 | 13 November 2014 |
|
| ´óÏó´«Ã½ Homepage | | |
| |||
| Contact Us | | |
Rock 'n' Roll WiltshireYou are in: Wiltshire > History > Rock 'n' Roll Wiltshire > The death of Eddie Cochran  Eddie Cochran The death of Eddie CochranGeoff Barker Read the story of how the rock'n'roll legend met his tragic end in a car crash in Chippenham in 1960. American rock'n'roll star Eddie Cochran died during the afternoon of Easter Sunday 17th April 1960. His death in St. Martin's Hospital in Bath, came as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash just outside Chippenham, late the night before. Eddie and his great friend Gene Vincent had been touring the UK since mid-January, on a package tour that had created a sensation amongst UK rock n roll fans. Not one, but two genuine American rock'n'roll stars, criss-crossing the UK and even making TV and radio appearances!Ìý By then, the first flush of raw rock'n'roll was long gone, so the sight and sound of Gene and Eddie was an antidote to the blandness of much pop music at that time.ÌýThey were nothing short of a revelation… Eddie in particular.Ìý Often described as 'James Dean with a guitar', Eddie Cochran had everything going for him.Ìý A young, good-looking guy, a hugely talented musician, who as well playing stunning guitar, could also handle bass and drums and most unusually for those times, also wrote his own songs. Two of which - 'Summertime Blues' and 'C'mon Everybody', had been huge hits and today - nearly 50 years on - are regarded as classics of the genre.Ìý Eddie had arrived in the UK on 10th January 1960, to join a UK tour with Gene Vincent which had already been on the road since before Christmas.Ìý It was promoted by top pop impresario Larry Parnes and the support acts and musicians were all young UK rock'n'rollers that Parnes had under contract.Ìý These included at various times along the tour - Billy Fury, Joe Brown, Georgie Fame, Vince Eager and Johnny Gentle. It was a long tour with a punishing schedule, and the British winter was not something that California-resident Cochran was used to.Ìý So by the time they all rolled up at the Bristol Hippodrome on Monday 11th April for a week-long residency, Eddie (and his accompanying girlfriend, songwriter Sharon Sheeley) were looking forward to returning to the USA immediately afterwards. For this last week of the tour, Billy and Joe were off playing elsewhere and the support acts included Georgie Fame, Johnny Gentle and also Tony Sheridan - who a year later would make a record in Germany, with an unknown Liverpool group called The Beatles. After the final show on Saturday 16th April - and back at the Royal Hotel to collect their things - Eddie wanted a lift back to London with Johnny Gentle, who had driven himself to Bristol, but his car was full.Ìý There were no more trains at that time of night, so a taxi was called.ÌýSometime after 11.00pm, a Ford Consul driven by George Martin, with Eddie, Gene, Sharon and tour-manager Pat Thompkins, set off for London.Ìý Eddie, Sharon and Gene sat in the back, with Thompkins next to the driver. These were pre-M4 days, so Martin initially chose the old A4 down through Bath, but with this being a bad road, especially at night, he decided on a short cut on the outskirts of Chippenham.  The accident spot on Rowden Hill in Chippenham Thompkins later recalled: "You come out from under the viaduct and come across a bridge in front of you. "On your right is the A4 and then the bridge and on your left is the A4 to London. "Well, he saw the A4 and turned right, going the wrong way. When he saw the milestone, he realized he was going the wrong way and hit the brakes." It appears that as the car sped out of Chippenham trying to get back on the right route, Martin lost control on the bend at Rowden Hill, (then a notorious accident black-spot) and spun backwards into a concrete lamp post. The impact sent Eddie up into the roof and forced the rear door open, throwing him onto the road. After the car had come to a halt, Martin and Thompkins were able to walk away from the wreckage uninjured.Ìý But Gene and Sharon, along with Eddie were lying on the grass verge. Gene had broken his collarbone, but fortunately for Sharon, she only suffered shock and bruising.Ìý However, the injuries to Eddie would prove fatal. The noise had brought local residents onto the scene. Dave Chivers told the Wiltshire Times:Ìý"I was getting into bed when I heard a whistling outside, followed by a series of bumps and smashes.  The Daily Mirror reports on Eddie's death "My first reaction was that it was a plane crash. "I went outside and saw the wrecked car, several people lying about, a large guitar and scattered photographs, which had come from the open boot. I telephoned for an ambulance from the kiosk nearby." The first police on the scene included a young Wiltshire cadet called Dave Harman, who with a name change to Dave Dee, become a highly successful pop star himself. The time of the accident can be accurately pinpointed.Ìý In those days the street lights went out at midnight and the ambulance from Chippenham arrived soon after, in total darkness. The three were taken to St Martin's hospital, but Eddie had suffered severe brain damage. He never regained consciousness and died at 4.10pm that afternoon. Like Buddy Holly who came our way two years earlier, Eddie Cochran also had a profound influence on young aspiring British musicians.Ìý Joe Brown has often said what a great and innovative guitar player Eddie was, introducing styles and techniques that had never been seen here before.Ìý Georgie Fame totally credits Eddie with introducing the music of Ray Charles to a mainstream UK audience, through his playing of Charles' songs in his stage act. Shadows drummer Brian Bennett backed Eddie on the tour, as a member of Marty Wilde's band, who were loaned out to Cochran for some of the live dates and also his ´óÏó´«Ã½ radio sessions for the Saturday Club show. Brian recalls Eddie showing him some great drum tricks and said what a great player he was. Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey both idolised Eddie and of course, 'Summertime Blues' was for years a Who stage-favourite. Ironically, the biggest UK hits for Eddie's songs 'C'mon Everybody' and 'Somethin' Else', came in 1979, when The Sex Pistols took them both to number three in the charts. George Harrison had seen Eddie when the tour played Liverpool and even acquired an importantÌý piece of Eddie memorabilia;Ìý In 1999 I worked on a radio series for the ´óÏó´«Ã½ World Service with Paul McCartney, looking back at his early rock'n'roll years. Eddie had given Gentle his stage shirt after the Bristol show and following a week of pestering by the young Beatle, Johnny eventually passed it to George. Johnny came to one of the Eddie Cochran Weekender events in Chippenham, where I interviewed him live on air. He too said what an amazing talent Eddie was, and also said he wished he'd kept that shirt!  The plaque which marks the spot where he died When someone dies young, it's always the eternal question - what would they have done in life? In the case of Eddie Cochran, I think there can be little doubt he would have been the first 'guitar-hero' of the sixties, with Clapton, Beck, Page and Hendrix queuing up to play with him.ÌýÌý Jimi always said he wanted Eddie Cochran played at his funeral, and he got his wish. What makes this whole story even more poignant, is how young Eddie was when he took his seat in the car that night -Ìý just 21. Today, that dangerous bend at Rowden Hill, Chippenham has long since been made safe. There is no longer any physical reminder of the tragedy, except for one thing -Ìýa plaque on the grass verge in memory of Eddie. It was erected by fans and unveiled at one of Chippenham's Eddie Cochran Weekender events by Sharon Sheeley, on what was her first visit since that fateful night at Easter 1960. last updated: 19/03/2009 at 16:24 Have Your SayIf you are a fan of Eddie Cochran, leave your comments below.
Cavan Stewart
Eamonn O'Leary
dave purvor
Johnnie Berry (Raines)
chris ellison
Brian Lambert
tim sanderson from w yorkshire
paul collins
Kev Corcoran
john magee,donegal,ireland
Paul Holmes
mike hampton
Derek
Alan
rich kingman
Kevin"Crash"Titus
Rob Edwards,
Derek Macdonald
David Nicoloff
Ray Cunningham
David Collins
Eileen Parsons Bristol England
The Reverend Paul Freeman (Dj)
Olaf Gluschke (Deutschland)
Dean Langridge (New Zealand)
gary ponsford
Pete Nicholls
Pete Nicholls
Danny Hamilton
Stephen Taney
jan van gameren - Holland.
Anna
darren reed
Mark-Allan Pilgrim
federi
gil federico
andrew cole
PHIL PARR
CHARLIE GRACIE, JR.
andrew noott
percy stark
ray williams
Peter
rick aldous
Malcolm Cummings
carol holding
Trev Taylor, Swindon, Wiltshire
Richard Kendall
Paul Smith
Alistair Murray
James Robert Wallace
Bob Sanders.....Brisbane Australia You are in: Wiltshire > History > Rock 'n' Roll Wiltshire > The death of Eddie Cochran |
| | About the ´óÏó´«Ã½ | Help | Terms of Use | Privacy & Cookies Policy Ìý |
