High Wycombe Swan Theatre Wednesday Feb 3rd

Now THAT'S a bit more like it ! Whereas yesterday was a stressfest of blown fuses, recalcitrant computers, misplaced stage clothes, duff cables and first-night nerves, today was a veritable oasis of calm. You could almost smell the incense and hear the low, soothing " Ommmmmmmmmmm" of a totally chilled - out road crew. They CAN speak in words of more than one syllable too, of course, but generally we try not to encourage it. The gear all went in really quickly, everything worked exactly as it was meant to, Rodders had time to plot some lovely lighting effects and Arthur had the band sounding fantastic. The guys breezed through soundcheck and we even had the chance to revamp a couple of the links between songs ( one of these now unfortunately involves the sight of my fat arse waddling across stage...THAT should startle the horses...) The band just looked very relaxed and comfortable, and that really came across in the performance. The new songs are already bedding into the set nicely, and a few more shows will polish off any remaining little rough edges. It looked and sounded great, and in fact a couple of the guys remarked that the show ran so well it felt like we were two weeks into the tour rather than two days. Now, that ranks right up there with " I don't like it Sarge, it's too quiet ....." in the pantheon of things not to say unless you want the wrath of the gods to be unleashed upon you, but ( whisper it softly ) we're actually feeling pretty confident about the way this is shaping up. I mean, come on, the band ARE the best Sixties act in the world, for Sooty's sake ! It even says so on the posters, endorsed by no less a personage than Sir Elton John, esteemed knight of the realm and saviour of the floral industry ! The biggest yardstick is always, of course, the audience reaction, and it's safe to say that last night's crowd were, if anything, even more enthusiastic than the Dartford fans....there's nothing better than looking out from the stage and seeing everyone standing up and dancing, singing, and waving their arms....and when the band finally came on the crowd went even wilder.....
( sorry....it's " Help An Old Joke" Week.. ) So it's been a bit of a beezer day all round, really....Derby Assembly Hall and a reunion with some old friends awaits tomorrow. Bring it on !