They're not purple and they're not getting any smaller!

The last time I played support to Shrinking Violets was on the 24th of September, 1995! In the (now sadly demolished) Railway Hotel in Harrow. In this year of bands reforming, it seems entirely apt that they should do the same and so... I've just got back from their first gig in about 12 years. It was a great fun evening, and not least because I was playing a set myself, and also doing the sound for the bands (I'm a multi-tasker you know!).

The night was opened by Day Release, who were doing their first gig ever! They gave a pretty good account of themselves even though their guitarist had a broken foot and the bass player was wearing a kilt with ballooons stuck under it to look like a large set of balls and a little willy!

I was next up, and cracked through a few of my more up-tempo numbers. It was great to play with a clear, loud PA and on a stage where I could move around a bit. It's always very hard to compete with a large talking audience with just acoustic guitar and voice, but I played hard and enjoyed myself. I was particularly pleased with a re-working of All I Want Is You, which I opened with. I was chuffed that a lot of people made a point of grabbing me to say how they enjoyed the set afterwards. So I was happy.

After me it was time for the main event... and what a storming performance it was. These guys really know how to put on a show... as The Wizard of Oz played in the background they went through numerous costume changes, props and swapping of instruments to bring us a fantastic set. I'd forgotten how much I loved some of their songs. Thanks For Nothing is my favourite by a long way. After an Elvis impersonation, dresses, masks, women's hats, a mandolin, a mohican made of plastic flowers, giant egg-shapped papier-mache heads and a cauliflower came and went it was all over. They can all really play too and I enjoyed every second. I hear a rumour that they are planning more shows, I hope so, life would much the less rich without them. So well done 'Hippy' Paul, Mick, Kermit, 'Arms' Paul and Neil - come back soon!!!!

Spametry

I'm off to play another last minute gig tonight after an invite from my friend Wayne. If anyone is at a loose end, do come down and support us at: HOBGOBLIN (Formerly 'The Jay Cubed') (club & bar), 73 White Lion St, Islington, N1 9PF (Nearest tube Angel) - music kicks off around 8pm.

Tonight is special as I'm planning to perform the world premier of a new poem I've 'written'. Now I don't do a lot of poetry reading, in fact none at all, but this poem is mercifully short and it's origins are very interesting. I was scanning my Junk Mail folder a few weeks ago, checking in case anything had been wrongly filed, and I realised that the headings of the 5 spam mails in there read as a rather beautiful, poignant and, some might even say, profound poem. It has almost Haiku like elegance and a real punch in the pay-off. I've reproduced it below (note I haven't changed the order of the lines), as I'm sure it will whet the appetites of all for my performance tonight.

For those that can't make it, I'll give a full account later (assuming anything interesting happens).

Have fun!

Daren

Don't Wait Any Longer
(D. Callow et al)

Don’t wait any longer,
Have you got a sec?
Looking for a friend?
Timing, important.
Do you want to enlarge your penis?

Humbug!!

As a person who has long suffered from a birthday in the same month as Christmas, although fortunately at the start of the month. I was utterly floored when I noticed that Pizza Express have already launched their Christmas Menu!!!!! It's only September for f**ks sake! I call upon all right thinking people to immediately boycott Pizza Express until they show a bit more respect for tradition lovers, and those with a sense of perspective everywhere. Let's start a No Christmas 'til December campaign or at the very least until after fireworks night. Mid-September indeed... I ask you!!

Five Days, Three Gigs

It's been a busy few days music-wise. Kicking off with a floorspot on Sunday at The Horn in St. Albans. I must confess I certainly wasn't "feeling it" that day, perhaps Dr. Evil had gone back in time and stolen my Mowww-Jowww... or perhaps I was just in a bad mood. I played okay (I think), but the evening was kinda subdued, and to cap it all the train home was 45 minutes late... harumph!



The Castle

Moving swiftly on. Wednesday brought a debut performance at The Castle in Portobello Road. I was amongst friends as the outlaw Robert James and the wonderfully witty Wayne Myers were hosting and performing respectively. The Castle is a lovely pub with a friendly atmosphere. It has plenty of people to play to (as opposed to some open mic nights, where you are only playing to other performers!) but the downside is the high volume of background noise (ie chat), but I don't mind that. I feel it's my job to entertain and get the attention of the audience, and if that fails, at least enjoy yourself and that might rub off on a few people.

Robert James opened and in a worrying omen managed to break a string. I was next on, so after a slight haitus I kicked off. I played I Need Your Love, Minneapolis, Tomorrow, Vulnerable, Lullabies and Do You Want To Dance? And it went down pretty good. I was encouraged by people watching and nodding their heads in time, and I grew in confidence as the set went on. Set done I relaxed at the bar, well for a moment or two anyway. The string breaking maladies continued as Wayne broke one of his. As my guitar was tuned and ready to go, I quickly loaned it to him and he was able to finish off in good form. He's a very good player and it was great to get a chance to hear my guitar from the punter's point of view. I was pleased to hear it sounded great!

Wayne, Frog Morris and myself then had a suitably jolly remainder of the evening, when much alcohol was consumed and we enjoyed all the other acts. Robert James (guitar re-strung) was a rousing finish to the night. I shall be back, and I thoroughly recommend the Wednesday nights there. Great fun and great entertainment. Thanks for coming Frog!

Edwards

Somehow in all the frivolity I managed to sign myself up for a return visit to Edwards! Rob was the host again and a mixture of pre-booked and floorspot acts performed. The standard, I have to say, was very high and all the turns played well. In fact as my spot approached and then was put back I was nervous about playing, and considered sneaking out. In the end I managed to stay sober and performed with gusto. It's a truism that a good performer will encourage the others on the bill and it certainly seemed true that everyone was trying very hard and, for the most part, succeeding. During my performance a chap sitting to my left added some percussion which sounded great. It made Vulnerable slightly challenging as I tend to vary the speed quite a bit, although it works very well with a fixed beat too, I think it was one of my best performances of this song. In fact it was quite a night for percussionists as the worlds saddest percussionist in a red top accompanied a couple of other acts. It's a highlight of Rob's performances that he passes out percussion instruments and encourages the audience and performers to join in. This tends to make for a rousing night, even if occasionally the song finishes only for the percussionist to continue on oblivious to everything!

It was hard work doing two gigs in two days and I came off sweating, but very happy. My guitar's work wasn't finished though, as one act had come without a guitar (who does that!!) so I loaned mine out again. The evening climaxed with more stomping, slapping, strumming and howling (and in Wayne's case self-harm as he preceeded to bash himself all over with a shell covered shaker). You really must check out Robert James some time if you are able, as he's a real performer who can make two hours worth of other (good to very good) acts seem entirely pedestrian. I'm looking forward to the next one already!

Dxxx

P.S. There were way too many other excellent acts to mention here, but if I was to pick one other out then do check out Mike Davies an excellent blues guitarist/singer. He only got one song, but he made the most of it.

P.P.S. The photos are Robert James at The Castle (top) and Wayne Myers at The Castle (playing my guitar, bottom)

Rock 'n' Pop

Couple of chances to see me strum my stuff this week. Tonight I'm off to The Horn in St. Albans, where the music quality is varied, but usually high, and the loos have to be seen to believed! Check the picture.

On Wednesday I venture to a new venue, The Castle, in Notting Hill. (225 Portobello Road, Notting Hill, W11, Nearest tube Ladbroke Grove) I'll be on about 9pm and will be playing for 20 minutes!!

More gigs coming. Plus I've recently jammed with a new bass player who was excellent. Trying to talk my brother into drumming for us on Monday, or at least helping us find a suitable tub-thumper... very excited by this, as it will be a song-led three piece with a lot of improvisation, effects and real impact. I've been dreaming of having a band like this for a long time and it's a good feeling to know I'm close now. BTW, if you are a drummer who likes the sound of a three-piece with some adventure and experimentation thrown in (something between The Police and Medeski, Scofield, Martin & Wood) then get in touch!!

See you at a gig very soon,

Dxxx

The Police

Where am I? Queensbury in Harrow in a church hall. What am I doing? I'm playing live in front of an audience on electric guitar for the first time ever. It's 1986 and the song my brother and I are playing (badly, I've no doubt) is Wrapped Around Your Finger by The Police. I'm playing a white Stratocaster copy through a Carlsbro amp... I really wanted a Telecaster. I fell in love with The Police when they released Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, and slowly worked my way through the back catalogue. Synchronicity became my soundtrack. By 1986, mind you, The Police were nearly over. They released a remix of Don't Stand So Close to me and then split up. My first gig was a Sting gig, I wished it was The Police.

Where am I? Soho, London. What am I doing? I'm at a gallery looking at pictures taken by Andy Summers in the mid-eighties. I'm not alone, the other guy in the room is another 30-something. I feel rumbled. It's September 7th 2007. I have the Telecaster now. I can play Roxanne and Message In A Bottle. I can even play Every Breath You Take, but it's harder. I've been playing in bands for 21 years... still one thing I haven't done yet... see they guys that started it all play live.

Where am I? Twickenham Stadium. What am I doing? Well you can probably guess. It's September 8th 2007, my friends and brother are all here (somewhere) alongside 55,000 other people. On a stage, somewhere down there, a small figure walks onto a darkened stage and starts to play a gong. It's Stewart Copeland and he's closely followed onstage by Andy Summers and Sting... something I've waited 24 (ish) years for is really happening. I can't actually believe it. The crowd roar as Summers starts to play Message in a Bottle. I panic, I can't hear anything! But the crowd noise abates and I get treated to 2 hours of pop perfection. I cry. Someone buys me a drink. I start to sing along with everything. I'm pleased I know the words to some of the less well known songs. Andy Summers plays some huge guitar solos... why the fuck not. I don't care, I love it. I cry more. Somehow we get home. I don't really remember.

Where am I? The Horn in St. Albans. What am I doing? I'm on stage playing Do You Want To Dance? I improvise some lyrics from Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic. It's Sept 9th. I got to do the one thing that I really wanted to do and never thought would happen. I've been through the gamut of emotions and come out singing. I don't cry. I smile and have fun. Life carries on.

Dxxx

I Went To Documenta and All I Got Was This Lousy Mug

Actually I think it's a lovely mug and it's from the 4th Skulptur Projekte in Muenster and not from Documenta at all. But I did go to both last week and had a quite varied time. Documenta is an important (so they say) art exhibition and event which is held every five years in Kassel, Germany. Kassel itself is a very workman-like town in the heart of Germany with very few buildings older than the 50's. I wondered at first if it was a new town, but it turns out in fact that we bombed it flat during the war. Poignant then that the Documenta event is a very political exhibition and, this year at least, quite dark in nature. It didn't help either that the weather was lousy when we were there. After the fun of Berlin and the Kunst-Werke exhibition of Joe Coleman it came as quite a culture shock. We stayed in a business hotel just out of town and got the bus in each day to see the art. We shuffled around all the major galleries and tried to find somewhere to have fun in Kassel, but we failed. I also discovered the the brothers Grimm used to live there, grim was the word alright! So we left as early as we could and went to Muenster.

The Skulptur Projecte in Muenster only happens every ten years, and this is the fourth occurrence, so it's quite a privilege to be there. In contrast to Documenta the only politics seems to be about the interaction between art and public spaces and it's a much more light-hearted affair. I didn't get to see the Bruce Nauman inverted pyramid - Square Depression and the Guillaume Bijl buried church, but we did see some good stuff. Our favourites were the Mike Kelley petting zoo, complete with cow, goats and donkeys!! We also liked a sculpture made from crushed plastic animals, the sort that towns use to promote events. Ironically the hotel we stayed in actually had one of the painted cows in it's lobby!

Muenster is a much more fun place to go out and we managed to find a Mexican bar that served us about 6 cocktails with extra shots along the way and only charged us €28 !! We also found a fun Italian restaurant where everyone in the party gets their own charge card, no arguments about splitting the bill there then!! Now that's my kind of town!

Dxxx

P.S. The Shrinking Violets are reforming, and I'm supporting them at their gig on the 29th Sept at the Trinity in Harrow. Should be a riot!!

P.P.S. The Pet Shop Boys look set to announce more dates in October... hoorah!! I'm not unemployed yet!

Fit and the Conniptions

Well, I've just spent about the last three hours looking at the cartoons of I guy I barely know from about 15 years ago... he once roped in my brother to do drums for him, and I was probably very upset as I was dead jealous of anyone who stole my band members. But he's a totally cool guy (in an entirely un-cool way, if you know what I mean) and a sensational cartoonist. Think Dilbert for music lovers and you've just about got it. The fact that we are both still survivors in the "music world" despite various ups and downs is both a source of encouragement and a damning kick in the teeth, but that's what Wayne seems to be all about. So there you go. Do: a) check out his cartoon series, by clicking "First" in the link that's coming up and going through it day by day, b) go to one of his gigs, 'cos you'll be in the cartoon one way or another, and c) support your local musicians, we are like the High Street, about to be taken over by Tesco or summit.

Worthy posts on Documenta, Skulptur Projeckte and The Police to follow... keeep up if you can! Ha.

Here is Wayne's cartoon about our gig the other night: http://www.conniptions.org/?20070827

Dxx

P.S. Happy birthday to my brother on 3rd Sept just gone... the day war broke out, don't chya'know!

Sunday Night At The Alamo... er I mean Edwards

Well, you missed a treat. It was probably one of the most bizarre and yet strangely entertaining nights I've ever been involved in. First of all, many thanks to Alex, Andy, Kris, Haydn and Carole who made it out through carnival traffic, the maddest disco you've ever been to and, no doubt, some angry redskins to come along and support me.

I must admit I had a nervous feeling about the gig when I arrived to find no one there (load-in is supposed to be 5.30pm, I got there at 6.15). In fact no one appeared until 7pm ish, when I was starting to think I was in the wrong place. The arrivee was the outlaw Robbie James: sound engineer, money collector and, as it turned out, performer. He proceeded to throw chairs and sofas around as if we were barricading up the Alamo in anticipation of the arrival of the cavalry.

Needless to say soundcheck was delayed somewhat, but the other turns started to arrive and I introduced myself. I got chatting to a jovial fellow by the name of Wayne Myers... Don't I know you from somewhere? he asked. We went through a number of acoustic venues we'd been to recently with no matches. Perhaps you saw me in a band? No idea, so we left it...

[Funny aside 1: I guy wanders into the soundcheck looks around and then takes out his mobile phone. He dials. The guy sitting on the sofa just in front of him's phone rings. He takes it out. Hello? Hello? I thought you were playing at Edwards tonight. I am, wait I can't hear you. I can't hear you either... first guy heads to the door. I start to point... eventually he realises he's phoning a guy 3 feet away from him!!]

Soundcheck was completed somewhat hap-hazardly... with much PA popping and microphone placement. The punters began to come in and we looked at each other wondering what order or how long we were playing for... no problem, the outlaw had it all in hand... reverse soundcheck order, two songs each... then the whole thing again, three songs each. Here we go then.

First up is a chap by the name of Red Cesare I believe, who sang some of the most manic and amusing songs I've heard in a while... couldn't catch many of the lyrics due to the PA being a bit hit and miss, but it was fun anyway. Wayne was next up. Again very entertaining, my brother watches interestedly. Then turns to me and says, What was the name of that guy who used to record at 2nd Sense? No idea, I say. But bells are starting to ring. At the end of his set the sound engineer/outlaw is nowhere to be seen. What to do? Play another song? Yeah, why not... so he does.

Next up is me!! Sound engineer re-appeared, I negotiate my way through microphone cables and sofa cushions onto the make-shift stage. I play I Need Your Love and Minneapolis, Hungover, Tired, Awake. It goes well, I think...

After me is something else altogether. A young 19 year old lad called Chris Turpin (see Pic), wearing a BRMC t-shirt, who proceeds to play and sing like an 80 year old american blues player!! It's the most extraordinary thing. The voice appears to be coming from someone else, we all sit and stare in amazement.

Finally it's the turn of Jimmy Chan, a kind of urban protest singer, a bit like an acoustic version of The Streets. Wow, what a mix... and then we do it all over again.

In my second set I play, All I Want Is You, Vulnerable and Do You Want To Dance?, which seems to go down particularly well.

[Funny aside 2: In Wayne's second apperance he is accompanied by a flautist. I assume it's a band member, but it turns out Wayne met him 5 minutes before they played together! So what did you do, just name the key? I ask. Yep, he says. He was pretty good in A, but a bit dodgy in Bb!]

After Wayne plays his second set I sidle up. Did you ever record in Harrow? Yes. At 2nd Sense? Yes. Then you do know me, and more to the point you know my brother (I point) who played drums for you. Jaws drop, Haydn and Wayne haven't seen each other for about 20 years!! Told you it was a bizarre night.

To cap it all Robbie James plays a set of pure Americana blues... told you he was a genuine outlaw! And we swap MySpace details and CDs and wander off into the night slightly reeling from it all... I keep glancing over my shoulder feeling like an extra from Il Mariachi, is the Mexican army following me? Where the heck is my horse!?

Dxx

P.S. Kris photographed the whole evening, here are his pics of me and Chris Turpin.

Wish Me Luck

I've entered a competition in Guitarist magazine, it's good to do these things as it's another outlet for the music and a great motivator to get things done. With the latter in mind it was cool that they needed two tracks to listen to, and this spurred me on to record Home / Lightkeeper (see post) and a new version of Vulnerable.

Please do check them out, and let me know what you think:

Home / Lightkeeper

Vulnerable

The prize is really cool, a chance to gig as support to two more established acoustic artists and a Yamaha guitar!! I find out on the 24th if I've made it to the last six.

Another reason to wish me luck is I have a gig on Sunday (at Edwards in Hammersmith). I haven't done a proper set for a while, so I'm gonna have to practice hard. If you happen to like the tunes, then do consider coming along. Details are here.

Dxx

Are We There Yet?

I hinted in a much earlier Blog that I've been waiting for something for half a lifetime... which in my case is a scary 19 years!! Not long to go now and I'm feeling the excitment grow. Honestly, I haven't felt like this since I was a kid, it's nice when something comes along to make you feel that way. Can't wait!!

Goodbye Old Friend

I've had a companion (well actually, in best Only Fools And Horses tradition I've actually had three of them... the first gave up the ghost after I dropped it in some girl's loo [a whole other story], and the second was stolen or went awol in a Clapham bar) on my travels and adventures over the last two years, that I'm finally saying goodbye to. It's been more than just a companion though, it's been my phone, my mp3 player and, most importantly, my camera. All the pictures (baring one or two) in this Blog were taken by me using my wonderful Sony Ericsson W800.

I have a brand new W880i now, but it can never be quite the same. The very best thing about the W800 was that you just had to turn it on it's side, open the proper camera-style shutter, and press the camera-style big silver button to take a pic. Okay, it wasn't overly compatible with my Mac, but I did manage to get Calender and Address Book info on there (easily), and copy MP3s from iTunes (rather frustratingly hard). The facility to download pictures often failed and recently it took to switching itself off at every opportunity, including mid-phonecall.

But all the same I'll miss it. Take a flick back through earlier posts to see some of the places we've been and the pictures we took.

Dxx

P.S. I've decided to recycle my phone in aid of charity, if you have phones lying around I suggest you do the same.

And So To The End... for now.

Could this be it? Could this be the last time I sell T-Shirts for the Pet Shop Boys? No idea, in theory the last date should be in Barcelona, but that’s not until October so anything could happen before then. I’m in Lokerse in Belgium. The Magic Numbers are playing the light is fading and insects are starting to buzz about. It’s a slow selling day today, these festivals rarely involve much selling, but there are usually a few interesting sights to distract me. Today the Coca-cola girls have all been dressed as nurses, complete with stockings and suspenders, yummy. There are worse views.

The show finishes at about 1am tomorrow morning, it will take an hour and a half to pack my stuff up and then we drive for an hour back to Brussels. Later we will take the Eurostar home and the adventure ends for now. On Tuesday I fly to Ibiza for a few days rest and then the song-writing and playing will begin in earnest.

Here We Go...

Here we go then - the next to last trip with the Pet Shop Boys. Today it’s Malaga in Spain. It’s been a fun day so far, we arrived last night and checked in late, early lobby call, but no sign of the bus. Eventually we overhear the Tour Manager on the phone to the local promoters, “Well I don’t see how you could mistake 8am for 8pm!”. The bus that was due to pick us up at 8.30 in the morning isn’t going to arrive ‘til 20:30… whoops! Mistake rectified they eventually turn up, only for the drivers to not know where they were going. The first bus dumps the crew in the middle of the car park, the second gets lost. In the end our Production Manager spots the gig and manages to direct them there, luckily he speaks Spanish.

At the venue the problems continue, there is no power in the dressing rooms or to the back-line on stage. Much head scratching and shrugging follows, some thing is unplugged and replugged, time passes. Half an hour later the power returns. Time to try and find out where I’m selling from. Only the man I need isn’t here yet, so I wait.

When he does arrive it’s something of an anti-climax, the selling spot is a piece of bare concrete with two crowd barriers. No table, no power, no light, no change. Can I have a table? No. Eventually I negotiate a stage riser… and I pick up another barrier and carry it over. We’re getting there now, just the power and light to fix. I’m having trepidations given the power debacle earlier. No worries, I’m told, you can get power from the bar. Although the bar has no power. Well no real rush, seven hours ‘til doors.

With about 3 hours ‘til doors, I’m still powerless. But I have my trusty light (see earlier Blog), well I did have it. Right up until I dropped it on the floor and broke the bulb. Now my heart is really sinking, how to fix this one in time? My pleas for help are mostly met with shrugs and blank looks, no one has a bulb (not surprising) and no one seems to know what to do (not too surprising either). Eventually I ask a guy who I know speaks good English, and… he can’t help either. Still at least he could point me to someone who could. I ask again and this time (I think ‘cos he was getting fed up with me) he finds someone who can help and explains in Spanish. Result! This guy talks to two other guys and they set off to buy new bulbs.

Just the power and change to go then. They are setting up a generator at the bar, so that’s looking good. I collar another English speaker at the bar and ask about plugging in, no problem, but I have to wait for an electrician as there are no spare sockets. Okay fine, how about some change. Hmmmm, perhaps when they fill the tills. Perhaps never (as it turns out, never, even though he promises to send someone over).

In due course the electricians arrive and I look plaintive with broken light and plug in hand. My saviour turns out to be a very handsome young Spaniard called Pedro. Even though he speaks no English, he plugs me in, puts one of the two new bulbs in and then proceeds to fix it at a good angle high up the wall. He’s a bit of a perfectionist too, much tweaking later he is happy and so am I.

By this time it’s about an hour ‘til doors, but I’m set fair to go. Of course the Pet Shop Boys are not on until 00:30 (which of course means 00:45 as they are scrupulous about being 15 minutes late for every show), so I have to work through the two support acts. In this case they are a rock band, at least one of which thinks he’s in Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (he even broke into the riff from Whatever Happened To My Rock’n’Roll in the soundcheck to prove the point). The rest of the band aren’t too sure though and it turns out to be slightly better than average pop rock.

[Okay, slight break here as a guy dressed as a seven foot soft drinks bottle has just walked past!]

The next support band are a female singer (blond, leggy, big… you know) and her four semi-naked and buffed backing dancers (male, in case you haven’t guessed) doing disco classics. Gay icons? I wonder. Well at least they played some stuff I knew, ahem.

Well we’re pretty much up to date now. The Boys are on stage now in the middle of Heartbeat, about 3/4s of an hour to go and then it’s the mass exodus. After this I pack up and load the truck, which drives overnight to Belgium! We fly tomorrow, so I at least get a few hours in bed, I feel like I deserve it!

Dxxx
(in Malaga, Spain)

P.S. Back at the hotel now, it’s 04:10 and I really am (almost) ready for bed. Well I will be when I finish this vodka, and perhaps a beer, and turn the computer off… lobby call is 10:45, so time for some rest. Good night!

Iraq 1-0 Saudi Arabia

Well done to a genuinely cross-community Iraqi football team. A show of how sport conquers aggression and war every day of the week. I hope it has some influence on the hearts of genuine Iraqis, however small a thing it is. And people sometimes wonder why I love football.

Views From The Stall

I've had a few interesting or slightly surreal views from my selling pitches recently. There was the decrepid Italian villa just outside Milan, the glistening wet roads and hotels of Montreux, the plastic Biomes of Eden and this surreal view: the winner's enclosure at Newmarket racecourse. Yup, the Pet Shop Boys were sharing the bill with seven races and my selling spot (in a wooden pagoda) had a cracking view of the horses after they finished the race and made their way to the winners enclosure.

Live in Hammersmith

Hi friends, some very advance notice here, but I'll be doing two sets (one in each half) at this venue (see below).

I need to get 10 people through the door to guarantee a re-booking, so please invite any music loving friends.

I'll confirm stage times a bit nearer the date, but please write in your diary!

See you there,

Dx


DATE: 26TH AUGUST 2007

VENUE: EDWARDS, HAMMERSMITH BROADWAY, W6.

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR A MAP

Live

Wow, just spent an hour practising. Old songs, very old songs, new songs. Songs I don't even know yet. Very intense feelings in some of those songs. Cries of anguish and betrayal mixed in with songs about happiness, love and the freedom of life. Bipolar, moi?

Some are quite hard to sing as they are very emotional, some are fun and funky and make me wish I had a band to do them justice. It's quite a hard thing to try and play original music for an hour with just voice and acoustic guitar and make it fun and interesting. I started to tire after about half and hour, I didn't realise how much energy it takes out of you. Mental and physical.

It's weird how many of my songs are about death. Well actually it's not weird at all, considering how my life has played out over the last few years. You'd think I would be sick of life, scared of relationships, scared of friendship... for fear of losing more. But I don't feel that way, if anything I feel more and more glad to be alive and to have some great people in my life right now.

My most recent song is about travel, adventure, war, love and dreams... so perhaps I am moving on creatively too.

Anyway, I have also started actively looking to book up some gigs as my current tour of duty is starting to fade out. It's time to fade up the music.

Dxxxx

I Am The Light-Keeper

You write an email and you get an email back. Someone's dream, thoughts, lyrics, ideas, images. It rings a bell and strikes a chord. So you keep it tucked away. Then you dig it out and re-shape it into a verse, chorus idea. But nothing more, no tune, no notes, no melody.

Time passes...

Capo, third fret, Em shape... slow change to A, then quicker G to A... repeat G to A... hmmm.

I think I have a lyric that might work with this... yup, it does, so you have the seeds of a new song and something a bit different:


I hope that you got home okay,
I had a coffee in Stockholm,
There are riots in Estonia,
Somewhere we are still at war.

I have a fantasy to share with you,
But it’s cold and it’s wet
And I’m in a truck counting boxes
But I can still read your text

I had a dream,
I was the light-keeper
The keeper of the light
I was the light-keeper

I had a dream that you were there,
All the people had no faces,
You were blinded by the light,
And could only feel.

You found me by my energy
The days are long without you
Funny how, when you find it
You can’t live without it.

I had a dream,
I was the light-keeper
The keeper of the light
I was the light-keeper

I hope that you got home okay,
I had a coffee in Stockholm,
There are riots in Estonia,
We are still at war.

(Callow/Staiger)



Thank you, thank you, thank you Alex! Your words and ideas are giving my music and my life something special I never expected.

Dxxx
(in Madrid, Spain)

We All Live In A Big Yellow...

Another hectic few days. Late flight to Sweden (Gothenburg) on Friday night, then out of the airport, turn left... big yellow bus, you can't miss it! Overnight drive to Hultsfred, arrive early on Saturday morning. Pull myself out of big yellow bus at about 9.30 am... load in for the Hultsfred Doom Metal and Euro Pop festival!!

Count my boxes out, talk to 'the man' and arrange to count in the swag. All done by Midday... nothing to do until 2am on Sunday morning! So wander to catering, wander around site. Lunchtime, don't have a meal ticket but it doesn't matter. We are in the performer's catering. The choice is beefburger, cheeseburger, veggie burger, meat skewers, chicken skewers or Swedish plate. Hmmm. I opt for the cheeseburger, it arrives un-cooked with cold chips and no visible cheese. Ah well, fills a hole and all that. Wander around a bit more. Take a nap.

Dinner time. Same menu as lunch, I opt for the chicken skewers, which are mostly skewer and not much chicken. At least the 4 chips I have this time are hot. They run out of chocolate muffins just as I go to get mine. Ginger cake instead, it's okay.

Manic Street Preachers are playing, so I go and check them out. They are pretty good actually and I've always wanted to see them. Nina from The Cardigans joins them for one song. The new stuff sounds good. Head back to bus for another nap.

Rudely awoken by the act before us. The venue is on an old sea bed (apparantly) and the whole bus rocks when people start jumping up and down. It's 11pm. Our turn is on at 1am!? I help out on stage, cable-tying the video screen. Taping arrows on the floor. Tidying things.

Finally it's 1am and the band go on, it's pouring with rain now. I help out with the head-trucks in You Where Always On My Mind and then go and do my real job. Count the t-shirts, take the money. Get a lift back to the truck to avoid getting soaked. Help finish loading the truck. All done by 3am as the sun is coming up. Back in the big yellow bus. Overnight drive to Gothenburg airport. Shower at 11am. Check in at 12.30pm. Eat, check email, doze. Flight leaves at 6pm local time, and arrives at Heathrow at the same time.

Heathrow Express, tube, train, walk, home. Wot no big yellow bus?!


P.S. Just before I left something arrived by post that I've been waiting for for about 27 years or so... any ideas?

One Gig Too Far

Armani, Armani,
Underpants, Underpants,
Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam.

Buses, Cars,
Oooh mind your carbon footprint.

What's going on now?!

Don't ask!

Dxxx
(Back in the UK, for a bit)

No Chance of a T-Shirt Fire

Swindon, UK. I'm selling T-Shirts in a leisure complex, there are boys and girls with shorts and singlets on everywhere. To get to catering you go past the Squash courts. There are the sounds of dance classes emerging from behind doors. There are forms and posters everywhere... your safety is our concern!

I'm selling from the reception area for the swimming pool. One of the managers askes me if I want a fire extinguisher. Is there a danger of a T-Shirt fire? Perhaps I'll just throw them in the pool... or run. People keep coming up and asking if the pool is open, or where the changing rooms are.

A lady trips up going to the loo, there are staff everywhere... first aid, management, there's a form to fill in. In the office they have charts to show all the accidents that have occurred. No T-Shirt related incidents to report, phew!

Off to Ireland today and a very easy gig merchandising-wise. It's just up the road from the Sound Mixer's house, so we're off for a barbeque. Then it's back to the UK for a week or so, and time to re-adjust to real-life 1.0

The Home Gig

Good to see you all at Hammersmith last night. Hope you all got home okay, let me know what you made of it, gold cowboys and all.

Dxx

Tempting

In our bus there is a big red button. This big red button is temptingly labelled in true Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy fashion DO NOT TOUCH! Surely the only reason for big red buttons to exist is to be pressed.

Today I am by the sea in Skive, Denmark at a festival. In true seaside fashion I will be selling my t-shirts from what appears to be a big red beach hut. Complete with sand on the floor. Back in the UK tomorrow and looking forward to seeing friends on Wednesday.

Dxxx

A Postcard From Brighton

Here I am back by the sea. Weather sunny but windy. Filled with memories of childhood holidays, and gigs by the coast. Day off today and then a gig in town tomorrow. Then we fly to Copenhagen from Stanstead.

Having fun with Garage Band at the moment. Wish you were all here.

Dxxxx

Hamburg... again.

The last time I was in Hamburg was in '88... this time I stayed in room 666 (no joke).

The silly picture is the whole crew in Hamburg before the show... who's idea was the moustaches? Actually it was Colin's (laying down at the front).

Now I'm in Stuttgart for a couple of days off. I'm finally getting my camera back too, so more pictures to view soon.

That's all for now.

Wolfsburg, Germany

They make VWs here. The VW factory looks like Battersea power station with all it's legs in a row. If it was a table it would fall over. By contrast Battersea power station looks reassuringly stable.

Of course most of the towns we are visiting were destroyed during the war and have been subsequently rebuilt in the 50s. They are a weird mix of modern and fake old, well laid out and spacious, but perhaps lacking in soul.

A Big Mac tastes the same everywhere in the world, Diet Coke definitely tastes different.

Why do you always crave fast food when you are hungover?

Why do beggars always seem to have dogs these days?

When the Berlin wall came down the Berliners gained lots of open space. They made some nice parks.

Q: What do you do when you need to take your computer to the lobby before doors open in fifteen minutes and an internationally famous popstar is using it?

I left my phone at home, more than anything I miss being able to take pictures. How very 21st century.

Industrial towns look bleak in the rain.

I miss my guitars.

There is something strangely attractive about a shop that sells everything for 1 Euro.

Why does my browser insist in translating sites into the local language of wherever I am?! Just because I am in Germany doesn't mean I can suddenly speak German. Als Entwurf Speichern anyone?

A: Wait patiently whilst growing increasingly anxious.

There are no wolves in Wolfsburg.

In The Back Of The Van

This is where I work. It's a nice enough environment, usually with lots of fresh air and natural light, although occasionally it's a bit cold and dark or very hot and I have to turn the lights on or wrap up warm or strip off. My desk is a flight case and intray is a cardboard box. Like many people I have a phone (mobile) and a computer (Mac... no power though, battery only).

It's safe enough, the only worries are getting dirty or spiking myself whilst counting badges. Oh it's a bit grubby too, and occasionally people push heavy boxes at you or you have to pick your way around speakers and ironwork that's not being used, but on the whole I like it. People visit from time to time, but usually only for a fag and a quick chat. Somedays no one comes by.

It's a kinda weird experience to visit many glamorous and interesting cities around the US and Europe and get to only see the inside of one truck and a few concert halls, but I wouldn't swap it for the world.

(Currently in Dusseldorf, Germany)

That's You In The Spotlight

I had a go at another job on the tour, follow-spot operator. Simply this involved controlling a spotlight from one of the galleries, you listen to instructions, wiggle one knob and push some others, whilst trying all the time to keep a famous person or singer trapped in the glare of your headlight (as it were).

It's a surreal experience sending down this shaft of light and picking out a figure on the stage. They appear unreal, two-dimensional (you see no shadow) and trapped in a perfect circle of light. Wherever they go the light follows them and picks them out. Sometime the light goes ahead, sometimes it lags a little, but it always finds them in the end. There is no escape.

Of course I longed to be on the other side, the one in the spotlight.

It reminded me of another, earlier leg of the tour where the local production provided the spotlights. They arrived beaten-up in olive drab, with a distinct military air about them. We joked that perhaps they had been used previously on a border check-point or prison camp. There the idea is to search for people not being where they are supposed to be, and once caught perhaps shoot or at the very least raise the alarm. A whole different scenario that springs into my mind now whenever I'm using the light. Again, there would be no escape.

In that scenario, I know which end of the light beam I would want to be on.

On a lighter note...

I stayed in a hotel in Vilnius, Lithuania and had to get up obscenely early this morning. I asked the receptionist to get me a cab and after 5 calls he managed to do it. Taxis are hard to get in Vilnius, he explained. The cab duly arrived and we turned right out of the hotel and then immediately left into the airport. I had to laugh, I could easily have walked there in 10 minutes!!

(currently in Copenhagen, Denmark)

Oslo... ...Tallin

So, Oslo, city of err... Norwegians? And art, beer, 7-11s and nowhere to buy wine! Then the bus and we're in Stockholm, even stranger place, some parts very pretty, some parts very industrial. Then the love boat, err I mean the ferry to Helsinki. So beer, breeze, fjords, forts, more beer, wine, more wine, even more wine, dinner, venison, chicken. Red wine, red fortified wine (getting a bit hazy now). Disco, wine, cocktails, funny ties... wake up in my cabin in my clothes... off the ferry, in the bus, wait. Another ferry, this time to Tallin... Diet Coke, sandwich, talking, swaying... Tallin, off the ferry... where's the bus? Err, wrong paper-work, can't enter the country!! Get our bags, on the band bus to the hotel. Nice room. Bath, sleep, free porn! Medieval restaurant (don't stand in groups of 5 on the street or the police will break you up)... local soup (salty, rustic, very nice), beef... very good. White wine, red wine. Molly Malone's Irish pub, pear cider. Football... Liverpool win on penalties... result!! Back to the room, blog, sleep... tomorrow I sell t-shirts to Estonians.

Ratticus Norvegicus

So I'm back on tour... away from friends and family, but doing a job that I love very much. Always an interesting mix of feelings. We're currently in Norway. Last night was Bergen where the people all have immaculate Newcastle accents (when speaking English) and a fair anglo-saxon vocabulary. I'd forgotten how much I hate drunk people, but I do love being part of a pop touring party. So, stand-by for more pictures, lyrics, music and observations. Enjoy the ride.

And She Spelt My Name Right

Someone obviously taken with one of my lyrics! Thanks for the plug Cutienix.

http://cutienix.multiply.com/journal/item/32

If you'd like to hear the song, you can find it here:

I Don't Miss You

Keeping it in the Family

I owe my mum lots of things, and it seems not least amongst these is what little musical talent I have (har, har). My brother and I were reminiscing last week about our childhood, and one overriding memory we have is of forming our own bands as small children and writing songs to perform for each other. In true Spinal Tap style, I can even remember a couple of the songs I wrote way back then and could attempt them for you now (I won't).

It would come as no surprise that as soon as we are able we started playing real instruments. Haydn had always wanted to play the drums, and after an initial experiment with a keyboard (not loud enough), I started playing the guitar (ah, that's better). I've never had a guitar lesson in my life, but almost immediately after acquiring my first one (a white Strat copy, it was pretty bad and was soon traded in for a Candy Apple Red Fender Telecaster) we performed at our local church, playing an original keyboard and drums composition and (somewhat obscurely) Wrapped Around Your Finger by The Police (my all time favourite band, Blog on their reunion to follow soon)!

After this we went on to form Air with a friend called Chris 'Kris'Holdsworth on synthesizers. This was in 1986 and we went on to play with two different bass players (stand up Steve Gent and Andy Philips) for 10 years. This included some fun support slots and even a play on Radio 1 by Steve Wright. Another 10 years later I'm still strumming and Haydn is still playing too, although his tastes have moved into the more muso Jazz world. Check out his new outfit here:

The Haydn Callow Trio

He's also a sight-reading teacher for Drum-Tech and you can see him speak here:

Haydn's Video Profile

So what does this have to do with my mum? Well for many years I have wondered why my brother and I seemed so interested in playing music, but no one else in our extensive collection of cousins and cousin's kids seemed to be following our lead... until now! And, of course, the person in question is on my mum's side of the family, so now we know where the genes came from!! So if you haven't already, please check out my cousin Murray's kid - Tim Pennels and his band Freedom of Expression. As an added bonus, I recorded and mixed all the tunes you can hear.

Freedom of Expression

The Modified Toy Orchestra

On a whim Alex and I went to see the Modified Toy Orchestra supporting Tunng at the Southbank Centre last night. I had no real idea what to expect, but was delighted to see a stage covered in toy robots, speak and spells and a panoply of garishly coloured toy instruments. Then there was the music itself! Invoking the spirit of Kraftwerk, Ultravox and early Depeche Mode, they were truly amazing. I've never heard such good music in a long while, and the video backdrops were excellent too.

Don't just take my word for it though, check them out:

http://www.myspace.com/toyorch

http://www.warmcircuit.com/web/

BTW, Tunng were a kind of trance-folk outfit... I should have been worried when all the guitarists were sitting down! Kinda fun to begin with, but after 3 songs sounding pretty much the same I started to doze off. Needless to say, we left.

Lullabies Finally Finished

I'm really excited to announce that I have actually finished the Lullabies EP and here it is:

Lullabies from the Wheels of the Bus EP

Please check it out and let me know what you think.

LGBT History Poetry Night

Had a thoroughly enjoyable (if slightly unusual) night last night. I was invited by my friend Steve Antoni to contribute a few songs to the LGBT History night at the Poetry Cafe. It's a wonderfully intimate venue, despite having all the ambiance of an AA meeting... the standard for poetry and reading was very high I thought and the evening gelled together well. I played Vulnerable and Tomorrow in the first half and spurred on by a glass or two of wine, added Minneapolis and I Need Your Love in the second. I was sandwiched (metaphorically speaking) between poems about Balls and Gay dating and prose about wistful Lesbian encounters... didn't seem too out of place though, so I suppose that says something in itself.

If anyone from the night stumbles across this Blog, you might like to know that all the songs I performed are available as free MP3 downloads from my homepage, just follow the links on the right hand side.

Sneaky Summertime Smash?

I know it's not Summer yet, but I think it's high time I revived my Summer anthem and had a go and creating a bit of an underground swell to get it in the charts (ha, ha). This song was originally conceived for the Christian O'Connell show on Xfm when he called for a new Summer Anthem. I never even got played, which is a cruel travesty of justice!! So, take a listen, take a download and pass it on to all your friends... let's beat the system!! Failling that I hope it at least gives you a warm glow if the days get cold again.

It's Summertime 2007

Features the excellent Haydn Callow on electronic drums and the majestic and modest Sean 'y boy' Watkins on bass.

77

Just to prove that I can never have less than two projects on the go, I have already started designing the cover for my next solo outing. To be called 77 this will be a collection of radically re-worked old songs (the ones that don't lend themselves to the acoustic treatment, or deserve more atmospheric mixes) and new works, probably about 10 tunes in all. I'll post lyrics and songs as they emerge here first!

Let me know what you think of the cover artwork.

Who's Dumb Now?

Something I thought I'd never see, is one of my CDs on eBay, but hey it actually happened:

Dumb CD on eBay

Correctly labelled as an independent "release" this was the second demo CD I recorded with the band Air (not the French outfit of the same name, note!) It's cool to see that someone still has a copy, although no one actually bid on it... not surprising really. If anyone would like a copy I have about 300 copies in the loft. Ha, ha.

Lullabies Cover

I just wanted to say a big Thank You to Alex Staiger, who designed the cover for my next album project for me. Thanks baby!

As a bonus to anyone who makes it to The Horn in St. Albans tonight, I'll be premiering Minneapolis. Hungover. Tired. Awake. Along with a second track tonight.

I'm Still Here

Well, it's a minor miracle, but I've actually finished all the recordings for I'm Still Here. There are ten tracks in all, and they are all one take, no overdubs, no edits and only a few effects. The songs are a combination of old and new tracks, but all recorded in a stripped down, guitar and voice combination. In the end I sacrificed absolute perfection to get a good performance of each track, and get them all finished. The tracks were all recorded via a Yamaha AW16G and mixed on an Apple Mac G4 running Cubase. To hear all the finished tracks (and the original demos, if you so desire) follow this link:

I'm Still Here

This finally frees me up to get on with producing the final songs for Lullabies. This work will start in the next week, so you should be able to check out new tracks soon. I've even decided what the next project will be, so stand by for more information on that.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

There have been untold diversions to stop me doing music over the festive period, but bizzarely I actually have completed a few things. Firstly I had great fun recording some tracks with young rock band Freedom of Expression. You can check out four tracks at their MySpace site:

Freedom of Expression

I have had fun too setting up my home studio, and I finally have an offering for you, a new recording of Tomorrow, which is the first completed track from I'm Still Here, you can check it out on my MySpace site or via the link to the I'm Still Here homepage:

Daren Callow

I'm Still Here

So it just remains to wish you all a Happy New Year, I may see some of you in Edinburgh with the Pet Shop Boys, but failing that I hope to catch up with you all in 2007. Here's to lots of new tracks and a musical New Year!

Daren
xx

Many thanks to Kris Gruber for the photo: Kris Gruber Photography

Hey Diddle Biddle

Another day, another fun gig. Many thanks first of all to Steve Antoni for inviting me to open for his band at the Biddle Bros bar in Hackney. It was a very laid back affair, with a good crowd (and a couple of dogs, who were determined to upstage us all at any opportunity). I picked a slightly stronger set than for the Pasty Co, and I warmed into it pretty quickly. It was good to get a great response even if there were a few people chatting away. It's hard when you only have a voice and guitar to overcome people chatting... my solution was to play quieter and make it more obvious that they were distracting people... they didn't mean any harm and they even complimented me at the end, so I was pretty chuffed. As far as the actual performance went it was going pretty well until I did the the two tunes from Lullabies, and for some reason the lyrics started to get to me and I started to choke up!! Just about held it together, but it's hard doing these songs that have such emotions for me... still think I got away with it. Ha, ha.

Steve followed with his band the Headonists, and they were excellent. The full band sound definitely suits Steve's songs... shame about the image of the band, but if you shut your eyes, it sounded great.

Pasty Anyone?

So after arriving to find that we were actually playing at 10 instead of 9 things went pretty well. My friend Sarah was there to do her song, which went from being first, to being after one song, to being in the middle.... I was getting confused. "Are the two verses the same length?" I enquired... yes... cool...

So we watched the first funky outfit playing, somewhere between Ben Folds Five and Counting Crows... but where exactly we weren't sure... then I tuned up and got on stage... Sarah appears to check the microphone height... "Let's just do it now" fair enough so we did... cue Sarah's debut performance of her song "Fall"... even managed to survive when it turned out that she fancied cutting the second verse in half and going straight to the chorus... it's not as though I asked or anything... ha, ha. Well done babe, you are a star in the making!!

After that my set went fine, messed up a bit in a couple of tunes, but covered over fairly well I think. Tomorrow was the star song as usual. During Lullabies the sweat started to run down my face and into my eyes, could barely see a thing.

Tim followed with his well crafted tunes, including a couple of Stars in Exile tracks (check out www.starsinexile.com and www.myspace.com/starsinexile ) and a cracking new song, which turned a few heads. Can't wait to get recording some stuff again. In a nice touch I joined him on stage to harmonise "Stone of Resolution"... thanks to Rich, Adge, Sarah, James and Em for coming along to support. Looking forward to doing it all again tonight!!

Dxx

Lullabies Live

So the virus turns out to be a sinus infection, ho hum. Anyway, I'm delighted to announce the first opportunities to hear songs from Lullabies live, I'll be playing on the 12th December at the West Cornwall Pasty co in the Kings Road. I'll be playing a full acoustic set from 9pm - 9.20pm, I'll be followed by Tim Felix of Stars in Exile and there will be another acoustic act from 10 - 11. If you are planning to come please be there by 8.45 or so, as it's a small venue and the best vantage points will go quickly. It will be a great chance to belatedly celebrate my birthday and look forward to Christmas and the New Year. Hope to see lots of you there!

Tuesday 12th December
20:45pm
West Cornwall Pasty Company, 138A King's Road, London, SW3 4XB
Map
Nearest Tube - Sloane Square
Free Entry

Plus, I am also now opening for Steve Antoni and the Headonists at Biddle Bros bar in Hackney on Wednesday 13th Dec...


Wednesday 13th December
20.45pm
Biddle Bros Bar, 88 Lower Clapton Road, London E5
Map
Free Entry

Dxx

When The Snow Fell On Denver

So I finally found a tune for these lyrics, and it turns out that it's one that I've had kicking around for a while. You may have come across it as Actions Speak Louder Than Words, a title I've always been uneasy about as it's plagerised from a Bruce Cockburn song. I always liked the tune though, and I'm really pleased to finally team it up with some strong lyrics. I don't know why, but these words seem to make me almost unbearably sad... still that's music for you.

When The Snow Fell On Denver
===================

When the snow fell on Denver,
I thought about home,
I thought about Christmas long, long ago,
Way up north,
And a lifetime ago.

When the snow fell on Denver,
I thought about love lost,
And friends departed,
And the women that I never married
A lifetime ago.

Last night I dreamt, that I married you,
You didn’t want to, but you saw it through.
So we pledged our lives, until the end.
And somehow we were content.

When the snow fell on Denver,
I felt the passing of time,
I felt the sting of my tears,
I felt empty and hollow.

Chorus

Inst Verse

If contentment is, all that you seek,
Then surely that is all you will find.
Hold me, kiss me and let me explore,
And if that is all that we have,
Somehow we'll need nothing more.

When the snow fell on Denver,
I thought about home,
I thought about Christmas long, long ago,
Way up north,
A lifetime ago.

(Callow - 2006)

A recorded demo of this song will follow as soon as my voice recovers and I figure out how to record in Cubase SL via a Motu 828 MkII that I've borrowed off my mate James.

Okay sussed it... so here you go, have a listen:

When The Snow Fell On Denver - MP3

Famous, but not in that way...

I've been struck down by some sort of virus, and it's curtailed my recording and mixing efforts. (It's hard to sing or play when it feels like someone is hammering on your head!!!) So instead I've had some time to think and put together a few web pages and the like. The first realisation I came to is that the pieces of music that I'm putting together don't form "albums" in the conventional way, as it's rare that they will actually end up on a CD with a printed cover and so forth, but rather they are projects or collections of songs. They have artwork, they have a (suggested) running order, they have lyrics and other information associated with them, but after that the similarities end, and it gets a lot more exciting.

My "album" artwork doesn't need to be CD friendly (although I will always supply something that works in iTunes and would print on a CD cover), I can include demo versions of songs as well as the finished articles. I can also update or change the order at any time that takes my fancy. If you download the songs or images, you can modify them or change the running order, or remix them or anything you like... it's exciting stuff. As technology allows, I will be able to include videos, interactive chat and even live broadcasts of the music.

It occured to me then that I need a home for the album or project, that is the centre for all this creativity. Fortunately the web is perfect for this, so here are the first two project homepages...

I'm Still Here

Lullabies From The Wheels Of The Bus

Please feel free to interact with these projects either via this Blog or email.

Also, I guess I need a name for this new kind of virtual album... any ideas? Webbum? Webdisc? iAlbum? eAlbum? Answers on a ePostcard please.

Who Me?

Another internet site that's caught my eye recently is YouTube (you can't miss it can you?!) and I was facsinated to discover that not only am I on it (sort of), but my guitar is also on it!! So without further ado, here is my Fender Telecaster being played and then used as a demonstration model by Rick Parfitt of Status Quo no less (it's the one with the Union Jack on at the start, he then produces it from behind the flight case for the demo):

My Guitar Being Facelifted

And me onstage with the Pet Shop Boys:

Heart Live

Okay, okay, you can't actually see me... but I am there. I'm behind the white cube on the right hand side holding on to it to prevent the scenery from moving around and running Neil and Chris over. Which all goes to prove that my guitar is a lot more famous than I am.

Sponge Bob In DVD Land

So a good weekend, dinner with good friends on Saturday, chilling out and watching movies on Sunday. Two very different but equally good movies, Team America (seriously considering a cover version of America - Fuck Yeah!), and Walk The Line, the story of Johnny Cash.

So time to start recording some more material. For those who haven't spotted it yet, there is a link two posts below to demo of Lullabies. So now I'm going to start on Minneapolis... got another couple of ideas to come... The 5am Wake-Up Crew (thanks again Alex!!) and All Girls Are Evil (ha, ha...), plus two instrumental pieces that will have some words over them.

So, best get on with it.

Ta, ta, for now.

Dxx

Minneapolis. Hungover. Tired. Awake.

Diet Coke with Cherry, New Edition

So, I sat down today and played through pretty much all of my songs I can remember, about 12 or so songs... actually there are more than that, but I can't play them... ha, ha. And another song started to form, so here is the new song:

Minneapolis, Hungover, Tired, Awake
=============================

I’m tired, so very tired,
Tired of waking up, not knowing where I am.
Is this the north? Is this the south,
the east or did we go west?

Is that girl making eyes at me?
Or am I just out of my tree,
It wouldn’t be the first time.
It wouldn't be the first time.


If the bus has to break too hard,
We’ll all be two inches shorter,
Or crushed in a pile of metal
Somewhere on the road to Omaha.

Strawberries and cream,
And a champagne dream.
It wouldn't be the first time.
It wouldn't be the first time.

And I miss you so much,
And I wish you were here,
So I could touch you… or even hold you.
And we could get drunk all over again.

I was in a city today,
I don’t know which one or what time of day,
The men in white suits,
Are coming for me.

Is that girl making eyes at me?
Or am I barking up the wrong fucking tree.
It wouldn’t be the first time.
It wouldn't be the first time.

Chorus

It wouldn't be the first time,
It wouldn't be the first time.

(Callow - 2006)

Hear this song now:
http://www.darencallow.co.uk/audio/lullaby/minneapolis-01.mp3

It comes from that weird time in between waking and sleeping that I seemed to inhabit a lot of the time whilst I was away. The picture is from the tour bus, somewhere between Minneapolis and Omaha (as mentioned in the song). We (Keano, Monk, Seamus and Jimbo - Holger and yours truly, not pictured) were having a wail of a time listening to Bill Bailey on the CD player and drinking some very fine red wine donated to us by the Pet Shop Boys dressing room... somehow the bus never did crash, although we had two very near misses and two breakdowns. Life can be a balanced on a knife edge, it amazes me sometimes (or maybe all the time) how I'm still here to tell you all about it. Really looking forward to recording these songs and getting them out there... comments?!

BTW, this week I have been mostly watching silent films with improvised music and looking at Da Vinci's notebooks.

Dxx

P.S. Apart from the bus related stuff there are two Pet Shop Boys tour references in the song... 2 points to the first person who spots them both.

London, UK

So I'm finally back in rainy London, for a while anway. Finally had the chance to sit down with my guitar and start to form some ideas, and I've been thinking a lot about travel, and life and the endless journey. So a few chords came along (Am, G, C, F, Dm Bb) the usually sorts of suspects, but with a kinda different feel for me. And the words started to fit, so here is the first semi-complete song, and as luck would have it, it's probably the title track (thanks again Alex).

BTW, the picture is one of the last ones I took in L.A. - it's the Viper Room on Sunset Boulevard, with the Bel Age hotel in the background.

Lullabies From The Wheels of The Bus
===========================

Hush my baby,
Don't wake yourself yet,
The road is long,
And there is still time to forget.
Don't know when we're arriving,
Don't know how far's to go.
I'll keep you out of trouble,
We'll take it nice and slow.

I'm still wondering why,
Do the wheels keep on turning,
In this lullaby.

I'll listen to the voices,
As they guide me on,
Straight ahead now,
'til all thoughts are gone,
When it's time to stop,
The voices will say,
Arrived at destination,
As you slip away.

I'm still wondering why,
Do the wheels keep on turning,
In this lullaby.

If I can just keep on going,
Maybe this road will never end?
The reason for my travelling,
Always lies just around the bend.
But I have no star to guide me,
I'm lost without a plan,
But I'm still going, I'm driving on,
Catch me if you can.

(Callow/Staiger - 2006)

You can now hear how the melody goes (complete with dodgy vocals) here:

http://www.darencallow.co.uk/audio/lullaby/lullaby_rough.mp3

Bel Age Hotel, Los Angeles

So it's nearly all over... the american adventure. The day after tomorrow I will be back home in the UK... and it's all a bit scary. I've gotten kinda used to this strange nomadic lifestyle... my Day Sheet tells me where I am and what I'm supposed to be doing. My laminate pass gets me in and out of some amazing theatres and buildings. I pick up Diet Coke and doughnuts on a regular basis... all free. Food arrives at the appropriate time. I work in the back of a truck, as a kind of itinerant tinker... selling cloth to the americans. Counting shirts, counting money, counting shirts again. I'm kept awake at night by the rumble of bus tyres on concrete... the sway of the vehicle across the road. When I wake up I often don't know where I am.

It's only been 35 days but it feels like a lot longer... I've changed! Will my friends still know me? I've been through the looking glass, in Narnia, up the far-away tree... time to come back down. I have a beer belly (small) and muscles (a few). I have dirt under my fingernails and calluses on my feet. I've learned some useless new skils:

1) How to open a beer bottle with a cigarette lighter
2) How to tell what size shirt people wear by just looking at them
3) How to tell if a bundle of t-shirts has more or less than 12 in it by, again, just looking at it
4) How to operate a variety of coffee makers
5) How to use a toilet in a moving bus without falling over

So where does this leave me? Certainly a lot happier than I used to be... but I'm still kinda scared to come back to reality. So if I occasionally seem a little weird or distracted when I'm back forgive me... I'm just trying to find my feet again in the real world.

Dxx

p.s. Sent the world's funniest email to my friend Sarah last night before passing out... "...no idea why I mighty be emaily you... but in the ost amazing suite in LA looking over dome of the ost amaring plazce, and I wish you werehere... to tell me to stop being such a sentimatantal twat...ooops bit drunk... "

p.p.s Apologies to anyone who received a strange phonecall at about 10 in the morning last night, I accidently left my phone in another room, and I think some of my esteemed colleagues may have found it amusing to randomly dial a few numbers!

Bill Graham Civic Audatorium, San Francisco

So it's been a while since my last confession, er I mean blog... so what's been happening?

Well it went something like this...

Salt Lake City... party capitol of the world!! You have to pay to get into a bar (they are all private clubs) but once inside, the drinks are cheap and the people have a good time. Biro Tattoos, air hockey, hurt finger... ouch!! Pool... Nathan pots the black first shot!! Vodka and coke (lots)... something with cranberry in it... white Ford Mustang... back to the hotel. West Valley... t-shirts, lots, and lots of t-shirts... counting, boxes, climbing lots of stairs... Ice Hockey arena... meet couple of the people from SLC... more counting, money this time!! Aftershow! Drink beer, followed by Chardonnay... big mistake, very drunk, dunno how I got to bed... "woke up in my clothes again this morning, don't know exactly where I am..."

Oh, I'm in Boise! Walk up the road, find a McDonalds... very rude man behind the counter... still, not surprised, he works for McDonalds after all. Walk back to hotel via river, very scenic. Chill out in room, internet, bath, shave etc... play Space Invaders... back to bus at 10pm off we go again...

Seattle... it's raining... quelle surprise! Space needle, mono-rail (not carrying people)... phone call from London... much laughter... puddles, hispanic people who think they know me... man with broken leg and cardboard sign that reads: "My dad was killed by ninjas, need money for karate lessons" and then on the back it says: "Ok, ok, I need money for beer, pot and a hooker" - begging with humour, like the style. .. indoor market... buy a mug. Turkish Delight in neon... more t-shirt counting, laid back West Coast people... sell lots of t-shirts... back on the bus... all night party (I feel ill and go to bed, but can't sleep)... wake up in Oregon, bus is broken down (air pressure to brakes - yikes!!) Everyone else just starts drinking again, I buy doughnuts from the truck stop and drink Diet Coke. More driving... sunset over the SF Bay... Golden Gate bridge... very picturesque... stuck in SF traffic...

San Francisco... too tired to do much, drink beer, wine, eat crisps... watch TV, surf internet... walk around block... full of beggers and homeless... go straight back in hotel and go to bed. Bill Graham Audatorium (is that how you spell it?) more t-shirts (lots and lots of t-shirts) lunch, dinner, go for a short walk around the block. Backstage... decide I ought to write something in my Blog... oh here I am.

Hope you are all good!

Dxx

P.S. If you'd like to see pictures, email me.

Hilton, Salt Lake City, Utah

So yesterday I bought a ukulele... not in tune yet, but an interesting instrument nonetheless. I was at the Arizona State Fair in Phoenix, we got done so early that the band actually came off stage at the time they would normally go on. Somewhere in the night the other bus broke down, so I woke up to find us parked up at a garage with everyone on our bus, and that's how we continued on our way to Salt Lake City. Amazing journey running parallel to a range of mountains, scrubland and prairie all around. Made me think of when I was in Omaha and found a series of statues showing the pioneers travelling through the city, startling the bison who in turn startled the geese. The bison and geese actually go through the buildings at some point, very surreal... it's an attempt to show that not long ago all this was wilderness, until the europeans arrived and built a city. I can't imagine what must have driven them to pack up their whole lives into a wagon and head out into an area where nobody had been before.

So today is all about music rather than words... so not much to show you on a Blog!! Still, I'll try and get some music uploaded when there is something to hear. I'm in my hotel room working in Garage Band, which is a great program that I'm trying to get the hang of. I've got a few ideas flying around in my head, and I'm starting to shape them up, not easy without a guitar, but I'm determined to get somewhere.