Rob Strong Feature (1965-present)
Bands: Polka Dots
• Plattermen • Las Vegas • Rockets • Rob Strong
Band
Photo Gallery -
Band Lineups -
Discography
- Audio samples -
Where Are They Now?
The Story
In the early 1970's nobody in Ireland personified the raw
energy of rock and blues music like Rob Strong, one of the most unique voices of
the era. Rob and the overdrive brass section of the Plattermen laid down some of
the funkiest sounds ever heard in an Associated Ballroom. But it wasn't always
that way. A rather tame looking Rob first entered the showband scene as the bass
player with The Polka Dots, a far cry from his latter days with the Plattermen.
Rob started his showband career meekly around 1965 when he
joined the Polka Dots showband after playing with a few local bands
around Derry. Around that time, the Polka Dots had been on the road for
five years and been doing a steady business.
In early 1965, the band underwent
several major changes when former Capitol drummer, Mickey
O'Hanlon took over as the band's manager. Around the same time,
Brian Coll quit the band to rejoin the Plattermen and John
Nugent left as well and he was replaced by Robb Armstrong (soon to
be known to the world as Rob Strong). The band went into the studio
and recorded their first tracks, but these were not released at the
time.
In early 1966, the band finally
released its first single, One for the Road with Old
Memories Keep Returning on the B-side both sung by Frankie McBride. Although
the single didn't make any impression on the charts, it finally
established the band as a bona fide recording outfit which was a
major step taken by most of the showbands in the mid to late 1960's.
As was the case in those days, most of the band's records would be
released as "Frankie McBride" with the band getting no mention. This
would become a common trend as it was the lead singers the record
companies wanted to promote, even if they left their previous band
(which became more and more the norm as the sixties came to an end).
Gregory would
be first to leave, joining the Cadets in April 1966. The band would
release a second single, A Cottage in Old Donegal, the following
April. As Frankie was now the sole lead singer in the band, adverts
would be for "Frankie McBride and the Polka Dots."
Although the new
single did not make the Irish charts, all that would change a few
months later.
After a couple of years, Rob was on
the move. In 1967, he joined the "other" Omagh-based showband at the
time, The Plattermen which was
still fronted by Brian Coll, who had left the Polka Dots in 1965. Once
again Rob's main job was as the bass player.
In June, 1968, Brian left the band to
start his own Buckaroos, and manager Jim
Aiken decided it was time for the band to change direction. In July,
1968, the band announced the addition of Simon Scott (aka Ivan Vaughn),
a singer with Maltese ancestry who had been in Britain to join the Dave
Glover Band only a few months previously, was drafted by the band. Simon
sang ballads and pop and with Brian gone, there would be no more country
and no more yodeling. It was straight ahead pop, rock and blues, with
Blood, Sweat and Tears-style horn riffs bringing the band charging into
the seventies. In February, 1969, the band added Ivan Laybourne on
keyboards and Gerry McIlduff on drums, to provide the hard driving beat
they would need for their pop/rock programme.
During 1970, the Plattermen moved towards what
they called a more "progressive" sound and the punters seemed to
like it. In 1971, Ivan left the band to join The
Freshmen, replacing Billy Brown who left to start a solo career
(although he would return to The Freshmen later in the 1970's.) John
Trotter was brought in on trombone (he could also play keyboards and
fiddle) making his debut January 4, 1971. He had also previously
been with the Polka Dots. The moved helped
consolidate the band's new heavy brass sound. In an ad in
Spotlight magazine that same week, the Plattermen announced,
"In '71 We're Goin' Kinda Heavy." The band continued to move
towards heavier rock music. Anyone who heard the Plattermen for the
first time in 1972, would have found it hard to believe that just a
few years earlier, they were backing country crooner, Brian Coll.
In 1972, the band released it's first album,
Old Devil Wine, a 14 song collection of which only three tracks were
not written by the band. The album was recorded in Trend and
Eamon Andrews studios in Dublin and released in Ireland to great
critical acclaim. It also carried the label "File under Rock" for
those shop owners who may have thought Brian Coll was still with the
band. In 1973 under then manager John McGovern, the
band made an assault on the British charts releasing the song, "Rock
Off," under the name "Hammer," but didn't really get very far.
However, they did appear on the RTE program "The Musicmakers."
A note in the August 16th issue of Spotlight's "Insight" column
mentioned Noel Bridgeman had permanently replaced Gerry McIlduff as
the band's drummer. Noel had just come off a short stint with the
Gentry at the time.
The Plattermen would be one of the leading
"progressive" bands during the pop vs country era of the early 1970's.
Along with bands like the Memories,
Tweed, Chips and others,
the Plattermen pushed the bounds of what was "acceptable" in a ballroom.
Although a powerhouse outfit, major success eluded the band other than
in certain pockets around the country. In September, 1974, the
Plattermen basically broke up, although manager John McGivern would form
a "new" Plattermen, keeping the name alive for a little while longer.
A note in "Julie's Scene" in the September 19,
1974 issue of Spotlight reported that Rob Strong, Phillip Donnelly
and Noel Bridgeman were
quitting the Plattermen. They would form a new "supergroup"
which included Noel
Bridgeman (Skid Row, Plattermen - drums), Pat O'Farrell (Plattermen
- guitar), Phillip Donnelly (Elmer Fudd, Gary Moore, Plattermen
- guitar), and James Delaney (Dave Prim Band - keyboards).
The new band hit the road running, although as a
five piece band, they were often playing many of the
"rock" gigs in Dublin and many urban clubs across the country, as
opposed to the rural ballroom scene. In February, 1975, Noel Bridgeman
left the band to re-join with former bandmate Brush Shiels in yet
another line-up of Skid Row.
One way or another, the new band didn't last too
long. In November, 1975, Ray Doherty, who had recently left the
Big
Eight, announced the formation of a new band,
Las Vegas. An article
in Spotlight reported that the idea came to Ray when the band
had been playing in Vegas (where they spent six months a year). The
band's lineup included: Rob Strong (vocals and bass), Ray Doherty
(multi), Jon Murphy (vocals), Kevin O'Brien (trumpet/sax), James
Delaney (keyboards), Brendan Bannigan (brass) and Niall Power
(drums).
Within a month, another former
member of the Big 8, singer Eileen Kelly (aka Kelley), had joined the band which was being
managed by Jack Finlay of Startime Promotions.
She left the Big 8 on November 15th, 1975. In a strange twist of
fate, when she left the Big Eight, the headlines read, "Kelley Was
Bored With Las Vegas." She went to great lengths to explain she was
bored by the monotony of the Vegas scene. However, less than a month
after leaving the Big 8, the front page headlines were: "Kelly:
From One Vegas to Another." It seemed she had a joined a band for which going to Las Vegas
was one of their prime reasons for being on the road. Kelley made her debut with the band on St. Stephen's
night, December 26th, 1975 in the GAA Centre in Tullamore (hometown
of singer John). Helen Jordan would take over her spot in the Big
8.
Interestingly, for a band at the
time, adverts for their gigs usually listed Kelley and Rob Strong as
the stars with Ray Doherty occasionally being mentioned, but never
lead singer, John Murphy. In January, 1976 they released their first
single which featured Rob and Kelley singing a Swarbrigg
Brothers-penned song, "All the Loving
People" on the EMI label. Unlike most other bands of the era the
band started to do cabaret gigs almost immediately, the first one we
found advertised for the Noggin Inn in Dublin in March, 1976.
The band was
doing good business on the circuit, but in September, 1976, Kelley and
Ray left the band to form a new group which would focus on the
lucrative cabaret scene called Kelley and Klass.
When Ray left, he was replaced by Mark Costigan on
guitar and at some point in 1976, Anto Long replaced James Delaney on
keyboards, who left to join the Swarbriggs Band. Kevin
O'Brien had also left the band and it was now a six piece.
At some point around this time,
the band changed management to George Hilliard and also changed
record labels from EMI to Release Records. They released the Dr.
Hook song "More Like The Movies" with the
B-side "My Name Is Joe," written by Derry songwriter, Ray Doherty.
With the new line-up and no girl
singer, Rob and John shared the vocals between them and the band
started to gravitate towards a more rock sound and Niall tells us
they eventually ended up playing mid week rock gigs in Moran's
Hotel, returning to the ballrooms at the weekends.
1977 would bring more changes to
the line-up as John Murphy left the band and wasn't replaced. This
left the majority of vocals chores to Rob with assistance from Mark
Costigan. Brendan would also leave and was replaced by Carl Geraghty on
sax. Eventually Anto also left and James Delaney returned to the
line-up. The band's last gig was in the Castle Ballroom, Macroom on
January 1st, 1978.
At this point the band was really
just backing Rob Strong on vocals and they decided to form a rock
outfit called Rob Strong and the Rockets. Niall tells us Rob,
Mark Costigan, James Delaney and Carl Geraghty formed the Rockets
bringing Fran Breen in on drums. In actual fact, the new line-up was
basically still Las Vegas with a new drummer, however, the band was
no longer considered in any way a showband.
We found an advert for Las Vegas
on June 11th, 1978 when the band was advertised to be playing in The
Country Club (Fethard, Co. Tipperary). Further
research shows both names being used in the early part of 1978, so
it is probable that this was done in order not to lose any bookings.
In October, 1978, reports in several newspapers
said that the band had broken up with Fran Breen joining Stagalee.
However, they were just rumours as the band released a new single
"Nutbush City Limits" on the Crash label
at the end of November. By July, 1979. the Rockets were no more and
it was reported Ron had joined up with Dave Coady and Tina Reynolds
to form a new band to specifically play in Las Vegas circuit in
Nevada.
More to come.....
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