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.
I NEED to get the WIldcats’ brass pins finished, packed and sent out today so get busy in the office.
I take a break when a guy from Glasgow comes to check out the camera gear I have for sale and, thankfully, takes it. Good to get rid of it not only to get some dosh, but also because it was taking up space in the studio.
Once the pins are finished I start packing to send off and realize I only have a couple jiffy bags left. Damn. I order some more and then spend some time ,making do with envelopes, bubble wrap and packing tape.
While dealing with that I engrave some bar blade bottle openers to have in the merch bag for the weekend.
Eventually I vacate the office and Margaret gets in to sort the merch. I hit the studio to rehearse then pack the gear and start loading the car ready for an early start in the morning.
As well as merch and music gear, we also need to sort and pack all the camping stuff. Oooffft.
THE COMPUTER is having a meltdown in the studio when I try and set up for an online guitar session. I start it off on my phone and when the computer finally plays ball we switch over.
Dawn arrives for her lesson just as I finish the online session then I have a half hour break before another student on Zoom.
In between times there’s a few orders in for the brass Wildcats’ pins so I nip in and out the office to do some work on them.
After lunch I start a batch of tote bags with the new logo. Is quite laborious but I get through our stock of blank bags then go for a walk up the lochside.
We have dinner at the local pub with Betty then go back to hers for a drink before wandering home.
The brass Wildcats’ pin gets a fair bit of interest 🙂
THE DAY starts with a relatively free diary -– only two major tasks on today’s to-do list.
Disruption doesn’t take long to cast its shadow and I end up having to spend the entire morning sorting out some website related problems. Ah well.
After lunch I get some promo done for Saturday’s appearance at Upton Blues Festival before sorting out the media assets for the imminent Still Friends PR and promo.
I put the limited edition brass Wildcats’ pins on sale in a special Wildcats-only section in my online store.
My late afternoon guitar student arrives for a session after which I see there’s a few orders in for the Wildcats’ pins. I get busy!
Our pal Tom stops by to chat through some local community stuff. It’s nearly 11pm when he leaves I m,are some steak tacos for a rather late dinner.
Final video clip from my recent show at The Glad Cafe, Glasgow
USUAL Monday early rise to get the sourdough in the oven – more important this week as Mikey found some chanterelles yesterday and we’re gonna have them for breakfast.
The mushrooms on fresh toasted sourdough make for a great breakfast then I get some work done before a mid-morning session with one of my online guitar students.
Before Mikey heads off I create a mock up image of a shed he hopes to put up in his garden in Dundee.
After lunch Margaret goes to get some shopping – we need milk and yogurt amongst other things as our ‘extra’ fridge in the merchant store has finally croaked and most stuff in it has gone off 🙁
She also posts off the customer spurtle earrings, pin and complimentary pendant.
I finish editing the official Still Friends video – the single drops 11 August – so I can give the Wildcats a preview in tonight’s Facebook livestream.
I also edit the last live clip from the recent show at The Glad Cafe to include in the livestream
The livestream goes smoothly and I manage to get out for a quick walk before dinner’s ready 🙂
ANOTHER scortchio day – I get to work finishing the custom spurt order then hit the studio.
Once I get a set list made up for next Saturday’s show at Upton Blues Festival I run through some of the songs.
I think I’ll just take one steel guitar plus the banjo and acoustasonic as space int eh air is gonna be tight with all the camping stuff.
There’s a message from someone on Facebook who, back in February, made an offer on the camera stuff I had for sale then promptly disappeared. I’m naturally cautious they’re back in touch and after a few messages and a phone call from his brother-in-law a provisional arrangement has been made for him to come and see the stuff on Thursday afternoon.
Mikey’s arrived and is staying the night. I make some fresh pasta with wild garlic and an Italian sausage sugo. Once we’ve eaten we chill and watch Billy’s monthly livestream. they’re over form Florida and staying at their ‘other’ house in Invergowrie for a few months…and coming here in a coupla weeks for the garden gig.
Spurtle earrings and pendant taking shape…still a bit of work to do!
MORE work to be done on the customer spurtle earrings, pendant and pin…I get busy.
In the studio I record some audio clips for a radio show whose host has asked me to pick four influential songs and two of my own and record some intros to each.
It’s another lovely day and I decide to experiment with a GoPro to see if I can livestream from it…my test is to play Walk the Walk in the garden. And it works
I do a little more editing on what will be the official video for Still Friends then we walk along to Barbara and Thortens. They’ve got the grill on and invited us along for dinner.
Fiona joins us and we have a grand evening eating, drinking and chatting outside despite me getting stung on the tongue by a wasp that had got inside my bottle of beer!
