As some of you know, I've been struggling with health issues and some really bad luck over the recent months (And a big thanks to those who have been supportive here, both in kind words and buying my stuff!)...but a few days ago finally got some good fortune, as a friend of mine asked me to cover for him on a little show as he'd messed up his flights. I've not been able to gig a huge amount, but I decided this one was something worth the effort!
Sadly not viewable on Iplayer due to tech trouble during the set.... but 45,000 in Hyde Park wasn't an entirely terrible experience!
For me the most fascinating part of the day was watching the touring crews rolling in and out like clockwork... for them just a usual afternoon. I think for bands like the Stereophonics, Blondie, James Blunt etc it might be 40th-50th festival slot like this of the year and they are very well drilled. We had great views from the side of the stage until Shania Twain showed up and her hefty security decided we were no longer important enough to be in the area...
I can also confirm the Rick Astley is the life and soul of the backstage party!
Name dropping aside... I can highly recommend checking out 'Wildwood Kin', a huge pleasure to work with over the weekend and a band going places! Thanks to them I managed to beat the family record of 12,000 set by my uncle in the eighties...it's still an ongoing competition! I'm fully aware that I got to do this by chance, but it was an experience to remember!
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Just because you're paranoid, don't mean they're not after youAll the best
I think playing a proper gig to 45,000 - even if you got it accidentally - beats accidentally playing solo to 150,000 for twenty seconds when I was stage-tech'ing at the Edinburgh Hogmanay street party a few years ago, so I concede .
It is an amazing experience to stand up there in front of a real sea of faces like that... even if you're not really meant to be .
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Even if you extrapolate that to, say, a 50-minute set, that'd still be 1000 people!
Supportact said: [my style is] probably more an accumulation of limitations and bad habits than a 'style'.
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@Teetonetal Y U hurt me like dis?
Superb opportunity
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I was tech'ing for the band who were on directly after the new year bells, so while all that was going on I was doing my last check and playing the guitars/bass for a few bars each just to make sure everything was OK. I was a bit puzzled to hear an echo, until I realised it was coming back off the shops on the other side of Princes Street! The soundmen had forgotten to mute the PA . They noticed pretty quickly and killed it just as I was playing Sunshine Of Your Love on the bass - I'd done Born To Be Wild on one guitar and Smoke On The Water on the other - left handed, so the choice of playable tunes was a bit limited .
Absolutely brilliant experience, even if everyone in front of me must have been thinking "who is this prat?"
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein
Pretty pictures of stuff and things here...
My Feedback thread here...
https://www.facebook.com/benswanwickguitar
Must have been a fantastic experience. Well done you.
I can't help about the shape I'm in, I can't sing I ain't pretty and my legs are thin
But don't ask me what I think of you, I might not give the answer that you want me to
Pretty pictures of stuff and things here...
My Feedback thread here...