Education Expo
Following the customary build up day, when Mark Batchelor and I joined Neil Davies at the Business Design Centre in Angel, Islington, this year’s Music and Drama Education Expo was fully underway this morning.
Power Station
An impromptu day proved rewarding as I marked my birthday with a trip down the Thames in the company of my wife Julie, my son Ben and stepdaughter Lisa. The destination being Battersea Power Station with a view to seeing what had been constructed, following all its years lying empty since the legendary landmark was decommissioned in 1983.
Studio 2
A superb afternoon at Abbey Road courtesy of Revival, as producer James Reynolds steered the team in completing vocals, bass and piano for their next set of releases. On hand were star names Jools Holland and Emeli Sande, who joined us to add their world-renowned talents to the tracks, plus Mousse-T and choir leader Peyton and his host of excellent vocalists.
Final mix
Always a pleasure to visit Greg Fitzgerald in Canterbury and to work on tracks in his rurally based studio. Thanks to a quality contribution by session supremo John Thirkell on trumpet and flugelhorn horn, we polished a final mix of Promises at Midnight, which now features a heartening balance of horn flourishes and lead guitar courtesy of the excellent Ashley Blasse.
Lyric sheet
A productive morning with Steve at Prinststore in Kingston preparing a lyric sheet as an insert for the Waterloo Sunrise album. This gave the opportunity to include more of Jonathan Stewart’s superb photographs on the reverse, as we were able to fit all of the lyrics on one side (albeit at 7 point!)
Americana Awards
The UK Americana Awards returned to the Hackney Empire tonight and reminded us all of the huge value and reward of a supportive community and uplifting live music. The Awards ceremony is the culmination of a week in Hackney featuring an industry conference, which was attended by 300 delegates, plus two nights of showcase gigs with 80 artists across six venues.
Team drinks
A relaxing lunch with the MU Comms team today at The Woolpack in Bermondsey St. Great to catch up in real time with colleagues Isabelle Gutierrez, Maddy Radcliff, Autumn Sharkey and Katerina Baranova.
Conference launch
A cracking evening at Night Tales in Hackney, as the UK Americana Music Association kicked off their annual Conference with a superb series of performances by former winners of the Bob Harris Rising Artist Award, all backed by the Northern Cowboys supplemented by the excellent CJ Hillman on pedal steel and guitar.
Musicians’ Census
Help Musicians and the MU have launched a census to generate the first ever comprehensive picture of the UK’s music-making population.
Stacey Brothers
Mark Batchelor and I met up this afternoon at the Nellie Dean pub in Dean Street, Soho, ahead of attending a superb performance at Ronnie Scott’s by the Stacey Brothers’ Big Band Steel Dan Project: aka the Royal Scammers. The 14 piece band deliver an amazing collective sound and reflect the depth and nuance of their world-renowned inspiration.
Streaming update
The MU today welcomed the new Report by the Select Committee of the Department for Culture, Digital, Media and Sport (DCMS), recommending more of a focus on fair remuneration in the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) process examining music streaming.
Advertising
For over a decade I have had responsibility for print advertising at the MU, both the cost negotiation and the production of artwork. My thanks go to all my contacts in this side of the business for their support.
Oval House
On the 4th January 1999 I proudly entered the National Office of the Musicians’ Union in Clapham Road for the first time as a full-time employee of the largest organisation of musicians in the UK.
Album notes 1
What inspires a song lyric? And perhaps the melody too? Well, here are some thoughts on the tracks I have recorded with Greg for my new album: Trust, Quids in, She reminds me of you, Promises at midnight, Nashville, Tennessee, Girl on the train and the title track: Waterloo Sunrise (theme).
Whisky galore
A pleasant and informative afternoon in the company of marketing consultant Mark Batchelor as he brought over a single malt whisky tasting collection, which we proceeded to enjoy straight, with ice, water and ginger.
Promises at midnight
A lovely afternoon at Petham in Canterbury with producer Greg Fitzgerald and his partner Jenny. I was originally visiting to collect a pair of shoes that I had left during a video recording session! However, our attention quickly turned to one element of my forthcoming album.
BBC Corporate Affairs
I was kindly invited by Vanessa Elliott, the Head of BBC Corporate Affairs, to the Department’s first Christmas reception this evening at the ‘old’ Broadcasting House in Portland Place.
UK Music at Groucho’s
An excellent dinner for music industry comms representatives and journalists was held by UK Music at Groucho’s in Soho this afternoon.
Live Awards
An entertaining evening at The Brewery in The Barbican, courtesy of the inaugural Live Awards, which has been established to reward all those organisations, individuals, venues and festivals that give so much to the live music sector.
Richmond, Yorkshire
Julie, Ben and I travelled by train on Friday to north Yorkshire for a long weekend in Richmond and the surrounding countryside. The trip was centred on the wedding of Julie’s nephew Robbie and Ellis at the delightful setting of the Middleton Lodge estate.
The Musician (winter)
The winter 2022 edition of The Musician, the magazine of the Musicians’ Union, is being dispatched in print and digital format to members across the UK this week. This my seventy-first edition as editor and the contents include profile interviews with Sarah Bennett and the Brodsky Quartet, plus features on hearing, podcasts, AI and the Union’s EDI Conference.
Party at the 229
An excellent evening at the 229 Club in Great Portland Street, as the efforts to organise a Christmas Party for the Council of Music Makers – at very short notice – all paid off. The Council consists of five music organisations: the MU, the Featured Artists Coalition, The Ivors Academy, the Music Producers’ Guild and the Music Managers’ Forum.
Day and Night Owl
This afternoon I attended that classic start to the party season at 7 St James’s St, the PPL Christmas drinks. As ever, good to catch up with Peter Leathem, John Smith, David Cohen and their colleagues from the collecting society, plus to meet many familiar faces from across the industry.
PR coverage
Kindred PR has kindly supplied a report of the MU media coverage for the period September to November 2022. My thanks to Courtney, Hannah and Rebecca of the excellent team at Kindred for their valuable assistance.
Beckenham Labour
It has been a busy week, with planning for events during December and the New Year, plus working in PR and other comms for the MU. Tonight, my attention turned to local issues, as I joined the local Labour Party members for a social and fundraising evening with Jess Phillips MP, at the Amber Fort in Elmers End. My thanks to Eileen Welsh for the invitation.
Musicians in Whitehall
The MU, Equity and Bectu officials and members gathered this morning outside the offices of the DCMS on Whitehall, to voice their anger at the cuts in arts funding for certain organisations announced this month by Arts Council England.
ENO videos
I spent the late afternoon with Jonathan Stewart and his assistant Charlotte at the Coliseum in Charing Cross Road, interviewing some of the musicians in the English National Opera orchestra who have been affected by the severe cuts in funding for the organisation.
Tribute to Rab Noakes
Rab Noakes was a fine singer, songwriter, guitarist, BBC Radio music producer and Union activist. He served superbly representing musicians’ rights on the MU’s Executive Committee for many years.
Ivors Composer Awards
The Ivors Academy revealed the twelve winners at the 20th edition of The Ivors Composer Awards last night, celebrating the best new music in classical, jazz and sound art.
Coral Room
One of my favourite bars in central London can be found in the Bloomsbury Hotel in Great Russell St, just along from TUC Congress House. The Coral Room serves a fine range of beers, shorts and cocktails, in surroundings inspired by the jazz age of the 1920’s and created in collaboration with Martin Brudnizki.
