Life in the Bus Lane

Another Bath Music Festival concert and also the last concert and therefore the closing party. It turned out to be one of the most energetic gigs I’ve been to, though not for me as my back was playing up again. Bristolians Babyhead opened the night with their infectious mix of Ska and Hip-Hop (Skip-Hop?), warming the crowd up nicely and getting everyone moving, and then keeping them moving for a good hour or so.

After a short gap the eleven members of Bellowhead all managed to fit onto the stage, and proceeded to work their way through most of E.P. onymous, Burlesque, and a fair chunk of the forthcoming album due out later in the year, culminating about 90 minutes later in second encore which was the 5-and-a-bit minutes of on-stage anarchy known as Sloe Gin.

All in all a fantastic night.

Acoustically, the Assembly Rooms is a bit crap, it was also a bit hot and stuffy in there, but that didn’t detract much from two hours of excellent folk music and a few bad jokes.

A long trek up to Kettering, a quick donning of my “Dukla Prague Away Kit” shirt, followed by a shorter trek up to Nottingham saw us emerge from the car park to see “Birkenhead Car and Van Hire” emblazoned on the side of the nearest van. This can only mean one thing, Half Man Half Biscuit must be playing nearby.

Support came from Calvin Party who were fairly uninspiring to be honest. Once they were finished we took position against the barrier in front of the stage to get in front of the rapidly increasing crowd.

Just after 9pm the main band strolled on stage and launched into the first of many songs, a few technical difficulties delayed parts of the evening but didn’t really spoil things. Firstly Ken (guitar) had problems with his FX pedals necessitating some reconfiguration, and later Neil (Bass) had to replace a problematic lead, at one point disappearing off stage leaving Nigel to keep us amused for a few minutes.

Setlist:

The Light at the End of the Tunnel (is the Light of an Oncoming Train)
Fuckin’ ‘ell it’s Fred Titmus
Restless Legs
Shit Arm, Bad Tattoo
Totnes Bickering Fair
Albert Hammond Bootleg
Running Order Squabble Fest
Deep House Victims Minibus Appeal
Outbreak of Vitus Gerulaitis
Blue Badge Abuser
Ballad of Climie Fisher (intro only, because only Nigel knew how to play it)
Used to be in Evil Gazebo
Vatican Broadside
We Built this Village on a Trad. Arr. Tune
Twenty-Four Hour Garage People (the Pringles cost £1.02 tonight)
National Shite Day
For What Is Chatteris?
Tending The Wrong Grave
Tonight Matthew I’m Going To Be With Jesus (complete with loud cheering from the crowd after the “Rock City, Notts” line)
Bad Losers On Yahoo Chess
Look Dad No Tunes
Everything’s AOR
The Trumpton Riots

Worried Man Blues
All I Want for Christmas is a Dukla Prague Away Kit
Joy Division Oven Gloves

Well actually I haven’t yet, but if Steve picks up the tickets for Half Man Half Biscuit at Rock City in April, you never know what could happen.

Hopefully they’ll play “Tonight Matthew I’m going to be with Jesus” from which the title of this post originates

I’ve been up to no good,
I’ve been dissed in the hood,
I’ve been locked in the Rock City, Notts,

New Model Army are playing in Stroud in May, unfortunately it’s in the middle of the week I’ll be spending in France.

A much more intimate venue than the Derngate, and a much better performance, partly thanks to the excellent acoustics of the church-based venue. The only downside was that you couldn’t take drinks from the bar into the chapel, so it was a dry night. A last minute rush to get the tube back before the engineering works cocked things up meant we couldn’t hang around in the bar afterwards either.

Setlist:

Bishop Bray Speech (Stephen Burden)
Pillory Scene (Rev Hammer)
Whipping Song (Phil Johnstone)
Battle of Brentford (Justin Sullivan)
Elizabeth’s Great Gallop (Maddy Prior & Simon Friend)
Return to London (Rory McLeod)
England’s New Chains (Rev Hammer)
Oliver Cromwell Speech (Harry S Fulcher)
Bonny Besses (Rose Kemp)

Bishop Bray Speech (Stephen Burden)
Burford Stomp (The Levellers)
Oliver Cromwell Speech (Harry S Fulcher)
Lowlands of Holland (The Levellers)
Exile (Rev Hammer)
Every Woman’s Pain (Maddy Prior & Rose Kemp)
Return from Exile (Rory McLeod)
Rumour & Rapture (New Model Army)
Seventeen Years of Sorrow (Maddy Prior)
Lilburne’s Death Song (Rev Hammer)
Valediction

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect tonight, reviews of last night were somewhat uninspiring, however it had been the first night which might help explain things. Freeborn John is a folk-opera by Rev Hammer about the life of John Lilburne with a supporting cast of people like New Model Army, The Levellers, and Maddy Prior and many others.

Despite my misgivings, nearly everything went well, the only noticable cock-up was when Simon Friend made a complete mess of his duet with Maddy Prior, I reckon he was pissed. All in all a thoroughly good evening, although a little short.

Same again on Saturday in London.

Setlist:

Bishop Bray Speech (Stephen Burden)
Pillory Scene (Rev Hammer)
Whipping Song (Phil Johnstone)
Battle of Brentford (Justin Sullivan)
Elizabeth’s Great Gallop (Maddy Prior & Simon Friend)
Return to London (Rory McLeod)
England’s New Chains (Rev Hammer)
Oliver Cromwell Speech (Harry S Fulcher)
Bonny Besses (Rose Kemp)

Bishop Bray Speech (Stephen Burden)
Burford Stomp (The Levellers)
Oliver Cromwell Speech (Harry S Fulcher)
Lowlands of Holland (The Levellers)
Exile (Rev Hammer)
Every Woman’s Pain (Maddy Prior & Rose Kemp)
Return from Exile (Rory McLeod)
Rumour & Rapture (New Model Army)
Seventeen Years of Sorrow (Maddy Prior)
Lilburne’s Death Song (Rev Hammer)
Valediction

Yet another cracking night, and fortunately not as hot as the last time I saw them there.

Setlist:

Vanity
No Mirror, No Shadow
Island
Into the Wind
Breathing
Rivers
The Hunt
Get Me Out
Before I Get Old
One of the Chosen
Bloodsports
High
Ballad of Bodmin Pill
Bad Old World
Wired
Wonderful Way To Go

Vagabonds
Poison St
Green & Grey

I Love the World

That’s also my fourth and final New Model Army gig of the year, however I’m down to see them twice as part of Freeborn John - Live next February.

Another fantastic night. Much smaller and more intimate than Oxford last Saturday, and thankfully a lot cooler.

Setlist:

Vanity
No Mirror, No Shadow
Island
Into the Wind
Breathing
Rivers
The Hunt
Get Me Out
Before I Get Old
One of the Chosen
Bloodsports
High
Purity
Bad Old World
Wired
Wonderful Way to Go

51st State
Vagabonds
Poison St.

Green & Grey

Tonights gig came complete with a free sauna as someone forgot to turn the air-con on until the first encore. Very good, but very very hot.

Setlist to follow when I’ve pinched it from someone else.

Vanity
Into the WInd
Fate
…
Wired
Wonderful Way To Go

Bad Old World
Vagabonds
Poison Street

Stupid Questions
I Love the World

After a bit of thinking, I reckon it was as follows:

Vanity
Into the Wind
Fate
Breathing
Rivers
The Hunt
Get Me Out
Before I Get Old
One of the Chosen
Bloodsports
High
Purity
Wired
Wonderful Way To Go

Bad Old World
Vagabonds
Poison Street

Stupid Questions
I Love the World