Exhibition to showcase Southend’s rich musical heritage

Thames Delta, which is being curated by local musician David Elvin and Focal Point Gallery, will run from Saturday 7th April to Saturday 16th June, 2012.

The exhibition will celebrate the rich and varied musical heritage of Southend-on-Sea, Canvey Island and Basildon from the late 1940s to the present day.

And organisers have appealed to residents in the area to search their attics, garages and record collections in search of musical memorabilia to add to the exhibition.

The project will draw a time-line from the end of World War II and the opening of The Kursaal - Southend's legendary amusement park where Howard Baker and his band reigned for 21 years - to influential groups of the early 21st Century such as These New Puritans and The Horrors.

It will provide an audio-visual narrative of the changing fashions in music, covering not only different performers, but the local venues that presented them.

The area's cinemas, theatres and hotels hosted the likes of Bo Diddley, The Rolling Stones, Louis Armstrong, Roy Orbison, The Beatles and Gerry and the Pacemakers.

And a ship sailing from Southend to Calais became a mobile venue for rock 'n' roll stars including The Shadows, Tony Sheridan, and Southend's own Paramounts.

The main display at Southend's Beecroft Art Gallery will celebrate the vast array of musical success and talent that's arisen from this small corner of Essex.

Hit makers such as Procol Harum, Danielle Dax, Graham Bonney, Dr Feelgood, Viv Stanshall, Alison Moyet, Yazoo and Depeche Mode all originated from the area.

It has also produced musical stars such as Lee Mead and Denise Van Outen as well as international hit composers Geoff Stevens and Mickey Jupp, to name just a few.

Taking place simultaneously at the Beecroft Art Gallery and Focal Point Gallery, the exhibition will bring together a wide range of media, from contemporary artworks by practitioners such as Mat Do, Rick Buckley and Scott King, to original archive material including photographs, album sleeves, collages, posters and paintings.

These will include a portrait of legendary Canvey Island band Dr Feelgood's inspirational front man Lee Brilleaux.

Musical instruments and other relevant artefacts will also be displayed, such as a Greenop banjolele, manufactured at Norton Greenop's banjo factory in Leigh-on-Sea, and Chris Copping's original bass amp that went round the world with Procul Harum.

Residents from Southend, Canvey Island, Basildon and further afield are being encouraged to donate memorabilia for the duration of the exhibition.

Curator David Elvin said: "We're looking for unique photographs, objects and documentation which may have lain dormant for years in attics across the country.

"It would be fantastic if people were prepared to loan items of memorabilia relevant to the South East Essex music scene so they can be given their chance to shine."

Intertwined with the exhibition will be a series of live performances staged at various venues throughout the region.

By combining memorabilia, contemporary art and live performance 'Thames Delta' promises to be a celebration of the area's incredible contribution to musical history.

A publication being produced to accompany the project will contain images of the works and objects in the exhibition, as well as an essay by David Elvin on the time he spent with the celebrated singer and British eccentric Vivian Stanshall, creator of the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band.

David studied at Southend School of Art with Stanshall in the late 1950s and later attended St. Martin's School of Art in the early 1960s.

Dame Helen Mirren, said: 'It's truly amazing that so much musical talent has been and is still being produced from the small corner of South East Essex where I grew up.

"It's only fitting that this vast array of talent is celebrated in this exciting new exhibition and I wish 'Thames Delta' every possible success."

For further information or to donate memorabilia for the exhibition please contact Lib Fox, Focal Point Gallery Exhibition and Marketing Officer, on 01702-534108 or e-mail her at libfox@southend.gov.uk

'Thames Delta' is supported by Arts Council England and Southend-on-Sea Borough Council .