Letter: Does Anyone Recall Local Prog Rock Band Vandella?

Published on: 12 Oct, 2024
Updated on: 13 Oct, 2024

From Andy Harris

I’m trying to find members of a group called Vandella, who were playing in the 1980s and possibly came from Guildford.

When I first came across them I believe they were called Lancer, but later changed their name to Vandella.

My band and I used to share the rehearsal facilities of South Hill Park in Bracknell.

We used to stop what we were doing and go in and listen to what they were doing. Their music was excellent – original but very much in the style of bands like Camel, Yes and early Genesis.

When I first saw them they had two drummers. They were very friendly.

I remember it was someone called ‘Bloss’ on guitar, possibly Clive on bass guitar. I remember he had a Rickenbacker bass guitar which he said had a warped neck.

They later added Steve on Hammond organ. Clive used to have an Acoustic (brand name) amplifier.

Imagine my delight when they later played a support set to Humble Pie at our local Bracknell Sports Centre. Our band were the only ones in the audience who were familiar with their songs!

I’d like to track down any of the band or anyone who knew them as I believe they came from Guildford.

I later met ‘Bloss’ in Andertons music shop. When I asked him how the band were, he told me that he’d given up, as at the age of 26 he felt he’d given music a fair shot! They were all excellent musicians.

They were a great band, and I’d love to know how the various members got on. I can still remember some of their tunes.

I am now 68 and have only just stopped playing.

If you’re able to help, I can be reached on AndyFHarris@aol.com

Dragon writer David Rose replies:

Vandella are mentioned on the Facebook page “Soundscene Does Facebook”, where the admin person David Shepherd compiles a huge amount of information about bands from the past who played in the area around, Woking, Guildford, Godalming, Farnborough, Aldershot, Camberley, etc.

In 2023 the subject of Vandella cropped up.

Here is a screenshot of part of the chat about Vandella on the said Facebook page.

Some of the replies about the band Vandella on the the Facebook page “Soundscene Does Facebook”.

This is a link to that page you might get to open up if you are a Facebook user: https://www.facebook.com/groups/14411506475/search/?q=vandella

Evidently band member Don Cherry has a Facebook page that includes photos of the band, but if you search Facebook for “Don Cherry”, loads of names come up – it would take a while to go through them all, but might be worth it!