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CHOICE I'd rather have the thought of you To hold against my heart My spirit to be taught of you With west winds blowing Than all the warm caresses of another love's bestowing Or all the glories of the world In which you had no part . I'd rather have the theme of you To thread my nights and days I'd rather have the dream of you With faint stars glowing I'd rather have the want of you The rich elusive taunt of you Forever , and forever , and forever unconfessed Than claim the alien comfort of any other's breast . Oh my Love ! Oh my Love ! That this should come to me I'd rather have the hope of you Ah love I'd rather grope for you Within the great abyss , than claim another's kiss Alone I'd rather go my way Throughout eternity ( Angela Morgan ) Update May 27th - as some of you know - I have recorded a new Houserockers album - to be entitled - ' Blue Highway ' - I hope to get it released before the end of the year . But you can hear some tracks on the Myspace page - click on this link below ................................................ www.myspace.com/leswilsonandthemightyhouserockers Update 14th April 2009 - hey , who needs Rock and Roll anyway ? Update - March 6th 2009 - Hey - if enough people tell you you are drunk - then lie down . UPDATE 15th February 2009 3 months since an update ? Hard to believe . Things are much the same . But the gig situation is not so good . Every 5 years or so I reach a ' burn-out ' point . When I just can't bear the stress of picking up the phone and trying to get gigs . It gets tougher every year . This year is the worst I remember . It seems the better I get - the less work I have . I don't understand it . So - there ain't much in the book for the Houserockers for 2009 - but there are a few nice ones to look forward to - such as Blackpool , Rotherham Blues cafe , and Tubbys Blues Club Cheltenham . The Houserockers video and the new CD are both real good - but unfortunately I don't have the money to produce any copies for sale at the moment ( the weak pound is killing us over here in Ireland , having to buy euros ) . Maybe I will upload some of the new album to the MySpace page . Famous Monday Blues Club - Oxford - Mon 9th Feb - had a fabulous evening - thankyou Philip - and for the photos . You know - I think thats as good as I have played for quite a while ! Here are some pics ........
NOV 2008 - Apologies first of all for not updating this site more often - but its all I can do to find the time to keep the MySpace up to date - and that seems to be the one most of you are looking at . So - latest gigs news is on there , before it reaches here probably ! Also - I'm having various personal crises in my life - and its all I can do to remember to keep breathing in and out at the moment . And a lot of the time , I don't really want to keep breathing in and out . However ............... the video shoot went well - and the video is undergoing final edit at the moment - its looking good . Should be ready soon . and - the Houserockers album is finished - with just a little mixing to do . there will be several numbers you might know from the current live set - but all are songs I've never recorded before . Lotsa rock and roll & slide. and - my acoustic/roots album is well underway - with 31 songs recorded so far at Eddy Morton's at Katie Fitzgeralds , Stourbridge , West Midlands . I'm loving doing this stuff - its much more fulfilling than doing blues . I've written a lot of my own songs for this project . Power of love I guess . Holland/Belgium - November 2008 ................................... I must just say we had a fantastic time at Cafe wendela in Tiel , Holland - thanks Ruud & Wendy - you were so kind to us . Also a good night at the Blues Cafe /Apeldoorn . But as ever - hard to beat - the last gig at De Klokke, Balegem in Belgium - wow - what a wonderful audience - thank you - and thank you Dirk . Hope we can do it one more time in the future . October 2008 ......................... A bit late - but thank you to all at Alrewas for making the video a great result - and especially Tony Jones for all his hard work to bring the event to a successful conclusion . and not least - to Dave and all at The Lamp - Brewhouse Blues at Dudley - it was wonderful to be HOME again ! I loved it - see you next year ? I'll try to keep it together - but no promises .................................. UPDATE 12 SEPTEMBER The good news is that I am recording a new Houserockers album . The bad news is that because of this , I have to cancel a few gigs - 23-27 October , to fit in some extra recording dates . Apologies to all those people wanting to attend those shows . But - it should result in a new album early next year . LIVE VIDEO NEWS - GIG ON SAT 11th OCTOBER THE GIG AT ALREWAS VILLAGE HALL WILL BE A LIVE VIDEO SHOOT - RESULTING IN DVDs FOR SALE AND PROMOTION . WE NEED ALL OF YOU THERE TO HELP MAKE IT A GREAT NIGHT - SO PLEASE COME . THE ADDRESS IS ALREWAS VILLAGE HALL , WELLFIELD ROAD , ALREWAS , STAFFS DE13 7HB . ITS JUST OFF THE A38 SOUTH OF BURTON-ON- TRENT . GET THERE FOR 8PM . SAT 11th OCTOBER . ITS A GEEAT PLACE WITH A VERY FRIENDLY ATMOSPHERE , AND AS LOTS OF YOU KNOW , WAS WHERE THE LAST LIVE ALBUM WAS RECORDED - WITH GREAT SUCCESS . UPDATE 4 AUGUST 2008 - SEE BELOW DON'T FORGET TO CHECK OUT THE NEW LIVE VIDEOS - LINKS ON HOMEPAGE OR MY MYSPACE PAGE ......................................... IMPORTANT ! - Some of you already know I have formed another band ( BUT I AM STILL CARRYING ON WITH THE HOUSEROCKERS ) to try and get some more work . I'm called ' TRAVIS TEXAS '- and I'm doing Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jimi Hendrix - one set of each . So I'm including those gigs on the list - just be sure to check which is which for your preference !! Its a different band - with Dave Sutherland on bass , and Carl Hemingsley on drums See - www.travistexas.com 4 AUGUST UPDATE - hey , isn't it funny how you once thought some things like playing the guitar were important ? L. if you are out there - you know who you are - I miss you . 11JUNE UPDATE - WOW ! At last I have got around to putting venue website links onto the gig guide page . Have a look . Looking forward to playing what looks like a real nice venue - Rudi's Blues cafe - Rotherham - www.rudiblues.com sat July 12 PICS FROM XXL WAGENINGEN ..............
18 APRIL UPDATE CHECK OUT THE NEW LIVE VIDEOs ON MY MYSPACE PAGE , OR CLICK VIDEO The video/s was recorded at Bikes n Blues club , Amstelveen, near Amsterdam - 12 April . Thanks to Berry and Rian for a great time there . This was one of my best ever trips over there . The first gig at DJS Jazz Podium , Dordrecht was a fantastic all-dancing , crazy start to the weekend . You can see for your self what happened on the saturday at Bikes n Blues . Then a truly memorable afternoon show at Wageningen XXL blues club on the Sunday - you were all brilliant - what an audience . I wish I could play in Holland and Belgium all the time . we were treated and looked after so well . Review of Wageningen show on www.bluesrockpagina.nl at the present time . While I'm here tho' - musn't forget a wonderful night at Tubbys Blues Club , Bishops Cleeve , UK on 4 April - thanks Otis & all - had a great time ! 26 MARCH - SADLY HAD TO CANCEL A FESTIVAL IN CANADA AT GREAT WOODS PARK IN AUGUST . JUST COULDN'T GET ENOUGH OTHER WORK TO PAY THE AIR FARES AND EXPENSES . BUT IT DOES MEAN WE SHALL BE ABLE TO PLAY THE ZELZATE FESTIVAL IN BELGIUM INSTEAD ON 9 AUGUST . 15 JANUARY 2008 - HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL ! - I've just put a few more gigs on the gig guide , so take a look to see if we are coming near you . Let me know if you have a venue not listed - and I'll give them a call . 20 December - well , the deed is done - I have now joined the twelve year olds on Myspace . www.myspace.com/leswilsonandthemightyhouserockers - what was wrong with this website anyway ? Somehow - I don't think its going to change my life . Signing off till 2008 - have a good Christmas all of you . Thanks to everyone who came to the live shows - thats where it is really at ! 17 DECEMBER - A nice finish to the year - a new gig for me at the Devonshire Arms, Ripley , Derby's - Mel's blues club . Good venue , very friendly - and a knowledgeable promoter - thanks Mel . Then - the last one - back in my hometown area - Stourbridge , West Midlands - a cracking evening at Katie Fitzgeralds . Can anybody tell me why I need a ' My Space ' page ? People keep saying I should have one . But , it just annoys my sense of logic - why do we need an internet within the internet . I can't see any advantage to it - but it seems that if you don't have a MySpace page , then you don't exist . More time wasted on the computer . For God's sake , where will it end - you will want me to have a mobile phone next - and I manage perfectly well without one . All I want to do is perform . 15 November - trip to Belgium/Holland - what can I say ? We had a rough time Friday/Saturday , and would probably have easily headed home . But - the final gig on Sunday was at De Klokke at Balegem , my 4th time there . And it was one of the best gigs I have ever done . Absolutely fantastic audience . Lovely people . We had a ball . I can't praise it high enough . It gave us all such a lift - THANK YOU EVERYBODY AT BALEGEM . And thank you Dirk - great gig , great hospitality , great food ! Thanks also to singer/songwriter Kat'lee Jones for hospitality at her house after the show . We were four very happy guys . NOVEMBER 1 - gigs are coming in now for 2008 - so , check out the GIG GUIDE page , lots have been added including - 3 trips to Holland/Belgium this time , and a festival in October at Koekelare , Belgium . Also a return to the Blues Cafe Apeldoorn in May . A new one for the UK is Tubbys Blues Club at Cheltenham in April . 20 SEPT - looking forward to the trip to Holland and Belgium next month to see old friends again . Was another crazy night at the Cider Shed Norwich - you can have a great gig and play at 90db you see ! But - where was everybody at Appleby ? We played to an empty hall for their Beer & Blues festival on Saturday last - disappointing . Autumn sees the beginning rounds of phoning for gigs for next year - and I say this every year - but - it just keeps on getting harder - I wonder if I can do this anymore ? And the so-called blues festivals in the Uk have mostly been taken over by 'rock' acts - and I can't even get the time of day anymore , let alone the headline spots I used to command . Come back Gary Hood ! 15 August - hey ! did you see John Fogerty's set at Glastonbury ? Its the best thing I have seen for a very long time . He was truly fantastic - a magnificent set . And , I have to say it , he showed the young bands ( who were 99% crap ) how to do it . If you haven't seen it , try and find someone who has a copy ( me ! ) . What do you think ? Anyway - nothing much to report - but I did get a third gig for the trip to Belgium/Holland . We now have Oostende - Bada-Bing on the Friday 9th November . Short drive up to Vlissingen for the Groen Licht on the saturday , and then back down to Balegem for one of my favourite gigs - de Klokke on the Sunday . See you there !? Also - a few gigs coming in for 2008 already , including Tubby's Blues club at Cheltenham for 4th April . 2 August 2007 - the year moves on quickly . I'm on a bit of a summer break at the moment , so not much to report . The next gig is Fri 14 sept at the Cider Shed /Norwich - always a good one . Here's another pic from the fab. night at Darlington Carmel rhythm club - hope to return there maybe next year . By the way - I won't be playing Darlington arts Centre again , as I've been told I don't play blues . Funny - but nobody said that at the Carmel club , or the Banbury blues festival , or the Famous Monday blues at Oxford - or , indeed any other gig in memory !
4 July - its never a good idea to start with ' bad news ' - but I'm afraid that two venues have cancelled . One is Barrow-in-Furness /Kings Arms , to be re-arranged possibly , and the other is Maryport - who have decided to call it a day due to lack of support . So - PLEASE - come out and support the gigs . Check gig guide always for latest . Good news - I have managed to replace the Barrow gig with a date at The Devonshire Arms - Ripley , Derby - a bikers pub . Always nice to play somewhere new. See you there ! ? You may have seen Chris & Micky out recently with Big George Brock -( USA 75 year old original ) listen out for the Paul Jones session coming soon . 16 June 2007
This is 'us' - Chris - Fred - Les - Mick post gig
Sorry for the long delay in this update . Things had got so slow with the old dial-up internet service , I couldn't get anything done. So - here we are with a broadband/hi-speed connection at last ! Look out now for regular updates . The latest LIVE CD ' Rock Away Those Blues' is selling well at gigs and by mail order - get your copy by visiting the CD's page . You can listen to some tracks on the ' LISTEN ' page . 27 May - people kept asking about the 'old' Houserockers albums , and I've had to say they were deleted . So I've recently done them all on CD-R format , and I'm selling them at gigs now for only £5 . This means you can now complete your set of albums with the first one ( was vinyl ) ' Fine Looking Woman ' , then ' Fuelled Up ' , the all original ' On The Loose ' , and the live ' On The Road ' . GIGS - lovely night at the Roadhouse club Birmingham - has to be one of the friendliest places to play . thanks Sue & all . The Banbury blues festival in March was a real highlight - made a lot of friends there I'm sure . Its a mistake to try & follow the Houserockers onstage ! Aylesbury /Limelight, Billericay Blues on the Farm , and Northampton Malt Shovel were all brilliant nights ! But the best recently was the Carmel Rhythm club at Darlington - fantastic - lets do it again . Looking forward to the next ones . January -Another year is here - and most dates are now booked and posted on the gig guide page . There seem to be thousands of blues bands these days - and less and less venues - so you do the maths . But I'm hangin in there - and I hope I see you soon - somewhere - sometime . First one of the year is ' back home ' in Birmingham - at the wonderful Roadhouse club . 7th December - gigs are now coming in for 2007 , and I will post them as soon as I get another moment . There are a few new ones - Carmel Club/Darlington , Limelight/Aylesbury , old favourites Barrow, Northampton/Malt Shovel , Birmingham/Roadhouse, Swansea Tawe Delta and so on . And it was great to see Barry Middleton pop up again with another venue after the Running Horse closed to bands in Nottingham . But it certainly doesn't get any easier to get bookings . If you have a local venue for live music - then please support it - or possibly lose it . A brilliant blues night has been lost at Hookers in Wrexham . The guys may start up again sometime next year , but they need SUPPORT ! October - congratulations and thanks are due to Joyce and Bill at Barrow-in-Furness . The regular venue , the Duke of Edingburgh has been sold . Against all odds , they found another one at short notice for the gig on Friday 27th October - its the Kings Arms , in nearby Dalton road . Well done ! Hope to see all the people from the Duke down there . Compliments are also due to Hookers in wrexham - who have kept their venue going for many years now . It has finally got going again after a break - and we had a brilliant night there in September .( note - since , sadly closed ) . |September - Well - summer is definitely over - and its suddenly time to pick up the phone again to get dates for next year . I can't believe I've been doing this since 1981 ! There are one or two interesting ones already scheduled - the Banbury blues festival on Sat 10th march . A ' hometown ' visit to the Roadhouse in Birmingham on Fri 23 February , and an exciting new blues club in Darlington - the Carmel rhythm club on sat 19 May . An unusual event was me buying a guitar last month . I've only bought seven guitars in 35 years - and I still have six of 'em ! Anyway - the red Gibson 345 ( 1973 ) is getting a bit of a liability to take around - especially to Europe . So I got a Yamaha semi-acoustic Gibson copy . Black like BB's . It sounds great - I recommend it . Gigs news - please note that the gig Fri 15th September at Scallys Bar - Weston-super-Mare is definitely cancelled -AND I WON'T EVER WANT TO PLAY THERE AGAIN ! Sorry to all my fans there - thanks for the kind letters and emails the last couple of years . June/July - brilliant night at the Tawe Delta blues club in Swansea - thanks to all involved . Likewise at the Malt Shovel , Northampton where I sell more CD's than many bigger venues - thank you all . A great audience for a weds night . We didn't know what to expect for our Sun afternoon gig at the Blues at the Farm club , Billericay - as it was the day of the England world cup quarter final ! But a respectable number of people turned out against all odds . Good club - hope to be back , but maybe without the football and without the 100 degree heat ! July - B- Barrow - a vintage night at the Duke of Edinburgh - one of my favourite gigs - yet another 3-piece show . I'm getting back into it after having a keyboard player for the last two years - though Fred is still doing some gigs . It was another 100 degree sun and sweat weekend - as we went on to Barnard castle - Black Horse Hotel - fantastic hospitality there - thank you . Finished up sun afternoon at Maryport . Good weekend of blues gigs . July - C - Belgium - played these with Dave Sutherland on bass , and Carl Hemingsley on drums . Motor Cycle Loft hotel - Oudenburg - thank you Ivan ! This has to be one of the best set-ups in Belgium . Peace & quiet by the canal , great food , accommodation and hospitality . Just a brilliant place to be . But note if you are staying - its definitely motor bikes only ! t'Eiland festival - Oudenaarde - as if the heat wasn't enough , this was in a marquee - and lots of lights ! Just about made it to the end of the set - and we absolutely killed 'em ! A fantastic audience - lots of old friends there . As good as it gets . Sold loads of CD's . Hadn't used the Squire Strat for the Hendrix ' thing ' for many years - think I pulled it off !?. Thanks to Denis & family . Bada Bing bar - Oostende - the ' no-where to park ' gig ! Ostend was packed in the sunshine . Owner Philip Chebbour took us for an excellent meal beforehand - and the evening finished with another hot gig . Good to see Glenn and Linda . A bit of a race to the ferry - but all ok . Hope to be back in Belgium/Holland later in the year . |
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Carmel Rhythm club - Darlington Sat 19 May 2007. One of the best gigs of recent years . Thanks to Simon Hannaford and his team for a wonderful evening . I was beginning to wonder if gigs like this happened anymore !
some of the 'gang' Simon on left - Gary with glasses on right .
Darlington again - looks like Madison Blues to me !
Darlington - trying to remember the next verse .
