Essex Live — May 1979 Date Reconciliation
Two different May 1979 records now sit beside each other in the research: a contemporary Record Mirror notice for an Essex Live recording concert on 6 May, and the later evidence for the 20 May Chancellor Hall gig involving Modern English, AD3, Anorexia and The Lost. They should not be collapsed into one event.
6 May 1979
The 7 April 1979 issue of Record Mirror reports that Limp Records planned a concert at Chancellor Hall on 6 May to record Essex bands for an LP called Essex Live. It names Deep Throat and The Lepers as already booked.
This is contemporary press evidence for a planned recording event. The archive does not currently have a surviving ticket or full original bill for 6 May.
20 May 1979
The 20 May record is supported by a reproduced original gig advert and by the Essex Archives catalogue for Ian Fortnam's oral history. The catalogue identifies the Essex Live gig and names Modern English and AD3, adding that Anorexia went down better than the other bands.
This is a separate evidence trail and should remain separate from the 6 May recording notice.
Current archive position
| Date | Evidence | Status |
|---|---|---|
| 6 May 1979 | Contemporary Record Mirror notice; planned Essex Live recording concert; Deep Throat and The Lepers named. | Established contemporary notice / research target. Do not merge with 20 May. |
| 20 May 1979 | Reproduced original advert; Essex Archives oral-history catalogue; independent gig listings. | Established event record, with supporting-bill details kept evidence-specific. |
Why this matters
The phrase Essex Live can easily make later researchers assume that every reference points to the same night. The surviving evidence says otherwise: the May 6 notice describes a recording concert, while the May 20 evidence describes a later Chancellor Hall event. Until a primary source connects them, the archive keeps them as two separate research threads.
This also gives us a useful new target: look for a 6 May 1979 ticket, recording photograph, newspaper report or musician memory, especially material involving Deep Throat / The Lepers.
Sources checked
- Record Mirror — 7 April 1979 — contemporary notice for the planned 6 May Essex Live recording concert at Chancellor Hall.
- Chelmsford Rocks — Essex Live oral-history evidence — Ian Fortnam catalogue evidence for the 20 May event.
- Chelmsford Rocks — 20 May 1979 event evidence — advert-backed record for the later May event.