Music through the ages - Abraham Lincoln.

Most people consider that the murder of Abraham Lincoln by John Wilkes Booth - a little known actor and Confederate spy - was politically motivated.
However what is not commonly known about Booth is that he also had a sideline job promoting young musicians whom he would exploit by enlisting their help in selling tickets and performing at events he would arrange.
These young men and women were clearly being exploited as they would receive no monetary compensation for their efforts, and instead Booth would only make vague promises about future opportunities where they may perform alongside a rising star of the time.
These promises were of course never delivered on, and due to his failure to follow through with what was in many ways a verbal contract a young woman called Elsie Walker contacted President Lincoln and informed him of her disappointment in Booth and claimed that his actions were ‘far from what would be expected from a gentleman.’
Lincoln agreed, and in return publicly stated that he would not rest until these practices were stamped out prior to going on record to say that ‘the music business is a swamp where the scum always seems to float to the top.’

Booth was allegedly then informed of this while drinking heavily in a local tavern.

Eye witnesses questioned later claimed that in response he criticized Lincoln at length and shouted ‘no man steals the money from my pockets. I party hard on that money’ prior to him overturning a table and storming out gesticulating wildly and heading in the direction of Ford’s Theatre.

The rest is as they say history.

In her memoirs Mary Lincoln (nee Todd) spoke fondly of her husband and his achievements, but expressed some regrets that Abe mistakenly thought that after challenging the slave trade he could do something about the music business.

From the 5^th of March, in honour of Honest Abe, and his attempts to change the fortunes of struggling artists The New Hellfire Club have a run of live events arranged under the banner of the big band pay day.

All the money taken from ticket sales will be - after outgoing costs* - split evenly with the artists involved.

Please do support the cause.

Honest Abe wants you to.

* All outgoing costs are basic and the artists participating in the events can be made aware of them.

Events link.

NHC Music.

Matt Scott - Stairway Songs EP Launch - Bakers Sat 29th March (Kilmarnock)

It's a rare performance from Matt Scott that doesn't end with him being approached by people wanting to buy a CD.
Unfortunately while Matt had the songs the recording process has not been a quick one, and he has often had to resort to the fall back position of saying 'it's in the pipeline' to more people than he would probably have wanted to.
Those days are now behind him though, and with his brand spanking new ep delivered from the pressing plant he found himself with another dilemma.

Where should he launch it from?

Ideas were thrown about with the decision settling on it having to be either Glasgow or his home town of Kilmarnock.

On one hand Glasgow is a solid hub of musical activity and he has a solid track record of playing there with a couple of successful King Tuts appearances under his belt, and who could forget the opening slots to touring acts that widened his fan base.
On the other hand is that the people who supported him up until the point that he felt comfortable in playing in a major city are predominately all Ayrshire folk, and the temptation to return some of the love has a pull all of its own.

So ultimately in a battle of the heart and mind it was the heart that won out and the latter option was firmly grasped with Bakers being selected to host the evening.

Then, as is usual, another dilemma raised it's head.

Who should he approach to support him?

It was only then that the word support started to take on a rather egotistical force of its own, and the idea that it should be a mutual appreciation society event of like minded friends who have all shared the same stage on the their musical journeys solidified.
And with that Brown Bear and The Bandits, Rose Parade and Ross Crawford were sounded out and took up the offer in the spirit it was intended.

So no real supports, and instead special guests, and that's how from the humble beginnings of an idea it has become an evening where a good percentage of the cream of the talent that have worked tirelessly to enhance the entertainment options that are available to Ayrshire music fans came together for a special night.

Tickets are available from RGM (Kilmarnock), Big Sparra Vinyl (Ayr), the bands themselves and a limited amount will be available on the door.

The Banana Sessions playing Kilmarnock.

I recently had a conversation where I took the stance that quite a few people don't make much effort in life.
It was a general observation on something that I see daily.
People find themselves faced with an issue and the first thing they do is turn to someone else and expect them to solve the problem for them.
In doing this they are stagnating and losing the problem solving skills that we all need to have to get us from one day to the next.
When I was asked to elaborate I used myself as an example.
I'm not a journalist by any stretch of the imagination, but I do write.
I'm not a graphic artist but I mess about with images.
I'm not a promoter, but I put on gigs.
No one shows me how to do these things.
I just decide that this is what I want to do and then suss out how to do it.
Of course it's all pretty much amateur crap, but who cares.
Here's the sort of thing that I'm talking about.

Today a mate asked me if I could make him a small poster for a gig he is putting on and I said yes.
Then from that I thought I would try my hand at some simple animation.
I mean, why not?
It took me about half an hour.
The reason that I'm upping this as a blog entry is twofold.
One is that I want to help spread the word about the gig, and the other is that I hope someone somewhere decides I can do better than that........and does.
So go for it.
Create something.

Sunday Sessions

In early September of this year I decided that it was maybe time for me to dip my toe into promoting some gigs again.
Something on a smaller scale than I'd previously done as I was keen to avoid taking the financial bath that I've found myself splashing about in more times than I care to recall.
I suppose in hindsight the urge to get involved again was down to Kelly and myself visiting Su Casa and being impressed with the set up that they have.
Getting the cream of the local crop from the west coast of Scotland to perform once a month on a Sunday afternoon seemed appealing, and easily do-able.
So after checking if there was enough people interested in it that's just what we did.
The first one was in October and we managed to secure Matt Scott, Little Fire and Emma Forman to perform for us.
Sadly Emma had to drop out of the line up due to feeling ill, but at very short notice Colin Hunter stepped in and saved the day.
It was a fair success for a first stab at it.
Instead of charging the audience a set price we billed it as a 'pay what you want' afternoon with the audience deciding themselves how much the entertainment was worth by donating to a bucket being passed around.
Colin performed first and played a set that set the bar high for Little Fire and Matt Scott.
Refreshingly, and bravely, he didn't rely on material that we were familiar with and instead decided to run with brand new songs that he has been working on for a band project he is trying to get off the ground.
Based on what we heard that afternoon this is going to be an exciting prospect to look forward to.
Colin really is exceptionally talented and I'd love it of people started to let what he does sink in and gain some appreciation for it.
Next Little Fire ran through some material that cemented his reputation as an artist who is going places.
Previously I'd heard him to a song or two at Su Casa, but this was my first experience of a longer set of his songs, and the performance certainly lived up to expectations.
Currently I'm aware of a few opportunities that could push his career forward to another level so fingers crossed that come 2012 Little Fire will be the name on the lips of everyone as the next Scottish act to break through nationally.
Matt Scott finished the first Sunday Session with a solid performance in front of a home town crowd that had them baying for more. So successful was his set that he ran out of material, and for a couple of seconds it looked like the audience were going to insist that he ran through them again.
Over all I would have preferred it to be a bit busier, but that's not a complaint.
Those who had made the effort to attend were enthusiastically appreciative of the artists who were playing, and they certainly had no problem with dipping into their pockets to contribute towards paying Colin, Matt and Jamie aka Little Fire who all got an even split of the money raised.
Oh, Did I say this was a non profit venture with all proceeds going to the artists?
No.
Well there you go.
With the success of this under our belts I immediately went home and started work on Novembers line up.
This was to be Emma Forman, who was over her little bout of ill health, Ari Pournaras IV who is better known for fronting the excellent Rose Parade, Ross Gilchrist and Anna Sweeney.
Anna kick started the afternoon off with some lovely country tinged songs that managed to beguile the audience and from the comments expressed definitely garnered her more fans.
Emma arrived just in time from Dumfries to basically walk in, do her set and then rush off for the second and last train of the day home.
The effort she made was greatly appreciated and similar to the last time that I'd seen her play she effortlessly impressed.
First of the men to play was Ari whose stripped down take on his bands material was as good as the versions played with his band mates.
This was his first gig off the back of a very successful appearance at King Tuts Wah Wah Hut so it was an honour to have him play and once again those who had made the effort to pop along were richly rewarded for doing so.
Lastly to play was Ross Gilchrist and I've waxed lyrical often enough about his talents for everyone to know that I'm a fan.
His performance was what I'd been waiting to see for a while.
Normally Ross has played a supporting role on bills, and has had to tailor his material to fit the context of that, but with this he had the freedom to just go for it, and that what he did to great effect.
I'm very pleased with myself that I played a small part in getting people to listen to Ross and hopefully he is another artist that will get the recognition that he deserves.
This second Sunday Session wasn't as well attended as the first, not by much though, and those who did come along dug deep and all the acts got roughly the same as those who had played in October.
So, so far so good.
December is a busy month for people so I've decided that I'll shelve the Sunday Sessions for one month and return in January with more artists who deserve a platform to entertain an audience from.
I hope you can come along.
If you are unsure about it then ask about and see what those who have come along say about it, and I'm sure they will tell you that you should get your behind down to Jollys on a Sunday afternoon.
Big thanks, as always, must go to the venue management and staff in Jollys Sports Bar who continue to punch above their weight in both supporting and providing live music to Ayrshire.
If they were to be marked out of ten then they get an eleven.

Sunday Session

(Sorry, but once again this update is aimed at those local to my area)

I'm thinking of starting a Sunday afternoon session where acoustic acts with a laid back vibe can play to an audience of music lovers in a relaxed environment.
Nothing heavy. Just simply the antidote to a long hard week, or a gentle pick me up for the day after the night before.
Hopefully by having it on a Sunday afternoon it will also provide those who find it difficult to commit to night time events an opportunity to get out and sample some live music to.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
I've set up an events page on facebook and within an hour over ten people have commited to it and that isn't too bad when I consider this is a Monday morning and most people are still unaware of anything going on.
So if anyone is in the Ayrshire area please feel free to use the link here and check it out. Spread the word a bit even.
No pressure, but it would be nice to see people not only saying that they want to attend, but acting more proactively and sending invites out to others so that the idea can gather a bit of pace.

https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=143877105705709

It'saxxxxthing has a Matlock overdose.

In an ongoing attempt to publicize the forthcoming gig that my girlfriend and myself are promoting here's some more Glen. Now c'mon. You can't have too much Glen can you?
Normal services will resume after the 18th with the exception of a review.
This is where I should put in an ironic smiley face, but I don't know how to so just assume I'm painting one on my own face.

Glen Matlock is a bit of an enigma.
He has penned the music for some of the most iconic tracks to ever come out of the UK.
He was involved in a band who it could be argued managed to artistically and socially alter the course of history.
He has participated in musical projects with his peers that on paper looks like a whose who of the rock world. From playing with Johnny Thunders to Primal Scream to The Faces he is the guy who has been there and bought the t-shirt.
Yet who is he? Where is his larger than life rock star persona.
It's not there and that's why he is an enigma.
Someone once described him to me as the John Major of punk. A grey man who you would be hard to pick out of a crowd.
Now I don't agree with that at all, but I can partially understand where the comment is coming from.
My personal take on Glen Matlock is that he is workmanlike. Someone who considers that the music comes first second and third, and that's not to be construed as a critical comment.
He doesn't need to colour his hair shocking pink to write a classic song.
He doesn't need to backhand one of the paparazzi to garner column inches.
He simply lets the music do the talking and for me that is more than enough.
When the first Philistines album “Hard Work” was released I was bowled over with it. Here was a band who had all the swagger of a modern day Faces. A band who were instantly recognizable as British, but with enough transatlantic appeal to ensure more global interest would be on the cards to.
The songs were there, the musicianship to, and the vocals from Gerry Foster fitted like a hand in a glove.
Even now when I give it a spin it has exactly the same impact that it did back then.
That it wasn't the huge success that I expected it to be was a bit of a shock.
All of this came flooding back to me just recently. In all honesty I had forgotten all about it.
Between all the years between its release and the present much water has swept under the bridge and sometime, somewhere I must have stopped playing it and then as it so often happens it was out of sight and out of mind.
Even when it was discussed recently I drew a blank on it. That is until I gave it a listen again and my enjoyment of it all came flooding back.
For me it's a forgotten classic. One of those albums that barely get a mention and when you play it to people they can't believe that it wasn't picked up on by the critics and fans at the time.
Later on Glen dropped the Philistines tag and for his next release stepped up to the mic to take on lead vocal duties for the “Who's he think he is when he's at home?”
Unfortunately even getting Steve New on board wasn't enough to pull the album out from under the shadow of the Sex Pistols reunion.
Lost is the shuffle would be an apt description of what happened. Just as it should have been getting the big push Glen was back with his estranged band mates singing the songs from the past and leaving his baby to fend for itself.
It didn't fend well either.
It's rare for anyone to say much about it at all and it isn't a band album. It was initially a bit disappointing as it fell far short of having the instant “oomph” appeal of the Philistines début, but over time it grew on me and apart from a mix that could have been better there's not a lot across the breadth of the album to criticize at all.
Without the Sex Pistols acting as a distraction we maybe wouldn't be retrospectively saying “shoulda, woulda, coulda” about it.
It wasn't until 2000 before Glen would dip his toe back into fronting a band and he did so with a revamped Philistines and the “Open Mind” album.
Still assuming lead vocals he also had the assistance of a certain Mick Jones featured as a guest musician on a handful of tracks for this release.
The draw of a Sex Pistol and a Clash member should have ensured that every aged punk would have been dusting off his or her Seditionary rip off t-shirt and hobbling down to the nearest record buying emporium to snap it up.
By this time though he was flying under the radar though, and churlish as it seems I was quite pleased that the stereotypical punk aficionados didn't pick up on it as their critical appraisal would have served to do little more than undeservedly belittle the direction he was heading in.
For some if it isn't a retake on God Save the Queen then it's worthless.
It's a myopic view, and a sad reflection on how punk has crystallized into a rigid style and sound.
That Glen doesn't kowtow to the expectations of people who are mired in a moments past glories is admirable.
“On Something” that came next wouldn't so much revisit the sound of Open Mind, but more so reinforce that this was the direction he was taking and if you wanted along for the ride then fine, but if not, then that was up to you.
By now Glen Matlock & The Philistines had cemented a sound of their own.
A classic rock sound that avoided the worst pitfalls that the rock/metal fraternity usually find themselves tumbling into.
Real working class rock and roll with a bite.
More recently with their Born Running release they have taken that sound across the Atlantic and eased comfortably into slightly colouring it with a hint of blue collar Americana, albeit without losing their own sense of identity as a band.
It's a solid release that wont do Glens reputation as a songwriter any harm at all. He's still got it, and maybe, just maybe, others will be ready to play catch up and reconsider their opinion that he is the grey man of rock, as there is nothing bland an one dimensional about what Glen Matlock and the Philistines do.