There are Radiohead fans who visit Abingdon and wonder why the town has not erected a fitting monument to the group who started life at Abingdon School. Here is just such a visit to Radiohead’s home town.
Two videos today … A new one recorded in the Unicorn Theatre in Abingdon by Alphabet Backwards – with flowers by Fabulous Flowers .
The other a recently discovered demo CD from Radiohead’s early days at Abingdon School when they used to be called “On A Friday”.
Radiohead will be doing a stadium tour this year so I’m not sure we can book them for the Unicorn Theatre
There is no better tribute to Radiohead than that Abingdon has two guitar shops and there are good groups still starting off in Abingdon.
I enjoyed this post and the links too – good for an ageing Indie fan like me. I wonder has anyone seen the film about the Oxford music scene… ‘Anyone can play Guitar’?
Avery kind person in one of the music shops made great efforts to get copies of the dvd and took the trouble to phone me when they arrived.
Lets hear it for the small independent shops! (And I will refrain from the obvious comment!).
Haven’t seem the film yet but heard tullulah gosh and the anyways on radio 4 when they were talking about it – really took me back to student days of anorak music and jangly guitars 🙂
“Even at Abingdon, they felt out of place…. For Radiohead, the saving grace of Abingdon was an exceptional teacher who headed the music program. “I was a sort of leper at the time,” Yorke recalled, “and he was the only one who was nice to me……….School was bearable for me because the music department was separate from the rest of the school”.
“When we started, it was very important that we got support from him,” Colin said, “because we weren’t getting any from the headmaster. You know, the man once sent us a bill, charging us for the use of school property, because we practiced in one of the music rooms on a Sunday.” (From http://colin-greenwood-interviews.blogspot.com/)
It would be interesting to know what Radiohead would consider to be a fitting monument to Abingdon!
“Even at Abingdon, they felt out of place…. For Radiohead, the saving grace of Abingdon was an exceptional teacher who headed the music program. “I was a sort of leper at the time,” Yorke recalled, “and he was the only one who was nice to me……….School was bearable for me because the music department was separate from the rest of the school”.
“When we started, it was very important that we got support from him,” Colin said, “because we weren’t getting any from the headmaster. You know, the man once sent us a bill, charging us for the use of school property, because we practiced in one of the music rooms on a Sunday.” (From colin-greenwood-interviews.blogspot.com/)
It would be interesting to know what Radiohead would consider to be a fitting monument to Abingdon!
Did they not untimately endow a music school to Abingdon School – or have I been misinformed?
They funded the sound system kn the Amry Hall I think
…what another wonderful marketing opportunity to be quickly grasped by…whoever has the power to do so. Another tourist trail/walk – available from the tourist office…showing where they went to school, first gig etc…a little plaque…a significantly named road in a new development etc etc…?
I’m sure great minds are swinging this in to action as I write…?
I’m going to put this in my own personal “GIFT” list
(Great Ideas For the Town)…with good, practical ideas in one column and “Not done within 12 months” in another…