Hank Wangford
| Hank Wangford | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Samuel Hutt |
| Born |
15 November 1940 Wangford, Suffolk, England |
| Genres | Country & Western |
| Occupation(s) | Physician, Musician |
| Instruments | Guitar |
| Years active | 1976–present |
| Labels | Cow Pie Records, Sincere Sounds, Charisma Records, Situation Two |
| Website | http://www.hankwangford.com |
Samuel Hutt, known by the stage name Hank Wangford (born 15 November 1940), is an English country and western songwriter.
"Hank is a good smoke screen. He can do things I can't do. He's my clown," says Dr. Hutt, who has been struggling to balance his musical and medical interests ever since medical school at Cambridge University. His 1960s practice in a drug-addiction centre brought him into contact with a lot of rockers and wide renown as London's long-haired, rock-and-roll doctor, and later a television series. "If The Who had a first night, the tickets would be sent. I actually had more of an identity crisis with that than with Hank, because Hank is a fool. I quite like him. Dr. Sam was definitely threatening to become a monster."[1]
Early and personal life
Sam's family background is radical: his father Allen (a journalist and expert on the history of printing) was a lifelong Communist. During the NUM miners strike in 1984/85, the Hank Wangford Band toured extensively with Billy Bragg and the Frank Chickens as "Hank, Frank and Billy" performing at trade-union benefit and anti-racist gigs. It was during such a benefit for the Greater London Council (GLC) in 1984 that Hank and the band were attacked on stage by a group of right-wing skinheads,[2] an event that has been immortalised in the song "On The Line".
The Hank Wangford Band
A chance meeting with former Byrds member Gram Parsons,[3] who played him the song "You're Still on My Mind" (from the album Sweetheart of the Rodeo), led him to country music.
The 1984 Edinburgh Festival Fringe saw the Hank and the Wangfords achieve fame (if not fortune) with their show being nominated for the Perrier Award. Fringe Sunday also saw the importation to Edinburgh of the sport of cow-pat flinging. Unfortunately, this required hard cow-pats as an essential part of the process. BBC Radio 1 DJ Andy Kershaw had to put out an appeal for cow-pats[4] which later had to be dried in a microwave oven for them to work successfully.[5]
No Hall Too Small
Hank has also toured with Reg Meuross on the "No Hall Too Small" tour of village halls throughout the UK as part of the Arts Council-funded National Rural Touring Forum (NRTF).[6]
Writing career
Hank writes an occasional series of travel articles[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] for The Guardian newspaper and is president of the "Nude Mountaineering Society".[15]
Discography
- Hank Wangford, Cow Pie Records (COW 1), 1980
- Hank Wangford - Wild Thing c/w All I Want, Cow Pie Records (PIE001), 1980 (7")
- Hank Wangford - Cowboys Stay On Longer c/w Whisky On My Guitar, Cow Pie Records (PIE002), 1980 (7")
- Hank Wangford - Cowboys Stay On Longer c/w Whisky On My Guitar, WEA (K18712), 1980 (7")
- The Hank Wangford Band Live, Cow Pie Records (COW 2), 1982
- The Hank Wangford Band, Rodeo Radio, Situation Two (SITU 16), 1985
- The Hank Wangford Band, Cowboys Stay On Longer, Sincere Sounds (Honky 1X), 1987 (12")
- The Hank Wangford Band, Cowboys Stay On Longer, Sincere Sounds (Honky 1A-DJ), 1987 (7")
- CD's
- Hank Wangford - Cowboys Stay On Longer, Reissue Albums One and Two, Sincere Sounds, 2001
- Hank Wangford - Stormy Horizons, Sincere Sounds, 1990
- Hank Wangford & The Lost Cowboys - Hard Shoulder To Cry On, Live Album Sincere Sounds, 1993
- Hank Wangford & The Lost Cowboys - Wake Up Dead, Sincere Sounds, 1997
- Hank Wangford & The Lost Cowboys - Best Foot Forward, Sincere Sounds, 2003
- Hank Wangford & The Lost Cowboys - Whistling In The Dark, Sincere Sounds, 2008
- Hank Wangford & The Lost Cowboys - Save Me The Waltz, (Double Album) Sincere Sounds, 2014
- Cassettes
- The Hank Wangford Band Bumper Box, Cow Pie Records (CCP1), 1981
- The Hank Wangford Band - Rootin' Tootin' Santa Claus, Cow Pie Records (CCP2), 1982
Bibliography
- Hank Wangford Volume III The Middle Years as told to Sam Hutt, Pan London 1989, ISBN 0-330-30925-0
- Lost Cowboys From Patagonia to the Alamo by Hank Wangford. Orion Cassell 1997
References
- ↑ Howell Raines, "LONDON; A Singing Doctor Works the Land Between Ridicule And Reverence for Nashville", New York Times, 6 March 1988.
- ↑ "The Hank Wangford Band". Bobby Valentino. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ "Hank Wangford". Gram Parsons Project. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Mark Borkowski (2001-07-30). "Weird is not enough | Culture". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Mark Borkowski (2004-08-10). "PR stunts: an expert's guide | Media". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ "Home". NRTF. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ "At the end of the world | Travel". London: The Guardian. 22 November 2006. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "A splash of Grenadines | Travel". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "Under the Boardwalk | Travel". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "Trail of broken hearts | Travel". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ "Croon river | Travel". London: The Guardian. 22 November 2006. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "Temple of nature | Travel". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (22 November 2006). "High spirits | Travel". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (28 May 2008). "San Francisco's wild west | Travel | guardian.co.uk". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
- ↑ Hank Wangford (27 September 2007). "Strippers with altitude | Travel | guardian.co.uk". London: The Guardian. Retrieved 2012-11-11.