THE SALAD DAYS

Told by…..
Richard Thomas

The first time I met Warwick was in 1965… we both lived in Woodley, near Reading in Berkshire. Other close friends at the time were Colin Wilson (Willie), Nick Roberts and Stewart Lawrence. Reading in the mid 60s had a strong Mod following/culture and our local haunts would have been places such as the Shades and Honey Bear cafe etc. in Reading.. . plus, later a club called The Thing-A-Me-Jig… all long gone… but funnily enough I found my original membership card the other day.

I can remember when we were in our early teens jamming together with Warwick in a friend’s front room… and would always get the guitars out when we met up for years beyond this. Around the kitchen table used to be the favourite place.. with loads of chats and laughter between playing. We used to tape stuff on my old reel to reel Sony deck… Warwick also had a Revox… which would be very collectable now… plus we taped a bit on a Phillips cassette deck… great fun. I recently tried to find these old tapes… but no luck so far… unfortunately things get lost after 45 years… but not the memories. Warwick had the wonderful knack of being able to make up lyrics as we played… a talent he never lost. His early guitar was a Levin Goliath… sun burst. I have the exact model myself (See photo below #). Warwick always had not only a great voice but also fantastic rhythm and he could really make the guitar sing… born no doubt from his drumming days… he was a hell of a good drummer as well.

Warwick was one of the first to get a car…. I think Stew also had one… and this was the opportunity to spread our wings! His car was a Wolseley 4/44.. maroon in colour… wonderful. I remember he also later had an MGA….. cream coloured with red seats… and a white Mini….but I digress. This venture into “own transport” meant we made regular visits from 1967 onwards to the Kings Road in Chelsea. I remember Warwick also had an Uncle Terry who lived in Chelsea. He would make flying visits to his Chelsea flat, while we waited in the car… returning with a double breasted pin striped suit he had persuaded his uncle to give him…. in the 60s they certainly looked the part. The Chelsea Potter, Markham Arms, plus a pub called The Trafalgar were regular haunts for us… some of these no longer exist….. this was when the Kings Road was at its very best ….. a very exciting place to be in the mid 60s.

Going to Eel Pie Island on the River Thames in Twickenham also became a regular Saturday night out for us. I seem to remember it was a big old building with numerous bars, selling Newcastle Brown by the neck. The place has a lot of history as between 1962 and 1967 it was a major jazz and blues venue where many famous bands played, eg. The Who, Alexis Corner and the Rolling Stones to name but a few. Alas… the place burnt down some years ago… but apparently you can still go over the bridge onto the island.

I remember in 1967/68 the film Bonnie and Clyde came out and we had been to a fancy dress dance at a local college themed on this film. When it finished at about midnight someone suggested we drive to Heathrow airport for a coffee! Warwick and three or four of us arrived, still dressed in the gangster gear, complete with holsters over waistcoats, etc. It must have been all of 30 seconds after entering the airport lounge bar that we were surrounded by police, arrested and marched off to a private room. Warwick, never one to miss an opportunity to camp it up, insisted on walking through the crowded area with his “hands up” in the air… much to the dismay of the arresting policemen.. (remember this was 1968 and things were a little different then on the security front.. albeit the sight of holsters and guns had clearly upset the airport police… arrest was never in doubt.) After much explanation and inspection of the “toy” guns, we were set free… we laughed all the way home!

On the 5th of July 1969 we drove to Hyde Park to see the Stones play the free concert… don’t ask me how, but we managed to park nearby. It was a hot summer’s day and this was the concert the Stones performed a few days after the death of dear Brian Jones……. (who could have predicted that day that Warwick would later know well and write songs with Brian’s son Julian Jones/Julian Brian Leitch?) ……and introduced Mick Taylor for the first time. There were thousands of people there (it was free, remember..) … and marks a very special day in music history. I went with Deb and a few good friends to last year’s Stones Hyde Park gig on the 6th July… this was a special day for me… Warwick and friends had all been there 44 years before, almost to the day….. I did share a thought for you guys… with a tear in my eye… but you will know that… X

As I write this brief history.. my head is becoming full of such memories I could fill another five pages.. but I hope this gives a flavour of the wonderful salad days spent with Warwick… however, must stop now… with a huge smile on my face… so many more memories…. no regrets… and yes, more than a hint of sadness…… but wow…… it was rock n roll….. special memories… X