Rugby Homecoming July 3rd

Saturday night was a special night for Bob. He was born and lived in Rugby before emigrating with his mother to Australia in the late 60s. His late father was a regular at Hillmorton Ex-Serviceman's Club and so it was fitting that his UK family and friends should organise a show at this club.
The trip from Northampton to Rugby was uneventful although Chris' insect bite on his leg was giving him some discomfort. Luckily Sue was with us and dispensed motherly care and concern and antiseptic cream in equal measures.
Bob's extended family almost filled the room. Most of them had never seen him sing or play and each song was greeted with warm applause. We were due to play 2x45 minute sets plus a 30 minute middle set, but the meeting and greeting and photographing ate into the interval time. At one stage Bob was photographing the crowd mid-song. It was great, a real family reunion.

But what about the show? Nicki and the band performed to their usual high standard and Nicki treated us to a welcome return of her little red dress.

Once again the audience took over Nicki's rendition of the "Australian Trilogy" and sang the first chorus of "Waltzing matilda" unaccompanied. This is proving to be a popular show closer. Loud and prolongued calls for an encore were followed by Nicki singing "Simply the best" to a crowded dance floor.
Although the music had stopped, the show went on as Nicki and Bob posed for photos and chatted to the crowd while Chris organised the packing away and loading up of the gear.
We drove back to Northampton where we unloaded Cozy's drums. He's away on tour in Europe until Thursday as we have a few day's break before meeting up again on the Isle of Wight.

Earls Barton July 2nd

Last night Nicki was special guest at a Barbary Coast reunion show at Earls Barton WMC. As you may know, both Cozy and Bob were members of Barbary Coast back in the 80s when they were Frank Ifield's backing group.
Robbo organised the booking and Bugsy, Basil and Queenie joined Robbo, Cozy and Bob to play a couple of sets to a full house at this small club in a Northants village. Nicki played a 40 minute showcase between their sets. It was a lovely summer's evening and a good time was had by all.
I hadn't played the club since the late 70s when my band Conspiracy used to play there a couple of times a year. It hadn't changed much, but I'm glad they got an extension to the stage, because it was just as cramped as I remember it. I even recognised some faces among the crowd.
Nicki, Bob & Tracy found a chinese takeaway and ate it sitting in the van before the show started.

The show started with a set from Robbo and the boys and they sounded very smooth and polished, despite the years and miles since their last performance. Then it was Nicki's turn. We've been using a radio mike for her shows so she was able to make her entrance through the crowd as we played her opening number "Lucy Jordan". The rest of the set were mostly her own songs, and despite the unfamiliarity of the material she won the crowd over with an electric performance.
All too soon it was over and I went outside, put on my tour jacket and slowly cooled down as we chatted to friends. It was a great evening. Both bands sounded great and the hundred or so people who packed into this tiny club had an evening to remember.
Chris enjoyed his first pint of Guinness so much he had a second, so I drove the van home. It was only a few miles and it was the least I could do. We've got a lot of miles to cover in the next few weeks.
Tonight we're playing a show in Bob's home town of Rugby. I'm looking forward to that.

Weds 30th June North Biddick WMC

It was a long old haul up the M1 and A1 to Washington, Tyne & Wear for last night's show. Nicky, Tracy & Bob had made their way via Scarborough and Whitby, while Chris, Cozy and myself drove up via Northampton.
Once again the weather was very warm and luckily the roads were clear. It still took four hours to drive the 220 or so miles to the venue. We arrived in very good time and had plenty of time to set up. After a cuppa and a sound check we were ready to go.
Nicki's first song was extremely well received and Chris told me that he and Tracy knew right away that this was to be a special night.
The band played well, Nicki was on song despite a toothache, and every song was applauded long and loudly.
All too soon the show was over and Nicki spent some time chatting to everyone and having her photo taken while we packed everything away. We got loaded and away by 12.30. I was sweating buckets under the lights and it was cool outside, so strange as it may seem I wore my tour jacket buttoned up so as to keep the heat in and cool down slowly.
My health is a bit fragile and I don't want to take risks of getting ill before the end of the tour. Chris drove all the way home. We stopped for a short break after about 100 miles and again to get some diesel at Leicester Forest Services. We dropped Cozy off and got home at about 4.30. I made a cuppa and took it to bed, staying awake just long enough to drink it before falling asleep
Three local shows this weekend. Bring em on!

Outdoor stage

This was the stage we played on on Sunday. The sun shone, it was blazing hot, and everyone who attended was a fan of the music. Let's hope that any other outdoor shows will have as good weather as this.

The R49 Festival at Leominster, Sunday 27th June

It was an early start. Too early as it happened, because the traffic was very light and we misjudged how long it would take us to drive over to Leominster.
We arrived at the Festival entrance to find everyone still asleep, yes it was that early. We drove down to the stage area and had a recce. It was going to be a very hot day. The stage was a converted 40 foot trailer with a blister style pull out extension, so we had an ample stage of about 30 x 20 and plenty of time to get set up. All the acts had to be there and set up by ten o'clock as the event kicked off at 10.30.
Our first set was at about mid-day and the second at about 3.30.
Nicky went to get changed and soon returned. In the rush to leave the hotel to get to the site she'd picked up the wrong stage gear and what she thought was a dress was in fact a top. Luckily there were plenty of trade stands selling clothing and she picked out a lovely red fringed dress that fitted her like a glove. Just as well, because we cut it fine getting onto the stage.
Nicki and the band soon got the crowd going and we finished to set to rapturous applause. We continued to chill out backstage until it was time to play again, at a time that coincided with the World Cup game against Germany, so the performance was interspersed with news of the scores as they came in.
The crowd soon forgot England's woes as they were won over by Nicki. Many of the audience and organisers will be at the Welshpool festival in a couple of weeks time and we look forward to seeing them there.
We quickly dismantled the kit and cleared the stage so that the final band could play, then loaded the van ready for a leisurely drive home via Worcester, Pershore and Evesham, then the A46 and A/M45, M1 and home.
Chris hadn't had much sleep so I took over and drove part of the way home. I'm feeling fitter and stronger and my sore throat has now cleared up. Next stop for Nicki is a BBC radio interview, next stop for me is a hospital apointment on Tuesday, and the next stop for the band is a trip to the North East on Wednesday.

Sunny Shropshire

Last night we played a show in a picturesque town in Shropshire called Ellesmere. We set off early to avoid the usual Friday afternoon motorway carnage, and by mostly sticking to the old A5  we arrived in very good time. It was incredibly hot in the van as the sun shone in through the windcreen all the way there. We had time to get the picnic chairs out and sit and eat a takeaway before loading in, but I was still parched until we'd set up and tested everything. I then set up the kettle and made cups of tea until every thirst was quenched. (It took three mugs for me).

We hit a familiar snag on this show. The lack of, or ineffectiveness of publicity. Basically, the paying public know what they like, and like what they know. Advertisers reckon that the average person needs to see an advert eight times before it registers with them. Unfortunately, the promotors efforts to advertise Nicki fell on mostly deaf ears and blind eyes, hence the low turnout. Not to be discouraged, Nicki turned in a blindingly good performance and won the crowd over.

When the show had finished I was relegated to tea making duties and packing away the cables. Once the van was loaded we said our farewells. Nick, Bob and Tracy drove to Ludlow and Chris, Cozy and myself back home. However, we hadn't enough diesel to get that far, so we very carefully drove down to Shrewsbury and then managed to find a 24 hour Tesco, where we put as much fuel in as we could afford. We had a wander around the store looking for food ( I can't eat when it's too hot, but I was hungry when we got off stage) and then we drove home.

We arrived home and got to bed at about four. Exactly twenty four hours later we have to be up and out and on our way to the next show in Ludlow, where we play in the morning and again in the afternoon. I hope there's a good turnout.

Thursday 24th June

I've done four shows with Nicki, Bob, Tracy, Chris and Cozy so far. I've had to take it easy and not lift or carry anything, and try and stay in isolation from everyone. That's a bit strange but it's working so far.

I'm really loving every minute of this tour, and I'm going to continue to do so. It's great to work with my son Chris, and although it seems limited by my own standards, I believe I'm making a contribution to the success of the tour so far.
I'm treating each show as if it were my last. You never know, one of these shows might be.