The week after that Moody Ruse gig, I went to Scotland with The Stones. We were booked for two nights at “The Ferry” on the Clyde, and I sat in for Paul, their regular keyboard player. An unusual lineup this, because Chris (who usually plays Keith) stood in for the […]
live music
33 posts
I’ve had a very rock and roll few weeks. After a final band practice, the Moody Ruse hit the stage for the first time. The venue was Fairycroft House, in Saffron Walden, where we’ve been rehearsing for the last few months. The facilities – and the people who run the […]
When I was in France, my winters were all about learning songs for the next wedding season, rehearsing with SouthWest every other Monday, and teaching a few students. The first gig of the year was in May, at the earliest. It’s different this year. School 1 Last Thursday morning, I […]
Four weeks ago last Saturday, I returned to the wonderful Chateau du Doux for the end of my French wedding season. (And the end of my 15 years as a French resident.) Daniel and Charlotte FINALLY tied the knot — after years of Covid delays. I was in the hot […]
Two years ago, just before a gig in Cadouin, we were given our first ever fan art. I published it here. Two days ago, during my final gig in Cadouin (more on that in a moment), we were given our second ever piece of fan art – by the same […]
After the last gig, I was going to take a week off, to rest my hands. But then, someone I played with in London DECADES ago (my emphasis), asked if I was available to play a gig on July 9th – this year – in England – for a well-established […]
On Saturday, I set off in the rain for Chateau du Doux. I’d been watching the forecast for a couple of weeks and it wasn’t looking good. Jason and Chloë had been waiting a long time for this… I drove through light rain, heavy rain, heavier rain and very heavy […]
After Friday’s gig, I was expecting a couple of weeks’ rest. We’re not normally this busy, this early in the season, but… Covid. The weddings from 2020 were pushed into 2021, which were then pushed into 2022. Not a huge surprise, I’m sure you’ll agree, and very welcome after two […]
Last Saturday saw the first wedding of the 2022 season, at the beautiful Chateau du Doux (as seen on TV). The weather (as you can see) could not have been more perfect. It was somewhere in the high 20sC and not a cloud in the sky. Which led to two […]
This year, I’ve been Instagramming stories on gig days. Which means I’ve totally neglected this blog. Back in June, the band actually got to play a wedding! At a venue we haven’t played before – Chateau Camp del Saltre. It was excellent to get out there again, and Andy fronted […]
A few clients have asked me about my solo piano set list, recently. I’ve been avoiding this, because my music pile has looked like this for months (taken earlier this morning): Following some prompting from a hairstylist and make up artist, I waded through the pile just now. And here […]
All the weddings from 2020 have been pushed into 2021 and beyond. And for a while, it looked like this year would be totally free of gigs. But the band’s public gigs have gone ahead—and we played twice this week! Here’s the view from my keyboard of Thursday’s gig in […]
December sees me out and about with the wonderful Katia (not pictured), doing a Christmas show for children, in schools and village halls around Nouvelle Aquitaine. I snapped a few pictures for this blog, to show I do actually do something over the winter months, apart from teaching and learning […]
I should probably write this in French. Here’s a video I’ve been working on for the last few days, showing a montage of shots from some of the Boby Lapointe gigs I did with Pascal Destal over the last 12 months. It shows the show fairly well, although some of […]
I’m not naming names, but one among one of the bands I play with agreed to do a gig for charity. For no money. For people who have money. Everything about it was not OK, and I explained my reasons to the whole band but said I would do it. […]
A couple of days after that last gig, I went to Argentat with Purple Rock. They set up a stage just for us, and I snapped this panorama just after we arrived. Yes, it was hot. There will be a video of this gig, when I get round to it. […]
I’ve fallen behind with the blog posts, but the rush of gigs is easing up now, so I’ll be able to catch up soon… Here’s a screen grab of the Boby Lapointe gig on August 5th. I’ve put a video together when I’ve got more time. As always, a joy […]
On Thursday morning, it rained the kind of rain familiar to everyone who has been on a caravan holiday in Scotland, Wales, southwest England—pretty much anywhere in Britain. After lunch, the rain dried up and the decision was made for the SouthWest gig in Cadouin to go ahead. We set […]
On Wednesday, I went with Purple Rock to Terrasson to play at a café overlooking the river. We have quite a lot of gear, so started setting up before the road was officially closed, which meant the police rocked up. We didn’t give them too much of a hard time […]
This weekend saw Purple Rock take to the stage under La Halle in Villeréal for the annual Bodega day. We had to set up early, as they closed the town to traffic, but this gave us plenty of time to hang out and see some of the many other musicians […]
On July 15th, I played the dockside in Bergerac with blues/rock band, Purple Rock. We added a few new tracks to the set, so there are some calmer songs to aid digestion. The audience did well to dance on the cobbles, with more serious dancing taking place on the nearest […]
I was delighted to be asked back to the palliative care unit at Perigueux hospital, a couple of weeks ago. (I’m a bit behind with the blog posts—and a rash of posts today will show you why. I played mainly for friends of someone undergoing treatment and gave an impromptu […]
On Monday, I accompanied singer and actor Pascal Destal for an evening of Boby Lapointe. If you’re not French, you’ve probably never heard of him, but Boby wrote and performed songs at about the same time Spike Milligan was being a genius in the UK. Pascal has been performing Boby’s […]
Friday night saw Purple Rock play an early season event at Eden et Sens, just north of Bergerac. It was hot and bright, but I did remember to snap a shot of us setting up on my phone. For details of upcoming gigs – and there are many – check […]
On June 21st every year, France has a music festival everywhere. It’s called the “Fête de la musique” and towns and villages throughout the land put up stages and host bands for the public, for free. With food and bars, too. Obviously. This is France. Yesterday, I fêted la musique […]
Not really. This is the setup before we played a wedding last Saturday. A half-French, half-British affair – I’ve never seen so many bilingual people in one place! Video was shot and sound was recorded, but this week is very busy, preparing for two big gigs on Friday and Saturday, […]
On Saturday, we played a wedding for a Dutch couple up in the north of the Dordogne. I have very little Dutch, and some of it obscure—Hagelslag, for example, always raises a smile (although I’ve only just seen it written down for the first time and was expecting more As. […]
Alliance 24 is an association that organises volunteers to accompany very ill people to the end of their lives. On Tuesday afternoons, they also organise a musician or musicians to go and play for the people in the palliative care unit at Perigueux hospital. Last week was my first gig […]
Here’s a video of the Purple Rock gig at Lembarzique for the opening of the Bergerac Jazz Festival 2019, with clips of almost all the songs we played that night. The soundtrack was provided by the venue, through the new digital desk. The off-stage camera is also at the venue, […]
This is slightly out of order (not in a bad way), because of the confusion caused by the hacking of this site at the start of the season (which was out of order and not in a good way). It’s a video from the first wedding of 2019, at Domaine […]
You’ll have to put up with the odd painful pun, I’m afraid. (I’m a dad.) While we’re (not) on the subject of comedy, here’s a gag from Gérard, the drummer of SouthWest: What’s the difference between God and a guitarist? God doesn’t think he’s a guitarist. I’m here all week, […]
It’s a busy time at the moment. Here’s a snapshot of the stage at the Lembarzique café near Bergerac, where I made my debut with the new band, Purple Rock. We opened the 2019 Bergerac Jazz Festival (although we’re a blues/rock band – don’t worry) and it was an excellent […]
On the last Friday of every month, I usually accompany a bunch of improvisers for an evening of face-achingly funny skits. These skits are prompted by suggestions from the audience in the way you might expect. I usually play between scenes – just a few bars of something upbeat, to […]