Y Blew did it, in 1967, probably for the first time. They
released a 7” single “Maes B” b/w “Beth Sy’n Dod Rhyngthom Ni”. The first time
that we had a proper Welsh Language Rock’n Roll record. This is two years
before the Mike Stevens produced, first single release on Sain which was “Dwr”
by folk-protest singer Huw Jones and which incidentally features Heather Jones
on backing vocals.
So
‘Maes B’ could well be the first Welsh Language rock’n roll record. But why ?
Apart from the obvious “Why Not ?” or even
“Somebody had to do it”, it’s probably down to bass player Dafydd Evans
who realised that this needed to be done.Before we had the Blew record we were
really left with girl bands in Laura Ashley dresses looking like they’d just
come off stage at the Gwyl Cerdd Dant and Welsh versions of Blowin in The Wind
and This Land is My Land.
I was
hanging out with Llmych Fanzine when Huw Prestatyn interviewed Dafydd Evans in
the mid 80’s and it was obvious then that he’d seen the need to have some cool
stuff in the Welsh Language. Certainly it fitted in with the overall campaign
for the Language spearheaded at the time by Cymdeithas yr Iaith but Dafydd
probably realised you needed some rock’n roll songs to go along with the Revolution.
Most of
the Blew dudes had already played in bands that sung in English, no big deal,
but Dafydd Evans really does deserve credit for moving the agenda forward. Without Y Blew, the 60’s Welsh Language Scene
would have been Bob Dylan sound-alikes. No Stones or Beatles in Welsh.
Some
years later another visionary, Hefin Elis, who had already played in bands with
Evans put Edward H together. This is really the next milestone. Edward H
provided the musical backdrop to a whole generation of Welsh speakers in the
70’s who wanted a soundtrack in Welsh. Edward H were formed with the intention
of filling the gap – there was no Welsh Language Rock Band for the youth of
Wales.
I’ve
never been sure if they ever stated that they formed to provide a band for
Welsh speakers or for the youth of Wales – in one sense it makes no difference
but if it was aimed for Welsh Speakers it certainly makes it very different to
what went on in the mid 80’s during the Welsh Underground Scene when the agenda
was Welsh Language Music for everybody (or anybody who would listen). But at the
time, I think their “aim was true” to quote Costello, there was a point to it,
there was a need for it and without it you don’t get to the next stage.
These
days I have quite a lot of time for Cleif Harpwood, he’s still out there
gigging, still doing it for the right reasons. I saw his new band at Caersws
recently and thoroughly enjoyed hearing the songs.
But, for the masses, Edward H
were basically good time rock’n roll to get pissed to, to get laid to, to get
wasted to – nothing wrong with that, Popeth yn Gymraeg - this is the first time
we have some kind of mass appeal for Welsh Language Rock. Edward H had a folky
side (often better than the rock stuff) and definitely a political side – and also
humour if you look at the album sleeves and titles. This is another band that
probably deserves a critical re-evaluation.
By the early 80’s Welsh Language
Rock was firmly established, you’d had pretty cool bands in Trwynau Coch and
Geraint Jarman, they’d even begun the process of John Peel plays and coverage
in things like the NME – you know let’s reach out a little bit. Jarman and his
Rasta cohorts were definitely an “urban” band, a Cardiff band, quite
interesting, not as trad as Edward H, they smoked spliffs and played gigs in
the Docks in venues like the Casablanca Club. This was pretty damned cool, even
going down there was a bit of a thrill. The smell of ganja filled the club, the
music was reggae but the vocals were in Welsh. Talk about a Culture Clash. More
interestingly, this was possible and it worked. It stopped the trad heads from
monopolising Welsh Music and Welsh Culture. It took it away from the University
Halls of Residence like JMJ and Pantycelyn. You have no idea ……..
Another milestone was (arguably)
the post-industrial scenario in Bethesda. I know Penrhyn Quarry is still working but …….. bands formed
here because there was f*** all else to do, so in that sense it’s
post-industrial. Bethesda did not produce post-industrial electronic music as
did Detroit or Sheffield, it was still a denim town but it did produce one of
the greatest Welsh Language bands of all time – Maffia Mr Huws.
Now Maffia are really interesting
because they are probably the first working class Welsh Language band, not
college boys, not in it to get a job in the Welsh Media, they were full time,
the real deal and brilliant at what they did. They were not influenced by punk,
there must have been a time-warp around Bethesda and possibly for that reason
they have never quite found their place in Welsh Pop History. Too young to be
part of the Trwynau /Jarman Generation and not Punk enough for the Underground
Scene of 1982 onwards – but they kept the scene going between 1981-83 there is
no doubt.
Always supported by Sgrech
magazine as a natural Welsh speaking band, it was often overlooked that most of
the Maffia boys played with Offspring, another brilliant band from Bethesda put
together by Les Morisson, but Offspring sung in English. In the early 80’s not
only was this taboo but you could get to be banned by the Welsh Language
Promoters for playing the wrong venue or for “playing in front of English
people” in theory – ask Jarman – he copped it well and truly for playing in
Cardiff Castle.
Maffia were never rumbled. They
were well liked and you really could not question their commitment to being in
a Welsh Language band.
The next milestone was the
emergence of truly post-Punk bands who wanted to sing in Welsh from 1883
onwards. I’ve never quite fathomed out why Y Cyrff from Llanrwst or Datblygu
from Aberteifi were so unflinching in their politics, they never deviated,
always sung in Welsh but never segregated the audience. Of course that would
have been a bit mad in Llanrwst, I always remember Cyrff having a strong local
following, Llanrwst boys who probably understood Welsh but more often than not
spoke English together. But here they were following a Welsh Language band.
Cool.
Bands like Cyrff were closer to Y
Blew in sprit, the fashion was up to date, they were more urbanised, looking
more towards Liverpool than Aberystwyth, sounding more Bunnymen than Dafydd
Iwan. This was Welsh Language Music for
everybody, not just in Wales, not just for Welsh speakers. Cyrff played the
Square in Harlow with Attila the Stockbroker and went down a storm (as did
Datblygu). No Welsh bands had done this in the 70’s.
Cyrff were part of that Llmych
scene, a fanzine put out by the Clwyd branch of Cymdeithas yr Iaith, and again
for the first time it could be argued that a few members of Cymdeithas actually
realised the value of looking outwards rather than inwards. In social context this was all bang up to
date – we had Billy Bragg and Red Wedge, the Miner’s Strike, Thatcher
polarizing everobody – it was a good time politically to be a Welsh Language
band with something to say. I toured many a South Wales Valley venue with
Cyrff, always singing in Welsh, mostly to non Welsh speakers in those areas
obviously. No problem, no issues, no segregation – and a faint hope that we
were making the Language cool, some might even learn it or certainly send their
kids to Welsh Speaking Schools. It did happen.
It was still on the agenda that
we were all doing this to promote the Language, the medium was rock’n roll not
placards and rallies. So what happens next ?
A generation of bands like U
Thant, Crumblowers, Fflaps, Gwefrau, Ffa Coffi
Pawb, Beganifs all formed in the
wake of the Welsh Underground Scene. Some of them like Ffa Coffi Pawb became
hugely popular around 1990 – they all sung in Welsh.
By 1992 they had all played the
Eisteddfod once too often. They’d all been on S4C and realised that it make no
difference at all. No more records sold, no more audience numbers and certainly
no means of making a living being in a Welsh band. So we had Mark and Cerys,
the embryonic Super Furry’s with Rhys Ifans on vocals, all venturing into
unchartered territories – all quietly (not daringly) writing songs and
producing demos in the English Language.
Maybe it would have been
different if the Welsh audiences had actually supported the bands as opposed to
getting pissed and laid at the gigs. Maybe had the Welsh Media actually got
some reach all those programmes like Fideo 9 might have meant something more
than the £1000 fee which was used to
make the next record. A lot of maybes. Maybe it was time for a change. Maybe
the time was up.
I got involved with the embryonic
Catatonia 1993-94 and slowly things changed. Within a couple of years We had ‘Cool Cymru’ and the Welsh audiences
(both languages) woke up and thanked the Lord that they were Welsh when the
English Media told them that Welsh bands were good. We needed Top of the Pops
to convince us – us poor deluded oppressed un-cultured sheep shagging fools.
Sad but true. Who cares – we had great music coming from Wales, even the Manics
became Born Again Welsh and we had the odd song in Welsh chwarae teg – you know
as in ‘Can yr Ysgol’ with our “Lessons History, Lessons Geography ac unwaith yr
wythnos mi gawsom Welsh chwarae teg” …………
From this point everything did
change. Beganifs became Big Leaves and they cleverly seperated their Welsh and
English releases and their Welsh Language gigs from their “other” gigs. No one
else has done this quite so cleverly and clinically. This was Cool Cymru Wave
2.
What had changed was that Super
Furry Animals became the coolest Welsh band ever. Everybody knew they were
basically Ffa Coffi Pawb with a couple of members of U Thank thrown in – so
they were always and still and forever to be a “band Cymraeg”, no confusing our
Cymraeg and our Cymreig – no one was interested, we were sooo happy.
The Furry’s influenced not just a
generation but most of the young bands around today. You listen to any band who
sing bi-lingually from North Wales and it’s Furry’s / Gruff Rhys all over. Like
Catatonia sung they have a “lot to answer for”.Not them personally, but they’ve
inspired a generation of sound-alikes rather than inspiring people to form different
kinds of bands. That’s not their fault. The same thing happened with the Sex
Pistols and Clash during the second wave of Punk - parody bands, second division copyists who
more often than not missed the point.
The main issue I have with all this
and the parody bands especially is that Catatonia and Super Furry Animals
succeeded because they had exceptional songwriters, they had exceptional songs,
they are all vastly talented, they’d all learnt their craft on the Welsh Scene
and yes they sung in English. But a shite Welsh band singing in English does
not success make. A generation failed to see this.
Now looking back to y Blew, Edward H, Maffia or Cyrff it was all of it’s
time – things have now changed. Why should any band now confine themselves to
singing only in the Welsh Language ? Well it is obviously a matter of choice.
Steve Eaves I presume is unlikely to record an English Language record as is
also ,I would suspect ,Dave Datblygu. Datblygu
in English would be a non -sense. To what purpose ? Datblygu remain the enigmatic,
iconic, seminal Welsh Language band – surely ?
The young bands were not born
when Datblygu recorded the 10 Peel Sessions all in Welsh – they have no idea –
why should they ? Politics and music are not so easy bed fellows these days.
The Welsh Underground Scene produced no love songs – every song was political,
small p possibly, even the love songs ! But today we have very little political
context, it doesn’t have to be this way but it would appear to be the case.
I’m writing this article in
response to the “Trydarati Cymraeg” who were discussing the Language policy at
the “4 a 6” gigs in Caernarfon. Now this is really interesting. My
understanding is that the gigs are promoted by people like Geraint Lovgreen,
Rhys Trwynau Coch and Nici Beech. They do this for the right reasons, ie voluntarily, as enthusiasts, to support the
scene in Caernarfon but I think they
also do this to promote the Language and “y Sin Gymraeg”. I do not want to
speak on their behalf because I have only been to one gig – and that was the
Racehorses gig – but this is where the trydarati got flapping – what’s to be done with all the English
songs on a Welsh night ?????
So young bands get a chance to
play at “4 a 6” which is good, Caernarfon has a bit of a live scene which is
good but these are what we would call “Gigs Cymraeg”. Welsh artists or Welsh
based artists like Amy Wadge or Martyn
Joseph I suspect would not get a gig because they have no Welsh Language
repertoire – they are not “grwpiau Cymraeg”.
But what has happened is that
bands like Racehorses turn up at a so called Welsh Language gig and maybe do
three Welsh Language songs in a set of 15 – 20 songs. The audience are mostly
if not entirely Welsh speaking. Racehorses no longer play the National
Eisteddfod because they do not have a Welsh Language set.
Meilyr Racehorses pic Geraint Lovgreen
In the context of the Eisteddfod
that is the deal – they have a Welsh Language only rule. Promoters and artists
alike understand this. You will get away with a couple of English songs – no
one will notice. You will not get away with a couple of Welsh songs. But then
everybody knows that Racehorses or Cate Le Bon etc now do a few Welsh songs in
a mostly English set – book them for what they are and what they do - or don’t book them. (Unless they can
write a Welsh Language set for those gigs like Maes B – possible because
Sibrydion / Big Leaves always managed)
I certainly do not agree with
telling an artist what to do, which Language to perform, but then I spent over
10 years in a Welsh Language punk band touring all over Europe and singing in
English was totally out of the question – it was not the point and not what we
were about. Our whole point was to take Welsh Language music into an
International context. But that’s not the case today is it ?
Should you have a Language policy at gigs ? The Eisteddfod
do, Maes B do but it’s pretty easily flouted.
Cymdeithas yr Iaith must have contracts for their Eisteddfod gigs –
again not sure because I haven’t played gigs with them since around 1992. Would
I sing a contract like this – no bloody way – I will not be told by anyone
which Language I should use – but then for Anhrefn we would not have required
such a clause – they would have had to cross it out – cheeky bastards.
But why play a “Welsh Language” gig
if you do not have a Welsh Language set ? The obvious answer here is that for a
lot of bands, the only audience they have is the Welsh Language audience, they
write in English in the hope of doing a Super Furry’s but in reality they’d
probably shit themselves doing a Wednesday night at the Princess Charlotte in
Leicester if you know what I mean. They would not find the venue, They would
not have an audience.
Y Blew had reasons for singing in
Welsh which are not relevant to Cowbois Rhos Botwnnog. Edward H were of a
completely different time to Cate Le Bon. Politically we are in another
devolved self governing place. Cardiff is now a truly European City, cultured
and multi-cultural. Cardiff today is not the Cardiff that Jarman wrote about.
The politics are not the same. This is not 1962. This is not Pont Trefechan.
This is not even “Tai Haf” anymore. This is Bi-lingual Wales. Some of the
battles have been won (by the parents) – maybe that’s where the complecancy
sets in.
If the audience of today are the
bi-lingual generation is it not natural for them to have bi-lingual performing
bands ? They are not there to “Save the
Language” – we have just agreed that was
“done” by their parents. Again don’t quote me on this – but I suspect no one
really notices or complains if bands sing bi-lingually at Welsh Language gigs –
the barriers are well and truly down – until now.
Maybe the time for Welsh Language
gigs is gone, over and out, past it’s sell by date. Steve Eaves, Bryn Fon,
Geraint Lovgreen, Maffia, Sibrydion, Twmffat
will all give you 100% Welsh Language sets – go see them. Double check
there’s no dodgy (young) support acts and you will have a Noson Gymraeg.
I want to see Neil Maffia
recently in the Llangollen pub in Bethesda. I would have been gob smacked had
Neil done an English song – I would have asked for my money back (even though
it was a free gig). But had Neil done an Offspring cover would I really have
minded – probably not – it would have been in context. But, Maffia singing in
English is obviously a no – make that a NO!
So if I reject the Language Policy
idea and the sign a contract that you won’t sing in English idea I also welcome
a band that can be truly confident and perform a Welsh Language set – our generation
proved you could do that from Dublin to Prague – maybe that’s a lesson the
young bands should learn – more docu’s on S4C then please ! (probably make no difference but would help with the MCPS)
There’s also the small point that
Internationally, singing in Welsh might well be your USP. No one needs another
sound-alike band singing in a poor North Walian accent in English.
Singing in Welsh should obviously
be a choice but choice these days sounds like an issue – it should not even be
an issue – that’s where I feel that we have lost ground – the eye on the
English scene (so called success) is partly to blame here, do what you want to
do, stick to your guns, and sing in Welsh for **** sake – forget the NME and
Radio 1, be who you / we are. Reflect this place.
But this is all in this context
of Welsh Language gigs. Obviously the melting of the Welsh Scene and y Sin
Gymraeg into the big pot has been a good thing. Swn Festival or Green Man
Festivals will have Welsh Language songs on the main stage, reflecting our
bi-lingual society where in another age there would have been no Welsh at all.
Cardiff gig goers are no longer “anti-Welsh” in any way – compared to Jarman’s
day when he was truly breaking new
ground (and copping it off the Welsh Language purists for reaching out).
I am convinced that the Welsh
Language has to reach out and all the bands from Catatonia to Cate Le Bon have
done this by doing this bi-lingually. But, we must also argue that Datblygu or
Cyrff were right not to compromise – not that it was ever on the agenda. What a
brilliant thing it was to see Cyrff and Datblygu on The Tube (Channel Four) –
flying the flag (not in a Sterephonics sense) – that was cool – that was
reaching the Valley kids – turning them back on, turning them on for the first
time, or just turning them on – I talked to so many Newport punks who wanted to
learn Welsh because of those bands !
So I say all this as a “Culturalist
not a Nationalist”. I have no answers. But I would say “Popeth yn Gymraeg” is not
such a bad mantra, at least that we have the possibilities and confidence of
creating anything and everything in Welsh – I still believe in that – that probably
means we should be concentrating on Welsh Language Computer Games
involving all sorts of non PC things. I
can hear my kids watching extreme stunts on youtube downstairs. They do not
listen to much music. They have nothing in Welsh that appeals to them. Pop
Music no longer reaches those parts. Once again we have to go back to that 60’s
poster – Popeth yn Gymraeg and get with the C21st programme.
So the whole gig thing will not
affect my boys’ generation and no one has even started that debate – we have
Cyw on S4C which they call boring – it reminds me of Girl Bands in Laura Ashley
dresses. We need a new Blew but it needs to be a computer programme ………………
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