Black Country-born promotions manager shares highs and lows of career in music

From his school and trainspotting days, to his years spent working as a songwriter and promotions manager, Black Country musician Don Evitts has been sharing his life story.

His latest book titled Still Crazy After All These Years is a follow up to last year’s Beyond My Wildest Dreams, which covered the years 1971-1985, and 2020’s From Copper Tops to Mop Tops which covered his early years.

Don, who grew up in Sandwell but now lives with his wife Sue, in Devon, said the new release “covers from the mid-80s to the present day and brings everything up-to-date”.

“It features the highs and lows of working in the music industry, including helping an X-Factor finalist secure a recording contract,” he added.

Don, who ran a music management and production company, worked with Tamworth singer Tracey Cohen, known as Treyc, after seeing her perform on the television singing contest.

“We were channel-hopping one night and the X-Factor came on. I wouldn’t normally watch it but there was this lady, Tracey, with an incredible Motown voice. She went on to sign for an independent label,” he explained.

“Another crazy time in the business was when I produced a song with a session singer. I didn’t even have a singer to front the project, yet two big international record companies wanted to sign the track.It could only happen in the make believe world of the music business.”

The book also covers the time he worked for Royal Mail and ended up in hot water on account of his sense of humour.

“I worked for Royal Mail first on delivery and then as supervisor, I really enjoyed my time here. I would perform elaborate jokes that almost cost me my job on a number of occasions. Some of my crazy stunts have actually gone down in local Royal Mail folklore,” said Don.

He finished working at Royal Mail in 2004 after suffering a heart attack.

“This resulted in me having a triple by-pass operation in 2005, but that didn’t stop me and I continued working.

“People who work within something they really love are extremely lucky. It’s like being paid for a hobby, it happened to me when I worked in the music industry and now another opportunity arose when in 2008 I started gardening, I was able to meet some of my gardening heroes along the way. I went on to help Tamworth Council achieve a medal in the Britain-in-Bloom competition in 2009.

“But music was and still is my greatest passion so when I was asked to help pre-launch one of the oldest studios in the country – Hollick and Taylor in Birmingham – in 2009 I jumped at the chance.

“This was the studio that lots of well known local bands started off their recording careers. It’s also the studio that recorded the original sound effects for Gerry Anderson’s Thunderbirds and Stingray television series. The new name of the studio was CMAT Recording Studios,” he added.

Don retired to Torquay in 2015 and suffered another heart attack.

“That was when I started writing my memoirs, solely for family and friends. But a friend put the book on Facebook and people suddenly wanted to buy a copy. Its even found its way into local libraries in their archive sections due to its historical value. People of all ages love to look back, recall and relate to the good old days.

“I receive a lot of comments from readers of my books telling me how they have inspired them and lifted their spirits through the past few years.

“The books have taken six years to complete and I’ve enjoyed writing them enormously,” he added.

The books are available from donevitts@icloud.com or smethwick.org.uk and are priced at £10 each plus P&P.