1,096 Days...

Playlist
John McLaughlin – The Heart of Things
John McLaughlin – Industrial Zen
John McLaughlin – Devotion
Various – The Best Disco Album in the World...Ever!
The Angel Conversations - EP

Happy birthday to the blog, three years old today, this is the 1,141st post – I’m amazed I’ve kept a diary for three years...

Looking back over the period, I’m also surprised at how little my life has changed – I suppose I’m at an age where change is less likely...

I spend a lot of time listening to music and playing music and am very much a creature of habit it seems...

Anyhow, today was of course the day of my first full set performance since last July following being incapacitated from September through to the start of February with the shoulder problems and consequent operation and recuperation...

I deliberately avoided listening to any CBQ at all today and Anne and I enjoyed some classic disco sounds as we drove to the venue...

It was a good night with, dare I say it, yet another four good acts following on from last month’s Secret CD...

As we soundchecked I started to doubt whether we should use the backing track CD but Anne and Jamie convinced me to carry on as planned...

Even though it was loud, from where we were to play, without monitors, I knew it was going to be difficult to hear our backing and I was concerned that the sound wouldn’t properly portray the “Ersatzreal” CD – which was the plan after all...

I needn’t have worried though – it went without a glitch (apart from a false start due to not resetting the disc after the soundcheck)...

It didn’t sound great from where we were but it’s often the case that what sounds poor on stage sounds fine out front and tonight seemed to be one of those times judging by the reception we got during, and the comments we received after, the set, which comprised...

Blue Eyes Across the Room
The Angels’ Kiss
Another Piece of Cake (Debut Performance)
The Luckiest Man Alive
The End of Everything
Starting to Worry
No Concrete Idea
Lights Out

Good to see some old chums along – Martin Lennon, Lynn Flannigan, Ali Graham, Ian Sclater (with whom I will be working again soon I think) as well as OOTB regulars like Electric White Boy (aka Broken Tooth), Scott Renton and of course Hannah O’Reilly and the Angel Conversations – who were also on the bill and gave sterling performances - and compere (and impressario) Jim Igoe, CD seller Miss Fi and soundman extraordinaire, Dave O'Hara...

Anne particularly enjoyed the Angel Conversations so I bought their CD at the end of the night...

Ending proceedings were the five man weird outfit Fanattica including Poles, Greeks and Englishmen playing folk tunes on an assortment of instruments...


Top : CBQ, The Angel Conversations; Bottom : Hannah O'Reilly, Fanattica

After Jamie and Scott failed to get me to agree to go to the Fence Collective’s Festival in Anstruther, Jamie leant me a couple of King Creosote CDs and Anne, Lynn and I made our way home to the sounds of the Angel Conversations...

Highlight of the Day : Returning to the stage