Foxwood Steel, Sparrows, Steel Rising do Sunday at Rhythms Carnival Village

 

Most of Foxwood was on holiday and Sparrows at work. So these two bands together nearly numbered less than East Steel on its own. Yo. Thankfully by the time we are on, the stage has been floored, and the sound installed, and the eight/nine/ten of us are miked up.

 

 

 After us a few acts including amazing Gospel choir, just back from not performing in the Park. 

 

  

 

For the afternoon set we were me [Victoria], Bex, Vicky, Yi Bai, Claudia, Gig, Charlotte [guest from Nostalgia], Wanda [Steel Rising], and just as we were starting to play up comes Ash. And then, the entire Keir family hoves into view.

 

 

 

Tamanna makes it onto stage for the rest of the set. After six years. That is brave. [But she did say, "Is Heat, I don't know that". I said, "You played it at the Albert Hall!" LOL]

 

  

 

 

The last set as the day darkens, is me, Bex, Vicky, Yi Bai, Ash, Milly, Charlotte, Wanda and now Sophie. Also featuring Andrew the Photographer on tambourine. Does that make a percussion section? Well, I like to think so.

 

Marcus and Connor are still on the sound; Ifty is making some cool vegan burgers. Grafton has now appeared. He has been tuning pans in London for Panorama bands and just driven up to Leeds. Partner, Charlotte is playing the single guitar pan that Grafton made for one our players a few years back.

 

 

Because Charlotte is used to playing with marching band, Nostalgia, she is happy with a single guitar pan.  In Leeds, because we don't march very often the single pan is often seen as either inferior because players think, as it has only nine notes, it must be in some way easy! Or they can't handle the fact that for some chords the root note is not an option, and sometimes neither is the third. Easy! Not at all!

 

I would like to thank Hilary, George and Mexican for this opportunity to play Carnival. It means an awful lot to us. I have been playing pans for over thirty years; Bex, Georgia, Wanda for over twenty years;  the others today for over a decade.  Between us, we have played some prestigious venues from Leeds Arena, Leeds Town Hall, Leeds Civic Hall, London Southbank Festival Hall, London Royal Albert Hall, Birmingham Conservatoire, Leeds Carnival mainstage and float, Manchester, Huddersfield this, that and the other. But, of all of them, playing your hometown Carnival is just the best. And, it has to be said, we were ace.

 

 I know.