Wallsend and after
emigrating had tried to get into show business.
I
remember him telling me he had played outlaws as a member of Ned Kelly's
gang in a TV series.
After
his return to Australia he had a hit program on Children's TV with a glove
puppet. I seem to remember it was called something like "Willie the
Wombat"? but he went for a few pints one afternoon and came back
well-oiled and said the F word live on children's TV!"
Dave
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