A magic reunion
MEMBERS of a popular 1960s Hartlepool band met up for a reunion after almost 40 years on.
Mic Rafferty, Kenny Allen and Rod Millgate, who were all members of The Magic Roundabout band, were reunited at Cafe Rappor bar, on the town's marina.
Mic and Rod had not seen each other for 39 years, while it had been 15 years since Mic had last seen Kenny.
The trio reminisced about the good old days, where they played to crowds of hundreds at venues like the Queen's Rink, the Catcote pub and the Red Admiral pub, and also a stint touring Germany.
Mic said: "It was fabulous seeing the lads. I took some photographs with me from when we were over in Germany.
"We were just laughing and joking, remembering stories and people's names. It was great. I remembered some things they didn't remember and vice-versa. We are all going to meet again."
The band was formed in 1969 by Robin O'Carroll, former member of The Toffees, along with Kenny and Mic.
"We were playing in other bands at the time. Robin was playing in The Toffees and I was in the Evergreens, a Middlesbrough band," said Mic, now 61.
Kenny, 62, from Hartlepool, had also played in The Reaction, The Toffees and The Tony King Sound, and featured in Together again last August when he was reunited with Robin, who had travelled from his home in Canada.
In The Magic Roundabout, Kenny was bass guitarist and vocalist, Robin was guitarist and on vocals, Mic was on drums and when Robin left to get married, Rod, from Stockton, stepped in and played keyboards.
Later, Anna Sabre joined the band on vocals.
Mic, who lives in Middlesbrough and has one daughter and three grandchildren, said: "We did a good selection of songs, mainly show stuff and music of the day.
Kenny had and still has an absolutely tremendous voice. His range and pitch are amazing."
Mic, originally from Stockton, recalled his days playing to top local venues, including The Queen's Rink.
"I was resident in The Rink," he said. "We were pretty busy. It was a big thing then.
"There were lots of local bands, like The Hartbeats, all playing away just about every night somewhere or another." The Magic Roundabout even toured Germany, and played for the American forces after hooking up with a German agent.
"We were playing four solid hours a night. When we came back from touring we had a good few hundred songs under our belt."
The band were known for their cover versions of Procol Harum's Whiter Shade of Pale and Screaming Jay Hawkins' I Put A Spell On You.
The group disbanded in the early 1970s, when the members got various offers, including Mic who became a drummer with Single Chime, who won Opportunity Knocks three times.
Rod is the only member still involved with the music business and plays with the Steel River Blues Band which is based on Teesside.
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Weather for Hartlepool
Monday 28 May 2012
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