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Peter 'Ollie' Halsall was born in Southport, England in 1949. He came to London in 1967 to play vibraphone with pop-rock outfit Timebox (which included bassist Clive Griffiths and keyboard wizard 'Professor' Chris Holmes. Ollie took up guitar and they acquired the legendary Mike Patto on vocals and finally drummer 'Admiral' John Halsey. In 1970, following the departure of Holmes, Timebox evolved into Patto. They played a unique blend of 'progressive' jazz-rock (for want of a better term) featuring Ollie's guitar work which began to develop legendary status. In 1973 he left to join Jon Hiseman's Tempest. After less than a year Ollie quit and did numerous sessions including one track for Kevin Ayers. This led to a permanent position in Kevin's band The Soporifics. In 1975 the Pattos staged a brief reunion comprising just 3 benefit gigs. The reuniting of Ollie and Mike sparked the formation of Boxer - a band which unfortunately promised more than it delivered. In 1976 he rejoined Ayers with whom he stayed, on and off, for the next 16 years until his untimely death in 1992. |
1964 1965 1966 1970 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1992
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Whilst working with Radio Futura, Ollie volunteered to chaperone one of the band who had become hooked on heroin. Although a drinker, Ollie had emerged relatively unscathed from his rock career. so it came as a complete shock when he died of an overdose in 1992, having spent all his considerable earnings on heroin. He had been hooked on it by the very musician he was trying to protect, who had insisted that, whilst a more expensive pastime, there was no danger if you smoked instead of injecting. On the night of 29 May 1992, in the flat he shared at 13 Calle de la Amargura ('Bitterness Street'), Madrid, desperation drove Ollie to try the cheaper way. He misjudged the quantity and was found dead the next morning. The Musicians' Union paid the expenses and his girlfriend, singer Claudia Pujol, brought his ashes back to be scattered on the beach at Cala Deià. The artist Michael Kane engraved a stone plaque that featured a jack socket, volume and tone controls. When it was finished, he propped it up against the door to get a good look. A gust of wind slammed the door shut and the stone fell, splitting in half. Deciding that here was no point in trying to hide the crack, he made a feature of it by sticking the two halves together with bright blue resin.' The memorial can be seen next to Mati [the artist]'s in the Deià cemetery. As related by Ollie's friend Tomas Graves
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A memoir of Music and Majorca by The Pambs' bass player's book about Catalan music and culture makes fascinating reading and includes a lengthy chapter on Ollie's association with The Pa Amb Oli Band.
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Media W There's a Moose on the Loose Let It Rock Play The Perfect Fool A Heavy Session I Did It Otway y Viva Espana Ayers on a G string
Pen & ink drawing by Ollie |
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The Ollie Halsall Archive ©1998 |
