And Roger J Simmonds.
You
may not have heard of him, but Roger’s story has more famous faces than the
cover of Sergeant Pepper. One of
rock’s great nearly men, Roger has released his autobiography Standing on the Sidelines, detailing the
highs and lows of a tumultuous and amazing pop career.
From early days in Wales, Roger’s
life has been a rock ’n’ rollercoaster of a journey. Highlights of his
remarkable career include playing the 2is club in Soho at the height of its
popularity, being part of the only Welsh group to play The Cavern Club, working
alongside the influential record producer Joe Meek, getting drunk with The
Krays, and being present when Tom Jones got his name. He also spent time with one
of the Great Train Robbers; one of two people who Roger believes was never
caught by the police.
Standing
by the Sidelines captures the glamour and sleaze, the hedonism
and idealism, the sights, smells and, most importantly, the sounds of a music
scene that changed the world.
Roger, who later toured with The Honeycombs, feels that now is the
right time to tell his story. He says: “With the introduction of iTunes and
Spotify things have changed in the industry; it’s becoming increasingly
difficult for young performers to get a record contract. I’ve written my book
for all those aspiring pop stars. Things can difficult, but can also be great
if you persevere.”
Roger’s first brush with stardom
came when he was almost being signed by Larry Parnes. Roger continues: “At the
time I was sixteen, but for some reason I was pretending to be fourteen.
Unfortunately Larry was looking for someone seventeen or over. I confessed that
I was actually seventeen but it was too late. Had I been honest about my age I
may have had my break there and then.”
Despite this Roger’s career began to
take off, and he spent time with some of the most influential performers in the
music industry including George Harrison, David Bowie, Brian Jones and latterly
Shakin’ Stevens, who he managed before he was famous. Roger says: “Under the
name R J Hightower I released God Is Love. This was sold across Europe and in
America. Saying that, my career was difficult at times, but I never gave up,
although I did come quite close on occasions.”
Standing
on the Sidelines
also explores the darker side of show business – where sleeping rough, hiding
from the police, suffering from acute meningitis, suicidal thoughts, and the
occasional sex party add colour to an extraordinary story of determination and survival.
Roger says: “Often things got quite
bleak. To save money I decided to spend a few nights at the railway station. It
was quite common for struggling musicians to choose either Euston or Kings
Cross to spend the night. I also worked with Freddie Mills and Joe Meek, but
sadly they were both consumed by the industry. Joe shot himself after shooting
his landlady, and Freddie was shot in the eye whilst sitting in his car at the
rear of his club.”
Roger also had a strong working
relationship with John Christian Dee, a relatively successful 1960s song writer,
and although together they got into scrapes worthy of Del Boy, they enjoyed
working together. However this relationship brought Roger into contact with
singer and hostess Janie Jones, the subject of a sex and cash payola scandal. Roger says: “Janie, who was married
to John, used to hold these lavish parties. It was the place to be seen. As I would
make my way through the throngs of people I would spot famous TV producers, film producers, radio DJs, actors, performers,
singers and girls from the Penthouse Club. I had no idea what was going on behind closed doors
though.’
Janie was
subsequently jailed for her involvement in the scandal and John Christian Dee
disappeared. Roger however continued working, touring the country and becoming
increasingly disillusioned with the industry. As the 1960s became the 1970s, he
started to take stock of his life.
His relationship with his partner
Mimi – the daughter of Ali Mohammed Abbas, one of the founders of Pakistan –
had broken down. Roger says: “We had taken an incredible journey together,
having lived in both luxury accommodation and slum housing. Now we felt it was
time to concentrate on our children.”
Click here to buy a copy.
