my day inside

HMP Elmley

Yesterday was different. I spent the day in Her Majesty's Prison Elmley and if I am to tell this tale well it will take some time so please forgive the longer read. This all came about after a FDPFAFDW gig at Ken and Gill's home in Sheerness. Ken is Managing Chaplain at Elmley Prison and after a post gig discussion he arranged a couple of workshops in the prison.

HM Prison Elmley is a local Category B/C men's prison, located close to the village of Eastchurch on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent. The term 'local' means that this prison holds people on remand to the local courts. Elmley forms part of the Sheppey prisons cluster, which also includes HMP Standford Hill and HMP Swaleside. The prison is operated by Her Majesty's Prison Service.

Ken had told me that that it had been a difficult year in 2014 due to a voluntary redundancy scheme which left the prison understaffed. In 2014 the Howard League for Penal Reform published research showing the number of prison officers at Elmley and its neighbouring Isle of Sheppey prisons, Standford Hill and Swaleside, had fallen by 300 in four years, from 740 to 340. The figures - supplied by the Ministry of Justice - are mirrored across the public sector prison estate.

For me it was an early start with Ken needing to pick me up at 9am in Sheerness. I decided to stay in a hotel and after a good night's sleep I climbed into Ken's car, on time and ready for work. I confess to being a little nervous. As Ken noted, it was a little outside my comfort zone. A challenge is always of interest to me and the possibility of working with a diverse range of folk is exciting. The opportunity to meet and work with men in prison in 2015 could not be missed.

Arriving outside the prison I was immediately surprised by it's size. We entered and I showed my photo ID and got a key for the mobile phone locker where my phone would sleep for the rest of the day. So there I was entering the inner sanctum of the prison Chaplaincy via multiple iron barred gates and the kind of security protocols you would expect in a prison. The knowledge that I would be released at the end of the day unless I behaved very badly allowed me to drink in the visions of seemingly endless drafty corridors and the general atmosphere. All along the way very busy people went about their work through the barred gates and heavy doors as Ken lead the way to the Chapel. It is a well appointed space with nice acoustics and has a very peaceful vibe. I felt very comfortable in this space. It was like stepping out of a slightly disturbing environ into a calm, safe place.

The morning session was for guys who were already playing guitar or wanting to begin to learn. The plan was to sing a song or two for them and to tell a story or two and jam along with them sharing a few tips and lazy short cuts. Eventually the guys begin to arrive for the session and I turned on my tiny little amplifier and plugged in my guitar. We shook hands and sat in a semi circle ready to start. 

One of the guys told me that they hadn't got their guitars with them because either they didn't have time to get them or they had not been told what was going on and that they would be allowed to bring them. This was a bit disappointing and required an immediate adaptation on my part. I told people a little about myself, my career in music and community work and I told a story to give a little flavour around the early history of the EBB and asked the guys what they wanted from the session. It was clear that the lack of guitars at the session was a problem. 

I let a couple of the guys play my guitar and sang them a couple of songs. It was interesting to see the faces of the guys playing when they finished and we all applauded. It's something I expect and something they don't get to enjoy while in prison unless there is some kind of performance by them to an audience, however small. This group numbered a dozen but the pleasure on the faces of the players and the sense of satisfaction when we all applauded was a delight for me.

The highlight of the session for me was still to come. The guys talked about the need to come together for a session one day a week. They suggested a Friday or at the weekend. It was clear that most of the group were very serious about playing guitar. One guy had produced a beginners hand book to get fellow inmates started. It is a very neat collection of all the basic chords and scales and instructions around tuning etc. 

In terms of time available to the guys all activities are dependent on the availability of a supervising officer and things get cancelled or postponed in seemingly random way. The communication issues around bringing the guitars to the session seemed to me to be symptomatic of this, But what do I know? I know that suicides among young men in the UK is rising. 

I know that whatever any one says, conditions for these men are far from ideal and they clearly have less time and resources available to them than is reasonable if rehabilitation through practical support towards a better life is to be a serious objective. I know the suicide rate in prison is rising and there is a high rate of mental ill health among young men in prison This and self harming was highlighted by the discussion that followed my suggestion that the group might work together on a mixed media project focusing on their issues. Several guys mentioned self harming and prisoner suicides. they spoke about writing some songs about this. 

This was exciting. I was trying to assist them to find something that might speak to a prison Governor about a possible route  towards a meaningful activity that would have meaningful results and would resonate with most if not all of a prison population and The Home Office. I think the guys identified one very important issue that must be addressed.  see footnote*

Ken suggested the group write to the appropriate officer to tell them how it had gone, what they wanted next and to emphasise the positives of the session for them. All too quickly it was over and the guys had to go back to their cells. We shook hands and I was touched by the thanks expressed by the guys.

I had a cheese roll and a tea for lunch from the Officers takeaway canteen and after an attempted visit to the Music Technology facility only to find it was no longer in use I spent the rest of the time before the next session with a head full of ideas and the words of the guys running through my thoughts. The next group arrived for the afternoon session in the Group work room next to the Chapel. 

I ran through an introduction and asked them what they would like to happen. I was getting used to the reality that everyone seemed to have a slightly different idea of why I was there and my idea of why I was there changed with them, I hope. Anyway, I sang some songs which they very kindly applauded and after a chat with several of the guys about their thoughts and ideas it was once again clear that option to bring guitars to the session was not clearly communicated or understood. One guy said that he had left an art session to come to our session. He showed me the art work he was working on. It's theme was the mini mission statement of the prison which is writ large every where.

“Changing Perceptions,  Changing Minds,

Changing Elmley”

I thought back to the mornings session. I am thinking MORE. Mixed media men's work and MORE!

I reported on the morning session to the guys with regard to ideas around the self harm, suicide project and we chatted about how design, music, poetry, rap and a bunch of other goodies could be combined in some thing special. They all had ideas and the session buzzed. I sang some songs and then one of the guys sang his song. It was so nice to sit back with the guys and watch the young man play my guitar and sing his own song. It was lovely and we were all moved. Shivers down the spine. It was time to end the session. We shook hands and hoped to see each other again. Of course some of the guys could be moved elsewhere at any time so that might be difficult but never say never.

A short chat with a colleague of Ken indicated that money for development of what had been suggested by the two sessions might be a problem. However there are many paths to travel and I think that it is work in progress. I had enjoyed my day inside immensely. I would love to work with these guys again. So much learning for me and a bucketful of ideas. If I have seemed to be critical of aspects of things so be it. But I would like to make it clear that there are many good people working inside the prison who really want to make a difference and deliver quality service however, they could do much better if they were properly supported and resourced but they are not.  You can't make a silk purse out of a pigs ear.

This said I am ever hopeful that  I will be writing about HMP Elmey episode two at some stage.

 

* 82 prisoners took their own lives in prisons in England and Wales during 2014, bringing suicide rates to their highest level in seven years, according to the latest figures. Of the 82 suicides, 14 were young people between 18 and 24. More inmates have committed suicide at HMP Elmley than almost any other prison in England and Wales, according to figures released on 23rd January 2015 .The Sheppey jail comes joint top with Wandsworth, where four inmates took their own lives last year.

peace

emails from the road

hertzberg festival promo postcard

Back in the day one of the very best music venues in the UK was a magnificent club called Mothers in Erdington, Birmingham. The place had a corrugated tin roof which boiled audience and band alike when the sun shone in those glorious halcyon days. The roof was very low and I remember banging my head a few times when I forgot not to jump. This gig hosted anyone who was anybody and everybody else and could boast one of the most enthusiastic and knowledgeable audiences in the UK. Anyway, many months ago I was contacted by Dave Gordon asking if I could play a set at what was to be the Mothers Reunion. The first date suggested was the weekend after New Years. I should have known then. This idea was dropped very quickly and a new date in February was set. All was arranged. By the time I had seen the bill I was beginning to wonder what I had let myself in for. Was I to be the only Mothers vet appearing at this tribute to a great venue? The answer was soon coming and I received the following email from Mr Gordon. I did reply asking who were the special guests and telling Dave Gordon that I would post about the event on my blog but I didn't get a response. I don't usually do this but here goes:

Hi edgar.i have to sadly inform you that we have had to cancel any live music at the mothers reunion event..on the advise of health and safety grounds..I put a guy in charge of bands and live music at the event adrian howell..who was clearly not up to the job..Never checked if the room was suitable..I had to step in and get rid of him..and go and get a health and safety officer in to check the room..so sorry edgar  we have to sadly inform all that was due to play..The reunion event will still go ahead..With memorabilia display.special feature displays.stalls.special guests.and music played from the times over the rooms pa system..I will now be helped by Jane Wright who has been involved in the music business for a while and is a manager of some bands in Birmingham. All the best dave gordon.

Has anyone seen a TV series called The Hotel? 
Mark Jenkins used to own and run the Grosvenor Hotel in Torquay. He went bust and lost it. Undaunted he became Entertainments manager at The Cavendish another hotel on the skids in Torquay. His new career is the subject of the TV series on Channel 4. It is hilarious and cringe making. Mark Jenkins and Dave Gordon should get together, organise an event and get special guest Alan Partridge to open it. Last I heard Dave Gordon is now looking for a new venue. Ah! "Mothers" R.I.P.

What next? Well, I didn't really intend to carry on in more or less the same area of artiste promoter relations, but I think I will. In the history of the Edgar Broughton Band we very rarely got ripped off entirely by promoters. Some times their catastrophic schemes created weird and brain warping problems but usually they paid up. However there are some notable exceptions. The most recent I shall pass over quickly. Steiner Lindblad or Tommy Lindberg, or what ever he is calling himself, owes the EBB big time for unpaid gig fees on the last Norwegian Tour. Not much else to say apart from to say to him that my Norwegian friends are on his case and I trust that he will one day keep his promises ha ha! 

I have to say that I have a passion for Norway and it's people and with few exceptions I have always been treated very well. However one Norwegian promoter did steal some of my lovely vintage Marshalls after our truck collided with an avalanche many years ago. He and his partner once counted themselves as my friends. Years later it seemed to me that life exacted it's own Karmic toll on them both.

Moving on and to another land. In Germany there is a wonderful old school festival at Burg Herzberg. The EBB has played it three or four times. On one of these gigs it was clear something was wrong. The lights went out all over the festival. It was interesting to see who had independence in the shape of a torch. In my case it was a headlight and I was glad I had it. 

I remember brother Steve remonstrating with the promoter about the state of the stage and all in the dark. The promoter, Kalle Becker assured Steve everything was ok. He took one step and went through the stage floor up to his waist. Mr Becker was a bit damaged and could not see the funny side at all. 

Eventually the power was restored and we rocked out playing Out Demons Out as the sun came up over the forest. We didn't get paid for this gig and after a fairly heated exchange of emails with the promoter Kalle Becker I decided enough was enough. Mr Becker had a guest book on the festival website so I pasted the entire exchange of emails in it. At the time I hoped this would really annoy Mr Becker but I never knew if it had for sure, until now. A few days ago I received the email below, from the guy currently running things. He had previously asked if the festival could use a slogan I used during the 2007 show at Herzberg Festival. Very polite! 

Hi Edgar

By the way: Years ago you had some trouble with our former manager Kalle
Becker. You put the e-mails in our guestbook. Of course, Kalle had not
paid the webmaster, too, so the webmaster refused to erase your
guestbook-entry.
We (not Kalle, but the rest of the staff) actually laughed a lot,
because this was really a good response from your side and it was online
for weeks! We did not laugh, because you did not get the money, but you
really made him scream for weeks.
And it is a much better story than to tell that there were week-ends we
could not leave the house or put any lights on, because there were some
real heavy guys around waiting for Kalle to beat him up.

I am preparing a book 50 years Herzberg for 2018. Do you have still the
e-mails? And do you think it is a good idea to put it in the book? It is
a very exemplary story and very sparkling!Can I give the author of the book your e-mail address to get in touch
with you?

Fill your Hearts with Joy and love a lot,

Gunther

Gunther Lorz
Burg Herzberg Festival

peace

je suis charlie

"I am Charlie" is the evocative statement that rang around the world after the attack on the Charlie Hebdo magazine in Paris. The subsequent events are widely known if not understood. 

What kind of religious edict demands that girls and women should be subject to the kind of barbarism that we have seen in the media for a long time now? What kind of community flocks to the local stadium to see a young woman buried up to her neck and stoned for for adultery?  She was in fact raped by a policeman?  After stoning the young woman a doctor inspects her to determine she is dead, They dig her out of the ground. The young woman moves so they put her back in the hole and stone her until she finally expires. 

What kind of society does not want its women educated? How can music be so evil that it must be banned.The IS  mantra  is unsophisticated at best and at worst is an odious distortion and hi jacking of the commandments of  a beautiful religion. I know like all of the great religions the Muslim religion is based on love and peace and so it is impossible for me to think of the worst excesses of the IS  version of Sharia law as being anything to do with the teachings of the prophet.  

We have seen how throughout history nations have distorted the great teachings or rejected them entirely for their own ends. We have seen in recent times how nations who think of themselves as great world leaders forget the rules as and when it suits them.  Ongoing revelations regarding US torture and illegal detention, with UK support, continue to dismay all who expect better.  Is there a link between the atrocities of Guantanamo Bay and the attacks in France? Of course there is. Meanwhile today Rupert  Murdoch stated that all Muslims should take responsibility for the French attacks and Steven Emerson, US terrorism commentator, stated  Birmingham UK is a "Muslim-only city where non-Muslims don't go",  on Fox News. Rupert Murdoch is an arse and his control of so much media continues to be a serious worry. It is surely detrimental to a free and honest press. We know many Americans care little about things outside of the state they live in but a little research from a professional journalist would have avoided his ludicrous portrayal of Britain's second city where Muslims and everyone else live quite happily together. The children of Birmingham don't take weapons to school to massacre their fellows on a regular basis either Steven.

In France it would appear every one has come together for a day or so but the racism and racial inequality that stains the egalitarian aspirations of the nation tells another story. The young disenchanted Muslims must be addressed. That is how you begin to deconstruct the possibility for radicalisation. Close down the US torture program and start treating so called terrorists in captivity with the same accord that the US demand for it's soldiers and as is stipulated by the Geneva Convention and others.

This uprising will not easily be defeated but most of us don't want to live in a medieval society where cruel and deranged values are common place nor will we. I don't want to live in a country that hangs homosexuals and stones young women to death. In Sudan a war between the Christian and Muslim populations has ravaged the country and here as in many other locations, the kidnapping of girls and young women and their eventual enslavement is increasing. It seems the doctrine of IS calls for the elimination of all political opposition and total censorship of anything said or written that opposes their mad ideology. It seems to want to eradicate difference. Pol Pot decided to remove all professional/ educated people from Cambodia in order to begin again with a level playing field. He was a deranged kind of socialist who actually set out to remove cleverness so that all could be equal.

The zealous Viking Eric the Red would cheerfully cut off a man's head in the name of Christ if the man would not convert to the faith. The Spanish inquisition and European Crusades against Saladin and others are all examples of people forgetting what is good and decent in order to basically do what they like and it has been so often wrapped up in the cloak of faith in order to justify tyranny and repression. So it has always been with us but still we must oppose those who would use any religion as an excuse to diminish the quality of our lives so that they can control what we think and do with impunity.

Muslims everywhere are appalled by the abominable acts of the sons of IS. Muslims in the UK and all over the world must be seen to be victims of IS along with the rest of us and their right to share life with us unmolested must be supported.

I write what I like and nothing will stop me. Je suis Charlie.

peace

have a GOOD one

winter sky

As 20014 draws to a close I think I will be pleased to see 2015. I have been ill for the past two weeks and so the things I planned to do such as some writing and preparation for the new year were put on hold. I haven't felt so rough for a long time. Today is the first time I have felt like doing a few things and lying in bed half the day gets a bit tedious once it feels enforced. Any way onwards and upwards after all,  it is Christmas eve. 

For most of you I guess this is still a big deal.  Most of you that read my stuff here will know I have turned my back on what I call Free Market Christmas or it has turned it's back on me and so I won't go on about it here and now.

I have had a wonderful year artistically. The diversity of gigs has never been so marked. From Sheerness on sea, on the south coast of the UK to the far flung northern regions of my beloved Norway.  I have to thank so many people for the good times that I won't make a list here. You know who you are and I hope we will re connect in 2015. I had a couple of inviting offers for December but I'd had enough and post touring commitments were already in the way of doing December shows. Still folks there is 2015 so if you want to book me for a public or private show you know where I am.  

I suppose it is always difficult to pick the artistic high light of any year but if pushed I would have to say from a musical, performance perspective I would choose the Saturday concert at Galleri, Alta in Norway.  If I had to choose the show that provided the best feeling it would be a contest between the private show for Tim  in Flitwick UK and the show Our Daily Bread in Upholland UK.............

............... It is now Christmas day so I hope you are all enjoying the day however you are spending it. I am chilling and feeling a little recovered from the cold I have had. The sun is shining here in the great metropolis and there is no sign of snow.  I am hoping to get out on the bike over the coming days so if you should  see me please don't laugh. I will be the big guy on the Bianchi gasping, cursing and bemoaning the fact that I should have done this sooner.  I have new year resolutions as always. There is a difference this year though. It is vital to me that now, some of the resolutions have to be kept. This is dictated by time passing and targets still unattained.  So much to be done eh? If you find yourself with time on your hands, over the holiday, have a look at the current crop of 38 DEGREES petitions and campaigns. The viability of the electronic vote is stealthily creeping up on the outmoded form of electoral participation we currently employ.

There are plans afoot for the new year and there will be at least one guaranteed, major surprise. I will keep you posted as to what is coming as soon as I know. Mean while I wish you all the best things. Look out for the most needy and lets do it all again and more in 2015. 

peace

So ........

sheerness on sea

So it is time to reach out to you with a new post.  So you will notice my repeated use of the word "so" at the beginning of the sentences. The word has begun to appear at the beginning of peoples answers during media interviews like a linguistic, low level virus.  Have you noticed this strange trend?  I believe that until recently the word "so" was mostly used in the following way. "My mind is made up so, I will make the announcement right now".  The new usage works like this.

Question - "What is the likelihood that the deficit targets will be reached as planned"?  Answer  "So it is believed by most experts that targets will not be reached".  Do  I find this irritating?  So I may get used to it in time but why?  Senior grumpy moment over.

Years ago when the EBB was playing gigs on an almost  constant daily basis, we would suddenly find that over a month or so we would be travelling a specific road / route on three or more occasions.  It was not as though these gigs were carefully planned to make our lives easier. Far from it. The zig zagging we endured was seemingly, of little concern to those who booked the gigs for the band. We would travel the same road for seemingly random reasons and then we might not travel it again for half a year or more.  Coincidence.  As I just typed the word a film critic on BBC  Radio 5 said the word coincidence.  It happens to me frequently. How about you? Is there a difference between one kind of coincidence and any other in so far as some things occur in sync and others are random / accidental.   I ask this because the process  of making Our daily Bread in the the church  in Upholland  lead me to meeting the Rev Hilary Hanke, a lovely woman who impressed me with her calm assuredness and clear purpose. This meeting and subsequent events has lead to only good things and continues to evolve as an ongoing process.  So, was it a coincidence or some kind of synchronicity that the next gig was a gig for the Rev Ken George in the form of a FDPFAFDW at his home in Sheerness on sea?  Ken is the chaplain in a local prison. I flow along with all antennae extended these days. I am on full listening and watching mode and my mind is wide open. I am fascinated by the path I'm on. Never a dull moment because I never know which connection will lead to what.

 enjoying the post gig chat

I was warmly greeted by all at the George household and soon relaxed before the show. Ken and Gill have a long dining lounge which was soon converted with an array of chairs that gave it the  look and feel of a very small theatre. Very cool! A wonderful selection of buffet food was on offer and as is usual at these gigs, most people attending work with people in some way.  What an eclectic and interesting bunch they were. The young people attending are always of particular interest to me and they were  lovely. I  like to listen to the chatter and I can usually learn enough to gauge what might work in my performance. I knew my stories would strike a chord with this audience and they did. They were one of the most attentive and appreciative of all my FDPFAFDW audiences. 

part of the original art work for Ken and Jill's gig "in the front room"

I could run through the list of songs but I played everything I wanted to play. Well almost. I always seem to leave something out that I had planned to play and on this occasion it was the song On the news.  A pity because I think it would have been well received.  I thoroughly enjoyed myself and the time flew by.  A few cognacs later I was happily chatting with folk and finding out all sorts of very interesting stuff. I was chatting with a guy who told me that the old guy in Kings Lyn I sing about in the song Beggar Man is a well known character. It is a small world these days and full of coincidence and there was more to come.  Later I was telling Ken that during the most recent conversation with my roadie John, I had mentioned that I thought it was time to reach out in 2015 trying to do something special and different. I guess this came out of our work on the Upholland gig for The Brick homeless project in Wigan. I suggested a prison gig or two. There has been a plan to play a secure hospital in the pipe line and we were both interested in putting together a string of off the wall, useful shows. Ken smiled and told me that a senior prison officer had been at the show and had asked Ken if it might be possible I would want to do a gig in the prison.

After a good sleep in a local hotel ken picked me up for breakfast and that was very welcome. We had chance to chat some more before it was time to leave. Ken very kindly drove me to Rochester with two of his friends who were travelling north via London. This saved us from a couple Sunday Service bus rides. I dozed for most of the journey back to London and was soon back home.

Gill, yours truly and Ken

I'd had a great time in Sheerness. I usually have a great time on the road but there was some thing about this trip that left me with the feeling that this would be a story not yet complete. At home I turned on my computer to check a few things in the diary and a letter arrived. It was connected with the secure hospital gig under discussion. It had been months since there had been communication on the matter.  A day or so later Ken emailed me to say the gig in the prison was under discussion. So, what is going on? So it is a case of coincidence or synchronicity and I am not sure which.

peace

in upholland

pic Bev Edwards

Final preparations for the concert in the church at Upholland were coming to a close by Thursday evening. My rehearsal with the St Thomas the Martyr church choir for their chorus parts on the song Our Daily Bread was a fairly short affair. I had sent them an MP3 of the song and they were soon singing the song. I really enjoyed this at the end of what was a long day. The rehearsal with Ella and Brenda for my improvised yoik piece was even shorter. We had quickly reached a stage where it seemed that we should leave refining any thing and yoik some thing on the night. I think the concept was understood and so we left it there. 
The day had seen our electrician Ken fix the church chandelier and test all the electrical gear. Other lighting was minimal and a few spots supplied by Richard Hart, our sound engineer, fitted in nicely. I wanted the interior of church to be seen and enjoyed rather than fill the stage area with flashing lights and other rock props. So many people worked hard through out the day and we managed to sound check a couple of the local artistes who dropped by to check out the church and the stage set up.

Friday saw me in church after lunch. Luke was first to arrive by train. Arthur arrived soon after and we got his bass sorted while we waited for Steve, Rik who was to record the show and Ramblin', my mate Dave Randell who was driving them from London and who would be taking photos on the night.

Soon every one was sound checked. The stage was set and the die cast.

So many people had worked hard for this and many hours of preparation had gone into the planning and execution of the various aspects of promoting and rehearsing for a show like this.

By eight oclock on Friday evening the church was nicely filled. Ian, who had supported the project from it's early days, started the evening with a cool compere style and he kept the show moving along nicely between acts through out the evening. There was an expectant atmosphere as the concert began with Leah Wallis. Leah is a fourteen year old singer who opened the show with a lovely version of the show song I had a dream. 

pic Dave Randell

As I listened to Leah's vocal soaring around the stone walls of the church, I began to relax and enjoy the wonderful acoustics of this very beautiful place. Her choice of song seemed a perfect opener as a dream was where it had all began. I stood at the back of the church with Arth and Steve and I admit to feeling a little proud of what we were doing and that all the voluntary work by so many was coming to fruition.

pic Dave Randell

Next up was Joe Kirkbride who performed a song of his own. Every one had tried to choose a song that would fit with the theme of Our Daily Bread and the ethos of the event. Joe's song was about being down and the support of a friend. My son Luke remarked how Joe had all the traits of the north western approach to song writing. It is easy to see why so many great song smiths have emerged from the north west.

Next on stage was young Sam Birchall who is thirteen years old.

pic Dave Randell

He played Here Comes The Sun by The Beatles as an instrumental on acoustic guitar. It was a real treat and like all of the young ones on the bill he will go far. Sam stayed on stage to accompany Olivia Garcia as she sang Imagine by John Lennon. 

pic Dave Randell

I was becoming quite emotional as I watched the thing I had imagined take shape. It was a lovely rendition and as they did for every act, the audience burst into delighted applause as the song ended.

pic Dave Randell

Next we had Acoustic Routes. A lovely family act that have the trad folk sound down. Mandolin, acoustic guitar and four sweet voices. Celtic sounding and pure. What a great way to pause on the journey before the next phase!

So it was time for your's truly to take to the stage and the audience gave me a very warm welcome. It was all coming together. I knew we had sold enough tickets to give The BRICK a nice sum for their coffers and with the contribution from Mike and Julie at The White Lion via the barbecue and beer sales, now it was all about the music.

I played five songs and then Brenda and Ella from the church choir came on to help me perform our experimental yoik. No words just sound and vibes. This was so good! It just came together in a moment and there we were, out there some where new. I know for many in the audience, the yoik was a high light of the evening as it was for me. My good friend Jarle who came from Stavanger in Norway to see the gig, said that I was beginning to sound like a Sami. Praise indeed.

There was an interval of half an hour while people got a drink and some barbecue from the White Lion. The church bells, silent during the first half of the concert, pealed to announce the second half.

Hilary Hanke, the vicar, spoke about the event and how it had developed and then Louise from The BRICK homeless project, spoke about the project and thanked every one for their good work.

pic Bev Edwards

Next up was my son Luke. He performed three of his own songs in his very distinctive style and that all went down very well. He has a lovely song that brings me to tears. It did at the sound check but I kept it together during the show.

So next was me, again. I sang a relatively new song On the news which is about that little black girl who stares out of the Oxfam, et al, adverts for aid. Of course it isn't necessarily the same child but it could be and I am sick and tired of seeing her sweet little face, so sad.

pic Bev Edwards

pic Bev Edwards

After this Arth and Steve took to the stage and we played a selection of old and new songs. It was so good to have the guys with me again. All of the rehearsing and planning had achieved it's aim and we were all very happy to be there. I had written the song Our Daily Bread for the show and the church choir joined us for the choruses. What a nice noise that was!

pic Bev Edwards

A rousing Poppy was the encore and then it was over. Wonderful!

Special thanks to Hilary and Ian and Richard, Sue and Mike and Julie, the Totally Wicked shop, Dean for his wonderful art work, Clusky for his special vibes, Ken for his electrical supervision, all of the church community who supported and worked for the event, Winstanley College for filming the event and my special thanks to Val and John Bradshaw who look after me and work hard to support my dream. If I have left any one out then I am sorry.

So it was back to John and Val's for the apres gig party and some top snacks. Apparently our audience had cleaned out the barbecue stocks and no one thought to save us any ha ha! Actually Val had a back up plan, as always,  and we all tucked in. It was very nice to have every one together and we all sat up very late enjoying the company. The drink flowed and eventually it was time to retire after what had been a momentous day. It was great to see old friends at the gig and many folk for whom I had performed FDPFAFDW shows.

Onwards and upwards. It looks like there will be spin off events from this and I like that. Thanks to all who supported OUR DAILY BREAD. I hope this event will be the first in a series and a sign post to other fund raising events in churches, by the people.

peace