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“The Mens Club” of Doncaster
When Becky told me she wanted a band for our wedding I was a tad concerned. I hadn't been to a wedding with a band, in fact the only time I had seen this was in the movies and it never looked that good. Anyway, we (read Becky) started looking around at different bands etc, each slightly worst than the other until we had basically given up.
Becky came home one day and told me she had booked "The Mens Club" and that they were brilliant and I would love them. Then all of Becky's family, when they found out, told me how fantastic they were and they couldn't wait to see them. In fact some of them wanted to know what time the band was on, in such a way that implied that that was the main bit. "As long as we get there for the band"… Blimey.
So, with the day looming I had to confirm a few things with the band: could they play music in between sets, what time would they be set up for and had they sent all the paperwork to the venue. I spoke to Glyn who was great, he sounded like it was all under control and was looking forward to playing. Good stuff. Nothing was a problem and I hung up feeling pretty good about the whole thing – which was nice.
The Day
I saw all of their kit set up when the evening doo started to kick off and then they come out. They started to play and I knew I was going to like them. They were brilliant. They had a full repertoire ranging from the 60's up to the present day and it was magical. My favourite song of the evening being their rendition of Black Eyed Peas – I Gotta Feeling. Certainly got up and got my groove on in the zone for that song. They even managed to get a Van Morrison song in there – which I loved.
Everybody was up dancing, and they were really lively and entertaining. Luckily, when the second set was finished and people were shouting for more, they obliged and then did a medley.
If you are wanting a band for your wedding, I can only recommend "The Mens Club". You will not be disappointment – in fact I think you will owe me for recommending them. They are awesome. I could not imagine having a wedding without them now, and I have to thank Becky for putting up with my moaning and booking them. They made the night doo.
Way back when
Recently I managed to get my hands on some of my artwork I did about 10 years ago and it now hangs on the wall in my house. I have to say that it really does bring back some memories, always good, from that period of of my life. So this was back around 2000 when I was finishing off my G.C.S.E’s and hadn’t started working at the cinema yet (and therefore not met my wife to be).
This is only going to make me look like a geek, which certainly isn’t the case (promise), but I use to go to art club after school so I could get a lift home from my mum once she finished work. I use to have to walk about 2 point something miles to and from school, and doing that in the cold of winter didn’t really appeal.
When I say Art Club, it paints a picture of loads of people who signed something to say they were part of it, or wore badges to demarcate them from the rest. This really wasn’t the case, it generally was just myself, Sam and one of the best teachers I ever had: Ian Watson. We basically listening to a lot of R.E.M., James, Manics, Catatonia and a load of other stuff, and just “faffed” around with our artwork. It was great, best part of any day really.
So the piece above was part of a collection that formed my idea of 20th Century Popular Culture and included loads of 3D artwork, which deep down I hope Ian still has, although to be fair to him he can’t keep everything. I even made about a 10 inch 3D model of E.T. out of clay, and painted him up good and proper. Sadly I gave this piece away to a blonde lady who was 2 years above me and had a nice smile, how very shallow I was!!
Good times, and maybe I should try and see if I can reclaim some more. I am sure there is a pair of 3D trousers modelled on the idea of Han Solo frozen in carbonite from Star Wars knocking around somewhere.