dry run (alcohol-free)

The Germany trip is now just a week away and we do a dry run at a club in Leicester.  What this means in reality is that people are paying good money to hear us rehearse.

I’m nervous about the whole thing now; I’ve had a couple of heart arrhythmias in the past few days and I usually deal with them by taking the pills and then going to bed.  Not so easy away from home.

This nervousness is compounded when John, who is organising our trip calls, to tell me he’s unwell and won’t be able to sing tonight - can I do 45 minutes?  At first I think he means 4-5 minutes, to which I reply  “no problem - I can do 10 minutes if you like”.  There’s a lot of coughing before it finally emerges that I’ve got the wrong end of the stick.

In the end we manage an hour between us - with encore.  We don’t go on until 10 o’clock and I’m already past my bedtime.  Fortunately it’s a sitting down venue - the audience as well as us - so I can nod off in between numbers.

It’s been over 5 years since I’ve played a proper gig and I’d forgotten the hardest part - de-rigging afterwards.  Anniemay is an experienced roadie and celebrates her 1000th blip by coiling up cables and putting guitars in cases.

The M1 is closed and we divert home through the countryside - it’s well past 1.00 when we finally get home - which is why I’m posting yesterday’s blip today.