Twin2
Honourable Brethren
Posts: 383
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Post by Twin2 on Apr 22, 2021 15:53:36 GMT
Such a shock to us 70s girls.
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Post by daz on Apr 22, 2021 16:19:54 GMT
That's a shame to hear.
Has there ever been a more troubled and exploited group than the Rollers?
My Sister was/is a huge fan from back in the day.
RIP Les.
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Post by coyote on Apr 22, 2021 17:59:40 GMT
Sad news. Before my time really but I enjoyed their big hits and saw a couple of documentaries in which they came across as decent enough guys, if a bit young and naive for everything that happened to them. And most certainly ripped off to f**k by Tam Paton who seemed like a very unpleasant piece of work.
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Post by jno on Apr 23, 2021 3:28:23 GMT
RIP - got them on 70s TOTP in my bar, they will always be a good singalong.
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Post by felixdeburgh on Apr 23, 2021 12:31:39 GMT
Always seemed a decent bloke. Amazed to read that they racked up sales of 120m - that should have seen them comfortable for the rest of their days but as already mentioned, others took more than their fair share.
RIP.
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Post by daz on Apr 23, 2021 15:34:53 GMT
Always seemed a decent bloke. Amazed to read that they racked up sales of 120m - that should have seen them comfortable for the rest of their days but as already mentioned, others took more than their fair share. RIP. Yes it is a very shocking story about 4 young lads who were royally ripped off and ended up pennyless after selling all that records. You would be allowed to be a bit bitter at that.
The Rollermania documentary is worth a watch.
I read a great story on Twitter, that one of the Rollers, had a Mother who worked as a Dinnerlady at the local school and the kids would sing 'Shang a Lang' to her daily when she was serving up lunch.  |
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Post by Portland Road on Apr 23, 2021 22:53:33 GMT
The Bay City Rollers are an interesting phenomenon in that, like them or not, they became huge but did little beyond their success at the time.
The backlash when they fell from popularity, along with unsympathetic management, meant that their high-profile career did not continue at all.
The best they seemed to manage was on the nostalgia circuit, and no members of the group e.g. had solo success, joined/collaborated with other acts, or went into acting, TV light entertainment etc.
They faded away like Brother Beyond or Big Fun, but e.g. the Rollers were as big as Kylie Minogue, Take That, the Spice Girls, Girls Aloud etc, all of whom have ongoing success, whether as the original act, solo or TV careers etc.
A comparable act I can think of in this respect are The Dave Clark Five (or certainly the members other than Dave Clark himself); they came and did it, but once it was over, it was over, and they didn't (or were not enabled) to do anything else of significance.
R.I.P. Les McKeown.
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Post by coyote on Apr 23, 2021 22:58:48 GMT
I agree with you but the question of longevity/nostalgia circuits is a different discussion - and an interesting one - perhaps meriting its own thread (if it doesn't exist already) in the music area?
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Post by thewoodster on Apr 24, 2021 0:26:59 GMT
RIP les.
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