Butlins,Bognor BEATLES IN CONCERT 2010 TOUR 06/04/2010

Another trip down to Bognor,and another leg of the concert tour. We set off around early teatime and had a steady journey down making good time. When we got there we found that we were on stage a little earlier than normal so we loaded the gear in at top speed, and got straight into our stage wear. No sooner was the equipment on stage as we were sound checking and..."will you please welcome live on stage..."we were on! Curtains opened to a good sized audience and we went straight for the throat with some early rock'n'roll, response was good but we knew we could do better. Firstly we did a few big hits then started to get the audience involved with the singing, they were warming up,and so were we. Next we got them to clap along(which can help to involve some of the younger ones a little more) and again they went for it,with each step we took the crowd became more lively. It was time for Ringo(Simon)to do his sing-along version of 'Yellow submarine' that went down a storm with young and old(Got to be one of the most requested songs we do). A few more dancier tracks followed and then it was time for 'Hey jude', crowds far and wide love this song and tonight was no exception, a challenge was set between boys and girls as to who could sing the best, and the girls won hands down(well done ladies!!!). We finished our set to a great roar of applause and cheers for more, another job well done. Thanks to all involved, great crowd, very enjoyable show all round!!!

Hard Days Night Hotel,Liverpool 02/04/2010

No rest for the wicked!!! Back at the HDN hotel for another corporate event. This particular event was a Birthday celebration for the Gentleman who was involved in the building and construction of 'Liverpool one' which is a fantastically designed complex of parks, restaurants and shops right opposite the Albert dock in central Liverpool. To celebrate this night,the suite in the hotel was decorated from top to bottom with peace and love banners, a four poster flashing dance floor in the centre of the room, a double bed featuring dwarf sized John Lennon and Yoko Ono characters, and a mock 'Abbey road' zebra crossing in the hallway just outside, also all of the hotel staff were dressed in fantastic 1960's clothes. It was a great atmosphere with us booked to play two short sets then a disco to finish. We kicked off and kept playing gentler material while all the meet and greets were going on, then after a short break we kicked in with more up tempo material getting them dancing along. The disco then finished off the night into the small hours by which time we were on our way home. Great to be part of a wonderful Beatle themed evening, it was FAB!!!!!!

Butlins,Skegness BEATLES IN CONCERT 2010 TOUR 31/03/2010

......And from Bognor to Skegness! Although this being the longest drive of all three camps(some 5 hours from Bognor)it is a pleasant one as we know we're on the last leg and nearing home. We got to Skegness in great time and loaded in(Skeg load in is by far the easiest). We had a lot of time to kill so we went for a walk round,had a bite to eat and relaxed as we knew we weren't on stage till around 10.30pm. Soon enough showtime was upon us and as we readied ourselves the curtains came up to a packed room,it was heaving with people, just what we needed, we blasted into some good old rock'n'roll and the audience lit up, great response followed the first two songs. Once again a lot of the little ones in the audience were joining in with the words which is amazing to think it's forty plus years since The Beatles split up and yet still their music is as popular and universally known as it ever was. We played hit after hit and the crowd soaked them up with a ravenous thirst for more,getting them involved was a walk in the park compared with the other audiences we'd faced the two days before,and once a crowd goes for it,then then band hit top gear. A crescendo of cheers and applause ensued as we left the stage following an encore,it was a terrific night for all.Thanks to the backstage crew at all three Butlins resorts for the great job they do making our life easier,well done fellas,see you all soon!!!!

Butlins,Bognor BEATLES IN CONCERT 2010 TOUR 30/03/2010

From Minehead on to Bognor Regis. The weather was terrible on the drive over it was bucketing it down we thought about opening the show with the song 'Rain'(B-side to paperback writer)but as we approached Butlins the sky cleared and out came the sunshine(phew!!!) In we went with the equipment and then backstage to rest from the 3 and a half hour drive it takes from one to the other. After the usual preliminary set up and line check,a few lemsips and paracetamols later we were back on stage suited, booted guitars at the ready and our finest moptop hair don'ts(couldn't resist!!). Curtains opened and again not a gigantic crowd but still enough to make a good night of it all. This time the audience were a lot more subdued than normal and it really took a big effort to get them going, and to make matters worse the cold that was dogging Darren was really taking it's toll and he was struggling to breathe let alone sing. We added a couple of extra songs in from Simon(Ringo)and Craig(George) which took the load off a little and helped to pad out the set but at times like these when one man is down, it makes you realise how important you are to one another as a team. Persistance prevailed and soon enough the crowd was in the swing of things joining in arms swaying and singing along to 'Hey jude'. We left centre stage to loud cheers and applause, another satisfied audience, job well done!!!!!

Butlins,Minehead BEATLES IN CONCERT 2010 TOUR 29/03/2010

Back at Minehead again for another installment of the concert tour. Arriving early we loaded in quickly, sorted out our accomodation for the evening then went backstage to prepare for the show. We weren't sure if we would be able to perform our normal quota of songs as Darren(Lennon in the band)was really ill so we were making a contingency plan just in case. We set our backline in position on stage and executed the usual line check. The curtains opened to a reasonable sized audience and we started with the normal two opening songs. The crowd clapped and cheered,i think with this and the excellent monitor engineers they have at Minehead Darren was able to produce a great show even under the circumstances. We worked hard at the audience and soon enough they were singing and clapping along to songs such as 'Can't buy me love' and 'Yellow submarine'(always a winner with the younger ones). We have noticed that some of the younger members of the audience are now singing along word for word to most of the songs, i put this down to the release of The Beatles 'rockband' game which is aimed at introducing the Beatles to newer and younger audiences and which we had the privilege to be chosen as the band to be play at the Liverpool launch. Another show came to a close and we left stage to great applause,we packed down,loaded up the van,headed for our chalet and settled down,it had been a HARD DAYS NIGHT!

Knowle golf club,Bristol 27/03/2010

First time at this venue so didn't know what to expect when we got there. We arrived to find to an easy load in,into what was quite a small but very nice venue. We were looked after very well by the staff who greeted us with coffees and teas and plenty of sandwiches(very kind thank you). We set up and sound checked then made ourselves scarce. The Gentleman in control came to see us and asked if during the interval we could leave one microphone switched on as he'd invited a local comedy duo to do a brief set in between our two sets,of course this was no trouble. We started our first set with caution as some of the clientelle were fairly senior and we didn't want to blow their heads off,we needn't have worried they were straight on the dancefloor and danced the whole set(really quite shocked as we didn't expect that!!!). We hurried back to the changing room to get changed where we stumbled upon the comedy duo(i wish i had caught their name),well...i've never seen anything quite like them,two older fellows,one dressed smartly the other looked like a bag of rubbish tied in the middle,we changed quickly and went to watch them perform. Fantastic,absolutely hilarious they went down a storm(well done chaps). Soon we were back on stage and we had a great night which was good considering Darren was beginning to feel the full brunt of the cold he'd picked up. The crowd were on top form everyone had a fab night,and we received some wonderful comments from many of the guests. Overall a very enjoyable evening for all involved,hopefully we'll get to do it again sometime!!!

Richmond Holiday Park,Skegness 26/03/2010

Here we were back at Richmond holiday park for another festival of the sixties. We've played this venue many many times over the years and it's always nice to have a return visit. We were second band on stage of a three band line up scheduled for the evening,first band being The Dreamers(of Freddie and The Dreamers)last band and headlining act The new Amen Corner. The Dreamers kicked the evening off with a mixture of classic hits of the sixties and songs that were recorded by themselves and Freddie. The audience were a little thinner on the ground than normal at this event but very appreciative all the same. Next it was our turn and we did what we do best, full throttle rock'n'roll, and as the room began to fill up a little bit more so did the dance floor,we kept them dancing right up to the very end of our set,we'd had a really good show despite being quite tired from all the previous shows, and Darren(our Lennon) starting to come down with was what to become a terrible mother of a cold! Next and final band of the evening, The New Amen corner.....Wow! great band and what a lovely set of fellas to work with, great musicians,great vocalists, great look on stage and the best Vox bass rig(and coolest bass player i might add)i've seen in ages.They really brought the evening to a terrific climax,great night for all,big thanks to the sound crew for a great job!!!!

Hard Days Night Hotel,Liverpool 24/03/2010

This day saw us playing a corporate event at the HDN hotel,it's always a pleasure to play at this venue as it's 'Beatle heaven' for any fan of the fab four. We got there in good time and loaded in. All the sound equipment was already in position as we were using hired P.A equipment for this show with 'The Caverns' very own sound engineers John and Ben Murray. After sound checking we nipped for a bite to eat then got ready to entertain. First set we did quite a few of the more gentler songs as the evening was only just getting underway to which they were received very well by the audience,then after a quick costume change and a short break we were back on stage to rock'n'roll. We threw in some well known classics and one or two not so well known songs and the crowd loved it,the dance floor was packed with people and everyone was in high spirit,what a night for all of us,how could you possibly top that,playing the best music ever,at(in my opinion and i'm sure many other Beatle fan's opinion)the best hotel ever with people dancing,singing and clapping along(it dosen't come much better than this)the atmosphere was fantastic! We didn't want the evening to end but inevitably it did and we left the stage to tumultuous applause.

We'd like to say a big thank you to all the staff at the hotel for all the hard work they do,they are only to happy to be of assistance when needed,and also a big thank you to John and Ben for a great job on the sound,check out their website at http://www.totalcontrolsound.com/.

Butlins,Bognor BEATLES IN CONCERT 2010 TOUR 23/03/2010

Here we were on our way to another leg of THE BEATLES IN CONCERT 2010 show. An uneventful journey down to Bognor saw us arrive with time to kill,we did the proverbial load in then relaxed backstage for a short while. Soon enough it was time to put on our gladrags(so to speak)and set our equipment in position on stage,we did a quick line check(to make sure everything is working as it should)then dashed back to the dressing room to make last minute adjustments to our suits and hair! With guitars in hand we got into position and waited for the announcement and the curtain to rise......"Ladies and Gentlemen,will you please welcome on stage...." The curtains came up and we were off, 'Please please me' straight into 'From me to you'. Because we've been playing quite regularly this year,the whole performance has tightened up(musician's term for,become really good!)so we were really on form and the crowd loved it from the word go. We got them singing and dancing with all the standards,imparticularly 'Hey jude',i'm sure the roof was going to come off at one point. All too soon it was the end and we came off stage feeling very satisfied we'd had a good show. We loaded our equipment out,and made the long and tiring journey home! Many thanks once again to the crew who are really the 'unsung heroes' of these events, Thanks fellas.....till next time!!!!!