Ok well this could be a very long rambling blog or if I run out of time as I invariably do it may be cut short. Keep reading to find out?
Right, first thing is first
Due to Jim breaking a Rib our final gig this year (Beeston Greyhound this Friday – Today) has been cancelled. Yes we probably could have found a drummer to sit in but why would we want to do that? The Clan is a band in which all three of us contribute equally and the absence of any one of us immediately reduces the delivery and performance to a maximum of 67%. As a band that thrive on live gigs we always aim to deliver 100% so given that was never going to be possible we decided to pull the gig and hopefully re-arrange for some time during 2017. A shame as we love playing the Greyhound, it is one of our favourite venues however we explained the situation to Rob and he seemed ok about it being the reasonable guy that he is.
Our next gig is a “home” gig –Stanley’’ Cask – Wallasey in January. Hopefully Jim will be fixed and cleared to play.
I guess it is almost time to look back at the year. As always, highs and lows as far as the band but mainly highs. Our decision to play less but better quality gigs is certainly paying off as far as I am concerned. Highlights include – Snooty Fox, Cambridge Rock Festival, Supporting Wishbone Ash, Chester Live rooms and Fakefest. That doesn’t mean the others were not enjoyable of course. Not really anyway we regret. A couple of new venues found as well plus of course others closing (The Bath in Morecambe being a sad day)
We are already looking forward to next year though with Mearfest (Newcastle), Supporting LA Guns (Buckley Tivoli) and hopefully more next year alongside the pub gigs.
I don’t really like to talk about personal and family life in these blogs but suffice to say there have been better years. Onwards and upwards.
So what else? A Failure to lose the weight as per my goal. Slightly frustrating but when there are other things happening it kind of goes out of the window. Just keep trying I suppose.
Christmas is nearly upon us, that won’t help any weight loss but it is an event which kind of marks the end of the year regardless as to your feelings about it. Remember our Festive track is still available to download from our website or ITunes. if you fancy a change to the usual. Got to try haven’t I? Still, I have to say I still Like Greg Lake’s offering and sad to lose him recently.
Not much else to talk about at the moment.
Rants
As I have said previously I am trying to only get worked up about things that have a direct impact on me or my loved ones. GP surgeries are one, some are impossible to get an appointment in when you actually need it. In fact the NHS really is creaking at the seams these days. I am not sure it is sustainable in its present form for much longer. I can see that Private health insurance may well be introduced at some point for the more costly procedures and treatments.
I am sure it is unavoidable but cutting off the train service between Wirral and Liverpool is going to cause major disruption, chaos in the Mersey road tunnels and a lot of people arriving late to work. On the plus side the Mersey ferries may have a resurgence if they can manage to keep more than one boat going. Still, it is only for 6 months!!
Music
I saw some good pro bands this year, Michael Schenker being one of them, excellent. Blackmore was good of course although his band were a bit non-descript apart for Ronnie Romero the vocalist.
They are back in June so I will be going of course, it may be better, you can never tell what Ritchie Blackmore may do.
Kent Duchaine never fails to impress despite playing to disinterested pub regulars who would rather he wasn’t there. A trooper.
I have watched a few good music documentaries recently, Twisted Sister, Gary Numan and UB40. All very interesting although not really a fan of any of them musically. What came over in the Twisted Sister film was their sheer determination and commitment to putting on a good show, ploughing all their earnings back into it to make it even better next time around. This was true with Paul Stanley/Kiss and Alice Cooper band as well. It is very difficult to “make it” in the music business without financial input. Most bands have a backer (it used to be the record company but these days is more likely to be an individual with deep pockets) who will feed money into getting the band recorded, placed on tours, radio play, Magazine and press coverage etc. That always has been the way I think, just remember that backer will want their money back when it starts coming in. That is how it works.
Unfortunately it is not all about talent, the reality is that it is more about marketing and exposure.
I have been listening to a quite a lot of bands that came out of the NWOBHM (New Wave of British heavy Metal) movement recently. Many have reformed and there are some good bands out there.
I came out of the same era (First Sinner gig 1979) although thankfully never went along with the spandex trousers that many sported. Quite frankly even thinking about that image is frightening. I probably had a few bad stage outfits over the years but hey that is life. Nobody is perfect.
Nwobhm is actually having a bit of a comeback although whether it will attract younger fans I don’t know. Hopefully it may encourage a few people to write and play their own music.
Ok, that is it for now, I am trying to get back into the weekly routine so watch this space.
Keep Rockin’
Craig