This week saw the penultimate gig on The Works tour at the Everyman in Liverpool. The first thing I noticed on entering the City was that the Scousers had taken their European City of Culture 2008 win and started tearing up the streets of Liverpool. Such is the disruption that even locals can’t find their way around. We were all booked into the famous Adelphi Hotel (click on image on the right) but I simply could not find it. I found out later that I was actually driving round and round it but for now I had determined that if the road out of Liverpool presented itself on the next circuit I would take it. As it happened, the road out of Liverpool proved to be more elusive than the hotel and we kind of accidentally arrived there almost on time.
From A Distance
I was in Stockton today and parked in a rooftop carpark. Scroll down to see what interests me about this picture.
Well, I was stood beside that red brick building a few days ago and took this picture.
Then I had an idea – probably a daft one. Next week I’ll go to that spot across the river and take a picture of the exact spot from which I took the picture. Could be an interesting little project. Would be really cool with distant landscape shots, pics from the other side of the road, ……. well maybe? maybe not?
Travel Warp
Driving home this evening down the A19 from Tyneside to Teesside, close to Hartlepool I suddenly found myself in the USA.
Can We Fix It ????
My old Akai S950 sampler just died. We’ll it’s have a few health scares lately but I fear this time could be terminal. I have more advanced technology waiting to take over this once cutting edge machine but this would involve several hours setting up and I just need to switch on and go to bring some projects in on time(ish)
Don’t let the removed cover fool you, I know only two possible methods of fixing this kind of gear.
1 Switch it off and on again (didn’t work)
2 Gently push down all the chips as the heat sometimes lifts them loose.
Hurray !!! technique number two worked.
I’ve just lately been working up a theory of life on this planet and this episode is more evidence that I’m probably right (plus the fact that I’ve taken the time out to blog this instead of pressing on with my work)
The theory: – we’re all just arseholes in this life, bumbling along the best we can, that includes the politicians and the scientists. We aint got a clue, just some folks hide it better than others.
The Works Tour
Well I’m about to hit the road on the first gig of a small tour! It’s the Hydrogen JUkebox in Darlington this evening. OK, so it’s not a hotel trashing rock and roll thing but I’m looking forward to it. The tour is a with poet Maureen Almond who will be reading selections from her latest publication “The Works”. Digital Artist, Maggie Parker provides the visuals and I have produced the soundscape. Maggie and I provide our a accompaniment from a small orchestra of laptops at the back of the venue.
During the production of the audio soundscape I sagged off for a while and produced a groove based on Winston Churchills “Finest Hour” speech. I’ll upload that here soon.
[edited to add] pics from tonights gig at the Hydrogen Juke Box
THE TOUR
22 February 8.00 pm
Hydrogen Jukebox, Arts Centre, Vane Terrace, Darlington
7 March 12.30-1.30 pm
University of Teesside Centre for Enterprise, Victoria Road, Middlesbrough
9 March 1.30 ñ 2.30 pm
Washington Arts Centre, Biddick Lane, Fatfield, Washington.
16 March 2.00 ñ 4.00 pm
The Robert Atkinson Centre, Thorntree Road, Thornaby.
15 June 8.30 pm
Dead Good Poets’ Society, Everyman Bistro, Third Room, Hope St. Liverpool
(16 June 10.00 ñ 12.00 pm
Master Class at DGPS Office, 96 Bold Street, Liverpool)
25 June 6.00 ñ 10.00 pm
Memories of Thornaby Pie & Pea Supper Evening, The Youthy, Thornaby Road, Thornaby.
Autumn 2005 TBA
Colpitts, Alington House, 4 North Bailey, Durham City
2/3 September
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
Bullfrog Bootleg
On October 10th 1974 I got a call from our manager to say there was a gig going that very night supporting Wishbone Ash could I contact everyone and get the band together for the show. I rang round everyone including the roadies and we were ready to rock. When the call came in I had been dying my platform boots (well it was the 70’s) I fancied green but because of that call I had to turn out that night with one green boot and the other still the original cream colour. The show was at Newcastles Odeon Cinema, the one and only time we ever played there. This was before they split it up into smaller cinemas and was a huge venue.
 Now 30 years later I get an e-mail from a guy named Shaun who tells me he was at that gig. He sneaked in a cassette recorder with which to record the show. Shaun tells me he has just one song from my band on his cherished tape recording. He sent me a wav file and I’ve encoded it and added to this site. The wav was pretty distorted at source but prior to encoding I can hear all the performances of the 4 individuals pictured here to the right.It’s clearly one of our own songs but I only vaguely remember it.
Thank you Shaun for the digital memories, where does the time go huh? |
Bullfrog at the Odeon Newcastle circa 1974 by STMedia
UPDATED Jan 21st 2012
Yesterday I visited Newcastle to see the Odeon looking in a sorry state (below). I’ve since learned it has been de-listed and is undergoing demolition. Shame!
The pic below from 1995 is how I remember it.
This pic was taken in the 1940s long before I played there but this was the layout when it was a venue for bands. Once they broke it up into smaller cinemas it could no longer be used as a venue for bands.
This picture shows the scale of the Odeon before it became a multiplex. I believe it was this act of destruction that led to it’s eventual demise. If all those original features were still there it would no doubt still be a listed building.
Warrior Women & The Server Technician
I don’t know if the humour of this situation will come across in print. I was working in Hartlepool with a group today called the Warrior Women.
This ICT centre had the feeling of the Marie Celeste and when we tried to log on we were getting nowhere with usernames and passwords. We were almost on the point of giving up when this woman walked in and said she had sorted out the server. I said “excuse me, I don’t want to sound rude but you don’t look like the kind of person who resolves server issues” She said “well, I’m really a kitchen helper but I know how to sort out the server” I asked her to show me and we went into another deserted room which was quite sureal as it had a two way mirror into the computer room. She then demonstrated to me her server technique (see below) It worked but I’m sure you’re not supposed to throw the mains switch off and back on again!
Mini Holiday
Molly and me took off on a mini holiday at the weekend. We headed for Boroughbridge to stay here . Before arriving at our hotel we visited Castle Howard and spent about 4 hours in this atmospheric place.
We arrived at our hotel late afternoon and immediately took advantage of the hotels gymn. I particularly liked the pool as I hate swimming out of my depth and this one was 1.2 metres throughout. the hotel was really nice and yet inexpensive (relatively). The restaurant looked good but we found ourselves in the Indian Restaurant (pictured below) directly opposite the hotel which I declared the best curry house I had ever visited.
The next day we took a longish drive home via Bridlington, Scarbrough and Whitby.
Click an image to enlarge
The River Flows
Had a Sunday drive today and came to a very interesting spot. I had a strong feeling that the river was flowing the “wrong” way.
Gus Dudgeon Foundation Launched
This trip to Reading for the GDF launch was quite something. Pictured below are me and Adam Francis with that MCI desk from The Mill Studio. I never thought I would see it again. How well I remember our time in that fabulous studio with Gus.
Gus was of the habit of playing the previous bands sessions before starting on a new project. “Go on”, I said full of all the bravado of a NWOBHM producer. So he did ! I was stood right in front of these F***ing huge floor to ceiling speakers and the sound nearly knocked me over. Some plants in front of the speakers were swaying in the volume breeze and my trousers were flapping.
Coincidentaly, the band we were listening to was VOYAGER of which Chris Hook, pictured above was the bass player.
Article and picture courtesy David Stark of SONGLINK
A Personal Memory Of The Searchers
I was always a big fan of The Searchers so I was delighted when, in 1982 they recorded my song “I Don’t Want To Be The One”†
About a year or so later I heard they were performing in my area and I arranged to go. The gig was Castles in Catchgate (NE of UK) Actually it wasn’t that near but it was near the village where I grew up so stayed at my parents house. The gig was just down the road from where I went to school and the venue itself was where my own early band “Bullfrog” had rehearsed.†
When I got to the gig I went into the dressing room and introduced myself to the band. It was the line-up you see in the picture above. It was a great show and it was quite a blast to hear my song in the midst of all those classic tracks. What made it even better was that John McNally (or was it Frank Allen) introduced the song and said “this song was written by a guy who used to go to school around here and he ‘s standing at the bar over there, Steve Thompson”. I got a round of applause, it felt great.
Mike Pender
Me and John Verity produced Mikes a single “Its Over” . We didn’t write the song so we made him do one of ours on the B side. The song we gave him “Brothers And Sisters” was pretty crap really and I can’t remember why we didn’t give him something decent but hey, that’s showbiz!