Alan Randall with Members of the George Formby Society

[mrmethane10]

formby2 - I think the second chap in the line-up was Peter I' Anson. If it is, he used to fill in on piano when Denis O' Connell was on a break.

[TheKenfig]

I was a teenager in the late 70s so that was the modern world with rock music & colour tv but kids then could STILL appreciate Alan and George Formby cos they were part of entertainment culture and my father liked GF and so did I. Kids now would NEVER understand the appeal. World has changed forever

[pwrk65]

A top beduff bloke.

[barneyboscoe]

i saw Alan Randall in his George Formby show some years ago,he was marvelous.

[ukeleleman34]

Hey some of those Uke's were nearly in tune! He.

Yes Alan was certainly a great guy and I also loved him on the Vibes. Amazing player..

[pwrk65]

A Great Guy Who did Bedworth Proud.

[gerrygeorge1]

@pwrk65. Aye you're right, lad, and don't forget another big star, whose house on Hinkley Road, was exactly opposite that of Alan and his lovely wife, Mary. Can't guess ? Well it was Larry Grayson, another shining light who helped put Bedworth on the map, I guess. What a pro Larry was, and kindess itself, into the bargain !

[GrenvilleT]

I wonder how you'd explain the appeal of this kind of thing to, say, Richard Dawkins. A bit like 'I'm Sorry, I Haven't a Clue', it has the priceless element of utter piffle being taken very seriously. (I suppose, on second thoughts, Dawkins would all too readily understand that.) Sublime. Trivial. Often the same thing...

[rafferty246]

yep from dear old beduth ..true hero

[ledwatch]

Alan was wonderful, I had the pleasure to produce his Formby Disco medley which we called 'Ooked on Formby in 1986 - he was the next best thing to George Himself Alan also appeared on the Royal Variety show the following year. Turned out Nice again (he was an amazing Vibraphone and piano player too).

[wurli239]

Is Alan Randall no more? When did he pass on?

[gerrygeorge1]

Yes, sadly, my good pal Alan Randall died two years ago, after a long fight against motor neurone disease. He was a great Formby impersonator, but more importantly, a brilliant jazz vibes player and keyboard king. He even stood-in for star concert and cabaret pianists in the USA, like Oscar Peterson, at New York's Stork Club, and appeared on all the Jazz cruises, which went via New Orleans.

He was also a great golfer, and a really nice chap, into the bargain...just like George !

[VernonsBoots]

@gerrygeorge1 Sad news, I often wondered what became of alan. RIP.

[gerrygeorge1]

@VernonsBoots. Yes, Alan was a dear pal, and a great entertainer; one who ranks with the best of Variety and Cabaret, and I for one, miss him very much. There was no swank about Alan, he just did his bit, took his bows, and walked out of the venue, just a he would when he clocked-off at the Jaguar factory, Coventry, where he served his apprenticeship as an engineer.

[barbaramanuk]

@gerrygeorge1 Well, it's sad to see that Alan Randall had died. I'd no idea. He was one of the first acts I saw when I became a manager at one of the Butlins holiday centres in 1986. He did a great act, but, the times being what they were, his style of entertainment didn't fit with the then current trend.

[vidlad]

Thankyou for upping this its fantastic to see the late great Alan Randall doing his superb Formby act,and I and I am sure many others would like to see lots more of Alan doing Formby if you have it 5 very well deserved stars and into my favourites.

Regards

Jim Clark

See hundreds of unique videos of acoustic musicians and poets under my youtube name of vidlad

[patsyfagin]

What a lot of bollix!

Pat.

ps,he couldn't run a whelk stall!

[dretety]

Could you run a whelk stall?

As for the late Mr. Randall, he wasn't very good.

In fact he was crap.

[4276357]

give this man great respect.

allen worked very hard he was to me agreat artist in his own right the work he done to keep george formby aliive needs respect

[formby2]

Many old GFS mates, plus I worked with Alan Randall on a Formby CD and I've worked with Roy Hudd in the theatre. Here's most of the GFS line-up. 1 John Croft 2 ? 3 John Walley 4 Alan Southworth 5 Dennis O'Connell (Dec'd) 6 Ray Bernard 7 Steve Helme 8 Bernard Young Apologies to number 2.  I think he's also in the GFS section of the BBC 40 Minutes documentary, but I don't think we've met. Can anyone put a name to the face?

[gerrygeorge1]

@formby2. Ray Bernard and I, and a handful of others, had our own unofficial Formby fan club, long before George died. It was Ray who supplied me with the uke chord inversions for many of George's songs, and I am forever indebted to him for that, not to mention the other uke-playing hints he passed-on to me, as a matter of course. He is probably the greatest exponent of all kinds of ukulele, in the world, and that is so much understatement. Thanks Ray !