PTJan/Feb 2010 p66-67 R and B Review YC PJ MB 21/1/10 17:44 Page 3
Reading The knowledge
A player on the brink
Tom House relishes a tale of polo and passion that
takes in Ham, Eldorado and Lagos, as well as Prince
Charles, Arthur Douglas Nugent and Bryan Morrison
ellraiser contains all the rock- and political activist who fell very much foul
H
and-roll chestnuts one would of the government. Ginger was on both sides
expect – from sex and drugs busts of the fence and yet neither, part of the
to death – as one of the most establishment and one of the revolutionaries.
influential musicians of the 20th And on more than one occasion his ties at the
century regales us with tales of his madcap polo club saved his bacon.
enterprises. Ginger Baker became a household By 1975 Ginger had returned to the UK and
name as the drummer with Eric Clapton and proceeded to terrorise Ham Polo Club, run as it
Jack Bruce in Cream before introducing a was by Billy Walsh. Always opinionated and
whole new audience to world music from his never afraid of confrontation (there are plenty
beloved Africa, where he also kindled his long- of these), he opposes “Barbarous” popular
term love affair with polo. Argentine underfeeding practices, falls out
From his early days in Lewisham, Ginger with everyone, enjoys a “friendly” rivalry with
Ginger Baker’s autobiography, Hellraiser, is packed
seemed destined for a future in the saddle – other rock legends Bryan Morrison and Kenney
with entertaining anecdotes of his escapades
that of a bicycle – until a careless taxi killed his
dreams of the Tour de France. After he swapped
A liaison with a flame-
the rhythm and fury of the racetrack for that of
haired vet reduces Ginger
up Eldorado Polo Club, he loses a small fortune
the drums, his talent led him to underpin on bringing ponies from Argentina, returns to
stadium-fillers Cream, Blind Faith, Air Force and
to keeping Molatov
the smack, and eventually runs off to Italy to
Hawkwind. His thirst for adventure and the
cocktails handy to keep
wed a friend of his daughter. This comes to a
drums took him to Africa, where in Nigeria he the local Mafioso at bay head and Ginger reasons it best to leave Tuscany
discovered what became his third long-running shortly after a liaison with a
passion (after drumming and heroin): polo. flame- haired vet reduces him to
Ginger describes in his inimitable style how sleeping with Molatov cocktails
he falls in love with the sport (after several on the bedside table and olive
Bacardis) at Lagos Polo Club, where he learned trees blockading the driveway to
the game with Colin Edwards and Arthur keep the local Mafioso at bay.
Douglas-Nugent. The backdrop to this is his Hellraiser is a rock and
heavy involvement with Fela Kuti, a musician rollercoaster. Time and again one
is left exasperated by the
protagonist’s business and
personal decisions that take him
to the brink of ruin. It is an
entertaining and frank memoir,
in many ways an inspiring read,
illuminating one of the original
wild men of rock and roll.
Ginger Baker on the drums in London in 2008, and at Cowdray Park
However, with a little more
riding Pepe. He moved to Cowdray after falling out with Billy Walsh at
probing we might have learned
Ham and played with the likes of Eduardo Moore and Alan Kent
more about his relationship with
Clapton, just how he manages to
Jones, and takes to the “insanity” of hunting, fall from grace so often and also “Getting down
joining the field impromptu in jeans and an to business” with Germaine Greer. Nevertheless,
anorak. However, problems financial and female whenever tragedy befalls our hero, it is not long
continue to plague our hero, in his relentlessly before he is back on his feet and pursuing
understated and sardonic style he concedes: another adventure with enigmatic verve.
“Now that I was living with Sarah, problems
with (my wife) Liz began to mount up.”
PT RATING: ★★★★
Encouragement from Major Ronald Ferguson
and Prince Charles helps him regain his ◗ Hellraiser by Ginger Baker
enthusiasm for the game. He gambles on setting (John Blake 2009, 292 pages, £18.99 in hardback)
www.polotimes.co.uk January/February 2010 67
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