Friday 29 December 2006
Chele's been snappin' again
Check out the new photos on our gallery page. Chele captured some magic moments with her camera at the Denbigh Arms Christmas do. Can you spot the difference between Santa Claus and Bob Brooker?
Monday 18 December 2006
Look out Leicester!
Molly O'Gradys has just added The Oddsods to their rota of regular acts.
This is the famous Irish pub in Leicester City Centre. They've booked us on the recommendation of some people who saw us at the Denbigh Arms and we have confirmed appearances on Saturday March 31st 2007 and Saturday 1st September.
Three other Friday and Saturday dates will be confirmed shortly.
Our performances will start at around 10.15pm. Looking forward to some great nights in a well-recommended venue - if you're anywhere in the East Midlands, check us out and say you read about us on this site. You won't win any prizes but you'll still have a good night out.
This is the famous Irish pub in Leicester City Centre. They've booked us on the recommendation of some people who saw us at the Denbigh Arms and we have confirmed appearances on Saturday March 31st 2007 and Saturday 1st September.
Three other Friday and Saturday dates will be confirmed shortly.
Our performances will start at around 10.15pm. Looking forward to some great nights in a well-recommended venue - if you're anywhere in the East Midlands, check us out and say you read about us on this site. You won't win any prizes but you'll still have a good night out.
Ch-ch-ch-changes
Message from Pete:
Observant regular visitors to this blog will notice some minor changes. Basically, I have had to rebuild this entire page from scratch after falling for Blogspot's line that an upgrade would make this page easier to manage. It didn't - it wasted an entire afternoon to repair damage when the profile details changed to reflect the profile of my personal blogs which are related to my day job and have nothing to do with The Oddsods. Grrrrr - I was wishing that Blogspot and Google would disappear up each other's you-know-where.
Anyway, this news page has been rescued and for the sake of music historians I have indicated the original date of the posts that are now all dated 16th December.
Observant regular visitors to this blog will notice some minor changes. Basically, I have had to rebuild this entire page from scratch after falling for Blogspot's line that an upgrade would make this page easier to manage. It didn't - it wasted an entire afternoon to repair damage when the profile details changed to reflect the profile of my personal blogs which are related to my day job and have nothing to do with The Oddsods. Grrrrr - I was wishing that Blogspot and Google would disappear up each other's you-know-where.
Anyway, this news page has been rescued and for the sake of music historians I have indicated the original date of the posts that are now all dated 16th December.
Saturday 16 December 2006
Don't mention the P word....
Archive 19th November 2006
We had a great time at the Denbigh Arms last Sunday. As well as the regulars who support us through thick and thin, we had a group of Australians in the audience who seemed in a good mood (something to do with the cricket?) and the excellent Rob Halligan who gave us a superb song. Oh yes - and the fellows with the cellos were back. Steve and Minty were in great form and between them and Mick on fiddle, there was a definite Classic FM feel about a couple of the numbers.
People are beginning to think that we're actually - er - practising (there I've said it)! This of course is totally contrary to The Oddsods' philosophy on music and we would never dream of doing such a thing. Honest! That get-together round Doc Rider's house the other night was just a lad's night out with some beers. Well we did play through one or two numbers - but just a jam you understand. The Oddsods would never knowingly play the same song twice in exactly the same way.
Our MySpace page is attracting a little more attention. If you are a MySpacer and you haven't yet checked us out, we're here! Become a friend and you'll be in the company of Christy Moore, The Proclaimers, Battlefield Band, The Levellers and The Chieftains, not to mention Weird Al from Los Angeles (you gotta check his page out!), plus a selection of musicians and music fans from Germany, the USA and the Outer Hebrides. OK - MySpace might be part of the Rupert Murdoch empire but social networking is fun and more and more people are getting to know us.
We had a great time at the Denbigh Arms last Sunday. As well as the regulars who support us through thick and thin, we had a group of Australians in the audience who seemed in a good mood (something to do with the cricket?) and the excellent Rob Halligan who gave us a superb song. Oh yes - and the fellows with the cellos were back. Steve and Minty were in great form and between them and Mick on fiddle, there was a definite Classic FM feel about a couple of the numbers.
People are beginning to think that we're actually - er - practising (there I've said it)! This of course is totally contrary to The Oddsods' philosophy on music and we would never dream of doing such a thing. Honest! That get-together round Doc Rider's house the other night was just a lad's night out with some beers. Well we did play through one or two numbers - but just a jam you understand. The Oddsods would never knowingly play the same song twice in exactly the same way.
Our MySpace page is attracting a little more attention. If you are a MySpacer and you haven't yet checked us out, we're here! Become a friend and you'll be in the company of Christy Moore, The Proclaimers, Battlefield Band, The Levellers and The Chieftains, not to mention Weird Al from Los Angeles (you gotta check his page out!), plus a selection of musicians and music fans from Germany, the USA and the Outer Hebrides. OK - MySpace might be part of the Rupert Murdoch empire but social networking is fun and more and more people are getting to know us.
Let's party!
Archive 19th November 2006
Christmas comes early this year - Sunday December 17th to be precise.
That's when The Oddsods (and Friends) will be holding the Christmas special at the Denbigh Arms, Monks Kirby, near Rugby. Musicians are welcome to join the lads for what should be a lively festive night of music, mince pies, party food and santa hats. And if you're really really lucky, Richard 'Doc' Rider might lead the carol-singing on his euphonium.
The evening will round off a full day of traditional Christmas entertainment. As many of you know, Oddsods members are also members of the Coventry Mummers. Richard and Pete are part of the cast for the Mummers' tour of the Newbold-on-Avon Christmas Play. Performances around the village culminate in a show at the Barley Mow pub, Newbold at around 1.30pm, followed by a music session.
Band members also tour local village hostelries for the Mummers' Harborough Magna Christmas Play on Friday 22nd December - watch this space for more details.
And if you're wondering what on earth Mumming is about - click here and be enlightened.
Christmas comes early this year - Sunday December 17th to be precise.
That's when The Oddsods (and Friends) will be holding the Christmas special at the Denbigh Arms, Monks Kirby, near Rugby. Musicians are welcome to join the lads for what should be a lively festive night of music, mince pies, party food and santa hats. And if you're really really lucky, Richard 'Doc' Rider might lead the carol-singing on his euphonium.
The evening will round off a full day of traditional Christmas entertainment. As many of you know, Oddsods members are also members of the Coventry Mummers. Richard and Pete are part of the cast for the Mummers' tour of the Newbold-on-Avon Christmas Play. Performances around the village culminate in a show at the Barley Mow pub, Newbold at around 1.30pm, followed by a music session.
Band members also tour local village hostelries for the Mummers' Harborough Magna Christmas Play on Friday 22nd December - watch this space for more details.
And if you're wondering what on earth Mumming is about - click here and be enlightened.
Wanna Come Back To My Space?
Archive 14th November 2006
The Oddsods have been unleashed into the world of 'social networking'. Yes, we now have a MySpace page. Do check us out and, if you are also on MySpace, please be our friend - we need as many friends as we can get!
The site includes a track from our last CD, Shenanigans and more will be added before long, so do check regularly.
1 Comments:
The Oddsods said...
Music for a rare old time is obviously a big thing in Las Vegas. If the band can build up a big enough fan base of MySpace friends, we should get over there and perform.
Move over Celine and Elton....
The Oddsods have been unleashed into the world of 'social networking'. Yes, we now have a MySpace page. Do check us out and, if you are also on MySpace, please be our friend - we need as many friends as we can get!
The site includes a track from our last CD, Shenanigans and more will be added before long, so do check regularly.
1 Comments:
The Oddsods said...
Music for a rare old time is obviously a big thing in Las Vegas. If the band can build up a big enough fan base of MySpace friends, we should get over there and perform.
Move over Celine and Elton....
Hit me baby!
Archive 5th November 2006
Chele has updated the website with a new gallery of photos. These were taken at last Sunday's Denbigh Arms session where we featured our new line-up with Mick on the fiddle. She has also updated the 'Meet The Boys' page.
The site has already achieved over 700 hits. Keep checking us out and we'll keep adding new stuff. Meanwhile, the Warwick Folk Festival has linked to Chele's own web site which includes some great images of highlights from this year's event.
Chele has updated the website with a new gallery of photos. These were taken at last Sunday's Denbigh Arms session where we featured our new line-up with Mick on the fiddle. She has also updated the 'Meet The Boys' page.
The site has already achieved over 700 hits. Keep checking us out and we'll keep adding new stuff. Meanwhile, the Warwick Folk Festival has linked to Chele's own web site which includes some great images of highlights from this year's event.
Quick parish notice...
Archive 30th October 2006
Oddsods guitarist, Pete Willow is hosting the Tump Folk Club at the British Legion in Brinklow this Thursday (2nd November). Guests are local Irish band Dicey Reilly. Pete plans to lay off the Irish stuff (songs and Guinness) and will probably raid his own repertoire of self-penned songs and covers of Jackson Brown and Ry Cooder. But then again, he might relapse into the odd Irish ballad...
The music starts at 8.30pm - come in your thousands!!
Oddsods guitarist, Pete Willow is hosting the Tump Folk Club at the British Legion in Brinklow this Thursday (2nd November). Guests are local Irish band Dicey Reilly. Pete plans to lay off the Irish stuff (songs and Guinness) and will probably raid his own repertoire of self-penned songs and covers of Jackson Brown and Ry Cooder. But then again, he might relapse into the odd Irish ballad...
The music starts at 8.30pm - come in your thousands!!
Reelin' and Rockin' at the Denbigh
Archive 30th October 2006
A grand evening was had by all at the Denbigh Arms session this month. Not only did we unleash fiddle supremo and latest Oddsod recruit, Mick Shaler onto our loyal fans - we were also joined by a great selection of singers and musicians, including our regular friends Colin Squire and Banjo Dave Evans.
Good to see a packed room. It got so busy that band members actually gave up their seats to accommodate the audience. That has to say something about how we were brought up!
A grand evening was had by all at the Denbigh Arms session this month. Not only did we unleash fiddle supremo and latest Oddsod recruit, Mick Shaler onto our loyal fans - we were also joined by a great selection of singers and musicians, including our regular friends Colin Squire and Banjo Dave Evans.
Good to see a packed room. It got so busy that band members actually gave up their seats to accommodate the audience. That has to say something about how we were brought up!
Mad Mick joins the Sods
Archive 11th October 2006
We've got ourselves a new fiddle-player!
One of the great characters of the local folk circuit, Mick Shaler brings his unique brand of plugged-in, frenetic fiddle-playing to the Oddsods' sound.
The audition, rehearsal and debut performance were all rolled into one last Saturday when the former member of Warwickshire folk-rockers Meet On The Ledge, joined us onstage for a rather grand private party gig. We yelled out the keys (G!! G!!! G!!!!) and he played a blinder.
His high-energy improvisations added a special dimension to the set and - here's a new departure for the band - we even played a couple of ceilidh sets with Mick and Simon on the floor to guide the dancing, courtesy of their wireless contact mics.
The band's verdict? - Mick will make a great addition to the line-up. Mick's verdict? - he had a ball that night and now he's proud to be an Oddsod!
1 Comment:
The Oddsods said...
Don't forget - Nigel Ward will be playing his farewell gig with the Sods at Ashley on Friday 27th October. This will be our last chance to play some of the great tune sets and arrangements that Nigel has brought to the band over the years - although hopefully he'll still be joining in some of the monthly Oddsods and Friends nights at the Denbigh Arms.
We've got ourselves a new fiddle-player!
One of the great characters of the local folk circuit, Mick Shaler brings his unique brand of plugged-in, frenetic fiddle-playing to the Oddsods' sound.
The audition, rehearsal and debut performance were all rolled into one last Saturday when the former member of Warwickshire folk-rockers Meet On The Ledge, joined us onstage for a rather grand private party gig. We yelled out the keys (G!! G!!! G!!!!) and he played a blinder.
His high-energy improvisations added a special dimension to the set and - here's a new departure for the band - we even played a couple of ceilidh sets with Mick and Simon on the floor to guide the dancing, courtesy of their wireless contact mics.
The band's verdict? - Mick will make a great addition to the line-up. Mick's verdict? - he had a ball that night and now he's proud to be an Oddsod!
1 Comment:
The Oddsods said...
Don't forget - Nigel Ward will be playing his farewell gig with the Sods at Ashley on Friday 27th October. This will be our last chance to play some of the great tune sets and arrangements that Nigel has brought to the band over the years - although hopefully he'll still be joining in some of the monthly Oddsods and Friends nights at the Denbigh Arms.
Pete Willow's US tour
Archive 3rd October 2006
Message from Pete...
I'm safely back in Britain after my September tour of Nevada and Central California - not a musical tour but a chance to meet my new inlaws! Chele and I headed for Carson City near Reno and then visited the Wild West of Virginia City, Lake Tahoe, San Francisco, Santa Cruz and Los Gatos, near San Jose, before heading back to Chele's previous home town (before she decided to move to Brinklow) - Las Vegas.
Two weeks was a long time to be separated from my guitar. I wasn't able to fix up any appearances for the Sods in Vegas but I did get to play music for a whole afternoon when Chele's brother Rob turned up with a couple of guitars.
Rob is a very talented, semi-pro singer-songwriter with a great guitar technique and a super voice, reminiscent of Neil Young. He showed up at Los Gatos with a Martin and Takamine guitar and very kindly let me play the Martin! We had a fantastic time, sitting in the porch of the motel room and running through our respective repertoires. You should have heard Rob's improvisations for Waiting For The Rain - wish we'd recorded it!
That evening saw us giving an impromptu concert to friends and family - and yes, we did get Chele to sing Summertime and Wayfaring Stranger! Sounded fantastic. I will keep nagging her to sing more in public here in the UK.
Message from Pete...
I'm safely back in Britain after my September tour of Nevada and Central California - not a musical tour but a chance to meet my new inlaws! Chele and I headed for Carson City near Reno and then visited the Wild West of Virginia City, Lake Tahoe, San Francisco, Santa Cruz and Los Gatos, near San Jose, before heading back to Chele's previous home town (before she decided to move to Brinklow) - Las Vegas.
Two weeks was a long time to be separated from my guitar. I wasn't able to fix up any appearances for the Sods in Vegas but I did get to play music for a whole afternoon when Chele's brother Rob turned up with a couple of guitars.
Rob is a very talented, semi-pro singer-songwriter with a great guitar technique and a super voice, reminiscent of Neil Young. He showed up at Los Gatos with a Martin and Takamine guitar and very kindly let me play the Martin! We had a fantastic time, sitting in the porch of the motel room and running through our respective repertoires. You should have heard Rob's improvisations for Waiting For The Rain - wish we'd recorded it!
That evening saw us giving an impromptu concert to friends and family - and yes, we did get Chele to sing Summertime and Wayfaring Stranger! Sounded fantastic. I will keep nagging her to sing more in public here in the UK.
A fiddler's farewell
Archive 25th September 2006
Sad to announce that Nigel is to leave the Oddsods line-up after our gig in Ashley on October 27. Hopefully he will still be able to take part in our Denbigh Arms sessions whenever he's free but his involvement with the Band of Rack and Ruin is making it increasingly difficult to fulfil regular Oddsods commitments. We'll miss his fiery instrumental breaks.Meanwhile we'll struggle on as a 4-piece or appear with a guest melody-musician but we are on the look-out for a permanent replacement fiddle-player - watch this space!
2 Comments:
Duncan said...
As a member of Rack and Ruin, I must apologise! I can appreciate your loss - Nigel is a fine fiddle player that adds a unique sound to our band.We're very busy at the moment and 2007 is looking set to get even busier!
All the best
Duncan
Pete Willow said...
We played our last 'official' gig with Nigel last night and his solos went down a storm. It was a happy-sad night - a very enjoyable gig but the end of an era as Nigel had been associated with the Oddsods on and off for many years.We certainly wish him well as a folk-rocker. Hopefully we'll still be seeing him as part of the 'And friends' ensemble for our monthly Denbigh Arms sessions.
Sad to announce that Nigel is to leave the Oddsods line-up after our gig in Ashley on October 27. Hopefully he will still be able to take part in our Denbigh Arms sessions whenever he's free but his involvement with the Band of Rack and Ruin is making it increasingly difficult to fulfil regular Oddsods commitments. We'll miss his fiery instrumental breaks.Meanwhile we'll struggle on as a 4-piece or appear with a guest melody-musician but we are on the look-out for a permanent replacement fiddle-player - watch this space!
2 Comments:
Duncan said...
As a member of Rack and Ruin, I must apologise! I can appreciate your loss - Nigel is a fine fiddle player that adds a unique sound to our band.We're very busy at the moment and 2007 is looking set to get even busier!
All the best
Duncan
Pete Willow said...
We played our last 'official' gig with Nigel last night and his solos went down a storm. It was a happy-sad night - a very enjoyable gig but the end of an era as Nigel had been associated with the Oddsods on and off for many years.We certainly wish him well as a folk-rocker. Hopefully we'll still be seeing him as part of the 'And friends' ensemble for our monthly Denbigh Arms sessions.
Greyhound shooting
3rd September 2006
There's a sign next to the car park of the Greyhound Pub in Sutton Stop - it says Greyhound Shooting Club. Obviously tricky, those fast-moving targets.We were this afternoon's live show for the pub's beer festival and it was a great family occasion. We saw parents dancing with their kids, an 85-year old woman dancing with her grand-daughter (they were like a couple of girls dancing round their handbags at the disco) and we even sang happy birthday to a 2-year-old! A group of teenage lads turned up, trying to look mean and moody but even they stuck around to listen to us playing Wild Rover! I think they were stunned.As it was a family show, we asked Paul to sing only the first five verses of Seven Drunken Nights.One guy asked us if we could play 'The Three Leaf Shamrock'. Had us puzzled - anyone heard of it?
There's a sign next to the car park of the Greyhound Pub in Sutton Stop - it says Greyhound Shooting Club. Obviously tricky, those fast-moving targets.We were this afternoon's live show for the pub's beer festival and it was a great family occasion. We saw parents dancing with their kids, an 85-year old woman dancing with her grand-daughter (they were like a couple of girls dancing round their handbags at the disco) and we even sang happy birthday to a 2-year-old! A group of teenage lads turned up, trying to look mean and moody but even they stuck around to listen to us playing Wild Rover! I think they were stunned.As it was a family show, we asked Paul to sing only the first five verses of Seven Drunken Nights.One guy asked us if we could play 'The Three Leaf Shamrock'. Had us puzzled - anyone heard of it?
Oddsods back online!
1st September 2006
We've got a new website. And just to make sure that we have a strong presence on the net, we've launched this blog to keep you up to date with our news.
The site is designed by Chele Willow who is also responsible for most of the photos on the site. Keep checking it out whenever you're surfing around. There is still a bit of 'tweaking' to be done - she'll be adding a gallery of photos soon and some audio clips. Also the contacts page isn't working yet but these are just details, my friends, details.
Our next gig is tomorrow afternoon at The Greyhound, Sutton Stop by the canal north of Coventry. It's a return booking for us for their beer festival. Sadly, this means that we've had to pull out of the Brinklow 06 music weekend, although Pete will still be there, dressed up as Betsy Bub for a couple of performances by the Coventry Mummers in Brinklow on Sunday lunchtime. Then, like superman, he will leap out of his costume and drive over to Sutton Stop to join the rest of the line-up for the rest of the gig.
We've got a new website. And just to make sure that we have a strong presence on the net, we've launched this blog to keep you up to date with our news.
The site is designed by Chele Willow who is also responsible for most of the photos on the site. Keep checking it out whenever you're surfing around. There is still a bit of 'tweaking' to be done - she'll be adding a gallery of photos soon and some audio clips. Also the contacts page isn't working yet but these are just details, my friends, details.
Our next gig is tomorrow afternoon at The Greyhound, Sutton Stop by the canal north of Coventry. It's a return booking for us for their beer festival. Sadly, this means that we've had to pull out of the Brinklow 06 music weekend, although Pete will still be there, dressed up as Betsy Bub for a couple of performances by the Coventry Mummers in Brinklow on Sunday lunchtime. Then, like superman, he will leap out of his costume and drive over to Sutton Stop to join the rest of the line-up for the rest of the gig.
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