Toxteth: The Harlem of Europe at the University of Liverpool's Victoria Gallery and Museum features striking portraits by Liverpool photographer Ean Flanders – capturing musicians from that era, alongside their descendants.
00:00A photographic exhibition in Liverpool is shining a light on Toxteth's black musicians of the 1950s and 60s,
00:08artists whose influence stretched all the way to the Beatles and beyond.
00:12I hope people will start to look at Liverpool, and not just Liverpool as a whole,
00:18but look at the history of music and the influences that many of these artists have had.
00:26Toxteth the Harlem of Europe at the University of Liverpool's Victoria Gallery and Museum
00:31features striking portraits by Liverpool photographer Ian Flanders,
00:35capturing musicians from that era alongside their descendants.
00:38So many images, they were just spontaneously interacting with each other.
00:43Although I had them sat down, I was just shooting away when they weren't aware that I was taking photographs.
00:51So I was able to cap some really nice, relaxed imagery of them together.
00:57The exhibition's been created in partnership with local charity Mandela 8.
01:03For me, it's a story that needed to be told, and people from outside of the city
01:09probably have no idea about this sort of influence and the link to the Beatles.
01:14So I'm kind of glad that the story's been finally being told.
01:19It draws on the memories of community figures such as singer Raymond Sugardean and Carol Phillips,
01:26daughter of Harold Lord Woodbine Phillips, alongside elders who are part of Toxteth's vibrant music scene.
01:32More talent came out of that one area of Olympic Relate than anywhere in Europe, anywhere in England.
01:38That one area, hundreds and hundreds of singers and bands, you know.
01:42And of course, a bit overlooked, record companies wasn't interested in, like pictures, groups.
01:50Key figures include the chants, who were even backed at times by the Beatles, the Harlems, the In Crowd, the Godfather, Odie Taylor, Derry, Wilkie and Lord Woodbine.
02:00A Trinidadian, Calypsonian, who mentored the Beatles and promoted them at his new Colony Club,
02:07even helping drive them to Hamburg for their first major break.
02:11More people are finding out. A lot of people still don't know, you know.
02:15So this is why it's really important that, you know, not just my dad, you know, there's a lot of LA musicians.
02:21People haven't got a clue. My dad is more known because of the Windrush situation.
02:26He called them my boys. We were always around him, you know.
02:30Because he was business partners with Alan Williams.
02:34People say, yeah, Alan Williams was the Beatles manager, but he was managed more by Woody.
02:41They were partners, and Woody had more interest in the Beatles than Alan did, you know.
02:46Taking him here, there and everywhere.
02:48The exhibition celebrates two decades of musical innovation, showing how these artists help shape modern British music.
02:54Toxith, the Harlem of Europe, runs until the 1st of August.
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