Pink Kadillac

Pink Kadillac and Murt

Brothers Neil and Ian began their long, non-existent, uphill musical carers around 1979/1980. From leaving school, both played in different club bands, initially set up by themselves and friends. Big-E (Ian), played Guitar. Their band was called 'Backwater', named after the Status Quo song. And, Murt (Neil), played Bass Guitar. Their band was called 'Somethin' Else', named after the Eddie Cochran song. Both bands were doing covers. Neil had initially started writing his own material around 1981, though nothing major came to light until a few years later.
      Backwater split and Big-E joined Somethin' Else around the end of 1982 when the guitar player left. Splits had already appeared in both bands due to musical direction. Towards the end of Somethin' Else, Neil and Ian where penning a lot of their own material but had no real outlet for it. By 1983 Neil and Ian decided they wanted to channel everything into writing and playing their own stuff, which they eventually called Skifflebilly. Neil said he'd heard the term and was sure he'd come across it from the sleeve notes on the back of an album he used to have by The Riot Rockers but he couldn't be positive. So Skifflebilly it became. By the end of the year Pink Kadillac was formed and any outstanding bookings from Somethin' Else where honoured. But they now found it hard to get gigs as these clubs only wanted artists doing covers, but it didn't matter. They'd never earned a penny anyway, they'd been playing for nothing for years to try and get noticed.
      By this time Neil had started to get involved in recording, and a chance meeting came in 1984, when he met someone who had a garage studio. Neil and Ian paid 30 Pounds for a Sunday recording session. The result was very crude to say the least but Neil and Ian loved it. It was raw. It was them. 1985 saw them back in the studio for another 30 Pounds session. Four songs. Neil and Ian where about to spend 900 Pounds plus on a vinyl single to use as promotion. The lads loved it but it failed miserably. Not everyone's cup of tea, to tell it as it is, as they say. By 1987 Neil was building up a nice collection of budget recording gear. Both Neil and Ian were living with their parents at that time. Neil's room became the band's gear storage room, practice and recording facility. Not enough room to swing a cat. By 1988 Neil and Ian had given up playing live all together. It seemed nobody wanted their material. Neil remembered back in 1983 being turned away by local papers. No write-ups for unsigned bands. The only good letter he ever received was from Paul Barrett in the early days warning that it could take up to 30 years to become an overnight success.
      Both Neil and Ian where surviving off two bit dead end jobs. Neil was approached at work and remembered for being in Pink Kadillac. Nigel, the lad in question, had been in a band called The Stix Trio, with guitarist Steve, now a life-long friend of both Neil and Ian. So, The Swampcats where born. Neil and Ian wanted to keep the original Pink Kadillac name, but, new beginnings, fresh ideas, fresh start. Or so it seemed. It began with five lads. By the end of 1989, Nigel had left. It felt like more of the same. Banging heads against a brick wall. Having to start again re arranging material. Big-E finally called it a day around 1990. The Swampcats lasted another year or so as a three piece outfit until the split in 1992. It all became too much for Neil, who now just wanted to concentrate on recording.
      1993 - Neil, with the help of Ian, had enough material recorded for three albums. The results, recorded as Pink Kadillac, were sent to Roy Williams at Nervous Records. Hey presto. Neil thought he had finally cracked it, but couldn't get a band together. Contracts where signed with Roy at Nervous Publishing, but only one track was released at the time on Del Richardson's Fury Records label 'Haunted Highway' promotional CD 1994 entitled 'You Got A Hold On Me'.
      It all seemed dead in the water. Roy had, on cassette only, five albums, but no master tapes. Four albums by Pink Kadillac and a solo album recorded by Neil. He used his nick-name but Murt, somehow, didn't quite sound right. What's in a name? Today's technology wasn't available back then. Perhaps it was just as well. A break was needed all round. Neil continued to write and has since amassed a catalogue of 500 plus songs, as well as co writing approximately another 60 or 70.
      Neil got another band together called The Frame around 1999, again doing original material, though not Rock 'n' Roll in any shape or form. But it was more of the same. With dwindling band members. The band finally became a duo but faded fast for no other reason than shitty dead end job work commitments.
      Sadly, around 2001, Neil had a bad accident at work. During recovery, which has never fully taken place to this day, he painfully finished off another solo album, in the time honoured tradition of throwing anything and everything he could at the material and seeing how it turned out. Rough edges and all. He was also toying with the idea of future albums and using the name Tom Watson. Murt was OK as a nick-name but didn't really speak volumes as a stage name. It didn't take place through continuing ill health.
      Years have passed. New material has been written. Technology has developed. But, illness has played a big role in what was about to happen. A major incident early 2013 saw Neil take the only option left open to him, after 13 years of illness, now systematically having to sell off instruments and gear to raise capital to survive. After a chance meeting at a pro audio day mid 2013, someone approached him and, eventually, weeks later, asked if they could put together a page on Facebook dedicated to Pink Kadillac for Neil as a tribute to what was described as an unusual musical style. With nothing to lose, Neil, reluctantly agreed. As it developed Neil e-mailed Roy at Nervous to check any legal matters concerned.
      The four Pink Kadillac albums and two solo albums have now been re mastered. These early recordings are warts and all and do tell it how it was.

Red Hot

Rockabilly boogie *		Red hot *
There's no way in *		Out of my mind *
(I'm gonna) ride the night *		Landslide *
Rocknroll baby *		You and me forever *
I was only young *		Rockabilly baby (tonight) *
B-b-b-bye, bye *		You'd better run *

* All songs written by Martindale/Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing

Recorded Between January And June 1993 At The Rockabilly Sound Studio
All Instruments Played By N. J. And I. Martindale
Engineered By N. J. Martindale
Arranged And Produced By N. J. Martindale

Ghost Town

It's just like a ghost town *		Fleetwood Cadillac *
Right on time*		R.I.P. disco *
It's breakin' me up*		Raisin' Hell *
(I'm blue) stuck on you *		Be my baby now *
Rockabilly rockin' *		You do to me *
Pink Cadillac *		What y'gonna do *
It ain't far away now *

Jazz-Skiffle

Is it too late *		Skifflebilly *
Put a spell on me *		Blue Sherpa van *
It ain't human nature (to be satisfied) *		Jazz-skiffle *
Thinkin' of you *		What might have been *
'Maybe' baby *		Gypsy Lou *
James Dean *		Skifflebilly Christmas *

Murt - Aint' No Turnin' Back

In over my head *		No more Mister Nice Guy *
Nervous man *		Remind me of you *
Mister Blues *		Hit the road Mary *
Can't stop *		Lonely street *
It's true *		Too much *
You can look *		The South will rise again *

* All songs written by Martindale/Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing

Recorded Between 11th and 29th September 1993 At The Rockabilly Sound Studio
All Instruments Played By N. J. Martindale
Engineered By N. J. Martindale
Arranged And Produced By N. J. Martindale

School's out

Drink that bottle *		First love *
Babe it's you *		Love me tonight *
Kadillac skiffle *		Don't let me fall for love again *
It's you *		School's out *
A Cadillac will never make you mine *		No more lies *
Ship from Hell *		Don't cry wolf *
Got me spellbound*		Cut it loose, let it go *

* All songs written by Martindale/Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing

Recorded Between April And June 1994 At The Rockabilly Sound Studio
All Instruments Played By N. J. and I. Martindale
Engineered By N. J. Martindale
Arranged And Produced By N. J. Martindale

Honest John And Reverend Dick's Rockabilly Bash

Mister Death		Horrendous journey
Butcher Bill's dog		(Solid) as a rock
Day at the seaside		It's natural
All over again		Crazy
Passageway to Hell		Strung up by the balls (that's the family name)
Accelerate		Greetings from Vienna
Ethel the farmer's wife

All songs written by Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing

Recorded at various times 1987-2014 At The Rockabilly Sound Studio
All Instruments Played By N. J. and I. Martindale
Engineered By N. J. Martindale
Arranged And Produced By N. J. Martindale

Walkin' on the highways

I ain't goin' down without a fight *		Crazy baby **
That's love **		Knocked out **
Lisa Marie **		What's a guy like me doin' *
Since you walked into my life **		Evil eyes **
Fool to fall for you **		Walkin' on the highways **
Can you see me **		Can't afford no big flash car **

* All songs written by Martindale/Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing
** All songs written by Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing

Recorded at various times 1987-2014 At The Rockabilly Sound Studio
All Instruments Played By N. J. and I. Martindale
Engineered By N. J. Martindale
Arranged And Produced By N. J. Martindale

One foot in the groove

I can't let go		Samone
One foot in the groove		The Devil's on the railroad line
Fever		Head over heels
I gotta break out		The fastest gun
Lonely girl		Oh misery
Nowhere to turn		Does it make you blue

All songs written by Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing

Recorded at various times 1990-2014 At The Rockabilly Sound Studio
All Instruments Played By N. J. and I. Martindale
Engineered By N. J. Martindale
Arranged And Produced By N. J. Martindale

Early Stuff

Skifflebilly	Fleetwood Cadillac
Rockabilly boogie	It ain't human nature (to be satisfied)
Jazz-skiffle	Is it too late
You and me forever	What y'gonna do
(I'm gonna) ride the night	There's no waitin'
B-b-b-bye, bye	Rockabilly rockin'
Red hot	Rockabilly baby (tonight)
Skifflebilly	Skifflebilly
Fleetwood Cadillac	Rockabilly boogie
It ain't human nature (to be satisfied)

All songs have been re-mastered in mono at the Rockabilly Sound Studio. They are demos and alternate takes
Engineer N. J. Martindale.
All songs - unreleased versions.
All songs - Words & Music N. J. & I Martindale and published by Nervous Publishing.