So anyway, where were we ?
Oh yes, i had just joined the youth band called South Cheshire Young Brass Band. We practised every Tuesday night 7-9 pm, and i was loving it ! everyone there had the same things in common has me, and half of the band was made up of the school band so we had a lot of fun.
The 2 main contests of the year were Blackpool Winter Gardens (the area's), and Pontins the semi's were held in southport around april and final's were at prestatyn. The first Pontins we did, we had a coach for and went on the day, after that a few of us decided to go and stay the whole weekend (thurs-mon). Now bear in mind we were a Youth band so the max age was 18, by the first time we stayed over i was 15 and had grown into my bones (6ft), the first thing we did when we got there was straight to the supermarket for trays of beer. We could all get into the night club at 15 and had the idea of buying the first one, then taking it in turns to go back to the chalet, load up with cans and go back in ! this was a tradition for the next 3 years and saved us a fortune. Also at the end of night they would kick us out the back door and the Pontins Grand Prix would start, first, jump over 4 rose hedges then 1 lap around the boating lake after you had pushed the boat in to the water ,then finish with a sprint to the dorm, doing this when ratarsed on Newcastle Brown Ale is not easy.
We also entered the area's at blackpool at the begining of March, we had a couple of years coming 2nd to Bessies boys, but in 1987 that all changed.
The Test piece was perfect for us, it was loud in parts and some good solo's for certain people it was called the Cumbrian Suite. The coach picked us up at 6am on the sunday morning from the band room, and we were off. We got to blackpool had a practice in some dive of a club then went to the Winter Gardens. We played an absolute blinder and waited for the other bands to play thiers, we were all nervous has the judges walked to the stage, they read out 3rd place then 2nd went to bessie's boys, then in slow motion he said our name, we had done it, we were off to the Royal Albert Hall in London.
The next 6 months was fund raising so we could afford to get down there, we were invited to the mayor of crewe's chambers, and even somehow managed British Rail into giving us our own coach of the 8.36 to London the Friday before the final's. We later found out one of the big bosses of British Rail (crewe being a big rail town and his home base), was an uncle of 1 of the players, and that was why it was free.
Oh yes, i had just joined the youth band called South Cheshire Young Brass Band. We practised every Tuesday night 7-9 pm, and i was loving it ! everyone there had the same things in common has me, and half of the band was made up of the school band so we had a lot of fun.
The 2 main contests of the year were Blackpool Winter Gardens (the area's), and Pontins the semi's were held in southport around april and final's were at prestatyn. The first Pontins we did, we had a coach for and went on the day, after that a few of us decided to go and stay the whole weekend (thurs-mon). Now bear in mind we were a Youth band so the max age was 18, by the first time we stayed over i was 15 and had grown into my bones (6ft), the first thing we did when we got there was straight to the supermarket for trays of beer. We could all get into the night club at 15 and had the idea of buying the first one, then taking it in turns to go back to the chalet, load up with cans and go back in ! this was a tradition for the next 3 years and saved us a fortune. Also at the end of night they would kick us out the back door and the Pontins Grand Prix would start, first, jump over 4 rose hedges then 1 lap around the boating lake after you had pushed the boat in to the water ,then finish with a sprint to the dorm, doing this when ratarsed on Newcastle Brown Ale is not easy.
We also entered the area's at blackpool at the begining of March, we had a couple of years coming 2nd to Bessies boys, but in 1987 that all changed.
The Test piece was perfect for us, it was loud in parts and some good solo's for certain people it was called the Cumbrian Suite. The coach picked us up at 6am on the sunday morning from the band room, and we were off. We got to blackpool had a practice in some dive of a club then went to the Winter Gardens. We played an absolute blinder and waited for the other bands to play thiers, we were all nervous has the judges walked to the stage, they read out 3rd place then 2nd went to bessie's boys, then in slow motion he said our name, we had done it, we were off to the Royal Albert Hall in London.
The next 6 months was fund raising so we could afford to get down there, we were invited to the mayor of crewe's chambers, and even somehow managed British Rail into giving us our own coach of the 8.36 to London the Friday before the final's. We later found out one of the big bosses of British Rail (crewe being a big rail town and his home base), was an uncle of 1 of the players, and that was why it was free.
We all piled down to London on the Friday morning, booked into this swanky hotel, practiced, then we were set free to explore this huge city. Saturday was the final, we made our way to the Albert Hall quietly shitting ourselves, this was it, all the best youth bands in the country. We were drawn number 5, band 4 were playing when our name was called, we made our way to the stage but the only way on, was through this piddley arsed door about 4 1/2 ft high carved into the stairs that went up the back of the stage. Now my Tuba was 4ft high and very heavy but i managed to get through, we sat, we played and we come 6th, Not to bad out of 16 i suppose. On the Sunday we returned to Crewe like heroes, it was a big thing for our small town then, and we had these plaques given to us by the mayor. We went on to win the finals of Pontins for the next 2 years, and back to being 2nd at blackpool, but i was now 18 and time to move on. So South Cheshire turned into Normid 2000 brass has a 4th section band, and the adventures begun again whith the same group of people, only this time it was serious and grown up.
thanks for reading, last bit next time.
Offski
Really interesting babe proud of u
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