Skegness Magazine

ALONG time ago the Two-T’s Coffee Bar in London saw the debut of many a rock group that reached chart fame. In Skegness the Chatterbox once introduced the Seminoles to the local beat scene and following in their footsteps is another local group—”The Missing Links.”
On Friday evening a somewhat “daring” Dinah arranged a “personal interview” with the boys while they were rehearsing in a loft at 2 Albany Road.  Dinah said “So after climbing an almost vertical ladder and brandishing my brolly “Avenger” style, I found four boys surrounded by wires, instruments, writing on the wall and some rather eerie abstract paintings !”
Boss of the group is Roger Sheath (20), who is nicknamed “Grandad” because of his age. The other members are 16. They are drummer Mick Parker, 34 High Street—his dad is the group’s manager—Noel Robinson, 2 Boston Road. Wainfleet, who looks like a “stone,” and bass guitarist, and lead vocalist, Graham Bonnett. 26 Albany Road. (Graham later dropped the extra ‘t’ from his name.)

Graham was “Discovery Time” winner in 1959 and has been playing his guitar for about eight years.
Missing Links have been together now for three months and after their local debut at the Chatterbox started playing at social clubs within a radius of 20 miles of Skegness. While I was there — after I’d managed to get through their nonsensical conversations !—they bashed out two numbers for me and filled the loft with a really “gear” sound.
With Graham leading them (he’s the only one who can read music) from the song sheet, they launched into the Rolling Stones’ “Walking the Dog.” A great number this, and the boys’ version of it was a real swinger. They followed up with “Juliet.” And this again, with Graham’s slightly husky but very melodious voice, came over extremely well.
As for the boys, Mick and Noel are both at Skegness Grammar School and taught themselves to play their instruments about 18 months ago. They met Roger (or Grandad) in the Chatterbox when he was playing with a Grantham group, the Pioneers. And they all met Graham “carrying a side of beef in Lumley Road !”
Graham is a butcher at Dewhurst’s in Lumley Road, which explains the meeting of the Miss ing Links. Roger poses a problem because he is at a Teachers’ Training College at Grantham and can only return to Skegness at weekends. But from 4th July it will be “Independence Day” for the boys. Roger has a three month vocation in which to play his heart out.

Photo: The Missing Links in the middle of yet another madcap stunt. Left to right they are:  Roger Sleath, Noel Robinson, Mick Parker and Graham Bonnett.

The Chattabox Coffee Bar High Street Skegness

1964