Nic Potter Death, Obituary – I got to know him a little while (co-)writing the Van der Graaf Generator book and afterward, and he was a really cool dude. He played bass for VdGG in 1969 and 1970 and again in 1977 and 1978 (during the band’s dissolution), and he also frequently performed and recorded with Peter Hammill over the years. In 1972, he played bass on Chuck Berry’s landmark London Sessions record. Early in the ’70s, he collaborated with Jeff Beck as the two tried to form a band. He collaborated with the likes of the Beach Boys, Rare Bird, and Free’s iconic (and tragic) Paul Kossoff. A few stories about Chuck Berry’s CD were relayed to me by Nic.
Nic told me that he was the one who assembled the group that played on Chuck’s London ’72 album. Dave Kafinetti played the keys, and some people from Average White Band (who were pals with VdGG, mainly David Jackson and Nic) were in it (who was in Rare Bird at the time, and would later go on to play Viv Savage, the keyboardist in “This Is Spinal Tap”). Until now, Nic had no idea that their concert with Chuck had been recorded and released as an album. He was at his girlfriend’s house one night in the early 1970s, and he told me a hilarious story about what happened. When she went to get a drink, Nic began browsing her record collection (as one does…) and found the Chuck Berry album.
Oh, that’s cool, he thought to himself. He flipped it over and read the liner notes, where he discovered his own inclusion on the record. To say one was caught off guard would be an understatement. that has stuck with me to this day. album by Chuck Berry. Nic told me that he was the one who assembled the group that played on Chuck’s London ’72 album. Dave Kafinetti played the keys, and some people from Average White Band (who were pals with VdGG, mainly David Jackson and Nic) were in it (who was in Rare Bird at the time, and would later go on to play Viv Savage, the keyboardist in “This Is Spinal Tap”). Until now, Nic had no idea that their concert with Chuck had been recorded and released as an album.
He was at his girlfriend’s house one night in the early 1970s, and he told me a hilarious story about what happened. When she went to get a drink, Nic began browsing her record collection (as one does…) and found the Chuck Berry album. Oh, that’s cool, he thought to himself. He flipped it over and read the liner notes, where he discovered his own inclusion on the record. To say one was caught off guard would be an understatement.