Mike Wallis Memories

I wrote to Paul recently to let him know the sort of money the 'No Bounds' single was making on eBay (around £25). I was amazed when Paul reminded me that it was getting on for 25 years since the release of 'No Bounds' - it seemed like a natural time to look back at that era.

I remember there being a thriving post punk scene in Watford with bands like the Bears, Passion Killers & S-Haters. There were loads of bands around changing & swapping personnel. The great thing about that time was that talent & ability weren't deemed particularly necessary for being in a band; attitude & energy were all important - the rawness of the music made it more exciting, out of this maelstrom emerged the Gambit Of Shame.

I can't remember first meeting Gary but I do remember him coming up with the name Gambit of Shame, which was taken from the name of a chapter in Ian Fleming's 'Casino Royal'. Gary & I became close friends & I remember spending half my life round his Merton Road house, which became the Gambit's H.Q. Gary's Pad resembled a reptile house - large tanks of Terrapins, lizards axolotls, fish, newts, toads & snakes were just some of the residents.

Thanks to him I have the surreal memory of being bitten by a grass snake while riding pillion on the back of his motorbike.

Songs were usually written during late night sessions at Gary's - the method of song writing was usually me composing the music & Gary going through one of his copious notebooks of lyrics till he found something to fit the mood.

The early gigs were pretty shambolic affairs & we were definitely an acquired taste. When Amanda & Lindsay joined, our audience got bigger & we started to sound better; I remember one early gig, just before we were to go on stage I accidentally touched a bare wire sticking out of the wall, causing my whole arm to go numb & temporarily losing the use of my fingers.

Real drummers were a scarce commodity so we made do with a basic Soundmaster drum machine that meant the whole band could rehearse in Gary's front room. The drum machine really was crap & in hindsight I wonder how we ever put up with it. Once it was nicked at a gig & put up for sale in a local shop - the guy selling it denied it was ours, even though it had our set list written on the inside of the lid! Unfortunately the police eventually returned it.

When we came to make the 'No Bounds' single though, we recruited wild man Raymondo. Ray's credentials were impeccable, having been sacked from some class bands like Ritual & Death Cult. Ray was a larger than life character and played as though his life depended on him hitting the drums as hard & fast as possible. I heard he went on to play with Sex Gang Children.

I vaguely remember the Spiders Web photo shoot. The Watford motel was chosen for its cheesy glamour although from the photos, I don't look all there. I remember the remit was to wear black & white, hence my white sock crime.

It's a shame we didn't take more photos of this period, especially playing live - I'm hoping some might resurface.

I have good memories of making the 'No Bounds' single in '82 - I remember picking up Robert Wyatt from his house & getting hopelessly lost in London traffic en route to the studio. I asked Robert whether he'd done any producing before & he said the last time he'd done some was for Hendrix.

In the studio I remember him advising us to open the windows to let in the street sounds - it was a great production he did for us, as it still seems to sound fresh today.

When Paul left the Gambits, we drafted in Christopher Reeve look-alike Kevin Saunders on bass, at the time Kevin was Richard Strange's roadie. Before that he was John Ottway's Roadie. Ex-Event Group singer Bernadette Keeffe joined after Lindsay & Amanda left.

I Came across this online - its how the Gambits are listed in Rockmine the ultimate Rock Cyclopedia:

GAMBIT OF SHAME

Lyndsey - percussion, vocals

Paul Mex - bass

Gary Pinker - vocals

Mike Spike - guitar

Sue - cello

Simon Tempo 'The Wimp' - drums

Mike Wallis

February 2006