Tales from the Rails (Stratford upon Avon) – The bard and the Harmonica

I’m currently at BBC Wales, sitting on a sofa that’s too comfortable (fear I might fall asleep!) and have about another half hour before I play a live session on the evening show: Just enough time to share a few thoughts on last night’s show. Yesterday I played my second show with Ian McNabb at Cox’s Yard in one of my many homes, Stratford upon Avon. It was a hazy start in Bristol and I just started waking up when I arrived in Shakespeare town. Luckily, one does not have to be too alert to find the way through this town – just follow the road (not made of yellow bricks) all the way down from the station to the river, past the bard looking down on his most famous creations and there you are. Cox’s Yard is one of those venues I feel at home at and being back in the shire, even if just for a couple of hours, is always a good opportunity to catch up with some friends and family. The audience was even more attentive than in Bristol – you could have heard that proverbial pin drop – and Mr. McNabb himself came out to see me play, after surreptitiously joining in on “Here’s Tom with the Weather” on harmonica from the backstage room. I got to play a double encore – a rare treat for an opening act. We had a bit of a crazy jamm-session on stage at the end of Ian’s set – he’s a rather unpredictable performer, so even I wasn’t sure what was going on – but it was fun!