September 15th

Spend a delightful afternoon and evening in the company of some old friends of Amanda’s who live just outside Henley. They too have a couple of kids, which keeps them all occupied for hours.

September 14th

The agency calls late in the day. Can I record an authentic 60’s sound–a-like based on Dusty Springfield’s ‘I Just don’t know what to do with myself’ they need it by first thing Monday. This is made all the harder by the fact that Django has been at home following a high temperature and some vomiting.

We have to work and care in shifts.

September 13th

Get an e-mail from Dave telling me that Pip’s funeral is next Tuesday in Harlow. Now that I’m back my senses are drawn back to thoughts of him. I find myself listening to Hatfield and The North in The car. This is more than mere nostalgia. This music is part of my DNA and has been instilled and devoured at such an early age. The thing one is always apt to forget about Pip was the sheer quality of his writing. Not just a few rhythmic ideas and riffs from the drummer, but whole songs and arrangements with complicated harmonic twists and witty lyrics.

September 12th

The new issue of Record Collector is now out. It features a very good, in depth article about Stiff records. This is timed to coincide with the Stiff documentary that none of us saw at the preview screening the other week, being broadcast on BBC 4 this Friday and Saturday. I was but a mere bit player in the story of Stiff so was amazed to find that they had used so much of my interview for the magazine. They also, very kindly, chose ‘Dangerous Dreams’ as one of their top 30 Stiff singles out of some 400 or so releases. They have even dedicated nearly half a page to various anecdotes that I tell about Stiff head honcho Dave Robinson. This was from a question and answer session, but now is left as just one long answer from me. I await contact from his solicitor.

In a shorter interview the last question that they ask me is.

‘What was the best thing about Stiff?’
In my response I say the following:
‘…..And of course, my gorgeous wife, whom I first saw climbing the steps of Stiff at my very first meeting with Dave Robinson. My manager at the time saw me drooling over the sexy girl in accounts and said, ‘Your not going to sign for Stiff just because you fancy some girl are you?

‘Of course not, give me some credit’

But no I really was that shallow.’

It turns out that my wife was also very bright and driven individual. However for those of you who think I mentioned this in print to make domestic life a little sweeter with idle flattery. Let me post a picture of her taken the very year I saw her walking up the steps at Stiff’s office’s.

September 11th

Back home. I am truly exhausted. Quite frankly I could do with a holiday.

A date that will always be significant. I spent the evening in question all those years ago having an online chat with a girl who was in the second tower when the first one was hit. She immediately vacated the place and headed for home only to turn round and see the second plane hit her building at the approximate level of her office.

Terrible and compelling though these images are, one can’t help but think that many more thousands of innocents have since died as a result of retaliation for this event. What do I know? I play the guitar.

Meanwhile I begin to plug up the repaired G5. It’s taking me an age to get into it however. I just can’t get going.

Amanda has latched on to a new business idea that unwittingly came from my trip to Ireland last year. Typically she goes at it with a terrier like fervour and remains in her office till late.

September 2nd – 10th

What we did on our holidays.

I can’t believe that I’m posting holiday snaps. But what the hell. I am!

PHOTO CAPTION 1 - A room with a View

PHOTO CAPTION 2 – Ambers poolside lunch

’

PHOTO CAPTION 3 – Still eating

PHOTO CAPTION 4 – Bass legend tells son of guitar player to ‘put the gun down….

September 1st

Up early. Get kids ready. Pack car with suitcases and drive off to Gatwick. Sure enough it isn’t long before the mobile rings. It’s Martin telling me that not all the files that I spent ages sending last night made it to the correct destination. Luckily I did make copies which I included in the data CD that was picked up by a Bike at 7:45 this morning containing stuff for another part of the whole job.

This is the first time I have flown since the recent terror arrests in the UK. If disruption and chaos are some of the main desires of the terrorist then, quite frankly, they have already won. The check-in queue was about 4 times longer than I have ever witnessed. The queue for passport control and security was split in two and it snaked all the way to the left hand side of the terminal past several shops then went all the way back up a check-in aisle on the far side and almost to the back by the front of the terminal. It took well over an hour to get to the other side. If this is at all indicative of the new modern flying experience then I’m not sure I will want to fly again.

Two hours later and we pull up outside Mel’s villa in Minorca. Just as I get the last suitcase put and pay the cab driver the mobile rings. It’s Dave at the ad agency wanting to know if I can demo a version of the Blue Peter Theme as a reggae piece.

The Thompson’s arrive at about 10 o’clock later that evening.

Our first holiday in 2 years has begun.

August 31st

Django climbs into our bed at about 5:20.

I’m very tired by now.

New comments and a new approach to the music that I can’t do and that they are not prepared to pay Dave for. I take a conference call at 9:30.

A plan and we are all sorted. Spend most of the day, and half the night, finishing mixes. Doing sub mixes and then sending them via e-mail and ftp sites. This takes hours.

There is a virtual full page in today’s obituary section of the Independent about Pip, I almost make for the phone to call him and say’ Great big piece about you in the paper’ Nice picture of him in action and 2 nice pieces, one by author Jonathon Coe. He stole Pips album title ‘The Rotters Club’ for his successful novel and used some lyrics and a description of Hatfield and The North’s performance in the book. He had since become good pals with Pip.

The supreme irony of all this is, of course, that Pip couldn’t get a quarter of a page of publicity in any paper, let alone the independent, when he was alive. A review of his solo album when it came out the other year might have been nice!

Ah well, such is life, or in this case death.

There are some nice messages on the guestbook section of pippyle.com including one from his son Sam on behalf of all the kids. The independent says that Pip had 1 daughter and 1 son, which will no doubt mystify his other 2 sons and 2 daughters.

The death of Pip has now settled on my shoulders and snuggled up for a while where it will rest heavy till it feels the need to move on.

I’m still sending files at 1:30 in the morning. If ever I needed a holiday it’s now at the end of this odd, tiring and surreal week.

August 30th

Kids off to Nursery and childminder. In the studio by 9:00. Comments in with regard to my Keith Jarret inspired music from the client. I write back promising to accommodate his thoughts in the next version which I will do to picture and send him later.

As the morning progresses, however, it all changes. The producer who is in charge of this bit of the production has gone on holiday. As this is the last week of production and its all gone pear shaped, this seems rather odd. Also the other person who I saw on Friday has also gone on holiday. Another old pal has the thankless task and has been brought in to finish the whole thing. Speaking to him it becomes clear that there are to be wholesale changes to the edit. He’s not sure where all the parts all are and when or if he can get the new edit done. It also now has to be 4 minutes long, which is twice what it is now. Consequently, I just won’t be able to finish this job. I call Dave Stewart again to see if he fancies it. We discuss the timing and process and come up with a fee. I then inform the company of where it’s all going and the contingency that I have put in place. It’s a political nightmare that drags on for the next 2 days, even though it ha little to do with me. Very dull.

I finish the work that I do have, spotting the final film and commercial. This is detailed and time consuming work. The piece is quite abstract and something happens on most of the cuts and dissolves etc.

Work late and speak to Dave on many occasions as the company now try to knock down Dave’s quote, but Dave (quite rightly) won’t budge.