Some something big involving planes has gone down while I’ve been flyering and offering two for one deals to French tourists and student theatre companies? How bizarre to be this isolated from the news – I know absolutely NOTHING of what’s happening, save for an overheard conversation yesterday. 10 planes? foiled terrorist attack?
Yeah, that’s all well and good, but you should check our version of ‘Video Killed The Radio Star’ – that’s real news…
Thursday began in fine style – we were booked to play at ‘Mervyn Stutter’s Pick Of the Fringe’ – a fantastic show that highlights the best of what’s on across the city. Julie had emailed them, and their lovely booking lady Trudy had come to the show on Tuesday and booked us.
That went superbly well – great reception from the audience, lots of promises that people would come along. Yay!
After that, it was flyering time. Lots of it. I think I gave out more flyers than on any day since Saturday. A busy time, for sure.
In the morning, I’d dropped into a junk shop on Dalry Road, where I’d seen a Mama Cass album for £2 in the window, and given that Amy Lame’s show that TSP and I saw last weekend was called ‘Amy Lame’s Mama Cass Family Singers’, I bought it and dropped it off to Amy after her show, who was delighted.
My dodgy knee was feeling pretty bad by about 7 o’clock so I went and bought a ticket for Sue Perkins stand up show – I’m a HUGE fan of Sue, whether solo or in the double act with Mel; their Saturday morning show on Radio London rivals Danny Baker for the greatest radio I’ve ever heard. She’s clearly supremely intelligent and a great observer of the world, and the show was indeed both very funny and acutely observed. She finished on a really poignant note about her grandmother – great way to end a comedy show. Definitely worth going to see.
I nearly missed the gig, as I thought she was on at the Pleasance Dome but was on at the Pleasance Courtyard – not an easy journey to make in 6 minutes on a buggered knee. Ow.
After that, it was back to flyering for a while, then down to the venue for soundcheck and gig.
Another lovely night – similar numbers to last night, so pretty good, but really need a couple of big nights tonight and tomorrow to make some sensible money on this trip.
The Lot is SUCH a great venue – for those of you in and around Edinburgh, you really ought to get on their mailing list, as they book some really top class jazz stuff (I’ve mentioned before that Theo has played there with his quartet) – it’s really lovely, and the food in the restaurant downstairs is top notch. I’m really hoping to come back to the same place next year. Great space, great people, and it’s run as a charity funding venture. What could be better?
After our show, Julie and I were back doing the Midnight Carousel in C Central, compered by Dusty Limits – again, we went down a storm, got an encore, and gave out lots of flyers to many promises that people will come along… Edinburgh promises – not worth the flyers they’re printed on, but we can but hope. :o)
So Today is a usual Edinburgh day – shitloads of flyering and postering during the day, dinner with the lovely J (lovely G is away, sadly, and TSP back in London, so it’s just lovely J and I meeting for clandestine munchies in Henderson’s). Then going to see a beautiful show in The Speigeltent – a Belgian voice and accordian duo, that I’ve completely forgotten the name of, but who are just fabulous, and played at Mervyn Stutter too. Then the show.
Two night’s left – come and see us!
Right, that was a much better audience size. Back on track now.
After a day spent flyering, postering and eating interesting food in funky cafes, a fine gig. Not only that, but we got an encore. Much fun.
We changed tack today – decided to offer some 2 for 1 offers to entice in a bigger crowd. Lots of very eager sounding people on the royal mile, and out and about. Also lots of people recognising me from all over the place – MySpace, Bass Day UK, The Radio (they didn’t recognise me by seeing me from the radio – that would just be silly – but when they saw my name, then said ‘aha! I heard you on Late Junction last week’). All over the place.
Likewise, a straw poll of those at the gig showed they came from all different paths – flyers, posters, friends’ recommendations, me sneakily recommending the gig to people who’ve come into the venue for information about something completely different, people reading the Fringe programme…
Both of which show that you can’t do either/or with promotion of any kind. We’re all looking for the short cut, the one thing that will expand our audience, give us fame fortune and a full house every night. But it doesn’t exist. It’s all cumulative. People who’ve seen your name in the programme might only think to come to the show if they then get given a flyer. People who’ve heard you on the radio might only visit your website after they see you at the fringe. People who’ve checked out your myspace page might be more inclined to buy a CD once they’ve seen you in person.
Talking of seeing people in person, I bumped into my old boss today – Howard Jones. You may or may not know that I toured playing bass for Howard in 1999. It was a fantastic experience, playing really great songs with a really lovely band. He was a real treat to work with. I haven’t seen him in years, but he’s up here doing a show, that sadly clashes with mine so I won’t get to see it, but he’s great live, and I’d have loved to have got along. Still, ’twas a delight to catch up with him, and I’ll have to get to one of the gigs on his Autumn tour.
Tomorrow’s a busy day – we’re doing Mervyn Stutter’s Pick Of The Fringe at lunch time, then our gig at night, and then The Midnight Carousel again at 1am… In between, much flyering, postering cajoling and coercing of lovely people to come and check out the show.
I mentioned that TSP had to rush back to London – when she got there, The furry ginger one wasn’t well at all. He’d started to behave bizarrely the day before, and by now was showing signs of some kind of real problem with his brain – almost certainly a tumor pressing on it.
She took him to the vets, who offered to give him a steroid shot to see if it would bring down the swelling and stop the pressure, but TSP took what was definitely the right decision, that he’d been through enough. This was the worst she’d seen him – and he’s had some pretty low points over the last 8 months – and it was time to say goodbye.
What shit timing. I’m up here, TSP is in London now, with no car cos I’ve got it here.
Anyway, goodbye lil’ ginger buddy – you had an amazing run, escaped death more times than any animal can reasonably expect, and gave us a couple of years of love and affection that we wouldn’t have swapped for anything.
these two pics were taken just last week…
My mum came up to help flyering yesterday, and while here, we went to a play. As a general rule, I don’t go to plays at the fest. I don’t really go to plays anywhere. Theatre just isn’t an art form that enters my radar.
But I’d been accosted by a flyering lady on the Royal Mile, who told me about this show, and it sounded fascinating, and I’m REALLY glad we went.
It’s called The Allotment, and is set, predictably, on an allotment, where a well meaning but fairly clueless mature student is conducting an experiment in the therapeutic value of horticulture for her MA, and recruits four asylum seekers to work on it. Their clash of worlds values, her ineptness and cliched outlook make for a fantastic story, brilliantly written, superbly acted and far too good for what you expect at the Fringe.
The theatre company website says that it’s touring in the East Midlands in Sept/Oct, so if you can get to see it either here at the Fringe or on tour, go, it’s fab. I hope they bring it to London at some point, I’d love to see it again.
Well, there really is no predicting Edinburgh audiences… after my biggest ever opening night at the fest, we had the smallest audience I’ve ever had at the Fringe last night. How bizarre! In the event, we played very well, entertained our tiny group of music lovers, and got booked for another show as a result (result!), but it was baffling after the interest that’s been shown up til now… it feels like a pretty easy show to sell, and I’ve been out flyering and postering LOADS. I don’t think the posters are quite as effective as mine were last year – the high contrast pic of me holding a bass on a white background told everyone within 20 feet of it that it was a music show. This year’s photo is gorgeous, and definitely gives off the late night mellow jazzy vibe, but only when you look at it, it doesn’t jump out and grab you in the same way.
Still, it’s a great gig, everyone who’s seen it loves it, and we’ve got some tickets sold already for the next few nights. So fingers crossed, it’ll be up from here… :o)
My right knee is causing me all kinds of grief – I think I’ve strained a tendon or something, with all the driving and walking up and down hills and stairs here in this fair city, so I’ve got it bandaged up, and am trying to take regular breaks from all the walking…
here’s the first review – and it’s rather a nice one, from gigreviewscotland.net.
We didn’t have a gig at the Lot last night, but we did do a cabaret slot, in The Midnight Carousel. Compered by Dusty Limits, the show features a whole load of acts doing 10 minutes of their show. My particular favourite was Ray Jessel – an old time broadway composer, who comes across as a mixture of Randy Newman and Jackie Mason. Great stuff.
Julie and I did three songs, which went down rather well, including a bit of a sing-along, which is nice. :o)
our first bit of edinburgh press – we had a couple of reviewers in on the first night, so hopefully those will be out today…
if you want to write your own review, or rate the show, please go to our page at edfringe.com – I’m sure it’s OK to review the preview too, those of you that were in London. :o)
No main show on Monday – the venue was already booked up when we got our run booked in.
So much of the day was spent flyering and postering on the Royal Mile, and TSP and I went to see Amy Lame’s ‘Mama Cass Family Singers’ – an intriguing and very original show about Amy’s life as a child star. TSP and I were talking about it for the rest of the day, which in a city on the verge of collapse under the weight of shows here, is a very good thing.
After a great show, some not so great news – The ginger fairly aged feline has taken ill again – not good signs at all, so TSP has this morning (tuesday) hot-footed it (or perhaps hot-railed) back to London. The thought that he may well be gone before I get home is one I’m trying not to dwell on – got to be chipper and smiley on the fringe. It’s a slightly odd feeling not having a show that I can feed such information into. If I was doing a solo show, there’d be a whole bit about the cats in it by now… No way to tie that in with this show – I mean, we do do ‘Lovecats’, but Julie’s already got a great intro into that…
So anyway, TSP and I made our first – and last together for this year – trip to the magical veggie goodness world of Henderson’s last night. If you’re at the fest, go to Henderson’s. OK, it’s a bit more spendy than Subway or McFilth, but it’s all properly cooked veggie, mainly organic loveliness. Well worth a treat if you’re audience is in double figures.
so today, with TSP back to London, we’re down one on the flyering team. It’s possible that my mum is coming to visit, so that’ll help (she’s v. good with flyering).
Failing that, tell your friends, or come along yourself!
