Welcome to the new site for Coventry Folk Singer Songwriter - Rod Felton1942 - 2014.
Few people on the Coventry Music Scene in the 60', 70's and beyond or frequenting folk clubs around the UK or on the continent, could have escaped at least some knowledge of Rod Felton or the New Modern Idiot Grunt Band. He was variously (and sometimes simultaneously) a talented graphic artist, folk and blues singer and songwriter, raconteur, showman, folk club organiser and glorious eccentric and much more. This is his story, his legacy, and music contributed to, by a number of people who recorded some of his many live performances along with some home recordings.
Obviously it's still a work in progress but material - audio and visual and text - will be added soon. Bookmark it and come back if you liked Rod Felton's music.
This flyer for The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band, originally black and white, has been overlaid with another of Rod's designs and colourised digitally for effect.The original graphic designs will appear later on on this website. Below you will find (in due course)
A musical biography of Rod Felton
Live video albums of some of his gigs and home recordings that show his musical range, power and his sense of humour.
Articles about Rod Felton and The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band along with photos and any other material that we have.
If you have any recordings, photos or articles on Rod that you think should be part of this tribute site, please get in contact, via Hobo (in the sidebar.).
They range from his Folk club repertoire to Blues, Ragtime, Electric Funk, Pop tracks and Drafts. Contributed byMarko Krnjulac, Jan Felton, Mark Watson & Chrissie Coburn.
Here's Shelagh McDonald's Rod's Song - believed to have been written about Rod Felton.
Thanks to Pete Willow for sharing this site to his CVfolk blog here
Rod Felton - The Creature with the Clockwork Brian
So read one of Rod Felton's posters in the early 1970's.
Graphic digitised from one of Rod Felton's self-designed flyers from the 1970's
There was nothing clockwork about Rod Felton, he thrived on serendipity in his performances, responding to and interacting with his audiences, throwing in surprises, ad-libbing and even using a broken guitar string to deliver some instant repartee as he changed it! Sometimes he'd make time disappear completely as he performed!
Rod Felton was born Coventry on April 24th 1942. (Some articles have his birthdate as being in August 1942 but I've gone with the date on Rod's funeral notification - if this is wrong please let me know). In 1942, the world was at war; Coventry lay in ruins after the blitz earlier in November 1940, the British forces defeated German troops at Tripoli; the Glenn Miller Orchestra were enjoying their popular hits; Italy surrendered and the Dambuster raids took place as TS Elliot published his Four Quartets.
Rod would go on to form his own idiosyncratic orchestra,The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band, sing his own lyric poetry to four beats in the bar (or however many beats he felt like) and storm troop the folk clubs of England and elsewhere! Rod, who went to Caludon Castle school in Coventry, a
Rod Felton
school that produced many musicians who became prominent on the Coventry music scene, learnt to play guitar at 12. By 15 Rod was playing in clubs, learning his craft, honing his style! However, Rod had to earn his crust and utilised another talent of his, graphic art, to become a Commercial Artist at Whitworth- Gloster Aircraft Ltd in Baginton from c1960, until he went professional as a folk-blues performer and songwriter when he was 22. Rod never abandoned his art though and there are plenty of examples of how he used it to promote his act and some of the folk clubs he ran.
Rod Felton - A Newcomer in the Bob Dylan Folk Tradition.
This is how the Coventry Standard announced Rod Felton's arrival as a professional musician on July 22nd 1965. It's become standard for the press to announce new singer songwriters thus but Rod must have been one of the first as Bob Dylan and Donovan were newly arrived themselves in 1965, at least in terms of the singles chart. Rod, of course had been playing in clubs long before that but his redundancy, owing to the government's decision not to renew the HS 681 military freight aircraft, focused his mind on becoming a professional folksinger. As can be seen for the article, Rod had established a reputation, was earning money in the evening performing and was covering the whole area around Coventry.
In his article for Folks Magazine c 1979, Coventry folk singer Pete Willow wrote a history of the folk scene in Coventry which included an article on Rod Felton. Pete notes the role of the local press - " Articles like the above were appearing in the local press and did much to bring the local folk scene to everyone’s notice. Not only did the people of Coventry know there was a growing movement of folk enthusiasm in the city, but they knew where to go to see it for themselves and who they could expect to see on stage. Local acts, like Rod Felton, were given particular encouragement." In another article “Folk Wave Hits City Scene” Pete says "It describes a particular evening at the Coventry Folk Club and then runs briefly through other Folk events in the area and mentions Rod’s popularity as a local singer. " The article makes a note of the fact that one of the prominent new folk clubs in the city was packed out by 7.50 and with
Rod and Bev (Kutner / Martyn) at the Cofa's Tree 1965
artists like Tom Paxton,The Kerries,The Ian Campbell Folk Group, it's not surprising. Rod was playing American blues and also singing with Beverley Kutner, who a year later was discovered by Decca and made singles with musicians like Jimmy Page on board. Beverley Kutner, of course became Beverley Martyn, when she married John Martyn.
Beverley (Kutner) Martyn - 45 Deram promo single, b-side of Happy New Year circa 1966. Featuring Jimmy Page on guitar and John Paul Jones on bass.
For a while Rob had also been in a duo with Deserie Meikle who simply called themselves Rob and Des.
English Ritual Drama group, The Coventry Mummers, were formed in 1966. During 1967 The Mummers were invited over to Kiel in Germany for a series of plays. I am not sure what involvement they had exactly, maybe they were active Mummers for a while, but the invitation saw Rod and fellow Coventry folk musician, Geoff Smedley, travel over to Germany with the group.
1967 also saw the birth of 'The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band' who consisted of Rod and fellow fun loving musician Rob Armstrong. Rod and Rob had known each other well from the folk circuit. Rob had been performing as far back as 1963 and was equally well respected on the circuit. (More on the New Modern Idiot Grunt band in another post)
In the 70's and beyond, Rod forged a nationwide solo career. I was introduced to Rod Felton one night in 1970, while doing the door for Pete Waterman's Progressive music gigs at the Walsgrave in Coventry. Pete introduced Rod to me as "The only star that Coventry has produced". Pete was well aware of Rod's work and growing national reputation both with the grunt band and as a sol artist. In fact Pete put Rod on two months in a row, one with the Grunt band and with Rod doing a solo spot and one solo with 'Electric guitar', as seen here in the tickets.
Often I would arrive early at the Walsgrave to help Pete set up and we'd open the doors at 8pm but on some occasions we'd go walk about fetch equipment from his or his parents house but on one occasion we went up to the Earlsdon Cottage. Rod was playing at the Tuesday night folk club there and as it was early, the performers and their friends were sitting out on the grass at the back. Pete had gone to collect his flute which Rod had borrowed. Before we left, Pete Waterman played some beautiful flute to one of Rod's songs.Great pity we didn't have iphones then, it would have gone youtube straight way! Despite touring the country in his camper van, Rod always found time to run folk clubs in Coventry or play gigs or floor spots.People have memories of different clubs he ran but I remember the Rude Bear Folk Club, which started off on a Tuesday night upstairs at The Three Tons, in the Bullyard 1972
and which continued at the The Boatyard, Hand in Heart in Gosford Street, co run with singer Dave Coburn, which ensured the club was open even if Rod had a paid gig elsewhere. Rod's wide contact with the folk world was a great asset as this advert, which, Rod designed and placed in my magazine Hobo (Coventry Music and Arts magazine) in February 1974, shows.
DANDO SHAFT - NEW PHASE. From Hobo magazine 1974 "Dando Shaft - may be reformed in the near future with some of the original members - Martin Jenkins on fiddle, flute and mandola and vocals; Ted Kaye on Congas and percussion, Polly Boulton on vocals, Rod Felton on Guitar and Baz Andruszko (of a Band Called George) on bass and accordion.
At the moment they are fulfilling other commitments. Martin, who recently wrote and played the music for the Belgrade's production Little Red Riding Hood, has another production in London. Rod Felton, meanwhile, is due for another tour of Germany I believe." Further down on this website, Pete Clemons and Pete Willow fill in further details about Rod Felton's career as it developed.
......................... Rod Felton designed and paid for the advert in Hobo for the Rude Bear Folk club, utilising the skills
Above, photo supplied by Steven Merry with Rod Felton and The Neutrons at the LSE 1974. The Neutrons were an offshoot of the band - Man.
I have now added all the Rod Felton tracks - live and home recordings that have been sent to this site - over 60 tracks - to a new Sound Click Audio site for Rod - you can scroll down the listing and listen or click on a specially created album. These include his popular folk club songs, some early blues and ragtime tracks, try outs an d backing tracks and two pop songs produced by award winning Coventry Two Tone producer Roger Lomas - Driving You Crazy and Keeping it Secret.
Roger Lomas says "Both ‘Driving You Crazy’ and ‘Keep It A Secret’ are tracks that I recorded with Rod at Southern Music Studios in Denmark Street in London in either 1969 or very early 70s. I have the original 1/4” tapes buried in my loft somewhere!!!! Me and Rod worked together on those songs to make them as commercial as possible, but like many tracks back in the day… they never got released. I’ve got a feeling that the tapes I’ve got are better ‘takes’ than those two. I’m playing lead guitar and top harmony vocals on both of them. I was signed to Southern Music Publishing at the time, and took Rod down with me to demo those songs before they were recorded properly, I think that the copies you have are the demos."
Graham Bradshaw "It's time for a dig through all the old tapes. I have some cassette recordings from the Freemasons, which definitely contain some by Rod. I also have all the tapes from the Come Together concert in 1983 in memory of Hazel Lester. There is a complete set of Grunt Band recordings there" If you have any tapes of Rod or The New Modern Idiot Grunt and would like them to be added here - contact Hobo Admin (Trev) here hobozine@googlemail.com
These 'albums' have been made possible from material mainly sent in by Jan Felton, Tim Parsons, Marko Krnjulac. Links to other sources of material, such as Bim Bam and Dave Cooper's site will be added.
......................................... These are some videos I created before the Sound Click site was created. Three video albums to appear here and some Single Videos. 1. Lady Baby Gypsy Queen. A Studio Album.Non live tracks that may give a glimpse of what the supposed American album may have sounded like. 2. Interplanetary Folkin' Superstar - Rod Felton Live Leicester. 3. Rod Felton - Desert Rat - Live tracks from various sources. Singles / Maxi Singles (Videos) Singles and EP's he may have made! 1 Lady Baby Gypsy Queen - Single.
These are two live recordings from the Old Dyers Arms in Coventry recorded on cassette in the late 70's by Marko Krnjulac. Desert Rock is a lively entertaining number and Starlight is an evocative and poetic No to contrast Rod's many styles.
Rod Felton - And I Love You / My Lady
These 2 live tracks were recorded on cassette by Marko Krnjulap at the Three Tuns in Coventry c 1972 and the video features Rod's songs And I Love You and My Lady.
Rod Felton - Home Recordings and Live Songs from Coventry Music Scene on Vimeo. 12 Tracks - Curly* - No Doubt about it (Live) - I Want to be free (ska)- I Want to get there my way - Here with Me - Interplanetary Trucker (Live) - Your Love's Good for me* - Lady baby gypsy queen* - Love is (Taken by Surprise) (double tracked vocals) - Liberty Bell* - My Old Man* - Really don't believe she's true* (with fiddles).
This set is a mix of home recorded and live tracks featuring some of his popular songs. It comes courtesy of Rod's sister - Jan Felton.
Tracks on the player include 1 Ugly 2 The Mermaid 3 Really Don't Believe She's True 4 Folkin' Superstar 5 It Takes Some Time 6 Tarzan 3 Interplanetary Trucker / Folkin' Superstar.
1 Your Love's Good For Me 2 My Old Dad 3 Liberty Bell 4 Lady Baby Gypsy Queen 5 I Wanna be Free 6 Her Gentle Squeeze 4 New Modern Idiot Grunt Band - Two Live Tracks. NEW There's a Rod Felton track on the New Alternative Sounds Album called Take me Away. It has bass and drums on it. Nigel Meffen tells us it's an unreleased track from 1971 featuring some of the Stavely Makepiece musicians This Rod Felton track features: Steve Tayton, Rob Woodward, Don Ker, Steve Johnson and Nigel Fletcher. Stavely Makepiece (from which Lieutenant Pigeon was an offshoot) recorded on the Spark label around this time and so the track could be one of those earmarked for the proposed Spark album mentioned in the Pete Clemons article further on in this blog. Roger Lomas has confirmed it is not one of the two tracks that he recorded so presumably Stavely Makepiece produced and recorded the track. Follow the link here https://alternativesounds.bandcamp.com/track/take-me-away
Other links and information. AND I LOVE YOU by Rod Felton
One of his most popular songs of the early 70's was "And I Love You" and was played in open D tuning. He'd sing the verses soft as if singing to his lover and then for the chorus would bring in his considerable vocal power. Pete Willow tells me that several Coventry singers covered this popular Coventry song. First published in Folks - Pete Willow's Coventry folk magazine 1979.
Another of Rod Felton's lyrics from Folks magazine
Some footage of Rod Felton on youtube
Published on youtube 2010 by Keith Farrelly
"Take Me Away" by Rod Felton Rod Felton 24th August 1942 to 26th March 2014 Published by: Makepeace Music Rod Felton (vocals) Instruments by some or all of: Rod Felton, Steve Tayton, Rob Woodward, Don Ker, Steve Johnson and Nigel Fletcher. Mastered by Martin Bowes at the Cage, Coventry for "Alternative Sounds, Volume Two" Available on "Alternative Sounds Volume Two" https://alternativesounds.bandcamp.com/album/alternative-sounds-volume-2
At Whitefriars - published on youtube 2011 by Keith Farrelly
Sunbathing - published 2011 on youtube by Keith Farrelly
"English Ritual Drama group, The Coventry Mummers, were formed in 1966. During 1967 The Mummers were invited over to Keil in Germany for a series of plays and the invitation saw Rod and fellow Coventry folk musician, Geoff Smedley, travel over to Germany with the group.
While they were there alliances were built and contacts made. And these contacts would prove useful for bookings in around Keil on a return visit to the city during 1968.
1967 saw the birth of 'The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band' who consisted of Rod and fellow fun loving musician Rob Armstrong. Rod and Rob had known each other well from the folk circuit. Rob had been performing as far back as 1963 and was equally well respected on the circuit.
For the return visit to Keil, Rod Felton and Geoff Smedley, were, this time, joined by Rob Armstrong. Initially the trio went out there to give individual performances. But, so popular they became, the trio occasionally performed together and became known as 'The Gentle Idea'. The German folk fans were treated to blues along with a helping of traditional and English contemporary folk music. Rod and Rob would also get the opportunity to perform together and play a rousing 'Grunt Band' set.
According to Rod, 'The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band' band name came to him in a vision during a dream. But for Rob it was more succinct and a simple case of too much alcohol providing the inspiration. Either way, this was an era when bands could get away with a bit of silliness by coming up with names like 'The Bonzo Dog Do Dah Band'. The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band went out gigging under a variety of names. They used their full band name or were more simply known as as The Idiot Grunt Band, NMIGB and IGB.
The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band were not a folk group, they were not blues band. In fact they were not anything really. They were, however, a fun loving duo and existed purely to give their audience a good time. And whatever or wherever the gig was, you knew that it would involve much alcohol and general harmless outrageousness. And during those early days of the band the pair would, occasionally, be joined on stage by Sneaks Noise bass player Jon McIntosh.
Picture from Articles in Sound produced by The Coventry Music Museum where they have Rod Felton's Jug on display.
Despite their easygoing outlook, Rod and Rob were very professional and very serious about what they did. According to Rob 'we were serious but we were not very serious, we were professional but we were not very professional'. Rob then went on about their time together in the Grunt Band and, despite the great time together, how it was mostly him who took the lead, kept the band in check, and ensured that they both got to the gigs on time. Fairly quickly the Grunt Band became very successful and were very popular in many areas of the country.
Rob remembers well the Rugby Festival of 1969 which involved bands like Pink Floyd and King Crimson as well as the NMIGB. At the end of the festival, and late into night, there was still a sizeable crowd who still wanted more. So, much to the crowd's delight, the 'Grunt Band' returned to the stage and gave the revelers an extra couple of hours of fun.
A week later Rob got rather excited when he saw a headline on that weeks NME (New Musical Express) that proclaimed 'Jug Band rocks festival'.
Thinking that the late night festival goers must have included a music journalist Rob eagerly read the accompanying article. However, his joy did not last long when he realised that the article was on about Mungo Jerry who had performed the same weekend at a different festival.
Live recordings of the Grunt Band do exist as far back as 1967 but the band is barely audible. However, an acceptable live recording does exist from 1969 and from a gig that took place at The Three Crowns in Barwell.
It was recorded on good quality equipment and stands the test of time today.
The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band never actually split up as such. There was no animosity or anything like that. It was a simple case that the band ceased being a professional outfit and, as such, never went after the gigs anymore.
However, that said, the pair still managed to play at least half a dozen dates a year right through to the mid 1990's. In fact, for the right occasion, they still find the time to play the odd gig together. The most recent get together I remember was during 2010 at the Dave Bennett memorial gig held at The Maudslay pub in Chapelfields. By 1971 Rod Felton and Rob Armstrong began to branch out more and had begun to build and concentrate on their new respective careers. Rob, of course, needs no introduction to the path he took of crafting handmade acoustic guitars to an incredibly high standard. And for more than 40 years he has built these instruments for the great and the good."
Although they played on a number of radio and TV shows they never did any formal recording. However their act has been preserved in the form of a live album recorded at the Three Crowns, Barwell on the wobbly Duck label. twelve live tracks available. I don't think these tracks, which Dave Cooper made available on his Rare Music site, are now available.
Graham Oliver commented on the original Hobo Vox site in 2007 -
"I have just discovered a tape that I recorded when I ran a folk club at Ye Olde Red Lion, Rugby 24th February. It includes an entire performance by the 'New Modern Idiot Grunt Band' and although the sound is distorted in places (because Rod was banging his foot so hard that it made the tape recorder jump) it isn't that bad. The recording was made on 24th February 1969 with Rob and Rod's full co-operation and consent." Graham also says " between 1968 and 1970, I ran a folk club in Rugby on Monday nights at what was then called 'Ye Olde Red Lion', in Sheep Street. Rob and Rod were popular" "I also remember their impromptu performance at (probably) the 1968 Cambridge Folk Festival attracted a huge crowd and caused quite a stir."
I think these recordings will be a different set to the Barwell ones. It would be good to have both recordings available. Anyone any thoughts?
Track listing of the Barwell Recordings 1 San Francisco Bay Blues 4:34 2 White Lightning 4:21 3 Solid Gone 5:51 4 My Bucket's Got a Hole in It 4:36 5 Belladonna Moonshine 7:14 6 Steamboat Days 3:48 7 Alecazander 3:00 8 Times Ain't Like They Used to Be 6:13 9 Interplanetary Trucker 6:56
10 Ugly 9:03 11 Geronimo's Cadillac 7:49 12 Mrs Murphy's Man 8:07 13 Lady Baby Gypsy Queen 3:21 14 Colouring Book 3:26 15 Princess 5:13
Track Listing of Graham Oliver's Recordings (Which aren't available anywhere I don't think) The play list (with a few jokes in between)is:
San Francisco Bay Blues (Jesse Fuller) Salty Dog Blues (Traditional American) Colouring Book (As We Go Sailing On) ? Skin Game Blues (Peg Leg Howell) Your Ugly (Armstrong/Felton) ? Anthem - Keep on Grunting (Armstrong/Felton) ? Grunting Everywhere (Armstrong/Felton) ? Gospel Blues (Traditional American) Lady Baby Gypsy Queen (Felton) Everybody Loves a Nut (Clement) Can't You See That I'm Just Crazy Over You ? Harry Rag (Davies) Mrs Murphy's Man is Back in Town ? Yat-tat-tat-ta-tat-tat Yat-tat-tat-ta-tat-tat ?
............................. Graham Bradshaw commented on this site http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=96651 " Somewhere in my tape archive, I have several recordings of the Grunt Band - recorded at Burnt Post Folk Club, The Freemasons (worth a thread on its own?!) and the Come Together concert in 1983. Some of that was broadcast on Mercia FM at the time, so quality not too bad in parts. (Note to myself - must look them out sometime)" (So perhaps there may be more tracks forthcoming!
NMIGB also did a gig in London with Alex Campbell and rod was sharing a flat in London at the time with Diz Disley. Dave Bennett and Rod Felton formed a similar and temporary outfit in the noughties called Im and Im. dave described the duo as "a duo of meteoric rise to obscurity! But we had a lot of fun.
During their time they played the Rugby Rock Festival in 69' with Free, Genesis, King Crimson, Pink Floyd, Edgar Broughton Band, Third Ear Band, several blues bands, (Climax Chicago, John Dummers, Spirit of John Morgan), Strawbs (acoustic 3 piece), Bridget St John and many others."
Graham Oliver also recalls
" I think I arranged that particular meeting - at the beginning of May 1969, Toni Savage (one of the nicest and most helpful folk music impresario/agents you could want to meet)was trying to arrange some bookings in the Coventry and Leicester areas for Alex - we agreed to book him for the Monday night - which I think may have been a Bank Holiday or at least a day that most people took as a holiday even if it wasn't official. I took the whole week off and followed Alex to all the other gigs which included the Town Arms in Leicester and the Mercers Arms in Coventry as well as Warwick and possibly Monks Kirby - all great fun - what a great man he was both on and off stage - but that's a completely different story. To make something special out of the Monday night at Ye Olde Red Lion, I managed to get an extension to 11.30 (which was late in those days) and permission for the show to go on until midnight. In addition to Alex I also billed The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band, Ernie Hudson and Geoff Smedley. The Coventry Evening Telegraph and Rugby Advertiser did us proud with brilliant pre-show write-ups and john Phillpot used the headline 'A Folk Bonanza' - in truth it was more of a Comedy Bonanza.
My contemporary diary indicates that I paid out £35 to the performers and probably bought them drinks on top of that - admission was 7/6 (£0.375 in today's money) and the room was packed. Nevertheless, for an all acoustic show with no microphones or amps, it was brilliant and the audience were incredibly quiet exept when laughing or applauding. Alex C\mpbell had never seen Rob and Rod perform before and during the 'interval' he told me that he thought their act was 'amazing' - praise indeed from the great man.
During Alex's second half he made several references to the duo and the art of 'Grunting' he also mentioned them from the stage at the Town Arms when he told the audience that they should make a point of getting over to the Coventry area to see them. Toni Savage was with also us in Rugby on the Monday night and brought along a number of his new protegies as floor singers with the intention of show-casing them to the other club organisors that would have been with us. I think in this instance it worked the other way round because, thereafter, Toni became a great fan and promoter of Rob and Rod . . ." http://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=96651"
Cutting c1965 via Ian Green and his Broadgate Gnome Site.
Below - Rod Felton's Jug on display at Coventry Music Museum
New addition thanks toDave Knight - interesting article from the BBC Radio Leicester magazine 1969.
Hot Rod Ignited the Folk Scene - Article by Pete Clemons
From the Coventry Telegraph March 2014
Hot Rod Ignited the Folk Scene
Pete Clemons
YOU know how you are able to retain some of your memories from when you are fairly young? Well an unusual memory for me is being able to recall, fairly vividly even today, an orange and cream coloured transit van that would be parked up in the road (Tennyson Road) just behind the street I grew up in and a few doors away from my best friend at that time. I am guessing that this would have been the late 1960s. So to get the opportunity to write a few words about the van owner, 40 odd years on, is quite a thrill and honour.
Rod Felton's House - Tennyson Road, Coventry
This was not Rod's but something like it!
The inside of the transit van, I remember, was covered in posters that depicted the names of major folk and blues acts from that time such as Julie Felix. I remember asking the owner of the van what it all meant and he told me that they were names of artists he had toured with. We kids just knew him as Roddy and it was only when I hit my teenage years that I began to realise just how popular, and well respected as a musician and songwriter, Rod Felton actually was. Rod began his working life as a commercial artist, or a sign writer as they were known, at Whitworth-Gloster Aircraft Ltd based in Baginton but, after five years there, he was made redundant. At the time of his redundancy in 1964 he had already been folk singing for around two years in his spare time. The redundancy then focused his mind and his thoughts turned to becoming a professional musician as soon as possible. To make ends meet, and so that he could concentrate on his music during the evenings, Rod took a on number of jobs that included a warehouseman, a painter and decorator and even a bread salesman. But Rod was, and still is, his own man. He is certainly very strong minded and the type who makes his own decisions and lives with them. By 1965, and at 22 years old, Rod was appearing regularly at folk and blues clubs in Coventry, Rugby, Leamington, Birmingham and London. And at each venue he appeared at he was always being asked for a return appearance. The folk music and blues scene during the mid 1960s was very strong and Rod was proving to be very popular on the circuit within Coventry and around the Midlands and beyond in terms of bookings. Rod was also using his natural artistic flair to create his own advertising posters. English Ritual Drama group, The Coventry Mummers, were formed in 1966. During 1967 The Mummers were invited over to Keil in Germany for a series of plays. I am not sure what involvement they had exactly, maybe they were active Mummers for a while, but the invitation saw Rod and fellow Coventry folk musician, Geoff Smedley, travel over to Germany with the group. While they were there alliances were built and contacts made. And these contacts would prove useful for bookings in around Keil on a return visit to the city during 1968. 1967 also saw the birth of 'The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band' who consisted of Rod and fellow fun loving musician Rob Armstrong. Rod and Rob had known each other well from the folk circuit. Rob had been performing as far back as 1963 and was equally well respected on the circuit. For a while Rob had been in a duo with Deserie Meikle who simply called themselves Rob and Des. For the return visit to Keil, Rod Felton and Geoff Smedley, were, this time, joined by Rob Armstrong. Initially the trio went out there to give individual performances. But, so popular they became, the trio occasionally performed together and became known as 'The Gentle Idea'. The German folk fans were treated to blues along with a helping of traditional and English contemporary folk music. Rod and Rob would also get the opportunity to perform together and play a rousing 'Grunt Band' set. According to Rod, 'The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band' band name came to him in a vision during a dream. But for Rob it was more succinct and a simple case of too much alcohol providing the inspiration. Either way, this was an era when bands could get away with a bit of silliness by coming up with names like 'The Bonzo Dog Do Dah Band'. The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band went out gigging under a variety of names. They used their full band name or were more simply known as as The Idiot Grunt Band, NMIGB and IGB. The New Modern Idiot Grunt Band were not a folk group, they were not blues band. In fact they were not anything really. They were, however, a fun loving duo and existed purely to give their audience a good time. And whatever or wherever the gig was, you knew that it would involve much alcohol and general harmless outrageousness. And during those early days of the band the pair would, occasionally, be joined on stage by Sneaks Noise bass player Jon McIntosh. Despite their easygoing outlook, Rod and Rob were very professional and very serious about what they did. According to Rob 'we were serious but we were not very serious, we were professional but we were not very professional'. Rob then went on about their time together in the Grunt Band and, despite the great time together, how it was mostly him who took the lead, kept the band in check, and ensured that they both got to the gigs on time. Fairly quickly the Grunt Band became very successful and were very popular in many areas of the country. Rob remembers well the Rugby Festival of 1969 which involved bands like Pink Floyd and King Crimson as well as the NMIGB. At the end of the festival, and late into night, there was still a sizeable crowd who still wanted more. So, much to the crowd's delight, the 'Grunt Band' returned to the stage and gave the revelers an extra couple of hours of fun. A week later Rob got rather excited when he saw a headline on that weeks NME (New Musical Express) that proclaimed 'Jug Band rocks festival'. Thinking that the late night festival goers must have included a music journalist Rob eagerly read the accompanying article. However, his joy did not last long when he realised that the article was on about Mungo Jerry who had performed the same weekend at a different festival. Live recordings of the Grunt Band do exist as far back as 1967 but the band is barely audible. However, an acceptable live recording does exist from 1969 and from a gig that took place at The Three Crowns in Barwell. It was recorded on good quality equipment and stands the test of time today.
