The Dowsing Christmas Cocktail

As the venue cleared, fresh from a standing ovation and with the continued bursts of merriment from the audience spilling out of the Cambridge Corn Exchange and into the streets, I approached our musical director genius, Andrea, to offer an apology. An apology for the messy endings in at least four songs in the second set, an apology because this was a big show - a real big show, and at points the drummer wasn't quite on it. He meant well, but at times this one just didn't work out. But before I could speak, Andrea hugged me - really happy with how the gig had gone telling me it was a brilliant gig, a storming show.

As I write this it's 1.34am, I've got a well-deserved beer on the go and I'm watching an old episode of Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads. I'm just back from the after show party which I decided, mid-gig, not to go to because I was having a bit of a shocker, but got persuaded to go. It was lovely, full of lovely people, Dowsers are lovely. All of them. The same can be said for my friends Andy, Matt and Jenny, who were also there.

I've learned quite a lot this evening. Now of course this isn't all about me - Dowsing is a massive project, a project that goes beyond music - every show takes months and months of planning, it's like a military operation. I arrived at the Corn Exchange at 9am and shortly after unloading soundchecks began, soundchecks and rehearsals which eventually finished at 5.30pm, two hours before the gig itself. It was a long day but it flew by, so much to do, it's not easy soundchecking over a hundred singers, a band, a brass section, a string quartet, various guests...it's a circus, a musical feast, all coming together, tiredness isn't a factor when there's excitement to get you through. I had my issues, I didn't think as rhythm section we'd rehearsed the endings of some of the songs enough, some of them felt a bit messy, but nobody likes a guy who has issues. The choir are wonderful people, so generously dedicated to bringing Andrea's majestic ideas to life, our guest musicians all added extra spice, and yet at the same time the rhythm section of Gav, Sam and myself feels so comfortable now - Gav and Sam are two of the finest players I've worked with and it's a joy to be on stage with them.

The first half, for me, was the best Dowsing has ever sounded. It was joyful. You could just feel it working, even the tricky bits, all of it, working. The sound quality was outstanding too, full credit to Matty Moon (an old friend of mine who was one of the sound team) and his crew, the audience were into it in an instant. The second half was, in my opinion where things started to feel slightly messy drum-wise. It was all about the endings, only one time would it have been noticeable to the audience (because there was a cheeky ride cymbal lingering after everything else had finished), other times we just about got away with it. See, there's over a hundred singers and plenty of musicians on stage to cover each other, but drums are bloody loud and it's really noticeable if things aren't going strictly to plan.

The gig got a standing ovation, it was packed tonight, and it was riotously festive. It was energetic, it was a party, the singers sang their hearts out, the arrangements were innovative, I haven't heard a bad word about the gig from anybody. My annoyance about my performance was purely because I don't want to let the side down; Dowsing is a lovely side and I want to do my best for them. For all of my little niggles about my own performance, the stunning performances of those around me did cover it, it was a wonderful show. We had a groove going, we're building something here, you know? This feels very special indeed, I'm honoured to be involved. People are enjoying themselves; onstage, in the audience. Sometimes enjoyment and euphoria mean more than anything else. And this is what I'm learning...I'm really tired at the moment, and I'm forgetting to enjoy things, to appreciate them for what they really are. I've just recently finished a full UK tour as a comedy writer/actor, a week later I'm stage in front of a thousand people drumming with an incredible project, surrounded by some of the most inspiring and dedicated people I've ever met. Tomorrow I drum for jaw-droppingly good opera singer Hazel Neighbour. I've just signed a small publishing deal. It's Christmas. It's time to just let go and enjoy what's going on here; it's all rather wonderful.