The Strawbs & writer's block

Being back home after a month in Cambodia is tough....going back into work was very tough...so I thought I'd unwind with a music concert a couple of nights ago, at the unique Huntingdon Hall in Worcester. The band were The Acoustic Strawbs and they were just what I needed to relax. I've been a fan of The Strawbs since my early teens. My elder brother had their first album and I used to sneak into his bedroom to play it, and they grew on me. So much so I have every one of their albums on vinyl and remarkably, more than 35 years later, they are gigging more now than they ever did. I get to see them at least twice a year, either in their acoustic format or their electric line-up.

I prefer them acoustically, with the gravel-voiced Dave Cousins turning back the clock to belt out a series of their earliest songs, accompanied by the nimble-fingered Dave Lambert and rock-solid Chas Cronk, on guitars. Its more earthy, its more real in my view. And my wife agrees. They played for nearly two hours and as usual, everyone went home happy. It was the 15th gig of their shortish winter tour, while the electric line-up will kick-off an even shorter tour in a few days time. You can read more about The Strawbs, in their various guises, at http://www.strawbsweb.co.uk.

As for writer's block, its mainly because I've been so busy catching up with my emails and with my day job. I will begin to regale you with some of my recent adventures in Cambodia but give me a few days. I've got another project on the go too, but I've yet to announce that, so keep your eyes peeled for that. Its a biggy.