TV and Jazz Clubs

Well die we didn’t, in fact we lived on with frightfully good energy. I wont bore you with the details of the following gig except to say it was in an astoundingly classy jazz club. In fact this club had so much class it bordered on the ridiculous and pushed it more towards the cliché of an astounding jazz club. Right up to the point of demanding the band play 3 one hour sets, who has the tolerance to listen to three sets of any form of music…..not me and I was on stage . The club was called “Once In A Blue Moon” which was displayed behind the bandstand in classic blue neon. I think you get my point, lets move on.

A four hour bus trip later we were in a huge TV studio setting up for the Korean equivalent of Top Of The Pops. Now I have been involved in some strange situations , many in this small tour alone, but this one was absurdist. The day was already long, set up was followed by a seven hour wait before it was our time to take to the stage for our one hour blistering set that was to be broadcast to millions of Korean houses. The endurance effort required to wait 7 hours in a TV studio with no one to talk to except the people you ran out of conversation with 3 days ago and little to entertain you except a large plasma TV playing 72 channels of Korean Soap Opera, and 2 small bottles of whisky is significant. The line up for the show was to include a famous Japanese piano player who had nailed down the less than significant style made famous by Richard Clayderman in the early 80s followed by us and wrapped up tastefully with a Japanese boy Rock out fit, all to be interspersed with interviews conducted in three languages by a giggling Korean teenage host and her staff of interpreters. Perfect, I thought to myself. Why wouldn’t millions of people watch a smorgasbord like that?

Well perfect it was in true asian style. The studio audience was full of screaming teenagers that never let their energy levels drop below hyperactive as the put their heart and soul into mimicking the correct dance steps for the fast numbers, getting all teary on the slow numbers, hopstepping when required. The band played it up realising that we were taking part in some strange miniture reinactment of a Beatles concert. I kept my suit jacket on the entire hour despite the ragging heat being caused by the massive lighting system spraying spotlights and psychedelic colours all over us, thought it would be more authentic to keep it on. I love Sydaney was yelled by many of the delightful audience, no mention of Melbourne which I can understand. And at one stage I heard one of our band members names being called out again and again until he finally looked up to be met with a youngster making a heart like shape with her arms towards him. I can only presume this was to indicate her new found love of his chromatic soloing style.

Asia ….fantastic.