I’m about a month away from the first gig. O dear! Am I rehearsed? Yes – er.. I don’t know. Am I singing the right songs? – er.. Dear roy, can you please sing songs full of political angst this time? Dear roy, Can you please sing love songs this time, instead of all that loud angry stuff. Dear roy, Can you drop all that boring historical stuff next time you tour? Dear roy, can you please stop thinking about your garden, new songs, your football team, your fish in their pond, your constant fight with the untidiness of your iMac, your poems, your kitchen door, the news, your cricket team, the roof, childhood, your two bit stamp collection, the ivy climbing towards the gutter, Sergio Aguerro, Andy Murray, the chimney, sex, and drugs, and rock and roll, jazz, food and research, and shopping.. and.. Can you just put all of that junk out of your mind? Please!
No, I can’t. Soon enough it’ll be time for Mo Farah, and I’d like to do some recreational reading. War And Peace maybe.. Actually, I’d like to read ‘Kim’, but there are other things to attend to, like one of the important players can’t make one of the rehearsals, and another can’t make one of the gigs! ..and where are we going to rehearse?, and two of the guys have to take a 6am flight from one gig to play another at 2pm the same afternoon in a different country; and I’d like to get some music written for a new song that I don’t even know I’m going to play yet. I want to; but will I get there. I have the ideas, but is that too ambitious? Then there’ll be the questions about who plays what instrument. Oh yes, and there’s the question of guitar accompaniment.
Thankfully, that’s sorted, and can be added to the above ongoing to do list, along with another name. Bill Shanley is local to me, and he’s a world renowned guitarist. The last time I saw Bill playing was in Shanley’s, in Clonakilty. Some time before that I saw him playing with Ray Davies when we both played at the Sage in Gateshead on the same night. He played wonderfully on my last album, Man And Myth. Playing with Bill is the bit I’m really looking forward to.
I’ll be playing a combination of my old favourites. In my mind, there may be some attempt to pace myself, but knowing the beast as well as I do, I’ll also be testing myself to the limits again. Catch me while you can. Really hope to see you there.
Tickets are still available for all venues as I type.
