KEEP YOUR EYES ON THIS PAGE FOR ALL OF THE LATEST NEWS ON SPLASH ALLEY






TRY OUR GUESTBOOK PAGE AND SEND YOUR MESSAGES AND COMMENTS TO US .







But we brightened up the Coniston for the evening.
Well we lit it up with our light show.
And made the place Rock.
And judging by the comments from the punters we brightened up their evening as well.

Another great night at the Connie was enjoyed by everyone.
Pity about the weather
----------------------------------------------
The Next Gig Is
A Private Wedding Function

at

MYTHOLMROYD COMMUNITY CENTRE
ELPHABOROUGH
MYTHOLMROYD
WEST YORKSHIRE
HX7 5DY

on

Friday

19th March 2010
----------------------------------------------
The Next Public Gig Is at

THE TARN
HENSHAW LANE
YEADON
WEST YORKSHIRE
LS19 7RW

on

Friday

9th April 2010
----------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------

THERE'S LOTS OF INFORMATION TO READ HERE

INCLUDING LINKS TO VIDEOS
AND REPORTS ON PAST GIGS

JUST KEEP SCROLLING DOWN TO FIND IT
----------------------------------------------
FUTURE GIGS
Our gig list is constantly changing and is updated regularly.
It is advisable to always check the gig list before travelling to a venue.
If its on our web site gig list on day of the gig we will be there!
As an alternative you could phone the venue or ring us to check before you travel.
-----------------------------------
YOUR VIEWS AND COMMENTS

We would really appreciate the views and comments of the people who look at our web site.
We would also like to hear from those of you who have seen and heard the band.
There are a several ways that you can let us know what you have to say about us or our web site,
Go to the "Contact Us" page and use the E-mail to send us a message
or click on to the "Guestbook" Logo and post your comments on our guestbook.

WE REALLY DO WANT TO KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!
----------------------------------------------

IF YOU HAVE TAKEN ANY PHOTOS OF THE BAND
PLEASE E-MAIL THEM TO US
WE WILL PUT ANY SUITABLE PHOTOS
ON OUR GALLERY PAGE

-----------------------------------

TAKE A LOOK AT VIDEO LINKS
ON THE
GALLERY PAGE

-----------------------------------

If you go to our
LINKS PAGE
You will be able to Click on to the link for
Our MYSPACE Site

----------------------------------------------

----------------------------------------------

BINGLEY MUSIC LIVE

UPDATE

As many of you may know we played the Bingley Live Music Festival on 1st September 2007


Click on the links below and view video recordings from
Bingley Music Live Festival on YOU TUBE

Track 1 :- ALL RIGHT NOW

Track 2 :- HERE I GO AGAIN

Track 3 :- JUMP

Track 4 :- SHOOK ME ALL NIGHT LONG

Track 5 :- SWEET CHILD O MINE

Track 6 :- WHOLE LOTTA ROSIE
---------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------



Click on the link below to see a video of Charlie on Britains Got Talent

Charlie on Britains Got Talent


----------------------------------------------


OTHER NEWS ITEMS

Please scroll down for other details including
Past Gigs & Events
&
Snippets of news from the band

-----------------------------------------------
REPORTS FROM PAST GIGS

-------------------------------
--------------------------
---------------------
----------------
-----------
------
-
----------------------------------------------



HELP FROM THE POLICE
05.03.10
CRIGGLESTONE W M C
CRIGGLESTONE
Near WAKEFIELD

Thanks to a local giving us some bad directions we were lost
So we were looking for someone else to ask when a panda car came down the road .
We flagged it down and asked the policeman for directions to the club
He said "Turn your truck around and follow me and I will show you where it is"
We got a Police escort to the club
What more could you ask for?


On entering the clubs concert room we were quite surprised.
A nice sized room, tiered seating at one side made it look more like a caberet venue than a working mens club
A big stage which was on two levels and the concert chairman was a realy nice helpful bloke.

Tony from a band called Plan B appeared (armed with his camera)
He said that he only lives 10 minutes from the club so he decided to come and have a look at our show.

We set our gear up (and by passed the decibal machine)we did the sound check and we were ready to go.

After our police escort to the club it was amusing to us that the first song of the set was
Jailbreak by Thin Lizzy.

A few minor cock ups in the next couple of songs were probably due to lack of rehearsals for two weeks.
Never the less the band pulled it together and went on to put on a great show.

The club has on been running the Friday Rock Nights for a few weeks and as a result the attendances are low
Hopefully as the locals get used to it the Rock Nights will flourish.
The concert room was not full but the audience were enthusiastic and applauded & cheered every song.

Tony was clicking away with his camera throughout the night and seemed to be enjoying himself.
He mentioned to us that a member of the audience had said to him
"Bloomin eck they are like a real rock band .."

Well we like to think we are !!


Quite a few of the audience spoke to us after the show and they all seemed impressed.
They all said that they would look forward to seeing Splash Alley next time we are at Crigglestone WMC

We will also look forward to it

Nice Place, Nice People,

We should be able to find it next time without asking for help from the Police

----------------------------------------------

IDLE ROCKS
06.02.10
THE CONISTON
IDLE

The last time we played in the village of Idle was October 2008 at the Coniston.
Since then we have been constantly asked by people from the area "When are you gonna play in Idle again"

A steady flow of people arrived, many of them were the regular music lovers from the area known to us.
There were also a lot af faces we had never seen before.

By the time we started the first set the pub was full.
Then the Coniston one again Rocked to the sound of Splash Alley.
It was 12.30 by the time that the last set had finished with the crowd still shouting "More More More"

Several people who by their own admission had never seen Splash Alley before past comments

One bloke dressed in biker gear said
"I've seen loads of bands and Splash Alley are the best rock covers band I've ever seen"

A young couple said that they had heard from others that Splash Alley were good and now that they had seen the band for themselves they would be coming to more of the bands gigs

A lad who said he played in a band said "How the hell do you get a quality sound like that"
The answer given to him was that we put it down to experience
Then he asked how much the light show cost us, his face went white when we told him

Every comment made to us was complimentary and if we listed them all here in would go on for pages.

We are back at the Coniston in July and you can bet that it will be another packed gig.


----------------------------------------------

ROCK BY THE RIVER
23.01.10
SALTS SPORTS ASSOCIATION
SALTAIRE

This gig was a private 40th birthday party for a lady called Tracy (She's a Splash Alley Fan)
The last party we played at this venue was for Brian's wedding reception back in 1971.
Here's a thought, Tracy would have only been a year old when we did that gig.

The day had started badly due to a cock up by the firm where we hire the truck.
We always hire a truck from them with a tail lift on and they had reserved us a truck without tail lift.
We explained the problem to them in dialect that they understood (F$*@"?!*&)
We had to go to another of their depots miles away to collect a truck with a tail lift.

Because of the delay sorting the transport problem out we got to the venue later than we had planned.
Then we had to negotiate numererous doors and twists & turns to get the gear in the club.
We eventually got the gear set up, sound and lighting checked. everything was ok.
The DJ arrives, sets his gear up, plugs it in and half of the Power in the club goes off.
Power restored and Splash Alley play a great set, No power problems, Brilliant !
Then the DJ plugs something in, yes you guessed it, Power goes again.
Power restored again and Splash Alley play another set without any problems.

Despite the cock up with the transport, the struggle with access, the power failures

It turned out to be a very good gig.


----------------------------------------------
. * . . * . * * . * . . * . * . . * . ** . .* . . .** . . . . .
. . . . * . * . * * . * . . * . . . ** . . . * . . * . . . * .* *
LET .*. THE *. SNOWY. * NEW ..* .YEAR .*. IN
. .* . * . . * * . . * . . * . . * . * . . * . . ** . . * * . . * . * . . .
. .* .* *. . * . ** . . .* . . 31.12.09 . . * . . ** . * ... * * . . **. ..
. **. .* . . * . * . . * * . . * . . * . . * . * . . * . . ** . . * * . . * . * .
. . * . * * . . .* . OXENHOPE SOCIAL CLUB . * . . * * . . * .
. . . * . . *..* * . . * . . * . . * . * . . * . .. ** . . * * . . * . * . . * * ..* ..
* . .* . . . * * * . * * . . OXENHOPE . . * * . * * * . . . * . .* . *
. * . . * .. . * . * . . . * . * . . * .* ..* . * . .* . * . . * . * . . . * . *. . . * .
..**. . *. .*. ** . . . . **. . *. .*. * . . .* . . *. . . .** * . * . * . . .* * . . *.
We dont usually do gigs on new years eve but Pippa who books the entertainment for the club managed to talk us into it.
Most of the equipment needed for the gig was supplied by a guy called Andy who organises the jam nights at the club
We agreed that we would just take a few lights some microphones and the drum kit so that made the job much easier.
Pippa also told us that we were only required to do a single one hour set as the club also had a DJ on.

There was one slight problem though !!!
Aarren was away darn sarf at his parents for Christmas and New Year.
The problem was solved when Chris Morley offered to stand in on lead guitar.
Chris did a good job and it turned out to be a really enjoyable gig.
The club was packed despite the cold and snowy weather
Everybody had a great time.

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE.

----------------------------------------------



OVERPOWER THE STEELIES
12.12.09
ACKLAM IRON AND STEEL S/C
MIDDLESBOROUGH

The Steelies is one of our favourite venues
The Concert Secretary (Barry Woolley) is a great host and we have loads of fun with the banter between us.
As we were setting the gear up the doors at the far end of the concert room swung open and in walked Santa
"Ho Ho Ho the North Yorkshire Santas here" said the voice from behind the santa beard.
No disguise to hide the fact that this was the one and only Mr Woolley.
After a bit of banter between us and Mr Woolley we got back to finishing the setting up.

The first set went down really well especially when one of the clubs favourite Journey songs was played.
After the star turn (The Bingo) we waded into the second set and everything was going well until everything went off
The Steelies power supply had decided that it could not cope with the demands of the big Splash Alley PA & lighting rig.
It took us a few minutes to re-route the supply by using sockets in the dressing rooms and off we went again
The Steelies Rocked and the crowd loved it

Several people came up to us and paid compliments and one guy said "What a fantastic show you guys put on"
Its nice when you get compliments like that.
Everyone enjoyed the gig and we managed to pack the gear down and load it into the truck in less that an hour and a half.
With yet more banter between us and Barry Wooley
He wont let us forget that we blew his fuses yet again.
Then it was the long journey home.

We are back at the Steelies a couple of times in 2010.
We will look forward to that !!

----------------------------------------------

40th AT THE FIDDLERS
11.12.09
THE FIDDLERS THREE
CLAYTON



This was a 40th birthday party for an AC DC fan called Kev
Originally it was to be at a different venue and was moved to The Fiddlers Three 2 days before the party
It was the first time we had ever played this venue and the room was small
We could only put a small amount of our equipment in as there was not much space available

Both Top Notch & Splash Alley delivered an excellent nights entertainment.
Birthday boy Kevin joined Splash Alley to sing Brown Sugar and then the night was rounded off with Whole Lotta Rosie
Despite the difficulty with the tight space in this small venue it turned out to be a very good gig.


----------------------------------------------


A COLD WET WINTERS NIGHT
5.12.09
THE WOODEND
SHIPLEY

It was a cold and very wet night.
Even though there were two birthday celebrations going on the bad weather did keep people away.
Some people will have also stayed at home to save their cash for Christmas.
Even the bad weather and Christmas approaching did not stop us have a good gig at the Woodend.
We had the whole gig recorded and filmed to hopefully put on a DVD and CD

Splash Alley put on a great show and if its reflected on the recordings it will be fantastic.

----------------------------------------------

A 50th AT THE 19th
28.11.09
WEST BRADFORD GOLF CLUB

This function was a 50th party for a member of the golf club.
By eight o clock the place was full

Top Notch opened the evening with their usual quality set.
They went down really well with the crowd.
Then it was the turn of the hot buffet to take everyones attention
The buffet was excellent,(Our drummer Derek had at least two massive helpings)
After a thank you speech and a few anecdotes from the host it was Splash Alley's turn to take to the stage
Quite a few new songs have been added to the set and these went down really well with the crowd.

We had also been asked to provide the disco music for this function
So after the live music was completed Simon was elected to be the DJ.
We turned the bands stage lighting around to light the dance floor and encouraged the people to dance until the early hours.
Half past two to be exact.
As a result of the late (Or should it be early) finish we left packing down and moving the equipment until the next day

With all of the birthday functions we seem to be getting lately the question should be asked
Are we becomimg a function band?


----------------------------------------------

BACK AGAIN SO SOON
14.11.09
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB
HUDDERSFIELD


It was only a few weeks ago that we played a wedding do at this club
Tonights gig was the normal gig at this venue
The members here seem to like Splash Alley so much that they cant get enough of us.
Isn't it nice to be popular?
Inevitably we ended up playing well after the appointed finishing time due to extra encores
That meant that it was once again after midnight before we finished playing

Another good gig completed.

----------------------------------------------

ROCK NIGHT AT OWLET
25.10.09
OWLET HALL SOCIAL CLUB
SHIPLEY

This was the last time this local club is having its monthly rock night on a Sunday
The rock nights will in future be on the last Friday of the month
The officials running the rock nights at the club had decided that they wanted Splash Alley to play the last Sunday Rock Night.
The club was not full but we were told that the audience numbers were far in excess of the normal Sundays
It is hoped that when they move the rock nights to Fridays they will be a success
If the number of people that turned up at our gig can be repeated at these rock nights in future then the club should be happy


----------------------------------------------


ANOTHER BIRTHDAY BASH
24.10.09
THE WOODEND
SHIPLEY

This was yet another birthday bash at this popular local venue.
We always have a good gig at the Woodend and this was no exception.
The local lass who's birthday was been celebrated seemed to enjoy herself.
And so did everyone else at the function.

With both Top Notch & Splash Alley putting on a great show.

How could they not enjoy themselves.

----------------------------------------------

TWO BANDS ROCK THE FOX
10.10.09
SNOOTY FOX
OAKWORTH



Our lead guitarist Aarren also plays in another band who are called Darklight
We had agreed to play this gig with them as it was their drummers 40th birthday party
It was the first time we had ever played this venue

Both bands delivered an excellent nights entertainment the likes of which this venue had never seen before.


----------------------------------------------

A WEDDING DO
25.09.09
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB
HUDDERSFIELD

We had been asked to play at this wedding reception by Dawn Dutchman & Ian Fawcett
They are members of this club and asked us to do the gig after seeing us perform there a couple of times.

Wedding events are always different to the normal evenings we do at venues and this was no exception.
Some people attend these receptions and you can tell by their faces that they dont really want to be there.
Top Notch went on first and despite playing a great set they struggled to get the audience going
The audience did applaud every song but would not get up and dance.
Then Splash Alley did a half hour set and the audeince responded in the same way,
Plenty of applause but nobody dancing.

After a short break whilst the buffet was served Splash Alley took to the stage again
It took several more songs before a few people finally got up to dance

It was well after midnight before we finished playing so we left moving the gear until the next day.

----------------------------------------------

THE WOODYSTOCK MUSIC FESTIVAL
19.09.09
WOODBOTTOM WMC
SHIPLEY

This was the first ever Woodystock Music Festival

The Committee at Woodbottom WMC pulled out all of the stops to make this festival a success.
A considerable amount of cash was invested by the club on this event
The facilities included
A forty foot trailer for the stage.
A large marquee on the edge of the cricket field to provide shelter for the audience should the weather turn nasty.
An outside bar selling draught beer and another one selling cans of beer, pop sweets and crisps
A mobile caterer with hot and cold food.
A bouncy castle and Face painting for the kids
Extra temporary toilets and extra car parking facilities.
Posters, advertising in the local press.
Woodystock printed Tee shirts were on sale.

----------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------

GUISELEY MUSIC FESTIVAL
30.08.09
THE STATION
GUISELEY

This was the 5th Free Music Festival to be held at The Station

Once again we did the sound & lighting for the event
It is always hard work for The Splash Alley Crew but well worth the effort

Much needed funds were raised for The Macmillan Nurses and some local charities

As usual we started at 9.00 am setting the pa and lighting up and it looked like it would be a nice clear day.

The Guiseley Ladies Football Club once again did an superb job of keeping everyone fed with burgers, hot dogs etc.

The staff of the Station Hotel kept the drinks flowing and collected the empty glasses etc ,

The bands appearing were

DAVE DUNWELL & FRIENDS
DESILVA,
TOP NOTCH
ROUGH & READY BOYZ
EDDIE EARTHQUAKE & THE TREMORS
VOODOO VAN BOOGIE
SPLASH ALLEY

All of the bands did a great job and even though there were some bursts of heavy rain it did not put the punters off.
They stayed put and applauded every band.

We got soaked whilst covereing the equipment to protect it from one of the heavy downpours

The only sour point of the gig was the insistence by a Leeds Council Environmental Health Officer
that the music had to be turned down to a level that was acceptable to him.
He insisted that the maximum level did not exceed 65 decibels at a point just over the road from the pub.
He was told that it was a ridiculously low sound level and it was also pointed out to him that a fart was louder than that.
This bloke was so annoying we just don’t know how we kept our cool,
He really made you feel like giving him a smack in the mouth or choking the awkward bastard.
It would appear that Leeds Council are coming out on the side of 5 complainants
who are trying to stop this twice annual community charity festival.
The pub have started a petition to save the Festival
The landlord Tony would appreciate support from music lovers everywhere.
A Supportive e-mail can be sent to him at station@orchidpubs.co.uk.
he will forward the e-mails to the council who may then just have to listen to some overwhelming public opinion.


----------------------------------------------


HARLEY WEEKEND
28.08.09
THE SHIPLEY HARLEY DAVIDSON CLUB
30th INTERNATIONAL RALLY
BAILDON RUGBY CLUB

It was an honour to be asked to play the 30th Anniversary Harley Rally
Its the 3rd time we have played for the Shipley Harley Club in the last six years.
What a start to the weekend !
Friday night was the opening night of this rally and it was an absolute belter

Top Notch had to play as a trio as Chris Morley had a prior appointment in London.
The Harley bikers loved what the kids played and they went down a bomb with the crowd

After a short interval Splash Alley took to the stage and did what they do best

They absolutely rocked the place, thats probably why the Baildon rally organisers keep inviting Splash Alley back.

We just love doing the biker gigs

Roll on the next one

----------------------------------------------

BARRY IS BACK
22.08.09
OXENHOPE SOCIAL CLUB

After a forced lay off for surgery on his knees Barry is well and truly back !

The Oxenhope faithfull got a show that they will remember

When Top Notch hit the audience with a belter of a set and they loved it.
Michaela was suffering from a throat problem but she managed to get through the set just fine.
With the addition of Chris Morley on Guitar and Vocals Top Notch are a top band.

Then it was Splash Alley's turn.

Jerry Smith stood in on lead guitar again.
Jerry just did his usual quality playing and Barry really went to town on the appreciative audience.
Tiny & Des kept the beat as tight as ever.

Splash Alley played two top quality sets and at the end of the show the audience were begging for more.
As the rest of Top Notch had gone home before the finale Chris was invited up to play lead on "Sweet Child"
And it has to be said that he played it as good as I have heard anyone play it.
And the new followspot made sure that he could not hide from the limelight.
The new lasers added to the lighting show looked great

Every time we have played at the "Idiot Hut" we have had a good gig but this one was the best yet.


----------------------------------------------

A BREAK FOR SURGERY ON BARRY'S KNEES



Our front man Vocalist,Guitarist,Keyboard played Barry is now going to be out of action for a few weeks

He has to have operations as his knees are giving him a lot of pain.

Basically His knees are knackered.

He would like to have us all believe that his knees have been damaged by too many knee tremblers.

In the words of a well known song that Splash Alley play

"Dont believe a word"

The more likely reason that Barry's knees are worn out is all of the trips to and from to the bar.
Unfortunately we have had to rearrange some gigs that we were due to play over the next few weeks
Top Notch will be playing some gigs at local pubs on their own which will be good experience for them.

This break in Splash Alleys gigging will give Barry time to recover from the surgery.


----------------------------------------------

NO PARAMEDICS
03.07.09
CROSLAND MOOR WMC

The last time we played here we needed the paramedics and an ambulance when Des was taken ill
Thankfully he got over that and is back to his old self

Jerry Smith stood in on lead guitar as our new lead guitarist Aarren is still honouring his gigs with his current band.
When Top Notch opened the show the concert room was a bit sparce of audience numbers but that soon changed as the room filled with more people.
Top Notch and Splash Alley both did superb sets and the audience loved it.


----------------------------------------------

A NEW ERA BEGINS
27.06.09
WOODEND
SHIPLEY

This is the start of a new era for both Splash Alley & Top Notch

Arlo has left the band by mutual agreement and the role of lead guitarist will be taken on by Aarren Mowle.
Aarren currently plays with local band Angel of Sin and he will become a full member of Splash Alley on September 1st.
Jerry Smith(Who thought he had retired)will be covering some gigs for us between now and the end of August
As Aarren's current band were not working tonight he agreed to play this gig at Woodend
He fitted into the band perfectly and no one would have guessed that the band had never done a live gig together before.
The quality of both the music and the vocals was astounding and if this first gig is anything to go by the future looks great.

Top Notch also have a new addition to the band.
Chris Morley has joined them on guitar and vocals and he has also made a big difference to their sound.

The audience at Woodend was swelled by a large group of youngsters and their parents.
Some of them had seen Top Notch at the Guiseley Festival and they decided to bring their friends to see the band.
They were cheering and applauding from the moment that the band were introduced on stage
And they continued to shout and cheer after every number.

One of the numbers that Top Notch played was the Michael Jackson song Black or White
The band had learnt this song a couple of weeks ago after Michael Jacksons Musical director Michael Bearden and his show director Kenny Ortego had been in touch with Brian Glover asking if we could send some video to them as they were interested in having Charlie play the number with Michael Jackson at his O2 concerts.
Sadly as we all know Michael Jackson died suddenly on Thursday and his death spelt the end of what could have been Charlie's big chance at stardom.

We had a little surprise in store for Little Charlie.
He would play Black or White with Michael Jackson
A life size cardboard Michael Jackson Statue from his History tour
The cardboard statue had been stored in Brian's loft for over 12 years.
It might have been just a cardboard statue but to everyone in the room is was as near as they would ever get to MJ.

Top Notch did a belter of a set

Then Splash Alley took to the stage and rounded the night off with some superb quality classic rock.
Michaela joined them to play the keyboards on Van Halens Jump
Then Charlie joined Splash Alley for the Guns and Roses classic Sweet Child O Mine.
Aarren and Charlie playing guitar harmonies and everyone just having a really good time.

It was followed up with a finale of Whole Lotta Rosie which was unbelievable

No it was better than that

It was bloody awesome.

----------------------------------------------

GUISELEY MUSIC FESTIVAL
24.05.09
THE STATION
GUISELEY

Following the success of this event over the last two years
Tony and his crew at The Station set up the event again for this Bank Holiday weekend.

We did the sound & lighting for the event
It was hard work for The Splash Alley Crew but well worth the effort

Much needed funds were raised for The Teenage Cancer Trust
Some worthy local charities and volunteer groups also benefitting from the days fundraising.

We started at 9.00 am setting the pa and lighting up and it was nineteen hours later before we got home to bed
We were all a bit knackered after a very long hard day

The Guiseley Ladies Football Club did an superb job of keeping everyone fed with burgers, hot dogs etc.

The staff of the Station Hotel worked very hard keeping the drinks flowing and collecting glasses etc ,
The pubs staff were still cleaning the car park when we left in the early hours of Monday morning.

All of the bands and musicians did an outstanding job

JOE GALLAGHER (he plays his guitar upside down)and his drummer started the day off
Joe's bass player was unable to make it so our friend Mike Smith (better known for his Red 13 pa Company) stood in on Bass

They were followed by

BIG PICTURE

JAKE & THE CRAZY EUROS

CLEAR

THE ZOOMS

RUBBER BULLETS.

Then Tony McCaul got on stage with his didgeridoo aided by Johnny and Top Notch guitarist Charlie Meehan.

As the sun went down the lights came on and TOP NOTCH got the crowd really rocking.

THE UK FOO FIGHTERS TRIBUTE BAND concluded what was once again a great festival.

This is the 4th Guiseley Festival that Tony McCaul the landlord has organised and we have worked on all of them.

Each one gets bigger and better

There is another music festival at the Station Hotel in Guiseley

on

30th August 2009


DON'T MISS IT !


We are already looking forward to it.

Click on the link below for more information

Link to Live Music At The Station

----------------------------------------------


IT KEEPS GETTING BETTER
03.05.08
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB


We didnt think that this gig could get any better than the last gig we played here.

Well it did !

The place was full to capacity
The Top Notch kids opened the show and wooed the crowd with an hour of quality music,

Splash Alley then played a 75 minute set and a couple of encores.

We actually finished playing 20 minutes later than planned.

We have said it before and we will say it again

Lindley Liberal Club is a great gig.

And it keeps getting better.


----------------------------------------------


26.04.09
OWLETT HALL SOCIAL CLUB
SHIPLEY

We dont play very often on a Sunday because we all have to get up for work on Monday
This club is nice and local and we decided that we would do it and pack the gear away on Monday evening.

The kids of Top Notch did the first set and went down a bomb (As Usual)

After a break for the customary Bingo session it was Splash Alley's turn to take to the stage
They finished the night off with an hour of non stop Classic Rock.

A very enjoyable gig for the audience
And a very enjoyable gig for us

The hard work will be packing the gear away on Monday night after a full days work.

----------------------------------------------

A SATURDAY IN SHEFFIELD
04.04.09
BELLHOUSE ROAD W M C
SHEFFIELD

We arrived at the club at 2.00 pm so thet we would have plenty of time to set up.
Unknown to us the concert room was in use for a kids party until 3.30 pm
We had to wait until they had cleaned up before we could get the gear in
We used the waiting time to sample a few beers.

The normal Saturday entertainment is club bands
So we were not too sure what reaction to expect from the audience.

After the usual star act opened the evening (THE BINGO)
The kids of Top Notch hit the audience with a cracking openening set.
And the audience loved it !
Then Splash Alley and the kids of Top Notch did a set between them
A 14 year old local drummer called Brendon was invited up to play Van Halens Jump
He did a cracking job.

Then the STAR ACT returned !
Yes it was bingo time again.

Splash Alley then rocked the Bellhouse with all the classic rock stuff
The Guns n Roses number Sweet Child o Mine went down a storm.
Little Charlie doing his Slash impersonation and Arlo playing guitar in harmony
It looked and sounded Awesome

We had to finish the night off with the Bellhouse Club Anthem "Whole Lotta Rosie"

A great night even though the club was not full everyone enjoyed it.
----------------------------------------------

THE IDIOT HUT
28.03.09
OXENHOPE SOCIAL CLUB

Des returned from another round of heart surgery
This time it seems to have worked as he got through the gig without any ill effects



The kids in Top Notch played a good set with Barry & Tiny both doing guest numbers.
As usual the kids went down great with the crowd.
Splash Alley took to the stage and played their of Classic Rock, Michaela & Charlie both did guest appearances.
The place was full and people had come from as far away as Manchester to see the show.
Everyone who was there stayed to the end and really enjoyed themselves.

The lady who is concert secretary insisted on rebooking us for her birthday bash in November.
By the way ! If you want to know why its called the Idiot Hut
look into the clubs history on the internet.
----------------------------------------------

A FULL 19th
07.03.09
WEST BRADFORD GOLF CLUB


Every time we play this venue its packed to capacity
Its always a ticket only gig and its always a sell out
Full marks to Gary Meehan (Charlie's dad) as he is the one who sells all of the tickets.

The kids of Top Notch opened up with a cracking first set.

Then it was Splash Alley's turn to play

We were unsure if Derek was fit enough to play drums for the two sets after his recent health problems.
So Alex of Top Notch had practiced with Splash Alley just in case.
Derek managed to get part way into the first set and had to give up when he felt unwell
Alex took over on the drums and you would never have known that he had only had a couple of practices with Splash Alley.
Alex did a great job and continued to do so for the rest of the gig.

Because of Dereks problems we almost forgot that Arlo was playing his first full gig on lead guitar after replacing Jerry
Derek insisted on getting back on the drume to finish the night with Whole Lotta Rosie.

Despite Dereks health problem it was still a great gig.

The kids in Top Notch really deserve a lot of credit for their contribution to this gig.

They are a top class band and their name sums them up
They are definately TOP NOTCH.


----------------------------------------------

FAREWELL TO JERRY
HELLO TO ARLO
21.02.09
WOODEND
SHIPLEY

This was Jerry’s official local leaving do.
Unfortunately the gig did not go according to plan
It started quietly at about eight o clock and in no time at all the place was full.
Top Notch went on first for a short set and they were absolutely brilliant.
Then after a short break they returned to the stage again and did a second belter of a set.

Then Splash Alley took to the stage.
Derek had assured everyone that he was alright to play
but after a couple of songs he started to have problems with pains in his chest.
Derek had to leave the stage and after taking some medication he said that he was feeling a bit better.
It was decided that it would be best if he just rested.

Andy Greaves who was our drummer way back in the 60s in The Dingle Berrys Show Group took over on the drums
He got on the kit and did a few numbers.
Alex from Top Notch then got on the kit and he played his socks off.
If you didnt know otherwise you would have thought that Alex had played in Splash Alley for years.
What a great drummer this kid is.

Jerry thanked everyone for attending and for their support over the years.
He also thanked the rest of the band and said we were all great guys
He said that it had been a pleasure to play in the band for over twenty years.

Jerry has promised to help us out if we ever need him in the future.
No doubt we will get him up to play when he comes along to a Splash Alley gig as a spectator.

Part of tonights plan was to have our new guitarist Arlo on stage to play a few numbers.
That plan went out of the window due to Dereks health problem.

Hopefully Derek will make a full recovery in due course.
and Arlo will be ready to rock.

As a result of Derek's current health problems we have had to contact the West Auckland WMC.
We have told them that we are unable to play the gig we have booked for Saturday 28th February.
We have however arranged with the club that Rock Solid will take our place.
We will rearrange our gig for a future date.
We would like thank the clubs Treasurer Dave for his understanding
and we can only apologise again for any inconvenience this may have caused to the club and its patrons.

Good luck with the future Jerry
The band and all of the friends you have made will all miss you.

Derek , Get well soon mate.
----------------------------------------------

BAD LUCK COMES IN 3s
06.02.09
CROSLAND MOOR WMC
HUDDERSFIELD


This gig at Crosland Moor WMC started out with bit of bad luck.
A tyre on the trailer getting knackered on route. (that was bad luck Number 1)
Then we got the trailer stuck on the icy car park (that was bad luck Number 2)

We managed to get over these first two obstacles.
Staff at the club told us that previous live band nights had been poorly attended
and with all of the snow & ice about they reckoned that it would be a very quiet night.
We were therefore quite amazed when the concert room very quickly filled to near capacity.

Top Notch went on to start the show
(These kids just get better and better)
The crowd were singing along and cheering and shouting for more.
It was awesome.

Then it was Splash Alleys turn to entertain the crowd.
The sound was great and the crowd were loving it

Then DISASTER

(Bad luck comes in threes)

And this was bad luck Number 3

Our Drummer Derek told Barry that he did not feel well and needed to get some air.
Barry told the audience about Derek having recent heart surgery and that we would have to take a short break.
As Derek was getting pains in his chest and left arm which are signs of a heart attack we dialed 999
A paramedic and an ambulance soon arrived and Derek was rushed off to the local A & E department.

For us the gig was over.

Now the good news is that after a check up, tests and an overnight stay in hospital Derek is fine.
In fact they could not find anything seriously wrong with him.
He had just been overdoing things and it had caught up with him.

We could not believe the number of phone calls that we received from people asking if Derek was OK.
We left our gear at the club overnight and went back the next morning to pack it up
Just about everyone who spoke to us asked "how is your drummer".

We would like to offer our apologies to the Crosland Moor WMC
And apologies to all of the people who attended for not completing our show for them.
Also a big thank you to all of the people who showed concern for Derek and sent their best wishes.

We sincerely hope to be back at Crosland Moor WMC again soon with better luck on our side.


----------------------------------------------

STATE OF THE ART SPOTLIGHTS ? ? ?
17.01.09
ACKLAM IRON & STEELWORKS SOCIAL CLUB
(STEELIES)
MIDDLESBOROUGH

Yet again we had a cracking gig here

Despite the credit crunch and everyone claiming to be skint just after Christmas the concert room was full

Top Notch played as a trio and they were terrific and the appreciation by the audience was tremendous
Barry Wooley (The Entertainments Secretary)arranged a collection in the concert room and the kids got a bonus of £107.

Splash Alley were back to full strength again with Des returning on the drums after his recent Surgery.
Splash Alley once again rocked the Steelies with some great classic rock.
Whilst the bingo was played we were inundated with people paying compliments
they were also making requests for songs they wanted us to play

As some people will know our lead guitarist Jerry is retiring from the band at the end of February
and his replacement Ian Arlo McFaddzen was introduced to the audience.
Arlo played several numbers with the band
Part way through the Journey song "Seperate Ways" all of the power on stage failed.
After finding some sockets that were on a seperate curcuit we restored the power to complete the show.
We discovered that the cause of the power failure one of the clubs "State of the Art" circa 1960s spotlights
which had a fault causing the power breaker to trip out.

Once again we stayed overnight at a local hotel and returned to the club to pack the gear away on Sunday morning
We had a right laugh with Barry Wooley (The Entertainments Secretary) at the Sunday lunchtime session.

What a great bloke and what a great Club

We will be back at the Steelies later in 2009
----------------------------------------------

STILL NO DES
12.12.08
THE DROP KICK
LOW MOOR

Des is still recovering from his surgery
So once again we had to call on the services of Peter Tate to stand in on the drums.



The kids in Top Notch played their set as a trio.
As usual they went down great with the crowd who were in.
The audience numbers were a bit lower than we normally get at this venue.
A very wet night,just before xmas & the credit crunch.
All possible reasons for the lower turnout of punters.

Anyway Splash Alley took to the stage and played over an hour of Classic Rock.
Everyone who was there stayed to the end and enjoyed themselves.

All in all it was a very good night.
Thats the last gig of 2008

We Wish Everyone

A MERRY CHRISTMAS
&
A HAPPY NEW YEAR

See you in 2009
----------------------------------------------

NO DES
29.11.08
WOODEND
SHIPLEY

Our drummer Des Price could not play this gig
He had to go into hospital at short notice for an urgent heart operation.
Get Well Soon Des !

Peter Tate was drafted in at short notice on drums
This gig once again co-incided with Brian Glover's Birthday
The audience numbers were swelled with Family & Friends

The kids band TOP NOTCH opened the entertainment.
Even though Rick has officially left the band he got up and did a few numbers.
Alex,Charlie, and Michaela then played the remainder of their set as a trio and they were great

Splash Alley did an outstanding set of classic rock covers.
Stand in drummer Pete Tate played a brilliant drum solo in the middle of Radar Love
Des sent a text message saying that the stand in drummer should not get too comfy
As Des WILL be back
----------------------------------------------

HALLOWEEEEEEEN
31.10.08
THE CONISTON
IDLE

All the usual stuff you get on Halloween
Loads of people in weird costumes
Some very good costumes.
The kids in Top Notch got dressed up for Halloween.
Splash Alley dont need costumes to frighten people
Some people get a fright when they see all the gear we have.

It was another good gig here at the Conni.

Quite a busy night and everyone out to enjoy themselves.


----------------------------------------------

ANOTHER SHED FULL
06.10.08
THE OLD TRAMSHED

The last couple of times we have played this venue its been packed with punters.
And we packed it again this time.

As usual Top Notch opened the show
It was Ricks last gig with Top Notch as he is moving away with a new job
He will probably remember it for a long time.
It was the best that they have ever played !
And they went down an absolute bomb.

Splash Alley then took to the stage and they really rocked the shed with two terrific sets of top quality music.
It was a terrific gig.
There were lots of musicians from other bands in attendance.
The majority of the audience stayed right to the end which was well after midnight.
Its got to be special for a Monday night gig.

----------------------------------------------

QUIET ???
08.08.08
THE CONISTON
IDLE


We expected a quiet night

Graham the pubs owner told us that the place had not been very busy lately

It did not take long before the place filled up with people we had it rocking

It turned out to be much busier that expected

In fact it was a busy night and everyone really enjoyed themselves.

Graham seemed pleased as he treated us to quite a few free drinks after we had packed the gear away.


----------------------------------------------

WOODIES BIRTHDAY
26.07.08
THE WOODEND
SHIPLEY

This was the birthday party for a Mr Paul Wood
(He owns the place)

There is something special about this venue as we always have a great gig here

It was another belter of a gig

The place was packed and everyone had a great time.

Roll on the next gig here in November

----------------------------------------------

STEELIES
05.07.08
ACKLAM IRON & STEELWORKS SOCIAL CLUB
MIDDLESBOROUGH

We had a cracking gig here

The concert room was full

They had it billed as a battle of the bands between

"Teenage Sensations Top Notch"

and

"The Godfathers of Rock Splash Alley".

Barry Wooley(The con sec) came up to the sound desk after Top Notch had played their set and said
"How are Splash Alley gonna follow that?"

He was told to wait and see.

He came up again when Splash Alley were part way through their set and said
"I see what you mean".

He also gave us an envelope with some cash in it for Top Notch and told us he had done a bucket collection for them.

What a brilliant gesture !

It was just as well that we were staying up there overnight because after the show we could not get on with packing the gear away because of people coming up wanting to pay compliments and ask questions
especially questions like "when are you here again"
A lot of people commented on the high quality of the show.
One couple said that they go to the Steelies every week and they had never seen a show as good.
many were amazed that the Kids in Top Notch were so good.
They could not believe that little Charlie was only 13.

Some people told us that they normally stay in the lounge at the club
but they could not resist coming into the concert room to see for themselves

They ended up staying right to the very end
We were supposed to finish by 11.45 but we went on for another 25 minutes by demand.
Barry Wooley even sorted out a bed & breakfast place for us
It was only a few minutes away from the club and it was just the job,
nice clean rooms, nice breakfast.
We packed our stuff away on Sunday morning and then tried to get Barry Wooley drunk at the lunchtime session,
We didnt manage it though.

By the way we will be back at the Steelies early in 2009.

----------------------------------------------

WHAT A BELTER
27.06.08
BELLHOUSE ROAD CLUB
SHEFFIELD

Its only the second time that we have played this venue
It was a belter of a gig
Top Notch were a member short as Rick was away in Germany
So they had to make do with a short set mixed in with Splash Alleys first set.
The Bellhouse responded with standing ovation

After the Bingo break Splash Alley set about making the place rock
And when they played Whitesnakes Here I Go Again the whole club joined in singing and clapping
IT WAS AMAZING !

The Bellhouse faithfull really love their rock music
and after the encores were over they kept coming over to say how much they enjoyed it

We enjoyed it !!!
No we really enjoyed it

WHAT A BELTER OF A GIG

----------------------------------------------

ONE TO BE AVOIDED
07.06.08
THE CLARENCE
HUDDERSFIELD


This is one place to avoid

Below is our comment to the Rock of the North website


Here’s one for the SHIT LIST. The Clarence @ Newsome Huddersfield. We were asked to do this gig by Nigel Round Entertainments from Chorley and a few days ago I was warned by a member of a band from Huddersfield who had played it a few weeks ago that it was a gig they would not do again. Now I know why he said it! The pub is OK, the punters seem OK, The problem is the Old Landlady !!!!! She looks like an old witch, She is only small (a good bit below five foot tall ) the most awkward and the nastiest person you could wish to meet. Barry nicknamed her the “Poison Dwarf”. From the moment we started setting up she was moaning because we moved a table to put the desk up, then she moaned when the kids turned up saying that her licence did not allow for kids in after 7.00 pm but after making a phone call she came back and said she had had it confirmed that it was OK, although by her expression and tone of voice she was not pleased that she had to back down on that one. We were contracted for 2 x 45 minute sets and she moaned after Top Notch finished their set because they played longer than 45 minutes, then she moaned again when Splash Alley played two encores at the end of their set. As well as the pubs regulars We had over a dozen people who had come all the way from Shipley to the gig and about the same amount of our regular followers from the Huddersfield area, We have to please the punters so if they shout for More they get More ! The”Poison Dwarf” was going round the pub taking peoples unfinished drinks off of the tables before we had finished playing much to the disapproval of some of the regulars ( One couple told me she does it all of the time) As soon as the set was finished we started stripping the gear down and she said that we had to be out of the pub in thirty minutes. We asked her to put the outside lights on and she said they did not work (Funny I could have sworn they were working earlier). I can assure you that we wont be going back there to play as long as “The Poison Dwarf” is in charge. At least you don’t have to haggle to get your fee at the gig as it’s a NO Pick Up, you have to wait for the agent to pay you a few weeks after you have played there.


Below is Rock of the Norths answer

There was or maybe still is a landlady like that in Wakefield North. We have had and 18th party there and the band Joe was in played there...the owner probably was from the same coven. She was small, covered in gold jewellery and totally inhospitable...she was hostile from the first minute,and totally oblivious to the fact that she had one of the then top bands in clubland on her premises.Yet she thought her damp smelling...wait for it...room was the Royal Albert Hall.It didn’t even have a sufficient supply of power to keep both the band and four Par 56’s going.These kind of people ought to get a life. The Clarence...not recomended.Shit listed

----------------------------------------------

CATHS BIRTHDAY BASH
31.05.08
THE WOODEND
SHIPLEY

We seem to do a lot of party nights here
The Woodend is ideal for these events

We had a little problem to sort out
Jerry was unable to do this gig as he had to go away to a work convention
We could not replace him at short notice and we will not let anyone down

To quote the well known phrase

"THE SHOW MUST GO ON"

Top Notch started the show
As usual they did a brilliant job

We had drafted in some extra help from another band
RESURGENCE
(Who are friends of ours)
They had agreed to do a set for us
They were terrific

Then we cobbled together the last set of the night
Micheala & Charlie took to the stage with Splash Alley (Minus Jerry)
and played Jump and Shook Me All Night Long
Resurgence Lead Guitarist Maddog then did an excellent job playing All Right Now
Then Brian took took the stage for
Eight Days A Week & Twist & Shout
The crowd were then encouraged to join in on Hi Ho Silver Lining & Living Next Door to Alice
Charlie then returned to the stage and the evening was concluded with him playing the lead on
Sweet Child and Whole Lotta Rosie

What could have been a bit of a disaster turned out to be a belter of a gig

----------------------------------------------

GUISELEY MUSIC FESTIVAL
25.05.08
THE STATION
GUISELEY

Following the success of last years first event
Tony and his crew at The Station set up the event again for this Bank Holiday weekend.
We were once again drafted in to do the sound & lighting for the Festival
We were also headlining the event.

Due to some late changes to the bands due to appear the show started a little later than planned.
The band list was as follows

JAKE & THE EUROBOYS

UNKNOWN CAUSE

SOULFIRE

THE JOHNNY & JORDAN DUO

DAVE DUNWELL & FRIENDS

MR PIE

VOODOO RHYTHM DEVILS

THE ZOOMS

TOP NOTCH

SPLASH ALLEY

The weather was nice
The place was packed with people
Every act played great

It was an excellent festival

There is another Festival at the Station
on
24th August 2008

Dont miss it !
Click on the link below for more information
----------------------------------------------

Link to Live Music At The Station

----------------------------------------------

BULLS & RHINOS
23.05.08
THE DROP KICK
LOW MOOR

Richard the landlord at The Drop Kick thought that it would be a quiet night because
The Bulls were playing The Rhinos just up the road at Odsal Stadium.

HE WAS WRONG !!

By the time the kids in Top Notch started their set the place was full.
The kids played the best that they have ever done.

Then Splash Alley took to the stage and played an hour and a half of Classic Rock at its best.

People were coming up and talking to us after the show and paying some terrific compliments

All in all it was a really enjoyable night.
----------------------------------------------

SQUEEZE IT IN
16.05.08
THE PRUNE PARK


Its the first time we have played here
And it was a bit of a squeeze getting the gear into the available space
We managed to get the gear in but we had to cut down on the lighting
It just would not fit in
There is also a big pillar straight in front of the area where you set up
which blocks the view a bit

Top Notch did a full set first
Splash Alley followed with two full sets
The place was packed and both bands had it rocking

It turned out to be a very good gig


----------------------------------------------

3 FLOORS UP
10.05.08
THE RENDEZVOUS HOTEL
SKIPTON

This was the 50th birthday party for a Mr Mick Smith
It was held in a large function room which was on the 3rd floor of this large hotel
It took us ages to get the gear in as the service lift was not big enough to take some of our big flight cases.

We have to say that the hotel management were less than helpful.
The duty manager had a bad attitude problem.
When he saw the amount of equipment we had he immediately started to take issue with us about sound levels and threatening to turn it off if was too loud even before we had turned anything on.

It was made clear to him what the levels would be and he was also told what the consequences would be for him and his hotel if he switched any of our things off.

A big bill for damage to our equipment??
A choice between Hotel food or Hospital food??


On the positive side of things the function room was a nice size and the acoustics were excellent.
Mike Smith and his family and friends are really nice people.
Most of them were in fancy dress and there were some fantastic costumes.
Everyone was out to enjoy themselves
And they did
We were complemented by Mike and his family and many of the guests.

It turned out to be an excellent gig and we finished at 1.30 am

Then came the job of getting the gear back down three floors a bit at a time in the lift
It took nearly two hours

Dawn was breaking by the time we got home

Thats Rock and Roll !!!


----------------------------------------------


MORE-MORE-MORE
03.05.08
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB

This was the 4th time we had played at the Lindley Liberal Club
After our last 3 visits We were really looking forward to playing here again.

The audience at Lindley Liberal Club love their rock bands.
This gig just gets better each time we play it

The Top Notch kids opened the show
The place was packed and the crowd applauded and shouted and cheered after every number.

Splash Alley then played two absolutely cracking sets the crowd responding to every number we played.
As Usual, We finished the last set with the encore number "Whole Lotta Rosie".

We had been told that we had to finish playing by midnight
The the audience applauded and shouted for more.
In the end we had to get back on stage and play another encore number
Not something we normally do.
But we had such a great night we could not refuse.

Lindley Liberal Club is a great gig.


----------------------------------------------

THE TREMELOES
26.04.08
SQUIRES LIVE
NEWTHORPE

We supplied the sound & lighting at this gig for The Tremeloes.
These guys are outstanding
The vocal harmonies are superb
The Squires Live Site says it all
Just Click on the Squires Live link below and read the review
And check out the pictures.




----------------------------------------------

SHED FULL
21.04.08
THE OLD TRAMSHED

The last time we played this venue was 14th August 2006
We packed the place then
And we packed it again this time.

Top notch opened the show
They went down an absolute bomb

Splash Alley then took to the stage and really rocked the shed
It was a terrific gig.
The majority of the audience stayed right to the end which was well after midnight
Thats got to be special for a Monday night gig.

Our good friend Rais Hasan came along and took lots of photos of the gig
The rest of the photos can be viewed by going to our Gallery Page




----------------------------------------------

BACK AT CHARLIE'S LOCAL
19.04.08
THE PRINCE OF WALES

A return to The Prince of Wales !
The pub at the top of the road where Little Charlie Meehan lives.
As we have said before its not actually Charlie's local cos he's not old enough to drink,
It's his dads local in Allerton Bradford.
The landlord and landlady are moving on and we had agreed to do this gig as their farewell party

What a belter of a gig this turned out to be !!
By 8.00pm the place was really full, And it stayed full all night
Charlie and his band Top Notch were once again brilliant.
A bucket passed round the pub collected £113 for the kids band.
Splash Alley then lived up to the "Super" status that the landlord had put on his advertising board outside.
The crowd loved it

The landlord said that this gig would be talked about for years.

-----------------------------------------


PRIVATE PARTY
12.04.08
THE GUIDE POST HOTEL


The man who booked us for this gig actually lives in Crete but he used to live in Low Moor.
So he booked the event for his daughter's 18th birthday at this top quality & very posh local hotel

We played in what is effctively the hotel main dining room.
The bar was in a seperate room next to the room we were playing in.
It was a bit strange at times with some people dancing on the dance floor
and others dancing in the bar area out of sight of the band.

Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.
The buffet was excellent
Our host gave the band a free bar and said that he really enjoyed our music.
Now that Can't be bad !!!
----------------------------------------------

ROCKING THE CAFE
03.04.08
THE ROCK CAFE
HUDDERSFIELD
This was our first ever visit to The Rock Cafe in Huddersfield.
We had been recomended to the management by our friends in Jagged Edge.

The only drawback with this venue is that its upstairs,
31 steps to climb with over 2 tonnes of gear.
After setting the gear up we needed a rest so we put the Top Notch kids on to warm the audience up.
They certainly did a good job.
The crowd really enjoyed them and they showed it !

Splash Alley played their first set and the audience shouted and cheered after every song.
After a 20 minute break the second set commenced.We played on until about half past twelve.
The place was full from start to finish and the audience included several members of Jagged Edge and their crew.

We picked two other gigs up from delighted punters including a wedding and a local working mens club

The Rock Cafe owner rang today (Friday 4th) and rebooked us for a higher fee, now that cant be bad.

It would be nice if they invested in a lift before our return gig!
----------------------------------------------

MERSEYBEATS
29.03.08
THE CANBERRA CLUB
BRITISH AEROSPACE
BLACKBURN

We had a phone call a few days ago from Tony Crane the Merseybeats lead singer.
He said that they were impressed when we did the job with them at Squires Live and he asked us if we could do the sound and lighting for them on this gig at the Canberra Club.

There were two other artistes on the show so we arrived early and set up our equipment.
By the time that The Merseysbeats arrived the club was almost full of people.
The tickets for this show sold out weeks ago.
As the first act was due on stage we only had time to do a quick line check
As we did not get time for a sound check it took us a couple of songs to get it sorted out.
The audience loved it and from our point of view it was a very enjoyable gig

----------------------------------------------

POWER OFF
21.03.08
THE BOLD PRIVATEER
WROSE

This was the first time we had played here for over 18 months.

The pub was soon packed to capacity.

Top Notch opened the night and wooed the crowd with their set.
Splash Alley then treated the audience to a set of Classic Rock Covers.

After a short break the second set commenced and part way through the first song the power went off.
After a couple of further power failures the cause was discovered
Some careless idiot had spilt a drink over a socket.

In the end it was a good night
The landlady said that the bar takings were the highest ever for a band night.
And everyone went home happy !!
----------------------------------------------

ROCK & ROYAL
08.03.08
THE ROYAL OAK
PADDOCK

We always have a major problem fitting our equipment in the space available here.
We still keep coming back here though because the Landlady Jane and her husband Tony are brilliant people and the customers really show their appreciation of the live music by shouting and cheering after every number.

Top Notch opened the night with their set of new and old rock numbers
The crowd loved it.
Then Splash Alley really rocked the pub with two terrific classic rock covers sets.
One of our regular followers from the area (Pete)was encouraged onto the drums
Splash Alley then played a Rock & Roll medley with Pete doing a drum solo.

All in all the Royal Really Rocked tonight !!

----------------------------------------------

AGES OF ROCK
23.02.08
SQUIRES LIVE
NEWTHORPE

We supported The Merseybeats at this gig.
We dont have to say anything about it
The Squires Live Site says it all
Just Click on the Squires Live link below and read the review
And check out the pictures.




----------------------------------------------

BUSY AGAIN
15.02.08
THE DROP KICK
LOW MOOR

Despite a fall in audience numbers over the last few weeks the Drop Kick was very busy tonight.
By about 9.00pm the room was quite full.
The kids band Top Notch played their set and the crowd showed their appreciation with loud cheering and applause.
Once again the kids did a great set.

Splash Alley then played their first set and received the same appreciation from the crowd as the kids band had.
Their applause and appreciation was then repeated for the second set.
Once again this was proper Rock Concert stuff
A lady who had never seen our show before insisted on buying the whole band and crew a drink
She said that she had never witnessed anything like our show.
She also said that she would definately be coming to some more Splash Alley gigs
-----------------------------------------


ROCK & ROSSE
09.02.08
THE ROSSE,SALTAIRE


Our 1st ever visit to this pub and we were amazed at how many people turned up,
The place was packed.

Little Charlie managed to get back from Britains Got Talent filming in London in time to join Top Notch to open up the show.
As usual the kids went down an absolute storm.

Splash Alley then took to the stage and made the Rosse Rock.
It was well after midnight when the final encore was played
Yet another great gig!!!!
----------------------------------------------

NUTS IN NORTH NOTTS
26.01.08
THE EQUALISED CLUB
STAPLEFORD

We ventured into North Nottinghamshire last night to The Equalised Club at Stapleford.
Its not a massive club but the atmosphere is awesome.
The crowd were brilliant.
The Kids in Top Notch wooed them so much that one of the committee men took little Charlie’s Slash top hat off of him and went round getting money in it.
He collected well over a hundred quid for the kids and one guy threw a £20 note in.

When Splash Alley took to the stage the punters did not know what had hit em at first.
They went nuts and never stopped shouting and cheering all night.
They were coming up and asking if they could buy us drinks
Our bloody hands ached with all of the hand shaking.
We could not get our gear packed up for people talking to us.
We got back home at 5.30 am.
It was all well worth it though.
Its nice to venture into a new area.
It makes a change from going round and round the same circuit.
----------------------------------------------

LITTLE CHARLIE IN THE SUN
22.01.08

This article appeared in the SUN
on 22nd January 2008.





----------------------------------------------

ITS A GAS
19.01.08
BRADLEY HALL GOLF CLUB
HUDDERSFIELD

This was a Christmas Party for the Huddersfield British Gas employees
Yes we know that Christmas was four weeks ago but this WAS for British Gas!
And you know that the Gas Man is always late !

As usual we put Top Notch on first.
They went down really well.

There was a short interval for the Buffet
(Our Drummer managed to devour two massive helpings)
Greedy Bugger !!

Splash Alley then turned the pressure up
(Get it! "Gas Pressure")

Everyone was congregated around the bar area for most of the evening.
They shouted and applauded after every number.
Judging by the compliments we received afterwards they were very pleased with the entertainment
Several people even approached us asking if we would do them functions they were planning for birthdays etc

The only downside of the night was the rain.
It was belting it down all night
We got soaked loading the gear back into the trailer
----------------------------------------------

CHARLIE'S LOCAL
29.12.07
THE PRINCE OF WALES

No we don't mean Prince Charles The Prince of Wales !
We mean the pub at the top of the road where Little Charlie Meehan lives.
Its not actually Charlie's local cos he's not old enough to drink,
It's his dads local in Allerton Bradford.
We agreed to play this gig so that all of the people of Allerton could get to see their Little Local Rockstar.

What a gig this turned out to be !!
By 8.30pm the place was packed, And it stayed packed all night
Charlie and his band Top Notch were brilliant.
A bucket passed round the pub collected just over £100 for the kids band.
Splash Alley then lived up to the "Supergroup" status that the landlord had put on his advertising.
The people of Allerton loved it
(And they kept telling us all night just how good it was)
The landlady said that the pub had never had so many people in it ever before.

This was a terrific gig to end the year on
----------------------------------------------

VERY FRIENDLY
22.12.07
THE FRIENDLY INN
BOOTHTOWN

It was the first time that we had played at this pub.
The Staff and customers here are as name of the pub suggests, "Friendly"
It was just a pity there were not more people in the pub.
It could be that some people are saving their money for Christmas
Those who did turn up thoroughly enjoyed it.


----------------------------------------------

LITTLE CHARLIE IN THE NEWS
20.12.07

This article appeared in the Telegraph & Argus
on 20th December 2007.





----------------------------------------------

IDLE ROCKS
15.12.07
THE CONISTON IDLE

The Coniston really rocked tonight
TOP NOTCH started the show and they were outstanding.

The place was full when SPLASH ALLEY took to the stage and the Conni Rocked

Several musos from other local bands were present.
The comments they made to us after the show were very complimentary.

Neil Saxton from local band Mr E sent an e-mail to us the day after the gig which read
"Nice one on Sat by the way, probably the best sound I've ever heard in the Conny!"

Thanks Neil,

We thought it was pretty good but its nice when others confirm it
----------------------------------------------

A QUIET START
07.12.07
THE DROP KICK
LOW MOOR

Richard the Landlord of The Drop Kick told us that the Smoking Ban had affected his trade
and the audiences numbers had been low for the last few weeks

The place was quite empty until about 9.15pm.
Then people started to arrive and it was about half full when the kids band Top Notch played their set
Part way through their set there was a power failure on some of the lighting.
This was soon rectified by switching to other sockets.
Once again the kids did a great set.
The audience shouted for an encore and got it

Splash Alley then took to the stage and wowed the punters as only Splash Alley can.
This was proper Rock Concert stuff
People who had not seen the band before came up and asked for cards.
Mike Smith (Red 13 PA Company) said it was the best he had ever heard and seen Splash Alley
And he has watched Splash Alley on Dozens of gigs
Thats some accolade Mike!!!
Thanks Very Much

Richard the landlord said that he was very pleased with the attendance
And he once again paid compliments to Splash Alley & Top Notch for putting on a good show.
----------------------------------------------

WHAT A PARTY
01.12.07
WOODEND
SHIPLEY

This was one helluva party.
to celebrate Brian Glover's 60th Birthday

The place was packed to capacity with Family & Friends

Members of other bands also attended this birthday bash including musicians from
Abandinurhead, Angel of Sin, Caterpillar Heroes,
The Chantel McGregor Band, Jump Start & The Trees

The kids band TOP NOTCH opened the entertainment.
During their outstanding performance they sprung a surprise with their rock rendition of Happy Birthday

Brian also took to the stage with Splash Alley and they played a couple of Beatles numbers.

Splash Alley then did an outstanding set of classic rock covers.

After a short break Brian took to the stage again to do Hi Ho Silver Lining and Living Next Door to Alice

Chantel McGregor & her drummer Martin Rushworth assisted by Mike Smith on bass
treated the crowd to some more quality rock music.

Splash Alley then returned to the stage to round off the entertainment
with another cracking set of rock covers

Everyone had a great night and Brian was a drunk as a skunk
And so were a lot of other people

What a Party !!!

Professional photographer and good friend Rais Hasan was kind enough to do the photos for the party
Some of the photos he took can be viewed by clicking the links below

Party Photos 1

Party Photos 2

Party Photos 3
-----------------------------------------


A YEAR ON
17.11.07
THE GEORGE BRIGHOUSE


Its almost a year since we last played here.

Despite the smoking ban generally having an adverse effect on the numbers of people who now go out to the pubs there was still quite a reasonable sized crowd at The George.

This time we put the young uns band (Top Notch) on first and the crowd loved em.
They cheered and shouted after every song.
When we played our two sets the crowd continued with their cheers and shouts for more.
They were singing along to the songs.
Some of them were playing Air Guitar.
We had yet another good gig which everybody enjoyed.


-----------------------------------------


SECONDS OUT
03.11.07
THE RING O BELLS


We had to wait until the Great Britain v New Zealand rugby game had finished on the TV before we could finished setting up and start playing.

When we did get started we used the same format for this gig as we had the last time we were here and put the young uns band on first as our support band.
Once again the kids were a great success.
The crowd loved them.

We followed the kids with a quality classic rock covers set and rocked the place.BR>
The smoking ban does not seem to have affected this pub in the way it has others as the pub was packed for the whole night
The applause from the crowd suggested that they were enjoying every minute of the show.

When we had finished playing we had to wait for a boxing match to finish on the TV that the punters were watching before we could pack the gear away
We missed our usual curry as they were closed by the time we had put the gear away
Eventually got to bed just before 5 am.

RUGBY, ROCK, BOXING & BED.

good night !!!!!!
----------------------------------------------

LAST ONE BEFORE THE BREAK
29.09.07
THE WOODEND,WINDHILL,SHIPLEY

This was the last gig we are playing for a few weeks as Jerry is going to the USA for a few weeks.
Des is also taking a holiday break at the same time.

We always enjoy the gigs at The Woodend and as usual plenty of our supporters turned up here.

The young uns band now has a name
TOP NOTCH
They started the show again and as always the crowd loved em.

Splash Alley followed with two cracking sets and the place really rocked.
This was another great gig at the Woodend

We will be returning to The Woodend for a special event
Brian (Splash Alleys Sound & Lighting man) will be holding his 60th birthday bash here.
on
Saturday 1st December 2007
Everyone is invited so put the date in your diary and watch this page for more information
----------------------------------------------

THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL
15.09.07
Ooops Sorry! Wrong Royal, It should be
THE ROYAL OAK
PADDOCK

The Wrong Royal is the fault of Tony & Jane (the landlord & landlady)
They said that we had enough equipment to play the Royal Albert Hall
What with our big PA and all of our other equipment and lights.
We told them that we had only put half of the lighting rig up.
Jane said she is amazed that we manage to squeeze the gear in the available space.

Anyway the place was full and we had another great gig.

Some friends of ours from a band called Lights Out and our regular local supporters turned up to see us.
They all said that they had really enjoyed it.
We got the usual complaints that we dont play in Huddersfield often enough.
We really do like playing this gig despite the tight space.

The only other problem is that Tony & Jane make us so welcome and always want to have a drink and a chat after everyone else has gone home that we always seem to get back home just before daybreak.
When you think about it we would probably get home at daybreak from the Royal Albert Hall !!

----------------------------------------------

COMPETING WITH THE RUGBY
14.09.07
THE DROP KICK


Despite there being some local high profile rugby games on we still managed to pull a crowd.
Some of them arrived a little later than usual but were in time to see the young kids open the show.
As usual the kids pleased everyone with their classic rock spot.

There were quite a few people in the audience who admitted to never seeing us before.
They all stayed to the very end.
It was almost half past midnight when we finished playing.
We received some very nice comments from quite a few of these newcomers and promises that they would certainly be coming to see Splash Alley again.

Yet another great night at the Drop Kick.
----------------------------------------------

BACK AT THE IDIOT HUT
08.09.07
OXENHOPE SOCIAL CLUB
OXENHOPE

Oxenhope Social Club has the nickname "The Idiot Hut".
Like we said last time we were here
The people who frequent this place are not Idiots
They can't be.
They Like Live Music

We had yet another great night at this great little club.

There were no fewer than three people in the room all celebrating birthdays.
Birthdays always seem to make the booze flow.
Which makes the audience let their hair down.
(If you have hair to let down !!!!)

Anyway everybody enjoyed themselves.

Thats what its all about

Having a good time.

----------------------------------------------

BINGLEY MUSIC LIVE
01.09.07
MYRTLE PARK BINGLEY

We played at this "NEW" outdoor concert which has replaced the Music at Myrtle event.
The new Bingley Music Live event is organised by Bradford Council Parks and Landscape Service.
The live music started at 4.00 pm.
WE PLAYED OUR SET AT 5.20 pm

The whole band played an excellent and really professional set.
Michaela and Charlie also strutted their stuff and the crowd loved it.

It was an amazing day.

The backstage staff were great and everything possible was done to help us.
We were treated like pro rock stars with our own dressing room, our own fridge with complimentary drinks.
Full catering facilities with choice of menu. A stage crew was privided to help set up the gear.

The Music was broadcast live on the Local radio station.
We were also interviewed by them which was also broadcast live.

The plaudits poured on us after we had played were amazing.
Even members of some of the other bands went out of their way to pay us compliments.
Members of the backstage staff were shaking hands and complimenting the band.
Even the staff behind the bar in the VIP tent passed comments on how good it was.

We will have some more of this type of gig anytime.

Be a rock star

Yes Please, Its Marvelous

In fact its Bloody Brilliant!!



We also have to say
A VERY BIG THANK YOU
to

Andrew Wood
of
Bradford Council Parks & Landscape Service
for inviting us to participate in this 1st ever Bingley Live Music Event

May there be many more of these in the future

Click here to go to the Bingley Music Live Website


Click on the link below to view 5 pages of Pictures
from Bingley Music Live taken by Joe Smith

Click Here For PHOTOS FROM BINGLEY MUSIC LIVE

----------------------------------------------

BACK TO CLUBLAND YET AGAIN
27.08.07
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB

We were back to play at the Lindley Liberal Club for the second time in this year.
We last played this club in January.
After our last 2 visits We were really looking forward to playing here again.
This time it was an afternoon gig starting at 2.00 pm
The audience at Lindley Liberal Club love their rock bands.
We discovered that we could take the gear up the diabled ramp instead of the fire escape
That saved us a lot of bloody hard work.
We opened the first set with Thin Lizzys Jailbreak and continued with a mixture of classic rock numbers
Our two young uns (Michaela & Charlie) did two AC DC numbers and the audience loved it.
They applauded and shouted and cheered!!!

In the interval the Concert Chairman made it clear that he was not keen on bingo but he had to do it anyway
At least it was only one game of bingo we had to sit through.

In the second set the crowd responding to every number we played.
As Usual, We finished this set with "Sweet Child O Mine"
and then did the encore number "Whole Lotta Rosie".

When we finished the Concert Chairman said over the mike " What a Bloody Good Band"
And the audience applauded his comments.
Its comments like that that make all the effort worthwhile

Lindley Liberal Club is a great gig.

----------------------------------------------

GIVE IT A KICK START
24.08.07
HARLEY DAVIDSON BIKERS RALLY
BAILDON RUGBY CLUB

This is the second time we have played this gig in as many years.
It is held in a big marquee on the rugby pitch
We were asked to open the weekends entertainment.
The guy who booked us said that they wanted us to do the first night "To give the weekend a Kick Start".
Nice play on words, "Kick Start"
(If there are any thikos out there, Some bikes have a kick start on them to start the engine)

We put the young kids band on first and they went down an absolute bomb
Its probably their best performance to date.

We followed with a cracking first set
Judging by the shouting and cheering after every number the crowd were really enjoying it too.
In the second set the crowd were singing along to every number we played

The crowd would have had us playing all night but we had to finish by midnight
as the rugby club has to respect the local residents.

Biker Gigs Are Always Enjoyable

And We Love Playing Em

-----------------------------------------


FROM SUNSHINE TO SHOWERS
18.08.07
THE CONISTON IDLE

Brian, Simon & Tiny returned at 4.00 am this morning from 2 weeks in the Sunshine of Tenerife
to the wet horrible rain in Yorkshire.

We can't do anything about the lack of sunshine
----------------------------------------------

LATE ONE
22.07.07
SKELLOW GRANGE W M C
DONCASTER

This was a short notice gig which we only accepted on Friday afternoon
The band who should have played it cried off at short notice with the excuse that the venue did not get enough people in on Sundays to watch the bands.
How wrong they were !!
Even though the club was not packed to capacity there were plenty of people in the place.
We had a great night and the crowd loved it
Some people commented that they thought we were a professional band and not a semi pro outfit.
We will look forward to coming back to this venue.

----------------------------------------------

THE IDIOT HUT
14.07.07
OXENHOPE SOCIAL CLUB
OXENHOPE

Evidently Oxenhope Social Club has the nickname "The Idiot Hut".
If what we are told is true it got the name because many many years ago a bunch of bikers dismantled this old church building (which was in another village several miles away) and transported it piece by piece on their bikes to its current location In the heart of Bronteland and reassembled it, some local people thought that the bikers were complete idiots so the building became known as
"The Idiot Hut."
Its a quaint building, it looks a bit like one of those old fashioned pre war wood and asbestos sheet garages
but a helluv a lot bigger.
We found enough power to run all of the lights and amps and were assured by the staff that despite the
buildings flimsy appearance it would withstand any efforts by a rock band to shake the place down

Well we rocked the place and its still standing.

We had a great night and they booked us back for the 8th September


It Might be called "The Idiot Hut"

But the people who go there are not Idiots

They cant be
They Like Live Music

----------------------------------------------

APRIL & WAYNE
06.07.07
FARM ROAD SOCIAL CLUB
KENDRAY

No NOT April and Rain
Its not a comment about the month of April having lots of rain
We have not spelt it wrong either, Its April & Wayne
It was a wedding evening party for a newly wed couple
April got married to Mr Wayne Altree
OK Now thats sorted out.

Its the first time we have ever played at this club
On arrival we were told that they had a neighbor from hell who constantly complained about noise
As a result of this neighbor the club has to do checks on the noise so that they keep their licence

Anyway the evening went off very well and everone enjoyed themselves.
The buffet was bloody good too!!!

We also send Our Best Wishes to the happy couple

----------------------------------------------

ALL SMOKED UP
30.06.07
THE BREWERY TAP

Raymond & Gary (The Landlords @ The Tap)
Decided to have a Smoking Party to mark the end of smoking in pubs.
They put Free smoked food on & Free Cigs and a raffle.
At the end of the night Raymond even auctioned the pubs ash trays off.
The evening raised £200 for Marie Curie Cancer Care
Its good that that money raised at a smoking event will be used to help cancer sufferers.

We got wet through unloading the gear.
And it Pi**ed it down most of the night
Despite the wet weather the punters still came out.
The Tap was crammed with people
We started early by putting the young uns on for a set of their own,
The kids went down a bomb
Splash Alley went down a bomb
In fact the whole evening was dynamite.
The power went off a few times in the last set.
We didnt finish the last set until after midnight
From now on the only smoking you will get in the venues will be from the bands smoke machines
Unless the "Powers That Be" decide to ban them as well !!!!

----------------------------------------------

TREVS BIRTHDAY
23.06.07
WOODEND

This was the birthday party for Trevor Wood.
His brother Paul Wood owns the place.
A nice buffet had been supplied for the party.
The curry they had put on was superb.

The young uns started the show again and they did a superb job.
We followed up with two quality sets

The place was packed and we had a great night.
The crowd loved it and Trevor was well pleased with his birthday do.

Some bikers from a local Harley bikers club had come to have a look and listen.
They said they were well impressed with the show and cant wait to see us again
at the Harley Rally in Baildon in August
----------------------------------------------

HELLS BELLS
16.06.07
THE RING O BELLS


We decided that after the success of our Big Rock Show gig at The Drop Kick two weeks ago
we would use the same format for this gig and put the young uns band on first as our support band.
We obviously made the right decision as the kids were a resounding success.
The crowd loved them.

We followed the kids with our usual selection of quality classic rock covers and went down a bomb.
Michaela joined us on keyboards for Van Halens Jump and then she played bass
for AC DCs Shook Me All Night Long with Charlie playing lead guitar.

We started our second set with AC DCs Hells Bells and went on to play over an hour long set.
The pub was packed for the whole night
Judging by the applause the crowd were loving every minute of the show
One of the pubs regulars took it upon herself to go round after the music ended
and do a collection for the young uns
They got a bonus of £43 which was a very nice surprise for them.

Les the landlord was plying us with drinks after we had packed our gear away.
After driving back and putting the trailer away,
Then going for a curry
Eventually got to bed at 4.45 am.

Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z Z

Hells Bells.
----------------------------------------------

AN UDDER GREAT NIGHT
09.06.07
THE BROWN COW
BINGLEY

It was the first time we had played in Bingley for years.
This Pub is getting a reputation for its Live Music Nights thanks to Neil the music loving landlord.
The place was packed and the crowd were shouting and cheering after every number.

We had a fantastic gig and we are really looking forward to returning to this venue in October

We look forward to An Udder Great Night!!!
----------------------------------------------

FULL ROCK SHOW
01.06.07
THE DROP KICK
LOW MOOR

We had a surprise in store for the crowd who turned up tonight to this gig
The debut of our full young uns band doing our "Big Rock Show"
We had decided that our full young uns band
(Charlie, Micheala, Alec & Rick) would open the show with a set of their own.
We did not even tell the kids they were doing it until about ten minutes before they were due on stage.
They opened with Enter Sandman and went on to do three other great rock covers,the audience loved them.
We were well chuffed with their performance.
We still need a name for our young band and we are asking people to e-mail us with suggestions.
There is a £20 prize for the person who e-mails in a name that we choose to use.

Someone stood by the bar said "How do you follow that."
Well Splash Alley just did their thing and the audience were treated to two sets of knockout rock music.

The compliments were coming from all directions after the show.

The man who questioned "How do you follow that" came up and said
"Thats my question answered, that was F**king brilliant"

Frank from the U2 tribute band New 2 said
"I have never heard a better sound or seen a better show from a semi pro band."

Thanks for the compliment Frank!

We were chatting to people for ages.
We eventually managed to get the gear packed away and got back home for 4.30 am.

It was worth it

Long Live Live Music!!!!
----------------------------------------------

DERBY DAY SOAKING
27.05.07
THE CRICKETERS
BAILDON GREEN

The first ever Baildon Soap Box Derby Day was not supposed to be a water sport competition.
The Bank Holiday weather did its worst and it rained for most of the day
Despite the poor weather there was still a fair number of people who turned up and braved the rain to watch the soap box racing and the bands.
The Red Arrows even stayed away because of the clouds.

First on stage were a young band called REDEMTION.
They played a great set which included modern covers and some of their own compositions.

Next band on were SOMETHINS MISSING
These guys supported us at the Saltaire Festival last year and they are a cracking three piece band.
They play some great covers and some of their own stuff.

When it was SPLASH ALLEYS turn to play
GUESS WHAT !!!!
What had been the odd light shower or light drizzle turned to a full pour down
It didnt put off the punters though
They braved the weather and shouted and cheered.
Then the rain stopped just as we put the young uns on!
They were terrific and the crowd loved em

After a short break Somethins Missing were back on stage doing their thing and Pete from VanHooligan got up and guested on Whole Lotta Rosie

We had a visit from a H & S man who said that as the rain had managed to soak everything including some of the gear it was not safe to continue so as this stage we had to pack up and go home.

If we do it next year lets hope the weathers kinder!

-----------------------------------------



THE CONNIE
17.03.07
THE CONISTON IDLE

We always have a good gig at The Connie but this was the best ever.

The place was packed with people a good hour before we were due on.

Its difficult to give a proper description of what this gig was like

You had to be there to experience the atmosphere.

WOW !!!!!

What a GREAT Crowd !!!!!

What a GREAT Night !!!!!

What a GREAT Venue !!!!!

What a GREAT Gig !!!!!

----------------------------------------------

WEDDING DOO
21.04.07
ESPORTIA
COOKRIDGE HALL LEEDS

We played at The Esportia for the wedding of Mike & Julie

The gig was in a very big conservatory and believe it or not the glass is still intact.

The food on the outdoor B B Q was brilliant

The audience were great and we had a very good gig

We also send Our Best Wishes to the happy couple

----------------------------------------------

STEELIES
07.04.07
ACKLAM STEEL & ATHLETIC CLUB
MIDDLESBOROUGH

We played in Middlesborough for the first time in years.
This is a very big club
We had a fantastic night and another great gig
The crowd at this venue really like their rock music
They chanted for more so we went back on stage and did some more.

The young uns didnt come with us to this gig as it was considered to be a bit too far away for them
We are definitely taking them next time as its too good a gig for them to miss out on
Barry (The Concert Secretary) certainly knows his rock music and he is a character and a really good laugh, he said
"The kids can come and play here anytime if they play Rock music,
but we don't want any Bonnie Langfords".

We are looking forward to coming back to this club again very soon.


We have not stopped smiling this weekend.

Its been a Bloody Brilliant Weekend.

----------------------------------------------

WHAT A GOOD FRIDAY
06.04.07
BELLHOUSE ROAD WMC
SHEFFIELD

Wow, What a Good Friday at The Bellhouse Road WMC
Even though the place was not full it was still a great atmosphere.
We met Fast Eddie (The Concert Secretary) for the first time (What a Great Bloke).
We also met Carl of Meltdown (Smashing guy)

The young uns (Charlie, Michaela and Alex) did a great job yet again
(they are becoming seasoned professionals)
The crowd loved em.

We did do the Bellhouse Anthem (Whole Lotta Rosie) at the end of the show.
Its our own anthem and we always finish off with wherever we play.
Lots of nice people at Bellhouse kept coming up to us paying compliments after the show.

Eddie at the Bellhouse is dreading the electric bill coming,
We had over 40 lights in the show
(over 9000 watts and not one par can).

We have to say thanks to Mick Smith (Red 13)
He has put a lot of work in helping with the rewiring and programming
all of the additional lighting we have added to the show.

Thanks to both Eddie and Carl for their kind comments on RotN which are listed below.
(Their Comments are in Red text and the replies from Rock of the North are in green text)



Comment from Fast Eddie of Bellhouse 7/4/07
Hi Steve, its one in the morning, im up at five in the morning, but Splash Alley ave brought out the yearning in me.What a fooking band!!!.It was blackpool illumations and a fantastic band,rolled into one. Absolutly top guys Steve, great musicians top vocalist and the sound and lights was the best ive seen in the club. I also got to shake hands with a star of the future,"young Angus"was well im lost for words, the young girl on keys, and bass was spot on, and the little guy on the drums was mint. Dunno who I enjoyed the most, the stars of now, or the stars of the future without doubt. Great to see a band who puts the young ones to the front, but who are also absolutley excellent in every thing they did tonight. Nice to meet Brian to, great guy as was the rest of the band, see them all again soon.

Reply from Rock of the North
The "old lads" have been at it a long time but they still cut it, but I wasn't sure if Charlie, Michelle and the gang were going to perform. I'm glad they did. The lights are fantastic and a credit to Brian who has about 20 grand invested in them. I had some RotN business to attend to on Friday night so I couldn't attend. We're really pleased it went well at Bellhouse though! Wait till the electric bill comes through!




Comment from Carl of Meltdown and Bellhouse 7/4/07
Just to agree with Eddie, Splash Alley were great last night. Superb lights and sound and great all round show. The young 'uns were brilliant too, what a character Charlie is, and for his age, wow, awesome guitarist! And multi-talented Michaela too on keys and bass - cracking job. And the lad who got up on drums, shut ur eyes and you couldn't tell the difference between him and Cozy Powell! lol. Really enjoyed the gig... hope to see them again soon. Was good to see Mike Smith again and Alf Hoo.... sorry, Brian too! haha! Enjoy your weekend. Carl.

Reply from Rock of the North
Wish I'd have come to Bellhouse now as the other business was a bit of a washout. I'm really pleased Splash Alley were to everyone's liking. I think the "Puddles" drummer is called Alex but I could be wrong. Charlie and Michaela are truly brilliant and Charlie's Angus mannerisms are fabulous.If I'm wrong I'm sure Alf Hoo....er I mean Brian will fill us in!


This was a VERY GOOD FRIDAY

----------------------------------------------

BIG Ds
31.03.07

Late Cancellation

This gig was cancelled by the venue.
Their electricity supply was not up to the standard required.
The power evidently kept going off on another band who played there.
It would not have had a chance of staying on with all of our gear plugged into it.

----------------------------------------------

OWLET HALL SOCIAL CLUB
30.03.07

This was our first visit to this club for about 30 years.
The once monthly Rock Band nights seemed to have really taken off.

We tried some of the extra lighting out for the first time which Mike Smith has been helping Brian to install.
The extra lights added up to now have made the light show even better and there are some more lights still to add which will improve the show even more.

There were lots of people coming up to us after the gig telling us how good the music and the lights were.

The young uns did their usual quality set and impressed everybody
They get better every time they play!

-----------------------------------------



ST PATRICKS DAY & MURPHYS LAW
17.03.07
THE BREWERY TAP

The St Patricks day gig at The Brewery Tap started off with the best intentions.
We arrived just after 5.00pm so that we would have plenty of time to set up
as we knew that the last time we played here the pub was jammed with people.

Then Murphys Law kicked in!
"WHAT CAN GO WRONG WILL GO WRONG"

It was already blowing a gale outside and it started pouring down with rain
as we were part way through unloading the equipment from the trailer.
We set everything up & when we plugged into the pubs power points a circuit breaker tripped.
We got the power back on then one of the lights started misbehaving
We started checking the sound levels and the desk kept going off and on.
Then the desk power pack gave out a puff of smoke and stopped working.
Brian went to get the spare desk from the lock up
and when he got there he realised that he did not have the key so he had to phone his son to bring the key.
We set up the spare desk and we could not get the sound to come through all of the speakers.
We did not want to disapoint everybody who had turned up to see us.
So we decided that we would have to play with the system only part working.
We eventually started playing almost an hour late.
We played one long set straight through without a break.

The three kids (Alex,Charlie & Michaela) did another great job.
They added a terrific instrumental number to their set, Joe Satriani's "Surfing with the Alien".
It went down an absolute storm.

There were quite a few musicians from other bands in the pub and they were all well impressed with the kids set and they also paid compliments to us for doing the gig with what seemed one problem after another.

Mick from the band Hard To Handle said
"Shame about the PA going down but credit to you for getting it sorted"

Dave & Alan from Jagged Edge said that they thought it was great even with the PA not working properly.

Most people seem to accept that we did our best under difficult circumstances.

As the saying goes
"The Show Must Go On"
(Mind you it nearly didnt!)

Murphys Law kicked in again when were loading the equipment
It P*ss*d it down and we all got bloody soaked

THANKS A LOT ST PATRICK!

Next year maybe we will do what everybody else does on St Patricks day

Instead of doing a gig we will go out somewhere

AND GET BLIND STINKING DRUNK!
----------------------------------------------

FIRST ON THE STAGE
THE WOODEND, SHIPLEY
10.03.07

The owner (Paul Wood) has spent a considerable lump of money doing some big alterations, The old stage at the side of the room has been taken out and a new stage has been built at one end of the concert room.
We were the first band to play on the new stage.

We also introduced Alex on the drums, he is a new addition to our young uns band and he did a superb job. you would not have guessed that it was the first proper live gig he has played at.

The place was packed and we had a great night.

The crowd loved it
----------------------------------------------

THE ROYAL OAK, PADDOCK
03.03.07

When we had finished setting up Tony & Jane (the landlord & landlady) joked that they thought there would be no room left for customers as we took so much room up with our new PA and all of our other equipment.

The place was packed and we had another great gig.

The young uns went down a absolute bomb again.

Our loyal Huddersfield supporters were at the gig and they really enjoyed themselves.
They complained that we dont play in Huddersfield often enough.
We will have to try to find some more decent venues in this area!

----------------------------------------------

NO FISHING
18.02.07
BAILEYS LIVE GRIMSBY

We played in Grimsby for the first time.
No need to FISH for complements here
We had loads of em (Compliments Not Fish)

We used our upgraded PA with the G3 Allen & Heath desk and HK speaker cabs for the first time on a gig.
Our PA was good before but the sound is bloody awesome now

It was nice to have a decent sized stage to play on.
The stage is at a good height for viewing the bands and the area for the customers is quite large.

The punters kept coming up and paying compliments after the gig
One woman posted a comment on our guestbook within an hour of the gig ending.
One of the owners of the venue also posted a comment on our guestbook.
(Have a look at the comments by clicking on the guestbook logo)

We enjoyed the gig but its a fair old drive home with a trailer on the back.
We were still home for 1.00 am because its an early start and early finish venue.

----------------------------------------------

BOWLED OVER
10.02.07
THE SHIPLEY CLUB

This was a party night at the local bowling club.
(Bowls plated on grass not a Bowling alley)
It was booked by the steward & his wife to celebrate their aniversary.
The place was packed by half past eight and it was standing room only.

There was a special surprise for us,
Byron Bestwick (a mate of ours who played drums for us many years ago) was at the party.
We persuaded him to get up and play a number with the band.
He did "Alright Now" just as good as he had played it all those years ago.

Everyone had a great night and one bloke said "I was Bowled over by the show"

Quite an appropiate statement considering its a bowling club!

----------------------------------------------

A FULL CUP
03.01.07
THE CUP & RING

This was our local pub for many years when we all lived in the local area.
Barry & Tiny still live locally and they do frequent the pub now and again.
The new Landlord & Landlady have tidied the pub up & have started putting live bands on.
We agreed to give the live band nights a boost & do a gig for them
We took up about half of the available space in the lounge with all of our gear
and the other half of the room was crammed with people.
It certainly was A FULL CUP.
Little Charlie had to stand on the table when he played so people could see him
there was no space for him to strut around the room
At the end of the night the landlady said that she could do with the pub been that full every week!
Maybe people will start going to the Cup & Ring band nights more often
Who Knows at some time in the near future "The Cup might runneth over"

----------------------------------------------

BACK TO CLUBLAND AGAIN
20.01.07
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB

We were back to play at the Lindley Liberal Club for the second time in three months.
Having played this club in November we new what to expect this time.
We were really looking forward to playing here again.
The audience at Lindley Liberal Club love their rock bands.
The only down side at this venue is that you have to get the gear up a fire escape
and its bloody hard work when you have as much gear as we do.
We opened the first set with Thin Lizzys Jailbreak and continued with a mixture of classic rock numbers
Our two young uns (Michaela & Charlie) did two AC DC numbers and the audience loved it.
They applauded and shouted and cheered!!!

After an interlude with the usual raffle draw, bingo etc,
We stormed through our second set with the crowd responding to every number.
As Usual, We finished the set with "Sweet Child O Mine"
and then did the encore number "Whole Lotta Rosie".

For about five minutes after the band had left the stage the crowd were still shouting for more.
So we had no alternative than to get up and give em some more.
We eventually finished the show at quarter past twelve after playing three extra songs.

This was one helluva good gig.

----------------------------------------------

DROP KICK
30.12.06

Our last gig in 2006

By 9.00 pm every seat in the room was taken and the back of the room was packed with people standing.
Lots of musicians from other bands were in the audience including
Malcolm Siswick & Steve Williams from EL LOCO, Dave Bamforth & Alan Owen from JAGGED EDGE. Derek, Andy & Richard from FULL TILT & Glenn from CHAINS GANG.
After every song the crowd showed their appreciation with loud applause and cheering.
When the Young uns (Michaela & Charlie) did their stuff the audience loved it.
They cheered and applauded even louder and really showed their appreciation of our two young rockers.

Barry, Tiny & Brian were all suffering from the flu.
But in the time honored fashion "The Show Must Go On"
Barry somehow managed to get through singing all of the lead vocals.
But by the time he had sung the last song of the night he could hardly talk and he said that he felt really ill
so we sent him home in a taxi.
He must have been poorly as the bar was still open when he went home.
Under normal circumstances Barry would not leave whilst the bar was open.

Just to add insult to injury as the rest of the band were loading the equipment into the trailer
the heavens opened and it was like a bloody monsoon.
Our dose of flu will probably develop into full blown pneumonia after the soaking we got.

Never mind

Its All in the interest of Live Rock Music!
----------------------------------------------

THE ANGEL
CHRISTMAS BASH 2006
27.12.06

We played at The Angel in Baildon for our usual Chrismas party night.
We have played this gig for the last couple of years.

As usual lots of people turned up to the venue tonight.

Our two young uns, Michaela & Charlie did their usual quality performances with Michaela giving the first outing to her brand new bass rig and new bass guitar her Mum and Dad had bought her for Christmas.
(How did Santa got the bass rig down the bloody chimney?)

Charlie strutted his stuff on the floor and then on the tables.
The crowd shouted for more after the Young Angus act
So the young uns did AC DCs Back in Black as an encore,
It was the first time they had played this number together but it was so good
you would have thought they had played it for years.

There were quite a few other musicians in the pub.
We got Mick Smith up to play a couple of numbers on bass,
He joined two of the lads from the pub,
Benn on the drums and Rabea on the lead guitar,
They were all excellent!

All in all it was a cracking night.

We have to say a very special thank you to Tony McCaul (The pub manager)
For all his efforts getting live music on at The Angel,
We also have to mention Tonys bad jokes (they are a legend in Baildon).


----------------------------------------------

THOMAS CROMPTONS CHRISTMAS PARTY
22.12.06
FIRST SOCIAL CLUB
BRADFORD

It must be well over thirty years since we last played at this venue
It was called Bradford Transport Club in those days.

This event was the Christmas party for Thomas Crompton Developments Ltd

And what a party it was
Lovely food
Free Bar
Good crowd

Everybody had a fantastic time !!!!!
----------------------------------------------

THE WOODEND, SHIPLEY
02.12.06

This gig was a bit special as it was Brians Birthday Bash
(Brian is the sound and light engineer)
We wont tell you how old he is but he is a lot nearer to a bus pass than a nursery school place

We had a cracking night.

Lots to drink and lots of fun

The crowd loved it

We loved it.

Everybody loved it

Terrific

----------------------------------------------

MORLEY CARR W.M.C
01.12.06
Private Party

This was a 50th Birthday bash for a chap called Dave

His partner Yvonne had booked us to play at the club.

We had an enjoyable night and the buffet was good as well.


Its over thirty years since we last played at this club.

It hasn't changed much.

----------------------------------------------

THE GEORGE BRIGHOUSE
25.11.06

We had a problem on route to this venue when a wheel bearing on our trailer overheated.
Brians son Andrew came out and inspected the damage (He mends vehicles for a living).

We played our normal first set and then put the young uns on and the crowd loved it.

We had yet another good gig which everybody enjoyed.

Some people we spoke to after the gig told us that they usually watch the first set of a band at The George,
then they go to another local pub to watch whatever band is on there.
They liked our first set so much that they stayed to watch our last set.
They took details of our future gigs and said they would be coming to see us again.

Andrew came back after the gig had finished and we loaded a lot of our equipment into his van
to lessen the load on the trailer so that we did not do more damage to the wheel bearing.
We did manage to get back home safely.

We will get the damaged wheel bearing fixed this week.


----------------------------------------------

ROCK OF THE NORTH CONVENTION
25.11.06

We went to the first ever Rock of the North Convention
It was held at Squires Cafe Bar from 2.00 pm.

Our two young rock stars Charlie & Michaela had been invited to do the "Young Angus" thing.

One of the Rock of the North Convention official tee shirts features Little Charlie on the front.


We borrowed instruments from the other bands who were playing at the convention.

Helen from Resurgence lent Michaela her bass guitar and Broken Angel lent Barry a guitar
and their drummer Andy agreed to play the drums for us as our drummer Derek was not available.


When the young uns were announced the crowd all moved forward and surrounded the dance floor
to get a better view of area where Little Charlie was strutting his stuff.

The cameras appeared from everywhere as people photographed the act.

When the song was over the applause was astounding as our two little rock stars took a bow.

Lots of compliments and comments were made by other musicians and members of the audience
after they had seen our amazing young stars perform.


YOU CAN FIND A REPORT OF THE GIG ON THE ROCK OF THE NORTH WEBSITE.


----------------------------------------------

BACK TO CLUBLAND
18.11.06
LINDLEY LIBERAL CLUB

Back to Playing in Clubland for the first time for many years.
We were a bit unsure how a club audience would react to a rock band playing between their bingo sessions.
We were not really looking forward to playing in clubs again.
We need not have worried
The audience at Lindley Liberal Club really showed their appreciation with loud applause after every song.

We put our two young uns (Michaela & Charlie) on midway through the first set and the audience went wild.
The applause and cheering was Amazing!!!

We expected the concert room to empty when the bingo finished, WRONG!!
The room filled up as more people came in.

We had Richard Wilson deputising on the drums as our drummer Derek was attending a wedding.
Richard did a quality job as stand in drummer and he played a terrific drum solo!
The crowd clapped and cheered and Richard took a deserved bow.


The audience sang along to every song we did in the second set.
We finished the set with "Sweet Child O Mine" and then did the encore number "Whole Lotta Rosie".

We had committee members & club members coming up and saying all sorts of complementary things!
One senior committee member said it was the best show he'd ever seen at the club.
They rebooked us for 20th January 2007.
After the great night we just had here we look forward to returning to Lindley Liberal Club in the new year.

Its about time more clubs woke up to Rock Music.
Rock on in Clubland !!


----------------------------------------------

UP THE JUNCTION
14.11.06

We last played at The Junction Inn at West Scholes Queensbury a few years ago.
That gig was for a 50th birthday party.

We were surprised at how many people turned up to the venue tonight.

There were quite a few musicians from other bands in the pub.

Our two young uns, Michaela & Charlie did their usual quality performances.

One woman stood next to the sound desk was actually crying at the end of the Young Angus act
She said she thought it was amazing how good our two young rock stars performed like seasoned musicians

Another woman said that she goes there every week and had never seen anything like our show before.

We are always pleased when members of the audience pass comments like that.

It makes it all worth the effort we all put in


----------------------------------------------

THE NEW DRUM
11.11.06

We ventured down the M1 into Derbyshire to a place called Shirebrook.

The venue was a big pub called The New Drum

We had been warned by the owner of the pub that the locals had a strange habit.
He told us that he wanted us to start playing at 9.20pm,one set 90 minutes long,finish for 10.50pm.
He said that the pub would be virtually empty until just before we started playing.
And it would empty again at 10.50pm.
The customers all drink in other pubs and then come to see the band.
A late night venue up the road charges entry fee after 11.00pm
So they all dash off at 10.50pm to get in free at the late night venue before 11.00pm
We were also told that they dont applaud or shout much either.
We did get asked by one customer to "Please do another one" (which we did).
Some of the customers who remained after the big exodus said we were the best band they had seen.

All in all it was a little bit weird in Shirebrook! But things are due to change!

The New Drum gets a late licence in two weeks and opens its big new upstairs room.

Maybe it could change the way the punters behave !!


----------------------------------------------

THE BOLD PRIVATEER
03.11.06

We had yet another great night at this local venue.

The proposed closure of the pub at the end of last month for refurbishment was postponed until new year.

Every time we play here its a good gig and it just gets better and better!

The crowd loved it.

We had a terrific gig and we enjoyed every minute.


----------------------------------------------

THE CONISTON
28.10.06

We played at The Coniston in Idle on Saturday night 28th October 2006

Our little rock star Charlie (Mini Angus) Meehan did his stuff again at this gig doing his Angus impression

Our 14 year old starlet Michaella (Tinys Grandaughter) played the bass.

They played AC DCs Shook Me All Night Long

Michaela also played Van Halens Jump on the keyboards.
Its not an easy number to play but this girl makes it look dead easy

The crowd in The Coniston were gobsmacked at the quality of these two young musos


IF YOU'VE NOT SEEN THESE KIDS YOU NEED TO COME AND HAVE A LOOK!

These two young musicians were terrific!


----------------------------------------------

THE ROYAL OAK, PADDOCK
07.10.06

After a few initial problems with the power supply we got the place rocking.

We introduced our young rock stars Michaela and Charlie to the crowd.

The young uns went down a absolute bomb.

A lot of our loyal Huddersfield followers turned up at the gig and they really enjoyed themselves.

As usual!


----------------------------------------------

BACK AT THE TAP AGAIN
23.09.06

We were back at The Brewery Tap on Saturday 23rd September 2006.

Its our first visit since Raymond & Gary took over as the landlords.

We have had some terrific gigs here over the last 20 years but this was the best ever!.

The place was packed.

They ran out of Glasses

They ran out of Change.

We really did ROCK the TAP tonight.

We stood outside cooling down after the gig and the amount of compliments we received were unbelievable.
We had compliments from people who had seen us lots of times before.

Comments like "BEST YOU'VE EVER PLAYED", "BETTER THAN EVER",

We had compliments from people who had never ever seen us before.

One guy said " THAT WAS A F***ING AWESOME SHOW "

A women said "BEST BAND I'VE EVER SEEN"

Another said " THAT WAS FANTASTIC "


We have never shaken so many hands in our lives before!


WHAT A CRACKING GIG THIS WAS!


----------------------------------------------

THE BRIDGE TAVERN
17.09.06

We were back at one of our favorite venues the Bridge Tavern on Sunday Night.

We always have a good gig here and the crowd are always responsive.

They really like their rock music here!


----------------------------------------------

SALTAIRE FESTIVAL
16.09.06

We headlined the Saltaire Festival in Roberts Park on Saturday Afternoon 16th September 2006.

BRADFORD COUNCIL ASKED US TO DO IT ALL AGAIN ON SUNDAY!

SO IF YOU MISSED IT ON SATURDAY YOU HAD ANOTHER CHANCE TO SEE IT!

On Saturday the event started at Noon and there were two other bands on supporting us.
The stage was in a marquee

SOMTHINS MISSIN played both days & EEVOLUTION played the Saturday gig with us



We also invited a couple of very special guest stars to play with us.

Eleven year old CHARLIE MEEHAN played lead guitar.
Thirteen year old MICHAELA GLOVER played the keyboard and the bass guitar


Charlie Meehan & Michaela Glover

THESE TWO YOUNG UNS ARE AMAZING.


THERE ARE SOME MORE PHOTOS OF THIS GIG ON THE GALLERY PAGE


----------------------------------------------

SOMERSET ARMS CHARITY GIG
03/09/06

We headlined this gig in Huddersfield which was to raise funds for The local hospital Special Care Baby Unit.

The stage for the bands was a cutain sider lorry which was very kindly loaned to us by
Bedford Transport of Birstall.


THE BANDS WHO APPEARED WERE.


EEVOLUTION
A young rock covers band from Queensbury.

GYPSY
Bradford hardest working unsigned rock band.

HEAVY LOAD
A terrific rock band from the Castleford area.

THE TOURETTES
A modern rock band from the Castleford & South Elmsall area.

SPLASH ALLEY
(Thats us)


The gig was quite poorly attended by the local people
The weather had some bearing on the attendance figures.
There was also a big Rugby game on which conflicted with the gig
Those who did turn up had a good time.

Thanks to all of the bands who played.

Thank you to everyone else who helped with the gig.

A special thank you to Andrew Glover for driving the truck to and from the gig.

Over £700 was raised for the charity which was not a bad amount everything considered


A REVIEW OF THIS GIG CAN BE FOUND ON THE REVIEWS PAGE ON http://www.rockofthenorth.f2s.com


----------------------------------------------

DROP KICK
01.09.06

We had another good night here.

Some of the Bridge Rats motor cycle club members came along to see us.

We are back here on 29th December 2006


----------------------------------------------

THE GENEROUS PIONEER
27.08.06

We headlined this all day charity gig at The Generous Pioneer.

This outdoor event was held on the car park at this big modern pub in Burley in Wharfedale.

The entertainment started at Noon and there was something for the whole family.

The stage for the bands was a 40ft cutain sider trailer.


THE BANDS WHO APPEARED WERE.


SIDEWINDER
A great rock covers band from Keighley.

VAMP
Barnsleys best Rock and Roll band

VAGABOND
A brilliant Bon Jovi tribute band from Bradford

NEW 2
A fantastic U2 tribute band

SPLASH ALLEY
(Thats us)


The first three bands played with the sun shining.
When New 2 played the rain fell and then it cleared up again.

When we were playing the heavens opened and it was like a monsoon
Even in the rain everbody had a good time

A REVIEW OF THIS GIG CAN BE FOUND ON THE REVIEWS PAGE ON http://www.rockofthenorth.f2s.com


----------------------------------------------

THE BOLD PRIVATEER
18.08.06

We had another good night at this local venue.

Lots of our friend and local supporters came along to see us.

The pub is due to close for refurbishment in a couple of months.

Our next listed gig here in November might have to be rearranged for a later date.


----------------------------------------------

THE OLD TRAMSHED
14.08.06

We played at THE OLD TRAMSHED in Saltaire on Monday night 14th August 2006

They have had some top named acts on here, And now it was our turn

The place was packed and everybody really enjoyed the gig

The band sounded awesome and the lighting looked excellent in this converted tramshed!

We had loads of compliments paid to us afterwards

This was a top quality gig in every way!

THERE ARE SOME PHOTOS FROM THIS GIG ON THE GALLERY PAGE


----------------------------------------------

WOODEND
12.08.06

We had a GREAT GIG at The Woodend, Windhill.

Lots of family and friends turned up along with the Woodend regulars.

They all let their hair down and had a great time

When we did Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer everyone in the room was singing their heads off with us.

This is a GREAT venue with a GREAT crowd.

Paul Wood is a GREAT landlord who really looks after the bands.

We are back here on 2nd December

We are really looking forward to another GREAT night.


----------------------------------------------

NEW INN MARSDEN
05.08.06

We have had lots of reports from other bands and rock music fans
telling us that this venue is a really good rock venue

Unfortunately the nasty Local Council Environmental Health Officers have visited the pub.
They told the landlord that he has to turn the volume down on the Saturday live band nights.

We still had a good night and the pubs customers enjoyed it.

You can't let it Rock properly with the sound levels down
Its very annoying when the bands have to turn it down just to please some moaning neighbour who has probably only lived near the pub for a short while!


----------------------------------------------

THE BRIDGE RATS BIKERS RALLY

04.08.06
We played at Heath Rugby Club on Friday 4th August for the Bridge Rats Bikers Rally

We really got all the bikers rocking in the big marquee and our light show looked awesome

Bikers kept coming up to us commenting on how much they enjoyed it.

We enjoyed it too!


----------------------------------------------

AIR AMBULANCE CHARITY GIG
30.07.06

We headlined a charity fundraising event for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance.

It took place in the car park at The Copper Kettle,Thornton Road,Bradford

on

Sunday 30th July 2006.

The Show started at 1.00 pm and it went on until 10.15 pm.

A curtain sider trailer was used for the stage and we had other bands playing the gig with us.

EEVOLUTION a young local band started the show with their energetic set.

The second band on the show were a great rock band called BLACKOUT.

NO QUARTER continued the show with their quality rock covers set.

Metalica tribute band FERAL CIRCUS played the penultimate spot.

We then played the final set of the day and we concluded the show at 10.15 pm.


Steve Lally has done a full review of the gig which you can check out on the Rock of the North website.



CLICK HERE FOR REVIEW

Our thanks go to Emma Clayton of the Telegraph & Argus for the feature article.

(See Below)

This was published in the 28th July 2006 edition of the T & A








----------------------------------------------

TIME FOR A REST

We have been having a short break from gigging for most of July,

We all needed a bit of time to have a rest and a holiday etc before our busy August period.


----------------------------------------------

BACK AT THE TAP
30.06.06

We had another great gig at the Brewery Tap on Friday 30th June.
Lots of familiar faces and a few new ones were there.
The audience included some musicians from other local bands including :-
Alan Owen & Dave Shorten from Jagged Edge,
Andy from The Reams and Mouse from Screamachine.
We also had a visit from Steve Lally and his wife Tracey of Rock of the North.
(See picture and review below from the Rock of the North website.)



Rock of the North Review

West Yorkshire veteran rockers, Splash Alley showed what a lifetime's experience can do when this brilliant band rocked the Brewery Tap, Idle on Friday night! Playing a blistering repertoire of classic rock the Tap crowd were loving it. The sound was a high quality and powerful mix and that's where the experience showed. The individual members of the band were superb, clear and authentic vocals, great solos on guitar, and a rock solid rhythm section, not to mention the well played Korg M1 and Yamaha synth. This band are so professional, when a JCM 2000 amp went down, it was immediately replaced with another one, and the tone was identical. Not mentioned the light show yet have we....wow, I've never seen a light show like this with a semi pro band! It was like Pink Floyd had hit town! This was none other than Brian Glover doing his thing. It put the cream on the top. Go see this band when you can. It's a great show. We will be upgrading the Brewery Tap's rating on our venues page as the place has gone up in my estimation, with plenty of musos frequenting the place, including some from top club band Jagged Edge.


----------------------------------------------

OPENING AT THE SHAY CANCELLED for 24.06.06

As a result of a late objection regarding the Live music licence for the Shay Hotel.
Calderdale Councils Licensing Department have told Barry the landlord that he will have to postpone his opening live music night until they have investigated the objection.

Therefore We will NOT be playing at the opening night on Saturday.

The Shay Hotel which is next to Halifax Town football ground
has been refurbished and was reopening under the new management.

The Council did not notify Barry the landlord of the problem until Thursday lunchtime
(2 days before the official opening)

There will be live bands every Saturday once the Council sort things out.
Until they do things will hopefully continue on temporary licenses.
These have to be applied for seperately for each band appearing.
The pub has to apply 10 working days in advance of each gig.
It will be another two weeks before any live bands can appear
When it starts lets see some music lovers there on a regular basis.

We think Calderdale Council Licensing Department are a bunch of arseholes!

What do you think?

Tell us,

Or better still tell the Arseholes at Calderdale Council!


----------------------------------------------

UPPERTHONG
23.06.06

No its got nothing to do with skimpy undergarments and some of your rude thoughts,
Its not UP HER THONG!
Its UPPERTHONG which is a little village near Holmfirth.

We played at the opening night of the annual gala weekend.
They billed it as "The Event In The Tent".
The gig was held in a big marquee.
By the time we had set up ready to play there were very few people in the tent.
At around 9.00pm it was as if a fleet of buses had arrived.
People began coming in in droves and the tent was packed.

The power supply was from a mobile generator.
The organisers warned us that they had some problems in previous years with the power going off.
We only experienced a few problems with some of the lights and amps not behaving as they normally do.
Although we knew there were some problems the crowd didn't notice and everybody had a great time.

After we had finished our last set they carried on dancing to a disco until 2.00 am.

We suppose you could say

"We did the songs and they shook their Thongs"


----------------------------------------------

RINGERS
17.06.06

We had yet another great gig at Ring o Bells at Queensbury.
We were amazed at the number of quality compliments made by members of the audience after the gig.

Everything went great until we got back home.
We were reversing the trailer towards the garage to put it away and one of the stub axles snapped off.
Thats something we will have to repair before next weekends gigs unless were gonna sing

"Three wheels on my wagon"


----------------------------------------------

LOCK KEEPERS
10.06.06

It was really hot at The Lock Keepers gig in Sowerby Bridge.

We were playing in the pub and a lot of the punters were dancing outside on the big patio area
because it was so hot inside the pub.

Taff the landlord is a great guy who loves his rock music and his beer.
He kept plying us with plenty of cold drinks to keep us cool.

Cheers Taff!


----------------------------------------------

OFFER AT THE CONI
03.06.06

Andrew Wood from Bradford Council Parks Promotions came to see us tonight at The Coniston in Idle.
(He organises the bands for the council parks outdoor entertainment).

He was very impressed with our show and asked us if we would headline The Saltaire Festival outdoor music event to be held in Roberts Park at Saltaire on Saturday afternoon 16th September 2006.

He said that he was also very interested in putting us on The Music at Myrtle Park gig for next year 2007.



NOW THAT IS SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO


----------------------------------------------

DROP KICK
02.06.06

We had another great night at The Drop Kick.
They get a great crowd in who really like their Rock Music.
We should have been played this gig next week.
Due to other commitments we could not do it so we arranged a swop with our friends Van Hooligan.
Thanks for that guys.


----------------------------------------------

SCOUSES PARTY
28.05.06

We played at a surprise party for our mate Scouse at The Ring O Bells @ Shipley.
The surprise was arranged by his partner Suzy.
Somebody spilled the beans to him so it was not the surprise we hoped for but he was still chuffed that we played for him and everyone enjoyed it.


----------------------------------------------

A BIG SURPRISE
19.05.06

In the middle of setting up our equipment at The Ash Brow pub in Huddersfield we got a big surprise.
Willy Fenton who played in the original line up back in the seventies walked in the pub.
He told us he had seen the web site and decided to fly over from Canada to see us
as he had not seen us for about twenty five years.
It was great to see him again and we all really enjoyed reminiscing.
We could not get him to get up and play a number with us.
He said he would come to see us at another gig before his return home and he might play then.


----------------------------------------------