Alas I won’t be on time to get booked for a floor-spot at tonight’s gig in Seend – due to an altercation this evening with a bicycle thief!! Malcolm will have started the night already and it would be unreasonable of me to expect him to fit me in now as the night is already well-subscribed. I’m staying here to set traps for thieves …. Hmm.

Here’s a bit of an update with full details of gigs coming up. Busy week this week!

Firstly I’ll be playing at The Steamboat in Ipswich this Thursday as part of their regular songwriters night. I’ll be promoting the album and copies will of course be available on the night. So if you happen to be from Ipswich or know anyone who is please spread the word

This Saturday I’ll be playing a solo acoustic set at The Seven Stars in Bristol. Music starts at 3pm and my set will probably be around 4pm though sometimes this can be subject to last minute changes on the day. Other acts billed are:  

Jerry Turner
Christian Walsh
Sam Scott

This Sunday afternoon I’ll also be playing for Oxjam, a charity event. The gig is an all day songwriters event taking place on the boat “Under The Stars” moored up on the harbourside, opposite the Waterfront cafe/bar. Lots of top local talent will be playing. My set is billed to be at 4:30pm so please stop by if you’re passing. A full programme of events and details can be found on Oxjams Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=117801778277295 

That’s all for now. Whatever you’re doing, have good times  and don’t forget to tune in to Radio Bristol – they’re still playing my tunes!

Lots of exciting stuff happening at the moment!

If you’re out & about in Bristol this Saturday you could do worse than to check out BrisFest in the city centre at around 4pm – I will be “busking for Oxjam” until about 5pm so please come along and show some support – it’s all for charity

I’ve been writing a lot of late and this has resulted in some new solo set pieces and also the development of new band-oriented material as well as some new work underway with the poetry/music collaboration. This is all good as it promises sustainment for these projects that might otherwise appear to be a short-term thing. The band is going through personnel changes at present so it feels good to be writing with the remaining members. We are currently looking for someone to play additional acoustic / electric guitar so if anyone’s interested please drop me a line. Once we’re fully staffed we can get out there gigging again – which is really all we want to do

Another rather excellent gig is coming up for me in Bristol on 14th October too, at The Thunderbolt Shockingly that’s not as far in the future as it sounds, so put it in your diaries… I’ll be supporting JEBO. If you haven’t heard of these fellas look them up on tinternet!  The band has just finished mixing the new album with ex-Island Records producer John Burns (Jethro Tull, Genesis and John Martyn) and Real Worlds Ben Findlay. They are really making waves and it promises to be a top night

Talking of albums, many thanks to those of you who have parted with your hard-earned cash and ordered copies of “You Should Know…” And it’s sooo nice to note such positive feedback I’ve been getting as well! If you haven’t got yourself a copy yet just get yourself over to the STORE page and order one. Might make an ideal early Christmas present for someone You can hear a sneak preview of a few tracks to give you an idea on my myspace page too if it helps…

And to top it all off, I’m chuffed as well to have been nominated for BBC Radio Bristol’s playlist during the month of October! Tracks from the album will soon be hitting the airwaves across the city and I can’t wait …. !!

Well, Venue Magazine have delivered on their promise and provided a review of my album “You Should Know” in their last issue. If you didn’t get to read it, don’t worry you didn’t miss much really. I’m not ungrateful, it’s not bad. And certainly I don’t expect to righteously garner glowing review after glowing review.  Music, afterall, like all art comes down to a matter of taste. I know that I can put on what I think is my best show with my best work and less than half the room may like it. That’s cool – I’ll take that chance just to reach the portion of the audience that do. I guess perhaps I’m perplexed. I have been compared a lot over the years to the likes of Alanis Morisette, Joni Mitchell and Dido. I cannot fathom why. And so predictably I’ve again been confronted with the very un-original comparisons with those same apparitions. For one thing the reviewer seems to feel that You Should Know owes it’s title to an Alanis song .. er, hello? that’s my title track luv! And also it’s meant by way of an introduction – this being a debut album an’ all. Where the hell did Alanis come in?

sigh. .  . well, there’s some meaningful critique in there which I’ll take on board to some extent – this is what I look for in a review, alongside a few helpful sound-bytes if I’m lucky and a bit of PR. Therefore, though I remain genuinely befuddled by the somewhat sweeping comparisons made, I will happily take the following:

“there is an overall quality here that defies nit-picking”

Ta!

I’d be interested to hear from anyone who’s heard me live or on cd / on air who they think I could be likened / compared to. Ideas anyone? Post a comment or send me a message If you agree with Venue – tell me why! If you have other suggestions, these will be happily received! x Bj

If you’re superstitious I guess You’ll skip it, especially considering the weather we’ve been having and the fact the venue’s called The Thunderbolt perhaps ….? !

But the daring will find me, the band, Jack Bird and a nice young fella called Jacob Ainsley taking to the stage just the same So dig out your rabbits-foot, cross your fingers and come on down to Totterdowns finest live venue and grab a pint and a pew (literally!) … Details are on the Gigs page.

Well, Larmer Tree Festival is over now and my itchy feet are nearly back on terra-firma …  In the midst of all this festivalling I’ve seen some great music and performance – the poetry too has been amazing. There are so many people I’d want to recommend but if you see one act this year, try to catch DIZRAELI & THE SMALL GODS. It will blow your mind. And if you buy one cd this year – obviously let it be mine! … And then if you buy a second one, let it be his (Dizraeli).

My next gig is a solo set at The Seven Stars, Bristol this Sunday 3pm. Albums will of course be on sale. … and if attendees could help me extend my festy-high by adding little touches like, i dunno, slopping about in wellies, paying me in toilet roll – that kind of thing – appreciated it would be!!

Just to remind you all (because if you were counting on Venue Mag to inform you, it aint happenin’) ALBUM LAUNCH GIG @ COSIES, PORTLAND SQ, BRISTOL WEDNESDAY 14TH JULY 9PM …. woo!

It’s £3 to get in (£2 if you pick up a flyer or download it from my Facebook site) and you get to buy a signed copy of the album for £8 instead of £10.

As well as covering album tracks I will also be playing an extended set of brand new tunes … fodder for the next album, no doubt!!

Hope to see ya there …. Bj

Ok, enough of the Venue bashing (the last gig was a great success despite their omission to print) – lets get back to business: The next gig for this month on 23rd @ Porter Cellar Bar, Bath has been CANCELLED due to a decision by the venue to put the football on instead.

Secondly, the album will be released on 14th July (yes, this year!! ) … There will be a launch gig for this in Bristol on the very day. It’s at Cosies (which isn’t quite the same as it used to be). You will of course be able to get yourself a copy on the night.

More soon …

yes, that’s right – we’ve all seen it haven’t we – at least if we’re about in Bristol & Bath we have. Because Venue Magazine is THE go-to publication to peruse if you are looking for What’s On in Bristol & Bath. Apparently. Readers of said magazine will all be aware that  music venues in Bristol / Bath consist of none other than The Colston Hall, The Cooler, The Croft, The Prom, Moles and The Louisiana. All purveyors of fine entertainment to be sure. And the ONLY ones. Apparently. And it goes without saying that of course any local person putting something on they want people to know about in Bristol & Bath (or what would be the point?) should make the provision of contacting THE go-to publication for What’s On in plenty of time with as much detail and helpful info / images as possible to assure themselves of meeting the deadline of going to print. Well, it does – doesn’t it?

Lo! Well then something must be wrong. There must have been some critical malfunction amongst the droids who make up the THE Unquestionable and Informed Committee of Whats On in Bristol & Bath. Because if we are to believe them then I don’t really do any gigs around here at all. I am especially not playing at The Thunderbolt this Wednesday. I am not part of a band. I’ve never released any EP’s. I am not releasing an album this year. I am not part of any other musical side-projects and in fact I don’t exist. We know this must be true because (despite the stacks of cd’s, reems of biogs and press clippings, j-pegs and listings correspondance that no doubt litter the Editors desk) none of this has ever appeared in THE go-to publication for What’s On in Bristol & Bath.  

 I wonder how many other independent singers, poets, intrumentalists and performers local to this area are also experiencing this same disconcerting rift in the fabric of space-time and are being called to question their very existence amidst the apparent futility of all their artistic efforts? More than just a handful, I would think. You see we can’t all be John Power or Martyn Joseph. And John and Martyn didn’t get to be who they are without first having to be someone else amongst the ranks of the nameless. And they wouldn’t have got there at all without any sodding press coverage and a bit of frigging help with making sure people knew who they were and where they could be found!

Here’s a tip that should be of equal value to both gig-goers and music journalists alike : Bristol & Bath has a vibrant music scene today – yes. But for tomorrows music scene to flourish you need to shine a little light underground where it’s roots are. And nourish it.

Oh it’s taken so long! I’m sorry. . . But, then again I’m not. It will be worth the wait …

ALBUM RELEASE DATE: 14TH JULY 2010 … put it on your fridges, stencil it on your houses, set reminders on your phones…

This is an independent release on my own label so it’ll have a DIY feel about it – however the content is about as polished as it can get. I’m very happy with it and I hope you will be too. In the first instance it will be available from this site only but that will change as other distribution comes on board. And, yes, a tour is in the wings Which brings me to Gigs. 

Sat 22nd May is Stokes Croft Street Festival in Bristol and I’ve just been confirmed with the 1pm slot at The Full Moon on Stokes Croft (where else eh?) so if you’re about do pop in and say hi.

Wed 2nd June is a big gig for me at The Thunderbolt (ex-”Turnpike”) on Bath Road, Bristol. It’s big cos it’s bringing together all the musical projects I’m involved in under one roof. So you’ll hear me and poet Helen Gregory do some of the material we’re taking to Glastonbury Festival this year. You’ll also hear me taking a back seat in acoustic rock duo “Label 5″. You’ll hear Jack Bird (the bassist in my band but also a tres bonne singer-songwriter in his own right). You’ll hear aforementioned band. And you’ll get to listen to me play you a solo set of completely new, never-before-heard-except-possibly-by-my-cat-and-the-neighbours (gawdloveem) songs.  So that’s the entertainment sorted – now all I need is YOU

Thanks for taking the time to drop in and read this. Come back any time. More soon …

Bj x