Acoustic Night

Started nice and promptly, may even have been 8.15.

Andi cut straight to the chase with a very brief intro to Acoustic night 52 and David Johnston who told us tales of busty babes with firm buttocks and Danny’s dishwasher who couldn’t do it like a man.

Then Bernard the wizard of W.S.M produced the most un acoustic sounds ever seen at acoustic night with a set of peddles and a mega phone. Bring on the Daleks was one audience members cry. “You have lost your marbles” was Bernard’s. Welcome back any time to try and find them mate.

Rupert Hopkins, nearly died in a taxi accident in India last year and is looking great for it. His two pieces talked of new beginnings, the Indian rock carvings, landscapes, bird flight and much, much more.

Guy (sorry no second name) Was our first Acoustic night Virgin, he played a saw with a bow. The best I’ve ever seen, do come back.

GUY

Daniel Monson was in the loo,

Cue, James Bunting. Going for the North country, I think was the title of the song he played, any way, it was by Bob Dylan and James’ description of his love for the song showed belly up his own passion for music. He then played a sped up version of one of his own, on the grounds that it’s always good to mess with your own music as well as other peoples. He left stage saying, I’ve only got two Acoustic Nights left before I go travelling. Gone are the days of many moons.

Daniel Monson’s piece was called the Last Sacrament and was about speeding through the city views on the cycle path, the beauty, the panic and the simple risks of being.

Richard Lawson smiles and says “I worry (he shouldn’t) ’cos you write about people, here in the city and I write about trees.” “This is a world premier of Night Of The Land,” “In darkness we can find the light” Just the right weight of a lot of things, in this mans poems and performances, class. “Roots seeking the single jewel that gives life to a leaf,” was a gem of a line I picked up on in his second piece, Ode To An Oak Tree.

Mark Gartside is a studied and studying musician working hard at the craft of song. The Constancy Of Affection was his first piece, (it’s all in the title!) his second piece he introduced as a trans gender anthem called I Feel Like A Girl. On the obvious joke side, so do I, but on the keep it real side, well done mate this is what art is for, through open expression comes understanding and more.

MARK GARTSIDE
I had a quick go then, I Rock. (as always!!. Andi)

Karl carried us nicely into the break with a layered musical interpretation of Broke Back Mountains theme tune laced with a poem. Come out in faith, hope is a light in your spirit that is always there. (It’s all about how you hear things!) I was set off for my mid point hob-nobbing with genuine touches of hope.

After the break, queue the brilliant, as astute as they are understated life observations of our special guest

Mike Scott. His first number, says, “Don’t walk away with my hammer!” Well, it’s an easy mistake to make, until you understand the sentiment to be found in such objects. The empires built in our fathers hands, they held this hammer. How can you hammer out justice and freedom when nobody knows just what that hammer cost.

Then he played track 11 from the Acoustic Night CD, buy it, find out.

“Wealth gravitates upwards.”, “To find that winning touch you have to squander twice as much” and “I won a bookmark, now I’ll have to buy a book.” were lines I loved from his poignant digs at junk mailers who target the gullible & venerable. We enjoyed Ken Dodd along with a transport café full of bikers, learned that Men bugger off, “I modified the theory once, one came back, then buggered off again.” We enjoyed “a really stupid song” based around all things that fall under the initials MARMITE and finished with the autobiographical tale of “Pen Pole Secondary School” and the meeting of boys from the opposite sides of the hill. Mike has CD’s for sale also, his come with a guarantee, “If you don’t like it, bring it back and I’ll swap it for a CD I don’t like.” I reckon you’d be getting a good deal.

MIKE SCOTT
The Sparkplugs or Keith and Wendy were next, with added whale swimming up the Thames to a cockney’s bath!?! I must confess I missed a bit of this but got back in to catch the unmistakable bars of two tone class distinction.

David Bosankoe started with a poem, yes a poem, describing us as particles and waves and more and then,,, proceeded to make waves on his Jews harp in the way only he knows how. Less was more and so we wanted more and David was happy to oblige.

DAVID BOSANKOE
We have been testing an anarchists hour format recently at Acoustic Night, where, those who missed the list, can take the mic one after another until time or people run out. It works.

Show close was quality filled and entertaining,

Ian Sills started with a couple of football poems

Pete E & Andi did a duet giving thanks

PETE E
Then Pete’s all too familiar alter ego scared us all with our identity.Kimberley, sights ourselves as those we need to save “Words are like smoke there is no I in love”

KIMBERLEY

Theo, dropped one for a girlfriend he used to have and Rhys, may be stuck in the circuit but he’s still a resista’!

THEO

Thank you everyone, I had fun, again.

ACOUSTIC NIGHT STATS

AUDIENCE 40
PERFORMERS 19
VIRGINS 2