You can buy a thrill...

Another wet and miserable day so, with a heavy heart, I crossed gardening off the list (yes, I jest).

Mid-morning I drove over to Guildford and spent a pleasant few hours  screenprinting. The future of the studio is still unclear but by the end of April there will be changes - we just don't yet know what sort. In the meantime I am trying to do the things I can only do there. The photograph is a collaged selection from the display of one of our members.  

Late afternoon I met up with two of my studio colleagues for a coffee and natter, mostly about our options if the studio closes. Options are very limited - there is no similar facility within easy reach. 

After a quick dash home and a quick dinner I set out for Haslemere to see Simply Dan in concert. Steely Dan are my absolute favourite music group and have been for the best part of the last fifty years. I have managed to see them in concert four times when they have been on tour in the UK. But there isn't another tour in the UK (or indeed the US) on the horizon so, with some trepidation, I decided to try a Steely Dan tribute band as a substitute.

In the absence of the real thing they were surprisingly good. The lead singer was a little 'shouty' but, that apart, they were as close to the original as you could hope for. I looked around (I was in the second row) and there were very few under sixties in the audience. How bizarre it was to see a bunch of white haired grannies and grandads (me included) rocking in their seats and tapping their feet. Simply Dan were on stage for well over two and a half hours  and covered a significant portion of Steely Dan's back catalogue. They finished the show with the iconic track Reelin' In the Years from the Can't Buy a Thrill album and a standing ovation at the end; proving that actually... you can buy a thrill.