In 1996 I attended the funeral of my friend Chas Chandler and Record Collector magazine asked me to 'cover' it for them. Here's what I wrote:
Chas Chandler, the North-East's most legendary rock
figure, was laid to rest in Cullercoats, his home town, on Monday, July 22,
following a private cremation attended only by his family. Earlier there had
been a service at St George's Church, a stone's throw away from the Chandler
home. The large church was crammed with over 400 friends and business
colleagues, and crowds of holiday makers dressed in beach clothes lined the sea
front route as the funeral cortege made its way to the church. Chas, who always
believed in the grand gesture, would have enjoyed the spectacle.
Among
those attending was Al Hendricks, Jimi Hendrix's 78-year-old father, who had
flown over from Seattle with his adopted daughter Janie and son-in-law to meet
for the first time with the man who "discovered" his son James
playing in a Greenwich Village bar almost thirty years ago. Instead he stood
alongside other mourners from the world of rock, among them Noel Redding, the
bass player from the Jimi Hendrix Experience. Ironically the Hendrix family was
to have met with Chas in London on the day of the funeral to discuss the
release of Hendrix material that was still in Chandler's possession.
Buddy
Holly's music played inside the church as the mourners assembled, and during
the service there were numerous tributes to 'the big man' who played bass
guitar with The Animals, discovered, produced and managed Jimi Hendrix and
Slade, and, in later years, became the leading figure behind the construction
of the Newcastle Arena, now the biggest rock venue on Tyneside.
Nigel
Stanger, Chas' partner in the Arena, told mourners how Chas revelled in
learning all he could about the construction industry, seeing it as a new
challenge after his successes in music. Keith Altham, the former NME journalist
and press agent, spoke wittily about Chas' love of a good argument, which he
could never bear to lose, and the enthusiasm he would bring to any project in
which he was involved, including a plan to link Sydney with Perth by a canal.
It was an infectious enthusiasm that inevitably communicated itself to all
around him. Doubters never stood a chance when Chas was ramming home
his opinions.
Noddy
Holder, now a DJ with Piccadilly Radio in Manchester who attended with the
other three members of Slade, also referred to Chas' ability to argue long into
the night. At his recent 50th birthday party, Noddy and his former manager
were, at 5 am, the last to leave, propping each other up, still arguing over
what was wrong with the music industry. "We'd been having the same
argument for 20 years," said Noddy.
Finally,
Steffan Chandler, Chas' eldest son, from his first marriage, spoke quietly but
emotionally of a father and family man that friends in the music industry
seldom saw. Chas left three other children from his second marriage, all of
them much younger than Steffan, and there can be few among those present who
weren't touched by Steffan's words.
The coffin left the church to strains of 'Spirit In The Sky' by Norman Greenbaum, and later in the afternoon many friends gathered in the garden at the nearby family home to
express personal condolences to Madeleine, Chas' widow. Many hilarious 'Chas'
stories were exchanged, and it was evident that 'the big man' – Chas was 6'
4" – was held in great affection by anyone who had the good fortune to
spend any time with him.
Chas,
whose real name was Bryan, started his working life as a turner on Newcastle's
shipyards. Then he played bass with the Alan Price Combo which became The
Animals. Eternally modest about his bass playing, he steadfastly refused ever
to play in front of Jim Lea, Slade's bassist, because he was embarrassed about
his shortcomings. From The Animals he went into record production and
management, firstly with Hendrix and then Slade. Both sold millions of records
for the PolyGram group – and this correspondent was not alone in noticing that
the record company for whom he made many millions had failed to send a
representative to pay their respects to Chas.
Not
often do management figures inspire such endearing respect from all quarters
bar the record company but anyone who knew Chas Chandler knows full well that
he never looked upon the music business as a means of enriching himself, but as
a means whereby he could help the artists he managed. As Keith Altham remarked
in his memorial address, Chas was a 'hands-on' manager in the tradition of
Brian Epstein, Kit Lambert and Peter Grant, all of whom put the welfare of their acts above all else, all of whom were larger than life characters
themselves and, alas, all of whom are now also dead.
Chas
Chandler loved rock and roll and those who played it, and he dedicated his life
to them. He was immensely proud of his Geordie roots, a plain-speaking, honest
and hard-working man, and he could cut through bullshit like a hot knife
through soft butter. His legacy will linger on in the music of The Animals, in
the extraordinary records he made with Jimi Hendrix, and in the cheers that
will ring out as future generations of rock stars appear on stage at the
Newcastle Arena.
They
should build a statue of Chas directly outside the building.
10 comments:
Enjoyed his Company despite the dirty trick he played on me regarding Slade's PR. Fondest memory was being asked to drive him home in his Roller after a hard night at the Speak. because he was too pissed to drive - was slurringly regaled about all that was wrong with the Music Biz all the way there, stayed the night, full English Brekkie cooked by his Mrs (not certain which one) and then he paid for a taxi to take me back to my place - nice man but a bit of a snob in some areas - having a prestigious PR doesn't make the PR generated any better!
That would have been at his house at Linfield, south of London. I stayed the night there too once, though in reverse circumstances. I'd gone for dinner and was too pissed to drive home afterwards.
Great story, great man, glad I knew him.
Did the other Animals attend?
Did the other Animals attend?
Only Johnny Steel and Hilton Valentine as I recall.
A very nicely written account. But you forgot to mention the tribute from Sting, who sent a voice message by email, which was played in the church. I think he was in Australia at the time.
Just found your blog, Chris, look forward to going through it!
:-)
I knew Chas in 1967/9 where I found him to be a true gentleman.
It’s sad that he died whilst still in his prime with projects and plans to fulfill.
But he left a legacy of achievements behind … glad I knew him
Dates above by me are incorrect .. it was actually 1964-1966 that I spent many fun times with him when the animals were on the rise and had their most iconic hits.
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