It's nearly time for my summer break. I'm glad really, as the gigs have been wearing me down a bit this week. I think it's time for a little breather. I did 2 solo shows last week on Thurs (Murgatroyd Arms, Halifax) and on Sunday aft (Fernandes, Wakefield). Both were very easy-going 'background music' affairs, where no-one listened much and the crowds were thin on both occasions. Yesterday was especially tough as it was such a hot day outdoors. Thursday made me laugh a little as Halifax holidays were blamed for the poor crowd, that's an excuse I've not heard for many years! The last time being when only 5 turned up to watch my band at The Bowling Green. The 5 consisted of: My parents, our soon-to-be bassist, and.......a couple on holiday from Aberdeen!
In between, the PJ Band did it's bit in Batley at the Church Steps on Saturday night. This was a lot better than I'd feared, and the crowd were at least willing to be entertained. The new songs are working well and the 2nd half especially was very pleasing from a musical point of view. At one time a gig in this sort of environment would have got me down, but now I actually don't mind. Everyone in the band is very upbeat and we didn't have any trouble.
A final word on these 'background music' solo acoustic free and easy gigs. They're a ball-ache but are at least paid. I'm usually tired before I start, especially the Sunday ones which normally come hot on the heels of a Saturday with the band. There's no adrenalin to be gained from a flat crowd, and unless I prepare in advance, there's no new material added on the spot. So I end up going through the motions. And then forgetting the words to things I've sung hundreds of times, like I did yesterday with 'Your Shadow'. At least I'm home in time for tea though! And after a night's sleep, it doesn't seem half as bad....that's why I'll be playing there again in September.
That's about it for this week. I'm sorry it's all a bit negative, I'm easily bored. Just one show with the band at the Snooty Fox, Oakworth, this Friday, and then 2 weeks off. There was little time for recording this week, but progress is being made on those front, slowly as usual!
Monday, July 28, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
A quick review of the 3 nights I was out playing last week: On Tuesday I went along to support the Open Mic night at The Arkle in Morley. My band are playing there in October. The night is thin on supporters but it carries very well. I also got to meet a fabulous blues harmonica player-the whole idea of networking with musicians is so important. Sometimes it's hard to explain to people the value in doing a night like this, unpaid of course, but there's always something, some little connection being made.
I played 'The Prisoner' which went down very well. Then I did my Ben Folds Five cover 'The Battle of Who Could Care Less'. I'm still learning this one but it was good practice for Thursday night's piano gig (see below). I then invited my harmonica friend (he got a great sound through an authentic amp) to join me on 'I'm Coming Out'. This is a strong song of mine off the first album that I've hardly touched live. The title is a bit off putting, even if the song has nothing to do with homosexuality! It also has a bluesey feel which by pure coincidence lent itself to the harmonica perfectly.
I finished with another cover, a song I've been listening to of late, 'How Long' by Ace. It's a number that's never gone down well live in my old sets, but now I'm attacking it more, using more rhythm, it sounds much better. I then guested with Andy, Nigel and co on a few blues standards before returning home.
I mentioned that on Thursday I would be playing a genuine real living piano at the Chemic Tavern. This would be the headline slot for the cloth cat open mic night. I turned up a little late, before going on to play my set. I'd kept 'Coming Out' in, plus the Ben Folds cover, in addition to my usual set-plus Seven Shades made an appearance, and there were encours of 'Somebody to Love' and 'Rocket Man'. I was happy enough with the piano and the sensation of doing something a bit different to normal. But I wasn't happy with the fact that people weren't really listening.
The moment anyone mentions 'headline slot' on open mic nights I begin to get worried! Usually this means going on after 11pm after the audience has long since lost the will to listen after the umpteen open mic slots have passed. It doesn't matter if half of them are rubbish or not, just the sheer fact that after over 2 hours of music people are hardly in a good frame of mind to concentrate on yet another half-hour set of mainly original songs. Not to bother though, I think it wasn't too badly received, the same thing used to happen at Doctor Wu's. Personally I think it's pointless having the booked slot-better just to keep it as a free-for-all then it's not too taxing for everyone.
On Friday night my band made it's debut at Hudsons in Bradford. We had a fantastic night in front of a thinnish but appreciative crowd. The band line-up was different to usual in that we had Paul and Norm back with us, and the whole night was very enjoyable. Not to say that it isn't normally. I was well pleased with the fact we threw in 4 new covers we'd never played together before.
The weekend was all about stock car racing again-this time the European Championships at Northampton. A lovely weekend with some decent weather, the Dutch adding a pleasently tipsy edge to the atmosphere. If it wasn't for being in a really good band, I could do this every weekend. And to add to the fun there was a programme fair on the Sunday, so there I was buying old programmes ten at a time! It's not often you see me spending money. It's also not often you hear about a musician spending his leisure time doing that sort of thing. Mind you, Peter Waterman's got his trains, so I guess I've a way to go for my anorak yet :)
I played 'The Prisoner' which went down very well. Then I did my Ben Folds Five cover 'The Battle of Who Could Care Less'. I'm still learning this one but it was good practice for Thursday night's piano gig (see below). I then invited my harmonica friend (he got a great sound through an authentic amp) to join me on 'I'm Coming Out'. This is a strong song of mine off the first album that I've hardly touched live. The title is a bit off putting, even if the song has nothing to do with homosexuality! It also has a bluesey feel which by pure coincidence lent itself to the harmonica perfectly.
I finished with another cover, a song I've been listening to of late, 'How Long' by Ace. It's a number that's never gone down well live in my old sets, but now I'm attacking it more, using more rhythm, it sounds much better. I then guested with Andy, Nigel and co on a few blues standards before returning home.
I mentioned that on Thursday I would be playing a genuine real living piano at the Chemic Tavern. This would be the headline slot for the cloth cat open mic night. I turned up a little late, before going on to play my set. I'd kept 'Coming Out' in, plus the Ben Folds cover, in addition to my usual set-plus Seven Shades made an appearance, and there were encours of 'Somebody to Love' and 'Rocket Man'. I was happy enough with the piano and the sensation of doing something a bit different to normal. But I wasn't happy with the fact that people weren't really listening.
The moment anyone mentions 'headline slot' on open mic nights I begin to get worried! Usually this means going on after 11pm after the audience has long since lost the will to listen after the umpteen open mic slots have passed. It doesn't matter if half of them are rubbish or not, just the sheer fact that after over 2 hours of music people are hardly in a good frame of mind to concentrate on yet another half-hour set of mainly original songs. Not to bother though, I think it wasn't too badly received, the same thing used to happen at Doctor Wu's. Personally I think it's pointless having the booked slot-better just to keep it as a free-for-all then it's not too taxing for everyone.
On Friday night my band made it's debut at Hudsons in Bradford. We had a fantastic night in front of a thinnish but appreciative crowd. The band line-up was different to usual in that we had Paul and Norm back with us, and the whole night was very enjoyable. Not to say that it isn't normally. I was well pleased with the fact we threw in 4 new covers we'd never played together before.
The weekend was all about stock car racing again-this time the European Championships at Northampton. A lovely weekend with some decent weather, the Dutch adding a pleasently tipsy edge to the atmosphere. If it wasn't for being in a really good band, I could do this every weekend. And to add to the fun there was a programme fair on the Sunday, so there I was buying old programmes ten at a time! It's not often you see me spending money. It's also not often you hear about a musician spending his leisure time doing that sort of thing. Mind you, Peter Waterman's got his trains, so I guess I've a way to go for my anorak yet :)
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Introducing Paradise Street
OK, I've been mentioning this for weeks now....
I've started up a new project running alongside my own regular music. It's called PARADISE STREET and is quite simply a vehicle for a different batch of songs. Co-written with Cath Walls these are pieces mainly written a few years ago, suitable for female singers as opposed to myself.
The myspace page for the project has been up and running for a couple of months now. It features a selection of tracks from what will be the first album. At the moment I'm busy working on finishing off the remaining songs, and hope to have the album released by the end of the year.
There's a very broad range of influences on this one. You can tell a little from the Top Friends list on the page as to the general style and genre. Basically it's mature female pop, very melodic and drawing on some different ideas to my own solo material. Similar artists include Dido, Annie Lennox and Kate Bush.
The as yet untitled album will be released worldwide in both CD and mp3 formats and will be distributed by all the recognised sources such as Apple iTunes, Napster and Payplay.
Please feel free to have a listen to the songs and stand by for more news soon!
Monday, July 14, 2008
I had an interesting experience on Thursday night. My first EMO gig! One of my band's drummers, Norm, is the driver for a band from LA called The Outline. They were in Leeds at the Cockpit and I was on the guestlist, much to the surprise of the bouncer who must have wondered what the hell I was doing there!! Given that the average audience age was about 15, I can't really blame him.
We arrived to be greeted by a large queue under the railway bridge. The headline band were Rocket Summer, and they were obivously very popular. It was a bit like a school disco. The first band onstage at 7.15 prompt. People were ID'd with Passports. The bar was very quiet as most people weren't old enough to drink, so at least there wasn't a queue there!
I wasn't surprised by the tightness of the bands, all 3 were excellent. The middle band, who I can't remember the name of, had a piano frontman, a bit like Ben Folds. All bands had loads of energy and the lyrical and melodic content came a distant second. As usual in a club venue, the vocals aren't clear and the kick drum and bass guitar receive far too much attention. Shit, I'm sounding like someone's dad. But then again, I was almost old enough.
The other thing that struck me was how the crowd came to know about the band in the first place. They knew all the words, and were certainly prepared for what was happening. Is it an internet following? Or maybe street teams or a combination of many things. I was impressed. Even if the music and the following were totally different to what I do and follow myself, I couldn't help but be energised by the experience.
Back to reality (if you can call it that) at the Rock n Heifer on Saturday night. Our second trip here with the band saw a pattern emerging. A late-set is added on after the normal 2, where we get paid a bit more to do a bit more. I wasn't at my best due to a cold brought on with shouting at the match officials at Warrington the night before. Or perhaps it was the cavern-like atmosphere in the Cockpit, where ventilation is clearly a mystery concept.
The first set featured a couple of noise complaints, but that was all forgotten in the longrun. It is off-putting though. When someone says 'It's too loud' in the middle of your set I tend to panic a bit thinking 'well what's too loud?'. I've done gigs like that before, and there's no real easy answers. It's generally annoying when it's a slim minority who complain, usually because they want to talk over you. But that's free entertainment for you. There's no pleasing everybody.
I used up a bit of anger in the second set and we pulled together more as a band. I even silenced the whole room at one point while a gentleman made a phonecall on his mobile. Will someone please explain what posesses a person to continue a phonecall whilst a rock band is in full flight, in the SAME room. How the fuck do they hear what the other person is saying?! Just one of the many mysteries of performing in pubs. To be fair though they do love us there, and I'm already looking forward to going back.
The same can't really be said of The Drop Inn yesterday afternoon (sunday 13th). A slight improvement on the Shepherds Rest the previous week, but still a long way from being fun. Most people were sat outside, which is fine given it was the only day of sunshine we've had for a while. A few ventured in for a bit of a listen, not many appreciated it. But I didn't really expect that. In the end I reasoned that on a colder day it would have been pretty full, so perhaps I will go back. I just wish they'd put something on at the same time every week, so that at least I've a fighting chance of being accepted.
I've just watched the South Bank Show from last night on Billy Joel. I find it inspiring to hear interviews with these people, it inpsires me to keep going for at least another day or two. One of the most inspiring things was the story of playing the piano and finding Elle McPherson suddenly leaning over the piano. He has this theory that a piano is a better pulling-machine than a sportscar. I say that's bollocks. I've been playing the piano for a long time and it's never done me any favours in that respect. Perhaps I'm playing the wrong songs!
I still haven't had time to talk properly about Paradise Street, my new collection of female songs. Well, old songs that are finally getting an airing to be precise! But just to say for now that progress is being made a bit quicker and that there's now 6 songs finished. If you go to the myspace page for the project, you'll be able to listen to 5 of them in full.
We arrived to be greeted by a large queue under the railway bridge. The headline band were Rocket Summer, and they were obivously very popular. It was a bit like a school disco. The first band onstage at 7.15 prompt. People were ID'd with Passports. The bar was very quiet as most people weren't old enough to drink, so at least there wasn't a queue there!
I wasn't surprised by the tightness of the bands, all 3 were excellent. The middle band, who I can't remember the name of, had a piano frontman, a bit like Ben Folds. All bands had loads of energy and the lyrical and melodic content came a distant second. As usual in a club venue, the vocals aren't clear and the kick drum and bass guitar receive far too much attention. Shit, I'm sounding like someone's dad. But then again, I was almost old enough.
The other thing that struck me was how the crowd came to know about the band in the first place. They knew all the words, and were certainly prepared for what was happening. Is it an internet following? Or maybe street teams or a combination of many things. I was impressed. Even if the music and the following were totally different to what I do and follow myself, I couldn't help but be energised by the experience.
Back to reality (if you can call it that) at the Rock n Heifer on Saturday night. Our second trip here with the band saw a pattern emerging. A late-set is added on after the normal 2, where we get paid a bit more to do a bit more. I wasn't at my best due to a cold brought on with shouting at the match officials at Warrington the night before. Or perhaps it was the cavern-like atmosphere in the Cockpit, where ventilation is clearly a mystery concept.
The first set featured a couple of noise complaints, but that was all forgotten in the longrun. It is off-putting though. When someone says 'It's too loud' in the middle of your set I tend to panic a bit thinking 'well what's too loud?'. I've done gigs like that before, and there's no real easy answers. It's generally annoying when it's a slim minority who complain, usually because they want to talk over you. But that's free entertainment for you. There's no pleasing everybody.
I used up a bit of anger in the second set and we pulled together more as a band. I even silenced the whole room at one point while a gentleman made a phonecall on his mobile. Will someone please explain what posesses a person to continue a phonecall whilst a rock band is in full flight, in the SAME room. How the fuck do they hear what the other person is saying?! Just one of the many mysteries of performing in pubs. To be fair though they do love us there, and I'm already looking forward to going back.
The same can't really be said of The Drop Inn yesterday afternoon (sunday 13th). A slight improvement on the Shepherds Rest the previous week, but still a long way from being fun. Most people were sat outside, which is fine given it was the only day of sunshine we've had for a while. A few ventured in for a bit of a listen, not many appreciated it. But I didn't really expect that. In the end I reasoned that on a colder day it would have been pretty full, so perhaps I will go back. I just wish they'd put something on at the same time every week, so that at least I've a fighting chance of being accepted.
I've just watched the South Bank Show from last night on Billy Joel. I find it inspiring to hear interviews with these people, it inpsires me to keep going for at least another day or two. One of the most inspiring things was the story of playing the piano and finding Elle McPherson suddenly leaning over the piano. He has this theory that a piano is a better pulling-machine than a sportscar. I say that's bollocks. I've been playing the piano for a long time and it's never done me any favours in that respect. Perhaps I'm playing the wrong songs!
I still haven't had time to talk properly about Paradise Street, my new collection of female songs. Well, old songs that are finally getting an airing to be precise! But just to say for now that progress is being made a bit quicker and that there's now 6 songs finished. If you go to the myspace page for the project, you'll be able to listen to 5 of them in full.
Monday, July 07, 2008
I had 2 very contrasting gigs last week. I always seem to be able to write more about the bad ones, indeed over time they're the ones that seem to stick in my mind more. I think that's human nature, or perhaps I'm just a pessimist. No, that can't be right. A pessimist wouldn't last 5 minutes being a musician!
For example, anyone with a negative outlook on life would have probably packed up for good after Wednesday night! Seriously, it wasn't actually that bad, and at least I got to the pub before closing time.
I'm referring to the Shepherds Rest in Sowerby Bridge. This is an Ossett Brewery pub and like all their pubs it is lovely. In our area there are many crap pubs, so their's all shine out like beacons in a brewery desert. The beer is great, the scrotes aren't there, the decor is tasteful. The only disadvantage is that some are very quiet midweek and that those that are there seem un-prepared and un-interested in live music.
On this occasion it was both. At 9:00pm the pub was completely dead, no customers whatsoever. I've done my fair share of playing to virtually nobody, but drew the line this time. We agreed I should wait a while and see if anyone turned up. If not I was free to go. Unfortunately, depending on your point of view, a few punters came in, indeed by 10pm there was just about a healthy number. But yet again (and not for the first time) there was ZERO interest in what I was doing. No applause, no awareness, just ignorance beyond apathy.
I played one set for 45 minutes then went home. I really do hope it will be better this Sunday at the Drop in Elland, but I doubt it somehow. No-one wants to know. It's such a shame, because the scrote-count last Sunday at the Bridge Tavern may have been high, but at least people were willing to be entertained. It's a tough call on both sides. I only wish Ossett (who I think do a wonderful job) would consider having turns on at least once a week. At the moment, I keep getting looked at like I've got 10 heads or something. It's not very conducive and nobody wins.
I actually returned to Sowerby Bridge on the following night to have a look at The Works. This is the 3rd time I've visited what is always a busy pub, with a big room and a band on every Thursday. Here the interest is not great either, but when it's this busy it's a little easier to take. Unfortunately I feel that it's unlikely to suit my band due to the volume. The entertainment policy seems more geared towards the pretentious than the talented, so we shall just have to see.
Saturday night certainly wasn't pretentious! Back down at The Peacock my band gave it everything in front of a lively crowd. It was the second time here for us, and the second time I've come away feeling rather pleased with how things went. Given even a passing resemblance to a 'good crowd' we now have the material and musicians to really let rip. I've never felt so on top of things in a pub before. We have well-known songs and strong originals, and still enough balance to make it interesting and challenging to perform. We really need to build on these sort of nights, if only there were a dozen venues like this, we could begin to really move forward.
I'm looking forward to this Saturday (the 12th July) when we return to another good band venue, the Rock and Heifer at Thornton. I'm rather more reticent about the Drop on Sunday afternoon, but let's hope it's a bit better than Wednesday in Sowerby Bridge.
Until then, enjoy the rain :)
For example, anyone with a negative outlook on life would have probably packed up for good after Wednesday night! Seriously, it wasn't actually that bad, and at least I got to the pub before closing time.
I'm referring to the Shepherds Rest in Sowerby Bridge. This is an Ossett Brewery pub and like all their pubs it is lovely. In our area there are many crap pubs, so their's all shine out like beacons in a brewery desert. The beer is great, the scrotes aren't there, the decor is tasteful. The only disadvantage is that some are very quiet midweek and that those that are there seem un-prepared and un-interested in live music.
On this occasion it was both. At 9:00pm the pub was completely dead, no customers whatsoever. I've done my fair share of playing to virtually nobody, but drew the line this time. We agreed I should wait a while and see if anyone turned up. If not I was free to go. Unfortunately, depending on your point of view, a few punters came in, indeed by 10pm there was just about a healthy number. But yet again (and not for the first time) there was ZERO interest in what I was doing. No applause, no awareness, just ignorance beyond apathy.
I played one set for 45 minutes then went home. I really do hope it will be better this Sunday at the Drop in Elland, but I doubt it somehow. No-one wants to know. It's such a shame, because the scrote-count last Sunday at the Bridge Tavern may have been high, but at least people were willing to be entertained. It's a tough call on both sides. I only wish Ossett (who I think do a wonderful job) would consider having turns on at least once a week. At the moment, I keep getting looked at like I've got 10 heads or something. It's not very conducive and nobody wins.
I actually returned to Sowerby Bridge on the following night to have a look at The Works. This is the 3rd time I've visited what is always a busy pub, with a big room and a band on every Thursday. Here the interest is not great either, but when it's this busy it's a little easier to take. Unfortunately I feel that it's unlikely to suit my band due to the volume. The entertainment policy seems more geared towards the pretentious than the talented, so we shall just have to see.
Saturday night certainly wasn't pretentious! Back down at The Peacock my band gave it everything in front of a lively crowd. It was the second time here for us, and the second time I've come away feeling rather pleased with how things went. Given even a passing resemblance to a 'good crowd' we now have the material and musicians to really let rip. I've never felt so on top of things in a pub before. We have well-known songs and strong originals, and still enough balance to make it interesting and challenging to perform. We really need to build on these sort of nights, if only there were a dozen venues like this, we could begin to really move forward.
I'm looking forward to this Saturday (the 12th July) when we return to another good band venue, the Rock and Heifer at Thornton. I'm rather more reticent about the Drop on Sunday afternoon, but let's hope it's a bit better than Wednesday in Sowerby Bridge.
Until then, enjoy the rain :)
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