Charles Blackwell and others RIP

A few more music deaths to report I'm afraid. Charles Blackwell, who has died aged 84, was never a hit maker himself, although he made quite a few instrumental records with his orchestra or combo. But he was the man behind countless British and French records of the sixties, many of them big hits. He worked with Joe Meek and produced John Leyton's 'Johnny Remember Me' and also produced hits for Tom Jones ('What's New Pussycat'), Engelbert Humperdinck ('Release Me') and P J Proby ('Hold Me'). Other artists he produced included Kathy Kirby, Francoise Hardy, the Vernons Girls, Jet Harris, Billy Fury, Shirley Bassey and Karl Denver. He also produced records for US artists such as Dionne Warwick, Del Shannon, Bobby Goldsboro, Brook Benton and Jackie DeShannon. His songwriting included 'Come Outside' and 'Just For Kicks' for Mike Sarne. Charles attended the Tales From The Woods tribute to Joe Meek in 2014 and lead guitarist John Spencely introduced him to the audience (pictured above).

Another death is New Orleans soul and blues singer Luther Kent at the age of 76. Together with his band Trick Bag he was a regular at JazzFest and other local festivals. His first album, 'World Class', for RCS, was produced at Abbey Road studios in London and he made several albums with Trick Bag in the nineties. Photo below shows Luther at the Crescent City Blues and Barbecue Festival in New Orleans in 2017.

Another death is that of Joe Chambers (81), who was a founder member of psychedelic soul band the Chambers Brothers. Originally a gospel group they moved towards the folk scene when they played in New York and LA and appeared at the Newport Folk Festival in 1965 thanks to Pete Seeger. Their debut album 'People Get Ready' followed shortly afterwards and success came with 'All Strung Out Over You' and 'Time Has Come Today'. Other live albums included 'Love Peace and Happiness' and studio albums included 'A New Time - A New Day', 'New Generation' and 'Right Move'.