I mentioned about my 2020 trip from where we overwinter in Spain to Berlin for the Country Music Meeting, a place I’ve been regularly going to for the last twenty-two years to perform my songs, in my last post and posted a link to the full story over on my wife and I’s Fair Travels & Fine Times website.
Whilst there and looking for a place to sit and run through a couple of new songs a few years back I found a spot that works perfectly. It’s a concrete stairwell, it has a lovely natural reverb to it and it is part of the building the Meeting event is held in. Only a couple of us knew about it to start with but the sound is so good we passed it on and encouraged a few other of the event’s attending musicians to come play a song or two out there.
We call it The Secret Stairwell and if you come visit the Media & Events Agency booth at the Country Music Meeting, hopefully returning next year after this year’s cancellation due to Covid-19, I’ll show you it and play a song for you. In the meantime though I’ve put together a bunch of songs I’ve played and recorded whilst sat there. It’s a downloadable EP available on Bandcamp called Songs From The Secret Stairwell. CHEERS !!

https://stevie-oneblokeonemandolin.bandcamp.com/album/songs-from-the-secret-stairwell-ep

Towards the end of January 2020, I set off from our winter home in Spain in our mostly trusty Mazda Bongo to head off to the Country Music Meeting in Berlin, a journey of 2642 km. It’s a place I hold dear and where I have performed a number of times over the last twenty-two years.
I’ve played all the stages there at some point either with a band or solo and have made many good, long standing friendships amongst the musicians, sound crew, staff and guests. Rather than write it all out here, please let me direct you to the site my wife and myself have and the page in the ‘TRAVELS’ section of FAIRTRAVELSFINETIMES.COM called….
The Road To Berlin…. and The Road Home

Okay, so it’s been an age again since I posted, in fact it was way back last year.
So since then, I’ve played a great bunch of Festivals, bike rallies an’ pub gigs around the country. The Some Days Are Diamonds album has sold a bunch an’ with the help of my wonderfully talented friend Drew Rivers I’ve put out a couple of videos an’ a new t-shirt design (The t-shirt is available on my merchandise page). The Christmas video was seen by over 15,000 folks, shared by over 300 folks an’ had some fine comments.
Well now we’re into the new year. It’s usually quiet the first few months but this year I’m playin’ a bunch of dates with my good friend Pete Bailey from Leatherat.

We’ve played a good few times together previously but always as one-offs when Leatherat have been playin’ the same festivals or bike shows as myself. Sometimes it’s been sat around, late night over a few drinks.

sometimes it’s been as part of somethin’ else like a uke jam an’ for a couple of years at Weyfest we opened up Sunday mornin’ on the Old Kiln stage with a ‘Hangover Set’.
 

Needless to say (but I will), it’s always been fun an’ a good time has been had.
So we thought we’d take to the road for some dates over a few weeks in February an’ March.
I’ll be playin’ a set, Pete will be playin’ a set an’ we’ll finish up with a set together playin’ a mix of each other songs. This being the case, most evenings will start around 8pm. We’re goin’ to mix it up as to who is gonna open which is why I would suggest you get there from the start.
We’ll have a t-shirt available an’ possibly an EP (if we can find the time to record beforehand).
So the dates are on the poster above, we’ll be there an’ it’ll be great to see you there.
Fair travels an’ fine times to you.
CHEERS !!

So here we are comin’ towards the end of May, some months after my last post on here. Things have moved on at a rapid rate…. for this album anyhow. So this is a catch up, a round up an’ a who done what to make it all happen.
I’m gonna introduce you to the fine folk who are all diamonds, every one of them.

First in line was Damon Sawyer.

I’ve known Damon since I was playin’ bass with Kane & Co. in the late nineties. We recorded a few tracks with him at his studio. Since then I worked with Damon when he joined Cactus Jack (formed out of the ashes of Kane & Co.) on drums. We recorded two albums at his studio an’ I’ve recorded all my solo albums with him since, first at Park Studio in Bracknell an’ these days at his own Platform Studio, near Reading. Damon engineered, played drums an’ percussion along with producin’ the album with me. I don’t have drums on every track as I still like to have some tracks that don’t sound like we have a full band on there so Damon played on ‘Airboats, Guns & Whiskey‘, ‘Slaughter‘ an’ ‘The Mechanic‘.

Next up was Nick Drury, a good friend of a fair few years now.

Nick had played bass for a good number of years tourin’ Germany with a rock covers band but had taken a breather a few years before I met him an’ a good few had passed since then when I asked him to play on my previous album Garage Songs an’ seein’ as he agreed to that an’ really enjoyed playin’ on there I thought I’d ask him to play on Some Days Are Diamonds an’ once again he was kind enough to say yes. As it progressed Nick played on most of the album so if you hear a bass on a track, that’ll be Nick.

I first met Pete Bailey an’ Jono Watts from Leatherat when both they an’ myself were on the same bill at a National Chopper Club ‘Shires Show’ motorcycle rally. We hit it off an’ have done ever since, regularly playin’ at the same festivals an’ events.

Pete an’ myself for a few years, played some infamous Sunday mornin’ ‘Hangover Sets’ at Weyfest havin’ sat up playin’ an’ partyin’ through the previous night, rarely gettin’ more than a couple of hours sleep.
Like Nick, Pete came in for a few songs on Garage Songs an’ I knew when writin’ both ‘Samaritan‘ an’ ‘The Catch‘ for this album that I’d like him to come in with his mandola an’ sing some backin’ vocals on each of those.

For ‘Nursery Crime‘ I knew I wanted some fiddle on there an’ really wanted for Jono to play on there.
I was really pleased when he said yes an’ even more so when I heard what he had for the track.

I called up Andy Iddiols, who I’d toured in Europe with, playin’ alongside him in Kane & Co. an’ Cactus Jack an’ who like Pete, Damon an’ Nick had also played on Garage Songs to come in to play on two tracks ‘Bring Me A Beer‘ an’ ‘Slaughter‘.
Whilst Damon an’ myself were listenin’ back to ‘Slaughter‘ I had a thought. I said that what the track needed I reckoned, was a sousaphone. “Where are you going to get that ?” asked Damon. So I ‘Googled’ ‘Sousaphone player’ an’ ‘Basingstoke’. As it was I got ‘Sousaphone player’ an’ ‘Reading’ an thus soon met up with Sébastien Danczak newly arrived in the country from France.

He came in an’ absolutely nailed the track. Alongside Andy’s bar room piano an’ my banjo it was pure vaudeville to me when I listened back to it afterwards.

For ‘Airboats, Guns & Whisky‘ I knew that I’d love some serious country pickin’ on there. Through a mate from on the circuit I’d met back in the Kane & Co. days I’d been introduced to the very talented John Stannard. An englishman now livin’ in Texas. I only knew John to talk to on Facebook but thought it worth an ask. As it was, not only did I end up with John playin’ some very tasty guitar parts on the track, I also ended up with his  missis, Mandy Marie Luke, singin’ some backin’ vocals at the end of the track. All recorded in Texas an’ sent over the internet. Wonderful stuff, technology.

That was back around the beginin’ of February 2014. Work on the album was bought to a halt when I suffered a heart attack an’ gettin’ goin’ again afterwards took some gettin’ done as both Damon an’ Simon Friend from The Levellers who was also goin’ to be playin’ on a couple of tracks were both out tourin at various times durin the year. The studio was also pretty booked out which along with me back giggin’ after a month or so recuperatin’ meant gettin’ back to recordin’ the album was difficult.

My daughters, Alex an’ Katie, came into the studio an’ put down some backin’ vocals on the end of ‘Nursery Crime‘ an’ I recorded ‘Dodged A Bullet‘ which I had written a couple of days after leavin’ the hospital an’ returnin’ home to recover afterwards an’ which would remain with just myself singin’ an’ playin’ on it. Apart from that 2014 was a bit quiet on the recordin’ front.

Into 2015 though an’ we were back on track. Simon had some time durin’ which he could come in to record an’ Damon wasn’t on tour either, nor was the studio fully booked up. So in came Simon Friend.
 
I met Simon a few years back at a Bearded Theory festival benefit gig after he’d heard an’ liked a song durin’ my set – ‘Hobo Jones‘ from off Garage Songs. We’d met up a good few times to play after that an’ got on just fine so when he said he’d like to come play on Some Days Are Diamonds I took him up on the offer. As soon as I was able after the heart attack, we got together to rehearse the songs he was goin’ to play an’ sing backin’ vocals on. It was he who suggested the ‘HEAVE’s in the chorus’ of ‘Samaritan‘. He plays banjo on that track as well, whilst on ‘The Catch‘ he plays guitar. Another friend of a good few years now, Miffy Griffin came in to add whistle on both those tracks.

One thing was left. Dobro guitar on ‘The Mechanic‘. I called on a Russian guy I had met when we both played a festival in Poland back in 1998. I’d kept in touch with Timur Vedernikov since an’ he was really interested in playin’ on the track when asked. He recorded his part in Moscow an’ sent it over just like John had done with his guitar parts an’ Mandy’s vocals. I hope to meet up with him in London very shortly to thank him personally.

So that was how the album was recorded. I have great love an’ respect for every one of those damn fine folks playin’ on there an’ a lot of thanks. But before I leave the music side of things I must mention an’ thank another member of Leatherat, their bass player Jeremy Paul Carroll.

Jeremy runs Precision Mastering UK an’ I spent a long day with him whilst he meticulously worked his way, track by track, through the album, workin’ his very special magic to bring out the best in it.

The front cover photo was taken at a small motorcycle rally one mid September afternoon last year by Debbie Bryan. It was a really well composed shot an’ a crackin’ image. Not a set up either, just taken whilst I played to folks.

Philip J Mitchell took the rear cover photo an’ the one behind the CD on the inside of that cover at my first gig after my heart attack. There was a lot of love in the room an’ I had a bit of a moment. Phil caught that, for which I am truly greatful.

When you hold Some Days Are Diamonds in you hands you’re lookin’ at the artwork of my very good friend Drew Rivers.

He has produced artwork for me for Garage Songs an’ my LiVE at The Assembly Rooms album along with designin’ a mass of promotional material an’ my latest t-shirt. His retouchin’ of photographs an’ layout is bloody lovely an’ his work just keeps gettin’ better an’ better.

These folk are all diamonds. Sparkly an’ multi-faceted.
I’ve written, played an’ sung on all the songs but this album would not be the thing of beauty I believe it to be without their participation an’ I thank every one of them for that.
May you appreciate all their work to bring it to you as much as I do.

Fair travels an’ fine times to you.
CHEERS !!
Stevie.

So, into the new year we burst. The first two gigs were rather good. A decent turn out in both cases an’ a weekend of catchin’ up with friends around the Peterborough area at an’ inbetween the gigs themselves. Steve Bentley from Greenman Rising joined me for a few songs durin’ both sets at The Railway playin’ his monster of a bodhran. I’ll be returnin’ to both The Straw Bear an’ The Railway a little later in the year. 

 After the gig I drove down to the south coast to see my folks, arrivin’ there around 5am.
Loaded with coffee I could do little more than doze in the drivin’ seat down at Langney Point at Eastbourne but was rewarded with a beautiful sunrise before headin’ to their house. 

Last night I was over at Powerhouse Studios in New Haw to track some mandolin on The Fanzines’ recordin’ of a Levellers song for the Bostin’ Days project in aid of the Devon Air Ambulance. I have already recorded a track for the album, my own cover of a Levellers song. There are thirty different artists, bands an’ configurationas thereof, all coverin’ a Levellers song. It’s gonna be a crackin’ album an’ should be available around May I think.
This is me recordin’ my track for the album not that many weeks ago….

An’ then with The Fanzines last night….

This is the album we’re all workin’ on, an’ the reason I’ve not mentioned what tracks were doin’ is that it’s all a bit hush hush just now until the album is ready for release. Sorry you’re gonna have to wait for the listin’ but as I said it will be a crackin’ album an’ very much woth the wait an’ your cash….

I’ve also been recordin’ mandolins for Canadian artist Pat Savage who apart from recordin’ an’ giggin’ has had a video series about his ridin’ adventures. No photos as of yet as the album artwork has still yet to be done. Here though are details where some tracks can be heard this comin’ Thursday. I am informed that it’ll be 4pm our time here in the UK.

That’s me just about done for now apart from to say that I have a special guest or two on my Some Days Are Diamonds album. Much of the recordin’ is now done but here’s a photo from run throughs of a couple of tracks that Simon Friend from the Levellers is playin’ on for it, taken last week….

Until next time, fair travels an’ fine times to you.

CHEERS !!

STEViE   [:{D>

Yes it is. It’s that time once again. My gigs for the year are done. The next ones are on Friday January 9th in Whittlesey near Peterborough an’ then on Saturday 10th I’ll be in Oakham.

It’s been a busy year considerin’ I had a heart attack in February just around the time I was hopin’ to get ‘Some Days Are Diamonds’ ready to put out in May. The album is still nearly finished with just a few folks to record their parts. Gettin’ folks into the studio when the studio guy has tourin’ commitments as do some of the folks due to record is a juggle that I havn’t mastered. It will get there but it’s become a ‘It’ll be done when it’s done’ thing. I AM hopin’ to have it ready for May 2015, one way or another.
In the mean time here’s a couple of videos for the tracks Samaritan an’ Airboats, Guns & Whisky which appear on the album.

Back in February again…. I was out of hospital a couple of days after what many call an ‘episode’. Call it what it is !!! It’s a heart attack. These things can kill you. An episode is part of a TV series. A small bit of advice here. Chest pains ? Get it bloody checked out soon as. No messin’ about. If in doubt call an ambulance. No one, not no one is gonna bitch at the hospital or in the back of said ambulance because you made a mistake. Oh an’ don’t take a taxi to the hospital whilst clutchin’ your chest, taxi drivers it seems don’t like that.

Anyhow, havin’ had an angioplasty (which is nothin’ like a Cornish pasty) an’ 36 hours or so under the scrutiny an’ care of various superb doctors an’ nurses I was allowed home. I had a song written about the experience in a couple of days an’ recorded it as one of my ‘Garage Videos’ a week later. I sounded totally washed out, out of breath an’ strugglin’ to catch it at the end. I was worried as were some folks that saw it. Recovery went well over a couple more weeks though an’ I re-recorded it again. It’s called Dodged A Bullet. An’ I had.
My first gig back after the heart attack was at The Boileroom in Guildford with my good friends Leatherat an’ The True Deceivers. It’s a gig we’ve played for a few years now an’ always a pleasure. That was nine weeks later.

After that the rest of the year seems to have flown by. I wasn’t expectin’ to be giggin’ much but there’s been a fair few festivals an’ bike rallies. It’s been great spendin’ time with mates, not drinkin’ an’ chattin’ through ’til dawn too much but enough that I’ve had the pleasure of some crackin’ company. I had nine days out in Germany playin’ as well, it was lovely to be back out there, playin’ for the first time solo an’ I’m back there in Berlin the first weekend in February next year for a couple of gigs.

Dates are comin’ in for 2015. If you have a venue nearby you’d like to see me at or you fancy puttin’ on a nice intimate an’ somewhat informal house gig get in touch via the contact page on here.

In the meantime I wish you Season’s Greetings an’ all the best for next year an’ I’ll leave you with one more video. A cover by Tracey Browne an’ myself of The Pogues Fairytale of New York recorded back in 2011 to raise funds for the bikers charity that I am a patron of, the NABD (National Association for Bikers with a Disability). The puppets used for the video are regular an’ well loved performers on the bike rally circuit.

CHEERS !!

Stevie   *<[:{D>

At The Boileroom. April 2014 by Philip J Mitchell

Hi folks.
Whether you’ve found your way here through a link I’ve posted or you’ve arrived here through browsin’ for some mandolin related info or maybe you were searchin’ for Stevie Nicks, Stevie Ray Vaughn or Stevie Wonder an’ arrived here by some mistake.
However you arrived at this site WELCOME. Please have a look around an’ you’ll find links to my videos, music, photos, gigs an’ other info, along with posts in this blog from time to time.
Please tell your friends to come visit here as well.

Fair travels an’ fine times to you.

CHEERS !!

Stevie