Wurzelmania!

all you ever wanted to know about Adge Cutler & The Wurzels

Wurzelmania! News 2009

Current News | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001 | 2000 | 1999

Older news items which have appeared in the Wurzelmania! website have now been archived by year. Feel free to browse...

The Wurzels Release Tribute To Adge Cutler! [posted 2 December 2009]

Things are fairly buzzing down on Wurzel farm. We have received the news that The Wurzels are poised to release a single just in time for Christmas. Thisisbristol.co.uk broke the story on Monday - but as it doesn't appear to have made the Wurzels' official website yet, let's call it a scoop.

The five-minute song is a tribute to the band's founding father, and is called, quite suitably, Ode To Adge. This is the band's first single release for over two years, and the first new Wurzels song to be released since Come On Santa! came out in 2001! As a result it will be eagerly anticipated by Wurzels fans across the globe.

The single is due for release on Sunday 13th December 2009 and is currently an outsider for the coveted Christmas no 1 slot. But you don't have to wait that long - the song is currently available to buy on Download at iTunes, Play.com and LastFM.

 to top of this page

Adge Cutler Albums Finally Reissued on CD! [posted 27 November 2009]

After over a decade of campaigning, Wurzelmania! can finally announce that it has won the war of words with the record moguls, and common sense has prevailed. On Friday 27th November 2009, Creative International Artists (otherwise known as Sil Wilcox, The Wurzels manager) announced the release of the three 'lost' Adge Cutler albums - Adge Cutler & The Wurzels, Adge Cutler's Family Album and Carry On Cutler! remastered on CD for the first time ever. In addition, also making their debut on CD is a remastered 'Best Of' compilation Don't Tell I, Tell 'Ee from 1974 and The Wurzels 1975 debut album The Wurzels Are Scrumptious. One hopes that the rest of The Wurzels back catalogue might follow soon...

This is great news for Adge Cutler fans, as these albums have been out of print for decades; and contain songs which many younger Wurzels fans may have never heard before. The albums are on sale now, strangely only through eBay, priced at £8.99 (postage free) at the Wurzels Ebay Store. Gentle reader, beware because the wording on the page does suggest that this is "Adge Cutler's original four albums" - but we all know that Adge's third album Cutler Of The West was released on 2003 after strong petitions to EMI from former Wurzelmania! editor Paul Gunningham.

The following albums have been re-issued:

• Adge Cutler & The Wurzels - the band's debut album recorded live at the Royal Oak in Nailsea in 1966. It includes the tracks: Twice Daily, Tanglefoot Twitch, When The Common Market Comes To Stanton Drew, Thee Cassent Kill Cooch, Champion Dung Spreader, Drink Up Thy Zider, Pill Pill, Mabel Mabel, The Chew Magna Cha-Cha, Hark At 'Ee Jacko, The Mixer Man's Lament and Virtute Et Industrial
• Adge Cutler's Family Album - the band's follow up album, also recorded at the Royal Oak, and originally released in 1967. It includes the tracks: Easton-In-Gordano, Sweet Violets, The Wild West Show, Barcelona Blues, The Somerset Space Race, Freak-Out In Somerset, Moonlight On The Malago, Sniff Up Thy Snuff, Drunk Again, Sheriff Of Midsomer Norton, Avonmouth Mary and The Shepton Mallet Matador.
• Carry On Cutler! - Adge's fourth (and final) album recorded live at the Webbington Country Club. It includes the tracks: All Over Mendip, Down On The Farm, Folk Song, Aloha Severn Beach, Oom Pah Pah, The Harvest Of Love, I Couldn't Spell !!**&@&**!!, The Chewton Mendip Love-In, Saturday Night At The Crown, Riley's Cow-Shed, Ferry To Glastonbury, and Willie The Shake.
• Don't Tell I, Tell 'Ee - the 1974 best of compilation album containing tracks from all four albums as well as a few previously just released on singles. It includes the tracks: Don't Tell I Tell 'Ee, Oom Pah Pah, Poor Poor Farmer, Chitterling, My Threshing Machine, I Wish I was Back On The Farm, The Wild West Show, I'd Love To Swim In The Zuider Zee, Faggots Is The Stuff, Virtute Et Industrial and The Wurple-Diddle-I-Doo Song.
• The Wurzels Are Scrumptious - The Wurzels' first album following Adge Cutler's death, released in 1975. It includes the tracks: Don't Tell I, Tell 'Ee, Look At 'Ee Looking At I, Who Needs Summer?, The Verger, Speedy Gonzales, Twice Daily, The Shepton Mallet Matador, A Drinking Man's Life, I'm The Captain Of A Dredger, Cheddar Cheese, Gotta Have Tenderness and The Market Gardener.

The only sad note is that Wurzelmania! founder Paul Gunningham isn't alive to see it. Paul, who died after a road traffic accident in 2007, set up the Wurzelmania! website with the words: "We won't be happy until all of The Wurzels' and Adge Cutler's back catalogue has been reissued on CD, and The Wurzels have been returned to their rightful place at the top of the charts!". Obviously the latter remains unlikely if the albums are only sold through eBay (who are not known as a contributor to the album charts!), but I think Paul would be most pleased to see all Adge's work now out there for everyone to listen to.

Adge would probably be quite pleased too!

 to top of this page

The Wurzels Team Up With Justin Lee Collins To Win World Cup!

I have seen official rumours (whatever that means) in the local press that The Wurzels will be teaming up with Bristolian comic (and huge Wurzels fan) Justin Lee Collins to re-record Combine Harvester to help England's attempts at winning the World Cup in South Africa next year.

Just how official - and true - these rumours are remains to be seen; as does the the morale boosting affect of this West Country supergroup on the performance of 'our lads' out in South Africa - especially given that the England players do seem to be more into urban rap music than rural Scrumpy & Western classics. Still, it will be worth it to see whether proud Scotsman Tommy Banner can bring himself to wear an England scarf in the video!

 to top of this page

Radio 2 DJs Back Cutler International Airport Campaign!

Radio DJs Mark Radcliffe and Stuart Maconie have joined the campaign to rename Bristol Airport Adge Cutler International Airport.

 to top of this page

Campaign Started to Rename Bristol Airport Adge Cutler International Airport!

He was the voice of the West Country, cruelly cut off in his prime, but now there are growing calls for Bristol Airport to be renamed... Adge Cutler International Airport!

Liverpool has John Lennon, Sheffield has Robin Hood and Belfast has George Best. Even holidaymakers travelling to Malaga in southern Spain land at Pablo Picasso Airport. So, with the kind of tongue-in-cheek humour the founder of The Wurzels was so fond of, bosses at a firm based at Bristol International have started an internet-based campaign to get the airport renamed in his honour.

The numbers joining a Facebook group is mushrooming daily – by 20 per cent in the past three days alone – as Wurzels fans sign up to persuade the airport to mark its expansion with a name change. It would, said organiser Phil Brockwell, be exactly the kind of Bristol- and Somerset-humoured way to respond to the ever-expanding list of pretentious airport names.

Earlier this month, the decision by the authorities in Oxford to rename the city's airport London Oxford was met with widespread derision, although it was another airport name change that sparked Mr Brockwell's campaign. He said: "I heard that what used to be Lydd Airfield was now called London Ashford International, which is just ridiculous, as it is miles from London. So the conversation turned to all those places that have named their airports after their famous sons, and we were regretting that Bristol Airport isn't called Lulsgate Bottom anymore. It came from thinking of who would best represent Bristol and Somerset, typify this area and have the airport named after them."

Phil runs a private jet hire firm from the Lulsgate site, and believes Adge Cutler International would be a great name for the West's biggest airport. "You think who else it could be, and you think perhaps of Cary Grant, but he made his name away from Bristol," added Phil. "Adge is Somerset's answer to Jimmy Dean, a legend cut off in his prime. It would be brilliant – most people from the rest of the country have no idea who Adge is, and just imagine American tourists in the centre of Bristol asking for directions to Adge Cutler International. We had a new girl here and she was absolute Estuary English, and she'd never heard of Adge Cutler. We got all the music for her to listen to, and then she knew. A lot of the rest of our staff are from Clevedon and this area, and he's close to our hearts. It started as a joke between friends and it's just a bit of fun, but other airports take it all so seriously, so it would send a message to the rest of the country, and typify the sense of humour we're famous for."

Join the Facebook campaign now!

from ThisIsBristol.co.uk

Also see the articles in The Times, Metro.co.uk, Nailsea People,

 to top of this page

The Wurzels to revel in village event

The Wurzels will be performing in Box later this month as part of the village's annual Revels weekend. The Somerset group, famous for hits such as Combine Harvester and Drink Up Thy Zider, will be headlining a concert on the Recreation Ground between noon and 5pm. There will also be stalls and other entertainment on the day.

The weekend will begin with an evening of entertainment at the Bear pub on the Friday night, followed on the Saturday night, May 23, with a banquet in the Selwyn Hall, for which tickets are being sold in the post office. On the Sunday afternoon, there will be a gig on Monday, May 25 featuring Sgt Pepper's One and Only Dart-board Band at the Queen's Head pub. A barbecue will be held at the Quarryman's pub on Monday evening. Money raised goes to village good causes.

 to top of this page

Wurzels Flying High at South West Birdman 2009 (posted 19th Feb 2009)

The Wurzels will be the headlining act at South West Birdman 2009 in Ilfracombe this August - although they may be overshadowed by the 'would-be aviators' flinging themselves off the end of the pier!

On Sunday 2nd August 2009 Ilfracombe Pier will host the annual South West Birdman competition which involves lots of crazy people or so called 'would-be aviators' flinging themselves over the pier to see who can 'fly' the furthest or at least plummet hilariously into the waiting sea. South West Birdman 2009 - the biggest and best Birdman event in the UK for 2009 - is not just about people flying from the pier. Organised by Ilfracombe Round Table, it should also raises thousands of pounds for local and national causes; and this year they have booked The Wurzels to help swell the crowds and swell the coffers!

South West Birdman 2009 is an all-day event - starting at 11am and running through to 8pm; at this moment we have no details as to when The Wurzels will be playing, but my guess would be towards the end of the day. But don't arrive late - this is an all-day event you won't want to miss!

As well as The Wurzels and the wannabe aviators, there will also be a Strongman Competition (to be confirmed), and other bands playing on the Truck Stop Stage, as well as fairground attractions, stalls and refreshments to ensure that you have a fun-packed and unique day out in a stunning setting.

To view more details about Birdman 2009, why not visit the event's Myspace page - and sign up as one of their Friends. And if you are mad enough to want to have ago at flying - entry packs will be available to download from the Ilfracombe Round Table website shortly. Anyone planning to jump (sorry, fly) dressed as a Wurzel will get a special mention on this website! (Proof required - we want to see the pictures!). The event organisers are also looking for sponsors and volunteers; so get in touch with Ilfracombe Round Table directly if you can help.

South West Birdman 2009 takes place on Sunday 2nd August 2009 at Ilfracombe Pier in North Devon. Ticketing prices and links will be added as soon as we have them.

 to top of this page

Wurzels To Headline Green Man Festival (posted 11th Feb 2009)

The Wurzels together with Irish folk punksters The Popes have been confirmed as headliners for the Green Man Festival in rural Clun in Shropshire.

The Clun Green Man Festival is a traditional springtime festival, held on the first May bank holiday weekend of the year. The Festival takes place in the picturesque town of Clun in South Shropshire. The programme is full of live music, drama, colour and medieval malarkey and is fun for all the family.

The Popes headline the Saturday (2nd) evening's entertainment, with The Wurzels plus local cajun favourites The Whiskey River Boys providing the support on the evening of the Sunday (3rd) with the show starts at 7.30pm. Tickets are on sale now through online ticketing company Skiddle.

 to top of this page

Win Wurzels Tickets! (posted 5 Feb 2009; updated 10th Feb 2009)

The Wurzelmania! website teamed up with Midnight Mango to offer readers a chance to win a pair of tickets for a Love A Wurzel On The Valentine's show of their choice.

We were given four pairs of tickets to win, courtesy of those nice guys at Midnight Mango - one pair for each of The Wurzels shows at Exeter (Wed 11th), Bridgwater (Thur 12th), Frome (Fri 13th) and Plymouth (Sat 14th). But we are not going to make it easy for you - prizes mean competitions, so we need to test your Wurzelknowledge to ensure that we are sending true Wurzels fans off to the gigs!

We devised a fiendishly complex competition in which you need to guess the title of the Wurzel songs from the initials. So, for example: DUTC would be Drink Up Thy Cider. Easy! Here are the questions and the answers:

1. WTCMCTSD - When the Common Market comes to Stanton Drew
2. MOTM - Moonlight on the Malago
3. TGWTCBH - Thee's got'n where thee cassn't back'n, hassn't?
4. ASB - Aloha Severn beach
5. CC - Cheddar cheese
6. SBAP - Somerset born and proud
7. IAACD - I am a cider drinker
8. GME - Give me England
9. INGASH - I'll never get a scrumpy here
10. DLBIA - Don't look back in anger

We had four winners: Chris Wilshire (Frome tickets tickets), Edd Rendell (Bridgwater tickets), Steven Todd (Exeter tickets), and Chris Ingham (Plymouth tickets). Hope you all enjoyed the shows - and maybe you can send us a review of the gig!

Many thanks to everyone else who entered the competition. That was fun! As soon as I can get hold of some suitable prizes, we'll have another competition...

 to top of this page