Telstar : My Musical Awakening
1962 was the “year of the ear” for me. Prior to this I had explored my Dad’s country and western collection of vinyl but nothing had really hit home. My ears and heart perked up when I first heard the English band The Tornados playing Telstar, the anthemic instrumental created and recorded by Joe Meek above a hat shop in London. I quickly became addicted to hearing the tune and would sit at the radio going from station to station trying to find any portion of the record that was playing, even if it was only the last few bars.
The Tornados were essentially a band made up of session musicians who came together pre-Beatles to back up B grade singers on Meek’s recording label as well as becoming Billy Fury’s “on the road” backing band. They were Roger Laverne on keyboards, Alan Caddy on lead guitar, George Bellamy on rhythm guitar, Heinz Burt on bass and Clem Cattini on drums. What I didn’t know back then was that the main tune of Telstar was played on an instrument called a clavioline which was the forerunner to the analog synthesizer and it was played by Geoff Goddard not Roger Laverne. Goddard was a song writer and keyboard player who worked for Joe Meek. The sound of the rocket taking off was a great example of Meek’s innovation. He recorded the toilet being flushed, played the tape backwards with loads of compression and other “Meek” recording effects.
Telstar went on to top the American charts by the end of 1962, The Tornados were the first British band to ever achieve that honour. It must have been spring when it appeared on the playlists of 3KZ, 3DB, 3XY, 3UZ and 3AK in Melbourne. I couldn’t get enough of it. Ironically Joe Meek never received a penny in royalties during his lifetime due to an accusation of plagiarism in early 1963 and consequent legal action that resulted in him actually winning 3 weeks after his tragic death.
Back to me. Other music from that year was The Lonely Bull by Herb Alpert, Sherry and Big Girls Don’t Cry by The Four Seasons, The Monster Mash by Bobby Boris Pickett. Weird music for a 10 year old to come of age with. I think I received all of those singles for Christmas 1962. But my real goal was to buy a copy of the Tornados first album which I finally achieved on my 11th birthday. From memory it cost 52 shillings and sixpence and I bought it in a record shop opposite the Prahran Town Hall. I could now look at a picture of the Tornados. I had no idea which face corresponded to which instrument but I imagined that the guy who I considered the best looking was the lead guitarist. I also believe that this was when I decided to become a lead guitarist, which I just realized was a bit off target because it was synonymous with fame and confidence, neither of which I had or ever really did for that matter. I should have had a goal to become an accomplished musician, even though I did become a lead guitarist tight until the end of the 60s.
Back to me. Other music from that year was The Lonely Bull by Herb Alpert, Sherry and Big Girls Don’t Cry by The Four Seasons, The Monster Mash by Bobby Boris Pickett. Weird music for a 10 year old to come of age with. I think I received all of those singles for Christmas 1962. But my real goal was to buy a copy of the Tornados first album which I finally achieved on my 11th birthday. From memory it cost 52 shillings and sixpence and I bought it in a record shop opposite the Prahran Town Hall. I could now look at a picture of the Tornados. I had no idea which face corresponded to which instrument but I imagined that the guy who I considered the best looking was the lead guitarist. I also believe that this was when I decided to become a lead guitarist, which I just realized was a bit off target because it was synonymous with fame and confidence, neither of which I had or ever really did for that matter. I should have had a goal to become an accomplished musician, even though I did become a lead guitarist tight until the end of the 60s.
The Tornados became an obsession for me. I was blind to the simple truth that they never achieved the beauty and grandiosity of Telstar ever again. I listened to the album hundreds of times and bought all of their singles, Globetrotter, Robot, The Scales of Justice until I heard the Beatles a few months into 1963 and that changed everything all over again.
The movie below was made in 2008 and gives a somewhat exaggerated version of the story of teller and Joe Meek but it is worth watching. And there are a few other anecdotal interviews etc below as well.
A special treat below is from the Tea Chest Joe Meek Tapes. After he suicided in 1967 all of meek’s recording equipment was sold but there were 67 tea chests of reel to reel Russian stock magnetic tapes that have since been catalogued and digitalised. The beginning of the clip below starts with a very out of tune demo that Meek made in 1962 when he was “composing” the melody of Telstar.
