Sometimes a band is more than music — sometimes it’s memory, joy and the soundtrack to a life – Pete Bell shares just that.
The sadly, disbanded Whodlums were the best kind of tribute, accurate, authentic and exciting to watch.
I recently saw a Whodlums gig in the Salt Market Social and got talking to a lady in her 70s. She likes travelling around watching The Who tribute bands with her husband. They had heard great things of the Whodlums and seeing they were playing decided to break their journey home from Glasgow. He sang every word to every song, windmilled his arms in the right places.
She was telling me they had followed The who since the early ’60s.
“The Who helps him with his dementia, it’s when he’s happiest.
“They’re the best, and he is Pete Townsend”, she said pointing to the lead guitarist. Actually, he is Pete Bell, one of the busiest and most popular performers in the North East, who has recently released a solo album.
Pete is gigging prolifically around the North East doing covers and mixing in his originals, but I caught up with Pete on North Shields Fish Quay, quite fitting, as he was born in Creswell and comes from the Brown’s fishing family. Joining the Royal Navy he took the maritime route for a career in electronic engineering and not returning to music until he left and went to university.
He had a spell living in Italy and joining ‘The Songs’ in 1992 and had a reasonable success, but disappointingly didn’t make the big time. Luckily for the North East, he is extremely busy gigging and rehearsing and has also formed two new bands. ‘The third half’ named after his three section long sets and a new, original song-writing venture soon to break under the title of Rob’s ices.
What comes across strongly from talking to Pete is his love and enthusiasm for music that, in common with many musicians, borders on obsession. His love and the joy he finds in all music, whether listening, performing or playing as many gigs as possible around the North East is a genuinely uplifting experience. He is always in demand and always happy to be there and plays his three halves and gives full value for money.
His solo album Sands of Time, is definitely one for fans of Weller and Townsend, with strong flavourings of Springsteen, Crowded House, Beach Boys, and especially The Beatles as influences are endless. He looks like a scooter boy and sounds like a like a mod, but never was.
“I just like the sound and style of that area era”, he says.
Sands of Time is a journey through time, landscape and relationships, and is deeply personal and intriguing. It is a chronological journey of change and discovery as an individual. Having said that, being Pete without pretension he describes it as a bunch of songs written over a number of years. As well as playing at CoastFest his big gig coming up is a courtyard festival at the beautiful Fallodon Hall in Northumberland supporting local hero, Martin Stephenson and the Dainties in August alongside the incredible Tony Bengtsson.
