Some Plays @ Preston Tringe

Two full UK tours, a successful Edinburgh Fringe run and a few other performances later, last night we said goodbye to my, 'Some Plays By Paul Richards' show. A show which has been good to me; it was initially my first attempt at a 'solo' show (although of course it ended up being a solo-ish piece), it was the first time where my character was called Paul Richards. I did this show to prove to myself that I could. Personal plays, but with punchlines, I grew a lot as a performer with this piece - perhaps sometimes it was a public learning curve, but it all worked out well. Initially I toured it with the brilliant Claudia McKenzie (the busiest musician I know, amazingly this was her acting debut), and then with the also brilliant Hind Shubber (probably my tour buddy for the next few years now, if not longer - she gets what I'm trying to achieve here, and enjoys it too). By the final performance last night I was very much on auto-pilot, this is perhaps how a show should be anyway - a confidence on stage which in turn helps the audience feel confident that they are watching a 'proper' show. So the final performance was in Preston - as part of the Preston Tringe. A small, but impeccably run festival, the whole vibe of the Tringe was summed up by our event; our venue had gone bust, but instead of letting us go, they worked hard to find a solution. The solution was, quite brilliantly, for us to do the show in somebody's garden. Our host was a cracking chap called Tarquin - and he very kindly built a theatre for us in his garden, with our performance space being the garage (although it looked like a proper studio theatre space), with full lights, seating, the works. We felt so incredibly welcome by Tarquin - despite the fact I had a heavy cold so was a more than a bit snotty, it was a thoroughly lovely evening, the audience were lovely, they tipped generously, it was a genuine joy to perform in front of them. After our show we went out with various members of the audience to catch another show at the 'Tringe, had a few beers, before crashing out in our little hotel. All in all, a surreal but brilliant event - the evident love that goes into the Preston Tringe is a real credit to Sam the organiser.

So, no more, 'Some Plays' - but the next stop for this concept is, er, 'Some Christmas Plays By Paul Richards.' December tour dates piling in, back on the road with Hind for that one, and potentially even a return trip to Preston too - good times.

Gig report: Fred's House @ Creative Cabaret, Cambridge (2 night run)

Band: Fred's House
Venue: Creative Cabaret @ Cambridge Union, Cambridge
Dates: 26/09/13 - 27/09/13
Audience: Sell out show - the first night very nice, the second night incredible
Set: Can't remember - the setlist changed/got lost throughout both gigs to suit the feel
Notes: The whole '2 night run' thing appeals to me very much, I like the idea of shows rather than gigs - and that's exactly what Creative Cabaret is; a proper show. With a mime artist, solo acoustic artist, comedian, magician and us. Two night run because the first night had sold so quickly, these are the kind of gigs that I both enjoy and get slightly wary of just before the show because it's a sit-down audience, watching you...nearly fall off a small stage. A couple things were against us for the first show; Vicky had just recovered from tonsillitis, we were without our lead guitarist Lachy for both shows as he was off filming, the stage was so incredibly small even for a four-piece band, and there was a noise restrictor...meaning that as soon as we got too loud, the power cut. My bass drum, a 22" beast instantly caused problems, and the first performance was a real test of our restraint - the lighter material was chosen, I was more of a percussionist than drummer, we got away with it - the audience responded incredibly well, but it was a bit of a challenge. Going into the second show though it was easier (see? The joy of two night runs) as we knew what we were dealing with - and we arrived to see the stage had actually been moved so the noise restrictor wouldn't be an issue for us (instead, if we went too loud half the audience were plunged into darkness - I think this happened three times during the 30 minute set). The second show really was a cracker, maybe it was a Friday night thing but there was a real vibrancy in the air, the audience were so spirited. As a band, whilst obviously missing Lachy, we really were on good form - by the end of the show chairs from the somewhat civilised cabaret show were abandoned as the audience danced, the whole thing turned into madness - in the best possible way. 2 encores later, we finally left the stage, to a host of gig offers. Great gig that one, really, really great.

Recording the jazz record/the first glimmers of Christmas

After a busy weekend of gigging (and writing frantically, ahead of the show tonight - more of that later), I was back in the studio on Sunday and Monday recording with Rohan Leach and Chris Lawrenson to complete our little instrumental jazz record. Written - but with enough scope for improvisation, recorded live within three takes but with overdubs, this was a really organic way to produce a piece of work - that we're all really proud of. Aided by top engineer/producer Bugs (who I've worked with a lot over the last year or so, he produced the British IBM album and also the forthcoming Fred's House release), the sound is bright, the playing is manic - it's jazz in it's loosest sense and there was a feeling that we all hit top form during these sessions. What started out as a bit of an experiment (this project initially came about when a big bunch of us went out for dinner earlier in the year and I got chatting Rohan) has turned into 5 high-energy, punchy, very clever, very original tunes. It's also very different to anything I've played on before. We're currently debating what to call it, but as soon as we've agreed on that (it may take a while...) we'll get it released and see where it goes. Maybe a gig or two in the future, hopefully anyway.

So tonight we're back to our regular new material sessions - we (Izzy and myself) do these once a month, but have had a bit of time off due to the Edinburgh shows etc. I'm quite looking forward to it, the fringe naturally inspired me a lot and as a result I've been writing constantly on my return. Most of the bits and bobs I've been working on have been with the rest of the 'Lounge Plays' in mind - which obviously means they're solo shows (tonight I'll give, 'How I Lost My Trousers' a go - that one is being recorded in Bristol in October), but we're also trying out a short slapstick comedy, 'You Lost Me At Hello' - it's a real farce, with Izzy and myself in loads of roles. The punchline is dreadful, so bad...but intentionally so. I write too much about relationships, and the intricate details of how they do and don't work - for this one I just wanted to take a slightly more relaxed view on the matter with characters saying exactly how they feel and avoiding the social awkwardness which often litters these situations. We'll see, it's effectively a sketch, but I think it's a nice one. Anyway, 8pm at CB2 in Cambridge if you read this before the show.

But whilst writing this material I can't help but notice we're nearing the end of September, and Christmas is suddenly creeping up once again. I've started booking tour dates for a new Christmas show (some familiar venues, some less familiar - should be a good 9 day run), band rehearsals for the Dowsing Christmas Cocktail kick in next week, and on Wednesday I'm meeting Grace for a bite to eat and to discuss a very festive project indeed - it's just a case of finding the time to do it properly. I hope so, though, Grace is a wonderful actress/singer and a close friend with big ideas. If I can squeeze these ideas in alongside the Dowsing jams, Fred's House gigs, recording sessions for the second British IBM album, Lounge Plays and tour show, I will. And besides, Christmas is brilliant, isn't it? I need very little motivation to do festive things.

Gig report: Fred's House @ Corpus Christie College, Cambridge

Band: Fred's House
Venue: Corpus Christie College, Cambridge
Date: 21/09/13
Audience: Looked happy enough
Set: An hour or so of tunes
Notes: This show was a charity event for Tom's Trust, the event was a black tie bash within the beautiful grounds of Corpus Christie College in Cambridge. We'd dashed over from Folkstock, I quite like doing the whole three shows in one day thing - Folkstock was nice but bloody miles away, so ending the day with a gig closer to home is always a bonus. We played for an hour, outdoors, nice weather. Ignored, as expected - it's an early evening show and we were effectively the backing to a drinks reception, but I'm really enjoying being in this band - and gigs like this allow us to try out some songs I don't know perhaps quite as well as the established set. People responded occasionally, all very positive. After the gig the porter very kindly allowed us to leave our cars onsite, and we went to an excellent Thai restaurant for good food and banter. On returning, the new porter - and a member of staff - had issues with us and our cars being left there and things went weird for a bit. We played this gig for free, we gave up our time for free, we're very busy people - I'm not entirely sure why leaving our cars for an hour became such an issue. Luckily, in our bassist Gaffyn we have a man who is very much the voice of reasoning and the situation was eventually defused thanks to his professionalism, but I drove away with a sour taste in my mouth.

Gig repot: Folkstock, Hertfordshire

Bands: Fred's House, Flaming June
Venue: Folkstock Festival, Hertfordshire
Date: 21/09/13
Audience: A nice few of them to make it work
Set: Fred's House - Wrong Time, Norwegian Wood, Too Late To Go Home, Fine Life, Beautiful You; Flaming June - Rejoice, Stop The Ride, Rumplestiltskin, Nerves Of Steel, Little Love In A Cruel World, Wednesday's And Weekends, In Pursuit Of Happiness
Notes: This one has been brewing for a while; Folkstock is a shiny new festival targeting lovers of, well, folk music, with over 70 acts crammed into one day across three stages in deepest Hertfordshire. Lovingly organised by Helen - a friend (and sometime manager) of Flaming June, she certainly squeezed a lot of entertainment in; I wasn't able to hang around the site for too long but from what I did see it was pretty much act after act, so plenty to see. Such is the quickfire nature of the event, sets were kept short - and such is the nature of the soundman not letting me use a bass drum, my 'kit' was simply a snare and a conga. Still - both Fred's House and Flaming June put on good shows, in front of an enthusiastic audience in the slightly rainy countryside. I had to dash after the Flaming June set to play another show elsewhere, but from what I saw there's some good vibes about Folkstock, I hope it returns in 2014.

Gig report: Fred's House @ The Old Lion, Harborough Magna

Band: Fred's House
Venue: The Old Lion, Harborough Magna
Date: 20/09/13
Audience: Seated, but lively
Set: Lots of songs, lots and lots
Notes: This is one of those gigs where we had absolutely no idea what to expect - a venue miles away in what looked like the middle of nowhere, a booking from somebody who had seen the band (before I joined) at a festival...but this was absolutely wonderful. It was effectively a restaurant gig, a very different kind of show for us - great setting, the restaurant itself was packed, we were tucked in the corner playing two long sets of original tunes and the odd cover. The result was a sophisticated, controlled Fred's House performance - but not at all restrained. Lots of life, the band on really top form aided by a wonderful and enthusiastic audience who, despite eating, were vocal in their enjoyment of what we do. On a personal level, replacing my floor tom with a conga and alternating between drums and percussion (often in the same song) worked a treat and suited the FH sound more than ever. Perfect gig.   

Lounge Plays - show 1, plus Fred's House recording

That was a pleasantly exhausting weekend. On Friday night I played a private function gig with Fred's House in Cambridge, it rained a lot but we got fed very nice food and the people seemed friendly, in a strange kind of way it still worked really well and kept us fresh for the recording the next day. When I first recorded some drum takes for the band earlier this year it was a bit of an odd one; technically spot on, but it seemed to be lacking a bit of spirit, the performance was perfectly in time and as rehearsed, but just a bit too static. This time around though we lost the click track and went for a more live approach - the freedom helped the songs breath, and over the course of a two days recording at Half Ton Studios with producer Bugs some pretty awesome grooves were created, if I may say so myself. 'Take A Ride' has now turned very soulful, away from the caffeinated way it's performed live, this new feel to it sounds absolutely brilliant, as does the whole project. There's a lot to be done yet, but this album should be very worthwhile.

In between the recording sessions, I popped down to Hackney to celebrate my good friend Ben's birthday, which was a nice and typically surreal evening - this one involved a drinking game whilst watching Japanese horse racing. Later in the evening I went to sleep in my sleeping bag on the sofa, only to wake myself up by falling off that sofa and smacking my head against a very sturdy table. I have a nice mark next to my eye as a reminder, and two days later it's finally stopped hurting - although I imagine the hangover was also partly responsible for that.

Last night, after a second day of recording, I dashed home, put on my best suit, and then drove over to Newnham - where I was to record the first in a series of six podcasts called, 'Lounge Plays.' This is a new idea I had at the fringe, partly as a way of getting to new audiences, but mostly because it's just fun to perform shows in the most unconventional places possible. For these shows, I'll be performing a different solo play in different lounges - the audience are whoever the host invites, it's recorded on a fancy bit of software I downloaded for my iPhone, and it's all very personal. It's all very intimidating - but it's healthy to feel scared sometimes, and after a fringe run where I performed solo in a big and often near-empty venue, this suddenly felt like a completely different challenge. This show was always intended to be my October project, but for the first one I had to nudge things forward a bit as my friend Julia (a former colleague, somebody who has been to pretty much every play I've performed in the last two years, and just generally one of the best people I've ever met) wanted a show - but is moving to Australia this week for (at least) 10 months. Last night I performed the fringe solo show, 'Things Could Be Marvellous' in front of her, her parents, her sister Emily, some family friends and a couple of her friends I already knew (Cara, Jess). 13 people, crammed into the kitchen, with quite high expectations (Julia had been singing my praises before I arrived), but in good spirits thanks to the food and wine provided by our wonderful host. One very worried writer/actor, feeling slightly out of his depth. I had barely looked at the script in a month, but you know...it all worked out, really well. Possibly the nicest audience I've ever performed in front of - so close to the action but so warm, so generous with their laughter, the time just flew by - it helped my performance, confidence grew as the show progressed, a really incredible vibe that I've never experienced before.

I spent the rest of the evening chatting to various people in the house - there's a real sense that I'm really progressing as a writer, people really seem to like the whole solo thing. Julia's mum pointed out how expressive my (huge) hands are and how it helps the performance - I wasn't aware of this. Cara continually reminded me how brave the solo concept is, that girl has seen me in some really substandard performances over the years so I'm glad she managed to catch a good one. I really enjoyed chatting to Jess, she's a very inspiring young lady - she's living her dreams, fulfilling her ambitions. And Julia - well, Julia will be missed.

'Things Could Be Marvellous' worked - it worked better than it ever did in Edinburgh. Shame that was the last ever performance of that play, but it's time to move on. The next five, 'Lounge Plays' are all brand new shows, I'm writing them as we speak. I'll be in Bristol, Downham Market and two different houses in Cambridge, with one more date to be booked up, once they're all done I'll stick them all up online. For an opening show this was in theory the easiest it's going to get - a really friendly audience, a show I've performed plenty of times, a nice way of easing myself into my most challenging project yet.

Redundancy Club @ The Bay Tree, Bury St Edmunds

Last night we performed Redundancy Club for the final time. It's been an odd show this one; in the scale of things we've not actually been performing it for too long - I wrote the first draft in April, it opened in July, we did a fringe run with it in August and now, mid-September, it's time to let this one go. The plan was to always produce a show which was half sketch/half play - and we've done that, the writing is packed with overblown additional characters on top of the two 'normal' lead leads, and we've hopefully managed to strike a chord with anyone who has been made redundant - it was written at the time when I had indeed just been made redundant alongside 60 other people in the office. I was happy with this show - it's seemingly gone down well everywhere we've performed it, of the three shows at the fringe it was certainly the most successful regarding audiences sizes, technically it was more complex than most of the rambling material I write, Sarah directed it brilliantly and Izzy was fantastic in it. Yet somehow as the run ends I feel a bit relieved that we're done with this one now - perhaps it doesn't feel as honest as my solo/solo-ish shows, it was more conventional play than storytelling, for what is effectively a true story it didn't quite feel as personal as some of my other work. Not always a bad thing though, you could argue. Last night we were back at the Bay Tree, I love this place - it's a beautiful little café, the staff are amazing and are so supportive of what we do and the food is outstanding. For me the performance felt a little tired, but still worked - and the audience were wonderful and made us feel very appreciated indeed. I enjoyed it, but a lot of that is down to how brilliant the venue is - I can't wait to go back there in December as part of the full UK tour (new Christmas production). In the meantime, like all the sets from previous shows over the years, I shall store away my Frederick Nacklawinky hat, my harmonica, my 'Success Head: Ways To Succeed In Business By Using Your Brain' book and my fake Stevenage Borough tattoos - and will have fond memories of Redundancy Club, as much as it's time to move on.

Gig report: Fred's House @ Woodfest, Hatfield

Band: Fred's House
Venue: Woodfest, Hatfield
Date: 08/09/13
Audience: Really busy, fantastic
Set: Take A Ride, Wrong Time, I'm Not Saying, Hold On, Looking Glass, Fine Life, Marathon Man, Beautiful You, You've Got To Hide Your Love Away
Notes: Our third gig in three days so performance-wise definitely hitting our stride (technically my fourth gig as played percussion at a friend's wedding last night), we were asked to close this popular festival. One or two issues regarding getting equipment to the stage; seriously, if you're running a festival, please make it possible for musicians to park even near the performance area, especially for drummers as we have a lot of stuff - I didn't realise it was that much to ask. But that minor issue aside, the festival itself is very nice; it has a family vibe to it, it's held in a forest so quite picturesque, even in the pouring rain. Our tent was very busy and the sound engineer was top notch. Third gig in three days and easily the best performance of the lot, a real confidence and energy. The unexpected encore found us playing a skiffle version of The Beatles', 'You've Got To Hide Your Love Away' - a track the guys have had in the set for a while but something I rehearsed with them for the first time in the studio last week. Easy drive home, service station dinner and banter with the band, a nice end to a really decent weekend.

Gig report: Fred's House @ BNatural, Bildesdon

Band: Fred's House
Venue: BNatural Festival, Bildesdon
Date: 07/09/13
Audience: Very nice
Set: Take A Ride, I'm Not Saying, Wrong Time, Face In The Water, Hold On, Too Late To Go Home, Fine Life, Marathon Man, Beautiful You
Notes: Bildesdon really is in the middle of nowhere; but I found that quite charming. If this was an evening gig and I was dashing straight from somewhere else perhaps less so, but having had a leisurely drive through various small Suffolk villages, I arrived fresh and very happy to do this one. The gig itself was in an inflatable marquee in the market square - a busy audience watching, outstanding Cornish pasties. Putting on a festival in the town centre on a Saturday afternoon could have been chaos, but it wasn't - it was run brilliantly, and I grew a certain sense of fondness towards Bildesdon, it's the kind of place I'd like to retire. Decent gig, good reaction after.

Gig report: Fred's House @ The Corn Exchange, Hertford

Band: Fred's House
Venue: The Corn Exchange, Hertford
Date: 06/09/13
Audience: Plenty of them, respectful
Set: Looking Glass, I'm Not Saying, Wrong Time, Face In The Water, Hold On, Marz (no drums), Last Thing I Wanted, Take A Ride, Fine Life, Marathon Man
Notes: Headline slot at the lovely big Hertford Corn Exchange as part of an event to showcase some of the bands playing at the forthcoming Folkstock Festival. I had issues finding this place - my sat nav took me to Harlow, which is a bit out of the way, and parking outside this venue is a nightmare. Still, these issues aside, it was a very tight performance - headlining meant we didn't hit the stage until 11pm, by which time both the audience and band looked a little tired, but we're in good shape - it was also the first chance to play new song, Hold On, too - which is a cracker.

Gig report: Trevor Jones @ The Bedford, London

Band: Trevor Jones
Venue: The Bedford, Balham, London
Date: 04/09/13
Audience: Brilliant
Set: Set one - Riverside, What Kind Of Love; Set two - 2 Choices, Can't Take This Anymore; End of show - (I Just) Died In Your Arms (with Tony Moore)
Notes: This is the kind of gig that, as a musician, you just want to do. Performing in the theatre at The Bedford, the central venue is oozing with character, warmth and is far removed from the competitive, business-driven market of many other London performance spaces. This was an important gig; a genuine industry gig, one which was also broadcast live online. Trevor was joined by guest musicians Jimmy (double bass), Steffan (cello), Gary (piano, also Trev's manager) and of course myself on percussion. We all met for the first time that afternoon in a nearby studio, ran the tracks, including Gary's exquisite arrangements, and we all knew it was sounding just a bit special. In this format, with this line-up, the songs has taken a new orchestral direction; delicate yet exciting, spine-tingling at times. The show itself is presented in a 'Later with Jools...' style format - with 5 acts on rotation, playing 2 songs a time, the show moving quickly thanks to resident host Tony Moore's snappy banter. Our sets, performed in front of a busy, seated audience (cabaret-style) suited the lush stage perfectly, aided by a top-notch sound engineer - whilst the arrangements were intricate we all seemed to feel incredibly comfortable up there. Tony himself had a worldwide number one hit, having played keys in Cutting Crew, and at the end of the evening Jimmy, Steffan and myself were invited on stage to guest with him to perform that song - (I Just) Died In Your Arms. A superb end to a wonderful show that instantly went into my top 5 gigs I've ever had the pleasure of playing.  

Lodestar 2013

At the weekend I returned to the delightful Lodestar Festival for the fourth consecutive year to be their Director Of Theatre. I've always enjoyed Lodestar - it's a music festival that is free of any corporate endorsement, it's possibly the most friendliest place in the world where, despite thousands of people attending, you always feel like you have enough personal space to enjoy the beautiful site. It is, of course, a musical festival first and foremost, but like previous years my job has been to sprinkle a little theatre/comedy into the proceedings. My selections this year were all crackers; established fringe legend Peter Buckley-Hill, London sketch troupe Restrain The Kracken, The Cambridge Improv Factory, The Gamlingay Players and of course, two of my own shows. In a small marquee within earshot of the music, it worked a treat - good and happy audiences enjoying themselves, a general sense of cheeriness. We performed two of our three Edinburgh shows; Some Plays By Paul Richards (myself and Hind) which was performed how it should be - like a show we've had a for a while now, we bashed through it, made people laugh and generally felt more comfortable than ever before. A day later, and shortly after The Gamlingay Players performed my old play, 'Year Of The Rat', I was back on stage - this time with Izzy, performing, 'Redundancy Club.' I'd lost a majority of my voice from the excess of the weekend (it was a busy weekend on top of the two nights camping, 4am/3am finishes thanks to the 'socialising') but we compensated for that with a really energetic performance - getting attacked on stage by a wasp kind of added to the fun of it. Aside from the theatre, I popped out of the festival for a couple hours on the Saturday night to play a wedding gig with Trevor Jones, and on Sunday afternoon I played at the festival with Fred's House on the BBC stage in front of a cracking lunchtime audience (our set was: Looking Glass, I'm Not Saying, Wrong Time, Face In The Water, Too Late To Go Home, Fine Life, Take A Ride, Marathon Man, Beautiful You). On top of all this activity, Lodestar is and always will be a great chance to catch up with good friends who I don't see enough of...okay, so the late night dancing (yep, you heard), drinking and banter with Heather, Jack, Adam, Clare, Marcus, Vaughan, Sevya and Andy may now have left me feeling a bit broken, but thoroughly worth it all the same. Top weekend.