T.Rex at Lewisham Odeon (1971)

T.Rex at Lewisham Odeon July 1971 - 60p in with two shows, at 6:30 pm or 9 pm.  This was the year when Marc Bolan's band really blew up, releasing the Electric Warrior album and dominating the UK charts with singles including Hot Love and Get it On.

 The live album T.Rex in Concert, released posthumously in 1981, includes three tracks record at the Lewisham concert: Ride a White Swan, Get it On and Summertime Blues

Camberwell Communists and the Nigerian Miners Massacre (1949)

 In Nigeria in November 2024, the National Commission for Mu­seum and Monuments 'marked the 75th anniversa­ry of the massacre of 21 coal miners at Iva Valley, Enugu, by the colonial masters. It could be recalled that 21 coal miners were shot dead in Enugu on Nov. 18, 1949, by the colonial mas­ters for agitating for better working conditions and improved welfare packages'.

A monument to the massacre in Nigeria

The massacre took place at a British owned mine under British colonial rule. It sparked protests throughout the country that strengthened the movement for independence. During these protests a young Nigerian who had lived in Camberwell was among those killed, having returned to Nigeria only a couple of weeks earlier.  Odilia Asaka was a young Nigerian law student who lived in De Crespigny Park. He had given demonstrations of African songs to Peckham Secondary Girls School and was a member of the Camberwell branch of the Communist Party, and his death was announced at a CP meeting at Peckham girls school by Tom Gibson (I believe the school was on the site of what is now Harris Academy Peckham).

The Secretary of the State for the Colonies at the time was Arthur Creech Jones, the former secretary of Dulwich Independent Labour Party. When he came to speak at a Labour Party meeting at Grafton Hall, Dulwich on 24 November 1949 he was shouted down by Nigerians in the audience with cries such as .‘Our people have been shot. You live on our sweat. When we ask for money you give us bullets'.

The Labour Party blamed the Communist Party for the disruption of the meeting. For their part the Camberwell CP were happy to stand by the Nigerian protestors and passed a resolution that denounced 'the acts of brutality being committed against Nigerian miners who are striking for a better standard of living. For the Labour Government to allow such atrocities to continue is a complete negation of the principles of the British Labour movement and the Colonial Secretary is urged to take action and arrest and charge with murder those who authorised the shooting, grant workers their wage demands, give pensions to dependents of murdered miners and convene immediately a democratically elected constituent assembly  and enable them to choose the form any government of Nigeria should take' (South London Observer, 9 December 1949). Nigeria became independent in 1960.

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Giggs in Nunhead

Was it really ten years ago that Katy B and Ikonika were chatting online about Ayre's the Baker in Nunhead? At the time I described it as 'the number one bakers for the London post-dubstep scene'.  Not sure if there's been too much music action there since - have spotted members of Foals at the shops there in the past, though not actually in the bakers.

But today Ayre's reclaimed its crown. Giggs was not just in the shop but took it over for a day with oat milk company Oatly to promote its brand of vegan custard, much loved by the lactose intolerant Peckham raised rapper. Neighbouring pizza place Dinner for 100 managed to get a photo of hm in there with one of their pizzas.

@dinnerforonehundred

People's Habitat: a festival of Alternative Living' - Surrey Docks, 1976

Intrigued about 'People's Habitat: a festival of Alternative Living' which took place in Rotherhithe in May/June 1976. According to the magazine Undercurrents (June 1976) it was to be 'an all embracing  adventure into what the alternative society could be, given a chance'. It was intended to be a counter festival to the United Nations Habitat Conference taking place at the time in Vancouver.

This issue of the magazine included a series of articles on the People's Habitat theme, claiming that in contrast to the Vancouver event. 'At People's Habitat we ordinary mortals will be coming together to work out how we can wrest control of our living and working environments away from those, both capitalist exploiters and paternalist bureaucrats, who have stolen our freedom. We will  be exploring new ways of living and working co-operatively with, and for, each other in harmony with the rest of the natural world'

Not sure how it actually went, there was a less than effusive review in Freedom anarchist paper (26 June 1976) which described its best feature as a windmill aiming 'to pump water to the allotments on the filled in Surrey Docks' 

I believe Clifford Harper designed the poster for the event.

Anyone know any more about it?

The Water Chorus/Third Revival at Acoustic Anarchy

Another great line up this weekend at Acoustic Anarchy, the regular night at waterintobeer in Brockley (209-211 Mantle Road, London SE4 2EW):

'The next acoustic anarchy on Saturday November 2nd, sees two of our favourite folk groups combine for what promises to be a special night. Third Revival take a mix of traditional songs and their own material and give it a dark edge, with vocals, guitar and fiddle.

The Water Chorus also work with traditional folk songs and have multiple instruments, giving the songs an energetic treatment with a lively dash of humour.

Each group will do a set and then combine to do a joint set, which we're really looking forward to. Regular host Martin Howard completes the bill. Starts at 7.30, music from 7.45. Suggested £5 donation entry, which all goes to the artists! No-one turned away for lack of funds'

I saw The Water Chorus there earlier in the year and think they are going to bigger places, so catch them while you can. Some great Scottish and other songs, including a version of Comin' thro' the Rye.

The Water Chorus at waterintobeer, April 2024

Update: this was great, Water Chorus' usual singer Caitlin Chalmers was away, with Ali Lawrenson and Jack Saville joined instead by Sophie Grenfell.  Nice to hear a few lines of (Scots) Gaelic, they did a version of the old fairy song 'Tha mi sgith' and also did a join set with Third Revival

The Water Chorus and Third Revival at waterintobeer, November 2024