The Barflys are a highly revered 5 piece R&B band that have been performing live to enthusiastic audiences for over 19 years. Over that time, they have achieved almost legendary status in their home city of Stoke.
If you love great music 'played great', then please accept our open invitation to come along and see this band play. You’ll be more than welcome, and we’re pretty damn sure you’ll come back for more!
You can see The Barflys play live most Tuesdays at the Old Brown Jug in Newcastle (41 Bridge St, Newcastle ST5 2RY)
Video Gallery
George Glover (Keys)
Das Long und Winding Strasse……
I started in the music game as a guitarist in the early sixties, but switched to keyboards to turn professional, and shoot off to Sweden and Denmark touring for an eye opener on life. Later I played in Hamburg at the infamous Star Club and Top Ten Club, where it could be anything up to ten, three-quarter-hour spots per night (every night), or until the last party person passed out. Being influenced by The Beatles we thought ‘if they could work those hours’ then ‘so could we’, and we did!
I moved to Hamburg for a proposed 3 month stint mit a young ‘Crow’ (John’s pseudonym) and Curly, but it ended up being years. I fell in love with Hamburg and it’s life style and the rest of our European friends ‘way of life’ appealed to me.
I returned to England in 1974-ish to join Des (David) Parton, Pye Records, Tony Hatch and “The Cyril Dagworth Players”. Later to play keyboards on ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ and tour with the”David Parton Band”. I got the call (“are you doing anything?” a la Miles Davis fashion) and joined Climax Blues Band in 1980, recording and touring Europe, America and The Far East . I have been a member of Climax for over 29 years, as I still am today (checks pulse). During that time one of the main highlights was playing keyboards for Chuck Berry, which was one heck of an experience and a long story!!!
I’ve played in many parts of the world (over the years), and met with people & made friends too numerous to mention … what a joy.
I helped start a resident night at ‘The Wheatsheaf’ mit Les, Crow and Gav. Later to be joined by a young Sarah, as “The Dragons” and when another slot became available, out popped “The Barflys” ( for a trial period of a month) and its now into its 19th year, “Some going, I’d say” and long may it continue.
There is a PS...I wouldn’t change this much at all, except maybe to say, “where’s me money?” (is the cheque still in the post?) GG
Rob Rolph (Bass)
I was born (at an early age) in the early 60’s, and listened to the family influences of Jazz and Blues music from parents who both played and sang, but I was also switched on to the pop bands of the day, Beatles especially. I switched my attention soon to the big Rock bands of the early 70’s but mid 70’s sidestepped into Funk and the Jazz Fusion music genre.
John Wright (Drums)
Phase One - (of the never ending tour) started in 1965 after joining schoolmates Iain and Gavin Sutherland to form our first group "A New Generation". After a year or so of local gigs, we decided it was more fun than working for a living so we turned professional {first big mistake}. A year down the line we signed with ‘Southern Music Publishing’ and recorded for their new label ‘Spark Records’. During this period we recorded four singles {one of which made the top 30}, we played all the live radio shows at the time and had a front page in ‘Melody Maker’. To top it all we played to 10 million people live on ‘The Golden Shot’ TV program. In addition to three years of this madness, we also got totally ripped-off, screwed-up, spat-out and ended up completely broke.
Phase Two - started with an offer of three months in Germany and Denmark with my old mates Georgie G and Curly, which eventually turned into almost five years, playing ‘most of’ civilised Europe, getting married and living like a honoured member of the Third Reich. During phase two, old buddy Des Parton (who had fronted the band for a while), returned home to follow his writing career, he had a couple of hits and called the boys back to form a new band to slowly take Britain apart gig by gig, which is still ‘in progress’ up to this present moment in time.
Phase Three – I met Les ‘Barfly’ in the late 70's, recorded many sessions for his projects with Larry Page and for ‘AVM STUDIOS’. Together we recorded just about every backing-track you ever heard in the pubs and clubs throughout Staffordshire at that time. We also managed to squeeze in a six week tour with the legendary Ben. E King. Then phase three quickly turned into:
Phase Four - By doing a session for Dave Hill and Mal Spooner at Utopia studios in London. Shortly after the session I was invited to record a one off single for a new rock band being formed called “Demon”, the one off single turned into ten years, seven albums and numerous singles and gigs ‘The Night Mare’ had surely begun.
Phase Five - became then, an all most inevitable equation, “the angle of the dangle” finally met “the heat of the beat” when Georgie G and Les B invited me and Gav S to form “The Dragons” to run a residency at the newly opened gig ‘The Wheatsheaf’. This in turn led to a second Tuesday night slot with yet another new band “The Flying Bars”. After weeks and months of indecision we finally agreed something had to be done about the name, several new names were flying about through cyber space { ‘The Lovely Boys’, ‘Horse Faced Ethel’, ‘Marvellous Pigs In Satin’ to name but a few} when finally “The Barflys” flew in through the window.
The Barflys are now in their nineteenth year and have been invited into ‘The Secret Six’, but as yet we've been unsuccessful in finding the other five.
Steve Hayes (Guitar and Vocals)
My interest in music began as a youngster when my dad would have myself & brothers singing triads at the piano on Sunday mornings. This was followed by arm wrestling, which was a good grounding for the years to come when sorting out gig money!
The Beatles were possibly the first major influence(as for everyone else I suppose) and it became a race for the record player between me & my dad - he with The Carpenters, me with FREE LIVE!
I then hung around with lots of guitar player friends but always wanted to sing - guaranteed gig, I discovered at an early age!! Finally took up guitar about 16 years old when my kid brother abandoned his birthday present! Many moons later I joined a local band called Jinx & gigged and drank my way around the area for an enjoyable several years. Following the demise of Jinx. I got the call to sing with the Flys & more latterly Nearly Dan. This has led to becoming pro & doing lots of memorable gigs, including Glastonbury amongst others.
We've been together a long time now & I once overheard someone say, "this lot know each others heartbeats" and on a good night I reckon it's still pretty much true!!
Les Hunt (Lead Guitar)
I was born 21 February 1956 in Stretford Manchester. Self taught on the guitar from the age of eight. I also studied violin at Westwood High School, Leek Staffordshire, going on to play with the Staffordshire Youth Orchestra.
In the early 70’s formed three piece band “Chopper” playing gigs all over the U.K., supporting – “Argent”, “Sweet”, “Average White Band”, “The Sutherland Brothers” and many more. I began writing and performing original music in the mid 70’s, added two band members and changed the band name to “Hunter”. Signing my first publishing and record deal in 1976, I then went on to release two albums and numerous singles in over 38 countries throughout the world. Had major chart success in Italy, France, Canada and Japan. Also, I wrote for other artists and was a finalist in the “Yamaha World Popular Song Festival” in Tokyo 1982. Over the years I made many TV appearances including ‘Tiswas’, ‘Pebble Mill Live’ etc. Then in the late 70’s I joined rock band “Demon” as lead guitarist, recording first three albums. This included ‘The Plague’, their most successful album to date.
In the early 80’s I opened AVM Recording Studios in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent. Recorded and produced numerous local and national artists from rock bands to dance tracks. During this period I also performed as session guitarist on tracks by The Kinks, The Troggs and punk band Discharge. Then in 1985 I joined up with Colin Cooper and George Glover of Climax Blues Band to co-produce and play guitar on The Drastic Steps album. Commenced touring with Climax Blues Band in 1987 and this continues to date.
As a founder member of The Barflys, I still find it a great pleasure to meet up with the guys in the band and our extended family otherwise known as the audience.
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