Rich

Martyn and Amy hadn't booked a honeymoon yet, their plan all along had been to wait till the last minute and grab a Travelzoo bargain hol to wherever took their fancy. Given the wedding postponement, I think this plan has paid off..! I do feel sorry for people who have had plans really spoiled.

My son and his lady have postponed their wedding 6 months, to April next year (very sensibly, I think). So bang goes the last man standing on this year's gig diary. I'm not remotely surprised and secretly pleased because a] it allows us more rehearsal time to lick into shape the special set-opener we've got planned for them (big horns-driven version of Black Parade by My Chemical Romance... Martyn and Amy were huge MCR fans back in the day), and more importantly b] it gives me 6 months more to polish my speech (I'm best man as well as father of the groom and part of the evening entertainment... no pressure there then ).

I'm in a 12 piece band. I basically play for free anyway

Buggger off, I saw it first.

Iron Maidens. Awesome.

I was sceptical at first but I gave them a try based on recommendations. I'll never go back now. To give you an idea of how long these things last... I like a bit of brightness in my sound, as I do like to chuck in the occasional (very occasional) slap or pull, but even so I have still only needed to buy two new sets in the last 3 gigging years (not counting this gig-free year, obvs!).

This, this and this. I use Elixirs so I don't buy strings very often, admittedly, but Strings Direct always get my business.

You're not a Bad Person, you're just In The Wrong Thread

On reflection, both this song and its video must have been intentionally bad. They couldn't have been serious, surely..?

Oh yes. This we very much like. You guys sound great, tight as a gnat's chuff.

Some of the sniffiest, most elitist and looking-down-noses-at-other-instruments attitudes I've seen on Farcebook have been from Spector owners**. #ohtheirony Is there anything you do actually like? ** not all Spector owners, obvs.

If I've got room in the car, I'd be happy to

Donkey's ages ago -- '88 I think -- some mates and I did some recording at a studio in Weston-super-Mare. The drummer lived in London, and got a lift to Weston from his brother. He arrives, unloads kit, off went bro, drummer sets up... no snare. This is back when mobile phones were still a yuppy's wet dream, remember, so no way to contact brother and beg for a lift back. So off goes drummer to the station for a train to London, while we do as much as we can to a click track. Drummer arrives back some hours later clutching snare drum. Sets up his now complete kit, only to find he has no sticks either... I bundled him into the car and gave him a lift into Weston to buy some, before the others could lynch him.

What video? There's no video there at all. In fact, who are you and what forum do you think you're on? This is Mumsnet.

My two main working fivers are my Sire V7 and my Shuker custom build. Obviously the two bear little resemblance to each other in terms of tonal character -- the Sire is a classic Jazz, the Shuker is a smooth hi-fi sophisticate. A pair of 501s and an Armani suit, if you will. But they're equally good at what they do, and that's a massive compliment to the Sire rather than any form of critique on the Shuker. The Sire gets all my gig work at the moment, for two reasons: 1, its tone is a far better fit for the genres I currently play in; 2, if something major happened to the Sire on a night out (theft, major damage etc) I would be gutted but I could buy another... if the same happened to the Shuke, I would be totally, inconsolably heartbroken because it is irreplaceable.

Sad but entirely true. Print media is probably doomed. I'm trying to think what the last paper magazine I bought was. Apart from Private Eye -- my only regular print purchase -- I honestly cannot remember.

No single tune in particular, but I loved Trouble Funk and the whole go-go thing.

I thought the claret and blue stripes on Steve Harris' bass were a giveaway. As is of course the Hammers badge, when you can see it. Ah well.

Completely brilliant. Love the engineering in this, even if it is a bit Heath Robinson in places

Likewise Mr 'Arris's West Ham P.

Playing the main stage at Thrubfest is a real bucket lister.

Or maybe Nempnett Thrubwell. For non-SWers, yes it really is a place.