Welcome to the Official Site of the
Fred Bloggs Band

Before CDs, before the Internet, and before cell phones, there was a time called The 1970s. Photo album of the Fred Bloggs Band Then and Now
Fred Bloggs Band History

Barbara met Steve Brown, alias Fred Bloggs at Bristol University in the 1970s. She was singing at a local Folk and Blues club when he invited her to join his Top 40/original-song band. The foundation members in the picture above are Steve on guitars and keyboards, Barbara on vocals and percussion, Geraint (Taffy) Jenkins on drums, Big John Howe on bass, and various other musicians symbolized by the other tall guy at the back, John Boucher (he was the only one we knew who owned a suit).

Shortly afterward, Bristol entertainer Fred Wedlock helped them get a spot on an HTV television program which led to many engagements in the West Country. They were invited to work at long-term engagements at U.S. Military bases in Europe, including Rota naval base in southern Spain and several in the former W. Germany. They also traveled to Norway to play a winter season in a disco near Oslo.

The line up of the band changed over the coming five years and included Bristol native Paul Anstey on bass, college lecturer Tony Alcock on saxophone, Huddersfield imports Mick Avery and Stan Thewlis (now known as Stan Rivera) from the jazz-rock band Skywhale on drums and sax/flute, and Bristol Old Vic Theatre carpenter Martin Norie on lead guitar. Paul, Stan and drummer Tony Orrell also played with pianist Tim Richards in the seminal Bristol jazz band Spirit Level. Arts School graduate Alan Edwards not only joined us as drummer but contributed much art work and publicity to the band and designed our wooden music stands (like the old Glenn Miller Band type of thing). Several years of playing rock, country and disco music gave them a chance to get their chops together and by 1978 they were ready to record their first EP (remember those?) of original songs (click to listen).

This limited edition vinyl EP, released by Firebrand Records, contains four tracks written by Steve:

Download Real Player Here.

Mr. Sun and Seaside, which are on the "C"side, and

Moonrock and The Tribe, on the "D" side.

During this time, Barbara also appeared on a live BBC broadcast singing one of her original songs about the Clifton Suspension Bridge and was honing her instrumental skills. But by the late 1970s the individuals in the band were beginning to go their separate ways. Barbara briefly formed her own band with bass player Paul, flute player Stan, and drummer Tony Orell. This song, Soldier, is one that they performed at the Ashton Court festival in Bristol in 1978:

Then came the Seldom Scene Band with friend and bass player Ruth King, guitarist John Sweet and "Ceilings" vocalist Trevor on drums (the band name was chosen by our manager who probably had no idea that there was already a quite famous American Bluegrass band with the same name). After another stint in Spain playing Bee Gees and original songs, they recorded a demo tape and then disbanded, leaving Barbara to sing with some of Bristol's jazz bands.

Ruth, Barb, Trevor and John in Spain.

Steve and Stan also experimented with a joint musical venture known as The Bloggs Brothers.

The Bloggs Brothers
The Fred Bloggs band continues to work out of Bristol in the new millennium and can be contacted about gigs in the U.K. at steve.bloggs@virgin.net or telephone (0117)-3-777-777