I haven’t got a quick and catchy phrase to describe my music or that of Mike and Rob (Nichols) come to that. I did once think of describing mine as elucinogenic mouse singing but I’m yet to stick that on a poster or any other type of blurb. Overall I’m happy to have the problem that my music is hard to describe nevertheless it can be a pain.
In his Facebook Event Page, Mike has given the gig the name – Mike Flew Over The Rob’s Nest and ideally I would have spent hours on photoshop trying to make an illustrative poster instead it took me about 15-20 minutes to make the one above using what seems to be a photo taken by accident on my phone. I suppose the nest could have been a mouse nest.
Actually I’ve got another gig in 2 day’s time which will precede this one so that’s a good warm up. On Tuesday it’s just me accompanied by Nacho on cojón, but the gig on the teenth will be with Everton Hartley on bass guitar and there will be at least one guest performer hopefully 2 or 3.
The desaturated background to the flier is a drawing I found somewhere on the web of King Canute sat on his throne surrounded by his elite bodyguard at the edge of the sea. Here’s the words to my song Die Andere Seite just for fun.
mirky brown tide
and on the other side
path’s cute as canute
but there’s no sound of a flute
where did the great god die?
or was he just lord fly?
mirky brown tide
mirky brown tide
invisible cloud
like a veil or a shroud
makes you inside darken
you can see when they cut you open
and it’s also very loud
invisible cloud
invisible cloud
zig-zagging high
without a word of a lie
you’ve got to time it right
to avoid any fright
two snakes twisting by
zig-zagging high
zig-zagging high
I have a little gig on Saturday night at the Adam & Eve pub in Hotwells. I’m doing it with my good friend Jane Thomason which seemed like a good idea. Initially Everton Hartley will also feature – he has another gig on Saturday so he’ll only be around for the 1st half hour (9-9.30).
The plan is that Everton and I will do our guitar duo thing, then Jane will do a set of her wonderful songs and then she is going to accompany me on violin for a mostly instrumental set. We’ve only got 5 pieces that we’ve worked on, but all the pieces are vehicles for improvisation and have no set length.
The image is one that Jane has created and used on her Facebook page to publicise the gig.
it’s been a while since i put up a poster for a gig. it’s not that i haven’t been doing any gigs i just haven’t really worked too hard at either producing posters or even if i’ve done that posting them on the internet. but rosie’s sent me this one tonight and so i thought i’d represent it for the good of the community because this is a good cause gig. i’ll say no more. i will be playing with rosalind moreno-parra. she will be singing, i’ll play guitar and carola hengstenberg will play violin. it works pretty well. carola’s only been playing improvised music for the last 6-8 months but she’s a very accomplished violinist with a beautiful tone and actually she’s a natural improviser as it turns out – very good ear and sense of melody – so if you can make it to see us (about 9pm i believe though i can’t guarantee that’s right – from experience these multi-act events can be chaotic) it will not be in vain.
Earlier this year I wrote in a post that I was determined to write a song in Esperanto before the end of the year. I haven’t done so yet, but I’ve gone a certain way along the path in recording another improvisation in which I make heavy use of numbers 1 to 10 in the said language and I’ve given it an Esperanto title. I mentioned a couple of months earlier that I was reading a certain book by Mr Wells and the Esperanto language does feature to a certain extent in the book where it is used as a symbol of a posited future where peace is a possibility.
Also enveloped within the music-scape is the traditional song Scarborough Fair. I will be performing on Saturday at Lance and Libby Cross’s wedding anniversary party which will be a pleasure. My good friend Ant Noel and I will be running it in an open mic style. Including ourselves there should be also appearing Jane Thomason, Franny McGirr, Dan Ashby, Everton Hartley, Rosalind Moreno-Parra and probably some others. Whether I will get round to doing something like this piece is not definite. All I know for sure is that I will be playing my song Wishing Well at some point because it’s a particular favourite of Lance’s.
Then on Monday I’m supporting Jane for her album launch. For that occasion I will be doing a set accompanying Rosie with me and Everton on guitar. The 1st song on Jane’s new album was written after seeing a gig Rosie and I did last December just before Christmas at a tango milonga. I’m so pleased she did that it’s beautiful as is the whole album.
Here’s the latest improvisation. It’s the 3rd in a series and it’s a bit over 20 minutes long. Everything was recorded live.
we hope you can make it. please spot the deliberate mistake on the poster which I’ve only just been made aware of. presumably pleading insanity will get me knowhere.
also this month I will be playing with Rosie at Wild at Heart, Broad Street, Bristol on 17th; somewhere in Queen’s Square, Bristol on 18th – more details of that later.
