POLLY AND THE BILLET DOUX'S DEBUT ALBUM REVIEWED IN THE INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY

Blow me down if Polly and The Billet Doux's debut album 'Fiction, half-Truths and Downright Lies' was reviewed in the Independent On Sunday the day after they appeared on Radio 4's Loose Ends.

This group really is getting around some.

Sadly, their music is not to the reviewer's taste, his/her argument based on the idea that it was the kind of music that Terry Wogan might once have played on his Radio Two show.

However, when I spoke to Polly about this she was as chuffed as hell that:-

a. the album had even been reviewed in such a prestigous Sunday newspaper (there's no such thing as bad publicity)

and

b. Terry Wogan actually loves their music and is going to play tracks on his show, which has an enormous audience.

"Keep the review," I said, "and gloat over it when you're really famous, as I intend to do with all my rejections from agents and magazines."

Somehow, I think that Polly and The Billet Doux will be well famous way before I am/not.

Anyway, there are plenty of excellent reviews of their music to read if you google their name, including a glowing report from this year's Glastonbury performance.

I pride myself on recognising talent when I see it and am so chuffed that I've been able to see them play live and for John to record some of their performances.

And by the way, thank you to the person who left a comment on my blog about the Loose Ends performance. It would seem that comments can only be accessed, at present, by clicking on the title of the relevant blog but John plans to fiddle around with my computer so that comments are more readily available, because I 'lurve' comments.

And since I've mentioned my computer, you might be interested to know that I've traded in my Mackingtosh (is that how you spell it?) Apple (nicknamed 'Fucku' by me), for a Dell, which is infinitely better/quicker/more user friendly and seems to see me as an ally rather than foe to be thwarted at every turn.

And a final thought, forty years since Woodstock yesterday and doesn't Jimi Hendrix still sound amazing!

POLLY AND THE BILLET DOUX ON 'LOOSE ENDS' RADIO 4

Was slumped in a chair in the kitchen just now (approximately 6.40 p.m.), watching John get supper ready and bemoaning the fact that I'd spent the whole day incapable of doing anything but sleep (this swine flu is NOT a gentle little illness), with Loose Ends (Radio 4) tinkering along in the background, when John shushed me and turned the radio up.

And playing, on national radio, was POLLY AND THE BILLET DOUX performing their single 'Follow My Feet'! And boy did they sound good!

Yippee! It has raised my spirits sufficiently to give me the strength to not only hold a glass of wine but also drink from it.

Now I can't wait to get better to go see Polly and say well done!

POLLY AND THE BILLETS DOUX

On Monday, Polly and the Billets Doux released their first ever single - Follow My Feet! - taken from their impending CD - Fiction, Half-Truths and Downright lies.

And to mark the occasion, they played a live gig at the HMV store in Winchester. I had forgotten just how good this band is. The acoustics in the place were not brilliant but the group sounded pretty damn good. Polly has just the most beautiful voice and she's a born performer. A delight to listen to.

John videoed the performance, which you can find here



And I took some photos from my coveted position leaning against the counter, as close to the door as I could get. It wasn't a great place to take photos from and I can't yet download them because I can't read the written instructions John wrote down for me (I am such a computer illiterate.) But I'll add them here once I've 'mastered' this complicated procedure. NOW DONE !

Those of us who waited patiently for the group to set up, which was at least half-an-hour, had to contend with people popping in at the last minute and standing right in front of us and thus blocking the exit. So there was a constant battle to move them, by the staff, because of health and safety regulations.

And, of course, I made my feelings known too: "I've been standing here for over half an hour to get a good view and you try and plonk yourself right in front of me," sort of thing and I wasn't taking "fuck you" for an answer.

Lots of copies of the single were sold and rumour has it that Taylor Swift, the American musician making a name for herself in the music industry, popped in to have a look-see-listen.

So, ALL IN ALL AN EXCITING AFTERNOON.

POLLY AND THE BILLET DOUX + MR JAMES BRIGHT + STORNOWAY

On Saturday evening John and I and friend Hilary, who we met in Morocco in June, went to the Winchester Discovery Centre to watch these three acts. The place was absolutely packed and there were loads of people sitting on the stairs and at the side, which tells you something of the popularity of these artists.

It was quite a nippy evening when we went to the previous concert there, a few months ago, so I was quite togged up, but it would have to be the hottest evening of what I loosely term our summer, and very humid so it felt like a sauna to me. However, I was the one laughing when we went outside during the interval because all those ladies in sleeveless dresses looked frozen. Strange what silly things seem to stick in my mind!

However, the music was, yet again, excellent.

The first act was Mr James Bright,a sort of folk singer/guitarist accompanied by a super tabla player, who wore a ring on one of his toes.

The second act was a group called Stornoway, from Oxford, and they presented a very different style of music using lots of different instruments and sounds and occasionally featuring two excellent violinists. The lead singer, Brian, a skeleton of a man with an enormous voice and dressed straight out of Oxfam, with a jaunty Bob Dylan cap, was most charismatic in an unusual sort of way, with plenty of funny stories about his time with the RSPCA. They produced a very exciting sound and are about to release an album, which I hope does well.

And then, after the break, we had Polly and the Billet Doux.

Half of Winchester appear to have had some kind of virus that leaves an unpleasant cough (I am coughing, myself as I write although Corvonia seems to be helping a lot) and Polly was suffering similarly. Although hidden from sight, she had an array of medicinal aids in front of her which her group were keen to point out and joke about: an enormous piece of root ginger, lozenges, cough mixture, a liquid which looked like pee and a glass of red wine (which Polly claimed was helping her the most).

If it had been me, I would have cancelled and curled up in bed, but Polly is a real pro (in the nicest possible way) and the show went on. How she managed, I do not know, but apart from a couple of times when she opened her mouth and nothing came out, she belted out her numbers with an alarming and spine-tingling strength.

Boy, does that girl have a voice and a half!

This group not only sounds good but they look good, too. Polly was wearing her customary red dress, black cut-off tights, little black top and a red flower in her long, brown hair and she just looks special. They all do. When I get back form Italy, where I shall collapse onto the beach and stay there apart form eating, drinking and sleeping, I intend to send a sample of her music to Jules Holland and Loose Ends (Radio 4 (I am a radio 4 devotee)) because they would be great on both shows.

This is a group with a sparkling future.

To hear more, log onto youtube.com/daftnotstupid

Talking of which, John was in San Jose a few weeks ago on business and his hotel just happened to be opposite the San Jose Jazz Festival. He had taken his camcorder (his most treasured possession) to make some recordings for his work but he took the opportunity to record some of the gigs and they are pretty damn good.

You know, I'm thinking this about my writing as well as the music John records. I'm not so sure that I want to get involved with the big, commercial money-making, cynical business people in publishing/recording. It's much more fun to play/write direct to an audience. Might not make mega-bucks but it does mean that you can maintain integrity and not be bullied and bossed about by the guys in grey.

Answers on a postcard! (Sorry, Polly, I've stolen your idea but I did tell you on Saturday Night that it was a great saying that I'd like to pinch for my writing!)

P0LLY, THE BILLETS DOUX AND FRIENDS AT THE WINCHESTER DISCOVERY CENTRE

Saturday evening, 24th May, I went with my husband and daughter (who had travelled from London specially for this event) to listen live to Polly and The Billets Doux, plus singers Rowlie, and Ryan O'Reilly, performing at the Winchester Discovery Centre. It had been agreed with Polly that my husband could record the show on his newly acquired camcorder, so we were looking forward to seeing just how good this machine actually was.

The centre was originally the Winchester Library, a beautiful old sand-stone building (originally Winchester Prison), which was closed for about two years to be modernised internally and for a modern, glass-fronted extension to be built, including a performance room and cafe, with an outside paved seating area for those of us dinasours who still smoke.

This area, at the top of Winchester, which is called Jewry Street, is being rejuvenated, with luxury flats (plus balconies - and I love balconies!) and the conversion of an old building into a Raymond Blanc Bistro: well worth a visit for fabulous food - the chocolate pudding is to die for - at surprisingly reasonable prices.

This part of town already looks really attractive and The Discovery Centre fits in beautifully.

The library section has, unfortunately, become rather a children's playground with lots of running around and shouting (can't help this observation - once a teacher always a teacher) and my other bugbear is the fact that most of the audio books, which I'm very keen on, are mainly in cassette form and my audio cassette has bust (as they always do eventually) and I can't find a new one so choice is limited, for me, to CD's.

However, it's still a great place to visit and I am particularly fond of the massive embroidered wall hanging that covers the back wall and can be seen through the glass windows from the street. I think I'm right in saying that it cost £50,000. Some Winchester residents think it's a waste of money but I don't. As an embroider myself (purely as a hobby), I think it's worth every penny. Winchester doesn't have many visible works of art (unlike most towns in say France) and I'm all for displays of creative excellence.

Back to the gig and the Centre is a super venue for intimate performances. The performance room itself holds either 100 people cabaret style or 150 in tiered rows, which was how this gig was presented. The place was packed out and there was a really friendly, relaxed atmosphere to it, particularly as the performers were so close to the audience and were, themselves, relaxed (or so it seemed to us) and inter-acted with us, which added to the atmosphere.

For the first half of the show, we were treated to two separate performances, each lasting 30 mins, for what I would describe as folk singers with electric guitars, playing, I think I'm correct in saying,their own compositions.

The first performance was by Rowlie, a very personable and talented young man and we were charmed by his skill, his voice and his lyrics. Later, we discovered that we had friends in common, and the next day we looked at his website (he produces print work plus other art work, having studied at Winchester College of Art) and you really must check this website out - his work is phenomenal. I'll post a link at the end of this blog.

Then came Ryan O'Reilly, whose style was very different and had echoes of Bob Dylan, harmonica and all. I was totally entranced by his lyrics and the range of his voice, all very personal and heartrending. I've just listened to my husband's recording of him and don't think it does him justice: it's difficult to capture the emotional tension through such a recording but it's still worth a listen. I certainly wouldn't be surprised if he becomes a national success.

And then we had a break and the dinosaurs went outside into what was a pretty nippy evening to have more beers and a ciggie, until we were called back for the main gig of the evening: Polly and the Billet Doux.

I've already written about this group in an earlier blog and already knew that they were good, having bought and enjoyed their EP. And playing live, they were even better. They both looked right and sounded right. There are 4 of them in the group and I've posted some of the photos I took, although I couldn't get all of them in the same frame.

Polly is a star in the making: she's a charismatic presence on the stage, chatting away with us from time to time and looking sensational with her long, brown hair, striking red dress and matching shoes and flower in her hair, but looks don't count for much if you can't sing and Polly can certainly sing. It was impossible to take your eyes off her or not to be moved by the depth of her singing, with its range from controlled to the full-on wow factor. And her group complemented her, providing a layer of sound and vocal harmonies that created a powerful performance.

Polly's hubby, Ben Perry, plays on drums, Dan Everett on double bass, guitar and vocal (he did a solo that was both funny and showed his skill as a bass player and singer) and Steeny (Andrew Steen), who has the look of a heavy metal rocker, plays a mean guitar, slide guitar and vocal.


Polly and the Billet Doux will be playing at this year's Glastonbury Festival and I'm sure that the audience will love them. We paid £6 per ticket on Saturday night. I doubt if we'll be paying so little to see them in the future.

What I loved about the whole experience was that all these young performers show that we have a wealth of musical/ visual talent in this country and that Winchester is an exciting place to be for creativity.

And, as you know, I'm all for creativity.

The photos:
* the first 5 are of Polly and Billet Doux
* the sixth is of Ryan O'Reilly
* the seventh is Rowlie

Links:
* for auditory and visual
videos, photos and further comments and links: daftnotstupid.com
* Rowlie's websites are:-

www.illillustration.com
www.soup-music.co.uk