Hank Wangford

Last updated

Hank Wangford
Hank Wangford 5th October 2007.jpg
Background information
Birth nameSamuel Hutt
Born (1940-11-15) 15 November 1940 (age 83)
Brocket Hall, Hertfordshire, England
Genres Country & Western
Occupation(s) Physician, Musician
Instrument Guitar
Years active1976present
LabelsCow Pie Records, Sincere Sounds, Charisma Records, Situation Two
Website http://www.hankwangford.co.uk

Samuel Hutt, known by the stage name Hank Wangford (born 15 November 1940), is an English country and western songwriter. [1]

Contents

"Hank is a good smoke screen. He can do things I can't do. He's my clown," says Dr. Hutt, who has been struggling to balance his musical and medical interests ever since medical school at Cambridge University. His 1960s practice in a drug-addiction centre brought him into contact with a lot of rockers and wide renown as London's long-haired, rock-and-roll doctor, and later a television series. "If The Who had a first night, the tickets would be sent. I actually had more of an identity crisis with that than with Hank, because Hank is a fool. I quite like him. Dr. Sam was definitely threatening to become a monster." [2]

Early and personal life

It has been said that Hank was born in Wangford, Suffolk, England [1] and that may be where Sam Hutt conceived his stage name. In his appearance in the film, A Brief History of Brocket Hall, Sam Hutt says that he was born in an upstairs room at Brocket Hall, Hertfordshire, on the night from 14 to 15 November 1940, during The Blitz. It was a forceps delivery. As he describes in the film, Brocket Hall has a history of sexual scandals, involving the royal family and politicians but, by 1940, it had become a maternity home. The British Government had intelligence that the Germans were planning to flatten London on the night of the birth, when there was to be a full moon (The "Hunter Moon" or "Blood Moon") which would provide good visibility. His mother was therefore evacuated to Hertfordshire for the birth. In the event, on the night of the birth the Germans bombed Coventry, not London. His father was the journalist and communist activist Allen Hutt. [3]

He studied medicine at Cambridge University and eventually became a doctor. [1]

His first writing credit (as Sam Hutt) was on a Sarah Miles 1965 single "Where Am I". His first recording was credited as Boeing Duveen & The Beautiful Soup with "Jabberwock"/"Which Dreamed It", issued on UK Parlophone R 5696 in May 1968. He is co-credited as the writer as "Sam Hutt" on both sides together with Lewis Carroll, with whose words the songs are adapted. [4] Hutt's family background is radical: his father Allen (a journalist and expert on the history of printing) was a lifelong Communist. During the NUM miners strike in 1984/85, the Hank Wangford Band toured extensively with Billy Bragg and the Frank Chickens as "Hank, Frank and Billy" performing at trade-union benefit and anti-racist gigs. It was during such a benefit for the Greater London Council (GLC) in 1984 that Hank and the band were attacked on stage by a group of right-wing skinheads, [5] an event that has been immortalised in the song "On The Line".

The Hank Wangford Band

A chance meeting with former Byrds member Gram Parsons, [6] who played him the song "You're Still on My Mind" (from the album Sweetheart of the Rodeo ), led him to country music. [7]

The 1984 Edinburgh Festival Fringe saw the Hank Wangford Band achieve some acclaim, with their show being nominated for the Perrier Award. Fringe Sunday also saw the importation to Edinburgh of the sport of cow-pat flinging. Unfortunately, this required hard cow-pats as an essential part of the process. BBC Radio 1 DJ Andy Kershaw had to put out an appeal for cow-pats, [8] which later had to be dried in a microwave oven for them to work successfully. [9]

Hank's setlist Hank Wangford 5th October 2007 setlist.jpg
Hank's setlist

No Hall Too Small Tour

Wangford has also toured with Reg Meuross and with Andy Roberts on the "No Hall Too Small" tour of village halls throughout the UK as part of the Arts Council-funded National Rural Touring Forum (NRTF). [10]

Writing career

Wangford has written an occasional series of travel articles [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18] for The Guardian newspaper and is president of the "Nude Mountaineering Society". [19]

Discography

CDs
Cassettes

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jabberwocky</span> 1855 and 1871 nonsense poem by Lewis Carroll

"Jabberwocky" is a nonsense poem written by Lewis Carroll about the killing of a creature named "the Jabberwock". It was included in his 1871 novel Through the Looking-Glass, the sequel to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865). The book tells of Alice's adventures within the back-to-front world of the Looking-Glass world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamiroquai</span> English acid jazz band

Jamiroquai are an English acid jazz and funk band from London. Formed in 1992, they are fronted by vocalist Jay Kay, and were prominent in the London-based funk and acid jazz movement of the 1990s. They built on their acid jazz sound in their early releases and later drew from rock, disco, electronic and Latin music genres. Lyrically, the group has addressed social and environmental justice. Kay has remained as the only original member through several line-up changes.

Ducks Deluxe are an English pub rock band of the 1970s, who continue to tour and record new material. Usually called "The Ducks" by their fans, they were known for up-tempo, energetic performances, and the successful careers of their members, after they disbanded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yodeling</span> Form of singing

Yodeling is a form of singing which involves repeated and rapid changes of pitch between the low-pitch chest register and the high-pitch head register or falsetto. The English word yodel is derived from the German word jodeln, meaning "to utter the syllable jo". This vocal technique is used in many cultures worldwide. Recent scientific research concerning yodeling and non-Western cultures suggests that music and speech may have evolved from a common prosodic precursor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clissold Park</span> Open space in London, England

Clissold Park is an open space in Stoke Newington, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is bounded by Greenway Close, Church Street (south), Green Lanes (west) and Queen Elizabeth's Walk (east); the south-east corner abuts St Mary's Old Church, now an arts venue. The park is 22.57 hectares in extent. The main building within its boundaries is the Grade II listed Clissold House, run as a cafe and events venue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Members</span> British punk rock band

The Members are a British punk band that originated in Camberley, Surrey, England. In the UK, they are best known for their single "The Sound of the Suburbs", reaching No. 12 in the UK Singles Chart in 1979, and in Australia, "Radio" which reached No. 5 in 1982.

Nicola Vincenzo "Nicky" Crane was an English neo-Nazi activist. He came out as gay before dying from an AIDS-related illness in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Humble Pie</span> English rock band

Humble Pie are an English rock band formed by singer-guitarists Peter Frampton and Steve Marriott in Moreton, Essex, in 1969. Often regarded as one of the first supergroups in music, Humble Pie experienced moderate popularity and commercial success during the 1970s with hit songs such as "Black Coffee", "30 Days in the Hole", "I Don't Need No Doctor", "Hot 'n' Nasty" and "Natural Born Bugie" among others.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">B. J. Cole</span> British musician (born 1946)

Brian John Cole is an English pedal steel guitarist, who has long been active as a session and solo musician. Coming to prominence in the early 1970s with the band Cochise, Cole has played in many styles, ranging from mainstream pop and rock to jazz and eclectic experimental music, but has never forgotten the instrument's roots in country music. Cole plays lap steel and dobro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Foals (band)</span> British indie rock band

Foals are a British rock band formed in Oxford in 2005. The band's current line-up consists of Greek-born lead vocalist and guitarist Yannis Philippakis, drummer and percussionist Jack Bevan, rhythm guitarist Jimmy Smith and bassist Walter Gervers. They are currently signed to Warner Records, and have released seven studio albums to date: Antidotes (2008), Total Life Forever (2010), Holy Fire (2013), What Went Down (2015), and Everything Not Saved Will Be Lost – Part 1 & 2 (2019) and their most recent, Life Is Yours (2022). They have also released one video album, six extended plays and thirty-five singles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don't Come the Cowboy with Me Sonny Jim!</span> 1990 single by Kirsty MacColl

"Don't Come the Cowboy with Me Sonny Jim!" is a song by British singer and songwriter Kirsty MacColl, which was released in 1990 as the fourth and final single from her second studio album Kite. It was written by MacColl and produced by Steve Lillywhite. The song reached No. 82 in the UK and remained in the charts for four weeks. A music video was filmed to promote the single, directed by Sarah Tuft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Architects (British band)</span> British metalcore band

Architects are a British metalcore band from Brighton, East Sussex, formed in 2004 by twin brothers Dan and Tom Searle. The band now consists of Dan Searle on drums, Sam Carter on vocals, Alex Dean on bass, and Adam Christianson on guitar. They have been signed to Epitaph Records since 2013.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Valentino (British musician)</span> British musician

Bobby Valentino is a British musician, violinist and singer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martin Belmont</span> Musical artist

Martin Belmont is an English rock and country-blues guitarist.

Sam Apple Pie were a British blues-rock band, of the late 1960s and 1970s, noted for having played at the first Glastonbury Festival in 1970, and for playing a role in the early careers of several musicians including Gary Fletcher, Dave Charles and Malcolm Morley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Morton Valence</span>

Morton Valence are a London-based rock band based around the vocal pairing of songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist Robert 'Hacker' Jessett and Anne Gilpin. They term their music as Urban Country and were described by The Guardian as being "one of the most intriguing bands on these shores".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lianne La Havas</span> English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist

Lianne Charlotte Barnes, known professionally as Lianne La Havas, is a British singer-songwriter and record producer. Her career began after being introduced to various musicians, including singer Paloma Faith, for whom she sang backing vocals. In 2010, La Havas signed to Warner Bros. Records, spending two years developing her songwriting, before releasing any music. La Havas' debut studio album, Is Your Love Big Enough? (2012), was released to positive reviews from critics and earned her a nomination for the BBC's Sound of 2012 poll and awards for the iTunes Album of The Year 2012. She has released two other studio albums since, Blood in 2015 and Lianne La Havas in 2020. She was nominated once for a Grammy award in 2016 and twice for Brit Awards, in 2017 and 2021. She currently lives in London.

Boeing Duveen and the Beautiful Soup was a 1960s British psychedelic rock act. 'Boeing Duveen' was Sam Hutt, a qualified doctor and associate of Pink Floyd who has been described as "the underground community's de facto house doctor" by David Wells, curator of Grapefruit. Hutt later became known for his work in the country and western genre under the name of Hank Wangford.

Arty Hill is an American country music singer-songwriter of the Honky-tonk tradition. His work has been covered by several artists including Jason & the Scorchers and the Kenny and Amanda Smith Band.

George Allen Hutt was a British journalist, editor, newspaper designer and Communist and trade union activist.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Colin Larkin, ed. (1997). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Popular Music (Concise ed.). Virgin Books. p. 1230. ISBN   1-85227-745-9.
  2. Howell Raines, "LONDON; A Singing Doctor Works the Land Between Ridicule And Reverence for Nashville", The New York Times , 6 March 1988.
  3. Stevenson, Graham. "Encyclopedia of Communist Biographies: Hutt Alan". Graham Stevenson. Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  4. "Boeing Duveen And The Beautiful Soup - Jabberwock". 45cat.com. Retrieved 10 November 2019.
  5. "The Hank Wangford Band". Bobby Valentino. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  6. "Hank Wangford". Gram Parsons Project. Archived from the original on 5 September 2012. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  7. "Legend Hank Wangford Returns With 'Troublesome Tenth Album'". northernlifemagazine.co.uk. Northern Life. 6 August 2020. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  8. Mark Borkowski (30 July 2001). "Weird is not enough | Culture". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  9. Mark Borkowski (10 August 2004). "PR stunts: an expert's guide | Media". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  10. "Home". NRTF. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  11. "At the end of the world | Travel". The Guardian. London. 22 November 2006. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  12. Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "A splash of Grenadines | Travel". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  13. Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "Under the Boardwalk | Travel". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  14. Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "Trail of broken hearts | Travel". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  15. "Croon river | Travel". The Guardian. London. 22 November 2006. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  16. Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "Temple of nature | Travel". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  17. Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "High spirits | Travel". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  18. Hank Wangford (28 May 2008). "San Francisco's wild west | Travel | guardian.co.uk". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  19. Hank Wangford (27 September 2007). "Strippers with altitude | Travel | guardian.co.uk". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 11 November 2012.