Author: Goylake Publishing

Categories
Genealogy

Lowcock Branch #2

I’m researching my 4 x great grandmother Ann Lowcock and her family.

On 17 May 1818 Ann married James Richard Brereton in her home town of Martock, Somerset. James was born on 19 November 1793 in Shoe Lane, Fleet Street, London, and baptised on 22 December 1793 in St Dunstan-in-the-West, London. How and why did he make his way to Martock?

James was the third of nine children born to Thomas Brereton and Sarah Wright. In 1807 he became an apprentice cutler, learning the skills required for metalworking. Apprentices usually served a seven-year term and, as with James, commenced their learning at the age of fourteen.

James’ father, Thomas, paid £30 – the equivalent of around £3,000 now – so that James could learn a trade. Thomas was a clerk in Fleet Street, and earning a decent living.

The apprentice became an extra worker in the master’s household. He or she was subject to the absolute authority of the master and by the terms of their ‘indenture’ could not gamble, go to the theatre or a public house, play cards or dice, marry or fornicate. Little wonder that some of the apprentices ran away from their masters.

In 1814 James qualified as a cutler. His skills allowed him to work with various metals, including gold. 

James travelled across southern England, plying his trade. In Martock, he met Ann Lowcock, and they married. Ann, from a secure family had, seemingly, secured her future. Now, she was expected to raise a family. More about that next time…

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Categories
Music

The Wrecking Crew

The Wrecking Crew, aka The Clique and The First Call Gang, were an ad hoc collection of high-quality session musicians who played on many of the hits of the 1960s. The musicians included Hal Blaine, Tommy Tedesco and Carol Kaye and they played on records released by artists such as The Beach Boys, The Monkees, the Mamas and the Papas, Frank Sinatra and Sonny & Cher.

Members of the Wrecking Crew

From a jazz background, playing music in the West and East Coast nightclubs, the Wrecking Crew took their musical skills into the recording studios where they would often record a full album in a day. These musicians were presented with one-chord and three-chord pop songs. Their job was to add the jazz chords and licks, and make the songs “swing”. This they did in style, transforming a basic song into an international hit.

The Wrecking Crew often went uncredited on the record sleeves and labels, but the next time you find your foot tapping to a musical rhythm, or you find yourself singing along to your favourite 1960s song, the chances are the rhythm and melody were provided by the Wrecking Crew.

My article for the Seaside News about Peggy Lee appears on page 43 of the magazine.

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Categories
Genealogy

Lowcock Branch

I’m researching the Lowcock branch of my family, starting with my 4 x great grandmother Ann Lowcock. Ann was born in March 1799 in Martock, Somerset to Thomas Lowcock and Ann Lawrence. However, she wasn’t baptised until 23 September 1804, also in Martock (pictured).

Why the delay? It is difficult to say. The family had strong church connections, so it is unlikely that the delay occurred on religious grounds. Maybe Ann’s mother was unwell for some time after the birth. Or maybe Ann was baptised at that time because she was unwell and not expected to survive. From this distance, we can only speculate.

Ann’s father, Thomas, was baptised on 2 November 1766 in Martock. He married Ann Lawrence on 1 March 1795, again in Martock. 

Thomas was a weaver and a property owner in Martock. Weaving was undergoing a revolution in the early 1800s, and no doubt Thomas was caught up in that revolution. However, there is no evidence in the records to suggest that he was involved in, or affected by, the Luddites.

The Lowcock family enjoyed a high standing in Martock society. Ann’s brother, James, was a glove maker and a clerk at the local church. Indeed, he appeared as a witness at many weddings.

The evidence suggests that Ann enjoyed a comfortable childhood in a prosperous market town. Like most women of that era, she was illiterate. Society expected her to find a husband and raise a family, which she did. More about that next time…

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    Categories
    Music

    1950s/1960s Top Twenty Chart Poll

    Since the beginning of the year, on Mastodon, we’ve been voting on our top twenty records of the 1950s and 1960s. Through a series of elimination polls, we established a top twenty, then matched each record to produce this “definitive” chart.

    As you can see, Space Oddity claimed the number one spot. Due to the number of votes Space Oddity received in the qualifying rounds, I regarded David Bowie’s superb record as the number one seed. When Space Oddity easily out-polled Good Vibrations in the first round, I thought that the eventual number one position was never seriously in doubt.

    Again, because of the high number of votes Respect received in the qualifying rounds, I regarded this record as the number two seed. However, the popularity of Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever took me by surprise simply because this record qualified through the repêchage, and not as an individual year winner.

    I’m pleased that the repêchage system worked – three of the top ten: Penny Lane/Strawberry Fields Forever, Paint it Black and I Can’t Get No Satisfaction qualified through the repêchage.

    I’m also pleased that records such as Respect, The Dock of the Bay and Son of a Preacher Man featured in the top ten because I feel that these records add credence to the chart – the voters weren’t only interested in ‘the usual suspects’.

    In general, records from the middle and late 1960s faired better than records from the early 1960s and 1950s. Maybe this had something to do with the voters holding a personal connection to these records, or maybe improvements in recording technology throughout the 1960s make these records sound better to modern ears.

    My personal top five from the top twenty, in no particular order: Summer in the City, Fever, Then He Kissed Me, Do Doo Ron Ron and Hey Jude. Each, in its own way, captures something magical about the pop record.

    I would like to thank the administrators on Tŵt Wales and all the people on Mastodon who participated in the polls. Around 19,000 votes were cast during the course of the Top Twenty Poll. It would take me several hours to count the thousands of votes cast in the qualifying rounds. 

    I feel that the compiling of this chart was a great community effort displaying social media at its best. Now on to the 1970s…

    Categories
    Seren

    Seren The Maid of Sker

    Some book news

    Available now for pre-order

    Seren: The Maid of Sker. A Georgian Murder Mystery.

    When a body is washed up on the shore, county coroner Samuel Brereton arrives in Sker to investigate. When a second body is washed up, his investigations turn to murder.

    Seconded to assist Samuel due to her extensive local knowledge, Seren, a maid at Sker House, discovers the truth about the murder. Seren also falls in love with Samuel, a love that seems destined to remain unrequited, until she uncovers a startling secret about her ancestry.

    https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D6KWV147/

    For Authors

    #1 for value with 565,000 readers, The Fussy Librarian has helped my books to reach #1 on 36 occasions.

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