News... - Tuesday, 21 April 2009

And here we are! Two years later and it's really about time to update this site...

Regretfully, I must share the news that the gig on the 1st May at Charters (aka Blues On the Boat) in Peterborough is to be my last as an official member of The John O'Leary Band. The time has come that I wish to focus fully on the newly-monikered Northsyde - in fact this is the first time in my life that I will be a member of only one band at one time!

My first gig in The John O'Leary Band was on the 25th September 2002, at the Eel Pie Club in Twickenham. It seems like half a lifetime ago... I truly have some terrific memories of a great period of personal musical development - that was such fun! Having my mind wholly challenged by the approach of the then-bass player Dave Hadley, who really opened my eyes to a whole new way of looking at a scale. Such lessons don't come often. Playing with musicians of the caliber of Dave and Joachim was a complete trip for this 23 year old! Long journeys up and down the country, late nights chatting as we sat on the M6. So many things to reminisce about fondly... And then when "The Inniss/Grudgings" years started - the band really hit a groove! We played some really fantastic gigs during this time. I have a particular space in my heart for our last gig at the Maryport Festival in July 2008. That was a moment and a half! With Jools flying on the Hammond, Rog working that 6 string bass like noone else, and Joachim sounding like 3 drummers at the same time... for a guitar player, that's the stuff dreams are made of!

And the constant at the front of it all, John O'Leary himself! John's willingness to let us "do our thing" - and forget about the rules of what a blues band "should be" - all the while blowing his harp like crazy at the front of the stage... I cannot stress enough what a liberating factor he was as a band leader. I will be forever grateful for the opportunity to play in the band and forever indebted to him for the work he put into keeping the band on the road through thick and thin.

And so my thanks and best wishes and hopes for the future go to John, Roger and Jools and all incarnations to come of The John O'Leary Band. Also a thank you to all the musicians that I overlapped with in the JOL band over the years... Dave Hadley-Ray, Joachim Greve, Malcolm Bruce, Dominique VanTomme, Tim O'Sullivan, Nick Townsend, Silvio Galasso, Dave Clarke, Marc Le Guerrannic, Winston DeLandro, Michael Ruiz, Michael Bailey, Jamie Little, Wayne Proctor, Dave Moore, Roy Adams, Neil Simpson... what a trip indeed!

And so now to the future... Northsyde's album "Mercy's Medicine" is finally arriving this week back from the printing presses, ready for us to start the machine up and get it out into the open for people to hear! At last! It's been two years in the making... which is probably about a year and half too late... but here it is. Let's see what the future brings!

Keep an eye on the gig list and please - keep supporting live music! If you enjoy it - go and see bands live! Venues are closing left, right and centre - we need to nurture creativity wherever it's found around us... if we lose venues, it's going to take a long time to get them back!

Stay well,

Jules