The Cornbury Festival

So it the Cornbury festival !! an outdoor festival in the middle of a British summer, Wimbledon is still going on, what could possible go wrong !!

Well I am very happy to report that nothing went wrong in fact it was with out a doubt the best festival I have ever been to.


View from back stage

 The Cornbury Festival is this year in a new location in previous years this festival has been sited in Chaerlbury but for 2011 the festival will be in the grounds of Great Tew Estate nestled in a sprawling landscape in the heart of the Oxfordshire country side, I believe that this is to be the festivals eleventh year so it is very well established and to be honest a bit of a well kept secret and I know why people in the know keep it to themselves " its just great" with the riverside stage, cafe Nero image sound stage and Pleasant Vally stage being the main stage and a line up over the three days of the festival that just had something for everyone.

Friday James Blunt , Cyndi Lauper, Eliza Doolittle to name just a few Saturday some of the acts featuring where The Faces, Ray Davies, Deacon Blue and Sunday Status Quo, Olly Murs and The Straights but many many more great acts where featured over the three days of the festival.



Stage Right The Loading

 The stage I was concerned with was of course the main stage, the pleasant Vally stage this is where Status Quo would be head lining that evening, after a bit of a squeeze getting backed up on to the side of stage the load out got underway, even though there was only two crew in attendance at eight o'clock in the morning I think they had both had there shredded wheat as they got stuck in with great enthusiasm, knowing we had to be on wheels so that we could roll our set on and off stage in between acts I was keen to get as much done as possible, as the band and crew where still winging there way on the crew and band bus from Bremen where they had been head lining a massive corporate gig for Mercades Benz to launch a new SL Model Mercades the previous night.

So I need to get all of the front of house off of my truck so that the lighting engineers can get started.

Because of the amount of acts due on this stage during the day we where going to have to work in an alloted area back stage and try to get all set up there, this presents it own problems but the crew are well used to these situations and just get on with it, so me and my two local crew members managed to get the carpet down and get all the risers assembled in good time before the crew bus arrived from its over nighter from Germany. 


Jon Allen



So while we are still setting up our equipment the days entertainment gets under way, kicked off buy Alice Gold not the greatest voice I have ever heard but great legs, but a name to watch out for in the future I believe is Jon Allen who are a five piece and have a really great sound with good lyrics.

They where back for a second year by popular demand and I can see why, they where great.



Ride on Piano Different !!



Someone else back again was our very own Glen Smith Status Quo's Tour and Production Manager Glen had managed the Cornbury Festival for two consecutive years 2006 & 2007 so was well aware of what to expect from this festival.

As well as the weird and wonderful there is always a celebrity hiding around the corner Noel Edmond's, and Fern Cotton where both in attendance "not together " I hasten to add and I was Lucky enough to get to meet a true Rock legend Mr Bernie Marden formerly of White Snake who had come along to see the boys as he referred to them.
He also had a guitar that he wanted to show Rick and I must say what a bloody great bloke he was, he is reputedly the best British guitarist alive today and one of the most approachable men in the business something Olly Murs is yet to learn! judging buy the way he blanked the Two fans that had managed to get back stage to get an autograph.


Up up & Away

 That said the guy can sing I hope his career lasts long enough for us to hear something other than covers. 



10,000 getting the Quo treatment

 As some hot air balloons took to the sky The Mighty Quo took to the stage and well they just blew everyone away, seeing 10,000 fans all moving as one in time to the music is still a sight to behold and I don't think I will ever tire of seeing it live music its just the best experience there is. 
Next stop Zottejen Rock Festival Belgium.      

Meet the Crew Behind the Quo Part 3 Lloyd Gilbert & Patrick Marks

Lloyd Gilbert        Guitar Technician for Francis & Rick



Lloyd  Guitar Tech

 Lloyd Started in the business back in 1992 nineteen years ago doesn't look old enough, amazing what the correct lighting will do and no there has been no air brushing honest.

Lloyd is the guy who has to ensure that Francis and Ricks guitars are all tuned correctly and that their plectrums are positioned where they want them, all guitars need to be re-strung regularly so to reduce the chance of broken strings mid show.
And with Francis & Rick using an arsenal of seven guitars between them, its no mean feat and believe me Francis and Rick know what they want so there is no pressure !!

There are wireless guitar packs to be checked and double checked speakers, monitors and continuous tuning and re-tuning, I remember one particular sound check where Francis had brought a guitar from the dressing room on to the stage for the sound check and in the ten minutes or so it had been on the stage it had gone out of tune, even Francis was amazed, but a change of temperature will have that affect on a guitar due to the fact that most of the guitar is made of wood, so all day and during the show Lloyd is checking tuning and re-tuning right up until he hands the guitar to Rick or Francis so that the unmistakable sound of Status Quo is never compromised.

Lloyd started out in the business as a basic Rodie working folk music venues around Hertfordshire and Berkhampstead and its his love of guitar that lead him to where he is today, Lloyd has now been with the mighty Quo for the last six years but has in the past worked with the likes of The Manic Street Preacher, Annie Lenox, Ricky Martin, Terror Vision, Therapy and Placebo to name just a few.


Patrick Marks    Lighting Designer extraordinar


No Relation to Steptoe

Patrick Marks the man responsible for the lighting extravaganza that excites and enthrals all that look upon a live Status Quo gig, the lighting spectacular that Pat creates is only limited by the lighting rig that the local promoter provides,obviously there is a minimum requirement and sometimes the minimum is all he gets, that's when you find Pat a little despondent but then as they say the show must go on and go on it does and he always creates an amazing light show what ever he is given, but when he get his hands on a full lighting rig then he really comes in to his own and you get to see what thirty five years in the business has taught him.

Pat's first experience of working the lights was when he was at Kiel University and by his own admission he had ulterior motives as he had worked out that by offering to do the lights he could get in to every Party, Disco and Gig for free, Pats time at university was spent studying Performing Arts and Education and from university spent eight years as a teacher working with children with special needs, which has stood him in good stead to work in the Rock and Roll industry.

After a split with his wife at the time and the dividing up of house and contents he decided to strike out on his own and he purchased an old VW Van and some lights and PA equipment and honed his skills working Pubs and clubs around the Luton and Dunstible area until a friend who happened to be PR Man for Gary Newman offered Pat a chance to go large, he then found himself thrown in at the deep end and realised how little he had learnt but like a true professional he rose to the challenge and learnt on the job working with Gary Newman, Aswad, Aztec Camera, Saxon, Big Country travelling as far a field as North America and Australia.
He also dipped his toe in to the world of TV and Film working on Orchestra Wide , Big World Cafe, later working with M People , King , Sinead O'Connor and Nigel Kennedy he was then offered three weeks work with Status Quo that was in 1989 and he is still there working his magic creating his amazing light show. 

     

     

Meet the Crew Behind the Quo (Part 2) Andrew Tomkins & Tim Franklin

Andy Tomkins Big X

Andrew Tomkins Keys/Bass Technician

Andrew Tomkins, Andy to his mates or Ramp Man or sometimes !!! best not !!
As much as he looks like a jovial jolly chap he is in fact a very very serious Technician, ah that's Bollocks, because he is a funny, jolly, jovial,chap with the most fantastic sense of humour and the quickest wit.

That said he is very good at what he does and what does he do I hear you ask, well single handed he takes care of John "RHINO" Edwards Bass Guitars and all that in tails as well as looking after Andrew Bowens Key Boards and Guitars so once that truck is unloaded its full on for Mr Tomkins.

But this fine figure of a man has been doing this now for many many years, Andy started out in the business 25 years ago beginning just working as local crew so basically just getting shouted at to move this pull that put that here and this there, from that he worked Back line , Drums, Bass, keys,this guy is the all rounder of the team, but he is well settled now in his current roll which he has occupied now for the last two and a half years.

Before joining the Status Quo Crew Andy has worked with the likes of Van Morrison, The Manic Street Preachers, Pulp, Verve and Richard Ashcroft solo stuff, not to mention Transvision Vamp, Dogs D' Amour, Wild Hearts, JJ72, Green on Red,Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and Skunk A Nancy to name a few and I am sure he is missed by them all as he really is a great guy to know and to work with like I say very very funny and rarely a day goes by when he does not have us all in stitch's.


Tim Franklin      Monitor Engineer Supremo

Captain of the Star Ship Enterprise

Well Tim Franklin may have the look of a serial killer but he is a really nice guy.
 Tim has now been working with the Mighty Quo for the last seventeen years, so in the seniority league amongst the crew Tim is way out in front, Tim is the Monitor Engineer for the Quo, before and during the show Tim is in radio contact with the Sound Engineer Andy May at Front of House and between them they keep the Quo sounding just right.

 Tim is positioned at stage left and quite often if you look closely you may see any one of the band just mouthing something to the side of stage, this is where Tim's ability to lip read comes in very useful.

 I have sat next to Tim on many occasion's and Francis or Rhino have mouthed something to me to tell Tim, if they where unable to catch his eye and I have never yet had a bloody clue what they are trying to say, but Tim he is on it he is sat there with a monitor desk which can only be described as the control deck of the Star Ship Enterprise, I have never seen so many buttons, switches, slides, onscreen displays and lights.
From here Tim can bring up the sound levels of every instrument on the stage individually so the audience gets to hear each one all in perfect harmony, but obviously different song different sound so come show time Tim is there leaned over his Monitor Desk his hands a blur sliding, switching and adjusting and ensuring that the sound that the audience hears is just perfect and the fact that he has now been doing this for Status Quo for 17 years would suggest he is bloody good at what he does.

Tim started out working with a small PA company twenty five years ago and worked his way to the top of the pile always working with sound and PA, Tim has in his time worked with Prince,Lionel Richie and the Cockto twins to name but a few. 

  

Win Status Quo Tickets

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Meet the Crew Behind The Quo (Part 1) Lance Miles & Andy May

LANCE MILES.... Drum Tech Extraordinaire.
Lance despite his appearance, is not a night club doorman he is in fact believe it or not a very talented and well respected Drum Tech so much so that at one time he had his very own column in Rhythm magazine (Lance's Tips)


Lance Strike a Pose !

 Lance has over the years designed drum kits for numerous people including Terry Bozzio, David Essex and  Mathew Letley,one particular kit called Gangee Scope was very notably displayed in the Tate, It was later used  by M People and was also used extensively by the Spice Girls.
But Lance did not start out as a drum tech 35 years ago !! What I hear you cry he doesn't look old enough,amazing what a soft focus can do.
No Lance started his life on the road as a rigger working for a PA company now to the uninitiated a rigger has to climb,crawl,drag ,lift and haul all the sound system up over and on to the stage hang it from the stage assemble in font of the stage and basically get it in to many different combination as dictated by the plans which they have to work to depending on the type of stage that is being used.

So the story goes that one day whilst hanging from the rigging filthy dirty and dripping with sweat he looks down and noticed a guy all nice and clean setting up the drum kit... a light bulb goes off in his head .. "That's for me" and it really was,Lance has in the past worked with Jeff Beck, Sting, Mark Knopfler, Frankie Miller, to name but a few,he has now been working with Status Quo for the past three years he is also the main man when it comes to the load out he has worked out a loading plan which is numeric and colour coded and makes life very easy for everyone he may also from time to time bark the odd request for this that or the other to Mr Tomkins (Keys / Bass Tech) "Andy why are they coming out of order where is the lighting desk" that sort of thing but he gets the job done safely and quickly and for that I salute him.


Andy May....... FOH Sound Engineer Supremo


Andy May  Sound as a Pound

 Started his illustrious carrier at school organising the sound and PA systems for the Drama club and then when some friends started a band he jumped at the chance to rattle up and down the country in there old van organising their PA, well in the last 31 years nothing much has change PA and sound is still Andy's weapon of choice only he has swapped an old van in favour of an air conditioned tour bus,and the best seat in the house come show time as the FOH (Front of House) the world that Andy occupies during the show is exactly what it Say's on the tin it is always located directly in front of the stage,so that he is best placed to hear how the band sounds and can adjust and tweak as and where necessary he is also in radio contact with Tim Franklin who is Monitor Engineer stage left and between these two they manage the sound of Status Quo if you need to know about verb ,re verb,pink noise,or anything else sound related Andy May is your man he has now been working with Status Quo for the last ten years but has worked with the likes of Robert Palmer,The Pretenders,Lionel Richie,Jeff Beck and the legendary Gary Moore.
Andy describes himself as a guitar enthusiast and plays a little "badly" his words but it is quite plain to see that PA / Sound is his first love.
He and Rhino also like to take a cycle ride around towns and city's which we visit as and when weather and time restraints allow.  

Rick Parfait

Rick Parfait: "Status Quo Interview by http://www.more-"

The Rockers are ready to Roll & Drama at the Sound Check !

OK so after two days parked in an Auto Hoff (German Services, nice home cooked food, showers and loos) I move to the venue in Munchen,Venue is probably not right ,location is better Konigsplatz is primarily a junction off of a large central square with a museum on the East & West side of the square,Western side Greek art Eastern side German art,at the Northern end of the square is a massive pillared triple arch way the southern end is where the road enters the central square the it is exited left or right of the central arch way.

But when Status Quo are in town the roads are shut off effectively cutting off the square allowing it to accommodate a huge stage with banks of PA and extensive lighting,Pat Marks lighting supremo for Status  Quo was like a child in a sweet shop, once he arrived on site unable to disguise his total excitement at the site that now greeted him.


Konigsplatz

 Me having arrived the day before I had not sat idol, I had been busy working until eleven 'o'clock the night before getting the carpet down and fitting spacers,brackets and wheels to our risers so the on gig day we can assemble Drums,keyboards and the bank of Marshall amplifiers, which have become a trade mark of The Status Quo's stage set. 
So once the other bands clear the stage we can simply roll all our equipment in to position,its then just a matter of locking it all off and connecting everything up to the monitor desk and front of house.
The work stations where the Drum tech and Guitar Tech keyboards and Bass work from, are all ready on wheels so will be rolled in to their world, as they like to refer to the area of stage that they occupy during the show, when they hand over guitars on change overs between songs, monitor,tune, tweak and be on hand ready to act in the event of any dramas.

But what a site for a concert, it was truly amazing and once the sun had set and Pats lights were then bouncing off, of marble colonnades pillars and frontage of the museum buildings either side of the square, it seemed to rise to a completely different level,the sight of 10,000 people all moving as one is also a sight to be seen, every one just enjoying that moment in time as one massive single throbbing entity, "Amazing" there really is nothing like a live open air Rock concert.

Andy May the master of the PA and the ruler of the front of house told me that they where only using a fraction of the wattage that was available to him "less is more you know " all I know is it was still deafening in a good way of course.
Pat Marks after having spent the day on his laptop tweaking the lighting plan, the video screen and  the visual lighting screens which filled the entire back drop "was I think the happiest I had ever seen him".

It was like a top chef being given any ingredients his heart desired and then told to "go create a master piece" and believe me create he did ..

The whole night had an incredible wow factor and every one connected to it was very happy with the end result,the fans.... well they absolutely loved it.

We then all move to ULM which was only ninety mile drive "nice" this was in a Messe or a big hall to you and me like an exhibition centre and the weather changed. It was for the first time bloody sweltering, I mean really hot in fact the next day in the UK was the hottest temperature ever recorded in the UK,so it was not just Europe that caught a mini heat wave.

So all was well. Loading although sweaty, went with out a hitch.
So its time for the sound check. Francis Rossi  is on stage strumming and tuning before any of the other members as he had had some problems with a wireless pack at the last gig.
Not enough for the fans to notice but Francis does not miss a thing, the offending pack which sends a wireless digital signal from his guitar to a monitor which in turn sends it to the amplifiers and speakers,occasionally would just drop of a minor inconvenience.

Rhino joins him on stage then Andrew, Matt and Rick, every one is laughing and joking and in general good spirits.
Rick Parfitt then put his ear piece into his ear only its not sitting right,so he extracts it and notices that the rubber grommet is missing from the ear piece.
This is not a problem and is soon replaced.
When Rick then pushes the ear piece back in he realises to late that the missing rubber grommet had come off in his ear and now he has pushed it right in, deep into his ear.

Rick attempts to remove the offending object himself much to the amusement of Francis and Rhino, then Francis giggling wanders over and takes a look.
Now the laughing stops as Francis exclaims "Fuck me you ain't half pushed that in deep,"a look of real concern now occupies his face Rick is pretty impassive at this point but is starting to get a bit concerned it must be bad as no one now is laughing and extracting the urine.


Lloyd Gilbert Guitar & Ear Tech


The cry goes up "WHO HAS GOT SOME TWEEZERS" Lloyd Gilbert replies "I have" and with the speed and agility of a young gazelle being chased down by a pack of starving lions, sprints to his work station,returning seconds later with a gleaming new set of tweezers,which he then sets about informing all assembled that he had brought them because, they are closed and you squeeze them to open so release and they grip ! "GET ON WITH IT "

So with Francis Rossi peering over one shoulder and Rhino peering over the other
(No Pressure)  Lloyd standing on tippie toe with Rick rooted to the spot, having been told "DON'T MOVE."
Lloyd proceeds to insert his gleaming set of self gripping tweezers in to Ricks ear !! After what seemed like an age, may be a minute a cheer nearly lifts the roof and Lloyd emerges with the offending rubber grommet in the palm of his hand.
He ask Rick "Do you want this?" holding forward said grommet, it may be in all the excitement Rick did not hear him but I think Lloyd could work out from the look on Ricks face, what he might do with the offending item.
"I must ask him what ever happened to the grommet" so drama over the sound check went off with out any further hitch, as did the show. 
Apart from the fact that it was very very hot for the band,and I mean very hot, but that said a great time was had by all,apart from Mr Andy Tompkins who has some pin problems with Lesley (to be continued ).... and poor Pat Marks who after the previous nights extravaganza was a little under whelmed with the lighting rig with which he had to work with.


Storm Euro Style

 So now I have the long drive back to the UK, after driving through the night and through the most amazing electrical storm I park near Rimes in France, but there will be no sleep for me today as the temperatures soar in to the 100+ and that's out side of my BLACK cab.

So four days at home then its The Cornbury Festival out side in the UK what could possible go wrong ?