Bournemouth Pier Theatre

- look! It's a freestanding poster (a wee "in joke" for all those in the know, thrown in free of charge!)



This is going to be the penultimate blog entry for the Route 66 summer tour 2009 as it's almost come to a close. Sob sob, oh woe is me! Actually, it is a little sad; as much as I have tried to detach myself from anything personal to do with the show and think of it as just business, I've become ever so fond of 90% of the characters within. The remainding 10% can die in a pool of their own piss and shit for what I care! Ok I'm joking, a pool of their own piss would suffice.



Piss



And shit!

Clive, Ian an myself arranged to meet at Ian's at 12:30. I've been going to the gym again and so wanted to get a burn out before setting off. So in I went at 10:30 sweated like a Jew at a whip round, was showered and outta there by 11:30 and was heading straight up to the ancient civilisation known as TREDEGAR!

Much to Ian's surprise, I was there before Clive. And when Clive turned up, he almost shit himself! Well, he blames me for being early but we all know the truth about him and his dicky bowels don't we?

Ian was sporting an infection in his left eye which was red and swollen up making him look like he came worse off in a slight disagreement with Chuck Norris. (don't fuck with Chuck!) Another description could be his eye looked like whore's minge after a gang-bang with a herd of wild horses. Yeah, it was nasty!

Here's a photo.


Ok, it's not a photo of his eye. But here's one that's a little similar.



Clive elected to sit the back seat and let Ian drive as he was tired from working his over-active ass off to get his business affairs in order in preparation for his holiday tomorrow. This generally had him in his office until the wee small hours most nights and most specifically the night before this gig, so he needed the rest.

Along the way, I played Ian a Cd which I had been talking to Ian about. It was the re-workings of some classic early Genesis tracks by their ex guitarist Steve Hackett. Clive chose to put his iPod on and fill his head with his usual mix of random psychodelia of which Phil has become such fan.

... That ladies and gentlemen is what's known as Sarcasm! Should you know Phil on a social level, be sure to ask him what he thinks of Hocus Pocus by Dutch band Focus, he loves that one, especially the live version!!!

It pissed down all the way, strangely enough as soon as we crossed over the Severn into England. By all accounts the weather in Wales was lovely all day. It's usually the other way around.

Upon arriving at Bournemouth, we were to discover that we'd have a bit of a pig on the load out later as the theatre was at the end of the pier (a clue in the title me thinks) and they only had one small trolly.






Pissing rain.


Even in the pissing rain there were still folk that figured it was still ok to don swim wear and go building sand castles and play in the sea. We have to be the only country in the world that does that!

I build the kit up, soundchecked and then went for something to eat.


Clive, Phil, Ian, Jim, Wayne and myself decided on Harry Ramsden's world famous fish and chips. After looking at the menu, I decided I wasn't going to eat here but I had a drink with them as not to be rude. This apparently wasn't good enough for Clive who them proceeded to take the piss in the way that only he knows. I left and said, "sorry goto go, I can't stomach you fucking losers for another second!"

I decided on a salad at KFC, t'was well nice and I wasn't surrounded by cunts while I ate it, so everyone's a winner.

Before the show we had a coffee in the cafe at the back of the theatre. I was busting for a piss and decided to piss off the end of the pier, I could have used the cafe toilets but that would be too normal. I had an epiphany whilst straining the greens too! There's something very therapeutic in taking a leak off a pier on the pissing rain, I'd highly recommend it.

Then it was showtime. There were just over a hundred people or so in, so after a spate of good audiences it was back to shite again, and just in time for the tour to end leaving us all with a high note to look back on.



- "be on your game folks, we got another packed house tonight. It's going to fucking ROCK!!!"

That was sarcasm again folks in case it wasn't bloody apparent enough!!

Apart from the audience size, they were very responsive. The show went well and I played notibly well according to the others. I would prefer to play well all the time, and although I try and for the most part I succeed, there are some nights where there's a little bit extra in the tank as it were.

So with the show done, the kit packed down, I carried some of the drums along the pier to Clive's car by hand and on my back - do I hear a "Hell Yeah!"??? (I'm such a self-righeous twat on times)

I slept most of the way back to Ian's.I loaded the drums from Clive's car into my own and slewed off back to Swansea to get in for around 03:30 or so.

So that's almost it for this tour in its theatre format as the next gig is a festival. The next blog entry will be the last. I only hope something funny happens, fuck whether or not the gig is good or I played well; you gotta get the priorities right haven't you!?

-- Post From My iPhone