Heading for the End Part #2: The Rose and Crown in Glory

So we finally reach the end of 2 years and 4 months of tireless gigging. Here's how it all went:

After warming up in the soundcheck to the first bit of All Star by Smash Mouth, I opened my set with Get Out Of My Head. I did the a'capella intro because I think opening a gig like that lends a certain amount of intrigue to proceedings, and given that I was following Neil Corbett, who just for the record is really, REALLY good, I thought I'd better look like I mean it. It did the job and I played it reasonably well; it has certainly served me well over the last year and a half!

Bitterness is of course the song that everybody remembers. I opened it by telling everybody that footage of me playing it now exists on Youtube, and hammered it out my my usual measure of bile and spite. Mitch said that's his favourite of my songs and he loves to hear me play it; I must admit it's probably one of the most enjoyable songs I play live, made all the more so by the small number of times I choose not to.

I then for only the second time brought on a guest, Mitch Jones to sing Hurt by Nine Inch Nails/Johnny Cash. Should probably have told Mitch which version we were singing because he sang the NIN lyric - you know the bit I mean. But it was a good song, fit my mood perfectly and it was a pleasure to sing with him. We might do it again in the future, who knows?

Then I did something I've been meaning to do for a while and sing A Lonely Night while throwing in the chorus to Dani California by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I did open it by dedicating it to RHCP 'for stealing my fucking song,' but in case and Chili Peppers people are reading this or saw it, I WAS ONLY JOKING. I want that on record, as I don't want a lawsuit for defamation! It would have worked well if I remembered the words to it, unfortunately I tripped up on one of the lines so it didn't go as well as I'd hoped. The rest of the song went OK though.

I finished off with one of my 'It's all over' songs, Home for Summer by Feeder. This one takes me right back to calling time on Jack's Legacy; it's fitting I think to end my last gig with this one. It worked perfectly.

Well I got some very positive feedback from some people who hadn't seen me before so thanks for that guys; I think as last gigs go, I could have done far worse than this. Thanks to Cal and Joy from Screaming Harlot for putting me on, and to everybody who watched my set.

Now with any rules, there are exceptions. I'm not doing solo gigs any more. I may, however, do some or all of the following:

• Gigs with The Fakes, or any other band I join,
• Back-up musician for a singer, e.g. Hannah,
• Compere gigs for the St John's Church group (which I haven't been blogging because I'm not actually performing, just compereing)

So I doubt you've seen the last of me. And I might be back playing gigs at some point. But for now, I need to take a long, hard look at myself and see what I want to be doing with this.

Because what I don't want to do is come back and do exactly the same thing I was doing when I left...

Goodbye for now!

New Songs or Old Classics? Gigs at the Rose and Crown and the Robin 2, March 2012

This is the first gig I've done for a while with the guys from Screaming Harlot - formerly Prickly Promotions - and I wanted to make it count. It was an unfamiliar audience to a degree, though Sam and Elliot were there making it a Travelling Fools gig as much as anything else, and it was a pretty relaxed atmosphere to be honest.

I've noticed a worrying precedent - unless I write my set list down straight away, I pretty much forget what I've played of a night. I remember they were all originals, I deliberately chose not to put any covers in this time. I remember forgetting the words to Get Out Of My Head, and then remembering them just in time. I remember playing A Lonely Night, and the whole thing held together quite well, but other than that not one of my more memorable shows.

I also did Sam's Open Mic at the Robin 2 the following Tuesday. I do remember what I played here, though this had more to do with the fact that it was almost completely different from usual. The set was:

Right Where It Belongs (Nine Inch Nails)
Prisoner of my Mind
The Edge Of My Universe
Bitterness

Now I know what you're thinking - What's The Edge Of My Universe? That's a new one... yes, you're quite right, that's my latest song. In fact I wrote it when I got to the Robin 2; I disappeared into the 'Noddy's Bar' bit at the back and wrote it there. I had to read of the words and I'll need to work on the delivery of those lines a little bit, but other than that it worked quite well!

I also got told by someone who saw me play there the last time that my 'wit' that I have on stage is really good and I should keep on doing it. That's nice to know, it's actually quite difficult to guauge if people find me funny or not!

So, my gigs are more memorable if I put new songs in there? Well, we know what to do...

The last 2 gigs of 2011

Hi there ladies and gents,

Important milestone for me, this. As the Facebookers among you will have all seen, my New Year's Resolution for last year was to play a gig every week. And Dec 30th, 2011, I played the last 2 gigs that saw me play a gig every single week of 2011, apart from the 2 weeks I was on holiday. If you don't believe me, read the rest of my blogs!

The first of the gigs was actually quite special. This was a fundraising event for Cancer Research, put on by Prickly Music Promotions at the Royal Oak in Amblecote. I opened the event, (right up until the last moment this was subject to change, but anyway,) and played 5 songs, as is usual with Prickly gigs. The set list was:

REM: Man on the Moon
Slade: Merry Xmas Everybody
Amy MacDonald: Let's Start A Band
My Chemical Romance: Cancer
Elbow: On A Day Like This

In the spirit of the event I decided to do the set entirely made of covers. Some worked better than others, but the highlight of the set was most definitely Cancer. There weren't many people at the event at this point but I expect they had all either been affected by cancer, or someone with cancer, at some point, or had heard my story of how that song strikes a particularly poignant nerve with me. I probably won't play it again, certainly not in any other environment, but it served it's purpose for what I needed it to do.

Then I scurried over to the Rose and Crown in Wordsley to open for Recollection, thanks for giving me the gig guys! I played a set largely comprised of covers, though I did throw a couple of my own songs in there as well. The set was:


REM: Man on the Moon
Slade: Merry Xmas Everybody
Bitterness
Amy MacDonald: Let's Start A Band
Feeder: Yesterday Went Too Soon
A Lonely Night
Erasure/Wheatus: A Little Respect
Storm from the North

It went OK, I managed to get through the gig without messing up too badly. I do think, though, that I need to be a little more careful with what covers I'm playing in an environment like that. I started out OK but when I started playing the more contemporary songs like Feeder and Amy MacDonald the audience - who specifically asked me for things like Black Sabbath, Led Zepplin, Deep Purple - basically lost interest.

However, that ties in to my New Year's Resolution for 2012: Learn a New Song Every Week! Looking forward to the next few gigs... see you soon! And Happy New Year!