The in's & out's of a Conga player... Part 1

Hey! waz-up!

hmm... well what can I tell yah, I have had a very varied life to say the least! I was born at a very young age and still have memories of being in the cot? aged 1.5 years! I ain't gonna bore you with my whole life story, but elements of it will come through at times, cos what happened to us in the past can often affect how we are today! I have lived through some really bad moments that have affected the way I think, and feel about life, I remember one thing that really made me think about my own mortality at the age of 15, I held my dads dad in my arms as he died in 1975, I was telling him it's ok, it's ok granddad. I felt quite piecful about holding him, kind of knowing he was leaving us, my friend Nevil went back to my mum and dads house to get them cos me and my granddad were just up the road! the thing that really hit me was when my dad came running up the road towards us, he stopped a bit back from us and I saw him go all limp as if he realized what was going on, that really shook me... From that moment I have lived each day to the full and a lot of the time on the edge... Life is for living, I was brought up in my early teens by my granddad as my mum and dad worked, one of the things he always said to me was... If you think you can do it, then try... I ain't stopped trying since that day in 1975! lol...

Muzic has been a huge part of my life, I started to have a go at playing the guitar in 1970, just after buying an album by Black Sabbath... But after finding out a guitar is right handed and I am left handed I gave that idea up! So I took up the Drums at the age of 15, it's funny but I used to sit with my mum playing records when I was 5 years old, we used to play Jack Jones, Jonny Mathis, Vince Hill, oh yeh and my fav! NOT... Morio Lanza!!! bloody racket, but me mum loved him lol... well, as I was saying, we used to play all sorts of songs on the old mono record player we had, we used to put about seven 45 singles on at once (remember them!?), flick the arm over them, turn the play nob made from plastic that felt like it was made of china! good quality stuff in them days! and sing away like a couple of hyenas, lol... Even then I new I wanted to do something on the stage, I even said to my mum at the age of 5, when I make it famous, I'll buy you a sparkly dress! she is still waiting lol, but I am still trying!!! Me old Granddad would be pleased...

As most of you know, well, thats if you know me! I play in a band called, "The Lullabys" now... this is a funny old story, and a bit spooky!.. The first band I played in was one me and my old mate David Roberts started... We called ourselves "Sheep Shagger & the Vagabonds" our first song we wrote was called "Borneo Bat Crap" you can tell we were going places even at the age of 16! lol... well... I played in bands all my life from 16 to 36, a good load of bands came and went, and after a long break of 13 years I met a bloke in Neros, (my office).. we spoke on and off over the space of a year before finding out we were both song writers! He had just finished writing an album called "The Long Goodbye", I invited him round to my recording studio to hear his songs and I was so impressed when he asked me to join him and form a band I jumed at the idea! the funny/spooky thing is, his name is Gav Roberts, and his cousin is David Roberts, my old mate in my very first band... it's a small world ain't it lol...

Anyway... thats it for now! I have some great stories from my rock 'n' roll days, and from time to time I will share them with you... but I just want to take this moment to remember my Granddad, he used to whisle, and I used to ask him... What you whisling Granddad? he used to say... "not sure Son!? just making it up as I go along!" maybe thats where I started to write my own songs....

Take care, all the best and lot's 'a' love... Brett...
"The skin slapping Conga thumping Nuttster"