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PLAYING OUT LOUD!
NEWS
The Platform Tavern near the Town Quay in Southampton is hosting
a special celebration on Saturday August 27 in memory of Platform friend Pat
Whitehead, who recently died. It’s called Red Rose Day and all proceeds will go
to
Jessie’s Fund, which provides musical instruments for use as therapy in
children’s hospices, hospitals and special needs schools - see
www.jessiesfund.org.uk
.
It starts at 3pm and goes on until midnight. The line-up is as follows:
Mo Thomas & Steve Roberts
Derrin Nauendorf
Rory Ellis & Arnie Cottrell
John Bland
Stuart Walker
The recordings of Pat Whitehead
Neil Simpson & Jo Long
DJ Surreal Madrid
Also featuring Mongo on the trombone and The Beast of Bourbon with the Platform
Funk-farm Orchestra! The bar will be open until 12 midnight, with champagne sold
by the glass! A hot buffet is available. Tickets are just £5 and available now!
Ring 02380 337232 for more details.
We’ve just heard that a band called The Monos are playing at The
Hobbit in Southampton on Wednesday August 3. According to a reliable source they
are a band well worth seeing. Doors open at 8.30pm. Also on the bill are The
Rise
and Happy As Larry. For more info on The Monos see
www.themonos.com .
A sad farewell to singer Long John Baldry who died in Canada
recently. John was well known to music fans in the South. I first saw him back
at the old Concorde Club in Southampton in the mid-60s, and again with The Steam
Packet at the Marquee in London several years later. More recently I saw him at
The Brook in Southampton, and interviewed him by phone just before his
appearance there. A charming and friendly personality, he deserves credit for
popularising
the blues in the UK. And he enjoyed the distinction of having a No 1 hit during
England’s World Cup success in 1966 with “Let The Heartaches Begin” which
introduced him to a whole new set of fans.
At last! Grants totalling £5.75 million from Arts Council
England means that Southampton will be home to a new multi-purpose arts complex,
bringing together a lively mix of art forms in a city centre setting. The award
by the Arts Council sees £5 million going to the City Council and £0.75 to Arts
Asia. It means the go-ahead for the arts complex, years after the closure of The
Gantry. Now, visual, performing, moving image and Asian arts organisations,
professional performers, artists and film makers will have a venue overlooking
East Park.
Southampton's New Arts Complex, (SNAC, a working title - a permanent name will
be chosen in the next few months) fronts onto Guildhall Square and will bring
diverse art forms to Southampton's busy commercial heart. A popular John
Lewis department store, Tyrrell & Green, previously occupied the site. The
development enhances the city's civic and cultural quarter, a concentration of
Southampton's principal cultural venues - The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton
Guildhall and the City Art Gallery, the Millais Gallery and now Southampton's
New Arts Complex - to the north of the main shopping centre.
The complex will bring new audiences to the partner organisations, which are:
The John Hansard Gallery, which has a strong international reputation, presents
innovative contemporary art exhibitions, and is part of the University of
Southampton; Art Asia, which promotes all Asian art forms and initiated the
city's annual Mela festival, is based in the inner city. City Eye, which was
established in 1987, produces videos, provides training and facilities for
digital film making and is the regional delivery partner for the Film Council
through Screen South.
The Performing Arts Organisation is the working name for Southampton's newest
venue for a full range of live performing arts, including theatre, cabaret,
comedy, music and a range of education and outreach projects.
"This is simply fantastic news for the city," says Southampton Council's Leader
Adrian Vinson. "All the parties have worked hard to achieve this and I'm proud
for all the partners. This will bring great opportunities for citizens an d
visitors alike, and reaffirms Southampton as the cultural capital of the South."
The Arts Council funding will be augmented by a £2.8 million contribution by way
of land from Southampton City Council, together with contributions from the
University of Southampton and an additional grant to Art Asia of
£0.75million from Arts Council England.
Felicity Harvest, Executive Director of Arts Council England, South East says;
"We are delighted to be making this capital award of £5.75 million - which
includes a total of £750,000 to Art Asia - that will help realise Southampton's
long awaited ambition to develop a cultural quarter of national and
international status. This heralds a new era for the city and we look forward to
working with Southampton City Council and key arts organisations to bring this
to
fruition."
A fundraising scheme, managed by the University's Development Office, will be
launched to ensure that funds are in place for the arts partners' ambitions for
the complex to be fully realised. Work is currently planned to start on
site early in 2006, with a projected opening in mid-2008.
We will be following the development of the complex regularly on this website,
so watch this space!
Southampton soul singer Laura Vane will have to wait just a
little longer to introduce her new band at The Brook. Laura will be playing the
support slot at the Carleen Anderson gig which was to have taken place on August
31. Now
Carleen’s record company have insisted on rescheduling it to September 4 at the
same venue, apparently to tie in with the release of Carleen’s new album.
Jazz fans may be interested to know that Andy Iles has arranged
another Southampton Mencap Jazz Dinner Club at The Swan pub in Portsmouth Road,
Woolston on Wednesday August 3. The Harry Young Jazztet will be playing from
8.30pm, but patrons are asked to get there earlier to enjoy the food. Tickets
for the gig are £8 - to make reservations ring Andy on 02380 431491. A tasty
meat curry or vegetarian alternative is included in the ticket price, and
reservations
are essential.
The unlikely musical combination of Madness and Pink Floyd will be heard across
the green fields of Fleming Park this summer when Eastleigh plays host to a
spectacular fundraising event on August 4, as par of the Eastleigh Festival.
The opening night of the Eastleigh Festival is being given over to the Mayor of
Eastleigh’s charity appeal by organiser Peter Chegwyn, with a spectacular, if
somewhat unusual evening of live music from local bands all giving their
services for free. The Mayor, Councillor Bernie Wright is delighted that profits
from the opening night will be going towards the Hamble Lifeboat, The Hamble Sea
Scouts and Homestart Eastleigh.
Voluntary fundraiser for the Mayor’s appeal Kim Garner says: ‘I approached Peter
last year, after a local band offered to put on a charity gig for me, and asked
him if he would give me some assistance in organising a live music event. I was
overwhelmed when he said I could have the whole of the opening night if I booked
all the acts! I have organised smaller live music events in the past but the
Eastleigh Festival is huge, attracting thousands of people from all over the UK.
We worked together to secure what we think is an amazing, if unorthodox line up,
which is a double header with Perfect
Alibi and Two Tonic, and support from Sticklebach. With the one off gig by Pink
Floyd at Live8 sure to spark a resurgence of interest in the music of one of the
greatest British Rock bands ever, Eastleigh is delighted to welcome Perfect
Alibi, celebrating their 15th year, who will be authentically recreating the
music and spectacular laser show so reminiscent of the original Floyd. As a
complete contrast, Two Tonic with their army of loyal followers from all over
the UK will be whipping up the crowd with their stunning, high energy show.
Completing the line up, Sticklebach will be letting their hair down ( quite
literally ! ) with their tribute to the 80’s rock anthems of iconic bands such
as Guns and Roses, Bon Jovi and Queen.
Eastleigh favourite Rolf Harris will be headlining the festival, which also
features The Undertones, The Proclaimers, Kosheen and a host of other artists
which promises to make this the most successful Eastleigh Festival yet. As
an extra attraction this year, campers will be accommodated.
For more information please see
www.eastfest.co.uk for more details Tickets priced from £15 are
available in person from The Mayflower, Southampton, The Point, Eastleigh and
online via
www.ticketsouth.co.uk
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Featured artists:
see POL Articles
The Blockheads
The Brook,
Southampton
Friday August 19
Lightnin’ Willie
The Albert Tavern, Southsea
Thursday August 25
The Ukrainians Endorse It Festival, Sixpenny Handley August 12 - 14
The Duhks
Eastleigh Festival, Eastleigh
Saturday August 6
Rory Ellis
Various venues throughout Hampshire
The Honeymoon Machine
The Joiners, Southampton Thursday August 11
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