31st July 2010
Hello again. Well this is a little quicker than we had planned but still a pleasure all the same. Hello. When we last spoke we had just finished the recording of a new EP and as I left that late night session Ron told us of a chat he had had with the manager of the Stag, who drinks in Ron's local. He was in a pickle and in danger of not putting a band on Saturday night and asked us if we were free. We were. And besides he really cares about live music and we want to do what we can to help him.
So we confirmed, on Thursday. Bearing in mind the gig was Saturday we expected it to be a quiet sending off type affair - we were wrong.
Anyhoo, we arrived on time - minus Ron who was busy preparing for Slide Boy Roy's Tour de France next week. We had checked his slip and it was approved. So, we setup the whole thing with a drummer sized space at the back - or more accurately about a foot less than a drummer sized space at the back.
Ron turned up after a particularly busy day and we loaded the kit in (well me and Ron did anyway). He's a pro that boy (!) and he had his kit setup and LOUD in 21 minutes flat. Good lad.
We have done this gig many times before so the setup was smooth, the only thing I did different was to put my bass rotor in stereo through the PA - that's right girls, Stereo!! I'm sure everyone noticed.
Soundcheck was good, Marco was invaluable as ever with his perfect and trustworthy ear (and muscles) and the onstage sound was nice and quiet. Could have been a little bit too quiet but I'll take that. A friend of Ron's was playing a gig 10 miles away and couldn't make it but he did send a message to Timmy to ask him to tun the bass up a little so that he could enjoy our gig too!
So to the gig. Well, people turned up. Lots of them. The Landlord Steve was very pleased with this and so were the band, nothing like playing to a full crowd. The volumes were good onstage (Acoustic a little low perhaps) and the outfront was perfect. I can always tell when the Organ is at the right volume as, due to my aggressive visual style (shall we say) I get a little pool or people on my left looking over my shoulder. If they don't come, I turn up!!
Its was hot and the first set, which we had written in the carpark 2 minutes before going on(the set not the songs!) was a belter and really seemed to work. We quickly wrote the second set outside. Personally I was really going for it on stage and I think there was a feeling that we had to do 3 months of performance energy in one night - I certainly did. I was more sweat than man!
So, we are cooling off outside and I am photographing stuff. On the wall, behind where Timmy's bass amp sits we actually noticed a crack forming in the building.
I never checked it when we left, I wonder how big it is now. Timmy asked me to take a picture of his far better half, Sue, which I did.Sue was very self conscious of the cut of her top as you can see..
...and it was only the next day that I though this was odd. I wonder if she knows that she was outside in public where people can see her? I do have a picture without the hand there but I think that stays off the Internet...for the time being anyway...
This is the view from the carpark!
Back in with set number two. Very aptly named that too as Little Dave was suffering from a poor stomach and just before we played the first note he raced off the stage not to be seen for 5 minutes. GHM style we improvised a really atmospheric piece of music for roughly 4 or 5 minutes (in the key of E) before our singer appeared and we could jump into Magic Potion by The Open Mind.
Slight intermittent user based fault occurred so far that there was not guitar for the first 45 seconds until the fault was diagnosed by Canadian Dave and he got back in. I kind of enjoyed it, reminded me of Deep Purple, NEC gig 1987 when Richie Blackmore had one of his strops and refused the encore. They all did Smoke on the Water without him and Jon Lord was immense. To be able to pull off a song minus guitar is pretty impressive. Needless to say, when Dave did come back in it sounded much better!!
The Second set was also good and my concentration levels were on top form, I managed to stay focused in the music throughout which is pretty good as sometimes you tend to drift.
It was hot and full and the audience were most appreciative. We overrun as usual and finished on 25 miles and Roadrunner missing out the now traditional Pink Floyd / Doors combo. Nevertheless it was a great success.
We say goodbye now, for a bit. We will be working on the EP whilst Ron gets better and we plan to return on 30th October 2010 at Katie's in Stourbridge. Do be there. Oh go on.
See you later dudes,
Nick
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