Back once again in our local. There was a good crowd when we got there including some of our neighbours and friends form Bluebell Roots, and most people stayed around, which is often not the case in food pubs – people will eat then leave. A group at one table, it turned out, at been at our gig last September for Hailsham Festival and one of them had been the one who suggested the return of the Chough to Kent as a subject for a song! So of course we had to sing The Return of the Bloodied Crow and talk about the fact that it was now entered into a competition.
The PA had packed up earlier in the week so Jim fiddled with it during the day and tested it and it was working fine but as we were setting up, the mixing desk must have got jogged in the bag so every channel was up full volume, hence when Jim switched on the PA a feedback squeal deafened the whole pub, making a baby cry, which wasn’t the best of starts. But it got better!
We set up next to the open fire in front of the log pile which is a nice central place to play, in view of most of the pub, but a little cramped because we don’t want to be actually in front of the fire itself.
The audience were listening which was great! We had some requests, a few of them from someone who arrived in the second half and had missed them in the first half, but we did relent and played Temperature’s Rising twice. In the past, Paul the owner has passed the ‘hat’ (ice bucket) around during the evening but he hadn’t done this and asked if we were going to at the end, so I quickly did a round of the remaining people in the pub with one of my foot-rest-tin-cans and gathered a few quid, which felt a bit awkward. The pub always put a bit in so it was ok, but the total could have been better – must remember to promote the ‘hat’ next time we go.
No CD sales but we did get to chat to the group with the ‘crow’ connection and got them to sign up to the mailing list. Parking and unloading is easy, right by the front door, free drink/s from the bar. The pub has a lot of music there now, usually Sunday afternoons and for special events and is planning more in the beer garden summer so it’s a good venue.
(photo of pub from their instragram page https://www.instagram.com/theoldoakinnarlington/)