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Their new manager Mike Carr owned a coffee bar, which he turned into a club, 'The Sinking Ship', near Mersey Square South in Stockport and Wimple Winch became the house band. They secured a record contract with Fontana and proceeded to record a number of singles.
Sadly, the singles did not do so well nationally, despite heavy local support.
A disastrous fire at the club in Stockport lost them all their gear, This combined with their record contract not taken up meant the end of the band in mid 1967.
- John Kelman joined the Manchester Big 3 and then Pete Maclaine and the Clan, before returning to Liverpool to live with his parents in Huyton Liverpool, where in the 70s he formed a new lineup of The Four Just Men, with 3 guys from Runcorn, Frank Garland (rhythm guitar, Mal Hoyland bass guitar and Arty Davies on drums).
- Lawrence Arendes (now King) joined Sponge, a late sixties, slightly jazzy progressive rock combo, who backed Dave Berry on a 1969 single, Huma Luma). They later became into Pacific Drift, who recorded an album and single for Deram in 1970.
- Dee Christopholus went on to appear in several London Stage Shows including 'Hair', 'Jesus Christ Superstar' and 'Joseph And His Amazing Technicolour Dream Coat'; appeared in BBC's 'Rock Follies' and recorded in the late seventies for G.T.O.
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| That's my Baby/Things will never be the same |
Parlophone R5186 |
1964 |
| There's not one thing/Don't come any closer |
Parlophone R5241 |
1965 |
| Whats been done/I really love you |
Fontana TF686 |
1966 |
| Save my soul/Everybody's worried about tomorrow |
Fontana TF718 |
1966 |
| Rumble on Mersey Square South/Typical British workmanship |
Fontana TF781 |
1967 |
| Atmospheres |
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- The first three singles are highly sought after and the Goldmine Record Price Guide values each at over $50US even in VG condition (rising to $100US+ in Near Mint)
- The compillation cd (pictured below) fetched $160US on ebay in May 2004. Are cd's collectable as well?
 
Memories
John Kelman won an award on The Billy Butler Show. Radio Merseyside in 1977.
He won the award for writing and performing a song called, "Imagination". He later went on to write and record about a dozen instrumentals in the hope of getting The Shadows to record them. Bruce Welch was very keen initially and asked John to keep sending the tapes, which John duly did. Unfortunately Hank Marvin decided to move to Australia and Bruce lost interest.
John doesn`t do much today due to ill health and is living in his parents home in Huyton.
I still have the master tapes to most of his instrumentals, plus songs called, "Working Day Blues", and "Nightmare".
I hope one day to have them digitally remastered, but can`t afford to yet.
Stan Thompson
(Harold) Lally Stott was born in Prescot near Liverpool and was brought up in Shore Lane, Prescot.
After many years in the music industry, namely in pop bands such as Four Just Men, playing lead guitar after John Kelman left to join Freddie Starr & the Midnighters (who changed to Freddie Starr & the Delmonts) Lally then left these shores for Italy.
Lally became a very big TV pop star in Italy and married the daughter of a high ranking government official, possibly the head of defence. After they divorced, Lally came back to live with his mother in England, again in Shore Lane Prescot.
Lally frequented the local dance halls & clubs and one in which I was the DJ Compere (The Plaza, Duke Street in St.Helens). The Plaza saw many top and up and coming artists over the years, Freddie Starr, Black Abbots, the Real Thing, the Chants, Long John Baldry, James & Bobby Purify, The Tams, the Drifters and many more including the Beatles when they were still the Quarrymen. |
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Lally bought himself a Jaguar in the seventies, but one fateful day he borrowed his mothers moped and was knocked off and killed while on an errand in Prescot, not sure of the exact year but I think it would have been approx 1975/6. Lally's version of Chirpy was slower than Middle of the Road's.
Alan Pennington
YouTube link - Lally Stott's Chirpy Chirpy Cheep Cheep |
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