HI Kevan, please allow me to introduce myself. My name is Tony Wood, I am the younger brother of Tink, Martin Wood. I read your article on the Prices Grammar “Folk” concerts which is a lovely piece. I found it when I was searching for information on Dave Cummins.

I wanted to take you up on your invitation at the end of your article to add any additional material people may have. I have some recollections about his musical career and various people and events that you may be interested in. Here goes…

Tink and I were only 18 months apart in age, so it was natural that I would sometimes tag along with him, which I did as much as possible.

We come from a musical and artistic family. It seems everyone either plays an instrument or puts paint on canvas, some do both. He had been exposed to Elvis, Cliff Richard and the Shadows etc., through our uncle’s records, which we used to play on his record player when we visited our grandmother. Rod is only 5 years older than us, so he was and is more like a brother than an uncle.

I remember Martin wrote away for and received a membership to the Everly Brothers fan club, he received autographed photos of Phil and Don. Also, Connie Francis.

For Martin it all started in earnest when he was 11 years old in 1962. He was asked by our parents what he wanted for his birthday and he said he wanted a guitar and chord book. I remember the outing to North End Road in Portsmouth to a second-hand shop where he picked out a nylon stringed Spanish style guitar. The brand escapes me, but our father paid 4 pounds for it. He also acquired a chord book written by Bert Weedon. He would lock himself away in our bedroom every night after school and religiously practice & memorise the chords. He started to learn how to play and sing practising the song “Sunny” by Bobby Hebb.

Later, but not much later, he started to form bands with lads in the village (Swanmore). They performed mainly covers like “Here comes the Night”, “Louie Louie”, “Tobacco Road” and of course the ubiquitous “House of the Rising Sun”.

As you wrote, Tink had formed a band with Martin Gateshill, they practised at Martin’s place at Waltham Chase. That was 1965/6 from memory. Tink asked me if I wanted to come one day as they needed someone with a high voice specifically for “Money Can’t Buy Me love”, The Beatles. As my voice hadn’t broken at that stage I could get to the higher register. I spent an afternoon singing with them, Martin Gateshill was indeed on the drums, I can’t remember any of the other band members. My microphone, was a tape recorder microphone suspending from a budgie cage frame? The amplifiers I think were fashioned from sundry electronic gear. No matter, it produced the required volume. They didn’t ask me back again so my singing must have been pretty terrible.

In 1968 we emigrated to New Zealand. Tink formed one band and played at dances in the town. I think this was when he developed his love of the bass guitar as he assumed bass duties in this and his subsequent band the “Unknown Blues”. They were a very professional outfit playing gigs all over the South Island, they also gained a recording contract and put out several EP’s. NZ in those days was a land of covers, there was not much original music being written or performed. Tink knew some of the people connected to what later became Split Enz and then Crowded House, I believe. To the end of his days he revered Neil Finn as his favourite singer/songwriter.

At the end of 1969 he, and we departed NZ for home.

Some additional memories I have of the time your writing covers. I remember the hall at Funtley. I also remember a concert/review that Red Shift put on at a hall in Fareham, which was quite well attended and the top billing was Aubrey Small, who performed Suite: Judy Blue Eyes, they played an acoustic set no bass or drums just four guitars, it was mightily impressive. I also remember another concert they put on at Fareham Technical college, which was music and sketches. Martin Head recited a piece of Middle Ages poetry with middle or old English pronunciation.

I was not what one might call a central or core, member of the group, but my brother allowed me to tag along. I knew Chris Bard and Dave Cummins, Jane Suter, Ron Suter, John and Shona Cameron of course, Nick Manley, Bob Askew, Pete Russell, Kate Burleigh, Jamie Burleigh, Andy Vores and Nick Kahn. We used to drink at the Golden Lion, a couple of times a week. Friday’s the group would meet after work at The Bugle in West Street. I loved those Friday nights. People would drift in over several hours and we’d be there till chucking out time. Saturday was then band rehearsal. And I loved all of it.

It is so lovely to see all of the people still playing, writing and performing, it warms my heart.

In later years, Tink had a tough time. He lived in Salisbury from 2000 until his death in 2013. He had a group of good friends in Salisbury and he and his partner staged an annual barbecue in their back yard, which was apparently a sought-after event, and would often take his Gibson acoustic and perform folk songs in his local pub including a rousing rendition of ‘Whisky in the Jar’ replete with Irish accent.

Martin & Jane’s daughter now lives in New Zealand and she has, in her lounge, two guitar stands on which are proudly displayed a 1960s Fender Stratocaster and a Fender Jazz Bass.

She will not allow anyone to touch them.

I hope this finds you well, and thank you for your writing on this-it is really important.

Sincerely,

Tony Wood

Sydney,

19/1/2026