When the Lions were truly on song

So it’s July 1977 and the beleaguered Lions, enduring one of the wettest, coldest winters on record in New Zealand and a rough ride against the Kiwis, head for Paihia up in the allegedly subtropical Bay of Islands for a few days much-needed R&R.

Having clawed their way back into the Test series with a 13-9 win at Christchurch in the second Test and fresh from a good win over Auckland they were in good spirits. Endless sleep or two days of golf, whichever you preferred, was in the offing along with copious fine wines and beers .... but of course the rain set in. What to do?

Make an LP of course. With a large – perhaps overlarge – Welsh contingent on tour and plenty of bar-room sing-songs waiting for the rain to stop the Lions were in good voice all tour. Scotsman Gordon Brown, on his third Lions trip in six years, emerged as the choirmaster and musical impresario along with one of the doyens of the Press pack, Mr Fixit himself Terry Godwin.

Brown and Godwin chose the 15-strong song list from the tunes and, remarkably, there wasn’t a single Welsh standard or hymn. There was, however, the distinctly Irish Rose Of Tralee and the Scottish

Flower Of Scotland which was a favourite with the ’74 Lions but not then the Scottish national anthem.

They also chose the wholly inappropriate, or perhaps deeply ironic knowing Godders, Summer Holiday, Island Of Dreams and House Of The Rising Sun although Where Have All The Flowers Gone was possibly more to the point.

Take Me Home Country Roads and The Banks Of

The Ohio may have been written by John Denver but I suggest recent versions back home by Olivia Newton John may have heightened their popularity while there seems a riot

of indecision at the end of side two with I Don’t Want

To Go Home, closely followed by Show Me The

Way To Go Home, it was clearly getting late.

The LP was recorded by EMI New Zealand at the Waitangi Hotel, who placed their ballroom at the Lions disposal for the afternoon, on July 24 and featured five local musicians as the backing band – Dave Fraser on piano, Tui Tamote on lead guitar, Allan Martin on acoustic guitar, bass guitarist Basil