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17 : The Rhythm Festival, Bedford – 05AUG07
We were so pleased to see the sunshine this week – after the disappointment of two of our biggest outside gigs this year having been cancelled due to the extreme flooding that has hit this island – we were beginning to think that the 2007 summer season was doomed…
Pic by John Sands
…and then the sun came and blimey what a day. It was boiling at Twinwood Arena and we had to be on site four hours before our appearance so we took a walk round and I laughed to myself as I watched people open mouthed looking at Jock as he wandered between the crowds. Mugger and Jock get their kilts on for these festival gigs but he had told me he was going to save himself for the moment and not wear the kilt until going on time. 'Need to just blend in a bit', he said, 'pre gig'. And so he had put on an all white suit, hand printed on the back with 'THE BAND FROM COUNTY HELL', string vest, red braces, bowler hat and huge flamed boots. He was like a walking bill-board for our gig and did he blend in?....children were following him like the Pied Piper and their parents wanted to take his picture.
The Blockheads were due on the other stage half way through our set and we had got one chance of going on, grabbing the audience and either keeping them or playing to an empty field. The boys were ready for this gig like no other, a little tired, some a little stressed, some a little hung over and some a little over excited but give them a stage an audience and a challenge and by crickey they took the moment and ran with it. The response to our music was overwhelming, it was like doing our very first gig, some people had seen us at Wychwood, some had come from Lincoln and some just stood with their mouths open as though they had never heard anything like it before and thank goodness we didn't know who had turned up to see us and assess our capabilities......our link to someone so special to us that only those of you who really know this band could know who that could be?
Thank you to the Festival organisers, backstage crew and caterers…there was nothing polite about the amount the boys ate, it was all thoroughly enjoyed.
A huge Well Done to our young brass player who really used his initiative – towards the end of the set the gennies packed up across the festival site. It was one of those moments that lasted around five mins and felt like fifty…George jumped off the stage got us to follow and started playing 'Dirty Old Town' on the trumpet…the audience lapped it up and danced and sung with us…and then back on stage and a roaring finish to the set thankfully with the power on!!
A VERY SPECIAL DAY FOR BFCH.
Joolz
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