Top Song Of The Year.......So Far

Well isn't it amazing. After six months of doing the stats on the karaoke, and writing this blog, Captain Jack has decided to see if all his hard work has not gone in vain. As a little treat for you and an exercise for me, I have decided to set up a voting line for the best song I have sang this year so far, that is from January to June. All this will culminate in me performing the song at the Birches Head Hotel on my Birthday weekend karaoke on 23rd August, so you have around eight weeks to place your vote. Anyway its pretty easy to vote, and I think the choices are varied enough to give a good response, so get voting!

Top Song Of The Year So Far........ January To June 2007
	Angie by The Rolling Stones
	Life On Mars by David Bowie
	What I've Done by Linkin Park
	Bring It On Home by Sam Cooke
	Somebody To Love by Queen
	Patience by Take That
	Let It Be by The Beatles
	Ruby Tuesday by The Rolling Stones
	Live And Let Die by Paul McCartney & Wings
	Let's Get Rocked by Def Leppard
Free polls from Pollhost.com

Voting is limited to one vote per day, but you can vote for as many songs as you like. Please vote as many times as you can, and don't forget to turn up on the 23rd August to hear me belt out the winning track.

Stay Lucky Folks

Captain Jack

Thursday 21st June

Its Captain Jacks Takeover Week

Well at least for one week anyway. Not sure how the format goes but I'm sure Shaun won't mind my fresh new outlook on the listing's and I'm sure you will see that this week was much more of a flamboyant night than usual, especially after last week and my run of new songs was abruptly ended!. Anyway without further delay here is the listing for the songs sang tonight.

• Scott - Rolling Stones - Ruby Tuesday
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Start Me Up
• Andy & Nicky - Meatloaf - Paradise By The Dashboard Light
• Tina & Hayley - Metallica - Enter Sandman
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Brown Sugar
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Jumping Jack Flash
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Sympathy For The Devil
• Andy - Englebert Humperdink - Winter Wonderland
• Tina & Hayley - Motorhead - Ace Of Spades
• Others - Various Artists - Happy Birthday
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Sympathy For The Devil
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Honky Tonk Woman
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Tumbling Dice
• Andy - Shania Twain - Any Man Of Mine
• Tina & Hayley - Black Sabbath - Warpigs
• Others - Nat King Cole - The Christmas Song
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Gimme Shelter
• Scott - Rolling Stones - You Cant Always Get What You Want
• Scott - Rolling Stones - I Can't Get No (Satisfaction
• Andy - Cheeky Girls - The Cheeky Song
• Tina & Hayley - Alice Cooper - Poison
• Others - Err hang on can't read my writing think its a xmas song?
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Its Only Rock And Roll
• Scott - Rolling Stones - Angie

Well there you go a great week I think you will all agree. Not many singers in on the night. Not sure about the song choices by Andy, and to be fair Tina & Hayley really rocked the joint with the Metallica thingy song. I am of course glad to see the Stone's rightfully on the top of the most sung artist list now pummelling The Fratellis into second place. Ah well Shaun you would leave me in charge what did you expect!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

SHAUN DO NOT READ THE FOLLOWING

PLEASE CLOSE YOUR EYES AND IGNORE

THE FOLLOWING LIST OF SONGS AND

USE THE LIST ABOVE!

• Andy & Scott: The Beatles - Love Me Do
• Scott: Rolling Stones - Street Fighting Man
• Others: Mariah Carey - Hero
• Andy: Dire Straits - Money For Nothing
• Tina & Hayley: Britney Spears - I Love Rock & Roll
• Others: The Corrs - Dreams
• Others: Pink - Get The Party Started
• Scott: Aerosmith - Big Ten Inch Record
• Tina & Hayley: Lily Allen - Smile
• Andy: Golden Earing - Radar Love
• Others: Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams
• Others: Nikki French - Total Eclipse Of The Heart
• Scott: Bon Jovi - You Want To Make A Memory
• Others: Beautiful South - Perfect 10
• Tina & Hayley: The Bangles - Manic Monday
• Others: Dusty Springfield - Son Of A Preacher Man
• Others: Whitney Houston & Ce Ce Williams - Count On Me
• Scott: Aerosmith - Dream On
• Others: Robbie Williams - Let Me Entertain You
• Andy: The Sugar Hill Gang - Rappers Delight
• Tina & Hayley: Stephy - Chelsea
• Others: Whitney Houston - I Wanna Dance With Somebody
• Others: James Morrison - Wonderful World
• Others: Neil Diamond - Forever In Blue Jeans
• Scott: Rod Stewart - Tonight's The Night
  

So there you go then. As you can see the ah-hum! real list is not quite as eh-um! accurate as the list I put up earlier but I'm sure that Shaun will use his discretion when adding to the stats list 'cough cough' I must admit it was great fun doing the list this week, a job which all of us on the table took part in so I must thank Hayley and Tina for their part in making sure we are kept up to date on the Birches Head Karaoke Stats for 2007. I know its all a bit of fun, but I know how much work Shaun puts in for it and he deserves a huge pat on the back as without him there would be no stats and quite probably no Captain Jack.

Anyway onto my usual write up now for this week. This week as you can see, had us singing quite a few songs, in fact I managed to get six in (albeit one duet) as for the first hour or so the pub was empty after the bowlers bowed out. Louise didn't make it, so we were two down, with Shaun being on his hol's. So by the end of the night the pub had filled up and it ended up being a good night. With being off work tomorrow, I of course took up Shaun's tradition of getting blasted and losing the use of my legs! But being able to hold my liquor, I managed to refrain from 'talking down the big white telephone'.

Anyway on to tonight's song list. Tonight I sang 1. Love Me Do by The Beatles (SFMW823-08) 2. Street Fighting Man by The Rolling Stones (SC8964-06) 3. Big Ten Inch Record by Aerosmith (SC8117-08) 4. You Wanna Make A Memory by Bon Jovi (THC0707-14) 5. Dream On by Aerosmith (SC8635-05) and 6. Tonight's The Night by Rod Stewart (ZMP099-09)

Love Me Do by The Beatles link

First song of the night and a duet with Andy to kick off with. Not really our best effort at this one, but we did start by using the Beatles song titles in the listing book to have a conversation with, which resulted in us getting the giggles through the song! How very un-professional! But to be fair I'm not sure we have ever done this one before so we didn't really know how it would sound. Pretty easy to sing if your not having a fit of giggles, but not one I think we will rush into having a go at again. on the night rating 2/10

Street Fighting Man by The Rolling Stones link

Well back to normal with a real Stones classic here. As you know from previous blogs I am trying to do all the well known tracks for Hayley before we go to see the band in August, and this is one of the best live tracks the band do. Street Fighting Man is on anthemic sixties track about political angst and rebelling against the system, something the Stones did in that era on a regular basic. It is reputed to of been inspired by Tariq Ali, a British/Pakistani writer/film-maker after he attended one of his demonstrations, although in Ali's 1987 novel Street Fighting Years he makes no reference to the fact! Maybe Mick and Keith's lifestyle were not the kind of support he wanted, what with all the drink/drugs/ women etc...As usual I found it a pretty easy song to sing, as it is always easier with song you love, and this is a cracker. Great guitar riffs and great lyrics.on the night rating 7/10

Big Ten Inch Record by Aerosmith link

Well the wait is nearly over. This Sunday I finally get to see Aerosmith after eight years of waiting for them to tour the U.K. again, so tonight I have thrown in two tracks by America's best Rock Band. First up tonight is the little known Big Ten Inch Record. The track was originally recorded by Bull Moose Jackson in 1952, but was thought to be to controversial at the time for radio airplay, and was therefore not a big hit, but Aerosmith recorded it in 1972. Steve Tyler's ability to use double-entendre was brilliant for this song as its full of double meanings. I first heard this on the M.T.V. Aerosmith Unplugged and it was probably the best song of the set. Aerosmith have a great blues feel to their music, and this has transpired throughout their career, culminating in the brilliant Honkin' On Bobo album a couple of years ago (well worth a listen folks!) on the night rating 8/10

You Want To Make A Memory by Bon Jovi link

A brand new track by Bon Jovi especially for the wife. It is taken from their current album 'Lost Highway' which is described as an album influenced by Nashville. Bon Jovi have always had a bit of a country twist to their music in the past, with Wanted Dead Or Alive and Dry County as the stand out tracks from the band, and Jon Bon Jovi both doing the soundtrack to, and cameoing in, Young Guns 2 (remember Blaze Of Glory!) But this is not what the band is all about, and I feel, after seeing them last year, they should stick to the rock not the country. Having said that this is without a doubt the best track from the album, and is really more like the typical Bon Jovi ballads we all know and love. As they are one of the best selling rock bands ever, they are allowed to at least try and re-invent themselves every now and then, but take it from the Stones or Aerosmith lads, if it ain't broke don't try to fix it. It is a good song to sing and by the huge grin and thumbs up I got from Hayley I think she liked it. on the night rating 8/10

Dream On by Aerosmith link

My all time favourite Aerosmith track. This is a truly brilliant song. It was written by Steven Tyler and released in 1973 and was the bands first big hit. It is one track you are guaranteed to hear if you see the band live, and is probably the only song they do which makes the whole crowd stop and sing along with lighters held aloft. It does have rather strange lyrics, but as with most song it does tell a story, about the fact that in life, if you do something bad, then it does have a habit of turning around and biting you on the arse! Its a great song to sing, with good old Joe Perry brilliant guitar work showing through. Very Led Zeppelin influenced, as was a lot of Aerosmiths early stuff, but brilliant nonetheless. on the night rating 9/10

Tonight's The Night by Rod Stewart link

So to tonight's last song, and to end up with a Rod Stewart classic. This is a song I've wanted a crack at for age's, having practiced it a lot at home, but on the night it didn't feel as good as it did at home, although I think the beer had a lot to do with that! The song was written about the seduction of a virgin and about talking her into doing the deed, but at the time Rod was dating Britt Ekland, so I don't think he had much trouble with virgin's! It is a great track, but I do think you need Rod's gravelly voice to pull it off. on the night rating 4/10

So there you go again. Another batch of great tracks, and this week I did feel most of them went down quite well, and it is another six song's I've not done before this year. Well Sunday sees the next big gig on the Summer gig list, with Aerosmith at Hyde Park, and yes a full gig review will appear here in the next few days with set list pictures and general thoughts the whole Hyde Park Calling festival experience. I think Hayley is almost as excited as I am at going to see Aerosmith, even though it means her missing Bon Jovi, who are opening the O2 arena (The Domes new name) at the same time not five miles away. Shame they didn't play on the Saturday or it would of been the perfect weekend for us both. Anyway folks speak to you all soon me hearties! Rock On!

" Lenny : How did you get the REM to perform in your garage?

Homer : I told them it was for a benefit. They think they are saving the rain forest. "

Homer J Simpson

Thursday 14th June 2007

Well it's all back to normal again this week. After my triumphant survival of the Download Festival, it appears that I have found a new zest for live music, and by that I mean ROCK! None of your namby pamby, here today gone tomorrow trash, playing in tiny venues to wanna be no-hopers, all claiming they have seen the next best thing, buying their albums only to find them in the £1 bucket in Woolworth's within six months! No I mean proper rock bands. This years gig run is now well under way, and with Aerosmith and The Stones just around the corner, things can only get better.
Download was a blast, and I think the review and Video links give you the readers a great insite into what a great day it was. Don't get me wrong I know these day's aren't for everyone, but I assure you that festivals that are that big are that big for a reason, and that is that they are well put together, organised and the bands that are on make it their mission to not make mistakes so they don't get ripped apart by the press, which can make or break a band. I think everyone should witness the festival atmosphere at least once in a lifetime, and what better way to spend a summer day rocking out with thousands of people where you are all there together to enjoy yourself.Anyway rant over now onto the karaoke.
Tonight wasn't a bad night. It was quite busy with a few singers in and a 21st Birthday for one of the locals, so plenty of beer was drank, and a party mood could be felt around the pub. So onto tonight songs. Two requests, one new song and a duet not done for ages, and my run of new songs every week (I think its around 60 now!) finally comes to an end!
Tonight's songs were as follows. 1. Unskinny Bop by Poison (SC8516-13) 2. Screamager by Therapy? (SFMW887-03) 3. What I've Done by Linkin Park (SF255-02) and 4. In The End by Linkin Park (SF185-14)


Unskinny Bop by Poison link

First request of the night (Thanks Tina!) and a forgotten gem I think. Poison were one of the eighties long haired rock bands that never really made it that big in the U.K. but were huge in the States. Much in the style of Bon Jovi and Guns & Roses, the band had a few hits over here, this one in 1990, Your Mama Don't Dance in 1988 and most famously Every Rose Has Its Thorn, also in 1988. By the end of 1989 they were the fourth highest selling rock band of the 80's behind Bon Jovi, Guns & Roses and Def Leppard. This led to one of the bands only U.K. appearances at the 1990 Monsters of Rock festival at Doninigton, lining up alongside Whitesnake, Aerosmith The Quireboys and Thunder. This track is a really catchy rock tracks, which shows the best of the bands guitar riffs and is pretty easy to sing. I never really understood why they didn't really make it in the U.K. as a lot of people seem to know their well known track's, and they always seem to go down well. Easy enough to sing and great to start my night off with. on the night rating 7/10

Screamager by Therapy? link

Well thanks to the guy's at Sunfly we get a classic Brit Rock track straight from the forgotten classic archive. Not many will of heard of Therapy? but I can tell you from experience these guys could rock a stage in their day. They did has some pretty good chart success, thanks mainly to regular airplay on Radio One, and during the early 90's made it quite big on the festival circuit, notably at Monsters Of Rock in 1994, where I first saw them live. The band, from Northern Ireland, had at times been labeled the British Nirvana, but in effect this seemed to be the bands downfall, and as with the grunge movement, they faded away from the music industries glare. They are still going today, having just announced a 2007 tour, and are still releasing albums, although to fans only via their website. It was a great track in its day, and although I'm not sure many had heard it before tonight, I enjoyed it nonetheless. on the night rating 6/10

What I've Done by Linkin Park link

Well this was the break in my long run of not duplicating songs, and what a belter to do it with. All thanks to Shaun as he was the one who requested the track, and after the blinding Download show they put on, I obliged without much fuss, although I left him dangling on the night and stuck it in as a last minute change. I probably said all their was to say about this track last week, but having now seen them live, Linkin Park are a band you must get to see live if you get the chance. The band are currently on tour in the U.S alongside My Chemical Romance, and currently have no plans to tour Europe as of yet, but this could all change, and hopefully by the end of 2007 a European tour could well be announced, well fingers crossed. on the night rating 10/10

In The End by Linkin Park link

Well we couldn't end the night without singing another Linkin Park track, and this one is one of the best. Yet again Shaun was my singing partner for this one, singing Mike's vocals with his usual ease. With the pub being quite full, this one yet again rocked the place at the end of the night, and with Shaun being off for a week also gave him a rousing send off for his break. I'm sure we will sing this one many more times in the future, as I'm pretty sure we will never get bored with this one, and for a duet, this one is the one track that mine and Shaun's style's compliment themselves on to the best of our capability's. Shaun can rap and I can belt out the rock vocals so it works for us both. on the night rating 10/10

So another week draws to a close at the Hotel. This was a great week for me personally, as Download was a great day out, and my blog report was the most in depth one I have done to date, and I am very proud of it. So enough of the self-gratification for now, but no seriously, I hope you all enjoy the read up. Now next week should be fun, as with Shaun being away, Captain Jack is taking on the role of Stat-master! So expect 20 Stones tracks Shaun!!!!
Also it will only be a few short days to the next big gig on the Summer gig list, as myself and Hayley venture down to London for Aerosmith at Hyde Park, so expect a detailed report from that one!. Also, in the next few weeks, with i being half way through the year, I will be putting together a list of my top ten tracks of the karaoke year so far, and hopefully be putting up a link so you can vote for the top one which I will of course sing again. Until the next time see you all soon.

" I've always wondered if there was a god. And now I know there is -- and it's me."
Homer J Simpson

Download 2007

Do You Wanna Get Rocked!!

Well for everyone going to that little part of our great nation on 9th June I'm sure that was the only intention. This is the big one! The highlight of every true rock fan's year is the Download Festival, and this year was to prove no different. On a blisteringly hot weekend over 100,000 people descended onto the home of rock to witness a weekend of buying over priced merchandise, drinking loads of warm beer, staring aimlessly at boobs on the big screen and to rock out to the hardest music that rock has to offer.

The actual festival, which lasts for three days, has been going now for well over 20 years, and was formally known as the Monsters Of Rock. In the guise of Download this was the fifth event and was one of the biggest. Headliners this year were My Chemical Romance on the Friday, Linkin Park on the Saturday and the mighty Iron Maiden closed the weekend on the Sunday. It was Maidens fourth headline slot (1988/1992/2003/2007) and Linkin Parks second (2004/2007) , following such illustrious past headliners Ozzy Osbourne (1986/1996/2002), Metallica (1995/2004/2006) , AC/DC (1981/1984/1991), Gun's And Roses (2005) , Whitesnake (1983/1990), Aerosmith (1994), and Bon Jovi (1987).

So this year, after a short deliberation, it was decided that I would get back to my rock roots and visit the home of rock music once again after a 13 year break (God showing my age now!). Four of us were to enter the throng on the Saturday for Linkin Parks headline set as we felt this was the best all round day. Joining me on the day was Paul, his son Jack and Jacks mate Tom. Both Jack and Tom are 11 so it was left for the responsible one to look after the kids on the day, believe it or not me! Not to worry though, the lads were soon letting me and Paul know who we would be seeing on the day, and pointing out all the best Rock-Chicks to look at!

The following report will do its best to give you the best feel to the day with pics, live footage and how the bands went down on stage. So sit back, relax and prepare for a Rock-fest!

Turisas

Well to kick in the day what better way to start than with Finnish Battle metal hero's Turisas. The band literally blow the stage away with their brand of folk/rock and anyone who has a hangover this morning surely will wish they had brought some neurofen with them! They are very loud any don't really seem to care that they are on first and they crowd is just filling up. Sort of a cross between 'He-Man' and 'Hagar the Horrible' they spin round on stage covered in fake blood and looking like total arses, but to their credit they get the place bouncing. The set is only about 25 minutes long but in that time they had the crowd well dancing!!

The boys took full advantage of the crowd being a bit bleary and belted out some very tuneful tracks including a brilliant version on Boney M's Rasputin. Believe me this had to be seen to be believed. A great fun opening to the day and the crowd that saw the battle metal gods will not forget them in a hurry.

HELLYEAH

Now the party had really got going on came the hard cor rockers Hellyeah. The band is a metal super group made up of members of Mudvayne, Pantera, Nothingface and Damageplan (All of which I'm sure many of you will never of heard of, so links are provided!). They took to the stage with ease and their style of hard rocking and hard drinking showed throughout the 30 minute set. Chad Gray the vocalist has a great swagger on stage on the guy oozes rock from every pore, and this energy translates to the crowd.

Although the band only had a short set, the crowd gave a glowing round of respectful applause to drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott, whose brother Dimebag Darrell, had the second stage named after him this year. Why I hear you ask. In 2004 whilst performing with his brother Dimebag Darrell Abbott was shot and killed on stage, after being shot in the head five times at point blank range. Ironically he was killed on the same day as John Lennon by a disgruntled fan! The crowds reaction to Vinnie's first appearance in the U.K. since his brothers death was a fitting tribute, and I'm sure he appreciated it.

SHADOWS FALL

By the time Shadows Fall hit the stage the mosh pit's had well and truly kicked in. The lead singer, Brian Fair, who has the longest dreadlocks I have ever seen, failed to get the crowd going despite his best dread-whipping efforts.

Despite the lack of support from the now huge crowd the band got through their thrash metal set and delighted in telling the crowd to "have a f$#king good time today" at every opportunity.

BRING ME THE HORIZON

Our first visit of the day into the Dimebag Stage gave us the 'deathcore' band from Sheffield 'Bring Me The Horizon'. This was the bands biggest gig so far, and despite being very young they do appear to have a future. They gave us the biggest mosh pit of the day, which involves loads of the crowd creating a vibrant circle of hardcore rockers going completely mental as the band play on.

This is the band Jack and Tom really wanted to see from the start of the day and they really enjoyed them, although not really my cup of tea, they provide a welcome relief from the heat outside. They are an acquired taste, but the lead singer, Oliver Sykes, provided a huge laugh with his extremely well spoken voice for a guy who sings 'deathcore metal'.

30 SECONDS TO MARS

Los Angeles alternative rockers 30 Seconds To Mars are next up on the main stage. Lead singer and well know actor Jared Leto takes to the stage with his usual swagger, and wins the crowd over with his obvious style and likability factor. if he wasn't an actor you would say he was as his efforts on stage are a bit like he is performing as a rock star on stage, but as the sun beats down he provides the female fan's with a scream moment as he jumps from the stage to their delight during one of the songs for a prolonged walkabout.

Leto is very much in the Jon Bon Jovi style front man and plays to the crowd at every opportunity. They played a great set on the day and are a band worth taking another look at.

BOWLING FOR SOUP

When two giant inflatable sheep are put onto the stage you know the next set is going to be lots of fun, and Bowling For Soup provide one of the most fun sets of the day. Obviously the guys were here to promote their new album, forthcoming tour, being American, getting drunk, well just about anything really! Lead singer Jaret Reddick thinks nothing to stopping halfway through song's to crack jokes with the crowd and to point out the crowd surfer in an inflatable dinghy!

They play to the crowd in the sunshine and make the wisecracking jokes almost an art form in itself. It was a great set from the band, who exclaimed their delight to be up on stage and their eagerness to get off and watch the rest of the day with the fans. At last this was a band who seemed to be enjoying every moment of their Download experience almost as much as the fans watching them.


GALLOWS

It was back to the Dimebag stage for this next band, British punk band Gallows. They were truly phenomenal on the day. The band hail from Watford and are heavily touted as the next big thing in punk/rock to come from Britain, and they do try to live up to the expectation's. Frank Carter bears an uncanny stage resembelance to Sid Vicious from the Sex Pistols, and you can tell from the performance the band has huge punk influences. The song's are loud, guitar riff's are hard and heavy, in the true punk style, but the songs do have depth to them, talking about their backgrounds, life and growing up in a 'crap town' you know things we can all relate too.

The bands thirty minute set was over as quick as it started and involved Frank smashing three microphones, five microphone stands, the lead guitarist being hit on the head with an apple, Frank doing a huge stage-dive and subsequent crowd surf, and Frank apparentley ringing his mum from the stage to play her a song. This was the band's first appearence at Download and I'm sure it won't be their last.


MACHINE HEAD

Clearly these guys were never going to be the quietest bands of the day, and fearing that we may be crushed to death by the hoards of Machine Head fans gathered to see them on the main stage, we took our place on the hill to witness the thrash metal kings from California. As you can see from the picture the hill gets quite busy and it is a great and safe way to watch bands like Machine Head who get the crowd to be a little well brutal at times, not the place for two eleven year olds!

To be honest the band had the 60,000 sun-soaked rock fanatics bouncing through the entire 50 minute set, and to be fair I think they gave everyone what the wanted, rock in the sun and as the lead singer Robb Flynn stated, it was 'Un-f*%king believable'

LEZ ZEPPELIN Now as all of you who know me will know, there was no way on god's green earth I was going to miss a band called Lez Zeppelin! This was to be our first visit to the third, and smallest stage, the Tuborg Stage. It was either going to be great or truley awful, but they were brilliant. The four piece from New York are a Led Zeppelin tribute band,believe it or not, that are absolutely fantastic live, and apart from the drummer, all very attractive as well!. The lead vocalist Sarah McLellan, who takes the Robert Plant roll as front-woman is one of the best vocalists I have ever heard. She belt's out the Led Zeppelin classics with ease, and has a real Plant like aura on stage, which gets the crowd singing along, forgetting at times this is just a tribute band!

For me this was one of the highlights of the day. Not just because they were without doubt the hottest looking act of the day, but with all the new music about today it was great to see that classic rock music still goes down a storm, and holds up today as well as ever. The small tent was extremley hot and sweaty by the end of the thirty minute set. I'm sure that Jack and Tom were glad to see the back of them, but paul and myself both felt they gave a brilliant performance, and if for no other reason than to hear Sarah's brilliant vocals I urge you to take the time out to listen to more of them, especially when their first L.P. is released later this year.

BIFFY CLYRO

It was back around to the Dimebag stage to see Scottish rockers Biffy Clyro. The band are the rock rivals to fellow Scot's The Fratellis, and the crowd show their comical rivalry with chants of 'Mon the Biffy' Coming on stage to a huge welcome from the Donington faithful, the band gave a blistering set from start to finish, playin tracks from their new album Puzzle. This was the bands first time at Download, and they siezed the opportunity with both hand's and rocked the tent to the rafters.

This has been a hugely succesful year for the lad's, and with a Summer of festival gig's lined up including Glastonbury and T in the Park, I'm sure they will be the next big thing in music over 2007 as long as they keep performing like this.

MARILYN MANSON

The Anti-Christ superstar appears on stage to one of the biggest welcomes of the day. He might be an outspoken radicalist, but as an entertainer, the old goth pull's out all the stop's and leaves the crowd salivating at his every move. As the ever contriversial singer comes on stage with a microphone shaped like a giany kitchen knife, you know he is going to pull no punches on stage. Flanked by hundreds of candles with added dripping blood effect, his bursts through his set full of his classic tracks and a mixture of songs from his new album Eat Me, Drink Me.

I was totally blown away by Manson today. I half expected him to be below all the hype, but this guy is a born entertainer of the grandest scale. His set oozes quality from start to finish. His fan's are some of the most loyal of any artist, many donning leather goth suits all day in the baking hot sun just to see their hero. He belted out all his best stuff such as mOBSCENE, Beautiful People and Rock Is Dead, but the most crowd pleasing tracks came from his well known covers of Tainted Love and Sweet Dreams, which went down a storm.

So the time drew on to the last act of the day. After we survived the oncoming assault from all the goth's escaping from the front we waited patiently for the headline act to appear on stage. While we waited there were many forms of entertainment to pass the minutes away. Firstly, you have to become adept at the bottle throwing which went on as the stage was transformed into Linkin Parks stage. Secondly, the big screen cameramen do the customary shooting in on girls sitting on shoulders, and then getting their 'threpney bits' out for all to see, to the delight of all the males in the crowd. But the best part of the day was the now infamous bottle fight which took place on the hill and lasted for nearly two hours! It was great fun to watch from a distance, and did pass the ever growing time between Manson and Linkin Park.

LINKIN PARK

At last the waiting was over, and was it worth it. Well of course it was. Linkin Park are a superb live act, and after all the bands before them today, they pulled off a fantastic finale to the day. From start to finsh Chester and Mike have the crowd in their hands the entire set. The mosh pits came back for the heavier tracks such as One Step Closer and Point Of Authority. The crowd sang along with the ballads like Numb and the brilliant new track Leave Out All The Rest, and the new stuff such as Given Up, Bleed It Out and What I've Done sent the crowd into a frenzy.

This was the best possible end to the day, and without a doubt the best performace by anyone today. If these had been the only band we had seen today it would of been worth every penny. The Download festival has been a huge success for over twenty years now, mainly due to the fans that turn out in their hundreds of thousands to see the most diverse and hottest rock bands on the planet get together for a brilliant day of rocking themselves silly. Sadly we made our way from the event all having had a fantastic day. Its just a shame we will have to wait twelve months to do it all again next year. Roll on Download 2008.

Thursday 7th June 2007

Well it's Thursday and it's good to be back. To be fair a break from the old routine always does you good, and a holiday was just what I needed to re-charge the batteries and get me ready for Download at the weekend! So after the break I have aquired new songs to perform, especially with the new Sunfly disc's being out, and me being me I have a couple of classics to throw into the mix as well.
Tonight had a good crowd in and it showed with how many song's were sung on the night (nearly 30) not bad for a two hour stint. Now after a stretch away, I have got my creative juices flowing, and Captain Jacks T-Shirt Emporium should have some new shirts for you to purchase at very reasonable prices! So keep a look out and get buying.....
Anyway it was realy great to get back after being starved of karaoke for the last two weeks, so keen to impress I had a couple of songs that I knew the wife would love and one especially for Shaunio, which I know he would of loved. Anyway without further distraction on to tonights songs. They were 1.It's Only Rock N' Roll by The Rolling Stones (LEG120-11) 2. Dancing In The Moonlight by Thin Lizzy (SFMW887-04) 3. What I've Done by Linkin Park (SF255-02) and 4. Starman by David Bowie (SFMW841-05).

Its Only Rock N' Roll by The Rolling Stones

Its back to good old fashioned rock and roll (no pun intended) with this one. Its probably better known for being one of the Stones best live tracks nowadays, but my link is to the video recorded for the song when it was released in 1974. It's filmed in a tent that slowly fill's up with bubbles. Mick and Keith look to be enjoying the fun but Charlie and Bill look a bit dumbfounded by the whole thing. This is one of Hayleys favourite Stones tracks so with going to see them soon I will be taking her requests! It was reputedly written as a collabaration by Mick Jagger and Ronnie Wood, the future Stones guitarist, even though it was credited to the usual Jagger/Richards team. The song didn't realy chart well in the U.K., only just making the top ten, and featured David Bowie singing backing on the original recording. Loved to do new Stones songs (well new to me) and this was no exception. on the night rating 7/10

Dancing In The Moonlight by Thin Lizzy

This one was a real treat for me to sing. Thin Lizzy are a real musical influence on my life. Phil Lynott was one of rock's musical genius's, and he is still a big part of influencing many of today's bands, with his talent to rock the stage and live life to full rock and roll excesses being legendary. Phil unfortunately passed away on 4th January 1986 not due to a drug overdose as reported but to pnuemonia, although heroin had taken over his life it was not the drugs that finally took his life. His wild stage image was just that, an image, which as a Rocker he felt he had to live up to, but as is usually the case, this is what got the better of him. His legacy will live on forever as the first Irish Superstar, and he wrote some of the best known rock tracks, such as Don't Believe A Word, Boys Are Back In Town and re-worked a classic Irish love song Whisky In The Jar. It was more of an honour to sing this one than any other song I have sang this year.on the night rating 10/10

What I've Done by Linkin Park

A new track by one of rock's best band's around at the moment. This is a great new song by the band and the year has been topped off with a headline spot at this year's Download Festival at Donington Park. Usually the band has a rap/sing vocal to their songs but this one is just Chester banging out the vocals. It was probably just a matter of time before I did this one, so instead of waiting to be asked I just got on with it and pulled it off with not too much trouble. Can't wait to give you all the review of the band from my Download report next week. And yes, there will be pictures!... on the night rating 10/10

Starman by David Bowie

A great track to end the night off with tonight. Strangely enough this song is another of Hayley's favourites and when I have it on at home, it usually result's in her bouncing around the room like she is possesed! Ah well never mind. It is however a great track, and I have got into my Bowie just lately, probably due to the Life On Mars t.v. show. The song was recorded during Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust" phase and has been atributed to Bowie telling a story of a man from space (Ziggy Stardust) coming to Earth to influence the youth of the time via the radio. It has been said it has many influence's as a song ranging from the second coming of christ to the wizard of oz! And who said David Bowie didn't do drug's!!!!! I was a bit nervous about doing this one as while practicing at home I kept getting it wrong but with a bit of coaching from Hayley I think I managed to pull this one off. on the night rating 7/10

So there you are. After the break I was really keen to get back to the Hotel and I think I kept everyone happy with what I sang this week. I even got asked to give the Sneyd Arms a go on a Friday night, but I don't think I will as it's hard to sing when the fight's break out (little in joke there folks) Anyway as you have't had one for a couple of weeks here is you Homer fix. See you all soon with my Download review..........



"When will you people learn? In America we stopped using corporal punishment and things have never been better. The streets are safe, old people strut confidently trough the darkest alleys and the weak and nerdy are admired for their computer programming abilities. So, like us, let your children run wild and free. Because, as the old saying goes, let your children run wild and free." Homer J Simpson

Captain Jack Hits Newquay 27th May - 2nd June 07

Yes my friends its holiday time. Slipped in around a busy gig season, which kicked off with a vengeance last week, we decided that it was high time that Captain Jack ventured back to his pirate roots and visited the south west of England or pirate country, well apart from all the surfers that is! Well to be fair a good holiday is just what we needed. A break from the toil of work and a chance to spend some quality time with the wife lol! Now as my close relatives will know I am not a big lover of holidays in the U.K. Not that I don't like it, there are some great things to see and do in good old Blighty, but your just not guaranteed the weather!

So as we set off in the tipping down rain to Newquay we both thought that the week was going to be a washout, but at least we had the a first series of Heroes with us to watch if the rain got too much. But we arrived at Newquay to find the storm that had hit the south-west just about blowing over and that was really the last of the bad weather for the entire week. We had booked ourselves into a little B & B called Pencrebar situated just off the main street through Newquay on Berry Road. The hotel was perfectly situated for going to all of Newquay's best bars and club's. Parking was great as we had our own private car park to leave the car in just around the corner from the hotel. The rooms were brightly decorated, on-suite and came with a t.v. and a fridge.

Now as a B & B obviously the breakfast is all important and the hotel came up trumps. They provided a great choice of various breakfast's, including full english, bacon buttie's, continental or vegetarian. You have as much toast and cereal as you want, tea or freshly brewed coffee and a constantly topped up jug of orange juice. All in all, for the price you could not ask for more. Its small and clean, no noise and a great breakfast thrown in.

So as we were down for a week, and I like my food, I have decided to give you all a day to day run down of what we did and where we ate, for if you ever venture down and fancy a good meal. We ate out every night and visited many of Newquay's finest drinking establishments so I have plenty to tell you all!

Sunday

As our first day in Newquay we got our bearings first and with the weather not being brilliant we decided not to venture to far from the hotel. We were both starving after the journey down, but being on holiday we wanted a few beers first to settle us into the holiday mode. First up was to get some cash out, but as this was the Run To The Sun weekend, famous down these parts for being the busiest weekend of the year, most of the cash machines were cleaned out! We ventured into the center of town to find a bank that had some cash in and luckily found one. First port of call was The Central. I had been in here before on Darren's stag do, so I new it was a good pub. Loud music and Red Stripe on draft, but a downside as the beer is served in plastic glasses, which I feel always makes it taste a bit flat. Next up was Newquay's best known pub Buzio's. This is a truly great pub/club. Now the last time I was in here I wasn't disappointed, and this time was no different. Buzio's prides itself on having the best beers, and they hit the jackpot this time. Whilst on my stag do in Prague we came upon a little number called Desperados. This is a mix of lager, tequila and lime and is fantastic when served cold, and they have it in Buzio's. Oh joy! Well a few bottles later we decided to go for a traditional Sunday meal or a curry! We found a great little curry house I had spotted across the road from our hotel. The Green Thal is a small curry house with only about six tables, is very reasonably priced and the food was great. Not much in a way of choice for drinks, just lager out of cans and warm wine, but the curry more than made up for it. Then we ended the day and toddled off to bed to dream of drinking more Desperados.

Monday

We decided, as it was a Bank Holiday, to spend the day exploring Newquay. The sun was out so we went for a walk around the town to look at all the great little shops the town has to offer. We wandered around the little gift shops, and saw some great shops selling all kinds of flavoured fudge's (my personal fave was dime bar). We wandered around to the beach and the harbour, sat on fistral beach watching the surfers, which made me very thirsty! So off to the pub. We went to a pub called The Fort which overlooks the harbour. Great pub this one with a large veranda to catch a few rays on and drink a nice cool pint. Then it was off round to The Red Lion for a pint of real ale. I had a lovely pint of the wonderfully named Cornish Knocker. This is a real great pint, and I'm sure has blown many knockers off in its time. The highlight of the day was finally finding a lifeboat charity bow worthy enough of throwing my tuppence into and I finally found one on the harbour ( Hint for future projects Lou!)

As for grub today we both fancied keeping it simple. So we spotted a great looking little pizza restaurant on Crantock Street called Dino's. The sign in the window claimed to have to best pizza in Newquay on sale, and it didn't disappoint. The food was great, served quickly and very cheap for a good homemade pizza. Genuine Italian guy runs the place and uses genuine Italian ingredients to give what was no doubt the best pizza I have tasted for a long time. Only let down was the fact it wasn't licenced but other than that no complaints. To round the night off we ventured to the Newquay Arms to have a beer and watch Phil Taylor in the darts. And to round the night off back to Buzio's for a few Desperados!

Tuesday

Today was the first day we decided to venture away from Newquay on a day trip. We decided to visit Lands End and Penzance. Lands End is everything you would expect on a sunny day but I imagine not much fun if the weather is bad. Luckily today was a sunny day. There is lots to see there and an all-inclusive ticket allows you into all the sites. There was for some unknown reason a Doctor Who exhibition with lots of props from the current runs of the series ans you can see below.

Its a great fun day out and the scenery does really take your breath away at times with the sea crashing into the rocks below the cliffs. We also visited the first/last shop in England perched on top of the cliffs and saw the world famous sign.

We also had our first genuine Cornish Pasty sat in one of the many picnic areas on top of the cliffs. We then sped off to Penzance. It a lovely little place with lots of quaint little shops to walk around, and a great promenade to stroll along. There is also a Pirate shop selling all kind of pirate knick-knacks! Oh and shells..... The only downside was we probably could of spent more time in Penzance as there was still lots to see and not much time left on the car park! Ah well more to see next time.

As for food today we went to our first Mexican. Senor Dicks is on the main street in Newquay opposite Buzios. Is brightly painted and not badly priced. The food is great although the portions are huge. You really do get your money's worth but don't eat in the day if you plan to go there! Lots of cocktails available at the bar, some nice Mexican beer's such as Sol and Corona. Only fault was the service tailed off during the meal, but it was the end of the night and they all probably wanted to go home! We then went to Newquay's Wetherspoons, just across from our hotel. Great pub this one with cheap beer and lots to choose from including some great local beers on draft including the Cornish Blonde.

Wednesday
Today took us to Truro. Truro is well known in the area for its excellent shops and there are plenty to walk around to see, although they are quite expensive! We walked around for a couple of ho0urs and decided on a spot of lunch in the market square at he aptly named Market Inn. The food was very nice and I had a huge mug of excellent coffee. As the weather started to turn a bit blustery, we headed back to Newquay to glorious sunshine, so we strolled down to the harbour to soak up the sun. We were amazed to see the Harbour Sea Lions which live nearby and follow the boats in as they return from there fishing trips, much to the enjoyment of all watching.

They are great to watch and we must of spent at least 90 minutes just watching them swim by after every boat that came into the harbour.

For our meal tonight we had spotted a steak house on one of the main link roads The Braefel Inn. Well it had to happen sometime and this was it. This was the worst food we had all week. For a steak house too not be able to cook steak correctly is a sin. We both asked for the steaks to be cooked medium and they were closer to well done! They even had people getting up and walking out as they had not been seen by waitresses for nearly 40 minutes, despite asking for them to take their orders. Over cooked and over priced this is a place to avoid, although the pint of lager shandy I had was quite exceptional!

Thursday

Today we set of for Falmouth for a day of maritime bliss. This is a naval town with a naval tradition, which oozes out of every pore of the town from the harbour to the pier. It also houses the British Maritime Museum which houses some great artifacts from our Great British maritime history. We spent the first part of the day looking round all the shops and then had a sit on the pier as the tugs took out a huge cargo ship into the channel. But it started to rain so we headed back into town for a spot of lunch. We found a great little brasserie called Clarks where we ate a fantastic lunch. We then spent a good two hours in the Maritime museum where, even if your not into your boats, there is lots to see. There is lots of info on how the tides affect how we live and lots of stories of courage and bravery of Brits and the sea, such as Tony Bullimore, who survived being capsized on a round the world solo boat race, and John Fairfax, who was the first person to row solo across the Atlantic. There was also the boat that Ben Ainslie won Olympic Gold in at the 2002 Sydney Olympics.

We left the museum and headed off around to Pendennis Castle, built by Henry VIII to keep guard of the entrance to the River Fal and keep the marauding pirates at bay.

Today was our favorite day of the holiday so far and to top it off we had by far and a way this best meal of the entire week. When we came down on Darren's stag do we went to this place and we had a great meal that night. I had always promised to bring Hayley down here and so I did. in my opinion the best restaurant in Newquay is the Meadery. This place is a genuine little gem. Its set out medieval style and is a very top notch Steak House, but it serves up so much more. There is your normal steaks to choose from, but it also sell your not so run of the mill meats such as veal, wild boar and venison. It also sells genuine old style mead, a drink similar to port, in 1/2 litre jugs, drank in miniature pint pots. I had the rib eye steak and Hayley had the Venison. Both were cooked to perfection and topped off with a rossini sauce (a mix of foie gras, truffles and demi-glace). Best meal of the night and believe it or not cheaper than the rubbish we had the night before. We then ventured down to Newquay Aussie bar Walkabout. Much better than the one in Hanley, and finally headed back to, yes you've guessed it, Buzio's for a few more Desperados! A truly great day.

Friday

As our final day came we decided to take a leisurely drive out to St Ives for the day. The sun was yet again belting down. St Ives is a lovely little Cornish village set on the side of a hill going down to the harbour, beach and pier. Your best bet is to park at the top at the leisure center and pop on the bus down to the town, unless you fancy the walk. There are lots of little quaint shops to look around but the harbour was my favourite. We strolled round and sat for a while on the pier watching the tide come in and collect up the bots that had been sat on the sands. We lunched at one of the many little cafes around the beachfront and couldn't resist one of the ice creams from the Cornish ice cream shop.

For today's meal well the plan was set out. We went to the Weatherspoons across from our hotel to watch the England Vs Brazil match, and of course to drink the cheap beer, of which I had many! And what better way to top off a Friday night than with a ruby murray! We had found from our wanderings around Newquay a curry house which claimed to be the best in the area, so beered up I accepted their boast, but they were right. The Maharajah lives up to its boast with ease. They have many house specials with locally caught seafood included in the curries. But we both went for our favourites mine a Chicken Tikka Massala and Hayley a Chicken Passanda. Both were really tasty. The rice was great and the naan was cooked to perfection. We shared a bottle of house white wine which was also a great wine considering it was the house wine, and it really went well with the curry. Its probably the fanciest curry house in the area, with sea views and an extensive menu, but it is probably one of the best curries I have ever had and it lives up to it's reputation.

So there we go. Plenty for you to get your teeth into if you ever venture down to Newquay. We loved our week away, and although it's not as lavish as a 5* All Inclusive trip to to Caribbean, it has it's charm. We enjoyed it so much we booked to go again for our first wedding aniversary in August. And of course that will mean another trip to Buzio's to clean them out of Desperados!