Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/The Balham Alligators (3rd nomination)


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review).  No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was   Withdrawn Ten Pound Hammer, his otters and a clue-bat • (Otters want attention) 14:12, 15 July 2011 (UTC)

The Balham Alligators
AfDs for this article: 
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Still not notable; two releases on Proper Records but absolute lack of sources — yet more proof that the "may" in WP:BAND's criteria doesn't mean "will automatically". Even if you meet a criterion of WP:BAND, failing to meet WP:GNG should and MUST be more important. Otherwise, even the guy who got to #100 once and was never heard from again will have an article even though Whitburn doesn't know if said guy is still alive.

Last AFD closed as no consensus due to lack of turnout. Still finding absolutely no sources. Delete or merge to Geraint Watkins. Ten Pound Hammer, his otters and a clue-bat • (Otters want attention) 20:29, 14 July 2011 (UTC)


 * Again I say Merge with Geraint Watkins. This band seems to be mainly him with an assortment of other musicians. Why not just merge anything of note into the Geraint Watkins article? That would preserve a reference of the band in Wikipedia without giving then undue importance. Secondarywaltz (talk) 20:50, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Keep - This is how music pages should be done, in my opinion, with the albums included on the page of the band in question rather than free-standing. I'm really puzzled why this band has come up three times, as we have seen in a previous deletion challenge, Geraint Watkins is a major figure in the world of rockabilly. The band has been widely reviewed, which seems to be the metric by which pages are kept or deleted for music groups. Unfortunately, there is no organized fanbase for the musical form at WP, the way that country music or punk has its defenders. Still: do the right thing, this is not a merge situation, much less a straight delete. Nicely done page of a notable band. Carrite (talk) 22:18, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Here's evidence of SUBSTANTIAL COVERAGE IN THE VIRGIN ENCYCLOPEDIA OF COUNTRY MUSIC (paywalled). Carrite (talk) 22:25, 14 July 2011 (UTC) last edit: Carrite (talk) 22:27, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Mention in the book The Cajuns: Americanization of a People. Carrite (talk) 22:27, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Coverage of their new release in Keyboard Magazine. Carrite (talk) 22:29, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Living Blues calls the Balham Alligators "a Cajun and zydeco band.'' Carrite (talk) 22:31, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * The anthology Crossfade includes the Balham Alligators in the alt.country movement. Carrite (talk) 22:33, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Punch was reviewing them back in 1985. Carrite (talk) 22:34, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * The NYC scene site Citywinery.com puts the Balham Alligators into context with Geraint Watkins' career. Carrite (talk) 22:39, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Another name-drop, this from Oldies.com. Carrite (talk) 22:41, 14 July 2011 (UTC)


 * Comment - Bear in mind that this is a 1980s English band, that is, a pre-internet institution. Rest assured that if you start digging through Hounsome or the Trouser Press guide or such fare, there's more non-netty stuff out there. Let's just close this as an obvious keep and move along. Carrite (talk) 22:43, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * OK then. Why have you let the article languish unreferenced if you think the band is notable and you can prove it? Where have you been? Go ahead - save the Alligators. I can support that. Secondarywaltz (talk) 23:06, 14 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Agreed. If you're gonna spam sources, add the damn things yourself. Every day I see an AFD where someone says "keep because of sources X Y and Z", everyone piles on the "keep"s and yet the article doesn't change an iota for 4 years. Are you gonna add the things or what?! Ten Pound Hammer, his otters and a clue-bat • (Otters want attention) 02:34, 15 July 2011 (UTC)


 * Keep. This doesn't fail WP:GNG - as stated here the band has an entry in The Encyclopedia of Music and books derived from it, and Google Books also shows coverage from Living Blues. They released 5 albums, at least 4 of which were on important enough labels. The band contained at least two individually notable musicians. --Michig (talk) 06:04, 15 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Comment. This is the last AFD by the way (it was bundled with the Geraint Watkins AFD), and it was closed as Keep just over 2 weeks ago. That means TPH has brought this to AFD three times in about 6 weeks. Time to give it up I think.--Michig (talk) 06:16, 15 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Maybe if the people digging up the sources would actually ADD THEM TO THE ARTICLE instead of passing the buck all the time. Ten Pound Hammer, his otters and a clue-bat • (Otters want attention) 06:50, 15 July 2011 (UTC)
 * Passing the buck to whom? Please just walk away from this and do something more constructive. You need to stop shouting in AFDs, and that big image wasn't helpful. When I get hold of a copy of The Virgin Encyclopedia of Country Music and can see the whole entry, I'll add it as a source. Doing it before then is obviously not going to be possible.--Michig (talk) 11:25, 15 July 2011 (UTC)
 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.