an Ozric tree has been planted

[Jonathan Jarrett]

On Wed, Nov 28, 2001 at 12:08:07PM -0500, Dave Briggs typed out:

> Walthamstow has had a long history of cool gigs.
> This is due in part to the Royal Standard pub. I've been there many times
> since the early eighties to see some wicked bands including Hew lloyd
> Langton and Inner City Unit among many others.

<snip>

> In more recent years they've cleaned up the Drug scene (mostly :-)) and the
> Angels got bored or busted. Musicaly nowdays they do a lot of rock Tribute
> bands which are mostly pretty professional - and a few "Wrinkley Rockers"
> type bands such as Wisbone ash. Seeing the Cosmik Testicles there was a bit
> of a treat.
>
> This isn't the only venue in Walthamstow but it's probably got a lot to do
> with why Walthamstow become Space-rock Central.

        I've been to the Standard a good few times now, because Radio
Never Say Die! tend to hold gigs there like Arthur Brown, Man or in one
memorable case the Bevis Frond Valedictory All-Dayer. There can't be many
venues that'd do that now... And it is pretty local for Messrs Saloman &
Shaw so the odd Frondular occurrence is to be expected I guess. Good
venue, lousy beer but where isn't this the case? And the only place I've
been to where the merchandise stall had a crate of vinyl on it...

        Nonetheless, I was a little bit surprised to see the Council
lending a hall out to Hawkwind, of all people... public building, and so
forth, laws of the land... Top gig though. Wonder what all the bar-staff
in bow-ties made of it. In fact that wasn't the only civic building they
played on that tour was it, I detected a bit of a theme in the
schedule. Wise move, IMO, fewer unscrupulous promoters and probably
cheaper and less likely to be booked... Yours,
                                                Jon

--
        Jonathan Jarrett                Birkbeck College, London
                 jjarrett at chiark.greenend.org.uk
        --------------------------------------------------------
  "The large print giveth and the small print taketh away." (Tom Waits)