Whether travelling by sea or road there is always a sense of tension when touring musicians embark on their journey. Will it end with champagne, flowers and plaudits? Or will it be more like the fate that befell the lost Franklin expedition in search of the northern passage back in 1848 that got itself so badly stuck in the ice that the crew never reached their destination?
Last Thursday the John Hackett Band packed their bags and loaded up provisions for their own journey. Aboard the HMS Erebus (our Mazda Bongo) were the intrepid Katrin Hackett, songstress Heather Findlay and myself, notionally the captain of this particular expedition. But as on most occasions I hadn’t a clue where we were in relation to the equator, I deferred wholeheartedly to our first lieutenant Mr Google Maps. The crew’s full roster followed behind on HMS Terror filling the ranks of further lieutenants by name of Jeremy Richardson, Duncan Parsons and Nick Fletcher.
It was to Gateshead we first travelled and on shaky legs, after so long travelling, set up our base camp. We headed further north at first light (well, more like lunchtime actually), knowing we would be crossing the border en route to Ivory Blacks, Glasgow. Despite such a fearsome name, which put to mind an old coaching inn taken over by smugglers and reprobates, no pirates awaited us but instead the warmest of welcomes and a herd of locals who were a joy to play to. Heather opened proceedings with selections from her lovely new album ‘Wildflower’ and we took to the stage at 9pm sharp. By the time we hit the amazing waves of sound created by the mighty ‘Shadow Of The Hierophant’, we knew this would be a fine start to our trio of northern gigs.
We returned to basecamp, outwitting the beast LEZ and its hideous offspring LEZ Maxima, in preparation for an early leave the next day to central Newcastle. The bards Heather Findlay, John Hackett Band, EBB and Stuckfish had gathered for an event that has gone down in history as Prog On The Tyne – a prog all-dayer at The Cluny where the crowd had forsaken the frivolity of cavorting in the heat of a bright spring day to lend their ears to us. I even spied my old shipmate Tony Patterson, and fondly remembered the night many years ago when he had shown me the sights of Newcastle while partaking in the occasional tot of rum. The sun even graced us with its face as we left the stage of the Cluny 2 and met with two fine gentlemen of The Progressive Aspect – Darren Walker and David Edwards.
In Edinburgh we faced our foe LEZ again, and beat back our fears of it ensnaring us and devouring every last remnant of our coin, to play at Bannermans Bar. Once again, we were received by an appreciative crowd who took us to their hearts as we played our new album ‘Red Institution’ and cheered for the more familiar strains of ‘Voyage Of The Acolyte’. I thanked my stars that we made it through, and that a brief stop to visit Lindisfarne en route hadn’t resulted in our van befalling the same fate as the warning sign I spied while acting as guard dog (okay eating ice cream). Perhaps we would’ve met that same disastrous end as HMS Erebus had Katrin and Heather insisted on making the crossing to the island itself.
Whether it was Steve in Glasgow who thanked me for playing ‘Acolyte’ as it had gotten him through the long hours of burning the midnight oil when he was preparing to take his degree or the gentleman who said that much as I had been inspired by Ian McDonald, his son had been encouraged to continue with flute by my flute tuition books, I was deeply grateful for the absolutely wonderful reception we unfailingly had on our trip (and that someone, somewhere thought to invent the full stop…).
We’re also grateful to everyone who worked so hard to make this weekend the delight that it was. So, thank you to everyone who provided us with such excellent sound this weekend: Chris at Ivory Blacks, Lewis at the Cluny 2, and Hef at The Bannerman’s Bar.
Thank you, Ross, for putting together Prog On The Tyne – given the ideal space of two venues, we very much hope this is something that will be repeated.
Thanks to Rob and Christian at Ivory Blacks and Bannermans Bar for hosting us
Thank you, Paula, for the chocolate bar that kept the scurvy at bay.
Thank you, Dave Hill, of Tenacity PR who on more than one occasion has had to steer us all back on the right course.
Thank you to all journal keepers who ensure that the exploits of our particular crew will be recorded in the annals of time.
And finally, huge thanks to all of you lovely people who came to see us on this leg of our tour. It was an absolute joy to have you with us!