A Final Hurrah For Pet Sounds

BRIAN WILSON at the London Palladium
celebrating 50 years of Pet Sounds

Saturday 21st May 2016

In what is possibly going to be Brian Wilson's last ever UK tour, and certainly the final hurrah for Pet Sounds being performed in it's entirety, the evening brought mixed feelings and emotions for me. Disappointed that I probably won't get another opportunity to see this musical genius close up and personal on a stage performing his tremendous back catalogue of work. Relieved that at 73 he may be able to finally start to consider enjoying a well earned rest and retirement without the strain and pressures that being on tour can bring onto someone so fragile in body and mind. Happy that after years of expectation I was lucky enough to finally get to see and hear the majestic Pet Sounds and the long awaited and hidden jewel that is SMiLE being performed live on a stage in my home country (three times for each actually).

To start on a positive note this concert was hugely enjoyable and the Pet Sounds set was simply breathtaking and glorious. The sad news is that Brian Wilson's voice is not what it once was, however he does get very ably supported vocally by his superb band. You know those high notes he used to be able to sing like an angel at the end of Surfer Girl and Caroline No? Well he can't get reach those notes any more but Matt Jardine, Al's boy, certainly can. Brian's vocals were clipped and slightly clumsy at times and he does have a rather unfortunate awkward stage presence that relies a little too much on autocue to get him through a show. Given his age and past experiences in dabbling with mind changing substances and his subsequent mental health issues and insecurity related to his drug use then I guess it's no surprise that this 73 year old is now vocally past his best. No question. It saddens me somewhat to be this honest, I kind of feel rather disloyal, however let's get that little bit of bad news out of the way first so that I can move on to the good news. And there's lots of it.

The good news is the music, those songs, the harmonies and the note perfect band. They are sublime. If you're a big BW fan like me you do not necessarily go to a Brian Wilson concert to hear his voice, you go to listen to his songs and appreciate the musical arrangements, hear those elaborate four part harmonies and the musicianship from a backing band that is second to none. They know this music, these songs, inside out. With former Beach Boy Al Jardine, who remarkably does still have a voice that stands the test of time, taking the lead vocal on some of the songs and his son Matt expertly singing all the high falsetto parts that Brian used to be able to sing, this show works really well. It works because of those songs and those clever intricate harmonies that Brian Wilson created and gave to his Beach Boys all those years ago.

The show opened with the acapella My Prayer which showed from the get go just how strong vocally the band are and Matt Jardine's lead vocal on the wonderful Don't Worry Baby was pitch perfect. My personal favourite in the first set was In My Room, a song that captured my imagination when as a thirteen year old I first heard it on my Dansette. It influenced my musical taste forever, I was a Beach Boys fan from that moment on. That first set comprising the hits plus some rarities was rapturously received by a sold out Palladium audience.  

The second set commenced with the complete Pet Sounds album being performed in it's entirety track by beautiful track. Pet Sounds as a piece of work is magnificent, sublime, melancholic, exquisite, beautiful music created by a 23 year old musical genius and is quite rightly recognised as one of the greatest albums of all time. Period. It's simply stunning, even today 50 years on it truly stands the test of time. My only tiny little criticism of Pet Sounds as a whole is that Sloop John B seems a little out of place, it would have been a better fit on the Summer Days Summer Nights album with perhaps She Knows Me Too Well from the Today album taking it's place on Pet Sounds. Just an opinion I have that won't mean anything to anyone unless you're a Beach Boys anorak like me. 

The huge standing ovation at the end of God Only Knows during the Pet Sounds set was a huge celebratory thank you to Brian Wilson for writing and producing what is one of the best and most beautiful songs of all time. Layer upon layer of voices mixed with a melody that is unforgettable. Pure genius. The second half set finished, as it usually does, with a medley of sixties Beach Boy hits and went down a storm. 

My only concern is that those seeing Brian Wilson perform on stage for the first time won't listen beyond the limited vocal range he now has. That because of this they won't hear the music, the songs, the melodies. They might be too preoccupied with the man sitting awkwardly on stage, sometimes looking and sounding a little confused or uncertain. He may sometimes trip over or even forget a lyric, this can be distracting unless you look and listen beyond what you see. Understand that Brian Wilson is a seventy three year old survivor who has scars but is also the creator of some of the best pop songs you will ever hear. His legacy will be his music. Brian Wilson gave us Pet Sounds so please listen to it, really listen to it then maybe, just maybe, like me you'll get it.

The set list is here if you want to see what we were listening to at the London Palladium.

Help the homeless

It's coming up to Christmas and the nights are getting colder so please give a thought for those less fortunate than ourselves who don't have a roof over their heads.

One of our friends works for Off The Fence - Antifreeze, a local charity helping Brighton & Hove's homeless and she is co-ordinating a collection of men's jumpers, hoodies, shoes/trainers, thick socks, coats, woolly hats, gloves, scarves and waterproof clothing which can be taken to the next Albion home match against Fulham this coming Saturday 28th November. Although the charity are mainly looking for men's clothing womens warm clothing will also be welcomed. There will be a number of collection points around the Amex ground, alternatively if you are aboard one the NWSS supporters coaches you can hand over any items you wish to donate to your coach steward when you board who will then drop them off for you. See here for more details about the scheme.

There's also more information about former Albion player Guy Butters 'Big Sleepout' project in support of the Antifreeze charity on the Seagulls website and in the Blackburn matchday programme.

Bobby dazzler

A very enjoyable evening spent with my friends from Albion supporters club North West Sussex Seagulls at their November meeting.

Darren Balkham, Albion's Police Liaison Officer, gave a really interesting and entertaining talk followed by a lively Q&A. A very nice guy, who's appreciated and respected by Brighton fans for all the good hard work he does in liaising and communicating between police, football club and supporters.

Darren says he has the best job in the police force and he clearly loves his work. Those of us who know him realise how lucky we are to have a true football person looking after our safety on match days. His frequent and extensive use of social media networking such as Twitter keeps him in touch with Albion fans on a daily basis. A very modern, progressive and forward thinking bobby who always makes himself accessible and available, the police force could do with more like him.

A big thank you to all those who came along, especially to Simon & Fran who looked after us very well and kept us all fed and watered.

The next NWSS supporters club meeting is scheduled for January 2015 when an ex Albion player is being lined up as our special guest for the evening.

Jacko Hooper - Just For You

JACKO HOOPER - For You EP Launch
The Brunswick, Hove
Wednesday 2nd July 2014

It's the night after the night before and I'm just looking back on a really enjoyable gig at The Brunswick in Hove where Jacko Hooper was launching his new EP titled, rather invitingly, 'For You'. It was great to see a packed room who gave the Brighton troubadour a rousing welcome as he took quietly to the stage. 

Jacko's gentle and somewhat modest personality shone through and he seemed genuinely humbled and embarrassed at the warm reception and loud applause that greeted him at the end of each song. Amongst the many stand out performances were Borderline, which was a debut duet with Tom Staniford, Faces Blue (inspired by a poem written by a much younger Jacko) which he dedicated to his dad and Too Far To Sea, all proved to be popular song choices with an enthusiastic audience. We also heard the four new songs from his newly released EP which were also very well received; Egg Shells, November 5th Song, Run Away With Me and the penultimate song of his set Roaming. The final song of the evening, and for me one of his best, was Common Sense which was played unplugged. It was a touching and moving end to his EP launch show. There's a very good review of this gig on Tom Charles Sayer's blog, follow this link.

Do try and get a listen to Egg Shells from the new EP, it's possibly his most accessible tune to date and a good introduction to the man and his music. You can see the video on You Tube here. I guess I would describe his songwriting and performance as intense, introspective, vulnerable, open and honest and at times highly emotional. You won't be dancing in the aisles but you will be listening, this is no bad thing.

Also a special word here for the two support acts, Ellie Ford and Staniford who were both excellent, it may well be worth investigating their music output further. Ellie, with her ethereal vocals and accompanying herself expertly on guitar and harp (how wonderful to see this instrument in the context of a more modern, contemporary setting) was a very pleasant way to open the evening. 

Tom Staniford's songwriting skills were there for all to hear, especially on his last unplugged acoustic number, This Time Around, which was very moving and I thought the best song of his all too brief set. Although struggling with a cold and a somewhat dodgy piano that seemed to have the odd key out of tune, he produced a strong set that was hugely enjoyable. I wasn't familiar with Tom Stanifords work but the three numbers I heard on piano and six on guitar proved to be a real bonus on what was a hugely enjoyable evening.

Jacko Hooper - Egg Shells video

NWSS Make Donation To Pool Fund

Horsham based Brighton & Hove Albion supporters club North West Sussex Seagulls have made a £200 donation to a Cowfold school swimming pool fund. Members of the supporters club attended St Peters CE Primary School on Wednesday 17th July to present a cheque to Chair of Governors Eileen Precious and school head Giles Kolter. Eileen Precious explained that the swimming pool is a village community pool and was built in memory of village lads who sadly drowned in the sea some years ago, the idea being that all village children should learn to swim. It is used for lessons and clubs for the school children and is open to the public for some of the summer holidays. Although a charge is made for use of the pool this does not cover the cost of running it and the school relies on fundraising and donations to make up the shortfall. The school runs the pool but does not contribute financially from the school budget to its upkeep so any donation is gratefully received.

Mike Wilson on behalf of NWSS said that they were delighted to be able to make a donation to the Cowfold community swimming pool fund and praised the school’s contribution in encouraging all children in the village to learn how to swim. Raising awareness to fund this important local facility is crucial in being able to keep it a part of the local community and the school. NWSS supporters club is a non-profit making organisation and any surplus funds left over at the end of a football season are donated to local charities and organisations, with a particular emphasis on youth activities. On match days NWSS transports over 100 Albion fans in two coaches to the Amex Stadium from Roffey, Horsham, Southwater, Cowfold & Henfield.

More information on St Peters School and NWSS can be found on their websites at www.stpetersschoolcowfold.org.uk and www.northwestsussexseagulls.co.uk 

Really Nice Folks

Cambridge Folk Festival
Thursday 25th - Sunday 28th July, 2013

That's the Cambridge Folk Festival done and it was great to hear some new music to melt my ears. So much stuff to listen to over the four days and the weather was gloriously hot & sunny (apart from Saturday evening when we had lots of warm rain). Highlights of the festival for me were Irish songstress Heidi Talbot, Brighton band The Levellers, K T Tunstall, The Staves, LAPD, Katherine Roberts & Sean Lakeman, guitarist Tommy Emmanuel, female duo Larkin Poe (the wife loved them) and Lucy Rose. Although not musically my cup of tea the most entertaining live act were The Bombay Royale. You probably wouldn't have liked all the music on show but there was, without doubt, something for everyone.

The festival is more than just music though, there's all sorts of entertainment from Morris Dancers to poetry and there's also plenty of workshops if you wanted them. There were two main stages with two other tents for the up and coming artists, with particular emphasis on young musicians. The food choices were enormous and not too overpriced and the bars had a reasonable selection of real ales and cider to choose from. Lots of traditional craft and vintage clothes stalls were on show, as well as the obligatory merchandise tent. There was a wi-fi area where you could hook up to the internet for free and even a place where you could charge up your mobile phone if you needed to (at a price). Toilet facilities were excellent and I never had to queue, unlike some of the ladies. The ages of people attending the festival ranged from the very young to the more mature music fan (like me I guess) so I felt right at home. Camping was available for those that wanted it and the on site camping facilities looked excellent. We did the easy option and opted for a very nice B&B three miles away at the Tudor Cottage Guest House. The park and ride worked like a dream and we didn't experience any hold ups at either end of the day, in fact it was a short 10 minute walk to the festival site so no need to take the bus really. It's the 50th Cambridge Folk Festival next year and I really hope that we can visit again in 2014 as we had such a great time for our first ever visit this year

Irish songstress Heidi Talbot with me and the missus (I'm on the left!)

A really good music festival that was so much more than just 'folk' music. The folk purists might throw their hands up in horror at the electrification of some of the acts who performed but folk now encompasses such a vast range of different types of genres. From the traditional Celtic roots, through Cajun, Blues, African and into the mainstream crossover with bands like Steeleye Span, Bellowhead, The Mavericks, K T Tunstall and The Levellers. I don't care what you call it, I just like it.

It's a beautiful day

Morris Dancers try to establish the location of the beer tent

Only at the Cambridge Folk Festival: I saw something for the first time ever in my 60 years of being on this planet - a tree wearing a knitted jumper pretending to be a message board. That is so cool.

A tree wearing a knitted jumper - so cool

Post your messages here

It's A Car Crash Ending For The Gus Bus!

Thursday 16th May, 2013:

Wow, what a sensational day of events at Brighton & Hove Albion! So, the Gus Bus is pulling into the garage one last time before changing drivers. It's been a car crash day at BHAFC but I'm sure that all true Albion fans will back and support chairman Tony Bloom as he suspends manager Gus Poyet, assistant Mauricio Taricco and coach Charlie Oatway. Bloom doesn't deserve to see his club dragged into a mess that was not of his own making and if what I'm hearing about recent events at BHAFC are true then perhaps it is probably best if Poyet does leave the club.

It has to be said that the style of football under Gus Poyet was the most attractive and best I've ever seen in all the years I've been watching Albion. He gave the team's style of play, in his own words, an identity. We've had a successful reign under Gus but the downside was the manager didn't always know when to keep his mouth shut. We had his opinion on the Luis Suarez racist affair and how many times did we hear from Gus that one day he would manage Chelsea or Spurs or Leeds. For heaven’s sake Gus, you are manager of Brighton, the fans didn't want to hear this. His constant moaning about the player budget began to wear a little thin too, especially as we still managed to finish above Crystal Palace and only two places outside of automatic promotion to the Premiership which is not too bad at all in my view. There was definite progress in the last three years with promotion to the Championship two seasons ago, a 10th place finish last season and up to 4th place this season.

And then there was Monday night. He choose his post Palace match interview to again moan about the budget, spoke about hitting roofs and looking after his own interest. This was not the time or the place, the fans were raw after suffering a home defeat to their arch rivals in what was one of the most important matches in the club's history and that was all they cared about. It would appear that Gus had other things on his mind and just didn't appreciate what a great job he had at Brighton, any other manager would give their eye teeth to have a job like his. A full Amex at every home game, fans that adored you, a team playing beautiful football (at times), one of the best chairman in the football league (and English to boot) and a new training facility coming on stream next year. It's a great job for someone to walk into. The grass isn't always greener elsewhere and no one person is bigger than BHAFC as every Albion fan will tell you, it's not Team Gus it's Brighton & Hove Albion FC. We all knew Gus Poyet would leave one day but not like this, not in this crazy mess.

So we embark on a new era, with probably a new man at the helm and minus some key influential players. It's an opportunity for someone to come into this club and move it onwards and upwards. The financial fair play rules introduced for next season make it tough to compete financially against teams that are relegated from the Premier League with their millions of pounds in umbrella payments but us fans will support Albion no matter what happens in the future. We've come a long way in the last few years under first Dick Knight and now Tony Bloom and they will not jeopardise this clubs financial future because of one man's selfish ambition. They, like us, have a dream of Premiership football at the Amex one day and there's nothing wrong with that, us fans too have the same dream. I thought Gus shared that dream but it seems like he just didn't have the patience or bottle to see it out. It’s such a shame because it was a great journey before the car crash ending.

REMF - The Perfect Match

Albion Supporters 1, Palace Supporters 0
Friday 19th April
The Dripping Pan, Lewes

Wow! Over £4,200 raised at the Robert Eaton Memorial Fund (REMF) football match between Albion supporters and Palace supporters at Lewes last night. A brilliant effort. 

The memorial fund was set up in memory of Albion fan Robert Eaton who sadly lost his life in the terrorist attack on the twin towers in New York in 2001. This annual match between Seagulls and Eagles fans has helped raise funds for REMF and also highlights the goodwill and friendship that can be achieved by football fans of opposing clubs joining together in a common cause. Visit the REMF website here. 

Personal highlight of the evening for me? Well, I finally got to meet the legend that is Peter Ward. Grateful thanks go to the players that took part and the people behind the scenes at REMF that organise this annual event. Extra special thanks also to the fans of Crystal Palace and the gorgeous Crystals (yes, I'm a fan) for making the journey down and coming along in the true spirit of football to support such a worthy cause. So nice to see players and supporters of both clubs sitting next to each other, exchanging banter and having a really good time, without any sign of trouble. Genuine fans showing that football really can bring people closer together.

As the evening wore on it got pretty cold at the Dripping Pan (what a great name for a football ground) but the Crystals, who danced without music because the PA temporarily packed up, and a bloody great big fluffy mascot bird thing called Pete the Eagle, kept us entertained during the half time break. 

For those of you interested the Albion supporters won a close game 1-0. But perhaps on this one occasion in a match between Albion & Palace it wasn't the result that really mattered, it was the money raised for REMF that was more important. There's a nice review of the match from a Palace perspective here.

Oh, and did I mention that I finally got to meet the legend that is Peter Ward...and no 8 is Peter Ward, and no 9 is Peter Ward, and no 10 is....

Celebrations after last year's REMF match