Mike Brosnan In Europe 1998

Expatriate Kiwi Bluesman, Mike Brosnan, Is Back Touring In Europe In 1998. He Sent His First Letter Home To The Bluesletter, Printed In The Oct/Nov 1998 Issue.

Highlights:

Meeting up with former Warratah, Wayne Mason - touring with Austria's "Bluespumpm" - playing in Heidenreichstein at a major biker festival…

picture: Wayne Mason, Zappa Cermak, Pieter, Wolfgang, Mike & Fritz

Its real nice to be back writing a regular article for the NZBS's Bluesletter. My spare time at the end of last year just seemed to vanish leaving no time at all to continue my usual reports from Europe. However, things are a little more ordered now, so, here goes

This year it is my intention, rather than giving you a blow by blow run-down on my European gigs, to deal more specifically with the more-interesting gigs and festivals that I get to perform at. I kinda think that reading about the nuts and bolts of day to day touring soon becomes a little tedious.

But despite that, it's probably appropriate to first pass-on a bit of background to this year's European tour.

As some of you may be aware, I spent the summer back in New Zealand recording my new album, as well as trying to catch a bit of good old Kiwi sunshine. The album was completed OK, but the summer weather, at least in Wellington was something of a disappointment.

The new album titled 'Streets of Glass' is not due for NZ release until later this year, when It will be out on JAYREM RECORDS.

The musicians on SOG include my old friend George Barris on bass (I can't imagine recording an album without George's involvement!); Phil Adams on drums and percussion (Phil also owns Matrix Digital, where SOG was recorded, did all the engineering, as well as reproducing it with me. He didn't sleep at all for approx. 7 weeks!); Wayne Mason on piano/accordion/organ; James Daniell (of New Plymouth's 'Early Days Blues Band') on blues harp; Alastair Cuthill on mandolin; and John Fletcher of Napier did a superb job on the majority of the BV's. Oh yeah, I did all the guitar work and main vocals.

The help freely given by these friends during the hectic weeks we were in the studio, plus the many, many others who freely gave up their time to assist was truly humbling. As was the support of JAYREMS's James Moss. I thank you all deeply.

As I mentioned earlier, I think 'Streets of Glass' is due for NZ release near the end of this year, so check with your local record store if you're interested

I returned to London in early-March, did about 5 UK gigs before heading-off to Austria and Germany in early-April. And on the way past Frankfurt Airport I happened to notice Wayne Mason standing on the side of the road with his accordion tucked under his arm and his thumb out. Not being one to see a friend stranded I suggested he jump in the van and tour with me. Well actually, it was a little more organised than that..]

We had a couple of days in Germany for Wayne to acclimatise before heading-off to the first of 13 consecutive concerts in Austria. As well as accompanying me on accordion, Wayne also opened most of the shows with solo set of his material off his new album 'Between Frames.' While not a blues album, there is more than enough emotion in Wayne's material to please even the most ardent blues fan, and his solo set was always well received. If you've not heard this album I really advise you to check it out real soon.

For the final 2 festivals I was booked to play with the Austrian band 'Bluespumpm.' This is without doubt Austria's, if not Europe's #1 blues band. They've been together for 21 years, during which time they've released 13 albums. Over the years, they've worked with, among others, artists including Chds Farlowe, Paul Di Anno, Alvin Lee, Louisiana Red, Mitch Ryder, and many, many more.

We plan to work together quite a bit in the future, including my return for the 3rd time to the main stage of the Gt. British R&B Festival. This appearance is part of a 5 concert U K tour I'm doing with the band.

Getting back to the Austrian tour, immediately following our last Austrian 'duo gig' Wayne and I spent 4 days at Johann 'Zappa' Cermak's (Bluespumpm's singer/harp player) house in Northern Austria, (about 6 Km's from the Czech Republic border, rehearsing our show, and in the evenings, making a serious dent in Zappa's wine cellar (yes, he really does have a wine cellar!!). And we tried real hard to empty it, but with no apparent success. Next time maybe..? Wayne did mention that during our tour he possibly drank more wine than he during the rest of his life, put together!

And as for 'Bluespumpm,' they're absolutely red hot.

The rhythm section consists of Wolf on bass and Pieter on drums. Both are very accomplished muso's and the end result is a rhythm section that cooks. And Wolf appears to have 're-invented' the lost art of the bass solo. Most Bluespumpm sets include at least one. He has a small dc electric motor attached to the volume knob of his battered Fender amp, which he controls with a foot pedal. This allows him to overdrive the hell out of the poor old amp to varying degrees while he's playing. On the back of the amp Wolf's fitted a cooling fan to help the almost-melting 6L6's hang in there. All very Heath-Robinson but it seems to work.

Fritz, the main guitarist is also something else. With his black singlet and long beard, he looks exactly like a Kiwi shearer. In fact, he would not look at all out of place propping-up the bar of The Tin Hut, in the Southern Wairarapa, on a Saturday afternoon. And he plays like he really means every note.

Johann Cermak (or 'Zappa' as he's generally known) is the band's singer, harp player, and 2nd guitarist. He's one of those real quiet guys who has tremendous presence, both on stage and in day-to-day life. Without question, Zap's one of the nicest guys I've ever met in the music business. And as for his playing, well I really can't better Paul Di Anno's comment: "...he's a great harp player, an able guitarist, and has what has to be one of the most original voices in Blues..."

And let's not forget Erika Königseder, Bluespumpm's sound technician. Erika did (and does) a superb job of our live mixing, combining professional ability with a complete understanding of what the band's about.

Our first festival was in the Tyrol region, at a small town called Breitenbach. This was a great gig, where we played in a marquee, with two other bands playing before us. The gig went well, but it was very much a shake-down gig for us. Also, it was real cold later in the night, due to the high altitude and the fact that snow still on the surrounding mountains. Lulled into a false sense of security by the warm weather we'd experienced earlier, I'd stupidly left all my warm clothes behind. I FROZE!

For me, the pick of the two festivals was the second, back in Heidenreichstein, close to Zappa's house. This is a major European Biker Festival, with riders coming in from all over Europe. There was a vast array of bikes, from Harley's to BMW's etc. Also, the European bikers do not seem to have the aversion for Japanese bikes that we have in NZ. There were a lot of these to be seen also.

We played to an audience of at least 1,000 (probably more, it was hard to tell exactly as the hall was so packed). There were the usual bars etc. inside. And outside, in a large paved area surrounding the main hall were many small stalls, selling everything from a large range of food (traditional Austrian through to vegetarian) to beer/wine, and various crafts. This area was also packed for the entire concert, so as you can imagine, the overall atmosphere was absolutely electric.

Wayne and I did a 1 hour spot, after which the band came on and did a blistering 2 hour set that really had the house rocking. Following a brief intermission, we came together for the final 100 minute set. Wayne played either accordion or piano, and I did the majority of the vocals and played electric slide. We finished about 2AM, and I lost count of the number of encores A great gig with a great band. I'm really looking forward to our August/September tour.

Wayne flew home a couple of weeks ago. I have a strong feeling that he now thinks he's Austrian? Before he left London he was going around muttering indecipherable German phrases, even trying on occasion to speak to London shopkeepers in broken German too ! Before leaving he spent 10 days in Dublin with ex-Warratahs bass player Clint Brown. Christ knows what the poor old lrish made of all this? On the off-chance that you come across Wayne in the streets (street ?) of Paekakariki, just say 'Guten Tag, herr Wayne.' He'll like that!

Talk to you again in September with a report on the Gt. British R&B Festival. Until then, keep the blues alive.

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