Jeff Ball - Grit (Part 2)
Born and raised in London, Ball began playing the trumpet until he eventually graduated to an instrument that was more to his liking, the guitar. Shortly there after, Ball formed a band and they began to play local clubs and other venues in the near by area. Eventually Ball found an ad in the paper and auditioned for what would be GRIT and the rest is history! It’s a true pleasure to present the second and final installment with Jeff Ball, vocalist, in the GRIT legend. Enjoy!
BORN IN LONDON, 7/9/51. GROWING UP WAS GREAT, PLAYING ON THE BOMB SITES, LEFT FROM THE WAR,WAS GREAT FUN WITH MY MATES. I LEARNED TRUMPET AT SCHOOL, BUT DIDN’T LEARN THE GUITAR, TILL MUCH LATER. BOTH MY PARENTS WERE MUSICAL, AND ALWAYS ENCOURAGED US. IN THE 60S, MY OLDER BROTHER AND SISTER BOTH PLAYED AND SANG IN GROUPS. WHEN I WAS 15, I FORMED A GROUP WITH SOME MATES, I WAS THE SINGER, WE WERE CALLED “THE CONCORDS”. OUR FIST GIG WAS IN OUR LOCAL YOUTH CLUB. WE WERE ALL NERVOUS, BUT IT WENT WELL, AND AFTER, WE ALL FELT GREAT. WITHIN A YEAR, WE WERE WORKING MOST WEEKENDS. WE PLAYED EVERY TYPE OF VENUE, AND ALL TYPES OF MUSIC, IT WAS GREAT EXPERIENCE TO HAVE.
AFTER A COUPLE OF YEARS, WE CHANGED THE NAME TO “RESPECT,” AND PLAYED SOUL AND REGGAE, IN CLUBS AND BARS. AFTER ANOTHER COUPLE OF YEARS, WE ADDED 2 NEW MEMBERS, AND CALLED OURSELVES “GARNET WOLESLEY.” WE’D PROGRESSED TO HEAVY METAL MUSIC, AND DID COVERS OF DEEP PURPLE AND LED ZEPPELIN, MOSTLY IN COLLEGES, AND UNIVERSITIES. BY 1970, WE DECIDED TO GO OUR OWN WAYS, AND I STARTED LOOKING FOR A NEW BAND. FROM ADVERTS IN MUSIC PAPERS, I EVENTUALLY CAME TO AUDITION FOR “GRIT.” I LIKED THAT THEY WERE PLAYING ORIGINAL COMPOSITIONS, AND MUSICALLY THEY WERE VERY GOOD. WE ALL HIT IT OFF STRAIGHT AWAY, SO I JOINED THE BAND.
AS FOR WHERE WE REHEARSED, AND WHAT GEAR WE USED, YOU’LL HAVE TO ASK FRANK, COS I DON’T REMEMBER. SAME GOES FOR FIRST GIG, NO IDEA. ALL I WANTED TO ACHIEVE, WAS FAME AND FORTUNE. THE NAME OF THE BAND, AND INFLUENCE, AND WRITING PROCESS, ASK FRANK, COS I DON’T KNOW. THE ANGEL PUB WAS ONE OF OUR REHEARSAL PLACES, AND THE RECORDINGS FROM THERE, WAS BASICALLY JUST US REHEARSING. THE RECORDING IN THE STUDIO, WAS LATE ‘72, AND DONE IN ONE SESSION. WE DIDN’T REALLY KNOW WHAT TO DO WITH THE RECORDING, WE WERE PRETTY NAIVE. YES, WE KEPT WORKING THE NEXT YEAR. IN APRIL OF ‘73 WE DID A TOUR OF GREECE.
IT WAS FANTASTIC. WE DID SOME STADIUMS, AND TV, ALONG WITH SOME NOT SO GREAT PLACES. AT THE END OF MY STORY, I’LL SEND YOU A FULL DETAILED ACCOUNT, OF OUR GREEK ADVENTURE. THAT’S A STORY ON IT’S OWN. AFTER WE RETURNED FROM GREECE, WE ALL FELT IT WAS TIME FOR A CHANGE, SO WE SPLIT. MID ‘73, I JOINED A BAND CALLED “TODAY.” THIS WAS MUCH MORE OF A POP HARMONY BAND. WE DID A COUPLE OF ORIGINALS, BUT MOSTLY COVERS. IT WAS WHILE I WAS WITH THIS BAND, THAT I LEARNED TO PLAY THE GUITAR. I LEFT THAT BAND IN ‘75, WHEN I MET A GIRL, AND SHE PERSUADED ME TO GET SOLO WORK IN SPAIN.
I WAS STILL A NOVICE AT PLAYING GUITAR, BUT I COULD SING 100S OF SONGS, AND I HAD A GOOD EAR. I LOVED SPAIN STRAIGHTAWAY. IN ‘79, WHILE IN SPAIN, I MET 2 SISTERS, WITH FABULOUS VOICES. WE DECIDED TO FORM A TRIO CALLED “OASIS” WOULD YOU BELIEVE. AFTER A WHILE WE CHANGED IT TO “GOLDUST.” WE TOURED AROUND EUROPE, MOSTLY HOLLAND, WHERE WE MADE A COUPLE OF TV APPEARANCES. BUT I WAS MISSING SPAIN, AND BY 81, WE SPLIT, AND I WAS BACK IN SPAIN. IN ‘86, ME AND A COUPLE OF MATES, OPENED OUR OWN BAR CALLED “FARTUNCLES.” WE STILL HAVE A FB PAGE. I SANG 3 HOURS A NIGHT 7 NIGHTS A WEEK, FOR 10 MONTHS.
IT WAS A HUGE SUCCESS, BUT AFTER 8 YEARS, FOR ONE REASON OR ANOTHER, WE DECIDED TO CLOSE THE PLACE. I STARTED SINGING IN OTHER BARS, AND SANG SOLO, IN DUOS, OR IN A BAND, FOR THE NEXT 7 YEARS. IN 1999, I STARTED DOING A TRIBUTE TO “BUDDY HOLLY.” AND IN THE LAST 20 YEARS, I’VE DONE TRIBUTES TO “SHOWADDYWADDY” (A FAMOUS ENGLISH ROCK N ROLL BAND), “BAY CITY ROLLERS”, “EVERLY BROTHERS” AND MORE RECENTLY, “SIMON AND GARFUNKEL” “JERSEY BOYS” (FRANKI VALLI & 4 SEASONS) AND “THE BEE GEES.” THE LAST THREE I’VE BEEN DOING WITH A SUPERB VOCALIST I MET 7 YEARS AGO.
AT THE MOMENT WE MOSTLY DO BEE GEES, AND JERSEY BOYS, 2 X 45 MINUTE SHOWS A NIGHT, 6 NIGHTS A WEEK. MY MOST RECENT VENTURE IS A SOLO TRIBUTE TO THE MUSIC OF “THE ROLLING STONES.” SO AS YOU CAN SEE, I’M STILL A BUSY BOY. AND THEN OUT OF THE BLUE, COMES THE RECORD DEAL. FRANK CAN TELL YOU MORE ABOUT THAT, IT WAS REALLY DOWN TO HIM. WE HAD LOST CONTACT, AND IT WAS GREAT TO ALL GET TOGETHER ON WHATSAPP, AND HAVE A GOOD CHAT ABOUT OLD TIMES. WE ARE TRYING TO ARRANGE A REUNION, BUT 2 OF US LIVE IN SPAIN, 1 IN CYPRUS, WHO’S STILL GIGGING, AND 1 IN ENGLAND, SO WE HAVE TO SORT OUT WHERE WE CAN MEET. HAVING THE ALBUM RELEASED, WAS JUST FANTASTIC, AND HEARING OUR SONGS PLAYED ON SPOTIFY, AND AMAZON IS BRILLIANT. SHAME IT TOOK SO LONG FOR IT TO HAPPEN. BUT AS THEY SAY, BETTER LATE THAN NEVER. I WILL SEND THE GREEK ADVENTURE, AND SOME OF MY POSTERS. I HOPE I HAVEN’T GONE INTO TOO MUCH DETAIL, BUT ONCE I GOT STARTED, I COULDN’T STOP.
Another Day:
Just another day to live my life like there is no tomorrow See the sun is out the sky is blue But within my mind the sky is dark and there are rain clouds forming since you went away, I just miss you more each day Was it me was it you, tell me what can we do The sands of time just keep on falling, Just another time within my life when there’s nothing but sorrow Time to take control, but what to do If I could find the strength within myself to just forget about you Life could be so cool, I’ve been such a fool Was it me was it you, tell me what can we do cos those days are gone, and will never be here again It’s just another day, 24 hours to find a way If there is some way to get you back into my life Things could be so fine, if you would just be mine Was it me was it you, this is what we will do Together forever and never to part again.
Dakota Brown
