LOVE Revisited are marking the tenth anniversary of Arthur Lee's passing by performing songs from Love's first three albums, Love, De Capo and Forever Changes, in a tour that visits The Crescent, in The Crescent, York, on Sunday  night.

The tour has been organised by the York record label Bad Paintings, whose bosses, Mike "Ringo" Harrison and Jonathan Meager, are managing the band too, and the York gig will bring back memories of Lee and his acid-rock American West Coast band playing Fibbers in the city on June 28 2004.

York musician Chris Helme's band, The Yards, toured with Love that year and in honour of that past connection, he will be guesting with Love Revisited on a couple of numbers.

From 1993 until Lee's death in 2006, the band Baby Lemonade accompanied the Memphis-born singer, becoming his longest-serving line-up and playing their part in the renaissance of Love's music that saw them perform sold-out tours and back-to-back Glastonbury festivals and make an appearance on BBC2's Later...with Jools Holland.

Joining Baby Lemonade on the 2016 tour is Love's original lead guitarist and founding member Johnny Echols, who was part of the celebrated combo that recorded Forever Changes in 1967.

York Press:

Love Revisited, playing York on Sunday

Echols and Lee were childhood friends whose families both moved from Memphis to Los Angeles, where teenage Johnny and Arthur teamed up to form the groups Arthur Lee & The LAG’s and the American Four before they formed Love in 1965. The classic Love line-up disbanded in 1968, but Johnny reunited with Arthur in 2005 after a 37-year hiatus to perform with Love once more.

Baby Lemonade were formed in 1992 by Rusty Squeezebox, Mike Randle and David “Daddy-O” Green, later adding Dave Chapple to the mix. In 1993 the band landed the gig of a lifetime, opening up for Love, and after that show Arthur built a new version of Love around them.

On their return from a Love tour of Europe, in 1996, Baby Lemonade were shocked to find that Arthur had been sentenced to 12 years in prison on a weapons charge.

After nearly six years' incarceration, Arthur’s case was overturned. Shortly afterwards, at his request, Baby Lemonade began rehearsing for what would be a non-stop Love touring throughout North America, Britain, Europe and Australia between 2002 and 2005. In July that year, Arthur was diagnosed with leukaemia, passing away one year later. His last show with Baby Lemonade and Johnny Echols had been on June 23 at San Francisco’s Cafe Du Nord. The world had lost a true music legend.

Love Revisited's York gig on Sunday is being co-promoted by Joe Coates's Please Please You. Tickets are on sale at pleasepleaseyou.com at £10 or on the door from 7.30pm at £12.

A WHOLE LOTTA LOVE FOR LOVE IN YORK...remembered

York Press:

Arthur Lee of Love

MIKE Harrison last hosted a York celebration of Arthur Lee's music on March 7 2010, on what would have been Lee's 65th birthday.

Mike and Dan Guest, regular hosts of the You Set The Scene DJ sessions at The Habit in Goodramgate, presented Always See Your Face – Arthur Lee Remembered that day at The House Of The Trembling Madness, above The Bottle, in Stonegate.

“Arthur was sadly taken from us far too soon in 2006,” said Mike at the time. “We wanted to celebrate the life and music of Arthur Lee on his birthday so we’re throwing him a party.”

Mike had first met Arthur and his band in 1993, by which time Love’s line-up comprised Baby Lemonade band members Rusty Squeezebox on guitar and vocals, Mike Randle on lead guitar, Dave Chapple on bass, Dave “Daddyo” Green on drums.

“At the time I was travelling around America with my uncle, who had turned me on to the music of Arthur Lee and Love, and in 1995 I returned to Los Angeles where I crashed on the sofa at the Baby Lemonade guys’ house for several months,” he recalled.

York Press: Chris Helme (The Seahorses)

York musician Chris Helme, whose band The Yards toured with Love in 2004

In 1996, Mike went on tour with Love around Europe selling T-shirts, and afterwards the band, minus Arthur, returned to York to hang out for a week or so. During this trip too, Baby Lemonade played a show in their own right at Fibbers.

In the summer of 2002, Arthur played Britain once more. “That tour triggered a major resurgence in his popularity, and over the next few years Arthur toured the UK many times, including playing Glastonbury twice and appearing on Jools Holland’s TV show,” said Mike.

“I worked with the band in various capacities – tour managing, crew, general gofer, etc – on these tours. I always joked about Arthur possibly playing in York, and in 2004 I was discussing the forthcoming tour with Arthur’s agent, who said it was almost booked apart from needing a couple more shows.

“Again I joked, ‘Well, how about doing a York show?’, and a few months later, on June 28, 2004, Arthur was in York playing at Fibbers.”

Mike believes that at the time it was the highest ever ticket price at the Stonebow music bar. “Yet it was the easiest gig I have ever promoted: a few posters, speak to The Press, and Fibbers announce it on the website. Easy! The tickets flew out of the door.”

Ian Atherton’s concert review was effusive. “This was no financially motivated rehash of past triumphs; this was a true comeback, a once-fading star glowing brightly once more,” he wrote.

“Arthur Lee’s voice proved wholly unblemished after all these years, and his rich, silky tones shone throughout. Lee’s backing band made few attempts to upstage the terrifyingly youthful star, but nevertheless showed themselves to be truly gifted musicians.”

York Press:

York’s association with Lee and Love continued to flourish. The 2010 event was held at the then new Trembling Madness venue owned by Ian Loftus, whose Evil Eye bar had hosted Love's after-show party six years earlier. “Ian also owned the shop Forever Changes, which was named after Arthur’s most famous album,” recalled Mike.

Through the band visiting and hanging out in York over the years, Chris Helme and his York group The Yards were asked to support Love at The Scala in London in 2003 and were invited to be special guests for the UK tour the following year.

“Over the years, Arthur’s band have visited York on many occasions, usually after tours have finished,” said Mike. “They were all in York for my wedding – only just though, but that’s another story.”

The time the band spent in Britain resulted in Mike Randle and Rusty Squeezebox meeting and marrying English girls and in 2008 Rusty moved to Sheffield. When Baby Lemonade released a compilation album, the back sleeve photo featured the band members in a beer garden in York. 

As chance would have it, Mike was flying home from Los Angeles after attending Mike Randle’s wedding when Arthur died of leukaemia on August 3, 2006. 

Rusty attended the March 7 party in 2010 to do a guest DJ spot. Harrison and Guest were on DJ duty too and a further highlight of the 12 noon to 6pm event was a screening of assorted film footage of Arthur recorded between 2002 and 2005.