Remembrance Day
Proud to witness Ben as an army cadet carrying a standard at the Remembrance Day event in New Addington this morning.
Lord Mayor’s Show
A pleasant morning in the winter sunshine in Fleet Street for the Lord Mayor’s Show. Our son Ben was marching alongside colleagues from his cadet detail and was entrusted once more with a banner for the length of the route. Well done son!
Guitar Show 24
I met long-term friend and business colleague Jason Hunt this lunchtime in The Rose at London Bridge. Jason has been the organiser of the Guitar Show in Solihull for a number of years and is well-known in the industry for his hugely successful shows, including the fondly remembered Music Live at the NEC.
Remastering
Another decisive day with producer Greg Fitzgerald in Canterbury as we explored the options for delivering my album from the 1990s, Birdcage, as a sister release for the forthcoming vinyl release, Waterloo Sunrise.
Lancaster House
During the Labour Party Conference I was asked to assist with arranging a CSF Evening Reception at Lancaster House FCDO, Stable Yard, London SW1 and tonight I was delighted to attend the event itself in the very salubrious surroundings of St James’s.
Chelsea photo shoot
My thanks to photographer Joseph Branston today as he kindly completed a photo session with yours truly at Pizza Express Live on the King’s Road, Chelsea. This was principally to capture a suitable frame to accompany my farewell column in the forthcoming edition of The Musician, my 75th as editor.
ENO T shirt
Ben and I made a round trip today from Beckenham to Covent Garden via Orpington and back. This ensured, firstly, the dispatch of demo materials to our contacts in the Northern Ballet in the safe hands of A to Z Couriers.
Joanna Wallfisch live
I drove over to King’s Road, Chelsea, this evening to attend a performance by singer/songwriter Joanna Wallfisch and pianist Tom Hewson at The Pheasantry, an established venue in the Pizza Express Live network.
Labour success
I have been managing the MU stand at the Labour Party Conference for the last four days and, in partnership with my colleagues, discussed the work of the Union with ministers, MPs and delegates.
Conference set up
Following my trips to this wonderful city for the TUC Congress and Drum Show, I am now spending a week at the Labour Party Conference and managing the MU’s annual stand at this landmark event.
Player of the Season
Beckenham Cricket Club held the Junior Awards tonight in Foxgrove Road for the Under 9s through to the Under 17s. Neil Coulson, Junior Chair, introduced the event by celebrating the players’ achievements both in Junior league cricket and in District and County teams.
Classical Awards
I attended the Gramophone Classical Music Awards 2023 this evening, where I hosted a table on behalf of the MU. This is the first time the Union has sponsored an award at the event and the night was a great tribute to the genre.
Black History Month
I was delighted to arrange the inside front cover of the Black History Month magazine in recent days. My thanks to the team at SMM Media and designer Chris Stenner for creating a superb design featuring rising star Lady Nade.
Partnership recording
I met MU in-house solicitor Dawn Rodger and Tim Northrop of NMD Solicitors this morning at the studios of producer James Reynolds in Parsons Green, west London, where James has expanded his already superb facilities to include a suite of podcast and video rooms.
TUC, Liverpool
An intriguing 24 hours in Liverpool, where I had been invited to attend the TUC General Council dinner at the Hilton Hotel.
Ashridge GC
An excellent day at Ashridge Golf Club in Hertfordshire, courtesy of Peter Leathem and all our colleagues at PPL. The forecast had been for hot weather of above 30 degrees C and so it proved.
Mitch Dalton
Legendary session guitarist Mitch Dalton played the Pizza Express basement club in Dean Street this evening with his top class band, which included piano and keyboard player David Arch (of Strictly fame).
Greg & Jennie
Julie, Ben and I enjoyed a wonderful day in the stunning grounds of Swarling Manor, Canterbury, for the wedding of Greg Fitzgerald and Jennie Griffiths.
Uncle Arthur
During our stay in Scotland, my sister Janet very kindly passed us some notable family photographs. Including this picture of Arthur Ames in his school’s first XI cricket team in 1926.
Melrose week
A lovely few days in the Scottish Borders with Julie and Ben, as we visited my sister and brother-in-law in Bowden. This gave us the opportunity to benefit from a number of hill walks plus take in the Edinburgh Festival.
Caring Soul video