If it's the third Saturday in June it must be Otley Carnival, St Chad's and Bankside's Summers Fairs

Debs, when are you coming back, you know you like this sort of thing!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two Thursdays back I lent Bankside a single bass and single guitar to ease up on the carting around of heavy metal on the day of the fair itself. Then this Thursday I did an extra practice with them to fine-tune them for their summer fair. Gave them four easy two chord, eight bar tunes, in three separate keys [Merrily, Skip to My Lou, London Bridge and Largo in F]. Aleesha was also playing them on her guitar. I have every confidence in Mel D and Mr G.

 

On Friday I took basses and guitar pans and stands, banner, sticks and music and got Chloe's dad to put them in his garage, ready for the older Sparrows to trundle them across to St Chad's. I have every confidence in Peter, Millie, Millie, George and Chloe.

 

On Friday we then did Holy Rosary and Weetwood, and on Saturday, Foxwood and East Steel set our thoughts to the float of Otley Carnival. We were me, Bex, Daisy, Natalie, Georgia, Tim, Vicky, Katie, Amy, Sophie, Fehmina, Ash, Wendy, Jeanette, Lynn, Andy [his float debut in his home town], Anne, Wanda and Kirsty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Weather was great. Tunes were great. First float since my op; took a stool, and needed it! Bex and team set up without me. That was hard for me to handle.

 

At the end I looked over to another float, and saw Mickey Mouse sweeping up. Surreal or what! [See below]

 

 

 

 

Meantime the older Sparrows [Doves, I guess] were wowing St Chad's. I took this pic just before they trod the boards. See also garage.

 

 

 

 

Foxwood Steel play Lawnswood Prom at Weetwood Hall

Debs, just to make life more complicated there was a test match at Headingley, so .. . . . .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 . . . . . in order not to be late for the Foxwood Weetwood gig, I had taken the Foxwood pans up to Weetwood earlier on in our blue van, then driven over to Holy Rosary in the Works' white van, then, having loaded back into the white van the mostly ArtForms pans and kit, I waited for Rick to drive the empty blue van over to Chapeltown, where I swapped with him [luckily we are both authority drivers]; he went back home and I took the empty blue van up to Weetwood, where I discovered the ancient state of my Foxwood vest meant that both Bex and Daisy banned me from wearing it. [Anyway I am really proud of East Steel at the moment so wearing the green was not a problem].

 

Okay, we played; we were ace and we were me, Bex, Vicky [whose school prom it was], Daisy, Fehmina, Sophie, Tim, Bart and Charlotte.

 

I know there's some ace pics with the Lawnswood Prommers but here we are just before they arrived.

 

On Saturday before Otley, Tim and Bex swapped the pans from blue to white as required as Foxwood and East Steel were playing together. But Debs that's tomorrow's gig. And I haven't even mentioned taking Sparrows' pans to Chloe's dad's garage yet.

 

East Steel play Holy Rosary School Summer Fair

We've played this one in all weathers, and now the weather is on our side. We were me, Bex, Tricia, Wanda, Kirsty and Jamie [guest drummer], and Mikey. As Bex and I were off to play with Foxwood at Weetwood the same evening, we kept the band small and the set short.

 

It was a beautiful afternoon, and the pictures speak for themselves.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The audience were numerous and appreciative. Didn't look just disappointed when we left but positively annoyed. I do always believe in leave them wanting more, but not leave them upset! 

 

 

Foxwood East Sparrows play Headingley Festival.

So, it turns out that we didn't play Beeston, but, as Jane said "Beeston's loss was Headingly's gain". Not, I think if you listened too closely to our rendition of Clocks. We were all up for not just playing but opening with it, quite forgetting there was no one to play the harmonies, and I haven't played the tune on stage since 2000 and whatever! Not in this decade anyway.

 

 

It fell to Tim and Bart to be impressive drummers, something I usually have a go at drummers for! But needs must, and they plugged many a gap! By the third tune we were fine. We were Claudia [Sparrows], Wanda and Kirsty [East Steel], Tim [Foxwood], Vicky [Foxwood and East Steel], Bart [Foxwood, Sparrows] and myself [Foxwood, Sparrows, East Steel]. Well, we do have some common repertoire but really there's no point in having three bands with all the same tunes!

 

By the third song we were in recovery, and finished with an encore from the one lady at the front of the audience marquee.

 

Before that we did a workshop in the back playground next to John Davison's footballers. He had promised them that Wayne Rooney was dropping in at 3.45pm, and despite our doubts, thinking that Wayne was actually in Brazil losing us the World Cup again, the young ex-Everton player did in some form appear.

 

You may guess from my comment that I have issues with ex-Evertonians who desert to play for [or even manage] Man U! My great-grandparents had shares with Everton way back in yet another century, and the greatest sacrifice my grandfather ever made was not to attend the Cup Final the year his daughter was born. And, when John finished sellotaping Wayne to his head, it was all too realistic!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Foxwood play for John and Fiona's wedding

We were me, Bex, Georgia, Vicky, Natalie, Tim, Bart, Sophie and Daisy and we rocked Meanwood Church with Pachelbel's Kanon, Three Little Birds, some more tunes and then of course You'll never Walk Alone.

 

I started welling up as Fiona came through the doors, but kept myself under control after that. A few wobbly moments [musically and emotionally] through Kanon, then You'll never Walk Alone was the most mesmerising and intense ever. In the church; for that song on that occasion, it was as if we all collectively stopped breathing till the end.

 

It poured with rain, but it was a beautiful early summer day, and no weather got in the way of a beautiful occasion.

 

For the time being our only picture is of me, Bex and a Scottish piper.

 

After that Rick and I went to the Reception at TJs. Here is an impressionist view of people dining. Okay, it's a blurred photograph, but it was private do.

East Steel play Middleton Park

First time [3/4 years ago] we were by the side of the lake; then they built this wonderful café and lakeside patio, and now, there's a bandstand. In performance heaven.

 

The weather was lovely. It was where we first met Andy, and quite appropriate that it was Andy's first gig.

 

We were me, Bex, Anne, Lynn, Jeanette, Wendy, Trish, Andy, Vicky, Wanda, Kirsty and Bart the Drummer. There is a picture of Bart below doing wheelies in his wheelchair as he races down to the bandstand.

 

 

I think the pics here and below speak for themselves. It was a lovely day, a lovely setting and we played really well - well, mostly!