The Archive
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Formatted at 1280 X 1024 minimum res- updated Jan 2008.
| Glastonbury CND Festival. June 19-21st 1981 Aswad, Decline and Fall, Gong, Gordon Gilltrap,Ginger Baker, Hawkwind, John Cooper Clarke. Judy Tzuke, Matumbi, Nick Pickett,Robert Hunter, Roy Harper, Supercharge, Taj Mahal, Talisman,New Order, Rab Noakes,The Jazz Sluts, The Sound , Hinkleys Heroes, Beverley Martin, Chicken Shack, Pete Drummond. |
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Early Sunday morning Glastonbury 81 .All photos © Ruth and Kevin Dear |
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Aswad onstage © Kevin and Ruth Dear |
After a years sabbatical, the festival returned , with a new name and a new purpose, to raise funds for the Campaign For Nuclear Disarmament . Its now largely forgotten in these times, but the cold war tended to concentrate the mind wonderfully . The Nuclear threat was one that we were all too aware of , its still there, but nowadays many of us are too busy acquiring plasma TVs and other goodies to bother to worry about it. Whatever , Mr Eavis WAS one of those people who were prepared to put his money where his beliefs were and he heroically presented festivals throughout the 80s on the grounds of Worthy Farm with the express purpose of funding CND. The 81 festival raised 20,000 pounds - a tidy sum in 1981 . |
CND did publicity and bookings and the folks from the esteemed Worthy Farm booked the acts , built a nice new stage and generally did the rest of the organisation . Around 18,000 bods showed up , in mostly good weather , to see a wide variety of bands over three days . Several changes were made to the advertised program- Judy Tzuke did not show up and she was replaced by Ronnie Lane and Friends .The Sound are also reported to have played , though were not advertised to do so . |
Mother Gong © Paul Seaton |
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This very early Sunday morning shot gives a nice view of one of the PA stacks. © Kevin and Ruth Dear |
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Even though the organisers had shed the earlier title in favour of ' Festival " the 1981 event had all the variety and extravagance of a full size Fayre. There were many craft stalls, workshops, play parks for the kids (which featured three huge trampolines ) , mime troupes and performance artists wandered through the site. There was also much scrumpy consumption and a number of people were very much the worse for wear by the end of the weekend. Left: Impressive toilet blocks at Glastonbury 1981, they overflowed as well.... |
The audience were a mix , many described as ' young couple who see the festival as an opportunity to take the kids for a holiday in the country ) but its fair to say that mostly hippie orientated alternative types predominated . There were some punks , but they were in the minority, one told the press " we've made friends with each other as there aren't very many of us. The best time is at night when you get really drunk and stumble round from tent to tent. Last night we had a really good time as we scored some glue , a gallon of cider and some good Leb . " Yeah right glue, just what every festival goer needs ........ |
Mother Gong onstage © Nigel Sivyer |
Hard core travelers tended to go to the Stonehenge Free Festival, which was held around the same time. As the ubiquitous Convoy Steve sez" I never went to glasto between 79 and 85 - us proper festival types looked down upon glasto in those days and went off on our own merry way squatting land and frightening the locals: -)."
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Friday evening |
crashed out |
The first in a long series of great Glasto mudbowls of the 80s © Nigel Sivyer |
There were a number of speeches delivered from the stage concerning Nuclear disarmament, the best being that by EP Thompson .Other speakers included Meg Beresford , who appeared somewhat nervous in front of such a large crowd. Friday night was possibly the best music wise, although Roy Harper's set was gate crashed by Ginger Baker . Roy Harper put it thus 'Later I'm playing the gig, going down quite well, building up to the finale. Then Ginger starts walking on with drums, setting up right in front of me, destroying everything. I couldn't believe it. So I left the microphone and said 'Hey, what you doing?' And he said, 'F--- off, you've been on here to f---ing long, you c---' and his band started bringing all their gear on. |
'So
I started to seethe, nudged one of his drums with my left foot and he
lunged at me. I just burst, turned round and gave him one right in the
guts. Ginger goes, 'Urrgghh you c----.' Then we were fighting and the
stage was full of people. I completely flipped my lid.' ' According to Harper the crowd then proceeded to bottle Ginger , one hitting him on the head , whereupon he was taken to hospital . Another source says that Ginger carried on playing .Yet another source says that Ginger threw a can at Harper and it hit him on the head. Strange how tales become distorted in all directions by memory . Whatever happened , it was a pretty silly scenario , these two seasoned musicians should have been able to sort out their differences in some other fashion. |
Mother Gong © Nigel Sivyer |
Hello... I
want to add my piece about the fight onstage between Harper and Baker... Glastonbury
81.
It was the most unforgettable
thing i ever saw on a stage. Harper was doing fine... we were warmed up and
enjoying the show; after a handful of numbers I recognised Baker onstage and
a fist fight kicked off. I remember Roy H hitting out and people grappling
and tumbling around. Harper got forced off-stage by people holding his arms
as he struggled furiously.
There were boos and bottles as Baker started up... They impressed us but rocks came at the band.. sharp chunks of granite or similar. A near fist sized chunk arked from a long distance and smacked Ginger on the forehead. It should've killed him surely but he didn't miss a beat. He continued with furious energy till the end of his set.
Next day I saw Baker walking around the site with a thick black gash on his forehead, obviously in need of stitches. Baker was asking people if anyone knew who the bastard was who threw the rock.
Keith Emslie Mitchell
