WE HAVE a relaxed breakfast and morning then Bill and Dorothy hit the road just after midday.
MIkey really needs a new phone so we spend a while looking at options and his budget then manage to strike a deal with EE that ticks all the boxes. There’s a lot of waiting to get through on the phone but it’s well worth the effort.
After Mikey goes we have a nap then I take the carful of gear back to the studio where I spend a couple of hours trying to troubleshoot the Quad Cortex. I do a couple of factory resets, check the firmware and trawl the online forums and help. No joy.
A little disheartened I email Neural DSP support and send a video clip showing the problem….
Bill opens up this year’s summer ‘gig in the garden’
WE’RE UP reasonably early and after breakfast venture outside to raise the gazebos for this afternoon’s ’gig in the garden’.
Margaret and Dorothy start getting the seating and stuff sorted out while Bill plays some guitar and I start bringing over my gear and the PA etc.
Everything goes pretty well to plan and I get Bill sound checked…but when I plug my guitar in there’s a problem. My Quad Cortex is goosed. I try various power options in case it’s a voltage issue but nothing works so I end up having to DI my guitars into the PA. Not great, but at least it makes a noise!
The event is advertised as 2.30pm gate for a 3pm start but of course folks start rolling up early…some as much as an hour which kinda stresses me out as any time I’d made up by being organised and making sure everything was well prepped in advance has been consumed with the Quad Cortex issue.
Regardless, we manage to stay on track and the garden’s full of folks when Bill kick things off at 3pm.
We take turns to play a few songs each and then do a couple together at the end – and apart from a few showers the weather’s pretty much on our side.
By the time everyone’s gone and we’re tidied up it’s nearly 8pm and Margaret gets dinner sorted. Mikey had been going to camp up the loch side but at nearly 30 quid to pitch a wee tent for the night we decided he couch was a better option.
After a few hours shovelling stones…the new ‘outdoor toilet area is ready for tomorrow’s (Saturday) garden concert…
AFTER breakfast I get straight to clearing the secluded back corner of our garden that we use as a (men’s) outdoor toiler area during garden gigs.
It’s a muddy, messy space with lots of old plant pots, garden bits and bobs…and the log splitter. I get bitten to death by midges!
Once cleared I put down some weed barrier then it’s a case of shovelling and barrowing the pile of gravel from our side door to the ‘toilet area’. I’m knackered pretty quick!
Margaret comes and helps spread the gravel and we put down a couple of slabs then the archway thing Margaret bought to put up a shower curtain for privacy.
Next job is getting the gazebos out and part erected then I make some sugo and pasta dough for tonight’s dinner.
I’m not long done when Bill and Dorthy arrive and we have a grand evening of chat, food and drinks…’til after 2am…
THE KIDS have us awake at the crack of dawn and I get some sourdough in the oven.
Just as well we’re up and around early as Margaret gets a message from AO saying they’ll be delivering our fridge freezer in 15 minutes.
After breakfast I get on with some work and Margret takes the kids to feed the ducks and a wee walk to see Betty.
Willie and Craig roll up in a wee tipper with a load of gravel from our pal Sandy and dump it at the side door. We’re gonna try and level out the wee area at the side of the office that we use as a (men’s) toilet area when we host garden gigs.
I take a walk to the next village to pick up some local hydro stuff from Julie then it’s time to get the kids in the car and drop them at Carolyn and Steve’s in Buchlyvie on our way to Gartmore for dinner at Duncan and Irene’s.
NO LONG lie today as I have a 9am online session with one of my guitar students.
The new fridge/freezer is due to be delivered tomorrow. After emptying the freezer into bags and taking it to Betty’s garage I clear a route out the merch store and office and we move it outside. Although the fridge stopped working, the freezer was still going.
There’s some bits and bobs to be done around a Brighton show at Komedia in March then I get busy with some other design work – need new shirts and a new backdrop soon.
I’m heading out for a walk up the lochside when Will drops off the kids for the night. When I get back my walk, Margaret has a meeting at the village hall so I have the kids for a couple hours. We feed the ducks and go for a walk, then I dig the old Wii out the studio and set it up in the house for Aaron to play.
WE HAVE A bit of a long lie then start the unpacking and putting away. Not just the music stuff, but all the camping gear too.
It’s not raining so I get the sleeping pad unfurled and out to make sure there’s no dampness and then spread the tent out – it was pretty wet when we packed up on Sunday morning. There’s a light breeze which helps things dry off pretty quick then we get it all repacked and put away.
Margaret decides to go on a shopping trip into Glasgow and I spend some time in the studio editing a wee reel of clips from Saturday’s set at Uptoon Blues Festival. Margaret managed to capture three or four songs on my phone – I did take the GoPro but stupidly left the memory card in the computer.
I get some much-needed fresh air and exercise with a walk up the lochside then get some prep done for dinner before Margaret gets back with the shopping.
Grand time playing Upton Blues Festival…despite the intense heat
IT’S RAINING when we wake up. I go to the toilet and get our coffee mugs out the car then make us a coffee inside the tent.
We have some croissants and then the rain goes off and we join our fellow campers and pals before taking the gear to load in at the acoustic roots stage. Christine and Tony from Blues in Britain magazine are set up at the entrance and are also helping with everyone’s merch.
I’m not on ‘til evening but enjoying hanging out and catching up with other folks playing and meeting some new folks too.
The backstage area has everything anyone could ask and the place is rammed with folks from the moment it opens.
It’s really, really muggy and warm tho’ – not just in the venue but everywhere – and I struggle with the heat during my set but all goes well and the sound is fantastic. And an amazing crowd. Trevor joins me on my final song, Loch Lomond Home.
There’s another r couple of acts after me – Trevor and his band and then Dom Martin who does a solo acoustic set, We all hang out and it’s great to have the chance to watch (and hear) some great performances.
We get to Upton in time to catch our pal Pat on the Riverside stage…
WE MANAGE to get away just after 8am and take it in turns to drive to Upton with a few stops along the way.
There’s a few delays and jams along the way but we mange to find our camping area just after 4pm, get the tent up and wander down to the riverside stage to catch our pal Pat playing.
After picking up some supplies at a shop in the town we drop off at the tent, stop in at the acoustic roots stage then hit the meadow and have some grub and drink.
Then back to the acoustic stage for the last act and then the tent. We stir with Trev, Emma and Trev’s brother Kev and have a couple glasses of wine then turn in for the night.
