NICE QUIET NIGHT TONIGHT............MAYBE NOT!!

Hello friends,

We're out and about again tonight, but not going far; it's Matt's lady Kelly's birthday party so we are going to play a little bit for her, have a sip of a few soft drinks, and then probably be tucked up in bed by 10 o'clock - I think not! If Matt has anything to do with it, the birds will probably be singing by the time we get home! Anyway, I'm sure it will be a good night, and no doubt there will be reports and maybe even photos next time round!

Last Friday saw us at The Old Ship for the first leg of their Big Gig Weekend, and I have to say that, even though we have played there many times before, it was still a great night! Even though Friday night is traditionally a quieter night in The Ship, the place was rammed, and everone was really up for it - we even tried 4 new numbers on them and, with the exception of In The Shadows (one of my favourite tracks, and I know others like it too), which was put in the wrong part of the set (stopped all the dancers dead in their tracks!), they all worked and seemed to go down well (especially Rock & Roll and Spitting Games).

There were people there that had travelled from Hampshire and London just to see us, and even Pete Munro turned up - he said he really felt he ought to make the effort as he had promised to come many times before - shame he left 5 minutes before we started playing! Any more tricks like that and he will acquire the same status in our eyes as the landlord of The Millstone!

I didn't get a chance to see The Injectors on the Saturday night (because I was watching Calendar Girls at The Lowry with my Mummy!) but I believe Pete, Mike and Bobby Rocket went down well, and that the whole weekend was regarded as a stonking success!

Rest of the week has been a real mixture of emotions for your correspondent - including blind panic and worry when No.1 daughter was in a car crash (thankfully, she's OK, if a little battered and bruised) and wild jubilation this afternoon when City thrashed Chelsea!

After tonight, we are gigless until the end of April, but at least it will give us a chance to practice some new numbers, and for Dave to have a holiday! No doubt we will be raring to go again, by then, and I'll just have to remember to keep updating this blog thing, so you don't think we've all died.

A BIG GIG WEEKEND AT THE SHIP!

Hello again everyone - I'm sure you have wondered why there has been so much silence on here, over the last couple of weeks; well, 2 reasons:

1. Nothing to report
2. Too damned busy!!

Anyway, neither of those are any excuse, so let me bring you up to date with developments on the D&C front. We have actually managed to have 2 rehearsals over the last fortnight and, although Matt could not make the first one, we have gone a long way to boxing off 4 new numbers! Obviously, it's not sensible to reveal too much in advance of the great unveiling but, with a following wind (never a problem for our band!) and a good practice this week, we could be doing at least 3 of them on Friday 19 February at The Ship, as part of the first instalment of the Big Gig Weekend!! So, how much should we tell you..........?

We toyed with a couple of Michael Buble numbers, and Andy suggested the Macarena as one to get everyone up and dancing; Hugh threw Black Betty into the mix, as one of his favourite tunes, and Matt & Chrissie really wanted to do something by The Proclaimers to show our diverse tastes (which were amply demonstrated by the jokes told on Thursday night!! ;-)) But, in the end, it's looking like The Pretenders, an obscure band from Finland, Led Zeppelin and a tune from Stikipedia will be the first additions to our portfolio in 2010! Come along on Friday, to find out what they are, and help us through them (unless you're one of those that has gone on holiday for half-term!) Check out our Facebook link for the event.

The other thing you need to remember about The Ship (apart from the 2 roaring fires!) is that they have some wonderful porcelain in the men's loos - check out these photos!:

Ladies - don't be afraid to see for yourselves (but make sure you are accompanied)!

The other thing you need to know is that gigs are starting to pile in - at least for the latter part of the year! Check out the gig list on the right for details, but worthy of mention are 2 BIG events:

1. The Macclesfield Beer Festival on Friday and Saturday eveings (7&8 May)where we will be appearing for a record FIFTH year in a row! Not sure who is with us this year but, as ever, it will be a great weekend.

2. The East Cheshire Hospice Big Weekend over 10-13 June - this is the first time that Hospice has attempted anything on this scale, and they need everyone's help. On the Saturday night (June 12) they will be screening the England v USA World Cup opening game followed by a fantastic evening of music featuring ourselves and our old friends, The Screaming Beavers. There will be lots of other things happening between the Thursday and the Sunday so keep you eyes peeled, and support the Hospice as much as you can - it costs about £5000 per day just to keep the place open, and they rely almost entirely on voluntary contributions - we probably all know someone who has benefited from their care, so PLEASE help us to give something back!!