Saturday morning and, to quote the philosophical sage that is Edmund Blackadder, my head feels like it's got a Frenchman living in it. That'll be last night's drinking then. After at least one false start I remember that we're playing in Leeds tonight and manage to leap into action in time to meet the lads in Joe's van. Before you can say 'deja vu' we're in Toddington to meet Dave- no sign of Elvis (he's back on the 10th!) but everything else seems more-or-less as we left it. Then it's the long haul up the M1. We're playing at Karen & Trevor's wedding in the Palmcourt room at The Queen's Hotel in the city centre. Richard went to college in Leeds so knows his way around and we find our venue easily (for once!). Phil's already got the P.A. set up so we squeeze our gear onto the t-shaped stage (just) and do a quick soundcheck.
There's some food available later but people are getting hungry so we decide to go out for a look around. The lure of Spicemania across the road proves too much for many though if I was getting some food I think I'd have gone for Wokmania next door. However for me, Squirrel, Ian and Joe it's pubtime- there's plenty to choose from although there's already bouncers on the door for most of them and it's only 6.30. And there's a lot of people about, and a lot of police. Eventually we find The Prince of Wales- as Ian puts it 'that looks like an old boys pub- that'll do for us then'. Actually the jukebox is playing Blondie and The Stones, though I guess that is 'old boys music' to many. A bewildering array of real ales are on sale- I take the only possible course of action and order lager. They've got a real till- one of those one's that goes 'ker-ching' as the cost pop's up in a window at the top. If only it had been in old money. After a couple of drinks we walk back through town- there's even more people about, many of them scantily clad young ladies causing Ian to remark 'if I had some money I think I'd spend it on a facelift'. An evocative thought.
Back to the venue and 'Fawlty Towers' is on Dave's portable DVD player and there's much jollity all round. Outside the room we're using as a base there's a signed photo of Leeds footballing legend John Charles- indeed there's actually quite a few rooms there named after him. We go on just after 9.30 to the predictable indifference of many but, thankfully, not everyone. There's quite a few people up and dancing which leads to a peculiar version of 'Rawhide' which somehow includes 'Oops upside your head' (or whatever it's called). Strange days indeed.
2.30a.m. and, somewhat inevitably, we're in Toddington. It's quieter than last week- but I guess without Elvis it would be.
Sunday, February 04, 2007
All together now
There are some things in life that are just too bizarre even for me to comment on- and then there's the story of the Sex Pistol and the golf club.
As gigs go this sounds a weird one- Glen Matlock of the 'notorious' punk rock group playing a solo acoustic show at Ruislip Golf Club. Actually it's not quite as mad as it sounds- they have regular comedy nights there ('The Comedy Bunker') as well as jazz gigs; in a bizarre punk-precedent I saw Hugh Cornwell do a solo show there many years ago and very good it was too. Fortunately we're not gigging much at the moment so I've got Friday night off and this is too good to miss. Myself and East made our way across to Ickenham to meet Esso and Nigel from local punk legends The Lurkers in The Coach & Horses (punk trivia fans may like to know that this pub can be seen on the cover of The Lurkers wonderful 'Fulham Fallout' album. Then again a punk trivia fan probably already knows that I suppose.) We're also meeting John King there (he wrote 'The Football Factory'! He's my mate!) and we're meeting Big Andy and my brother Terry down at the gig. But something's wrong- East's not well; it's his stomach playing up again. I ring the long-suffering Shirley- she drives over, picks him up and takes him home. And now it's 8 o'clock and John's an hour late... Esso, Nigel and myself finish our drinks and walk down to the golf club where we meet Terry and Big Andy- ex-Matlock guitarist Paul O'Brien's there too along with old mate Andy Knight among others. I go to the gents and there's Mr Matlock himself who says hello-- I reply with something like 'I never thought I'd ever have a pee next to a Sex Pistol' Surreal stuff. John's arrives just in time to catch Glen's kicking off (should that be teeing off?!?) with 'Different World'- 50 or so in the audience which is enough for a 'standing room only' situation and a good atmosphere all round. By 'God Save the Queen' it's all going very well indeed (when he got to the guitar solo he just said 'where's Steve Jones when we need him?') and I was really pleased he played 'Ambition' which Iggy Pop recorded- I must track that one down one day. 'Pretty Vacant' closes the show then it's encore time with Paul O'Brien joining in on 'All or Nothing' and, after a few disparaging comments about someone called John, a strange vocal-less 'Anarchy in the U.K.' with the audience singing every anthemic word.
As we made our way back to the (thankfully still open) Coach & Horses I reflected on what a strange night it had been, as a song that changed a lot of people's lives (including mine) became a beery cheery singalong with one of it's co-writer's describing himself as 'the Wally Whyton of punk' in the process. Now there's something I'd never thought I'd see.
As gigs go this sounds a weird one- Glen Matlock of the 'notorious' punk rock group playing a solo acoustic show at Ruislip Golf Club. Actually it's not quite as mad as it sounds- they have regular comedy nights there ('The Comedy Bunker') as well as jazz gigs; in a bizarre punk-precedent I saw Hugh Cornwell do a solo show there many years ago and very good it was too. Fortunately we're not gigging much at the moment so I've got Friday night off and this is too good to miss. Myself and East made our way across to Ickenham to meet Esso and Nigel from local punk legends The Lurkers in The Coach & Horses (punk trivia fans may like to know that this pub can be seen on the cover of The Lurkers wonderful 'Fulham Fallout' album. Then again a punk trivia fan probably already knows that I suppose.) We're also meeting John King there (he wrote 'The Football Factory'! He's my mate!) and we're meeting Big Andy and my brother Terry down at the gig. But something's wrong- East's not well; it's his stomach playing up again. I ring the long-suffering Shirley- she drives over, picks him up and takes him home. And now it's 8 o'clock and John's an hour late... Esso, Nigel and myself finish our drinks and walk down to the golf club where we meet Terry and Big Andy- ex-Matlock guitarist Paul O'Brien's there too along with old mate Andy Knight among others. I go to the gents and there's Mr Matlock himself who says hello-- I reply with something like 'I never thought I'd ever have a pee next to a Sex Pistol' Surreal stuff. John's arrives just in time to catch Glen's kicking off (should that be teeing off?!?) with 'Different World'- 50 or so in the audience which is enough for a 'standing room only' situation and a good atmosphere all round. By 'God Save the Queen' it's all going very well indeed (when he got to the guitar solo he just said 'where's Steve Jones when we need him?') and I was really pleased he played 'Ambition' which Iggy Pop recorded- I must track that one down one day. 'Pretty Vacant' closes the show then it's encore time with Paul O'Brien joining in on 'All or Nothing' and, after a few disparaging comments about someone called John, a strange vocal-less 'Anarchy in the U.K.' with the audience singing every anthemic word.
As we made our way back to the (thankfully still open) Coach & Horses I reflected on what a strange night it had been, as a song that changed a lot of people's lives (including mine) became a beery cheery singalong with one of it's co-writer's describing himself as 'the Wally Whyton of punk' in the process. Now there's something I'd never thought I'd see.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Can you hear me at the back?
It's one o'clock on Saturday afternoon. To my left, a group of blind people; to my right, a tank manned by the British Army no less. All I can hear is 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds'. I really must stop drinking...
It may sound as though I'm in a surreal film but actually I'm on Watford High Street. The blind people are collecting money for Talking Newspapers; the Army are showing the local children what fun it could be to drive a tank, and The Beatles... well, to be honest I'm still not sure where that was coming from. Still it made an interesting aural backdrop to an extraordinary scene. And, as John Lennon himself sang later on the same album, 'what a scene'- people who lack a sense that most of us take for granted out collecting small change in front of a piece of military equipment that probably cost more than those blind people or their charity will benefit from this and other street collections all year. 'A Day in the Life' indeed.
I'm on my way to Richard's house to meet the rest of the lads in Joe's van. From there it's up the M1 to Toddington to hook up with Dave the trumpet (he lives in Norfolk so it's a good place to rendevouz) and then it's off to Birmingham for my first gig of the year. At last! It seems we're not playing at the N.I.A. (shame!) but are actually at the International Conference Centre for a corporate event marking the 50th anniversary of the Seddon company. Oh well... Pete's travelling up separately in his car with Michael, newly rejoined keyboard man Ian and lighting man Dave Bunting who's going to be working with us on our theatre shows later this year. We're up to Toddington in no time so take a few minutes to pick up some food and drink for the rest of our journey before heading back to the M1. On the way through the village I can't help noticing the best pub name I've seen for a while- The Sow and Pigs- and that there's a poster outside The Griffen pub proclaiming 'Tonight- ELVIS - BY REQUEST'
So that's where he's been all these years. And we all thought he was down the chipshop.
By 3.30p.m. we're in Hall 3 of the I.C.C. and it's big. Very big. Enormous in fact. There's a impressively large stage, a similarly proportioned dancefloor and at least 30 or so tables as well as a casino area and- worryingly from our point of view- 3 large bars right at the back of the hall. It's going to be hard to get them away from there...
In the meantime we're setting up, Phil the soundman's miking up, Dave's lighting up (this is all starting to sound a bit weird don't you think?) and Pete's taking pictures of us all for our upcoming website. All good fun as is the soundcheck itself which begins for me with a discussion with John the drummer about going to see Deep Purple as well as attempting to play some of their songs one day (off to practice now!) and ends with a riotous rock'n'roll jam. Excellent- let's hope the gig's as much fun.
From the dressing room it's up a couple of flights of stairs to The Mess Room (really!) for some food- and what fine food it is. I had Vegetable Lasagne, everyone else had Chicken Curry and we all agreed it was some of the best food we'd ever had at a venue. Nice waitresses too... then it's 'hurry up and wait' time. We eventually go on around 10.15 and play 'till midnight- a long show. And, you've guessed it, most of the audience are about 100 yards away in the bars. But it's a good show and we even get a fair bit of dancing by the end; Pete manages to get a girl on stage for 'Shake your Tailfeather'- which she did, amongst other things.
2.30a.m., we're back in Toddington and The Sow and Pigs appears to be still serving. I guess Elvis popped over the road for a drink after his gig.
It may sound as though I'm in a surreal film but actually I'm on Watford High Street. The blind people are collecting money for Talking Newspapers; the Army are showing the local children what fun it could be to drive a tank, and The Beatles... well, to be honest I'm still not sure where that was coming from. Still it made an interesting aural backdrop to an extraordinary scene. And, as John Lennon himself sang later on the same album, 'what a scene'- people who lack a sense that most of us take for granted out collecting small change in front of a piece of military equipment that probably cost more than those blind people or their charity will benefit from this and other street collections all year. 'A Day in the Life' indeed.
I'm on my way to Richard's house to meet the rest of the lads in Joe's van. From there it's up the M1 to Toddington to hook up with Dave the trumpet (he lives in Norfolk so it's a good place to rendevouz) and then it's off to Birmingham for my first gig of the year. At last! It seems we're not playing at the N.I.A. (shame!) but are actually at the International Conference Centre for a corporate event marking the 50th anniversary of the Seddon company. Oh well... Pete's travelling up separately in his car with Michael, newly rejoined keyboard man Ian and lighting man Dave Bunting who's going to be working with us on our theatre shows later this year. We're up to Toddington in no time so take a few minutes to pick up some food and drink for the rest of our journey before heading back to the M1. On the way through the village I can't help noticing the best pub name I've seen for a while- The Sow and Pigs- and that there's a poster outside The Griffen pub proclaiming 'Tonight- ELVIS - BY REQUEST'
So that's where he's been all these years. And we all thought he was down the chipshop.
By 3.30p.m. we're in Hall 3 of the I.C.C. and it's big. Very big. Enormous in fact. There's a impressively large stage, a similarly proportioned dancefloor and at least 30 or so tables as well as a casino area and- worryingly from our point of view- 3 large bars right at the back of the hall. It's going to be hard to get them away from there...
In the meantime we're setting up, Phil the soundman's miking up, Dave's lighting up (this is all starting to sound a bit weird don't you think?) and Pete's taking pictures of us all for our upcoming website. All good fun as is the soundcheck itself which begins for me with a discussion with John the drummer about going to see Deep Purple as well as attempting to play some of their songs one day (off to practice now!) and ends with a riotous rock'n'roll jam. Excellent- let's hope the gig's as much fun.
From the dressing room it's up a couple of flights of stairs to The Mess Room (really!) for some food- and what fine food it is. I had Vegetable Lasagne, everyone else had Chicken Curry and we all agreed it was some of the best food we'd ever had at a venue. Nice waitresses too... then it's 'hurry up and wait' time. We eventually go on around 10.15 and play 'till midnight- a long show. And, you've guessed it, most of the audience are about 100 yards away in the bars. But it's a good show and we even get a fair bit of dancing by the end; Pete manages to get a girl on stage for 'Shake your Tailfeather'- which she did, amongst other things.
2.30a.m., we're back in Toddington and The Sow and Pigs appears to be still serving. I guess Elvis popped over the road for a drink after his gig.
Saturday, January 27, 2007
My mate knew Hendrix!
...and indeed it was, for many reasons...
The Woodman in Northwood seems to be that rare thing- a thriving pub music venue. Us muso types are always moaning about lack of venues, no one wanting to see live music these days etc etc- but here's somewhere that's looking at putting on more bands, not less. Excellent! I really MUST get a band together to play there one day (cue me moaning about not playing rock'n'roll. Oh and lack of venues, audiences not wanting to see live music...). The Cane Toads are regular visitors there and it shows- they seemed at home from the first notes which considering it was their first gig with a new drummer was no mean achievement. We're in 'rock covers land' here- Thin Lizzy, Guns'n'Roses, Stones etc- but what I like about them is that they step outside of the obvious from time to time, not least by covering other people's cover versions; so we get 'Baker Street' as done by The Foo Fighters, The Lemonheads' take on 'Mrs. Robinson'- get the idea? And any group that plays 'Ever Fallen in Love' and 'Turning Japanese' can't be all bad can they?
Now the exciting bit (not that the band weren't exciting but you'll see what I mean in a minute). I got my acoustic guitar back from Stuart the guitar repair man. Hurrah! I bought it a while back- it's a Fender electro-acoustic, the model of which escapes me just at the moment- and finally got it to Stu for a set-up. When it left me it was ok- guitars 'straight-out-of-the-box' almost always need a bit of tweaking- but now it's amazing! The man is a genius! I intend to spend a good amount of tomorrow testing it fully...
And if that wasn't enough I ran into two old rock'n'roll buddies. John Kerrison was the drummer in Episode Six all those years ago- he's now wheelchair bound but- incredibly- still drumming. Shirley knows him through her work- he's coming into the shop this week so I'd better tidy up a bit! Alan Barratt is the singer in local legends The Good Old Boys, used to be the singer in Jo Jo Gunne amongst others and never tires of telling me that he was in a band that supported Jimi Hendrix; just as well that I never tire of hearing it eh? Seriously though, it was great to see them both, I'd all but lost touch with them (especially Alan) which is bad; people are only a phone call away aren't they? Must make the effort- you shouldn't be lazy with your mates...
Right- I'm off to Birmingham to play the guitar. At last.
http://www.canetoads.co.uk
The Woodman in Northwood seems to be that rare thing- a thriving pub music venue. Us muso types are always moaning about lack of venues, no one wanting to see live music these days etc etc- but here's somewhere that's looking at putting on more bands, not less. Excellent! I really MUST get a band together to play there one day (cue me moaning about not playing rock'n'roll. Oh and lack of venues, audiences not wanting to see live music...). The Cane Toads are regular visitors there and it shows- they seemed at home from the first notes which considering it was their first gig with a new drummer was no mean achievement. We're in 'rock covers land' here- Thin Lizzy, Guns'n'Roses, Stones etc- but what I like about them is that they step outside of the obvious from time to time, not least by covering other people's cover versions; so we get 'Baker Street' as done by The Foo Fighters, The Lemonheads' take on 'Mrs. Robinson'- get the idea? And any group that plays 'Ever Fallen in Love' and 'Turning Japanese' can't be all bad can they?
Now the exciting bit (not that the band weren't exciting but you'll see what I mean in a minute). I got my acoustic guitar back from Stuart the guitar repair man. Hurrah! I bought it a while back- it's a Fender electro-acoustic, the model of which escapes me just at the moment- and finally got it to Stu for a set-up. When it left me it was ok- guitars 'straight-out-of-the-box' almost always need a bit of tweaking- but now it's amazing! The man is a genius! I intend to spend a good amount of tomorrow testing it fully...
And if that wasn't enough I ran into two old rock'n'roll buddies. John Kerrison was the drummer in Episode Six all those years ago- he's now wheelchair bound but- incredibly- still drumming. Shirley knows him through her work- he's coming into the shop this week so I'd better tidy up a bit! Alan Barratt is the singer in local legends The Good Old Boys, used to be the singer in Jo Jo Gunne amongst others and never tires of telling me that he was in a band that supported Jimi Hendrix; just as well that I never tire of hearing it eh? Seriously though, it was great to see them both, I'd all but lost touch with them (especially Alan) which is bad; people are only a phone call away aren't they? Must make the effort- you shouldn't be lazy with your mates...
Right- I'm off to Birmingham to play the guitar. At last.
http://www.canetoads.co.uk
Friday, January 26, 2007
That was the week that was
Another gig-less week. It's strange- if I'm not playing then it's sometimes hard to remember what I have done. Weird...
We went to Jacob/Iggy's Christening as planned and a very enjoyable day it was too- which, my friends, means that I am officially old. That said, Michael did tell me that when he was asked by the vicar what his son's name was to be he was almost tempted to say Iggy- a case of 'little things for little minds' in my case methinks, but amusing all the same.
I finished the tooth infection anti-biotics on Sunday. I should have finished them on Monday but I didn't read the instructions properly and took two at once for the first four doses instead of one. Oops. They seem to have done the trick- although just as I typed that potentially over-optimistic statement I felt a little twinge. It's great being neurotic. Wednesday evening I made the mistake of saying to Shirley that I was feeling better- next morning I just made it to the bathroom before being violently sick.
I'm beginning to take this personally.
Maybe it was something I ate, maybe it was a bug of some sort- either way I spent Thursday in the shop shivering and feeling very sorry for myself. I hope no one caught anything off me.
Talking of the shop, I've managed to go an entire week without nearly buying something. Very heroic eh? Mind you, if another one of those Baja Telecaster's comes in... and I was talking to Nick the Stentor rep today about Vox Valvetronix combos which he reckoned would suit me. Well- if I don't spend it, the taxman will!
Tomorrow night we're playing in Birmingham; I originally thought it was the N.I.A. but on the phone this morning Pete said the I.C.A- or was it the I.C.C? It was three initials anyway. One of the worst things about yesterday's vomit-fest was thinking that I might not be ok for the gig. I'm really looking forward to playing- it seems like ages since the last show but it's actually only about four weeks. Gary's left the band so tomorrow sees the return of Ian Gibbons (Gary replaced him last summer). It'll be good to see him again.
A couple of days ago I read back through most of these postings- I was thinking of doing a somewhat belated 'revue of 2006' with favourite gig, album, event etc.- I decided not to when I realised that most if not all of them involved The Who and that it would probably make me sound like a stalker. That said, one thing I did notice was how often I make reference to the fact that I fancy playing something a bit more 'rock' than the Blues Brothers stuff, (I really enjoy playing it but I'm too much of an old punk to leave the noise behind totally!). With this in mind it's tribute band time- I've been offered a few gigs with The Pistols (www.thepistols.co.uk -can you guess who they're a tribute to?!?) over the next few months. I hope I can do them- it could be just what's needed at the moment.
Off to see local pub rockers The Cane Toads tonight in Northwood- it should be a good night...
We went to Jacob/Iggy's Christening as planned and a very enjoyable day it was too- which, my friends, means that I am officially old. That said, Michael did tell me that when he was asked by the vicar what his son's name was to be he was almost tempted to say Iggy- a case of 'little things for little minds' in my case methinks, but amusing all the same.
I finished the tooth infection anti-biotics on Sunday. I should have finished them on Monday but I didn't read the instructions properly and took two at once for the first four doses instead of one. Oops. They seem to have done the trick- although just as I typed that potentially over-optimistic statement I felt a little twinge. It's great being neurotic. Wednesday evening I made the mistake of saying to Shirley that I was feeling better- next morning I just made it to the bathroom before being violently sick.
I'm beginning to take this personally.
Maybe it was something I ate, maybe it was a bug of some sort- either way I spent Thursday in the shop shivering and feeling very sorry for myself. I hope no one caught anything off me.
Talking of the shop, I've managed to go an entire week without nearly buying something. Very heroic eh? Mind you, if another one of those Baja Telecaster's comes in... and I was talking to Nick the Stentor rep today about Vox Valvetronix combos which he reckoned would suit me. Well- if I don't spend it, the taxman will!
Tomorrow night we're playing in Birmingham; I originally thought it was the N.I.A. but on the phone this morning Pete said the I.C.A- or was it the I.C.C? It was three initials anyway. One of the worst things about yesterday's vomit-fest was thinking that I might not be ok for the gig. I'm really looking forward to playing- it seems like ages since the last show but it's actually only about four weeks. Gary's left the band so tomorrow sees the return of Ian Gibbons (Gary replaced him last summer). It'll be good to see him again.
A couple of days ago I read back through most of these postings- I was thinking of doing a somewhat belated 'revue of 2006' with favourite gig, album, event etc.- I decided not to when I realised that most if not all of them involved The Who and that it would probably make me sound like a stalker. That said, one thing I did notice was how often I make reference to the fact that I fancy playing something a bit more 'rock' than the Blues Brothers stuff, (I really enjoy playing it but I'm too much of an old punk to leave the noise behind totally!). With this in mind it's tribute band time- I've been offered a few gigs with The Pistols (www.thepistols.co.uk -can you guess who they're a tribute to?!?) over the next few months. I hope I can do them- it could be just what's needed at the moment.
Off to see local pub rockers The Cane Toads tonight in Northwood- it should be a good night...
Friday, January 19, 2007
Chairman of the bored
I'm listening to Iggy Pop at the moment- always a good move I find. It seems pretty appropriate. No gigs. No fun. I'm bored. Bored bored bored.
Mind you, I shouldn't be. And I'm not really. Quite a lot's been happening- just nothing that involved me being on a stage with a guitar in my hand. Which reminds me, I nearly bought a new one this week (A guitar that is. Not a stage. That would just be weird. Or a hand. That would just be weirder. Although, as we'll discover, it might have been, if you pardon the expression, handy). A Fender Baja Telecaster came into the shop- blonde finish, black scratchplate, maple neck, and with extra pick-up switching options that I won't bore you with here. Stuart the guitar repair man took one look at it and just said 'that'll do you' without any hesitation. I should have bought it straight away. So, obviously, I didn't. And, so, obviously, someone else did. Straight away. Without any hesitation.
I knew it was a good one.
Then again, I can never quite make my mind up about maple necks. And there was something about it that I just wasn't quite sure about. Probably the maple neck. Ah well. I'm sure we'll get another one.
Shop-wise it's been a busy week, not least yesterday when myself and Karn the manager re-arranged pretty much the entire front section of the shop to accommodate some new guitar lines- scarily pointy Jackson and cool-as-you-like Gretsch. I also managed to cut my hand whilst unpacking 2 pallet loads of Fender's which arrived during the height of yesterday morning's storms- not a big cut, but lots of blood, made worse by the rain. Oh and I walked into a tree on the way home and cut my head. I'm sure the branches didn't used to be that low. Or maybe the wind caught it. Or maybe I've got taller. Or both. Mind you, that's the least of my problems...
Did I mention that I've had a tooth out? Even though it's no longer rotting away in my head it's still causing trouble (well, to be pedantic, it's now the gap where it used to be that's causing the trouble, but you know what I mean). Yes, you've guessed it, I picked up an infection- probably caused by going down the pub with East the night after I had the damn thing removed. And it's been agony- almost beyond pain, like the entire left side of my head was coming off. Or how you'd imagine that would feel anyway. Or something. In the end I went back to the dentist for some more ritual humiliation ('you just can't keep away, can you?') and some anti-biotics. It's getting better now. Hopefully.
No gigs this weekend either. This Saturday I'm in the shop, Sunday we're off down to Essex for Blues Brother Michael's son's Christening. They're calling him Jacob but I still think Iggy is a nice name. Don't you?
Mind you, I shouldn't be. And I'm not really. Quite a lot's been happening- just nothing that involved me being on a stage with a guitar in my hand. Which reminds me, I nearly bought a new one this week (A guitar that is. Not a stage. That would just be weird. Or a hand. That would just be weirder. Although, as we'll discover, it might have been, if you pardon the expression, handy). A Fender Baja Telecaster came into the shop- blonde finish, black scratchplate, maple neck, and with extra pick-up switching options that I won't bore you with here. Stuart the guitar repair man took one look at it and just said 'that'll do you' without any hesitation. I should have bought it straight away. So, obviously, I didn't. And, so, obviously, someone else did. Straight away. Without any hesitation.
I knew it was a good one.
Then again, I can never quite make my mind up about maple necks. And there was something about it that I just wasn't quite sure about. Probably the maple neck. Ah well. I'm sure we'll get another one.
Shop-wise it's been a busy week, not least yesterday when myself and Karn the manager re-arranged pretty much the entire front section of the shop to accommodate some new guitar lines- scarily pointy Jackson and cool-as-you-like Gretsch. I also managed to cut my hand whilst unpacking 2 pallet loads of Fender's which arrived during the height of yesterday morning's storms- not a big cut, but lots of blood, made worse by the rain. Oh and I walked into a tree on the way home and cut my head. I'm sure the branches didn't used to be that low. Or maybe the wind caught it. Or maybe I've got taller. Or both. Mind you, that's the least of my problems...
Did I mention that I've had a tooth out? Even though it's no longer rotting away in my head it's still causing trouble (well, to be pedantic, it's now the gap where it used to be that's causing the trouble, but you know what I mean). Yes, you've guessed it, I picked up an infection- probably caused by going down the pub with East the night after I had the damn thing removed. And it's been agony- almost beyond pain, like the entire left side of my head was coming off. Or how you'd imagine that would feel anyway. Or something. In the end I went back to the dentist for some more ritual humiliation ('you just can't keep away, can you?') and some anti-biotics. It's getting better now. Hopefully.
No gigs this weekend either. This Saturday I'm in the shop, Sunday we're off down to Essex for Blues Brother Michael's son's Christening. They're calling him Jacob but I still think Iggy is a nice name. Don't you?
Friday, January 12, 2007
A partial success
Remember when 'they' bought in 24 hour drinking? All those people on telly saying that it would be the death of civilisation as we know it, that there'd be drunk people cluttering up the place even more than before, that there'd be fights on every street corner (well, the ones that weren't cluttered up with drunk people anyway)- they clearly haven't been to The Queen's Head in Uxbridge on a Thursday evening. The barstaff were polishing the floor around us by 20 past 10, the 3 other people still in there were being very obviously ignored as they rather over-optimistically tried to order another drink during opening hours and East was heard to remark 'The Queen's Head'? More like The Queen's Dead, a Morrissey tribute pub.'
If Uxbridge was 'happening' then it wasn't 'happening' where we were.
Incidentally am I the only person hoping that Morrissey represents the U.K. in the Eurovision Song Contest? I thought Lordi winning last year was hilarious enough, but the idea of Mozzer crooning 'You Have Killed Me' or equivalent amidst the other 'classics' is, I hope you'll agree, rather excellent.
All of this rambling on about nothing in particular only serves to underline the fact that our next gig isn't until the 27th of this month; mind you it is at the N.I.A. in Birmingham. I've only been there once, to see the The Who a couple of years ago. I hope we're playing in the same part of it that they did.
If Uxbridge was 'happening' then it wasn't 'happening' where we were.
Incidentally am I the only person hoping that Morrissey represents the U.K. in the Eurovision Song Contest? I thought Lordi winning last year was hilarious enough, but the idea of Mozzer crooning 'You Have Killed Me' or equivalent amidst the other 'classics' is, I hope you'll agree, rather excellent.
All of this rambling on about nothing in particular only serves to underline the fact that our next gig isn't until the 27th of this month; mind you it is at the N.I.A. in Birmingham. I've only been there once, to see the The Who a couple of years ago. I hope we're playing in the same part of it that they did.
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