18 March 1965 - Marietta Hotel, Obertauern, Austria.
Jacky and the Strangers were Berlin's longest running Rock'n'Roll band. Born in 1928 in Wiesbaden, Jacky Spelter formed the Strangers in 1953 with a Fender Jazzmaster guitar that he had brought from Texas were he had been taken as a prisoner of war. It was the first Fender model to appear in Germany. Jacky continued to play on that same instrument (that he lovingly called Jenny) for 50 years.
In 1958 he opened for Bill Haley and the Comets at the Waldbühne in Berlin. In Friedberg, where Jacky and the Strangers played the GI-Clubs, he met Elvis, who was sitting in the audience. After the concert, Elvis shook his hand. In Hamburg he claims to have played with the Beatles.
In March, 1965, Jacky and the Strangers were engaged to play at the Marietta Hotel, Obertauern, Austria, while the Beatles were in town, shooting scenes for the "Help!" film. John and Paul dropped in on March 18 for an impromptu gig with their Reeperbahn friend.
John borrowed "Jenny", Jacky's Fender Jazzmaster guitar, Spelter to his right |
Paul tried out the drums. |
One of Henry Grossman's photos. We don't know who took the colour photos, it may have beeen Robert Freeman. |
Jacky up front, John in the background |
Jacky Spelter was considered Germany's oldest rock and roller, and continued to play clubs in Berlin until just before he passed away on May 12th, 2004.
9 comments:
Interesting article. Here http://www.berliner-zeitung.de/archiv/jacky-spelter--deutschlands-aeltester-rock-n-roller--feiert-seinen-75--geburtstag-auf-der-buehne-der-king-von-neukoelln,10810590,10016300.html it says that Jacky met The Beatles at the Kaiserkeller, so that would have been 1960. Ofcourse by then they were already Beatles, without 'Silver'.
Brilliant article and pics!
Foxx: Yes, well the same article says that his Fender Jazzmaster was a 1948 model, so it's not easy.
I've seen better pictures of John.
Another photo here (copyrighted though)...
http://www.examiner.com/slideshow/from-places-i-ll-remember
I wonder if that Jackie is the same one that Paul refers to in the take of Get Back where he sings in mock German (Geht Raus)
Fender Jazzmaster wasn't introduced until 1959 and even then probably didn't hit the stores in the USA until 1960. Does anyone know when Jackie Spelter was in Texas...?
What prisoner of war would be held in Texas?
German POWs of WWII were held in the Southern U.S.
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