Shag
Connors & The Carrot Crunchers / Mart Connors & The Carrot Crunchers
biography
| discography | gigs
| gallery | links | acknowledgments
Who
Are Shag Connors & The Carrot Crunchers
West
Country band Shag Connors & The Carrot Crunchers are Gloucestershire's
answer to The Wurzels; a humorous and fondly remembered band led
by the inimitable and sadly missed Shag Connors. The band is still
doing the business in the capable hands of Shag's son Mart, as
Mart Connors & The Carrot Crunchers.
Described
as a 'country comedy musical act' singing ribald songs of country
life such as Gloucester Calypso, Blame the Breathalyser
and I'm Jealous of the Farmyard Cockerel; the The Carrot
Crunchers were perhaps best known for their black cockerel, which
Shag taught to drink beer from a pint glass, and which was an integral
part of the act. Story has it that one night the band played at
an army base, and after the gig a bunch of squaddies killed the
cockerel! This might explain why the two pictures in the gallery
show different coloured birds - obviously Shag trained up a replacement!
Although
Shag Connors & The Carrot Crunchers didn't achieve the UK chart
success of Adge and The Wurzels, they were nevertheless is demand,
appearing on various TV shows in the 1970s including The Wheeltappers
& Shunters Show, the David Nixon Show (7/5/73
and 22/4/74), the Sooty Show and Opportunity Knocks
which would have put them in front of a massive national audience.
Shag
died in 1987 after a long fight against cancer - a sad end to a
real gentleman. He is buried in Mayshill Cemetery. His son Mart
(aka Martin 'Scarecrow' Connor) took over the reigns and the band
still performs today.
Band
Line-up
The
band line-up appears to have mutated album by album. The
descriptions below were found engraved on the back of their 1970
album Furzlin':
- Mick
"Shag" Connors - Found drunk with his head resting
on a manure heap, which caused a Tobacco-like hair to grow on
the sides of his face. Shortage of cigarettes on the farm caused
him to try some in a roll-up, very strong but good. Now everybody
smokes it in the village. He says "They all know I grow me
own tobacco, so they call me Shag".
- Pete
"Plonker" McQuaid - Champion milker, can knock a
fly off the wall at 25 yards with the swing of a teat. He says
"I like the feel of teats, you can't beat a bit of the udder".
- Richard
"Cowcake" Harris - Caught eating the farmer's cowcake
to counteract the cost of living, hence the name. Well known as
the local "Ram"; so would you be if you eat the same
food as the farmer's prize bull. Married the 20-stone Radstock
Queen, says "What I der go through".
- Keith
"Scarecrow" Harris - Only human crowscarer left
in the country. Covers hundreds of miles a day up and down the
farmer's fields. Comes back to the pub at night white from head
to foot. He says "I'm sure the crows have got to know me,
they've been a-bombing me hard all day".
The
1973 line-up from the album notes on A Little Of What You Fancy
sees the mispelt Shag Conner on vocals and harmonica,
and Keith Harris on electric guitar from the Furzlin'
line-up joined by Shag's son Martin
Conner (electric guitar), Terry Conner (organ) - presumably
another relations; as well as newcomers Ray Elder (bass
guitar) and Graham Jefferies (drums).
By
the time of the 1976 Country Capers album was released,
the line up has changed again. Alongside Shag Connor (third
spelling of that surname!) on vocal and harmonica, and Martin
'Scarecrow' Connor on electric guitar, were a swathe of newcomers:
Barry 'Plonker' Hinchley on organ, Adrian 'Silage' Garland
on drums, and Richard 'Cow Cake' Smith on bass. Additional
musicians on the album were Steve Darrington (piano
and harmonica), Phil Beer (fiddle and mandolin)
and Paul Downes (acoustic guitar).
By
1978, the next reference I've been able to find, the line-up sees
Shag Connors (vocals), Scarecrow Connors (guitar),
Cowcake Smith (bass) and Silage Garland (drums)
rejoined by (Keith) Raker Harris (guitar) and (Terry) Plonker
Connor (organ).
Pete
Cook (now with The Somerset Paddies)
was also with the band for a short while.
The
current (2007) line-up of Mart Connors & The Carrot
Crunchers is:
- Mart
Connors - Jokes, Lead Vocals and Acoustic Guitar
- "Ram"
- Drums and Backing Vocals
- "Goldtop"
- Bass and Backing Vocals
- "Lucky"
- Electric Guitar and Backing Vocals
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Shag
and the lads taking a break taken around 1976 - and a sad
reminder that the Courage Bristol Brewery (formerly George's)
was closed by its owners in 1999 in spite of a protest by
the local branch of CAMRA and many others - most of the
historic old buildings are being pulled down to be replaced
by luxury flats. Note also the famous Farmyard Cockerel
- coincidentally the old Courage logo.
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Photo
taken from one of their promotional flyers, and shows the
band complete with the original (?) black cockerel drinking
beer.
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Shag
Connors & The Carrot Crunchers Discography
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Singles
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The
Cotswolds EP (?)
a-side
- Nagging Woman / The Cotswolds
b-side - Watching The Chicks / Pub Crawl
[Ed.
Unsure about the title]
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SRS
2105
1979
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Shag
Connors with Luan Peters
It's Me Again, Margaret (Paul Craft) / Henhouse Holiday |
Precision
5P 205
1980 |
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Watch It / A Little Blondie Called Jean |
Play 154
1982 |
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The
Little House Upon The Hill / Did You Miss Me |
Play
202
1985 |
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The Cleanest Little Piggy In The Market / That's Life |
Play 204
Dec 1985 |
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I'm
Jealous Of The Farmyard Cockerel / Put Your Shoulder To The
Wheel |
Play 208
Aug 1986 |
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Bristol
City Songs EP
Side
1: One Bristol City / There'll Always Be a Bristol (There'll
Always Be An England) / Glory Glory Bristol City
Side 2: When The Red Red Robin (Comes Bob Bob Bobbing Along) |
?? |
Albums
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Furzlin'
with Shag Connors & The Carrot Crunchers
Side 1: Gonna Have Some Fun Tonight / Farmyard Cockerel
/ Furzlin' / Whopper Of The West / Radstock Queen / Au Pair
Girl
Side 2: De Doodlin' / Blame The Breathalyser / Cauliflower
Power / Oh Ar! / Gloucester Calypso / Kilroy Was Here |
Marble Arch MALS1342
1970 |
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A
Little Of What You Fancy
Side 1: Winter Time In Gloucester / A Little Of What
You Fancy (Does You Good) / Gloucester Cheese / If I'd Have
Known / Go Man Go / Shorty / O Lordie It's A Crying Shame
/ Go Tell Your Mother /
Side 2: The Whistle Of The Train / Far Better Off When
I'm Gone / I Can't See You Until Saturday Night / Girl Called
Anne / A Fella's Got To Earn His Corn / Man It's A Hard Life
/ Don't Ever Let It Get You Down / Turkey In The Straw
Recorded at the Globe Inn, Newton St Loe, Bath, Somerset
on 27 November 1973 |
EMI Starline SRS 5186
1973 |
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Country
Capers
Side 1: On The Boghorn / I Can't Read The Thoughts
(That's In Your Mind) / The Skinniest Legs / I Ain't Got No
Money For My Wedding / The Bristol City Streaker / The Girl
With The Big Blue Eyes / The Irish Washerwoman
Side 2: Gypsy Joe / Rich Man's Daughter / Nellie From
Poole / Missing Kissing Blues / I Never Told You (But I've
Known All Along) / Poking The Fire / The Chicken Reel |
Sweet Folk & Country SFA 064
1976 |
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Sing
Country Style
Side 1: Trip To Heaven / Snowbird / There'll Be No
Teardrops Tonight / Oh! Susanna! (jig) / Five Hundred Miles
/ Everybody's Talking At Me / Abilene
Side 2: What Made Milwaukee Famous / Little Green Apples
/ So Lonesome I Could Cry / Ruby / Time Is Tight / Help Me
Make It Through The Night / Okie From Muskogee |
Sweet Folk & Country SFA 084
1977 |
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The
Best In The West
In The Springtime / I'm Feeling Blue / Shut The Gate / The
Local Vicar / Glad To Be Alive / Within A Hundred Years /
Waiter Bring Me Wine /
On The Phone / The Girl Who Works Next Door / On The Milk
Round / Cos I'm A Peeping Tom / I've Been Born To The Sound
Of An Alarm Clock |
SRT SRTZ/CUS 78099
1978 |
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Shag
Connors & The Carrot Crunchers Links
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Acknowledgements
Thanks
to the following Carrot Cruncher fans who have helped with
information:
- Ian
Goodridge
for drawing to our attention the album Country Capers and
providing the track listing, personnel details, etc.
- Andrea
Llewellyn for drawing our attention to the album A Little
Of What You Fancy and providing the track listings, personnel,
etc.
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