The Boys Are Back in Town

Well, here’s a rarity for 2020 - an actual gig with a real live audience! Cumbria’s oldest boy band, “No Direction”, comprising ace guitarist Stuart, vocalist Alex and yours truly on bass were fortunate enough to be able to play a Boxing Day concert for a discerning few at a local pub. It was, of course, touch and go as to whether or not we would actually be able to go ahead but thankfully we did not get moved to another Tier yesterday, unlike so much of the south and east of the country.
The evening was extremely well organised - ticket only, substantial buffet served, all drinks served at tables and very strict enforcement of mask and social distancing rules.
The whole night was great fun, though not without a few problems. My amp refused to work, but a lash up of a spare monitor and sundry cables at least produced sound out front, though not so much from the backline! The other slight(!) issue was that it wasn’t always easy to find tracks that all three of us knew well. If Stuart and I knew the tune, Alex was sometimes unsure of the vocals. If Alex and Stuart knew the tune, I would sometimes have to rely on Stuart shouting chord changes to me so that I could play along! And on one or two occasions, the backing track started and none of us were quite sure how the song went!
But no one in the pub seemed to mind. Just as we were glad to be playing live, they were probably more pleased to be out of the house and listening to us - certainly the feedback I have heard today was all positive.
Everyone seemed happy to follow the rules and I didn’t feel “unsafe” at any time. A great evening all round and it would be marvellous to do it again some time - but maybe have a rehearsal first. Oh, and get my amp fixed!