TUC Rally

Debs

 

Is this business, pleasure or politics? I don't know. It is the May Day TUC rally. We used to play as people assembled. Then they put us on their banner. How proud? And how many times do I look at that banner and feel proud? Well, every Mayday since.

Foxwood at TUC rally 2004 remembering Royal Park School

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best story and worst was, that the year they put on the flag we didn't get the message that they wanted us to play, so after years of playing these rallies in all sorts of weather [you may remember the piece of plastic tied between a lamppost and a car aerial!][will post the pic when I find it], I was disappointed; then I turned up to march [sans band] and then they were disappointed! EEk and double eek!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

However this Saturday Foxwood also has a gig at Oakwood Clock, so in the morning, I drive the van over to Oakwood and leave it there, get a lift with Christine back to town, march from outside the Art Gallery, then leave Patrick and Richard in Vicar Lane, fail to find a taxi by the Markets, fail to get the X98 bus, find a taxi after all.

 

The TUC march was well attended and went forward in a very jolly way.

 

Next!

 

 

 

 

Notting Hill Carnival Part Two

It’s been a long ambition of mine, especially since I met Lionel, to play London Carnival with Nostalgia, his marching band, and since Leeds is out of bonds again, I saw this as an opportunity to fulfil this ambition.

Well, Debs, I planned to attend a rehearsal, chill out in London, play Carnival Sunday and Monday. What I got was the calypso monarch evening at the Tabernacle,  the somewhat unexpected  gig with Lionel and Kwame in Peterborough, the last two bands at Panorama, including coincidentally Real Steel [winners!], whom I had tried to contact in Plymouth and with whom years ago I had played at Leeds West Indian Centre [as mentioned in previous blog]. 

Monday morning finds Hazel and ourselves at a DIY stores buying new wheels for trailer which pulls the kit and bass and amps and stuff. The Nostalgia minibus’s clutch has died so Lionel has borrowed Hazel’s van [I hope you’re following this, Debs], and in the end me and Sophie get a lift over to Maxella’s where we become ancient Greeks for a day, thanks to Sarah, Pia and some sheets. , I walked around London for 12 hours in a black bra, Morgan’s shorts and a strip of white sheet.  And a rather unbecoming bumbag - there to prop up the pan de neck-ness. Sophie did similar, only she had her mum’s white trousers.

Men – young and old queued up to be photographed with Sophie. The first photo that I took of her she said, oh I don't really like being photoed. By Monday afternoon she was practically dragging them out of the crowds . . . . Well, not exactly! We had worked out most of the chords for More the night before on Hazel’s piano.

Notting Hill Carnival Bank Holiday Monday was packed; it started as a wonderful experience and turned into an endurance test. I even found myself praying for rain. Sophie left us at Kensal Road at 5.30, and got back to Leeds before we got back to Maxella’s [under Westway, just off Ladbrooke Grove] at 10.45. 

The Grand Union Canal was so green with weed it looks like a field of grass. 
Here's Freddy, Asquaye, Evange, Bernita, the rays from the dying sun,  Yoko and her daughter [from Japan], me and Sophie [from Leeds], Lionel, Adrianna, Raol, Dianna [leader of the Coventry crew], Dominic, Sharon and David [the wonderful, wonderful sandwiches and ginger beer crew], Daniel, and others whose names I either never knew or really can't spell.

They had made a delicious vegetable curry specially for me. Then I drove Hazel’s van back through the departing coaches and police vans of Notting Hill Carnival, guiding myself by the wonderful Maps app. Got to Seven Sisters Road at 2am, whereupon a gust of wind caught Hazel’s front door and locked us out. Hazel went off with my shoes and waterproof on over her pyjamas, drove her van to her parents . .  .

By the time Lionel arrived with the hire truck to leave with Hazel, she had returned with her parents’ set of keys. What a hoot.

Notting Hill Carnival Part One

It's Friday and I am at the Calypso Monarch's Show at the Tabernacle, Powis Square. I remeet Alexander D Great, who I shared a platform with at the third International Steel Pan Conference at UEL. Here's a pic of all the recent and present monarchs, from UK, Canada and T and T.

My hotel is the Wedgewood at Leinster Square, not at all far from the Tabernacle. And it's lovely.

I was expecting to rehearse our Carnival tunes on Saturday but instead I find I have agreed to play a gig with Lionel and Kwame. In Peterborough! I draw a veil. Here's some pics.

We get back in time for the last two bands of Panorama. Short as this is, it is wonderful, and it is inspiring. And it is now raining. The bands just play on. Hats off to them.
 Here's the pans being driven to the judging point. And above, here's a trolley that I was strangely drawn to that was holding a set of six bass. Hmmmm. Delicious.

they have balloons on their floats. Real Steel from Plymouth won Panorama. Coincidence 1: I tried to contact this band when I was in Plymouth in order to introduce Chris to them.

Coincidence 2:  Years ago I was playing at Leeds West Indian Centre with Panic/Pan Explosion, then, after hearing our “support” act [Real Steel] play, I advised us against playing ourselves. They were amazing. And obviously still are.


On Sunday, it's Children's Carnival Day. We start at Maxella's. The visiting French samba band gets the day off to a fine start, with a few rocking rhythms under the Westway A40 flyover [but I only took film clips of them, so that's a technology for another day]. The pictures include Roger from Alaska and Haroun sitting in van, Raoul on kit, a greened over Grand Union canal, some dancers on the corner, flag-wavers, and Nostalgia marching along. And most important: sandwich makers and servers extraordinaire: Sharon and David.

Today we are wearing white bottoms, black Nostalgia Olympic t shirts [yes, Debs, I am playing with the band that played the Olympics!], and a red tie for 50 years of Trinidad and Tobago independence. [I am wearing the shorts that Morgan gave me to mend.]

We played up Ladbrooke Grove, turned into Kensall Road, turned into Elkstone Road, where, amazingly Sophie found us. Our three tunes were Sweet Mango, More, and Moves Like Jagger [which Sophie knows already from Sparrows]. 
  the time Kimani left off playing, releasing his pan for her, Sophie had figured out Mango. All we knew about More was that probably it started with a G chord but this song didn’t live up to its name and we played it less.To say Sophie joined us at 3, she managed a good 3 hours marching/playing.  Finishing at 7 was a long day.  Little did we know what lay ahead! Took a tube with Rudi, Central and Piccadilly to  Manor House where Hazel picked us up.

If it's Friday it must be Beechwood

Now then Debs

For gigs during the school week, I rely on a steady stream of top class pannists who are also just finished uni, Yr 11, in a gap year, gave up uni, are on maternity leave, unemployed, work part-time or who can work flexi-time. Last year, if you recall, Debs when we opend MacCauley's shop in Huddersfield, it was your lunch hour!

Unusually, at Beechwood, noone was holding a baby while playing. Quite frankly it made a nice change. If you have a baby to hold you need to be on bass or on the melody. Chords is a nightmare. And once the baby gets past 6 months it starts objecting to being passed round. As I think, Charles found at MacCauleys, and he wasn't even playing.

I digress. At Beechwood we were me, Natalie [whose school it is], Jenner, Daisy, Sophie and Ashley.  We were mostly Sparrows and one Foxwood. Beechwood teacher, Cat took some excellent pics. Here are some. [And it was one of those  lovely moments, then back to the day jobs. Natalie went on to be photographed for the YEP while playing out with Seacroft Grange].

I went on to plan for Huddersfield Carnival. We were adding Diamonds on the Soles of her shoes and Chariots of Fire for the ubiquitous theme. Then at ten I nipped down to the Wardrobe to watch Joe Mac play guitar in a band.

Foxwood and Foxwood Doves on tour of Leeds Primary Schools

Well, we had just agreed to do Cross Flatts when we find that normal emails being regarded as spam can wreak havoc with the old plans. So, it's St Barts as well, after all!

To ensure that I don't do Work work on my day off I agreed to mind Maya on Fridays while Georgia does a shift at the Malt Shovel. So, it's pans in the blue van, Maya in the car seat and we're off on tour. The best laid schemes o' mice and grandmothers - eh! Anyway she needs to get used to it. 

At Cross Flatts the kids are all eating on tables set up outside; we set up in the playground facing the tables, start playing and the kids then all run into the playground behind us. We are Varshika, Joe, Katie, Sophie, and Amy. Maya sits on a pan case.

Then the van comes back. We reload and set off for St Barts. Katie leaves us here, and Rick takes Maya back to Gig; Daisy, Lola and Vicky join us. At St Barts we play between the railings and the bouncy castle. I give Lola a little purple pan to use that I "borrowed" from a supplier at an education conference, in exchange for a formal evaluation. After that Joe and Varshika have an excellent fight over who gets to sit in the front. For a while it's a stand-off as I find they're both in it!