Jeff Kent (author)

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Jeff Kent
International Relations, 1973
Alma materUniversity of London, 1970–1973
SubjectPort Vale F.C., Rock music, Eric Burdon, double sunsets, regionalist and Green politics, the environment and education
Notable worksThe Valiants' Years: The Story of Port Vale
The Last Poet: The Story of Eric Burdon
The Mysterious Double Sunset
The Rise and Fall of Rock
Principles of Open Learning
Only One World (CD)
RelativesHarry Poole (cousin)

Jeffrey John William Kent (born 28 July 1951) is an English academic, musician,[1] activist, and historian.

Early life and education

Kent was born on 28 July 1951 in Hartshill, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and was educated at Hanley High School in Stoke-on-Trent. He gained an honours degree in international relations from the University of London in 1973 and a postgraduate certificate of education from Crewe College of Higher Education in 1974.[2][unreliable source?]

Career

Teaching

Kent taught history and

Stoke on Trent College and later in history, geography and international perspectives.[2][unreliable source?] From 1994 to 2010, he lectured in writing & publishing.[3][4]

Writings

Kent became a freelance author in 1972[5] and wrote record reviews for Hard Graft magazine.[6][7] In 1983, he published his first book, The Rise And Fall of Rock, a critical rock music history. It covered over 1,800 artists and 3,000 records.[8] In 1987, he published Principles of Open Learning, an examination of a radical, flexible and student-centred method of education.[9] In 1989, he published a biography of Eric Burdon, the lead singer of The Animals, entitled The Last Poet: The Story Of Eric Burdon, using material from extensive interviews with Burdon.[10][11]

In 1989, Kent published the first of seven books on

Stoke City.[24][25]

Also in 2001, Kent published The Mysterious

The Cloud, 6.5 miles (10.5 km) to the northwest.[26][27]

In 2011 he published his seventh book on Port Vale, entitled, What If There Had Been No Port in the Vale?: Startling Port Vale Stories.[28]

In 2013, Kent published Staffordshire's 1,000-Foot Peaks, a guide to the 65 hills of the county which reached that height.[29][30][31] In 2014, he published Peak Pictures, a book of southern Pennine landscapes.[32][33] In 2015, Kent published Cheshire's 1,000-Foot Peaks, a guide to the 46 hills of the county reaching that height.[34][35]

Publishing

Kent founded his own publishing house, Witan Books, in 1980.[36] The Small Press Yearbook 1993 described Witan Books as 'a vehicle for the promotion of the works of Jeff Kent'.[37]

Music

In the late 1970s, Kent was a pioneer of environmentally orientated music and released an animal rights protest single, Butcher's Tale,[38][39][40] with his five-piece band The Witan,[41] on Witan Records[42] in 1981. They released a two-part environmental concept album, Tales from the Land of the Afterglow, in 1984.[43] Kent then performed benefit concerts for several environmental and humanitarian organisations.[44] In 1992, he released his first solo work, Port Vale Forever, believed to be the first-ever football club album.[45][46] In 2000, he released his ecological concept album Only One World.[47][48][49] His musical style has most frequently been described[by whom?] as folk-rock, in a similar vein to Strawbs.[50] From 2008 to 2013, Kent played percussion in the Glorishears of Brummagem morris dance band and claimed to have invented a new technique of playing the drum tambourine.[51] In 2013, Kent co-founded Mercia Morris, in which he played various pieces of percussion strapped to his body, and he became the side's music co-ordinator.[52] Some of his instrumental music was used to create the soundtrack of the film Pictures From The Potteries, released in 2014.[53][54][unreliable source?]

Films

Kent was historical adviser to a video documenting the origins and story story of Port Vale. Entitled Up The Vale!, it was released in 1998.[55][56] He was also historical adviser to Port Vale Football Club Millennium Documentary, released in 2000.[57][58] In 2014, he created Pictures From The Potteries, a film of cine film hioghlights, shot by his father around Stoke-on-Trent from 1962 to 1988. It was premiered at Stoke Film Theatre on 19 November 2014 and released on DVD the same year.[53][59][unreliable source?]

Campaigns

Kent first began to campaign on an environmental and humanitarian platform in 1977 through his song lyrics.

Ecology Party and became a co-founder of the North Staffs Ecology Party that same year.[61][62] In May 1984, he stood as the Ecology Party candidate for the Odd Rode ward in the Congleton Borough Council elections and polled 10.71% of the vote.[63] Afterwards, he founded the South Cheshire Ecology Party.[64] The following year, he joined the Ecology Party Education Working Group[65] and was a contributor to its book, Routes to Change: A Collection of Essays for Green Education, published in 1988.[66] The following year, he left the party (which by then had been renamed the Green Party
).

In 1992, he joined the Movement For Middle England,[67][68] which aimed 'To work for the full autonomy of Middle England [the greater Midlands] within a devolved England.'[69] Convinced it could not achieve its objective, he left in 1993 and co-founded the Mercia Movement.[70][71] Its objective was 'To re-create a legal autonomous Mercia as an organic democracy...' In 1997, he wrote and published The Mercia Manifesto: A blueprint for the future inspired by the past.[72] He also released an ecological concept album, Only One World, in 2000.[73]

In 2001, the Mercia Movement published A Draft Constitution For Mercia, mainly written by Kent. It aimed to put it before a regional constitutional convention.[74] The Mercian Constitutional Convention[75][76] was formed in Birmingham on 17 March 2001[77] with Kent elected convener.[78] The convention finally published The Constitution of Mercia, claiming to be 'the ultimate legal authority in Mercia'.[79] On 29 May 2003, Kent and two other members of the convention declared the legal independence of Mercia, in Victoria Square, Birmingham.[80][81] The convention renamed itself the Acting Witan of Mercia.[70][82]

Other activities

Kent served as the chairman of the Port Vale Supporters' Group from January 1992 to July 1994[83] and was co-ordinator of the Save the Vale campaign and Vale Supporter Links[84] in 2003.

In 2012, Kent claimed to be the first person to climb all 65 of Staffordshire's 1,000-foot peaks.[85] In 2014, he climbed all 46 of Cheshire's 1,000-foot peaks,[86] In 2015 and 2016, he ascended all 197 of Shropshire's 1,000-foot peaks.[87]

Discography

Singles:

  • Butcher's Tale/Annie, with the Dancing Eyes – Jeff Kent & The Witan (WTN 001, 1981).

Albums:

  • Tales from the Land of the Afterglow, Part 1 – Jeff Kent & The Witan (WTN 003, 1984)..
  • Tales from the Land of the Afterglow, Part 2 – Jeff Kent & The Witan (WTN 004, 1984).
  • Port Vale Forever – Jeff Kent (WTN 024, 1992).
  • Only One World – Jeff Kent (WTN 030, 2000).

Selected publications

Self-published:

Co-author:

References

  1. ISBN 1857432509
    . Retrieved 22 July 2022.
  2. ^
    ISBN 9781903986264
    .
  3. ^ The Sentinel, 21. 5. 2007, page 20.
  4. ^ The Sentinel, 2. 9. 2006, page 17.
  5. ISBN 9781857435283
    .
  6. ^ Hard Graft, July 1976, no. 4, page 12.
  7. ^ Hard Graft, November–December 1976, page 12.
  8. ^ New Musical Express, 21. 1. 1984, page 38.
  9. ^ Education Now, Issue 1, May/June 1988, pages 10–12.
  10. ^ Northern Life, Tyne Tees TV, 26. 5. 1989.
  11. ^ On The Beat, Radio Merseyside, 10. 6. 1989.
  12. ^ Sentinel Sports final, 2. 9. 1989, page 9.
  13. ISBN 0-9508981-3-9
    .
  14. ^ Herald & Post, 13. 12. 1990, page 27.
  15. ^ The Independent, 19. 12. 1990, page 30.
  16. ^ Sentinel Sports final, 14. 12. 1991, page 6.
  17. ^ The Independent, 4. 1. 1992, page 42.
  18. ^ Midlands Today, BBC TV, 18. 12. 1992.
  19. ^ Congleton Guardian, 21. 1. 1993, page 4.
  20. ^ The Independent II (Sport), 17. 12. 1993, page 34.
  21. ^ Football Monthly, February 1994, page 37.
  22. ISBN 0-9508981-9-8
    , back cover blurb.
  23. ^ The Green 'Un, 19. 10. 1996, page 11.
  24. ^ The Oatcake, Issue no. 205, 12. 12. 1998.
  25. ^ Winger: The Review of British Football, Issue 44, February 1999, page 23.
  26. ^ Express & Star, 6. 12. 2001, page 26.
  27. ^ Granada TV, 22. 12. 2001.
  28. ^ Staffordshire Newsletter, 15. 12. 2011, page 46.
  29. ^ Staffordshire Newsletter, 5. 12. 2013, page 19.
  30. ^ Step Out, April 2014, pages 15–16.
  31. ^ Tamworth Herald, 8. 5. 2014, page 39.
  32. ^ The Sentinel, 20. 11. 2014, page 28.
  33. ISBN 978-0-9927505-1-0
    , back cover blurb.
  34. ^ "A man in high places". Stonegazette.co.uk. 9 October 2015. Archived from the original on 25 February 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  35. ^ "Exploring the Cheshire Highlands". Ramblereastcheshire.org. Retrieved 31 July 2020.
  36. ISBN 9780230573239
    . Retrieved 22 July 2022.
  37. ISBN 0-9513630-6-9
    , page 272.
  38. ^ Torch, No. 25, March 1982, page 15.
  39. ^ New Musical Express, 16. 10. 1982, page 7.
  40. ^ Green Line, No. 7, November 1982, page 20.
  41. ^ Global Tapestry Journal, Issue 20, Autumn 1989, page 53.
  42. ^ Torch, No. 25, March 1982, page 7.
  43. ^ Brum Beat, 1984, p. 9
  44. ^ Global tapestry Journal, Issue 17, Winter 1985-6, p. 24
  45. ^ The Independent, 27. 2. 1993, page 50.
  46. ^ Football Monthly;, Vol. 19. No. 3, March 1993, page 37.
  47. ^ Staffordshire Newsletter, 23. 11. 2000, page 74.
  48. ^ The Independent, 16. 12. 2000, page 25.
  49. ISBN 978-1-85743-514-6
    .
  50. ^ Torch magazine, 1982.
  51. ^ Staffordshire Newsletter, 15. 12. 2011.
  52. ^ The Sentinel, 5. 9. 2013, page 12
  53. ^ a b Staffordshire Newsletter, 27. 11. 2014, page 14.
  54. ^ Pictures From The Potteries, Witan Films, 2014, WTN 083, back cover blurb and end credits.
  55. ^ The Sentinel, 6. 1. 1999, page 62.
  56. ^ Up The Vale! video, Action sports International, 1998, no. 5-035953-004725.
  57. ^ The Sentinel, 10. 12. 1999, page 11.
  58. ^ Port Vale Millennium DocumentaryCavsport, video.
  59. ^ Pictures From The Potteries, Witan Films, 2014, WTN 083, back cover blurb.
  60. ^ Tales from the Land of the Afterglow, Parts 1 & 2, WTN 003 & WTN 004, 1984.
  61. ^ Evening Sentinel, 11. 7. 1984, page 9.
  62. ^ North Staffs Ecology Party minutes, 1980.
  63. ^ Evening Sentinel, 4. 5. 1984, page 11.
  64. ^ Evening Sentinel, 12 May 1984, page 4.
  65. ^ Ecology Party Education Working Group minutes, 1985.
  66. ISBN 0-9514065-0-7
    , pages iv and 25–28.
  67. ^ Movement For Middle England minutes, 1992.
  68. ^ West Mercia Network (MFME), inaugural meeting minutes, 22. 11. 1992.
  69. ^ Movement For Middle England Constitution.
  70. ^ a b Is it time to get Anglo-Saxon about England's local government?, BBC News, 26. 4. 2012.
  71. ^ Wessex Wyvern, No. 2, November 1999, pages 2–3.
  72. ISBN 0-9529152-1-9
  73. ^ Only One World, WTN 030, 2000.
  74. ISBN 0-9529152-4-3
  75. ^ Northampton Chronicle & Echo, 20. 2. 2001, page 5.
  76. ^ Wirral News, 28. 2. 2001, page 11.
  77. ISBN 0-9529152-6-X
    , page 3.
  78. ^ The Mercian Constitutional Convention minutes.
  79. ISBN 0-9529152-6-X
    .
  80. ^ Central News, Central TV, 29. 5. 2003.
  81. ^ Midlands Today, BBC TV, 29. 5. 2003.
  82. ^ Northampton Herald & Post, 25. 5. 2006, page 14.
  83. ^ Sentinel Sports final, 5. 9. 1992, page 7.
  84. ^ The Sentinel, 21. 8. 2003, page 52.
  85. ^ The Stone & Eccleshall Gazette, March 2013, page 45.
  86. ^ The Sentinel, 22. 12. 2014, page 28
  87. ^ Shropshire Star, 28. 12. 2016, page 4
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