Tour Diary Day 8 The Borderline London final night of tour

After staying over in Covent Garden Steve Pitt and I left the place early to see if we could get tickets for the Bowie exhibition at the V&A in South Kensington. I've been looking forward to this all tour as I'm a huge Bowie fan and whilst I'm at London on the final day I thought it would be fantastic to see. We queued for ages to get in...then we got in....and queued again.....then when our ticket time came about...we queued again. It was so worth it it was incredible, a real lesson in how to put on an art exhibition. Headphones are given to you at the start but you don't have to interact with them at all, it kicks in for you! So you just walk about the place and they play the relevant sound bite to whatever you're looking at! Lyric sheets, costumes, films, audio, posters, art concept design...everything you could wish for is in there. I wholeheartedly recommend going along.

A quite peculiar sculpture hanging from the museum at the V&A

Lyrics from Space Oddity at the David Bowie exhibition 

There he is!!!

This little splash pool is a little Oasis in the middle of the V&A 

So tonight is Terry's seminal album "Seed Of Memory" back to back with full band. It's something his fans have been waiting for a long time and after last nights success the band are more than up to the task. I'm actually really looking forward to hearing the album in its entirety. 

After bantering about in the dressing room with Terry I go and talk to tonight's audio recorders who are no other than Steve Hampton and Jax (his lovely partner). Hampton is a bit of a musical legend himself and is also responsible for one of the tracks on my new album, a re-working of "City Speed" a fantastic early sixties sounding slow psych pop version as well! Steve and I ate in the old Marque venue which is now unfortunately a Weatherspoons...but fortunately for us it is ......as I'm hungry.....

Last nights set list for the Terry gig

So after a tense soundcheck we were ready to go. I just had a line check quick and it was relatively the same as the night before so it wasn't a problem really. As I came on the room was empty but for a few people around the bar and the sound desk. Like last night though they came in thick and fast by my third track. I felt relaxed up there tonight I really wanted to enjoy myself as it was the last gig of the tour, and that I did. There were a couple of people there from the night before and I carried on the banter, and people were receptive to my cheeky mutterings in-between tracks. It's a great feeling to settle in mid-set and know the people in the room are on your side. Again lots of great feedback and kind words from the older crowd that had come to see their musical hero and stumbled across me!

I've loved playing to his crowd, and they have embraced me also and for that I thank them.

It was also a pleasure to catch up with one of my best chums Ali Robertson who has recently come back from travelling. It was a good few years ago now I started this singer/songwriter lark on my own opening for his band at the time The Aviators. 

This tour has been a fantastic experience for me. Seeing parts of the country I haven't seen, playing to engaging crowds, and meeting some lovely people. Playing your music to people, them responding to it, and being treated with respect in your art is the goal of most musicians. I've learned that I can cross over my material to different ages and also can hold my own in situations that are against me, and it's been such a valuable and fruitful experience.

Terry's set was great for me as I hadn't heard some of these track live as it was the seed of memory album. Some of the tracks don't really work acoustic so he doesn't play them, but really fly in this environment when he's with the band. The problems with his voice now seemed to not be an issue as it was the last night of the tour. Terry was giving it some and having fun up there! After the intense soundcheck going through tracks that he himself hadn't played for years it was fantastic seeing it come together so well. Even the normally sidetracked Steve Pitt who normally has seven thousand things going round in his head to organise, was bashing a bear mat on the table in time! I think everyone including myself wanted to have a good time tonight and enjoy it :-) and it was really coming out in their playing tonight. "The way you walk" was fantastic and to see terry losen up into a rock setting and really let it rip was a joy to watch. He even jumped on the organ to do a track! .... I knew that was going to happen though....saw it in soundcheck ;-). Ed Tudor Pole is sat next to me while I write this....bit weird.....

This last show was a real success....and a perfect way to end the tour on good vibes and great music.

.....until.....

....the pack down and load out.....

We always knew it was going to be tough to get a 6 piece band out of a venue on a lower than street level position and into a piss-soaked side street next to a pub, the G.A.Y nightclub in full swing and building works developing the old Astoria site...but then as Jim and myself were guarding the lift entrance with the gear in it ready for the cars .....we had a visitor...

An extremely drunk girl took it upon herself to wander into the lift and start provoking me by abusing me, prodding me, and kicking equipment. Now...not being particularly equipped for such a alcohol fused girl with the grace of a sack of manure....I respectfully asked her to leave the lift and stop provoking me for no reason. This led to her slapping me round the face....twice!

So I did the only thing a man can do in this situation....I told on her! I went and got the security guard, she didn't move for him so we had to get a women guard from G.A.Y to threaten her to move. She still kept coming back! Which meant we were being watched by the guard for an hour whilst we moved the gear....

A shame the night ended like this as understandably I was rather riled up as I couldn't do anything about the slap with her being a human of the female variety!!

Still after winging a little about it to Steve on the way home I wasn't going to let that ruin a fantastic night......:-)

Silly girl...

Some thanks are in order...

Terry Reid of course for being generally warm to me throughout and wanting me to support him. He treated me with respect throughout.

Jim for driving us round the country sorting gear out and generally helping the wheels turn.

All the venues who have been hospitable and friendly, even when things have got tense.

All the people that came to see us and engaged with the music and what we do, it really is appreciated I assure you.

Anna & Eric for their warmth and banter.

Extra special thanks should go to Steve Pitt.

The organiser of the whole tour, averting crisis by making the whole thing operate. There will not be a tour without him and he is constantly thinking ahead for potential problems. Apart from being a good friend of mine he is often not given credit for how hard he works, and I thank him for everything he did and has done for me not only on this tour but throughout me doing music. Thanks mate x

Soooo.......

The Havant show .....20th of June at the spring arts centre in Havant, a headline hometown show with Rowan Bastable of Kassassin Street. Tickets can be bought from here 

Here's the link to the Havant show in June
http://www.thespring.co.uk/events/andrew-foster/

Here's a lovely review from New Reviews of Personal Legend...thanks to them  

http://www.new-reviews.co.uk/?p=8496

Personal Legend (Science & Magic)
Mastered by Pete Maher
(U2, Beady Eye)