Teddy boys don't knit

Well, that's not strictly true.  

At least one of them did - the much loved and much missed Vivian Stanshall...

Best known for his work with the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, Viv had a very patchy career after the band broke up, but one which is fondly remembered mainly for his creation of the strange world of "Rawlinson End". First introduced during the Bonzos' "The Intro and the Outro" ('Great to hear the Rawlinsons on trombone'), this family saga developed into a sprawling mass of film, albums, pieces recorded for radio sessions, and various aborted scripts. It was a work in progress and, indeed, a third album was in the works when Viv passed away in 1995.

As well as this, Viv also made a couple of albums of original songs and it's a measure of the man to note how many "names" contributed to these. The first album, 1974's "Men Opening Umbrellas Ahead" featured Steve Winwood and Jim Capaldi of Traffic, as well as Ric Grech, Neil Innes, Doris Troy and Rebop. Some of the tracks just seem to be excerpts taken from longer jams with Viv talking over the top of them. I've probably listened to the album twice...

 Seven years later, fans were rewarded with Viv's second collection of songs: "Teddy Boys Don't Knit" - hence the title of this screed. Yes, as the sleeve clearly shows, Viv used to be a teddy boy. It just so happened that he used to be a teddy boy who was fond of knitting...

Calling again on his many friends and admirers, "Teddy Boys Don't Knit" (TBDK from now on) featured a disparate array of talent, including Richard Thompson, Ollie Halsall, Neil Innes, Rosko Gee, John Halsey, Jim Cuomo, Rick Wakeman, Roger Ruskin Spear and John Kirkpatrick. The songs were written during a relatively calm and stable period in his life. He had settled down and was living in a Thames houseboat with his second wife, stepdaughter and an infant daughter. Indeed, a couple of the songs on the album describe family life chez the Stanshalls.

The other songs on TBDK deal with a wide range of subjects - a few of which are obvious, but most of them less so. Indeed, the lyrics take some figuring out, so it's fortunate that the sleeve notes include them, as well as short written introductions by the man himself. Even then, some of them are hard to fathom out. Although there are no "Rawlinson" songs as such, there are a few references to the saga hidden away in the verbal jungle.

Musically, there's a variety of styles on offer, ranging from blues ("Everyday I Have the Blows"), through vaudeville type songs, mock rock, and ersatz soul, to chanson. Everyone plays well throughout, but TBDK is definitely Viv's album with his voice and lyrics very much to the fore.  

 

It's one of those albums which grows on you. I hadn't listened to it for ages until I embarked on this screed, but I was struck by how much I enjoyed revisiting it. It's a bit of a curiosity that reveals a less slapstick side to the "Ginger Geezer" than that evident during his Bonzos tenure. What's particularly pleasing is that there's far less speech and more singing than the previous album, and the vocals are more assured. Although Viv had achieved some success writing lyrics for people like Steve Winwood, TBDK reveals a growing confidence in writing the music as well. Who knows what he might have gone on to do?

One thing's for sure, there'll never be another like him.