It Must Be Love Under An Umb-er-ella

Present
Ad, Eg, Gi, Tom

A clutch(?) of four songs has become staple practice process recently with our shared desire to release them as a CD maxi-single type EP thingy. Maybe that should be the collective noun.... an EP of four songs. No. Sounds terrible.

Four songs. We practice them regularly. Want to release them. Corner of My Mind, Lay Your Table Bare [Tom's Song], Somersaults and The Smile.

Ad introduces his new Zoom H2 handy recorder. Eg brings along the music to Rhianna's 'Umbrella' and Madness's 'It Must Be Love'.

Post Practice Pint Topics of Conversation: Tom's [Diner] Kitchen - Eg's pessimistic prophecy that it would be ready in the summer turns out to have been an optimistic one. Disney Land - paying to have your photograph taken with Minnie Mouse. High School Musical - it's a cross between Grease and Kids from Fame [Ad perks up, Gi looks bemused], the kids love it [Eg's Jessie and he have scripted the next two films - bedtime stories aren't what they used to be].

Download and Listen to this month's Gig Alert

Present
Ad, Eg, Gi, Tom

Tried a new song - Not Too Late and another stab at making You Are The One a bit more universally enjoyed. Ben left Tom with the key to the studio as he left early and there was no-one else in the place.

Post Practice Pint at the Pub Topics of Conversation included: Gi asks 'Do fish sleep? - Eg thinks so, Ad reckons that they must 'sleep-swim'. The success of the previous weekend's gig. Spraying essence of Basil over your meal in a restaurant. Eg's superior Gig Negotiation Skills by allowing a venue owner to barter up our gig fee from an initially acceptable £0.00 to £250.00. The outrageous invariability of the shape of your average supermarket tomato.

Fattened Up Practice

Present
Ad, Eg, Fea, Gi, Tom and Paul

Stand-in bass player Paul has his final practice with the band before Saturday's gig. Odd having two bass players on the go.

Car park unusually jammed this evening.

Fea has to leave before the Post Practice Pint.

Post Practice Pint Topics of conversation: pensions, Gi leaving his job, Eg's terrible idea for a television slot on an Ant 'n' Dec Saturday night TV programme, Fea gets a puncture on his way home and phones Eg for help, while everyone is talking about Pot Noodles. Ad remembers using his collection of empty Pot Noodle pots as a spare bed leg back at University. Paul didn't get a cold till he was 16 years old thanks to him being breast-fed. Remarkable

Practice, yes, slimmed down, yes,

Present
Ad, Fea, Tom

Practised playing songs without vocals with the view of speeding up our recording sessions later. 'The Smile', 'Somersaults', 'Found By You', 'The Corner of your Mind'.

We also tried 'I Can See Clearly Now' and played 'Change', 'Sparkle and Shine'.

Fea went home before the post practice pint at the pub leaving Tom and I to talk nonsense at the bar.

Topics of conversation for the evening: Tom over-estimating the size of his eldest daughter's school after claiming she was the best in the school at 'x', Ad should be a primary school teacher but always looks deflated when that is suggested, the podcasting business and to improve one's product. Rock and Roll.

Gig: Wootton Bassett

The Wootton Bassett Carnival. Or Street Fete, or whatever.

Two sets. One at 1245hrs and the other at 1545hrs.

Elvis supported us. Weather fantastic. Small thronglette of support.

Wayne the village 'character in the street' was our Bez.

Cricklade was mentioned a few times.

Lots of people requesting CDs afterwards. Which is always a good sign. Apart from the woman who desperately wanted an Elvis CD not a loopy one. Ad informed her that he believed Elvis already had a couple of albums in the shops. She slapped him with the back of a loopy CD and walked off saying that she was Cricklade too. Odd.

Thanks to Wendy, Jan and Ash for the help with the photos.

Set
Kids in America
Corner of my mind
Someone
Somersault
Ordinary Life
The Smile
Wonderful
Lay your table
Town called Malice
I'm a believer
Saw Her Standing There
Mustang Sally