Me myself and I. All written played and recorded by myself at this juncture....
Influences
Tom waits, Bob Dylan, Music Hall, friends, Jane's addiction, Led Zeppelin, Skiffle, PJ Harvey, Juby, Tim (and Jeff) Buckley, Soul singers (Marvin, Otis, Al Green), Secrets, Peaceniks, The Beatles (John not Paul), The White Stripes, Fat Dragon, Blues (Son House/ John Lee Hooker, not Eric Clapton), My family,Pixies, Bowie, Springsteen, Nina Simone, good movies and good books (the Coen brothers, Pahalniuk, Coupland, Easton Ellis) and anything that you say to me....
Sounds Like
The soul singing bastard son of Leonard Cohen and Lonnie Donegan.....
(from the days when then that didn’t mean standing on stage with half of the White Stripes).
I draw on skiffle, soul, dark folk and vaudeville, amongst other things, but mostly it’s whatever story I’ve got to tell you that matters. I like to write about romantic things like the crossroads of Blues and martial arts, young lovers on the run, escapology and such.
Puttin’ it down on wax…
I record…quite a lot.
I see recordings as a document of a moment in time. I guess part of me hankers for the days when Alan Lomax recorded artists and sounds in order to preserve them, predicting that one day they would be gone, never to be heard again. Folk songs, telephones ringing, train whistles, all gone.
In fact I have an album in the lab right now, but that’s another story.
Live in the flesh is different, I can do anything I want….
Dead or Alive…
I try to display as much as I can in performance.
Sometimes I perform alone without instruments, another day I’ll bring up to six musicians with violins, synths and electric guitars. Sometimes they’ll be forced to play pots and pans,
‘cause I love to challenge the friends who play music with me. They seem to like it.
I even have a midnight band called the shadows,
(you shoud see their fancy footwork). Sometimes I wake them up in the middle of the night to play an all night burger van, a carpark, or a wood, maybe outside a train station, or some party we haven’t been invited to. You should see them dudes dance… Maybe we’ll throw our own, put in a few calls, see who turns up. I’ve even played in a burning building, can you beat that?
Last Breath…
I enjoy the writings of
Jack Kerouac, Douglas Coupland,
Alexei Sayle and Chuck Palahniuk
amongst others.
I drive a black MGB GT
that runs at about four miles to the gallon, and have no intention of moving to Spain. I am an uncultured guitar player with questionable touch, but with great intensity when singing.
I was not born in a crossfire hurricane, but in a sleepy town in the South East, at least twenty five years ago just like a gypsy told my mother (really!)
My idea of a good time is picking flowers for my true love. I’ll see you around….
Congratulations on a storming Stortford Music Festival performance. Glad to see that, when devising an opening for the show, you were thinking "out of the box". Arf.
Official Secrets Act - Officer Kicks - Mozzy Green - Buster Shuffle - Soul Traders - Dave Sutherland - Sub Pop Sunday - Happnin' Boy - Jon Gomm - Jonas Graile - Cara Winter - AlicebanD - Neil Cowlan - Roland Chadwick - Ed Hope & Friends - The Strangerhood - Garrison Finish - Dead Monroe - London Blackmarket - Keef Jackman - Squab - The Pins - The Mono Effect - The WorldOnFire - The Volt - Charli XCX - J-Treole - Mary Epworth & The Jubliee Band - The Paisanos - Stuart Mason - Broken Mile - Doghouse - Jenny Hall - Hannah Scott and LOADS MORE. Plus there'll be open mic sessions, beer tent, chillout tent, stalls workshops, art displays, stand-up comedy and more.
I am now on holiday and have taken the opportunity to record new tracks: (hug-a-hoodie anthem) TEENAGE TEARAWAY and (facebook-inspired) LAPTOP. Do have a listen.
Had "For Her" on my ipod as I touched down Dublin......... That song is eternal. Hope you are well. So busy man......... but I hope to find you both when I get home in october mate.
Ive met Kim Wilson of The Fabulous Thunderbirds Sunday April 20th in London & gave him the Picture of Haakie & Kim & The Fab Thunderbirds & Canned Heat with Henry Vestine & Fito that has been on my Wall.
Also Ive learned how to Download Videos to Haakie Tribute Site So Now there is over 100 Blues Videos.
Its a Living Breathing Site & Iam Planning to go to LA for LITTLE RICHARD & CANNED HEAT on Avila Beach California 25th May WOW MAN I AM SO EXCITED !!! I hope you & Juby are well ? KEEP ON KEEPIN' ON & DON'T FORGET TOO BOOGIE. Dave (They Nicked Me Bag)
just under 50 diverse acts will be performing rock, indie, pop, folk, funk, jazz, blues, acoustic and all sorts inbetween.
playing this year are: Sub Pop Sunday (winners of XFM unsigned), REVERE (playing Glastonbury festival this year), Caimbo (included in this month’s Q magazine’s 'Tracks to Download'), The Raid (tipped in The Mirror as a band to watch in 2008), Mozzy Green (currently featuring as part of a West End theatre production), AloneMe (about to release highly anticipated debut album), NoID (winners of many awards), local favourites such as Happnin' Boy & Mike Rasmussen, The Strangerhood, Ed Hope & Friends, The Spores plus many, MANY more.
there's 2 main stages, a beer tent, plenty of craft and food stalls, an arts marquee and more to check out.
tell all your friends and come join us this weekend!
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