Lighting the Fuse at Blyth Blues

The Boneshakers in Action with Guest Star Micky Crystal

Shake them Bones

Blyth Blues Club was the venue.  They'd been sought after by the manager of this fine establishment to play here for the very first time. It's always an exciting time for the Boneshakers to be playing a real blues venue at a Blues Club or Festival.  And they stepped up to the plate in real style.  The audience were discerning blues fans - and, like I said, the Boneshakers appreciate a knowledgeable crowd.
Some musician friends of the Boneshakers turned up to enjoy the show - most of them from the Saints of Arcadia - Nick 'Saints of Arcadia' Jennison, whose vocals and guitar astound in Dave Hildreth's Gatecrashers, among them.

Micky and Sarah

Sarah, guest star Micky Crystal's girlfriend, was in the audience too.  Lovely to meet you, Sarah.

Micky's dad was there too.

It wasn't a packed house - only because England were playing one of their World Cup qualifyers (they won, by the way, despite our Scottish friend and leader, Ronnie Semple's evil eye!)

Boneshakers Pose for a Pic

And so, with their new PA system all plugged in and ready, lights ablaze and flashing with professional aplomb - and the smoke machine set on timer - the fabulous Boneshakers were GO!

They had the crowd in the palm of their hands from the off, playing the most sensational version of 'How Blue Can You Get' I've ever heard.

And in 'Messing with the Kid', every one of the bands solo performances was outstanding.

Their finale pieces, 'Hip Shake' and 'Shake Your Money-Maker', were out of this world, with amazing head-to-heads among Russ, Ronnie and Micky.

I know I keep saying it, but this band just gets better and better.  And their CD, Shaken and Stirred, is selling like hot cakes.  Get your copy, fans, before they all go!

Ronnie Semple - sans SHIRT

At the end of the night, Ronnie Semple (leader, blues harp and backing vocals) said "I forgot to bring my shirt."

Russ Hird (vocals and guitar) said, "Must go now - it's past my bed time!"

Russ - Way Past his Bedtime.  Dave - enjoying the Crowd

 Dave Hildreth (bass guitar) said, "It was good to see Nick and the lads make the effort to come support us."

Micky in Catalogue Pose with Nick

Micky was keen to do a catalogue pose with Nick 'Saints of Arcadia' Jennison!

Gordon's  daughter will be at the Sand Dancer  gig

And Gordon Smiles (drums) said, "My daughter's home from York Uni and she'll be there tomorrow night at the Sand Dancer."


It should be a full house, raising the rafters, at the Sand Dancer, South Shields, tomorrow night.  Hope you have a ball guys.

Those fantastic Boneshakers sure lit the fuse tonight at Blyth Blues Club. 
They were EXPLOSIVE!

There's excellent video footage of this brilliant gig.  There'll be links posted just as soon as they're on You-Tube.  SO WATCH THIS SPACE, folks.

BONESHAKIN' BRILLIANT!

Boneshakers Shaken and Stirred at Bishop FM

The Boneshakers, Russ, Ronnie, Dave and Gordon at their CD Launch at the Tyne Bar




Click on the link below and listen to Ronnie Semple (Band Leader and Blues Harpist) and Russ Hird (Vocals and Lead Guitar) interviewed on Bishop FM's Thunbrella - Words To a Void: Blues Show, featuring no less than SEVEN of the ten tracks from their brilliant brand new CD,

Shaken and Stirred

HERE'S THE LINK:

Thumbrella - Words To A Void: Blues Show 126 playlist & stream

 HERE'S A TOAST TO YOU GUYS - YOU'RE BRILLIANT!

Stonkin'! Stupendous! Tremendous!

Shake them Bones

D-DAY FOR CD LAUNCH

All set for a Boneshakin' CD Launch at the Tyne Bar

Sunday 11 September was a big day in the calender of the fabulous Boneshakers.  This was the day when they were due to play a gig at one of their favourite venues, the Tyne Bar in Newcastle.  Not only that - this Sunday afternoon was the day their brand new 10 track CD, 
SHAKEN AND STIRRED, was to be launched.

ANTICIPATION

It had been a nail-biting, nervy morning for the guys.  They were all buzzing with excitement and anticipation as they arrived at the Tyne Bar.
 Russ Hird (Vocals and Guitar) said "Woo-hoo, I'm definitely up for it."

Russ Sings the Blues

Ronnie Semple (Blues Harp and Backing Vocals) said, "Well, this is it, guys.  This is what we worked so hard for.  Let's do it."

Ronnie in the Zone

 Dave Hildreth (Bass Guitar) said, "I felt sick all morning.  But now I'm here and the crowd's building up, I'm feelin' alright."

Watch out Dave - it's behind you!

Gordon Smiles (Drums) said, "I've been on the Lucozade all morning! Calm me nerves. I reckon it's gonna be one brilliant afternoon."

Gordon - in drummin' heaven

THE TYNE BAR

"What a great Turn Out."

It was too cold and windy to play on the open-air stage, so the lads set up their gear on the stage in the bar, making sure their mascot skeleton 'boneshakers' were well-placed.  The sound check wasn't an easy task because followers and friends of the Boneshakers had already filled the indoor bar to capacity and they were spilling out into the beer garden toward the Glasshouse bridge.




 "YES!" said Ronnie, the leader of the band, "What a great turn out!"

THE GIG

Dancing on the Tables - Singing on the Chairs

And it was.  From the first blues note the Boneshakers played, the fans were hanging from the rafters, standing on tables and benches to get a better view of this great band they'd come to see.  Comments like 'awesome', 'where do I go to get a copy of the CD?' and 'brilliant - just brilliant' hung in the air.  Whistles and cheers came from every corner of the room.  People danced in the square inch of space they were afforded.  They were jiving and rock 'n' rollin' in the beer garden as they listened to the amazing sounds emanating from the little stage in the Tyne Bar.

The Boneshakers were having the time of their lives.  It seemed to me that this was the point at which the Boneshakers became a legend on the blues scene in the North East.

The Boneshakers with Micky Crystal

The atmosphere was electric as they played their first number, blues favourite, Dust my Broom, then they invited guest guitarist, the inimitable Micky Crystal (who plays on several tracks of SHAKEN AND SITRRED) to join them on stage.  Micky always makes a great addition to the foursome and today, he was simply amazing.

Russ's big brother, Robin, took to the stage with the boys in the second set, for a superb rendition of Need Your Love So Bad - and all-time favourite guest harpist, Stephen Brown, was in his element when he joined in, going head to head with Ronnie, in 'Help Me' and 'Hip Shake'.

I don't need to tell you about the extraordinary performance of the Boneshakers.  Their reputation as talented musicians goes before them - and you can see and hear for yourselves some of the numbers from this performance.

 Go to the following You Tube links for:

HOW BLUE CAN YOU GET
http://youtu.be/fPhm9iDZSoM

   DUST MY BROOM
 http://youtu.be/lamYEdIYzyM  

     MESSIN' WITH THE KID  

http://youtu.be/ga29nacWZMI

NEED YOUR LOVE SO BAD

 http://youtu.be/GMQ0sJ1rQAo

    

MORE, MORE, MORE ...
In an encore that was screamed for like these guys were seriously famous, 'Shake your Money Maker' had everybody rockin' their socks off.  And if the Boneshakers aren't yet seriously famous, they should be!

THE MERCHANDISE!

During the interval between the first and second sets, the crowd got what they were promised: the talents of Ronnie, Russ, Dave, Gordon - and their accomplished guest musicians - on CD.  Denice (Ronnie's partner, Boneshaker fanatic and Roadie Extraordinaire) set up at the side of the stage, wearing THE most unbelievable, Boneshakin' jacket and Boneshakin' high-heeled boots, to sell her wares.
Within minutes, people were grabbing their copies of SHAKEN AND SITRRED and taking the 8-page booklets to be autographed.

REACHING FOR THE SKY
Well, this was the Boneshakers very first CD launch.  It was a huge success.  And I don't think for one minute it'll be the last.  The Boneshakers are reaching for the sky - and they're way above the clouds already! They're STONKIN'!  STUPENDOUS!  TREMENDOUS!

...a music review of the Boneshakers' CD, SHAKEN AND SITRRED, Mitch Laddie on guitar, Lyndon Anderson on blues harp, Phil Martin on slide guitar - and of course, the sounds of Micky Crystal's haunting Stratocaster.

...Darlington Blues Festival is the next venue, next weekend, for the fabulous Boneshakers.  Check out the Boneshakers Facebook Page - 'The Boneshakers'.