Switzerland, by train [of course], seemed like a good idea
for our first foreign holiday together, in August 1970. We ended up at Montreux,
where the railway ran between the lake and the youth hostel. The line, on the
trans-Alpine Simplon route between Geneva and Milan, was exceptionally busy at
all times of the day. Swiss Federal Railways had committed to electric traction
early on. Some of their locomotives looked positively ancient, even by 1970, but
they were obviously still making a useful contribution.
We took an evening stroll, and were lured to the Montreux
Casino by the sound of live music. We asked who was performing and were told it
was Cactus. Cactus was a band featuring Carmine Appice and Tim Bogert, both formerly
with Vanilla Fudge, an American outfit and one of our favourite progressive
[and supposedly psychedelic] groups. They specialised in slowing down, and
then incorporating a heavier rock presence to some well-known tunes of the day that had
been issued by other artists. It was a unique style and we really liked it. We still
have their first five LPs gathering dust under the stairs.
Vanilla Fudge had disbanded and Cactus was the reincarnation.
We couldn’t get in to the Montreux venue, but we hung around outside for a time
and listened, as the music drifted out over Lake Geneva on a lovely summer’s
evening. Apparently, The Doors had also been booked for that night but they had
cancelled.
It transpired that Cactus were merely the warm-up act for
Black Sabbath. I had thought for decades that it was the trains that kept me
awake that night but now I’m not so sure, with all that racket still to come
while we were tucked up in our compulsory sheet sleeping bags in our respective
dormitories. It’s amazing that we got reservations at the youth hostel at all
for that day, come to think of it. Maybe Black Sabbath fans and youth hostels
just didn’t go together.
Montreux station, 31/8/70.
Swiss Federal Railways electric locomotive No. 10265 at Montreux
station, 31/8/70.
A Swiss Federal Railways electric locomotive leaving Interlaken,
31/8/70.
Railcar No. 65 at Chamonix station, 3/9/70.
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