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news summary 2005

This is the news summary for 2005.

Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec

January 2005

There was a very special afternoon at the Park Hotel in Weymouth on Sunday 2nd January, with the Steamer Ducklings, featuring Robbie McIntosh, Steve Wilson, Ady Milward, percussionist Steve Mutter and Chas Dickie. There was also a superb cameo from Mutter Slater. It was a magical afternoon, one of the highlights being Steve Wilson’s rendition of Bob Dylan’s masterpiece Like A Rolling Stone. It built to a mammoth climax and the crowd went nuts. At that moment someone tugged on Steve’s sleeve saying, “Taxi for Emma”! That’s Weymouth for you, your feet never get far off the ground.

I played a hastily-arranged Tsunami benefit at Port Regis School, near Sherborne, Dorset on Saturday 15th January with Paul Hart on guitar, Mark Skerrit on keyboards and guest star Bernie Marsden of Whitesnake and Peter Green band fame. He was a wonderful player and a diamond geezer, with some great music biz stories, like the one about the band that chucked out their keyboard player because he kept pestering them with his songs. The keyboard player? Reg Dwight…changed his name to Elton something…had some song about a candle…

The C Sharp Blues gig at the George, Portland on Sunday 16th was fantastic. Mike Biggs was playing the Strat that his musical mates bought to replace the one he had nicked, and we were blessed with the wonderful Tom Hughes on Hammond organ. What a treat!

Mutter Slater, Ady Milward and I then headed off to Mojo studios in Torquay to record rhythm tracks for a forthcoming Little Dixie CD. My amp blew up, Mutter's amp followed suit and the studio's computer started playing up, but we battled on and got nine tracks down. On the plus side, the engineer Leo was a fellow QPR supporter! I knew there had to be another one in the West Country somewhere.

A version of Little Dixie then played at the Ropemakers in Bridport on Friday 21st January, with Steve Mutter on percussion (a band with two Mutters!) and Gareth from Crying Out Loud on guitar. Lots of fun.

The Weysia event at Weymouth Pavilion on Sunday 23rd January was a stunning success, with over £20,000 being raised for the victims of the Asian Tsunami disaster. Go to www.weysia.co.uk for full details of a very, very special day.

I was involved in another Tsunami fundraiser on Friday 28th at the Sealy Suite in Blandford, Dorset with the Barrelhouse Big Band (basically the Orchestra minus the string quartet, one of the keyboards and the backing vocalists). Barrelhouse percussionist Pete Brown performed the Cream classics ‘Politician' and ‘Sunshine Of Your Love', songs that he wrote with Jack Bruce and Eric Clapton. What a buzz that was, playing alongside somebody that helped to write the soundtrack of my youth.

I saw Brown playing in Fulham Town Hall around 1969 with Piblokto (or was it Battered Ornaments?), and 30-plus years later I'm playing in a band with him. Funny old world, eh?

The Barrelhouse Band played Dick Heckstall-Smith's funky jazz groove Wasa Nasu in tribute to that wonderful sax player that moved on to the Great Gig In The Sky on December 19th. I never met Dick, but I'm told by mates that met him that he was another of those rare diamond geezers of the music business.

It looked like January was going to be a quiet time for me. Didn't quite work out that way.

February

On Friday, 4th February the seventeenth annual John Spencer Memorial Gig took place at Freshwater Holiday Park , Burton Bradstock, Dorset . Custer’s Last Blues Band, Gothic Chicken, the Jess Upton Soul Band (with Jon Burden on guitar, Ady Milward on drums and Paddy Milner on Hammond-style keyboard), the Fat Marrow Blues Band and the Tricky Spencer Band (featuring John Spencer’s son Luke and daughter Amy) all played wondrous stuff.

A particular treat was the appearance of boogie/jazz/classical piano virtuoso Paddy, who played a couple of solo numbers and a couple from his new CD ‘Walking On Eggshells’ with his drummer Adam Skinner. If you haven’t heard Paddy’s stuff recently, go to www.paddymilner.com and check out the samples from his new CD. Truly astonishing stuff.

At midnight it became Custer’s main man Hamish Maxwell’s 70th birthday, and the big man was moved to tears by the reception he received from the 600-strong audience. Despite not having sung for a year and being understandably nervous, Hamish performed wonderfully well, and appeared to thoroughly enjoy himself.

The event raised over £5,000, and 50% of those proceeds will go to the Tsunami Appeal.

On Saturday 5th, Little Dixie made their debut at the Kimberlin Club, at Westcliff Community Centre, Blacknor Road, Portland, the first time the full 5-piece line-up, with Richard Edwards and Clive Ashley on board, has played together for a few months. It was a great night.

March

I played with C Sharp Blues at the St George’s Centre, Reforne, Portland on Saturday 12th February with a variety of Portland-based bands. It was fundraiser for the maintenance of the Centre, which is an important resource for the people of Portland . It was an excellent gig, and we raised over £500 for the Centre. On Thursday 17th I was back on Portland at the Blues Club (the name’s a happy coincidence – It’s Portland United FC’s club house, and their nickname is The Blues) raising funds for a local primary school. We had a reunion of the Ben Waters Band line-up of a few years ago, with Smudge Smith on guitar and Chris Page on drums. This time we raised over £800.

The 5-piece Little Dixie line-up played at the newly-refurbished Hope & Anchor in Bridport, Dorset on Saturday 26th February, another stonking gig. Little Dixie headed for darkest Somerset on Saturday 5th March, where we played at Woods Wine Bar in Yeovil. Musically it was great, but it was one of those gigs where it feels like you’re being ignored for a living.

The tribute gig for British jazz/blues/r&b legend Dick Heckstall-Smith at the Coade Hall on Sunday 6th March was a truly wonderful night.

The evening started with an afro-centric reworking of Heckstall-Smith’s instrumental Woza Nazu, featuring Paul Hart on acoustic guitar, Helen and Victoria Hardy on backing vocals, Pete Brown on percussion and myself. Then Clive Ashley, Ian Close and Art Themen came on one-by-one bearing tenor saxes. It was a wonderfully atmospheric opener.

Ben Waters joined us next, with Sam Brown on drums, and upped the entertainment ante with his mixture of charm and knock-out boogie. Pete Brown then took the vocal on ‘Neighbour Neighbour’, a tribute to the late, great Graham Bond. Original Graham Bond Organisation member Art Themen and guitar monster John Etheridge joined in.

Chris Jagger then took to the stage with Ben, Clive, Brown, Etheridge and myself, playing one of his own numbers and a rousing version of the Ray Charles classic Let’s Go Get Stoned.

This was followed by an acoustic moment or two, featuring a couple of numbers from Blues Band member Gary Fletcher and from former Coliseum guitarist James Litherland and his bassist Mick.

After the break Pete Brown took the vocal again for what was, for me, perhaps the highlight of the night. Theme For An Imaginary Western was written by Brown and Jack Bruce as an allegorical tale of life on the road with the Graham Bond Organisation, and the performance on the night, featuring the entire Barrelhouse Blues Orchestra plus John Etheridge, was spine-chillingly wondrous.

Enter Johnny Mars, blowing some wonderful harp on the Crusaders gem Put It Where You Want It and singing the shit out of Hoochie Coochie Man. Ray Foster took the vocals on I Can’t Quit You Babe, which featured a wonderful blues ‘cello solo from Chas Dickie, before Litherland returned to the stage in electric mode for a recreation of Backwater Blues, as played with Coliseum on their album Those About To Die Salute You. It was a showcase for James and for Clive Ashley, who made the most of his three choruses. James and the Orchestra then tore into Walking In The Park, Litherland’s theme tune from those days.

Johnny Mars returned for the Doctor John/Jimmy Smith collaboration Only In It For The Money (no irony intended), before sax virtuoso Andy Sheppard took to the stage for a second take on Heckstall-Smith’s Woza Nazu, this version closer to the original.

The finale was BB King’s rhumba/shuffle Every Day I Have The Blues, featuring Johnny Mars, the entire orchestra, Andy Sheppard, Art Themen, John Schofield, Chris Jagger, James Litherland and Ray Foster, making a 25-strong blues band if my maths is right.

Chris Jagger, a friend and collaborator of Heckstall-Smith, then persuaded a reluctant Art Themen to finish the night with a solo sax tribute to D H-S, a very moving rendition of a Hoagy Carmichael song that Dick loved. A perfect end to a very special night.

All hail to Barrelhouse main man Paul Hart for organising the whole event. It was an incredible achievement.

Straight after the following Thursday’s jam session at Finns in Weymouth the Ben Waters Band headed north to catch the red-eye special from Stansted Airport at the crack of dawn on Friday 11th March, and our latest German tour was underway. We played in venues from the foothills of the mountains near Heidelburg to medieval churches to the top of the Europa Centre in Berlin. As always, we were spoilt rotten by our wonderful friends in Germany , and our mate Pete Kelsall was invaluable as roadie/CD seller/all-round diamond geezer.

All hail to Sound’s Promotion, the best promoters in Germany , who put the whole thing together. Great gigs, great hotels, great food and what else? Ah yes, the beer. Mmmmm, the beer… Radeberger…

Little Dixie made their debut appearance at the Cove House Inn, Chiswell, Portland on Good Friday. Initially, the prospect of the four of us shoehorning ourselves into the corner of the pub was a little daunting, but it turned out to be a great night. Once more the good people of Portland gave us a great reception, and more gigs are planned.

The Cove is a wonderful pub, set right on the Chiswell flood defences looking out over Lyme Bay, and a fantastic place to witness the sunset or the full fury of an Atlantic gale, when waves crash straight over the pub and the whole building shakes.

The next day, Saturday 26th March the Ben Waters Band played at the Forest Arts Centre in New Milton, Hampshire. The small theatre was sold out days before the gig, and we had a great time with a responsive crowd. Ben came up with a horribly catchy little instrumental during the sound check that could make his fortune yet. Straight after the gig, Ben headed off to Stansted for a flight to Italy for some gigs with Nine Below Zero.

April

On Saturday 2nd April I played with the Barrelhouse Blues Band at the Crown Inn in Fontmell Magna, Dorset. The line-up was comprised of Paul Hart on guitar, Clive Ashley on sax, Alan Edwards on drums and myself. Alan’s had a bit of a health scare recently, but he’s coming through it well and looked and played great on the night. It was a real pleasure to play with him again.

On Sunday the Ben Waters Band made its debut at Mojo Boogie’s new home at the Music Room in Euston Road, London. It’s a fantastic little room, overlooking the Victorian Gothic splendour of St Pancras Station and the British Library, the latter of which appears to be doing it’s best to make Belmarsh look attractive. The band was in fine form, fuelled by a particularly fine meal at an Indian restaurant just around the corner.

The Ben Waters Band played at a private bash for some RAF types on 23rd April, where we were joined by sax virtuoso Derek Nash, who’s still recovering from the tragic death of his lovely wife and soul mate Sandy . On 29th April the BWB played at Brackley Town Hall in Northamptonshire, a great night at a cracking venue in the company of many like-minded musical souls.

May

I’ve begun lecturing at Weymouth College Music School , so most of my waking hours have been spent getting three groups of students up to speed for a showcase concert at the College on 6th May. Despite having only a month to work on it, the concert went really well, better than I could have hoped, with young students playing everything from Dolly Parton to Metallica.

I’ve also joined the committee of the old and to-be-renamed Weymouth Arts Centre – my god, am I finally going mainstream?

On Sunday 15th May I joined Robbie McIntosh, Steve Wilson and Ady Milward at the Park Hotel in Weymouth for an afternoon of wonderful music, ranging from Freddie King to Randy Newman to The Kinks. It was our first chance to catch up with Robbie after a lengthy spell touring with Norah Jones, and we all relished it.

On Friday, 20th May Little Dixie returned to the Cove House Inn, Chiswell, Portland. It’s a fantastic setting, right on Chesil Beach overlooking Lyme Bay , and we had a great night with a truly appreciative audience, as is always the case on Portland .

On Friday 27th the Ben Waters Band made its debut at Windsor Arts Centre, virtually in the shadow of the castle. Didn’t see the Queen, though. The Arts Centre, a converted Victorian fire station, is a great venue. Once again the audience were enthusiastic and appreciative, and a fine time was had by all. We were joined once again by sax virtuoso Derek Nash, who blew up a storm as always.

It was a gig of two halves on Saturday 28th when Little Dixie returned to Woods Wine Bar in Yeovil, Somerset. We spent the first set playing to the backs of punter’s heads as they got lashed up prior to going clubbing, dispiriting to say the least, but in the second half a of people who were into what we’re doing wandered in off the street - that’s all it takes to turn a gruelling night into a great one.

The bank holiday weekend was rounded off with a visit to the Three Horseshoes, Burton Bradstock, Dorset, our spiritual home. Guv’nors Adrian and Sarah extended their usual hospitality, and another great night ensued.

June

On Saturday 3rd June Little Dixie returned to the Ropemakers, West Street, Bridport, where Phil Rosenberg, a wonderful guitarist with years of session playing to his credit joined Mutter Slater, Ady and myself. Also guesting was Steve Mutter, the percussionist extraordinaire that liked Natal congas so much that he bought the company. The assembled cast did justice to Slater’s wonderfully-crafted original material.

On Sunday 4th the Ben Waters Band played at the Lakeside Rhythm & Blues Concert in Horsham , Sussex . It was a night of true Brits – we played in an open-sided marquee to an audience who stood, sat, danced, ate and drank in the open air while it rained continuously all night.

I had a call a couple of weeks back from Billy Bragg, asking me to put together a band and find a studio to record some songs that had emerged from Billy’s songwriting workshops with cancer sufferers at the Trimar Hospice in Weymouth. This resulted in a session at Mike Hallett’s studio in Weymouth on 10th June with Billy, singer Helena, Robbie McIntosh, pianist Julie Lewis and Ady, the whole process witnessed by some of the women who wrote the songs with Billy. It was a unique and inspirational experience, which was captured on film.

On Saturday 11th the Ben Waters Band played at Sherborne Castle in Dorset . We were preceded onstage by Zoë Schwarz and Rob Koral’s jazz quintet, USA bluesman Bill Sheffield and Dave Saunders and a wonderful band called Cut Collective, who had a remarkable Latin/Celtic/East European thing going on. The Ben band were joined onstage by Elliot Randall, the New York guitarist most known for his work with Steely Dan but with a CV that reads like a who’s-who of rock history. He played wonderfully, made us all raise our game, and contributed to one of those nights when you’re onstage thinking, “Yep, this is why I do it”. Elliot seems keen to work with us again, and I thoroughly look forward to that.

Ady and I were spoilt rotten for guitarists that last week. Phil Rosenberg on Saturday 4th, a work out with ex-Polygene Bob Shearn and Dr Feelgood/Yardbirds guitarist Gypie Mayo on the Monday, in the studio with Robbie McIntosh on Friday and onstage with Elliot Randall on the Saturday.

The fab guitarist theme continued on Friday, 17th June, when the baton was picked up by Barrelhouse man Paul Hart, a fine blues player in the Peter Green/B B King mould. The Barrelhouse Blues Band played at the Crown Inn, Fontmell Magna, north of Blandford, Dorset, where the wonderful drummer Alan Edwards joined Paul and myself.

On Saturday 18th the Ben Waters Band reassembled for the Beaminster Festival on a hot and sweaty night. It was an evening of heads-down-rock’n’roll, well received by a sell-out audience. The following Saturday, 25th, the Ben band played a fundraising gig in a marquee in Hermitage, near Sherborne, Dorset. We stuck fairly closely to a pre-written set list on this occasion, and it paid dividends by making the whole evening more structured musically.

July

Saturday 2nd July saw the Ben Waters Band make its third visit to the Ashcroft Theatre in Fareham , Hampshire. These intimate arts centre-type settings can be cosy and intimate or sterile and intimidating by degrees, but the Ashcroft is definitely in the former category and the band responded accordingly.

The goalposts shifted again as we (Ben Waters Band) made our third consecutive appearance as the entertainment at Dorchester’s Thomas Hardy School’s prom at Athelhampton Manor, near Dorchester, Dorset on Wednesday 6th July. A different remit, for sure, but very well received nonetheless.

It was another of those “Yep, that’s why I do it nights” on Friday 8th July at Lulworth Castle in Dorset . The stage was set up outside the Castle in a wonderful natural setting on a beautiful summer’s day. A local young band called White Vinyl opened the show with a very impressive set of well-crafted original material that called to mind bands like Coldplay and REM to these old ears. It was performed with fine musicality, real energy and conviction.

Next up was the essential Ben Waters Band, i.e. Ben, Clive Ashley, Ady Milward and myself, joined for the second time on guitar by one-time Steely Dan, Doobie Brothers, John Lennon, Stevie Wonder etc etc collaborator Elliott Randall. He’s a wonderful player whose style complements and enhances our sound perfectly, and he seems keen to work more with us in the future. Hurrah!

After a brief break Clive Ashley was joined in the brass section by his brother Ray on trombone, Pete Bettle (a Barrelhouse Blues Orchestra colleague) on baritone sax, Rocket 88 and Sound of Seventeen (and the rest) legend Willie Garnett on tenor sax and recent Jools Holland recruitee Derek Nash on tenor, alto and soprano saxes. Werewolves of London guitarist Tony Farinha rounded out an extraordinary line up. The sound was quite immense.

It didn’t stop there – this ten-piece line-up was then joined by none other than soul legend supreme Geno Washington, a man who could serve as a definition of the term ‘larger than life’. Despite the most minimal of rehearsals (i.e. Geno, Ben, Ady and I around a piano in the dressing room for ten minutes just before the gig) I think we can claim that pulled off a pretty amazing performance. A 2,000-odd crowd was left baying for more, and the whole night was a fantastic success.

On Saturday 9th a version of Little Dixie comprised of Mutter Slater, guitarist extraordinaire Phil Rosenberg, percussionist Steve Mutter and drummer Danny Wheeler and myself played at the Sailor’s Return in Weymouth, Dorset. Despite (or maybe because of?) the ad hoc nature of the line-up it was a wonderful night musically, well received by a small but perfectly formed audience.

On Thursday 14th July I played with the Barrelhouse Blues Band at the Gillingham Festival. That’s Gillingham in North Dorset , not the one in Kent . I was joined by Barrelhouse mainman Paul Hart on guitar, Clive Ashley (saxes) Mark Skerritt (keyboards) and Alan Edwards on drums. The BBB is a different take on the blues pretty much entirely from the approach of the Barrelhouse Blues Orchestra – the focus is on Paul Hart’s interpretation of the genre, probably best exemplified by his haunting arrangement of Robert Johnson’s ‘32/20’, which owes as much to John Martyn as it does to the Mississippi Delta. The combination of musicians and Paul’s choice of material made the whole thing a real pleasure to be involved with from a bass player’s point of view, I can tell you, and it went down a treat with the punters.

Our set acted as warm-up to The Blues Band, fronted by Radio 2 DJ and former Manfred Mann vocalist and harmonica man Paul Jones. The concert-type atmosphere of the setting (posh marquee, rows of seats, immaculate PA from Dave Wynn and his team at ESP, the best sound crew in the West of England) suited the band really well, particularly on the more acoustic country blues features in their set. That’s where the band’s greatest asset, Dave Kelly, really shines. Dave is one of those real rarities, a white English geezer whose vocal and guitar performances do real justice to the Delta blues masterpieces they seek to emulate.

The billing at the Black Dog, St Mary Street , Weymouth on Friday 15th read as Tom Caulfield’s Ginger Soul Experiment. It was Tom’s first ‘solo flight’ as a front man, and the boy done good. More than good, truth be told, it was a great performance, with just Barney on drums and your scribe in support. We played lots of Albert King, Freddie King, a bit of Rory Gallagher and a couple of Tom’s original compositions, and it went down a treat.

On Saturday 16th July I picked up a gig with Roger Bastible, Tim Broad and Nick Gomer, again at the Gillingham Festival. It was billed as Rave to the Grave, despite the absence of the band’s founder member Mutter Slater. It was rough and ready, but very well received.

A cracking jam session at Finns in Weymouth on Thursday 21st July was followed on the Friday night by an ad hoc version of Little Dixie at the Cove House Inn, Portland, Dorset. Mutter Slater and I were joined by Danny Wheeler on drums and Smudger Smith on guitar.

The Ben Waters Band topped the bill for the second consecutive year at the Trowbridge Festival in Wiltshire on Sunday 24th July. We were preceded onstage by Mozaik (Andy Irvine and Donal Lunny’s band), the Saw Doctors and Ralph McTell (yes, he did finish with that song), and our set was fantastically well-received by thousands of up-for-it punters. As with the Lulworth Castle gig earlier in the month, we started with the regular band (Ben, Clive, Ady and me) plus guitar legend Elliott Randall. We were then joined by Tony Farinha on guitar and a brass section in which Clive was accompanied by his brother Ray on trombone, Willie Garnet and his son Alex on tenor saxes and Pete Bettle on baritone sax.

The regular jam sessions at Finns in Weymouth on Thursday nights are always unpredictable and usually great, but Thursday 28th July’s was particularly memorable. The Dorset Blues Society’s annual Blues Summer School (www.bluesnights.co.uk) was taking place at the Thomas Hardy School in Dorchester, Dorset that week, and r&b/blues/soul/funk drummer legend Sam Kelly, guitar heroes Tony Farinha and Tom Caulfield, all tutors on the summer school, turned up for the session. It was truly inspiring. It’s been a couple of years since I’ve had the pleasure of playing with Sam and it was a joy. From a bass player’s point of view I’m spoilt rotten by the wealth of great drummers I get to play with on a regular basis (you know who you are!) but I know that they’d all agree that Sam is a bit special. He grooves effortlessly, takes command when necessary, listens to everything that’s going on and is constantly full of ideas.

On Friday 29th July the Ben Waters Band played at a wedding in Bookham, Surrey, in a marquee in a field with a stunning view towards the south of London. You could even see the new Wembley Stadium’s imposing arch from miles away.

We were shown into the band room, where five bottles of champagne awaited us. Uh-oh. Yep, it was one of those gigs. It was a great night, a real hoot, with the possibility of more work resulting from it.

The next night, Saturday 30th, Little Dixie returned to the George Inn, Reforne, Portland, Dorset, one of our besty favourite gigs, and it was another great night. Once again, Portland’s discerning punters showed their appreciation of Mutter Slater’s original material and the band’s covers of the likes of Los Lobos, Boz Scaggs, Delbert McClinton, Keb Mo and Traffic, to name but several.

On Sunday 31st it was more a case of Big Dixie at the Hope & Anchor, St Martin ’s Lane, Bridport. The basic line-up of Mutter, Clive, Ady and myself was joined by Phil Rosenberg, a wonderfully tasteful guitarist, and my old buddy Steve Mutter, whose conga and assorted other percussion work added a real gloss to the band’s sound.

August

Little Dixie returned to the Cove Inn, Chiswell, Portland, Dorset on Friday 12th, where Mutter Slater, Ady Milward and I were joined by guitar man Smudge for an evening only slightly marred for me by the fact that I broke a bone in my foot earlier that day, by walking at a smart pace into a metal-legged chair. Don’t try this at home, kids.

My wife Tanya’s 40th birthday celebrations began on Saturday 13th at the Centenary Club in Weymouth , with music provided by the wonderful Muddy Funksters (fronted in fine style by Tanya’s daughter Chloe Whistance). I managed to engineer a surprise appearance from the Jess Upton Soul Band. It was no easy feat, I can tell you, but we somehow smuggled in an eight-piece band without Tanya noticing. Part two of the festivities took place on Sunday 14th at the Park Hotel, Weymouth , featuring Ben Waters, Robbie McIntosh, Ady and your scribe. We were preceded ‘onstage’ by a fantastic duo called The Beatniks, who managed to replicate Beatles, Stones, Everly Brothers etc recordings with astonishing accuracy.

On Monday 15th and Tuesday 16th we finished recordings and attempted the initial mixes of the Rosetta Life project. Billy Bragg had been running songwriting workshops with cancer sufferers at Weymouth ’s Trimar Hospice, and the result was a trio of astonishingly moving songs, all with positive, upbeat and frankly humbling messages.

Billy asked me to put together a band and find a studio to produce a recording of the songs he and women at the hospice had written. He’d already chosen chanteuse extraordinaine Helena to perform vocals, and I persuaded Robbie McIntosh to give us the benefit of his peerless guitar playing and his enormous knowledge of the studio environment. Pianist Julie Lewis, another extraordinary talent, was happy to take part, as was my brother-in-rhythm section Ady Milward. I bagsied the bass bits.

We recorded the songs at Mike Hallett’s studio in Weymouth , and the session went really well. The hard part was playing our efforts back to the women who’d created the songs, but they seemed pretty thrilled by the results. We now have mixes of the whole project, and we’ll see where it goes from here. The initial idea was conceived for the therapeutic value of the experience for the women at the hospice, I guess, but it was then decided to record the whole thing on film for the benefit of other hospices. Since then the BBC have shown interest in the project, so once again, we await developments.

Tom Caulfield followed up his first ‘solo flight’ at the Black Dog, St Mary Street, Weymouth last month with a return to the Dog on Friday 19th August. This time it was billed as Sgt Tommy’s Ginger Hearts Club Band, and Tom and yours truly were joined by Jack Duxbury, a very nifty keyboard player, and the man Milward. It was a great session of funky blues, where Tom’s original material was mixed with covers from Albert King to The Meters. We were joined by Lucy on funky flute and the inimitable Trevor Lawrence, doing his thing by just being Trevor.

On Saturday 20th Little Dixie played as part of the entertainment for the Bridport Carnival on the back of a lorry in Buckydoo Square, Bridport. Richard Edwards joined us for the night, a rare treat these days, as did conga ace Steve Mutter. Another cracking night.

I was back in Mike Hallett’s studio in Weymouth on Sunday 21st, the remit being very different from the Rosetta Life project recorded at the same studio. This time drummer Chris Page and I were putting down rhythm tracks for a duo called Sunstroke, featuring Smudge Smith on guitar and piano and his mate Bob on vocals. We put down ten tracks in around four hours, ranging from Joe Turner to Johnny Cash to some more risqué moments.

I joined Robbie McIntosh and Ady Milward for an impromptu ‘unplugged’ session at the Park Hotel, Weymouth on Tuesday 23rd August. ‘Cellist extraordinaire Chas Dickie turned up, making the session reminiscent of Sunday afternoons at the Springhead in Sutton Poyntz, Weymouth

On Saturday 27th August the Ben Waters Band returned to the world-renowned 100 Club in Oxford Street, London, where were joined again by guitar hero and all-round good geezer Elliott Randall. It was our first Saturday night booking at this prestigious venue, and it was a riot. The audience reception was tremendous.

September

On Friday, 10th September the Ben Waters Band played at the Marine Theatre, Lyme Regis in Dorset , supported by Cousin Leonard, an excellent multi-instrumental duo from Melbourne , Australia that Ben met on his travels there. They opened the show, and then joined the Ben band towards the end of our set, as did Chris Jagger and Roger Bastible. Another riotous night.

The Ben Waters Band played at a private function on Friday 16th September in Dundry, an idyllic rural setting on the hills overlooking Bristol . The next night we travelled to Painswick, in Gloucestershire, returning to the beautiful Arts & Crafts arts centre there. This gig was sold out before even got there, and the punters were right up for a marathon session of boogie and rock’n’roll.

On Sunday, 18th drummist Ady Milward and myself joined jazz vocalist extraordinaire Sue Hawker and ivory tickler Guy Gardiner at Finns in Weymouth, for an evening of mellow jazz and funk, some of which was Sue’s own material. It was an extreme contrast to consecutive nights of full-on Waters boogie, and I thoroughly enjoyed trying to keep up as the jazz changes flashed by.

The Rosetta Life project took a major leap forward on Tuesday 20th September when Billy Bragg and Maxine Edgington were interviewed by Jeremy Vine for his BBC Radio 2 programme. Maxine is a cancer sufferer who attended a songwriting workshop with Billy at the Trimar Hospice in Weymouth , and she told Vine her heart-rending story, after which they played our recording of Billy and Maxine’s song ‘We Laughed’. The result was instant and overwhelming, switchboards jammed etc, and Vine has played it several times since. It’s actually become the most requested song in the show’s history, and it’s going to be released as a download on the net on 8th October, National Hospice Day. It will be available in the shops in CD form shortly afterwards, on Pinnacle records.

October

Saturday 1st October was Marsha’s Fun Day at the Winning Post, Twickenham, London. This was the third annual gig celebrating the life of my mate Phil McDonnell’s daughter Marsha, who was brutally murdered three years ago.

The concert featured an amazing line-up of Phil’s musical mates, starting at lunchtime with an acoustically-orientated session including Steve Whalley and his mate on bass playing some wonderful stuff that brought Ry Cooder to mind, Paul Bowen, Paul Brennan of Clannad fame with his new band, and The Strawbs, featuring their original line-up. The evening session started with Rory Gallagher tribute band Sinnerboy, followed by the Ben Waters Band with Robbie McIntosh. Robbie then stayed onstage with a who’s who of world-class talent including Zoot Money, Max Middleton, Denny Newman, Hamish Stewart, Maggie Bell, Micky Moody and Bernie Marsden from Whitesnake, Sam Browne and a host of others.

From a performer’s point of view it was a pleasure to be looked after by stage crew that takes care of the best in the business on a regular basis. I could get used to this!

On Thursday 6th October the Ben Waters Band made its third visit to Storyville Happy Jazz Club, in Helsinki , Finland , where Clive Ashley’s trombone-playing brother Ray joined the usual BWB line-up. It was by general consent the best of our visits to this fantastic music-orientated club, which is apparently Finland ’s most prestigious venue (if only Weymouth had a club like this…). We played three nights on the trot, from 10pm to 3am, and the band was in fine form, red hot by the third night!

Little Dixie returned to the Ropemaker’s in West Street, Bridport, Dorset on Saturday 15th October. Richard Edwards was with us playing wondrous guitar, and we were joined by Chris Page on drums. It was a fine night.

On Friday, 21st October I played at the Black Dog in Weymouth with Tim Broad, Nick Gomer (harmonica), Grant Day (guitar) and Jake Sorbie (drums), a great set of classic blues, and on Saturday 22nd Little Dixie returned to the Sailor’s Return in Weymouth. It was a real pleasure to have Richie Edwards on guitar again.

November

‘We Laughed’ was released on Monday 31st and came into the official UK chart on Sunday 6th November at no.11. This is an incredible achievement for a single released by a band that no-one had heard of before. Despite having no fan-base that would automatically buy the record, without vast amounts of record company hype and cash, we nearly made the Top Ten in less than a week! Thank you Jeremy Vine and all the other DJ’s and media people that picked up on an incredibly moving story and a great song.

On Friday 4th November the Ben Waters Band played at the Eden Project in Cornwall as part of a National Lottery shindig. The Project’s owner Tim Smit met Ben at a gig in the Scilly Isles, and booked the band as a result. A result it was – a fantastic set in the most amazing setting. The usual suspects, i.e. Ben, Clive, Ady and myself were joined by Pete Bettle on baritone sax and Ralph Cree on percussion.

The following night Little Dixie played at the Jolly Sailor on Portland. It was a littler Dixie than usual – Gypie Mayo was supposed to be joining us on guitar, but foul weather and other circumstances prevented him from turning up. Mutter, Ady and myself did it as a three-piece, and I think we got away with it!

The launch party for the We Laughed CD took place on 10th at the Royal Oak in Bridport, Dorset was a great occasion, featuring a full house of the people on the recording, namely Billy Bragg, Helena, Robbie McIntosh, Julie Lewis, Ady Milward and me. The three songs from the CD were augmented by Billy’s wonderful anthem ‘I Keep Faith’ and original material from Helena, Robbie and Julie, some performed solo and some with the band. The most touching moment was playing ‘We Laughed’ while Maxine, who wrote the lyrics, and her daughter Jessica, the focus of those lyrics, danced in front of use. Ulp.

The Rosetta Life Band played at the Plough Arts Centre in Great Torrington, Devon on Wednesday 23rd and Thursday 24th November. We were the musical turn after days of conferences, workshops and film, all based on the hospice/carer experience. The three women who wrote the songs on the We Laughed CD with Billy Bragg were all there, and on the Thursday night Maxine Edgington sang We Laughed onstage with Robbie McIntosh and Julie Lewis, another moving moment. Billy joined us for the second night, and we played his anthem I Keep Faith alongside the Rosetta songs. Both nights were wonderful musically, and the Rosetta Life people looked after us wonderfully.

We woke up on Friday morning to a completely whited-out North Devon , and it was touch-and-go making it back to Dorset in time for the celebration of Bridport’s giant of music Rex Trevett’s life at Freshwater Holiday Park in Burton Bradstock, Dorset that night. Bridport band Vinyl Monkeys kicked off the night with covers from Nickleback to Weezer, followed by a set from Custer’s Last Blues Band.

I then joined saxophonist Mike Smith, pianist Dan Dibdin, drummer Ian (Bill) de Freville, the latter three all Rex Trevett protégées, for a set of jazz standards. After three numbers I stepped aside to let Rex’s grandson Ollie take over on bass. I can only imagine how proud Rex would have been to see that line-up.

The night was rounded off in great style with a reunion of the Jess Upton Soul Band. The highlight was the appearance of trumpet virtuoso Matt Barge, playing his first gig since a horrific accident some 18 months ago that left Matt with serious facial injuries.

On Saturday 26th it was a case of Little Liszt. It was officially billed as a Little Dixie gig, but guitarist Richard Edwards was unable to make the gig due to the atrocious weather conditions, and Clive Ashley was in Germany with Ben Waters. Into the breach stepped harmonica ace Nick Gomer and guitar legend Tim Broad, giving the Dixie set a distinctly more bluesy groove.

December

Little Dixie returned to the Three Horseshoes in Burton Bradstock on Friday 2nd December. Dan Wheeler did a fine job filling in for Ady on drums, while Richie Edwards and Clive Ashley provided the gloss with complementary guitar and sax work.

Ady and Clive were back on board for the Ben Waters Band gig at the West End Centre in Aldershot , Hampshire. We were joined by Tom Bowler (real name!), guitarist from the house band at an annual festival near Winnipeg , Canada that Ben and Clive have played at over the last couple of years. We’re hoping that the whole Ben band will be playing at that festival next year.

On Friday 9th December the Rosetta Life Band featuring Billy Bragg, the Steamer Ducks and Jon Amor played at the Pavilion Theatre in Weymouth . It was a very moving occasion – Maxine Edgington, who wrote the ‘We Laughed’ lyrics and her daughter Jessica, the subject of the song danced to the band surrounded by a circle of well-wishers. Lisa Payne, who wrote ‘The Light Within’ with Billy and Veronica Barfoot, co-composer of ‘My Guiding Star’ were also there, and there were a few tears shed, I can tell you.

The Ben Waters Band played at Bodelwyddan Castle in North Wales on Saturday 10th December as part of a blues weekend that also featured the Blues Band and the Yardbirds.

I joined Roger Bastible, Mutter Slater, Tim Broad and Paul Fancy for a Rave To The Grave gig at Haselbury Mill in Somerset on Thursday 15th December that was huge fun, and on Friday 16th the Ben Waters band regrouped at Brackley Town Hall in Brackley, Northamptonshire.

On Saturday 17th we had a Steamer Ducklings gig (Robbie, Ady Milward and your scribe) at the Park Hotel, Weymouth, Dorset . There was a lovely vibe, a perfect way to round off a great musical weekend.

The Ben Waters Band played at the Eden Project in Cornwall for the staff Christmas party on the 23rd December, followed by two Little Dixie gigs on Christmas Eve, at the Three Horseshoes in Burton Bradstock in the afternoon and at the Ropemakers, Bridport, Dorset in the evening. Huge fun all round.

On Tuesday 27th we had wonderful Brahms & Liszt reunion at Finns in Weymouth . Tim Broad, Nick Gomer, Ady Milward and myself were joined by Steve Burholt on keyboards and John Burden, Grant Day and Tom Caulfield on guitars, the whole night finished off by a great performance form Emma Gale.

On Wednesday 28th the Ben Waters Band had its Christmas party at Mr Kyps, Parkstone, Dorset. It’s the first time I’ve played at this wonderful venue, one of the best gigs in Dorset in my experience. Ben was in fine form despite lingering lurghi, and he was joined by Clive Ashley on sax and his brother Ray on trombone, Ady Milward and myself. The Tom Caulfield Band played support, proving that the blues is alive and well for another generation at least.

Little Dixie returned to the Westgate in Taunton on Friday 30th December, our first gig there for some months. It was very well received and great fun.

The Rosetta Life Band with Billy Bragg took part in BBC1’s New Year Live programme at Somerset House on the north bank of the River Thames in London. It was quite a day, hob-nobbing with the stars in that amazing building on the Embankment. We also had ringside seats for a truly amazing firework display from the London Eye.

Space restrictions meant that we were without Ady Milward on drums, and our performance was beset by sound and technical problems, but it was a truly unique experience, playing live to an estimated 8 million viewers.

A day, and a year, not to be forgotten.

Chris Lonergan

© 2004 Galeforce Media Solutions, Dorset