News
MONDAY 21ST JULY 2008
Well, what a weekend! Let’s start with Friday ...
We really ‘put the word around’ for this one as it was a ‘biggy’ in our 20 year career, but what a turnout! We new we were in trouble at about 7.30 p.m. when the place was full before any ‘regulars’ arrived, and by the time we started about 9.15 it was wall to wall punters ... it even got to the stage that some people didn’t bother trying to get in as it was so full, in hindsight we should have booked Abercarn RFC or Newbridge RFC for Jason’s send off, but you ‘live & learn’ I suppose ...
Onto the gig - it was as emotional as we all expected for each of us, but I thought we played well and had a great time, I hope everyone there enjoyed it as much as we did - due to a ‘malfunction’ (Me & Tony couldn’t get it to work!) our recording of the gig failed, so if anyone reading this has any pictures/phone video etc of anything on the night, please get in touch we need some for the archives!
Only downside to the night was that my Moog Taurus pedals ‘died’ on me in the sound-check so we were ‘sans Taurus’ for the weekend, hoping to get them fixed ASAP as some songs sounded a bit empty without them, but there you go ...
Good luck to Jason for the future, and a big thank you to everyone who came along & made it such a great night for all of us ....
Onto Sunday @ The Lion Abertillery & Chris’s first gig!
It was great to see so many familiar faces along for the ride, with many on their second Pipe gig of the weekend after Friday!
We were a bit nervous about the unveiling of our ‘new boy’ but we needn’t have worried - Chris played a blinder and like the ‘old pro’ he is (oo-er!) he just took everything in his stride and slotted in perfectly!
The best comment we had from a ‘regular punter’ (!) was that by the time we started the second half, she felt like he had been in the band for month’s not minutes, which summed it up from our point of view as well!
New number ‘Dakota’ was one of the best received songs of the show, which bodes well for us as we will continue to bring new songs in to suit Chris’s voice as time goes by ... exciting times indeed!
Already looking forward to two new venue’s for us in Cardiff & Bristol this weekend, its great to be out gigging again ...
Nice to be back ....
Steve
JUNE 24TH 2008!
NEW SINGER / GUITARIST REVEALED!
Its been a busy few weeks with over 20 auditions, but we are pleased as
punch and happy as mustard to announce that we have found our man! He's
CHRIS HARLEY from Porth who ironically was more or less the last person
to come along ... he joins us with an experienced pedigree of bands and
solo performance and possesses a voice, stage presence and wicked guitar
sound. I think the
deciding factor for us three was that Chris 'fitted' on a personal level
within a half hour of meeting him, and his enthusiasm to 'have a go' at
singing anything, laid back but serious attitude and committed approach
sealed the deal! And he's got a van! Wahay! We hope he'll hold the
band in good stead.
Our first gig with Chris WILL be The Lion Abertillery on July 20th,
rehearsals have already started and are going great, we may even have a
new number (or 2 or 3!) in place by then, so please come along if you
have even just a faint PIPE fetish to check out the new lineup!
The July 18th gig @ The New Inn Abercarn is all 100% confirmed with
Jason, it will be an emotional evening for all of us for sure, already
we know of two fully booked busloads of 16 that are attending so GET
THERE EARLY! After a great suggestion from Alan Coles we will be
recording it for the archives, details to follow ...
Be back soon ...
A Very Happy Stefan Mayoh ...
Saturday 14th June 2008
AUDITIONS UPDATE
Well we have had a really pleasant surprise regarding the quality &
potential of prospective singers out there who are interested in joining
us, we have auditioned quite a few over the last couple of weeks and its
going really well, we hope to be in a position to announce our new
vocalist in the next few days - so WATCH THIS SPACE and check back soon
(if you are both interested!)
I have updated the Gig Page as well, it is looking as if THE NEW INN
ABERCARN FRIDAY 18TH JULY 2008 will be our last gig with Jason, of
course we are hoping for a big PIPE fan attendance to send him off, we
will probably record this historic and emotional event in some capacity
for future Quad Sound DVD or an International Itunes exclusive, we are
negotiating with Richard Branson as we speak ...
Hope to have some exciting news in the next week or so ... if things go
to plan ...
Cheers Steve
THURSDAY 22ND MAY 2008!
END OF A 20 YEAR ERA - NEW SINGER/GUITARIST REQUIRED!
Well, I don't think any of us
could have imagined things coming to this, but our Singer, Lead
Guitarist, Chief Sex Machine, Gear Borrower and Inspiration Jason had
decided that he has to move on (purely for financial reasons) to the
Land of the Solo Performer, so he is leaving us shortly ...
Needless to say, its a hell of a wrench for all 4 of us after such a
long time, but Tony, Ant & myself wish him nothing but good luck (as if
he needs it with a voice like that) and we know our friendship will
continue as if nothings changed ... everything we have been through
together as a band both musically and personally will guarantee that,
that's for sure ....
We always said that if one of us leaves 'that would be it' but you know
what? We wanna carry on, we still love playing together and we are not
such a bad little unit for another singer to yodel over, so we are on
the lookout for a new one!
We are very open to any style/range/choice of music to pursue in the
future, so if you know someone/are someone who may be interested get in
touch for a chat/beer/coffee and who knows where it could go ...
Of course gigs will be affected over the next month or two, but Jason is
going to help us out with as many as possible until the August break
depending on his own bookings, so keep checking back for the latest, who
knows Mr Pipe Perfect may walk through the door this week & with some
heavy rehearsals in June we may not miss a beat - here's hoping!
I have turned down loads of potential bookings due to unforeseen
problems (!) over the last six months or so & we look forward to
regularly gigging again ASAP!
We are planning a BIG SEND OFF LAST GIG for Jason in the next month or
two, it would be great to see as many PIPE people there for that one as
possible of course, I'll keep you posted ...
That's all for now, it'll be strange looking to my left and not seeing
that vein loud & proud (!)
Steve
3rd February 2008
13th Januray 2008
Argh, we had to cancel the Castle gig in Tredegar due to illness :(
12th January 2008
All looks good for the Castle in Tredegar tomorrow. :)
7th January 2008!
Happy New Year!
Some frustrating cancellations this last week or two, with at least 2 band members at a time suffering from various colds, flu and 'tummy upsets' meaning we could'nt make The Wheatsheaf Caerphilly, The Rhondda Hotel or this Saturday at The Claude Cardiff, which has been re-arranged for Feb 2nd - keeping our fingers croseed for The Castle Tredegar this Sunday, so if you are thinking of coming along check here first just in case!
Never ideal to pull bookings, but as the saying goes 'there's alot of it going about' and when someone is ill what can you do? Its a nightmare ....
See you Sunday hopefully.
Gutted 'S'
24th December 2007!
Merry Xmas Everyone!
We've just had a great double gig weekend, an excellent Park Hotel Friday was packed with people travelling from as far as from Hereford to attend (thanx Karen and gang for making the effort!)
A neat and tidy stage that has grown there helped project the sound throughout the whole room, and the smell of sprouts and turkey dinners being served in the adjacent restaurant did'nt detract at all, in fact it made the night more Christmassy!
All our gang were there of course, on a personal note a constant supply of sweet coffee, water, throat medicine and Lockets kind of kept a nasty chest infection and cough I have at bay for the night, just can't shake it off - my backing vocals suffered a bit (yeah as if anyone noticed they were any worse than norma!l) but it went great in the end - nice to see Ant's Ashdown amp back after its holiday since August - yes it has taken that long to get fixed ...even Goldilox made an appearence (shock horror) although it was a bit 'rusty' - missed Zane though who was ill, get well soon dude ...
Onto Saturday @ The Patriot Crumlin, we were a bit concerned that as there was a top AC/DC tribute band playing a mile away in Newbridge maybe attendance would suffer, but boy were we wrong!
Chokka inside with punters standing and dancing right up to the stage, plus at least another 50 sat outside enjoying a pint and a smoke - AWESOME gig with a great reaction (one of the best this year) and a very long second half as its Xmas!
Nice to see Jap, Carl and Mr Funk who have formed a new band there having a good time, good luck guys ...
Latest News NEWBRIDGE RFC ON BOXING NIGHT HAS SOLD OUT!
Maybe see you Sunday @ The Wheatsheaf in Caerphilly instead? Hope so ...
Thats it for now ....
Steve
13th December 2007!
Really really sorry but due to unforseen circumstances (I've got to work!) we have had to cancel both gigs this coming weekend - all OK for next week @ The Parc Hotel & The Patriot though ...
Hope to see you there
Steve
28th November 2007!
Just a quick write-up following Hereford last weekend - wow what a great night!
Best described as a ' cosy, well set up for bands real music pub' with friendly' up for it' punters and a sound level indicator on the wall (oh no!) that amazingly did'nt go off (hooray!)
Many many thanks to all our gang who made the long 50 mile trip up to see us, true dedication from people who see us week in week out - we all really appreciate your efforts to attend thanx ...
Nice to see Fake Plastic Trees and Sweet Emotion back in the set, hope they stay ...
With backline turned down to a whisper and PA run at half volume we got away with it volume wise - the only thing causing concern was Tony's snare which shot the volume meter 'into the red' whenever he hit it - no surprises there then!
Best received songs were Purple Rain and Black Dog, with Tony nailing the Bonham bit at the end for the 2nd gig running to wild applause, its just a shame he can't turn his snare down thats all!
Looking forward to a busy December especially Pontlottyn next weekend (see previous post why this is!)
On a personal note off to see Led Zeppelin on the 10th, don't ask me how I got a ticket its a long boring story (all the band are sick of hearing it so I'll shut up about it!)
Back Soon,
S
13th November 2007!
Its worth mentioning the great time we had last Sunday at The Swan Taffs Well, a TINY area to set up in caused us a 'bit of a sweat' on arrival, but we managed to fit in OK -then what a great gig!
Friendly knowledgable punters (nice to see you there Mucker my old golfing buddy!) and a good as gold Landlord helped make it a great night for us, with a return booking in the bag in January! Excellent!
Lovely to see Louise and Thommo in attendence, plus Chrissy of course ...
Got some nice new venue's coming in for the New Year, including The Claude in Cardiff, somewhere we have wanted to play for ages, but the biggie for us is The Plough in Hereford, we are told its an awesome gig so it looks like we may be taking about 4 cars full with us plus the van, also we know a pile of people from that area who have promised to come along, so it should be a good 'un!
Anyone interested in coming along drop me an email and we may have a seat ot two spare somewhere if you wanna lift!
See you later in the topsy tervy world of Rock 'n' Roll!
Stefan Mayoh
11th October 2007!
Hi guys, just a quick update, had a few gig cancellations unfortunately due to circumstances beyond our control, we are all busy with work throughout November so that has to come first I suppose ... still got plenty over the next month or two, we may have a few late bookings come in so watch this space ...
Off to see Rush this weekend with Tony, Jason and Arnie our original bassist so looking forward to that, I'm also going Sunday to Manchester as I have a feeling that could be their last ever UK show, we'll see ...
Thats all for now,
Steve
17th September 2007!
Had a great coupla gigs over the last few weeks, a cracking New Inn Abercarn was only slightly spoiled by Ant blowing not 1 but 2 bass amps on the same night! He had to plug direct into the P.A. in the end, but luckily no-one seemed to notice too much once the beer was in ... an excellent Parc Hotel last Friday prior to a gig change for Ian and Emma's wedding was the highlight of a busy weekend, with groom Ian even turning up at the Parc the night before his wedding!
Coupla new songs in the pipeline including Plug In Baby by Muse, maybe Dakota Stereophonics and even Heartbreaker by LZ if I can get it past the boys, we'll see how that one goes, plus Show Me How To Live by Audioslave could be in ...
Some new venue's are coming in thick and fast mainly thanks to our Good Buddy Tony from The Daggers 'putting a word in' everywhere for us, we are most grateful dude ...
Zane is back on the case with our new website design, should be online soon ...
Catch You Later
Steve
29th August 2007!
Holidays over and we are ready to rock!
Big News, Tony has a Big New Gretsch Kit! (hope thats spelt right!)
Direct from the USA its a monster, debut this weekend, bring some ear
muffs!
Jason has a new wireless in ear monitor! No more tripping over leads and
10 minutes between songs while he plugs in again, he's now just like
Cliff Richard and 'Wired For Sound' !!
I bought a stunning '87 PRS Custom 24 in Cherry Sunburst signed by Paul
Reed Smith himself (twice!) while in Florida, may gig it may not, bit of
an investment ...
Few gig changes including a late Newbridge RFC booking for a fundraiser, plus FLEMFEST with our buddies The Red Kites on the 8th September, £3 entry, outside weather permitting ...
See You This Weekend, Festival Crowd expected at The New Inn, get there early!
Cheers Y'All!
Steve
July 25th 2007!
I just have to write a bit about last Sunday at The Lord Nelson Pontlottyn - what a great gig!
It was good to see more 'recent' songs of ours like 'Time Is Running Out', 'All My Life' and 'Valerie' going down so well, with a mostly young audience out for a good time and a dance about -it was one of the 'hottest' (in temperature!) gigs we have had, with both me and Jason shedding about a stone each through sweating like pigs, we are both now almost below the magical 40" waist barrier after last Sunday (just kidding!)
Mark Lisa and 'Rock Chick converted from Kool & The Gang Fan' Chrissy were there of course, plus Al Coles made a brief appearence before departing for cooler climates, thanx for coming dude!
I have never seen so many tattoo'ed backs in my life - and that was just the girls there under 18 ...
On a personal note, debut'ed my 'new' mongrel relic'd Strat which sounded great and looked even better - never been a 'single coil' guy (oo-er!) but it fitted in well ...
Pleased to report that Jason has recovered well from almost being decapitated by a wayward mike on a stand ...
Looking forward to a new venue The Mill Tavern this Saturday in Downtown Cwmbran, hope to see you there ...
S The Maybe Strat Man!
July 18th 2007!
Here's a bit of an update, its been nice to be back gigging the last few weeks, with The Wheatsheaf in Caerphilly standing out as 'the best so far' crazy punters in a rocking pub!
Thanks to Zane for our new site, more news ASAP ..
Cheers S
June 17th 2007!
This is a temporary site whilst our new "Flash' featured project is under construction, at least the links work and there are a few pictures on it!
Many thanks to Webmaster Zane for all his help!
Steve
June 15th 2007!
NEW GIG AT THE MAES MANOR BLACKWOOD JULY 6TH
Due to a 'diary malfunction' we have a different gig on July 6th and its a cracker!
Our buddies 'Simply' are now doing The Park Hotel that night whilst we are playing The Maes Manor Hotel Blackwood with great local band Usual Suspects from 8 p.m. - an excellent opportunity to play a good sounding room with - wait for it - A LATE BAR TILL 12.45 a.m.!
There really is'nt much going on in Blackwood on a Friday, so get yourself along ...
Tickets are £5 each including Disco from the Hotel, you can also pay on the door on the night (if there are tickets left ..)
Call the Maes Manor on 01495 220011 for more info ..
We will definately be back for the Ynysybwl gig at the end of June, then looking forward to a busy July ..
New style website under construction by Webmaster Zane including photo's and links! Wow!
See you on the beach
Steve
May 30th 2007!
THINGS ARE STARTING TO LOOK UP!!!
Just a quick update, Jason has finally started to feel a bit better, we are having a rehearsal tonight to 'see how it goes' and fingers crossed we'll be back gigging in the near future!
We have pulled all June gigs so as not to pressure him too much, and we have some new tunes in the pipeline, including Valerie (The Zutons) Readymade (killer track from Stad.. Arc.. Chilli Peppers) and Purple Rain by the Purple one - we think this could be a track 'destined' for us to do based on the first run through .. watch this space ...
Got some nice new venue's booking us up later in the year, including a weekend in Cardiff in September - we may have to make a real tour of it and stay over in town! Rock n Roll or what! (yeah right!)
Are there any potential webmasters (with Dreamweaver knowledge) out there who can help me with the site? Had major problems since we changed host last month, anyone interested in earning a small sum call me on 01495 220599, especially if you know how to load pictures ...
be back as soon as there is some more news ...
S