Heaven is a garden under a banana tree!

I begin to sing... the voice is there, hallelujah!

My voice is husky and does sound like it has been affected by a cold but it does seem enough to complete a gig. A great weight begins to lift off of me and then stops!

We are not there yet and I begin to put into place a couple of strategies to ensure I remain 'in voice' for when we take the stage. The first one is, to only do a short sound check and the second one is,
 'not talk'. This second one is difficult and proves to have a very pleasant consequence later on.

The club begins to fill up with Steve Drewett/Neurotics fans and they all seem to be making a 'bee line' to me to say hi which is fantastic but I was trying not to use my voice.
The importance of these vocal saving strategies can be underlined even more. Do you remember that when I was picked up I was showered and fresh? We'll I still lacked some strength and by the time we had done the sound check at 10 o'clock, I was feeling weak again.

Then I found out that we would not take the stage until 2.30am! Aaaagghh, how am I going to do this? Well, do it I must, and I started keeping myself quiet, just watching the other bands, keep out of conversations and let the time pass. It didn't really work. The room was so hot I realised I couldn't stand for all that time and was much relieved when Isabela (who is constantly keeping an eye on me) hands me a chair which I accept gratefully but when I sit down on it I cannot see the band.
People keep coming over to talk to me and anyone would love that sort of attention, I have a room packed with Neurotics fans and it is a lovely feeling. Everyone wants to buy me a drink and Isabela is periodically getting my 'rider' drinks for me and eventually I realise that at this rate I am going to be smashed long before I take the stage.

I cannot let that happen, I've gone through too much for that.

The club is filled with very convivial people all at full flight with socialising and in this environment I am standing out like a sore thumb, on my own, talking to no-one, looking lonely. The surprising consequence of this was that I keep getting offers from some very beautiful women to join them as I looked so "lonely". Later, in the garden, one of these women caught my eye and gesticulated to a chair next her, I gesticulated back that I had a chair next to me if I wanted to sit down, (sometimes I am a little slow catching on, I must point that out) but finally the penny drops and I go over and sit down. Here, I find my perfect way to while away the time until we take the stage, talking to some lovely, friendly Brazilian women, they would in turn introduce me to their friends and another conversation would ensue. It really did pass the time in the most pleasant of fashions.

I felt like I had died and gone to heaven!