On bass guitar...

It was around this time of year in 1985 when I first met Ashley Jones at Liverpool University. He was - and remains - one of the funniest people I've ever met but he was also a great guitarist and played in a band called The Zane Gray Incident. 

He would speak in hushed tones about both the band's keyboard player, John, and the bassist Ric. I think I met them both in that first term, when they came to visit Ash, and they were daunting characters: smart, funny, and great musicians. 

I became the lead singer of The Zane Gray Incident for a few months until it became evident to me that I was in the wrong league; these guys were way better than me, so I left and started my own band, Halo Jones (named after the comic book character).

A couple of years after that, when we left university, Ash and Ric moved to London and joined Halo Jones and for a year or so, we gigged around the city. I couldn't have been happier: we had great songs, we were fantastic live, and, for me, I loved being in a band with musicians whom I really admired. 

I have always loved the bass guitar and in the eighties I had loads of bassists I loved: Derek Forbes (Simple Minds); Mick Karn (Japan); John Taylor (Duran Duran); and Dave Allen (Shriekback) to name just four. But I thought Ric was better than all of them.

It was through Ric that I met my first wife and he then her married her sister, so even after I left the band, we remained in touch, which was not a given in those pre-Internet days. For a few years, I would always make an effort to see Ric on his birthday, even when he wasn't expecting it (like when he moved to Amsterdam).

I haven't seen Ric for two or three years, so I decided it was time to make an effort, and today I to travelled to Brighton to see him. It's his birthday tomorrow, which he's spending with his kids, so we went out tonight. 

We had a splendid evening: a couple of beers followed by a great meal, before ending up in a pub with a live jazz band. That's not Ric on bass in the photo. It was so lovely to catch up with him and I'm really pleased I made the effort.

****
-11.3 kgs
Reading: 'Blue Moon' by Lee Child.