I always feel somewhat in awe of time when the end of a tour is looming… where did all that excitement and expectation go? Why has it all stopped? When can I do it all again? So much thought and energy goes into the preparation and performance then once the final bow has been taken … it’s as if it never happened … and yet … there are flip charts that say otherwise! Come with me and I’ll prove that it wasn’t just a figment of my imagination.
The Processed Pea was the last gig I Blogged about and it was, if you remember, a strange and wonderful affair. There then followed 2 delightful days of rest in the old market town of Hitchin Herts, with our lovely friend Paul Leitch. I spent a fair amount of that time Blogging myself into a Filp-ing frenzy – the results of which took a further 2 weeks to post. Not enough internet-connection is my excuse … oh yeh and the little matter of five further gigs!
Bob and Rob actually got out to Wembley to see Oasis! But after a morning of Oxford Street schlepping I was in no fit state and waved them off as I trundled back to Hitchin and an early night. Though they had a high old time, they also had several VERY frustrating security guard experiences, which I did not envy. Ah bless.
So Friday July 10th quickly arrived and after a spot of lunch in Hitchin’s bustling town centre we left for Crouch End – not a difficult journey. Poor Bob though, had a painful back problem compounded by his Wembley Arena run around and so I sent him back to rest … he got as far as the car park but his pronounced limp (that’s: L.I.M.P – limp!) brought out the mother hen in me and I shooed him back to our room. Bless.
The Kalamazoo Club is another old favourite of mine. The sound engineer, Peter has been there many years and is always helpful and mercifully quick in setting up and getting a great sound – thanks Peter - which left Rob and I plenty of time to eat! Not always a good thing before a gig. This was another culinary experience – not as good as some but better than we expected and funny too.
I was delighted to see Peter Emery from the Travelling Gentlemen in the crowd and to hear, once again, the unforgettable laughter of our lovely friend Chris Howarth … this was his 3rd gig of the tour. Yeh! It was also great to meet a fellow Manxie at the end of the night: Rob Heeney… a successful comedian no less… this is his local gig – lucky man. He and Rob got on brilliantly and addresses were exchanged. It was a lively show with a fair amount of audience interaction and a fabulously generous response. Thank you Kalamzoo – we love you too!
A spot of luncheon in Hitchin. from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
Now normally when touring there are certain things one tries to avoid – one of them is working in London one night and Carlisle the next. But that’s what we did and I have no one but myself to blame. The thing is, when someone like Jil Bark says that’s the only night she could put on a gig, it’s plain stupid to say no.
Bob was feeling a bit better on Saturday and was happy to sit in the back of the car for 5 hours. The time went relatively quickly and for some reason I did the whole drive … you get so far and somehow want to finish what you started … well that’s how it felt at the time.
I’ve known Jil Bark a long time now and 3 years ago she and her partner Ishka moved into a large terraced house in Wigton, just outside Carlisle. I remember them both telling me about a shared dream they had at the time, to run a little Bistro with concerts at the weekends. I had no idea just how close those dreams were to coming true. It’s taken a ridiculous amount of hard work and much planning and negotiation but soon … they’ll be developing the basement of their gorgeous home, into a 45 seater Bistro-style restaurant and holding concerts in the same space on a regular basis. Hurrah.
For the last 18 months they’ve been running monthly house concerts in their lovely, large, front room as a steppingstone toward their final goal and have amassed an enviable mailing list of very satisfied customers – from far and wide. At half time … they serve delicious food. It’s brilliant!
This gig in particular was VERY HOT. Talk about free sauna. Rob and I were the last official house concert – an honour. In the next few months the builders will be in to renovate the basement area and in the New Year … fingers crossed … they’ll be ready to open their fabulous new place – The Monkey Tree . We wish them huge success. We had an absolute ball in their wonderful home and fabulous company. We’re hoping for a return gig at the new grown-up venue.
London to Wigton ... a gig too far? Never! from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
Because I’d managed to book a gig all the way back in Hitchin on Sunday – yes really - London/Carlise/Hitchin – we had little time to socialise, though we’d love to have done, we had to get back on the road relatively early the following day and drive ourselves right back to Hitchin. Yeh … we love being on the road. Rob did the lion’s share of the drive this time … phew.
Hitchin Folk club won the prestigious Radio 2 Folk music award for best Folk club in 2005. It’s been running for over 40 years.In fact last time I played here was to celebrate that achievement. For much of that time it’s been held in the ballroom of the Sun Inn – where Paul Lietch has been the manager for the last 3 years. Maureen and Keiron Jones are the club’s wonderful organizers and they do a brilliant job - I also know that they truly appreciate Paul’s huge passion for music. It’s a great combination.
It was quite late in the day when we arrived to set up our
Carlsbro PA and we were all more than a bit hungry but I wanted the gear up and running so I knew everything was OK before rushing off to eat … with Rob’s amazing patience, it was all sorted out and we sat down together with Maureen and Keiron exhausted but fairly happy. Rob did a short but perfectly formed set of his own songs before I joined him on stage. It was great to see friends we hadn’t seen in some time who managed to make it to the show … Steve Lima and Ted Kelly, and some more we’d only seen recently and were equally happy to see again … Pam and Martin Drury and of course … Chris Howarth, notching up a fab 4th gig this evening. Oh how sweet it is to be loved.
Back unto Hitchin once more dear frineds ... from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
On Monday July 13th we packed up our stuff and set off for the last time from The Sun Inn … we had a fabulous time settled within it’s hospitable walls … many, many thanks to Paul – you’re a star. We were in convoy for these last few gigs and set off for Birmingham where we were invited to stay with one of Rob’s long time friends, Aaron - a fellow Manxie! Aaron works for the ICC and is a brilliant sound engineer which came in handy for our last show. We spent a delightful night in his new gorgeous flat and ate royally at a local Indian restaurant called “Deolali”.
Our penultimate gig was at Biddulph Town Hall, organized by Eric Cox who’s been putting on acoustic shows in the area for more years than either of us would care to admit. I’ve always played at the club before and was pleasantly surprised at how well the larger hall suited acoustic music.
The Loud Mouthed Women are a large choir made up of local … as the name states … women. There were maybe 25/30 of them all told? They made a wonderful sound and had the audience eagerly joining in … I love hearing that many voices raised in song – it’s brilliant.
We were very tired this night but managed to muster ourselves and put in a pretty decent performance I think. The crowd certainly went wild at the end of the night. And afterwards it was fantastic to see some friends I’d not seen for far too long. Unfortunately Howard Lees was ill but Jean and Alison and her lovely beau Andy came along without him – bless. And Potter, he who first introduced me to Patty Griffin and “Mary” was delightfully positive about our new musical shenanigans. Hurrah. Rob and Aaron headed back to Birmingham and Bob and I made our way across to the incredibly accommodating Ansell’s once more – yeh!
Loud Mouthed Women ... and a few blokes too! from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
There were 3 full days off before our final musical fling and we made the very most of them for sure. Two nights with Diane and Bryan enjoying wonderful food and company – it’s been fantastic to spend time with them again and I’m totally indebted to Maria’s wonderful willingness to share her hard earned knowledge about hatching chicks. Enjoy.
Maria Ansell ... Superchick! from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
Our next friendly port of call was to see Rob and Jo Selbourne at Prebendal farm in Wiltshire. We love staying with them in their beautiful home which is also a B&B. In fact the last time we were able to sample their hospitable delights, was last June while on tour with Dave Kelly and the Gentlemen. Lucky for us we were the only people allowed to stay for 2 delicious nights.
Prebendal Madness! from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
After a night of raucous daftness, the heavens well and truly opened the following day. I’ve rarely seen it pelt so hard. Knowing Rob had harvest a couple of weeks later made it all the more dramatic.
A Perfect preamble at Prebendal. from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
Thankfully later in the afternoon it eased off enough for Jo and I to take their little black and tan Jack Russell Matty and the nieghbour’s Border Collie Socks, for a walk in Ashdown Woods. It was an absolutely fantastic experience – Jo is a brilliant person to walk with, as she knows so much about the countryside … it was an honour.
Take a walk on the wild side with Lady Robert selbourne prt I from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
(a photo I took of the beautiful 18th Century House at Ashdown Woods)
A walk on the wild side prt II from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
Mutual friends from the village came to play with us all on our second night. Nick and Sarah are great fun – we all egg one another on! The Flip was left well and truly alone. Before we bid our fond farewells Rob decided to take his 1932 Morgan out for a spin and took Bob with him – eek! It’s a beautiful machine and has taken years to get to its’ present pristine state … Rob it would appear is a dab hand with motors. I hope it’s not too long before we have the Prebendal Experience again. XX
Gutta Morgan! from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
And so it came to pass … the final show. As a way to ease ourselves into the right frame of mind we arranged to meet up with Rob and Aaron at the Orchard Tea Rooms in Granchester – this would be the 4th time Rob and I had been here during this tour! Yeh … d’ya think maybe we like it? We set off to the Acoustic Routes in Cambridge right after scones, clotted cream, jam and pots of tea! Yum.
I remember meeting Bernard Hoskin for the first time at a strange but bizarre outdoor Festival in Suffolk maybe 4 years ago? Anyway the story goes like this: It was a huge site with … no people attending! Well OK there were, maybe 10 trusty onlookers and – yes that’s right – a dog! There were 2 stages side by side and one enormous covered sound desk a good 200 yards away in the centre of the field. The idea being that one stage could be set up while the other stage is being performed on. Great idea. However … the techy guys were straight out of school and I mean school not college and they didn’t really care let alone know what that were supposed to be doing and … I went on a solo performer and three lines into my second song … the PA blew up! Man I must have been belting it out!
So I, being an old trouper, promptly jumped down off the stage onto the grass and walked to the huddled crowd of … 15 (I really brought them in!). After finishing the song I’d started on stage, we then proceeded to the blue and white stripy beer tent 500 yards away up hill at the edge of the field and “did the show right there!” Bernard was one of those few people … so you see I remembered him well.
Bernard runs a monthly acoustic show in a tiny cellar room beneath a very nice café/restaurant in the middle of Cambridge and he does a wonderful job. Dedicated, enthusiastic and an all round good egg; I love playing here. It was a fitting end to a fabulous tour. Aaron, bless him, on his day off ended up basically doing the sound for us – for which thanks! Chris Howarth bless him also, bought tickets for his fifth show of the tour … this time with a very lovely lady at his side … a Collister virgin no less. Hurrah.
The beginning of the end ... from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
Rob for the last time … ah … played his final opening set and I joined him once more for a wonderfully joyous and emotional end of tour show which was thoroughly and ecstatically received by the full house crowd! Yeh … this is the way to end a perfectly, beautiful run of dates. Thank you EVERYONE! But especially ROB CROSS who was a joy to be around and a fabulous musical cohort. I hope he’s willing to do it again … sometime … next year? Maybe?
Cambridge Acoustic Routes ... the end of the road ... ah. from Christine Collister on Vimeo.
To everyone who made it to a gig and those who wanted to and couldn’t … I thank you … your support is not only appreciated it’s essential!
Bob and I are off on our travels once more next week; we fly out to Washington August 13th to see Back Door Slam on their continuing adventures before jet setting it to Los Angeles on the 18th! Yeh … I love my life! I will, of course, be carrying on with the writing process and Flipping a few moments in the sun for you all to – hopefully – enjoy.
Thanks for taking the time to read my Blog and watch the daft Flip videos I’ve learnt to edit along the way. For someone who’s not at all techy I’ve really enjoyed that new experience – I hope you have too.
Take care … remember I’m on Twitter, The 61 and Facebook too … all cool ways to find out what’s going on, on a more regular basis.
See you out there ...
Much love
Christine XX ;-)
