THE MIGHTY HANDFUL - Recording sessions - 27 to 31 March 2015

Album art by Matthew Gould

From this sparsely populated blog, you might think I hadn't done anything music-related since May 2014.  That is not entirely true.  Shortly before the gig at The Grey Horse (or shortly after - I'm not sure, I've slept since then), I was invited to join The Mighty Handful as a full-blown six-string exciter.

"...and then they told me it was a concept album!!!"

(For those who are interested, the band's website is at http://mightyhandful.com, and you can purchase Parts 1 & 2 of 'Still Sitting in Danny's Car' - an everyday tale of rock folk, pubs, time travel, and a job swap with Death - by clicking on and following this lovely linky-type thing.)

Of course, I said yes.  I don't quite remember what promises of fame and fortune were forthcoming. Nor do I remember why the Gods Of Prog allowed a duffer like me the chance to widdle all over the masterpiece that is this album.  I do remember Mighty Ralph "The Lamb Died Down In Broughton" Blackbourn warning me that I would be swiftly ejected from the band should I ever recreate a guitar solo note-for-note at a gig.  I assure you, Ralph, that won't be a problem - just ask Hi-on Maiden!

Since some time in the glorious mid-summer of 2014, we have met nearly every Wednesday in a convenient boozer and, more often than not, make it out of the pub for a couple of hours work at Mighty Towers.  Whilst we often achieve something we like, whether it be some luscious electric piano or some groove-tastic low-end rumblings, the nights are often truncated before we take full flight due to it being a school-night. [Ooh, that rhymes - Ed.]  I have managed to adapt my working life to accommodate being slightly groggy on a Thursday morning, but it would be nice to do a bit more of this 'making music' malarky without worrying too much about the consequences.

Shortly before this shot, someone suggested that perhaps Phil Collins didn't kill Genesis...

Handily, the band has access to a small country retreat where one might take a short holiday, make racket into the wee hours without fear of being a nuisance neighbour, and not worry about getting home to bed.  So, after comparing calendars and finding some mutually convenient dates, we arranged to gather in the South West during the weekend before Easter and thrash out as much of the remainder of the album as we could.

Friday (or, Episode I: Gangsta's Paradise)

I schlepped over to the sunny realms of Surrey to meet up with the ever-lovely Mighty Gary "hot tea-bagging" Mackenzie - drummer, dreamer, raconteur - who had kindly volunteered to drive me down.  We set off with a suitably prog soundtrack, and in no time at all we had arrived.  Mighty Matt "pimp my margarita" Howes had arrived a couple of hours before and set up a recording space in the large kitchen-dining room.

Bending time...and space...

The remaining Mighties, who had been tasked with bringing provisions, were a couple of hours away.  So, after a cheeky lager and a listen to some recent popular songs (playing a quick game of "Who should sue who?" while we were at it), we wandered up to the local public house - The Tally Ho! - for dinner and beery things.

Shortly after returning to the digs, we were joined by the rest of the band which, perhaps inevitably, led to a long night of booze-fuelled, Spotify-soundtrack-ed nonsense!  We remained conscious enough (and, indeed, conscientious enough) to arrange a 8:45 kitchen call for breakfast in order to get to work as soon as possible.

Some light entertainment...

Saturday (or, Episode II: Sextuplets and Early Diddling)

I awoke, and after declaring that pouring rum on top of wine on top of beer the night before wasn't one of my brighter ideas, I wandered downstairs.  Mighty Tom "doesn't he look funny without ears?" Halley had found his way from a comfortable bed to slightly less comfortable red leather corner-seat.  That takes skill!  Ralph had gone for a run, and Matt was on breakfast duty.  I've always admired people who Get Up Early And Do Things.  Any time I try to do that, I'm usually overcome with waves of nausea.

Following a hearty breakfast and drinking all the tea I could fit in ("twelve's my limit"), we got to work.  Tom, appropriately looking like Death, laid down some bass on 'Soul Trader', which I think is slated to be the closing track on part 4 of this 5-EP collection.     Ralph did some ivory tinkling, and I added some dirty guitar.  Somewhere in between, while Matt was comping together some of our better takes, the rest of us went into the sitting room to hone our barbershop skills… (you'll have to wait for part 4!)

Ralph demonstrates the Five Basic Elements of a Correct Piano Posture...

We achieved quite a lot on the Saturday, all told.  I remember feeling a little icky at a certain point in the afternoon, and I'm sure that Tom had also turned a whiter shade of pale, but we sucked it up and went off to the local shop for more provisions.  A frightening amount of alcohol went in the trolley, causing quite a stir in the aisles with the locals wondering where this party was happening and whether they would have to put the authorities on alert.  We assured them that we were experienced professionals, and returned to the manor for some more work and such.

I then laid down the guitar for one of my favourite songs from part 3. There were several cries from Ralph and Gary for "a bit more chukka-chukka", which was slightly at odds with what our fearless leader seemed to be comfortable with.  I think we found the right balance - it could have sounded a lot pr0n-ier!  We also had a pop at our a-cappella close-part harmony extravaganza, and once we had a good-ish take Matt had a lovely time playing around with it using a new production toy.

"Let's all go down the Strand ('ave a banana), oh! What a happy band!"

While Gary was cooking up a lovely pasta dinner, Tom knocked out the bass part for the title track in short order.  After dinner, Matt performed a quite frankly astonishing vocal which is surely going to take a few breaths away when it is unleashed on the world.  On reflection, that was one of my favourite parts of the weekend.  Everything was perfect.  The atmosphere, the sound, the lighting, the attitude, the slight inebriation….everything.  Perfect.  Crikey. I love those moments, and when they happen, you have to make the most of them.  Matt certainly did.

From that point on, it all becomes a bit hazy.  Gary did some drums, including a swing version of the title track which probably won't wind up on the final cut of part 4 but which we simply must record and put out as a b-side.  We then got enormously gin-soaked and laid down a series of gang vocals for part 3's singalong number, 'Madame Geneva' - the requisite drinking song.  That was proper good fun, and was followed by yet another Spotify (or should that be S-prog-ify?) session, but shortly thereafter I decided vodka was the way to go and promptly fell into a black hole.

Caption competition time...

Sunday (or, Episode III: "It reminds me of… I can't remember")

I won't lie.  Sunday was not my finest day.  Pouring vodka on top of wine on top of gin on top of wine on top of Guinness, as it turns out, is a recipe for all-day Icky-ness.  All of my various 'escape hatches' were on high alert, and it wasn't until very late in the evening that I felt right.  Ralph and Matt (you remember - those people who Get Up Early And Do Things) had gone for a swim, and Tom seemed on better form too; he performed some particularly dreamy fretless bass on 'Drowning In The Light', a choice cut from part 4.

I always wondered what the back of a bassist looked like.

What I really needed was a coffee.  I had even brought some of my own with me, although sadly there had been no coffee-making paraphernalia in sight.  In the late afternoon, I saw Matt returning across the courtyard from the main house with a large cafetiere in his hand.  I have never been so happy.  A big hug and a big mug later, I felt much more human. and while Ralph was putting some keys on 'Drowning…' both Tom and I found ourselves leaking from the eyes a little.  This track is going to be utterly beautiful when finished, and the lyrics are just sublime.  When it was my turn to play, I somehow managed to block out the internal horrors and find The Zone, gently contributing some atmospheric guitar to the piece.

Sadly, Mister Tom had to take his leave, so Ralph drove him off to a nearby station while Matt, Gary, and I turned our thoughts to a track from part 3 which was in need of an intro and some WHOOSH! noises.  Ralph joined in and even found time to cook a lovely chilli (that I was supposed to cook, but Death became me instead - sorry Ralph!).  After dinner we took on arguably the biggest challenge of the weekend, 'Albion' - quite possibly the most technically demanding piece of music on the album.   The mission was this: find a vocal rhythm, melody and lyric that could sit atop the already fairly chaotic arrangement.  This proved to be one of those artistic endeavours which necessitated a lot of swearing and screaming, before - at around 4am, just as two of our number had given up for the evening - Matt landed on The Right Part.  It's going to be killer.

Monday (or, Episode IV: "But you ARE playing In Time…")

The next day began lightly with coffee and breakfast sandwiches, before tackling a particularly important song from part 5.  Matt and Ralph found a lovely sound for the keys, and developed some splendid counter-melodies for the latter half of the track leaving room for a potentially glorious keyboard solo.

Ralph went homeward in the early afternoon, and the remaining three of us settled down to sort out some drums for the wonderful, tuneful, heartfelt, dare-I-say-it pop song (shush!! keep it to yourself) from the end of part 5.  A short interlude was enforced when one of the lighting circuits tripped, and we couldn't find the fuse box.  It turned out to be hidden behind a bit of wall which, in turn, was behind a framed photograph.  Clever, that.*

Time for a quick game of "Spot the dead guitarist"

After a quick stock-take of the work we had done over the weekend, we ambled back to The Tally Ho!, marvelling en route at the names people have given to their second homes in the country ("Yewtree Cottage? That's unfortunate.")  We thought it apropos to give Matt a break from being hunched over the laptop producing everyone else. As we sat down the local knitting circle was in full swing ("Do you want to see my finished cardigan? I'm going to donate it to Oxfam.")

We talked about comics, something Matt & Gary both love, to give us all a break from prog. I made it my mission to drink as much Doom Bar as I could possibly manage.  I achieved the mission objective in spectacular fashion, and we zig-zagged back to the farm to play each other songs until it was time to fall over.

Tuesday (or, Episode V: "So, uh . . . we gotta get up, y'know and go to the studio in the morning, and then we record for about two weeks and then we, uh, we leave again")

The morning was all about coffee, sausages, and potato wedges that just wouldn't cook.  After a lovely melange of leftover breakfast items and a bit of tidying up, we said our farewells and hit the road.  Gary treated me to one of FZ's finest collections, and I treated him to a lengthy de-tour to sarf eest Lahndahn (thanks GM - I owe you a beer or three!).

The studio dog

All in all, I had an absolutely fantastic time.  I learned a lot from my fellow Mighties (including that we can spend long and concentrated periods of time together working without annoying each other too much), and I can't wait to do it again sometime.

Until then, with all the love in the world, I remain,

Mighty Chris "what do you mean I can't have all the solos?" Harrison

Those links again:

Check out the Mighty Handful's mighty website at http://mightyhandful.com, and 

Buy our stuff at http://themerchdesk.com

*Both myself, and Mighty Ralph, have spotted that this event actually occurred on Sunday night.  However, for the purposes of narrative flow, and the fact that the story behind the album does include elements of time travel, I have elected to leave this chronological calamity intact in prose.  If you want a reliable narrator, I suggest you look elsewhere (and, in the run up to a UK General Election, I wish you the best of British luck!).

Photos by Rachel Howes, Ralph Blackbourn and the author.

THE MIGHTY HANDFUL - The Grey Horse, Kingston - 3 May 2014

The biography said:

"The Mighty Handful have now entered the Third Age of Mightyness and have embarked on writing the greatest double album of progressive music the world didn't know it wanted."

And lo! it was written. And lo! they needed a guitarist or two.

Following a very kind invitation from Gary "don't think you're getting out of this face-painting lark" Mackenzie, I visited the Mighty Boat studio in May 2013 to lay down some lead guitar for them. Immediately following this we repaired to the pub and, over a few pints of Guinness (which would go on to become something of a habit), I was asked: a) if I'd be willing to contribute some more guitar parts to upcoming tunes, and; b) if I'd be willing to do a gig with them. Being the sort of chap who'll do almost anything for a Guinness, and will do absolutely ANYTHING for a Guinness and a curry, I said yes.

It wasn't a bell...

Ready to prog?

Almost a year later, after quite a lot of drinking and maybe one actual bit of guitar playing, I found myself en route to Putney for the single rehearsal I would have with the Handful prior to the gig on 3 May. A couple of days earlier, we had all crowded into Matt's house-boat studio while I put some guitars down on a track for the second E.P., and had a lot of fun (not to mention beer) while we were at it, so I was well enough ensconced in Mighty-land that I didn't anticipate too many problems in playing the material.

We would be playing the first 2 E.P.s of "Still Sitting In Danny's Car", the Handful's epic everyday tale of rock folk, pubs, time travel and a job-swap with Death (!). I must admit, I fell in love with the songs quite quickly. To my (admittedly now slightly biased) ears, the song-writing on display is masterful.  And while it is definitely "prog", there is nary a song over 6 minutes to be seen. And there haven't been any wizards in capes. Yet. The story behind it all is one which mixes just the right amounts of silliness and sentimentality, and I do honestly feel rather honoured by being asked to take part.

The rehearsal went rather well, with some minor tweaking of parts (which was to be expected, considering that I was playing on things that either didn't have lead guitar recorded yet, or that I didn't play on in the first place!), and a brief respite while Mighty Matt went on a Mighty Mission to source a new set of P.A. speakers for the Handful's covers gig that evening in a Twickenham public house. It was nice to actually play together in a room with the guys, and it wasn't even half as daunting as I thought it might be to waltz in and start jamming with four chaps who had been playing together quite happily without me for over 10 years! I had brought my Orange "Micro Terror" along which was, amazingly, just about powerful enough to carry the rhythm parts when run through a 4x12. Sadly it didn't quite have enough to give to put lead lines across, so for the gig I opted to go back to the old faithful Boss GT-8 (or, as Swifty and I used to refer to it, "me shitbox") and borrow a combo from the other band we were playing with.

Size does matter.

Boxes! With flashing lights!

Following the rehearsal I accompanied the fellows to Twickenham for a few more beers, and to watch them thoroughly entertain the people of the Old Anchor. I was able to serve on-stage refreshments, and managed to save Matt's gig by having a 9V battery on my person (never leave home without one!). I ventured off back home, having a slight rage at South West Trains who decided to announce a platform alteration as the train was pulling in to the station, and then have that train leave 45 seconds earlier than its scheduled departure time despite people still legging it to try and catch the bugger. Trainwankers.

And so, one week later, Progmageddon was upon us! I ran the set a couple of times before leaving home to make sure that it still fell under my fingers (and to make sure I knew the two songs the lads had subsequently decided to end the set with, which I'd never heard and hadn't even rehearsed with them!) and then set off for Kingston carrying two flight cases and a hold-all. I'm not the fittest chap in the world, and it was heavy. I was a ball of sweat by the time I'd lugged it all the way to the platform at Hither Green!

Me tools.

I was the first to arrive, and had just settled in with a pint of Normal before Gary arrived. I helped him unload into the live room at the back (while the staff struggled to find the light switch), and, as we were in the midst of drum-shifting, the rest of the Mighties appeared, as did Grant Gordon and (some of) his band.  I was borrowing a rather lovely Vox from Grant's guitarist Tom, for which I was eternally grateful. It made my "shitbox" sound rather sweet.

We tweaked sound and ran a couple of numbers, asking the illustrious Mr Gordon for some objective ears. Getting the thumbs up for sound and mix, we vacated the stage and let Grant's 8-piece band take the stage.

Between then and the gig I was surprised by a number of friends and work colleagues turning up unannounced, which was lovely. As gig o'clock approached, I noticed a small proliferation of folk in prog-suitable t-shirts (a couple of Rick Wakeman fans in the audience couldn't be a bad sign).

Grant Gordon & co did a marvellous job of recreating his "Requiem", and in no time at all it the "Third Age of Mightyness" was nearing it's noisy zenith. Ralph had decked us all out in black t-shirts (naturally), and I was told to paint my face. Both Matt and Tom had done some fine paintwork, and there was no way I was going to live up to that.  Choosing an infinity symbol (pr0g?) to clumsily slather over my face, I went out and bravely took the stage.

It had been a long time since I'd been that nervous before a gig, and it had nothing to do with the face paint. When playing with Hi-on Maiden, larger crowds had often induced a few butterflies to start buzzing around the ol' belly. However, I had been playing those songs live for 10 years and knew most of them like the back of my hand, plus you always knew the crowd would know and love the songs (or else they probably wouldn't be there!). This was an unknown quantity on so many levels; music I'd had no hand in writing, music I hadn't known for years, and a crowd I wasn't sure would necessarily 'get it'. Squeaky bum time, then.

Found in the gents after the show. Surely we weren't loud enough to warrant the use of Panadol?!

Set list (to avoid future arguments in O'Riordan's over what songs got played when...Gary!):

Once Upon a Lifetime
Not A Dry Glass In The House
So You're Death?
Cavalier Spirit
A Trip in the Light Fantastic
The Beacon
King Of The Beacon
Hypothetically Speaking
Trip (Reprise)
Time Crash
---
In Time
Exit Piece


Well, it was great. We ploughed into the first instrumental track, which is barely 2 and a half minutes long, and rather worryingly as it faded out there was no hint of applause. However, as Grant pointed out to me later, "the problem with prog gigs is that no-one is quite knows when to clap." There was, however, a satisfying roar from the crowd at the conclusion of "Cavalier Spirit", which was rather gratifying since I spend a good 2 minutes of that song tearing up the fretboard. Other highlights were "Time Crash", which we pulled off really bloody well considering that for the first half there seem to be no consecutive bars of the same length (!), and "In Time", which is a gorgeous little ditty and was a big hit with my assembled fan-club. Pass the hit single, would you?

I have seen absolutely no photographic evidence or video to prove that this gig actually happened, so you'll have to take my word for it. It was a lot of fun, and I hope that we get to do it again. I have since done some further recording with the Handful, and hope to continue working with them for as long as they'll have me. Huge thanks to my partners in prog:

Matthew Howes - Lead vocals, guitar
Ralph Blackbourn - Keyboards, backing vocals
Tom Halley - Bass guitar, backing vocals (and the 'Voice of the Reaper"!)
Gary Mackenzie - Drums, backing vocals

There weren't any photos of our gig, so here's William Shatner instead.

Until next time, 

Christopher James Harrison

x

RHODES ROCK 2013 - Part 3 (Or, bluddy 'ell it takes me a long time to sit down and write something)

I wrote Part 1 in July. Upon writing Part 2 in August I apologised to myself and the rest of the band for taking so long to get round to it. One Two Three Four Five Six Seven A number of months later...! Right, where were we?

Willy hot dogs, anyone?

After the previous day's excess, I thought I'd best get up and go. So I got up and went. I had a wander around the village and found myself back in Yanni's for breakfast. I was soon joined by Simon who had his by-now-customary toast and hot chocolate combo while I tucked into pancakes. After a short while putting the world to rights, we meandered back up the hill to Atmosphere where the Sack lads had surfaced. It was gig day for the boys, so they were in for a day of sitting around and waiting for things to happen (that marvellous pastime enjoyed by musicians all around the world). I couldn't quite face a drink at this point, having filled my boots with rather too much fizzy Eurolager during the previous day, so stuck to my bottle of water for a short while.

I retired to my boudoir to play guitar for a little bit, as I had a song to learn and an idea for a guitar solo I would be recording in a friend's studio shortly after my return to Ingerland. After surfacing from that little session I went for a walk with Ozzy, managing to twist my ankle along the way. Just what you want to be doing the day before a big gig! Skills. 

Back in town, we bumped in to Simon and made our way to Yannis (surprise). Thus began a long drawn out discussion about the setlist for our gig the following day, which we had to shorten. This went on for some time, and before I knew it, dinnertime was upon us! I took the lads to Agostini's where I enjoyed an absolutely sublime roast lamb, rosemary sauce & halloumi puff pastry delight. It was like angels crying on my tongue. Delicious. Then it was time to go down and check out the main event! 

As we arrived in the main arena area, the Bon Jovi tribute were in full swing. The wind was making the sound somewhat problematic, but everyone was having a stellar time. A few beers in and it was time to watch the Sack lads tear it up. Holy sh*t they were good. I've tried writing a paragraph to explain how much I enjoyed that gig, but I simply haven't got the words. It was ace. The inevitable beers followed, with Mr Swift joining me for one before leaving me to jabber at the Sack rhythm section about how good they were. I took myself off to bed before embarrassing myself to much (I hope) to get some kip before our big gig day. 

Sunday, the day of the actual gig, started with the usual wander into town where I found Spence The Younger in Yannis having breakfast. I joined him, and after my own meal it was time to get back to Atmosphere to get picked up for soundcheck. Thus began our very own "waiting around" phase. The van, which had been ferrying bands and their gear back and forth from village to arena, had suffered a flat battery the day before. Thankfully this had been repaired, but it did result in soundcheck being a little later than planned.

The view could be worse!

Soundcheck was HOT. I was immediately grateful that the sun would be mostly down by the time we hit the stage that evening, as 2 bars into "2 Minutes..." and I was standing in a puddle of my own sweat.  For some reason I couldn't hear the drums, and I was having a bit of an issue with my guitar's input, but by and large everything sounded grand. We ran "Heaven Can Wait", because we hadn't played it for a while, and that was that. I seem to remember the lovely Mr Collyer handing me a beer, which was much needed after the sun had beaten down on me. Then it was back to Yanni's for a spot of lunch (my notes say "Village sausage!" at this point - I think that's best left without explanation or further context!). I had a lovely old chat with Swifty, and we even managed to get a couple of free beers! I went off for a siesta and in no time at all I was de-knotting my wig and getting ready to head down to the arena.

Yes. After all that, we actually did a gig!

As I arrived at the arena, I was warned to stay away from the bushes which were just a few feet from the backstage area. Snakes and scorpions were there in abundance, apparently. Just what you want to hear! Towers of Stone were warming the crowd up nicely, and the sun seemed to go down just as they were coming offstage.

The feeling I had before going onstage was amazing. Stepping up onto a good sized stage, with technicians all around and 2,000 people in front of us making a hell of a racket, I felt like an honest-to-goodness arena rock star. We launched into the set and just went for it. The gig wasn't without its challenges - the wind was blowing like f*** and the subsequent effect on the sound (not to mention getting an eyeful of sand every time you opened your eyes) was a bit of a sensory barrage. Me being blind as a bat on the best of days, I didn't quite grasp the magnitude of the crowd in front of us. It wasn't until I saw the photographs afterwards that it hit me. "Oh....there were quite a few in, weren't there?". 

"I think that one's waving at you, Swifty..."

"There must be some mistake, I ordered the medium-sized arena crowd?"

Straight after the gig we were run back to the digs for a quick shower before heading back to the arena to check out Stargazer and The Bohemians, who were doing an early Queen set. There followed a very, very long evening/morning of drinking. My notes of this trip start to tail off at this point, but I remember leaving the lads queuing to get into one of the clubs and walking myself back to the apartment in the blue light of the approaching dawn.

On the Monday morning I woke up at what I thought was 9:30am, but it turned out to be past mid-day! I met up with Duggan and had a wander around, checking out one of the pool parties and heading to the Ice Bar to meet some friends of his family who had made the trip out to see us. We had made arrangements to have dinner with the Sack lads, and I duly met Dan and his missus for pre-dinner drinks and to await the rest of the crew. Slowly (very slowly....about an hour later than planned) everyone else arrived and, in varying states of advanced refreshment, we walked to Maria's. I had a beautiful dinner, sampling the spetsofai again followed by a Greek platter. Off to Yanni's again for another night of drink. I had decided at this point that I simply couldn't drink any more lager. I did get called a 'lightweight', but to be honest, if knowing when to stop drinking shit lager makes me a lightweight, I think I'm winning!

Tuesday was the day of the Think Floyd gig. I went into town for breakfast and came across Paul, who was frantically searching for a cool box that had gone missing during our gig. I did my best to assist but the search was proving futile, so I met Simon for breakfast and went shopping for presents. The village was ringing out with the Floyd's soundcheck, which seemed to go on for most of the day (you've got to get these things right, though it did spoil large parts of the setlist!). Resisting the temptation to bring back some sets of "sex dice", I bought some sensible gifts for the folks back home and headed back to Atmosphere for some drinks. Ozzy and I decided to go and join Swifty and Duggers on the beach, which was quite a sight to behold. The view was postcard-perfect.

 Admittedly, the main source of light in this shot is not the sun. It's pasty white Englishmen with no shirts on.

I get bored of beach-dwelling very quickly, so after a beer on the beach I went back to Atmosphere for a beer in the bar with Sacko and Mrs Sacko. I had begun to feel as if I was in some sort of exchange program - by this point I had spent more of the week with Sack Sabbath than with Hi-on!  Dinner was consumed in Agostini's on the roof, and while we were finishing up Think Floyd were just getting going. Swifty and I are massive Floyd fans, and we absolutely lapped it up. It was actually quite an emotional evening for me, and a lovely musical full-stop to the amazing week away.

Guitarists: taking a break from slagging off the singers!

Our last day on the island was a fairly quiet affair, with goodbyes being said over final pints of piss lager. The journey home was fairly uneventful, except for a slightly alarming moment with another plane visible out of the right-hand windows. Swifty, our aerospace nerd, said this would have technically been considered a 'near-miss'! Upon arriving back at Duggan Towers we went straight out for a curry and a few drinks before getting down for some sleep. The next day we said our farewells and The Rhythm Section drove me back to Cambridge for my train home.

And there you have it. Looking back on that week after nearly a year, I am still blown away by the whole experience. I must admit, playing the gig itself was almost incidental. I got to spend a week in a beautiful place, with some of my dearest friends. I made lots of new friends, and enjoyed an extraordinarily well-organised event.

Well done to absolutely everyone involved. Special thanks to my friends in Sack Sabbath, a wonderful bunch of guys to spend a week with and a top band to boot. Extra special thanks to Paul, Jane and Eddie of Classic Rock Tours for giving us the opportunity and looking after us all week. And finally, to my former colleagues in Hi-on Maiden, thank you all from the bottom of my heart. It was pretty f***ing special.

YAMAS!

The Artist Formerly Known As Dave Hurry
x

A shameless plug or two: Stuff what I did in 2013, like

During 2013, I had the pleasure of working on two projects which are now in various states of seeing-the-light-of-day.

1. Hopefully not-too-distant...

I have contributed guitars and backing vocals to Lee Abraham's forthcoming opus "Distant Days", which should be out in February (if Prog Magazine is to be believed - which I'm sure it is!). I visited Lee in February to do rhythm guitars, and returned in September to lay down 3 guitar solos on the album's epic closing track "Tomorrow Will Be Yesterday".

The album features some unbelievable performances from just about everyone concerned, and is a more-than-worthy follow-up to Lee's successful 2009 album "Black & White". Lee himself sings the haunting title track and takes the guitar solo, with yours truly providing some Strat-twang in the background. There are some astounding vocal performances throughout the album, including Dec Burke (Darwin's Radio, Frost*, etc.) and Steve Thorne.

In December, I had the pleasure of accompanying Lee to Thin Ice Studios where the album was mastered by Karl Groom (Threshold). Karl also provided a stonking guitar solo on album opener "Closing The Door", and manned the desk earlier in the year while Gerald "Mully" Mulligan was laying down the drum tracks for the album.

It's a corker. Keep your eyes peeled and your browsers pointed at Lee's website (which, I'm reliably informed, is due for an update any decade now) - http://www.leeabraham.co.uk/

2. A job-swap with Death...?

A day or two before I left home to start laying down guitars on Lee's album, I was contacted by Gary Mackenzie of The Mighty Handful. Gary asked if I'd be interested in contributing some guitar to an upcoming prog-stravaganza which he and his Mighty colleagues had been preparing, to which I said an immediate yes (being the musical prostitute that I am). Gary sent me a couple of tracks, and on the day of the 2013 Eurovision Song Contest I went along to MightyMatt's house-boat studio on the Thames to chuck down some solos / drink some Guinness.

The idea is this; Glenn, a local legend and would-be rock star ("the best of the best of them"), has died. His best mate is understandably upset about this. Shortly after toasting the memory of his fallen friend, who should walk through the door but Death himself? Mr G. Reaper offers our hero the chance to revisit the past in order that he better understand Glenn's path through life, and ultimately to choose whether or not to bring his friend back to the land of the living. Entitled "Still Sitting In Danny's Car" (a reference to the supernaturally souped-up Vauxhall Cavalier in which the protagonist traverses the time-streams), the album is a wonderful mesh of sentiment and silliness with beautifully observed lyrics and splendid songwriting.

The boys plan to release the album as a series of EPs over the coming year, and the first part was released in November 2013. I contributed a lengthy guitar solo and some rhythm guitar to "Cavalier Spirit", and the album also features guitar contributions from Andy Burgess of NWOBHM forged AOR stalwarts Praying Mantis (with whom Gary played for a number of years).

A sampler of the first EP, "Part 1 - Once Upon a Lifetime", is available on the band's Soundcloud page. I've just noticed that someone has commented "yeah...prog!" just after one of my contributions, so I must have done something right!

The whole EP can be streamed on Spotify, or you can buy it from iTunes and Amazon. I've already contributed some guitar to a track which is slated to appear on Part 5, and I have been asked if I would like to join the band for a gig later this year. The future is bright. The future is Mighty.


That's it for now! Keep your bits clean, and I'll have more to report soon. I might even post the last bit of the Rhodes Rock diary some time this year!

Love,

Chris
x

Stuff for sale

Hello folks.

Time has come to sell some music gear and various bits. If there's anything you fancy, get in touch via Facebook, Twitter, comments, or if you know me well enough already, by email or phone. I am open to haggling on all prices.

Rack-mounted Gear

• Marshall JMP-1 pre-amp 
• 1U
• This is in good nick, missing a nut or two on the inputs but nothing else wrong wi' it 
• These are currently going on eBay for £345-400
• Rocktron Intellifex  
• 1U
• Silver-fronted model
• Rocktron don't make this any more. I can't find any on eBay, and I can't remember how much I paid for it! I will have to do a bit of research on a price, but let me know if you're interested. 
• Awesome delay, love it.
• Marshall EL34 50/50 Dual Monobloc Amplifier. 
• 3U
• Here's a bit of a peach. This was previously owned and used by Dave Murray of Iron Maiden on a mid-00's tour. I can't prove this myself, but I'm sure one of my pals in the Maiden camp will vouch for it. 
• It's been modified on one side by the Maiden techs. Swifty (Hi-on Maiden) played with it a bit and discovered that, while using one side on its own didn't quite sound like Davey, plugging both sides into a stereo cab and running them at the same time sounded exactly  like Dave Murray. 
• New models are around a grand. I'm happy to let this go for £400.
• 2 x Thon 3U double door rack cases
• Good nick, bit of rust here and there
• 4 locks (butterfly clips)
• 40cm deep
• Weight: 7kg
• £50 each

Speaker Cabinet

• Marshall 1960a 4x12" extension cabinet
• Stereo switchable
• Bit of a range on eBay, so I've plumped for £300

Other miscellaneous bumph I don't need any more

• US to UK Step Down Transformers
• 1x 100VA transformer - for any US device needing up to 100w - £15
• 1x 500VA transformer - for any US device needing up to 500w - £50

Time to hang up the wig

  Wrexham, 20 September 2013 - the last official UK show

As those who came to our recent shows in Wrexham & Nijmegen will know (and any intrepid Facebook-ers out there may have already surmised), I am sad to announce that I will be leaving Hi-on Maiden.

I joined in November 2003 as third guitarist "Manic Gers", doing three-guitar shows at bigger venues and filling in for the then-incumbent Adrian Swift at some smaller shows. During a number of fairly dramatic line-up changes in 2007 I became the full-time "Dave Hurry", and ever since then I have been wigging it up on stage right.

Over the past year, it has slowly become apparent that I'm not enjoying the time on-stage as much as I used to, and after a long time trying to work out what I could do to fix that feeling I came to the (perhaps inevitable) conclusion that my heart simply wasn't in it any more. Being onstage and feeling like that was awful. I felt like I was letting everybody down: the rest of the band, the audience, and the music. As a result, I have decided that it is time to step away.

It was an incredibly hard decision to make, but I feel its the right decision for me and for the band. I have nothing but love for the rest of the band and everyone in it's orbit, including our dedicated followers and the many, many fine bands and venue staff we've met along the way.

I've had an absolute blast with this band, including some of the most memorable experiences of my life. I have toured Turkey, I have played in front of 2,000 people in Greece, and I have made some great friends all over the UK and Europe. I couldn't have done it without you, and my thanks go to every single one of you reading this.

Eddie reduces me to dust - Nijmegen, 5 October 2013

Two very emotional shows in Nijmegen this past weekend were officially my last, although today's developments mean that there are now two more Hi-on shows in the book for this year in Wakefield and Bolton. The lads have already been setting plans in motion to find a new Dave Hurry, but I have agreed to do those shows if things don't quite work out in time!

I couldn't be leaving the band in better hands, with the brilliant Simon now fully entrenched as bassist and support from an extremely enthusiastic new manager, I am confident that the band will go from strength to strength.

Sorry for the long rambling self-important post! I tried to keep it short (no, really, I did!) but it was really bloody hard to write!

All my love, and I'll see you in the crowd!!!

Dave "too sad to think of a nickname" Hurry III

P.S. Yes, I WILL finish the Rhodes diary. I promise!
P.P.S. If you fancy the job, get in touch with Adrian Swift! 
DH

RHODES ROCK 2013 - Part 2 (Or, "How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Cats")

Please forgive the delay in crafting this epistle. In the time since the last post I have lost a Grandmother, been on holiday, done a few gigs and been rather ill. Bear with me - I hope the following chapters are posted with a little more regularity. H x

Shortly after I turned around from taking that last photograph from Part 1, I noticed there was a bar behind us. Reasoning that I was on holiday, and that I hadn't had a drop of alcohol since leaving Yorkshire several hours and 2,500 miles ago, I decided I owed it to myself to try a drop of the local ale. The nice lady behind the bar sorted me out with a tin of lager, and we sat down to wait for our welcoming party.

In no time at all we were greeted by the Exclusively Lindos crew and guided on the extraordinarily short walk to our digs. We had been allocated three two-bed studio apartments just behind the Atmosphere Bar, and given my propensity for snoring the house down I managed to bag one to myself. See?! There's an upside to being an out-cast within your own band. Duggers made friends with the local stray cats, and I went straight for the shower.

St. Paul's Bay...

After acquainting ourselves with the accommodation (and after I'd noticed a few worrying drip-drip-drips from the ceiling in my bathroom), we took a wander down the hill into the labyrinthine streets of Lindos village. We did start wondering if we needed a ball of string (or indeed if the Minotaur might be just round the corner); 'dem streets ain't half wind-y! We had been told to head for Yanni's Bar which was to host the evening's entertainment, and believe me - when Hi-on Maiden are told to go to the bar, Hi-on Maiden go to the bar! The steins quickly appeared, as did a number of the crew. The now legendary Paul Collyer of Classic Rock Tours found us along with Les, a member of the security services who had lived happily in Lindos for many years. After a few hours of sitting and drinking, we decided it was probably time for dinner. Finding a nearby taverna ("Anything you don't like, the bill is on me!" spake the proprietor), we quaffed, quibbled and, er, ate dinner. During the meal I began to flag quite spectacularly, and after scooting along to Socrates Bar (another legendary bar where the night's gig had been moved on short notice, and hot DAMN was it packed to the rafters) I decided to call it a night.

 

The view from Atmosphere Bar.

The next morning, after giving the maid the shock of her life - or not, if she's used to seeing half-naked fat pale Englishmen lazing about under the air-con unit - I walked down into the village to find myself some breakfast and stock up on cool H2O. I was immediately struck by the number of crêpe cafes. Having always associated that particular batter-y treat with France (it's got a hat over the e, people!) I was rather perplexed. Even more perplexing was the fact that, all of a sudden, I really wanted to have one. And have one I did. 8 f***ing Euros later I went back to my room to swot up on a couple of songs set for the gig (yes, we did play a gig...eventually).

Eventually I saw some signs of life from the other rooms, and went out to say hello. We then found to our delight that the boys from Sack Sabbath had arrived, and were staying in the digs above ours. With the Sack boys already having some stories to tell (isn't that right, Bill?), we whiled away some time before heading back down to Yanni's for a quick drink or two. Some local friends of the festival had organised to lead a short introductory tour around the village, leaving from the Atmosphere bar. Being right by our digs, we headed back there to have yet another beer before joining the walk. We were first taken up to the main road which runs behind the village and overlooks it - one hell of a sight, truth be told. Leading us back down into the village, we were made aware of all the venues the festival took in, and advised to check out the "welcome party" that night. Heading back to Yanni's (my spell-checker is simply going to have to get used to that word - it crops up a lot), we imbibed further and chatted with some punters before deciding it was dinner time.

Ozzy took us Hi-on boys to Maria's, just round the corner from Yanni's, where the Sack boys had consumed a nice morsel or two the night before. We may have been a bit accidentally sweary, but the food was unbelievable. I discovered "spetsofai", and enjoyed watching our young drummer try (very badly) to hide the fact that he was smoking from his father, who clearly knew! Then it was time to meander down to the welcome party, which was already in full swing. We enjoyed our fellow bands, and purchased some mementos. I think we all already knew this was going to be a trip to remember. I eventually decided that I'd drunk all the lager I could stomach (Mr Hurry does not lager like), and headed off for me bed.

The beginning of a lager-y friendship

I awoke after an absolutely atrocious night's sleep, and, remembering our last encounter, popped a t-shirt over my pallid torso in order that I not make the maid feel any more uncomfortable than she needed to feel. I went out for yet another crepe, finding a slightly cheaper one this time, and bumped into Simon in Yanni's. Our four-stringer had been out until 9:30am - he's supposed to be the sensible one!!! We took a walk round to the amphitheatre which would be the setting for the Think Floyd gig the following week, and then on to St Paul's Bay where the chaps were hard at work building the stage for the two-night main event. Simon and I headed back to Atmosphere, and from there the story of the rest of that day is quite a short one. Essentially, I sat there drinking all day with the quite lovely, and quite ginger, "Bill's Bored" of Sack Sabbath fame.

Bill loves me

Joined at various points by various members of various bands, we whiled the day away drinking more and more and more and more. Ultimately joined by the rest of the Sack boys (and girls), we went for dinner at the nearby Agostini's. The food was unbelievable, the view was incredible - the restaurant sits right at the top of the village, overlooking the whole shebang. Tremendous. In short order we found ourselves back in Atmosphere, where I was joined for a short time by Mr Swift before slinking off for a kip.

Sack Dinner - Nose of Manic lights the way...

NEXT TIME ON RHODES ROCK!
Some people play some gigs! Then....shock, horror, so do HI-ON MAIDEN!

See you then. YAMAS!

Dave "if knowing when to stop drinking shit European lager makes me a lightweight, I'm winning" Hurry