Norman Watt-Roy

[stewblack]

Anyone know if Norm is still gigging with the Blockheads? They're just down the road from us at the weekend and I'm not giging, but as much as I love them and have enjoyed watching them since Ian Dury passed, my £20 would only fight it's way from my wallet so I could stand gazing at one of my bass heroes.

 

Edited November 18, 2019 by stewblack

[Teebs]

26 minutes ago, stewblack said:

Anyone know if Norm is still gigging with the Blockheads? They're just down the road from us at the weekend and I'm not giging, but as much as I love them and have enjoyed watching them since Ian Dury passed, my £20 would only fight it's way from my wallet so I could stand gazing at one of my bass heroes.

 

I thought he was playing with Wilko Johnson a while back.

I'm not sure if he's with The Blockheads anymore...

 

[oldslapper]

I thought he was still performing with the Blockheads? 

[Teebs]

Maybe both - I can't find a lot about his gigging.

 

[Woodinblack]

He is listed as the bass player on their facebook page,  there was a video of him in june saying they were gigging that week, he is in all their publicity photos and there isn't anything that says he has left. So it would seem he is still there.

Edited November 18, 2019 by Woodinblack

[oldslapper]

Hoping to get to this, lists NWR as in band.

https://www.cheeseandgrain.com/events/the-blockheads/

 

btw he’s had his teeth done 😊

Edited November 18, 2019 by oldslapper

[stewblack]

Thanks folks.

Looks like I'll be watching an old man sweat through a suit again.

[oldslapper]

1 minute ago, stewblack said:

Thanks folks.

Looks like I'll be watching an old man sweat through a suit again.

That’s Midsomer Norton for you! 😆

[Reggaebass]

I really like Normans playing, I see them back in the day, they were great, and he also played an Alembic 🙂

[NickD]

It's always Norm. It's not the Blockheads without him.

[BreadBin]

42 minutes ago, oldslapper said:

Hoping to get to this, lists NWR as in band.

https://www.cheeseandgrain.com/events/the-blockheads/

 

btw he’s had his teeth done 😊

I'm going 👍

[TheGreek]

Glad to hear that he's made a recovery from the bout of illness/ heart attack in 2017.

[SpondonBassed]

1 hour ago, Reggaebass said:

I really like Normans playing, I see them back in the day, they were great, and he also played an Alembic 🙂

Not only did he play an Alembic, he also had a coffee table made in the shape of an enormous Strat headstock.  That's success for you.

Like Mick above, I'm very glad he's still with us after the "stall" he had.

[Maude]

Thanks to this thread I've just seen they are playing just down the road me in March next year, thank you. 🙂

[SpondonBassed]

1 hour ago, stewblack said:

Looks like I'll be watching an old man sweat through a suit again.

Yeah.  Lee Evans is great isn't he?

[stewblack]

🤦‍♂️

[4000]

Several years ago Wilko was playing near me and Norman was the bassist for the tour. I went specifically to watch him. Unfortunately when I got there he hadn't been able to make it and there was another guy standing in. I stayed for about 10 minutes and went home; sadly I was never really a fan of Wilko’s music. 

[stewblack]

The way i look at it, and I know this sounds morbid, we may not get many more chances to actually see these great bass players in the flesh. Phil Lynott and John Entwhistle are gone, Bruce Thomas seems to have virtually retired. Bruce Foxton, Jean-Jaques and Norman enriched my life from when I first started out. These are the guys who inspired and motivated me to play bass. I'd hate to miss any opportunity to see them play.

[4000]

Just now, stewblack said:

The way i look at it, and I know this sounds morbid, we may not get many more chances to actually see these great bass players in the flesh. Phil Lynott and John Entwhistle are gone, Bruce Thomas seems to have virtually retired. Bruce Foxton, Jean-Jaques and Norman enriched my life from when I first started out. These are the guys who inspired and motivated me to play bass. I'd hate to miss any opportunity to see them play.

I get that. I still can’t believe I’ll never get to see Chris Squire or Lemmy again, never mind John. I’m just grateful that I got to see them at all. 

[stewblack]

And then there's all the greats who died before I discovered them...

[alant]

I remember seeing a great, but not very well known band in the seventies called Glenco. Found out a few years later that a few of them became The Blockheads including Norman.

 

[Floyd Pepper]

Last thing I know is that NWR still plays with The Blockheads. Saying that, he was missing last time I saw them but only because he was already committed to a Wilko tour.
Saying that, Ernie McKone was depping that night!

[BreadBin]

I was involved in running a stage at a festival 9 years ago, the Blockheads were one of the many great acts featured.

It was a genuine pleasure to be able to thank Norman for being such an inspiration to me 👍

[milford59]

1 hour ago, alant said:

I remember seeing a great, but not very well known band in the seventies called Glenco. Found out a few years later that a few of them became The Blockheads including Norman.

 

Glencoe played at Friars in Aylesbury around 1972/1973 and at the same time Ian Dury’s band (Kilburn and the High Roads) used to play Friars.....maybe that’s where NWR met Ian Dury ?