Fab Club 30th October 2005
It’s the day before Hallowe’en and someone has certainly dressed the set for it – the bar has been invaded by a jack-o’-lantern and there’s a very dicey spider with glowing eyes and trembling legs looking down from the doorway. On top of that, it’s the end of October and the purple room is cold and gloomy – but we’re all here and ready to roll – let’s bring some light into the place!
It’s a day for crossing as many musical boundaries and packing in as many of the different aspects of the FaB Club’s remit as we can squeeze into two hours. A previous review commented on the range of skills and experiences which go to make up an ideal FaB crowd and it’s worth noting that we are rewarded with a range of unique voices and talents – nothing run of the mill here, and this afternoon is no exception!
It’s also, and for no obvious reason, a good day for the appearance of capos, which seem to have sprouted on pretty much all of the guitars here present, and do make you wonder what key we’re all singing in…
Anyway with Deb and I doing our X-FABtor bit - although there is some confusion as to which one of us is Sharon and who is Simon, and in any case there’s no public vote afterwards – we turn to Mike Parrott, today’s compere, to get us under way. He invokes the new trend for introducing oneself first of all. Mike always has an easy confidence and he cheerfully reprises a song called “All I Want Is You” that’s only been performed once – here! – saving his second contribution for the second half.
Next up are the perennial FaB Club Favourites, the Cheeky Gulls. Once they’ve decided who stands on which side of the microphone – a clear Health & Safety issue based on the comparative swinging radius of a guitar against a ukelele – they come up with a clear and punchy delivery of a protest song called “Here’s to You”, composed by the guy who wrote the Fistful of Dollars theme and previously sung by Joan Baez, and incidentally the first song Claudine learned in English when she was only eight years of age. Claudine does also give away some information which would enable us to make informed guesses about her age, but being too much the gentleman I’ll do nothing of the kind. Move on, move on.
In fact, on to Sara and Gordon, as we enter into one of FaB’s musical relays – Sara starting out solo with a shimmering vocal on a song called “Sleep At Sea” where she had written the music based around a poem by Christina Rosetti. I then get to add some guitar work to “Crow On The Cradle” and, following some backchat about which one of us has the bigger beard (??) Sara leaves me to finish off our slot with a world exclusive of a ‘skit’ on the old favourite “Molly Malone”. I doubt I’ll have the nerve to try THAT one again so it really IS an exclusive – there are some things you can only get away with once!
Quick, someone call the next act – and it’s Jo, who is as ever unaccompanied which is a scary thing to do in itself but she is as compelling as usual and everyone is quickly spellbound – so quiet in fact that we can hear the traffic roaring around the A128 roundabout. She runs through the well-trodden measures of “Galway Shawl” and follows up with the haunting “Hobo Joe”, who “…used to be a hero/ and had the scars to show”
This is as good a place as any to mention that a number of the performances on the day are enhanced by Jo, Margaret and John Stafford variously adding in harmonica and percussion – but I completely lost track of who did what and in any case it was often quite subtle and wasn’t easily picked out. That’s my excuse and I’m sticking to it!
On to Dennis Homes, described by Mike as one of his personal favourites at FaB and certainly the applause that greets his appearance is emphatic! Dennis duly appears from the back of the room with a shirt which he claims to have bought from the Oxfam shop just to match the décor. He is clearly celebrating having put his signature on a reissue of an album first released in 1969, as he tells us that it will be a proper reissue to outbid the bootleggers who have been apparently been pushing a cheap and nasty copy of the real thing. He also comments that he once gigged with Sidney Carter (who wrote the above mentioned “Crow on the Cradle”) as well as touring with Pink Floyd back around the same time.
These days there is much less psychedelia and he opens with a musical setting of a poem written when crossing over the Thames late at night – as usual the guitar work looks easy (but isn’t) and hides hidden complexities and walking bass lines. A series of staccato chords and another walking bass signal a more humorous piece, a jet-propelled mystery tour through the realms of the comic book heroes of old – a nostalgia trip like you wouldn’t believe before he rips through it at high speed to leave us all breathless. Well all I can say is you made a happy man feel very old… (!)
Next up is Jem who has quickly established himself as a regular here and starts with a song which he announces as being a traditional song sung by the traditional Rolling Stones – a solo arrangement of “Wild Horses” from their early days, with subtle chord changes belying the need for a band. He moves on to “Sisters of Mercy” (a Leonard Cohen piece), employing easy and even picking and laying down a hypnotic sound.
Jem is the only person who habitually amplifies his guitar and it’s only the fact that he has a strong voice which saves him being drowned out. It is noticeable that some people’s voices (we know who we are!) are not always so solid and it doesn’t take much to get overwhelmed – so sing out, people! We know that it’s worth hearing!
Mike introduces
Before taking on the second song she admits that it is very difficult to sing a new song for the first time – but you have to do it sooner or later and that’s where all the standards came from (once upon a time!). “Breathing Is Mandatory” is a more dynamic piece and
That’s about enough for the first half – Mike calls for the break and we have 10 minutes to recharge those failing glasses.
Second half and as promised Mike introduces himself again for a Chris Rainbow song called “Bluebird” which is ideal for the mood of the afternoon and is delivered in that same convincing and effective way.
Bill and Len are next up to the plate – I could have sworn that they were introduced as Bill and Ben the last time round – but maybe not. This time around, Len has also come up with a shirt to match the décor – his excuse is that he wants to be able to blend into the walls and disappear if anything goes wrong! But it’s soon clear that things are NOT going to go wrong as they start with the tricky harmonies and unpredictable chord changes of the Beatles “Yes It Is”, following up with a Tim Hardin song called “Hang On To A Dream” which Bill describes as being mainly Len – which it is, but the 5-string bass is evident behind the silver edge of the guitar work.
Mike introduces Margaret which sounds like a silly thing to say because if anyone in FaB needs no introduction then it is she. She is armed first with a mandolin to sing “Banks of the Ohio” (which was a version I hadn’t heard and had many different lyrics from the version hammered by Olivia Neutron-Bomb all those years ago), and then with the faithful banjo/ukulele to invoke the host of George Formby for “Grandad’s Flannelette Nightshirt” – well what can you say about a song that gets from Napoleon to nudists in 45 seconds flat? Margaret is as usual impeccable and has the ghost chorus singing along before the second chorus.
Next we are introduced to (and appreciate!) Ron McNally – an award- winning player who has just been crowned Havering’s best over 60s musician for this year. He soon shows us why with a strong voice and a vivid blonde guitar, (one of those with the moustache shaped bridge – the number escapes me but once seen never forgotten!). He delivers “Into The Mystic” and “Sing Me Back Home”, both of which have a blues flavouring and a definite period feel. Congratulations Ron!
Mike admits that he is disappointed not to be able to introduce Mikanora – yes it’s that Japanese Karaoke joke again – but with Nora’s absence we have Mick and John Stafford who, after some more or less heated discussion about which chord is A minor and when it’s likely to arrive, hammer through “Old Man Where Are You Going” with strong singing and incisive harmonica work. John having done his part, Mick is left to give us (and get us to sing along with) “Property Millionaire”, which is (a) uptempo (b) political satire and (c) exactly the sort of song that Mick does best – modern English folk, in fact.
A brief pause follows for the Raffle – no bananas this week (they’ve gone a bit iffy in the two weeks since the last time) but CDs and free entrances are as always on offer.
Liz works with the spoken word and it’s nice to have another poet in the place - I was starting to feel like an endangered species. She admits that you should never mention your skills around Claudine as you’re likely to get pressured into an appearance!.
Her poetry is vivid and evocative, starting with “Yesterday I Saw An Angel” – and as she says, whether it was a real image or just imagination, who knows? – and following up with “Seasons”. The latter piece is full of nostalgia and Liz has the gift of turning and delivering a simple phrase or two, but making the accumulation count. She takes us a very long way away from the looming darkness of the purple room – even though the clocks have gone back the evening is drawing in.
Mark Reed comes on to star billing – well, last on the day’s bill of fare anyway! Despite requests, (no names!) he is still refusing to sing the lavatory song but substitutes a song from a long time ago which he has not previously played live – “Single Broken Pride” tells its own story of loss and abandonment. He changes gear into “Lightning Dance” which has both an acoustic and electric version and is one of a number taken up by a
…and then it is just for Mike to finish up with the customary housekeeping announcements, most of which you can find on the adjacent banner or on the site’s homepage, and it’s all over for another fortnight. We’ll be back and at it again on the 13th November – meanwhile it’s the customary plaudits to Mike for compering it, Claudine for creating and running it, and to the audience/participants for standing up (or sitting down!) and actually doing it!