Historiographical Background
It is well known that Glen Sweeney's musical beginnings date back to the 1950s and were consummated in the area of Croydon, Surrey, where he was born in 1924.
The percussionist rarely went into the details of that season, preferring by far to gloss over the period when, in the early 1960s, he moved in search of his fortune to London, where he found work as a busker, dishwasher, and clerk in antique stores in Soho (in one of those stores he met, his colleague, Carolyn Looker, a lifelong companion). Turner in modern jazz groups first, free jazz later, without great fortunes, playing in "terrible places" (his words), "strange clubs that I'm sure were run by white slave traders. I used to play with a pianist and bass player. I always had a quartet that was "rehearsing" but they always collapsed before they actually got off the ground." (1)
As for his beginnings, almost nothing. A few vague words even to Carolyn or lifelong friend Steve Pank. I also attempted to elaborate on his early musical experiences with him, but he considered them irrelevant, of little interest. Only a hint of militancy in a Skiffle band, where he played washboard. Aptitude confirmed in interviews with the press, to which he would simply say, “like most people on the scene today, I started with Skiffle in a very suburban basis. I was washboard king of Croydon and that sort of area. But that died one weekend when there were about 5,000 skiffle groups and only eight gigs.” (2)
Or, in what is probably the longest and most in-depth interview, provoked by interviewer Nigel Cross:“(…) I as totally into the scene – jazz drums – when a couple of guys I knew did an interval at a club I was hanging out at and their washboard player cracked up under the strain. I immediately leapt in, sussing I simple it must be and became moderately famous overnight because it was only local talent; it wasn’t difficult to do. (...)”
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The Anacondas: Glen Sweeney to the far left.
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Cross: Tell me more about the Anacondas band?Sweeney: “It came and went. One of the high spots was residency at the Driftbridge Hotel in Reigate, because it was local. We used to play there every Sunday and pull a decent crowd, because we were ethnic skiffle – we played the actual band’s numbers. This was were I met Ginger Baker – we were doing the interval when Ginger was playing with some trad band – Charlesworth – after we’d done out set, and Ginger came up to me and threatened to do me over for doing all his band’s numbers! After that I really got to know the guy and he was great! What happened with Skiffle was – one Saturday or Sunday it ended! I’ve no idea what happened – I think the scene got so full of Skiffle groups that it just killed itself.” (3)
New materials surfaced!
When by now the history of the Anacondas seemed dead and buried, destined for absolute oblivion, in January 2023 thanks to the Facebook pages dedicated to the band by friend Mirco Delfino (https://www.facebook.com/third.ear.band/), Chris Shields, Sweeney's nephew, came forward and posted an old photo of the Anacondas, apparently colorized from the original black-and-white, and a business card of guitarist and leader John Hall on the back of which are listed (with writing that looks like Sweeney's) the names of the musicians:
John Hall - guitar and vocalsAlan Carder - harmonica
Norman Strong - guitar
Colin Burrons - banjo
Gordon (Glen) - washboard
Roy Bance - tube bass
Only clue, the nephew's comment: "Old picture of my uncle, on washboard, first band he had. They won the Tommy Steele skiffle group cup."
Notes: (1) "Me and my Music. Glen Sweeney: Third Ear Band", in
"Disc & Music Echo", 11 April 1970.
(2) As above.
(3) N. Cross, "The Return of the Acid Prankster. Glen Sweeney tells the Third Ear Story", in "Unhinged", Summer 1990.
(to be continued)
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