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“April Showers Bring May….Breadfoots” 22 June 03
On Breadfoot’s second trip over to England he was keen to work up another tour type diary. It was his good bud Joan Coffey that suggested that a new perspective was in order. Beyond the all the regular bullshit this piece features London’s Ladies in Londons’ Ladies’ Loos, honest.
Uh, let's see, so yeah, if my memory serves, it was at the Hope and Anchor that the fiendish plot for "Londons' Ladies in Londons' Ladies' Loos" was hatched. It was masterminded by TIPOD and designed with the intention of providing you all with a different look at Londons' acoustic antifolk type venues. In additionto getting these here pictures for you all to look at, I done went and wrote down what I got myself into. so, okaythen, why don't you go get yourselves good and lickered up, set back comfortable like and we'll take you on our spring run over to the UK.
Sunday 04 May 2003
Bignote at the Hope and AnchorUp near ten. Cup of tea. Sat with my steel. Sorted thru my bits. Out the door near 2 pm. Piccadilly linefrom Manor House to Arsenal. Big match today. Streets were packed with Arsenal fans. Got myself over to Joans. Met Nikki and Shaun. And then it was time for a tuna melt. Afterwards it was over to Joans' local to catch the match. A few pints later, Leeds had taken the match, (er, rather Arsenal sorta gave it away), and we took our leave. Stopped by Joans' for my steel and headed for the Hope and Anchor. I went on first. Was intent on picking a couple of new tunes. Told one of Tim the Finishers' jokes, told one of Miss Shirles' jokes, all the while trying to re-tune, strings were strecthing like nobodys' business. Don't think I'll try that again. The band after me sorta sucked, so me and Sarge took our pints upstairs. Back down for a group called Soul Cyde. Singer had a great voice. Talking to Joan, the "Londons' Ladies in Londons' Ladies' Loos" scheme was hatched. Late night take away and then back to Joans'. Shaun was still awake. The movie "The Piano" was just coming on. Told 'em about how a bunch of years ago an old girlfrind and I rented the video. She got mad at me on account of me falling asleep. Know what ? I fell asleep again. Don't think I'll ever see the end of that movie.
Monday 05 May 2003
Up All Night Bank Holiday Marathon at The Spice of Life, and Blue Belly Acoustic Revue at the Purple TurtleUp at 6:30 am, (seriously). Couple cups of coffee. Showered and shaved. Joan's finally awake. Gave her a good scare out on the patio. Eggs and toast and more coffee. Talked to Anna. She can't do the 16th or 17th, but is up for the 12th at the 12 Bar. Rolled out near 2 pm. Piccadilly line to the Central line to Tottenham Court. Phil Taylor from Up All Night had his Bank Holiday Open Mic Marathon going on at the Spice of Life. Eat a curry thing. Drink a pint. And then kick a couple tunes. Catch the Northern line from Tottenham Court up to Mornington Crescent. Short walk to the Purple Turtle. Meet Carolyn and Kite. Talked a bit to Findley Webster, (had to bounce, missed her set). They sat me down to do some picking near 9 pm. Kite joined me on my last tune, "Coney Island Dog". He was beating on some sorta African type drum. Afterwards, back to the Spice of Life to meet Joan. Ran into Chris Kahle, he's figurng to stop in at comedownandmeetthefolks on the 18th. Close out the Spice of Life and head over to the Phonenix with the Up All Night gang. Couple more pints. Shots of tequila with Joan and Tiego. Then back to Joans' Tom Waits, some Bowie and a bottle of champagne. Damn those little bubbles.
Tuesday 06 May 2003
Barfly Acoustic at the EnterpriseFirst it was Shauns' mobile. Then it was the house line. My brain was just not ready for anything that was buzzing, beeping or ringing. dag. Fell back asleep. Didn't get off the sofa til somewhere near 1 pm. Coffee, a smoke and sun on the patio. Afterwards a shower. Changed strings. And then hit the market with Nikki. Back at the house. Worked up some grub. Joan was finally up. Totally in denial of her Irish heritage she went on to blame Tom for the whiskey, me for the tequila and the nuns for the champagne. Got myself out the door near 4:30 pm. Victoria line to Euston. Northern line to Chaulk Farm. Across the street to the Enterprise and up the stairs. Was good to see Paul on the sound desk again. First band was pretty good, but i can't remember their name. I kicked my set. Had a pint or two in me by this time, almost feeling human again. Told Miss Shirles' joke and later Pauline Taylor nicked the punchline to introduce one of her songs. Truly enjoyed Paulines' set. Amazing voice, great band. Time to bounce. Northern line to Victoria. Back to Joans'. Talked with Shaun about Shakespeare til nearly 1 am. Shaun gets to telling me that ol' Will was responsible for creating a big hunk of the English langauge. "He just made it up ", says Shaun. "For example", he continued, "before Shakespeare, there was in effect no word to for bubble ". Dag.
Wednesday 07 May 2003
The Portland ArmsUp near 8 am. Coffee and smokes on the patio. Looks like another great day. Sausage, mushrooms, tomatoes, and eggs. Shit ! Forgot the beans, didn't I ? Checked e-mail. Headed off for Cambridge at half past four. Bristish Rail outta Finsbury Park. Met up with Simon at the station in Cambridge. Went and fetched David Grubbs. Pleasant chatter as we drove through town on the way to the Portland Arms. Think it was David who said something about the Softboys recording a live thing here. Sound checks finished. Figured on something to eat. Who woulda thunk it ? All the way to Cambridge for a chicken enchilada !? Pint or two later it was time for my set. Good crowd. Bit reserved. Had a real hard time getting a female type to do the photo. Almost had to settle on this one fellow who volunteered, "i've got long hair ", he said. Yeah so, I was surprised that Tim the Finishers' "What do ya say to a virgin when she sneezes?" joke got a laugh, (huh ? oh, yeah well you say " goes-in-tight"). After my set, handed out stickers. Ritchie bought me a pint. Sat on the floor for LIonshares' set. Great stuff. Sorta Wil Oldham meets Neil Young. Had to bounce before Davids' set. Back at Joans'. John had just gotten back from the states. Session ran til'bout 4:30 am. And involved nearly a case of tallboys. Oiy !
Thursday 08 May 2003
Tallpoppy Presents at the GooseBit rough this morning. Coffee with John. Worked a pot of squash, potatoes and peas. Did laundry. Showered. Rolled out near quarter to five. Victoria line to Vauxhall. British Rail to Wandsworth. Met Tom, Lee, Jingles and Dee. Had a pint. Did sound check. Went for a tobacco run. A few open mic spots. Jo hooked me up with a veggie burger. Talked to Rosanella about an acoustic room in Bristol. Kicked my set. Afterwards a nice chat with Tom, (he's figuring on coming 'round to the Borderline gig). Hung out for Lees' set. NIce stuff. Think i'd like to see her with a band. Time to bounce. Back over the Wandsworth Bridge. Bristish Rail to Finsbury Park. Made a cup of tea. Smoked. And watched some tv program about the history of stripping.
Friday 09 May 2003
"Mining for Gold" with Johny Brown on Resonance 104.4 fmPiccadilly line to Holborn. Central line to Tottenham Court. Met Johny at the 12 Bar. Tea and a smoke. Johny told me 'bout how his show works. I had a copy of a Weekly World News, and we decide that in addition to doing some picking that it might be fun to read the "aligator-man story" over an ambient piece. Over to the studio. Meet Leon. And get settled in. Begin the program with a few tracks from one of the Antifolk comps, first it was a tune by Laura Hoch, (whoops ! she says 'fuck" alot in that one ), and then coming outta the end of Palefaces' tune we fade into my first piece. Kick a few more. Do the 'gator-man story and then finish with an improv over some techo beats. Caught the groove. Tried to bust a move and then fumble over my fingers. After the show. Back to the 12 Bar. Sarge stops in. Cup of tea and a chat. Go looking for an archtop to let. Chad and Neil at Hanks' send me over to Andy Angel Music. Turns out Andy's tech, Ritchie can help me out. Cool. Back to Joans' for a "gentle evening". Shortbread cookies, tea and Taxi Driver.
Sunday 11 May 2003
The WindmillUm, yeah so as I'm told John heard a loud "THUMP". He looked out the door of his room to see me lying on my back on the floor. He asked me if i was okay. And I said, "Probably". So he left me there and went back to bed. Nearest we can figure is that somehow I flipped myself over the stair rail. And it had all started innocently enough. The suggestion was for a pint or two and a little trad music over at Joans' local. Uh, yeah right. So now late into the day. Foggy. A bit sore. Gotta get myself out the door. Victoria line all the way to Brixton. Outta the tube. Confused. Had to ask for directions. Okaythen. Up Brixton Hill. Right onto Blenheim Gardens. And down the block to the Windmill. Barely in the door Captain intrduces himself. He's on the boards tonight. Order up a pint, (no, i'm not jokin'). soundcheck. Meet Mark from the Larry Love Show Band. Chat a bit with Tim Perry at the bar. Some fellow named Ollie kicks things off. Despite my late night drunken acrobatics I pull off a pretty strong set. "LLSB" is on next, (they're the acoustic branch of Alabama 3, A3 in the states). The singer jokes about me having a real good Alabama type accent for a Scotsman. He also says that " After hearing breadfoot, I now know how to talk to an audience". Hmm. Yeah so, had to bounce before thier set was over. Shame too, was truly digging it. Victoria line back to Finsbury Park. Think I may have chated with Joan and, er maybe Shaun. Not really sure. Crashed super hard.
Monday 12 May 2003
Blang ! Club at the 12 BarTrue to form. Outta sorts. Got myself something to eat. Showered. Sarge rang. He forgot to grab the Makers. Rolled out near 2 pm. Piccadilly line to Manor House. Over to Sarges' place. Scored the Makers and some more stickers. Stepped out the door into a major down pour. Got totally fuckin' soaked ! Piccadilly line to Holborn. Central line to Tottenham Court. Quick stop at the 12 Bar, then over to Andy Angel Music to pick up the archtop. Back to the 12 Bar. Getting a chill. Barry hooks me up with a cup of joe. Just about 6pm Sarge walks in. Anna shows up 'bout half hour later. We run through the tunes she's picked and then it's time for sound check. After that it was over to Spice Spice for a curry. Joan, Kit and Tom join us. Chat a bit then bounce back to the 12 Bar. Sargeant BuzFuz is getting on with his set. Really dig that tune, um, it's called "Ghost" I think. Kate on the dulcimer has got this really hipnotic thing going. After Sarge Spinmaster Plantpot does his thing. Now it's time to get medicated. Take the stage and proceed to tell how when i was here last time I got to complaining they didn't have my whiskey. So this time around I brought my own. "Nurse Joanie" assists with the distribution. Go on to say that you all can look at this some some sorta group therapy. Okaythen. Now with everyone all properly medicated we can get on with some music. Kick two tunes on my lonesome. Then am joined by the amazing Miss Anna Phoebe on fiddle. Had three tunes we were gonna do. But the folks wouldn't let us get away with that so we did up Edgartown as well. Somewhere in there I made the mistake of saying I'd play more for another pint. End up with two. Me and my big mouth. Get off the stage. It's something like 12:30 am. Dag. Totally spent, but super wired. Me and Joan head for the Troy. John is behind the Bar. Two more pints and a shot of Jameson. Close the joint down. Cab back to Finsbury Park. Joan hooks us up with a late night snack. Big time crash.
Friday 16 May 2003
The Borderline with Richard BucknerEasy morning. Change strings. Piccadilly line to Holborn. Central line to Tottenham Court. Get to the club near 5:30 pm. Meet Mike the soundman. Run to Booths' to fetch a new camera. Back at the Bordrline there's some sorta fashion shoot going on. Sit on the stage, watch the chicks an' pick a bit until John and Ritchie come 'round. Sound check, give MIke a blank Mdisc, and then head backstage. Meet Joanne. She's Richards' tour manager. We get to talking. Me and John do some more pickin' . Joanne hooks me up with some Jameson. Meet Gary and Richard. Joanne takes a polaroid of me and John and duct tapes it to the backstage door. 8:20 pm. Time to get it. Open up with two new tunes on the archtop. Then holler for John. Real laid back set. Started slow, ended slow. Breaking stage. Ask Mike about the Mdisc recording. He sorta just ignores me. Hmm, okaythen, figure I'll bug him for it later. Hanging out back end of the club. Chat a bit with Joan and John. They bounce. Meet Katy, and later her husband Holden. Turns out he's got a sister that works at Stinger in Brooklyn. Tom shows up. More Guiness. More Jameson. Half listen to Richards' set. Talking too much. Time for pay out. Tell Joel the manager that I never did get fed. Ask MIke again about my Mdisc. He says he gave it to me. Check my bag, nope not here. Mike goes on to say that he did in fact give it to me. Tells me that I'm drunk and that I musta lost it. He bolts. Ask Joel if he can take a look in the booth for me. He digs around a bit. Asks me what brand it was and then tells me it's not here. I wonder aloud just what Mike coulda done with it. "He gave it to you" , Joel says. "No", I say, "I'm sorry, but he didn't". To which Joel replies, "Look who am i supposed to believe a drunk or my sound man ?" Dag, whaddya say to that ? Cussing and spitting I head back to Stoke Newington. Curry and a bad William Hurt film. Kinda like a train wreck, ain't it ?
Saturday 17 May 2003
Gildded Palace of Sin at the Prince Albert with Richard BucknerCup of tea. Sausage, eggs and beans. Victoria line from Manor House to Victoria Station. 4:08 pm to Brighton. Meet David Morrison at the station. Head over to the Prince Albert. Score a pint. Joanne, Gary and Richard show up. We all go upstairs. Talking to Joanne and Richard come to find that they had gotten jacked around a bit at the Bordeline as well. Glad to find out that it wasn't just me. Sitting around pickin'. Joanne takes another polaroid. Meet Jer our soundman. Richard and Gary soundcheck. My turn. Afterwards we go for some dinner. Back at 8:45 pm. Jer's waiting at the door for me. Charley gives me an introduction. And then I kick it. More upbeat then last night. Great crowd. Pack up and hang at the bar in the back figuring to give Gary and Richard a good listen. Great set. Really dug a couple of tunes that Richard played electric on. One last pint and then we head over to the house where Richard, Gary and Joanne are crashing. Hang out around the kitchen table. Drink whiskey, smoke and eat some super pumpkin pecan pie that Joanne had made. We look at polariods and take some more. Okaythen. Time to bounce. Me and Charley are headed for Davids' place. Drink some more whiskey and smoke and talk. Next morning. Coffee and a smoke. Charley rolls out. Susan hooks us up with some breakfast. Watching the tube. Come to find that June Carter has died. Surprised that she went first. Time to hit it. David points in the direction of the station. Thank him for everything and am off.
Sunday 18 May 2003
Comedownandmeetthefolks at the Fiddlers' Elbow2:51 pm. South Central Railway to Victoria Station. Victoria line to Warren and then the Northern line to Chaulk Farm. Walk into the Fiddlers' Elbow and there's Jerry from Chineseburn. Say howdy. Go over to say hey to Alan Tyler. Paul and Sally walk in and soon after Andy and Susan. Turns out that Andy and Alan were in a band together at one time. Chris Kahle turns up. Chat with him a bit. Play some English pool with Andy. After losing I figure to catch some music. Order up a roast chicken plate form Tasha behind the bar, (she's gonna hold it til later). Listen to Chris' set. Order another pint. 'Bout time for me to kick it. Feeling well worn out. Sorta afraid to sit on the tall stool. Go for it anyway. Good set. Pack up. Sarge and his his friend Susan are there. Listen to Hacker and Anna. Think they call themselves "Florida". Nice stuff. Chat with Loyd, and Liz from Ohio. Chineseburn are getting ready to go on. I ask for my roast chicken. After their set I get to talking to Jerry for a good long while. Meet Ross from Morcheeba. Back at the bar talking to Liz and Hacker. Paul and Sally bounce. The Sarge and Susan are going too. I thank him for everything and say my goodbyes. Finish my pint thinking that I oughta be rolling out soon myself. Somehow Liz talks me into another pint. Before ya know it the joint's closing and we're headed for the Dublin Castle, ( am told that this is the place where Madness always used to play). Couple of pints later that joint is closing. Liz and I find &a cab service. Next to it is a sandwich stand. I get myself some sorta spicy chicken thang. And then we're off. We drop Liz off first. She picks up the fare. Gives the driver a little extra to make sure he gets me where I'm going. Back at Joans'. Shaun is still up. I eat my chicken whatever it is. We smoke and talk til sometime after 2 am.
Well, alrightie then. So there you have it. Super extra special thanks to Sargeant Buzfuz and my most favorite partner in crime, the wonderful miss Joan Coffey. A Big thank you goes out to all the "Londons' Ladies". Also wanna thank the venues and bookers for letting me come 'round to pick, and to everyone who was at the shows, much thanks for listening. Hope you all had a good time. I sure did.
Um, let's see, what else ? oh yeah, sorry to the two young ladies whose photos didn't make it. Nearest I can figure is that the flash didn't work. It should be said that if'n you're one of the ladies that volunteered to do up a photo for us and have now decided that you don't want no one looking at yer picture well, can't say we won't be dissapointed,but if'n ya 'just ask, then we'll remove it from the feature.
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