10. Lonnie DoneganPuttin’ On The Style
Lonnie Donegan made me crazy about the guitar. Like literally millions of others I heard ‘Rock Island Line’ and went out and bought one. It was astonishing the number of guitars that were shifted, the number of shops that opened selling nothing but guitars. Most of the guitars were rubbish, but everybody had to have one! Lonnie himself never understood the effect that he had had. He didn’t like folk music at all. He just thought we were all bloody idiots. Well, you know, some of us were. We knew nothing and he was the hero who knew it all as far as we were concerned. I only met him once, when he was at the folk festival in Sidmouth. He was standing in the hall of the hotel where a lot of people were staying, and there was a roomful of musicians all playing jigs and reels. I said, ‘You know you’re responsible for all this, don’t you?’ He just said, ‘No. That’s Irish music,’ then walked off. That’s me put in my place!
I’ve picked Puttin’ On The Style, which he did much later with a lot of rockers backing him up. Ringo’s on it, Brian May’s on it, Rory Gallagher’s on it, Leo Sayer’s on it. Blimey, Zoot Money’s on it – he’s a good mate I haven’t seen in forever. I’ve pulled this one out because of one track, which I think is the greatest version of ‘Diggin’ My Potatoes’ I’ve ever heard.
