A Trip Down Memory Lane
So today I have been going through all of my old You Tube video's and deleting lots that are soooooo dated and not that great at all! It's funny though, as cringy as the old stuff is, I love to re-visit the memories and see how much I have grown as a vocalist, and a saxophonist. I have a vivid memory of every wedding, function and gig I have played, up to around ten years ago. I often get phone calls from people who saw me many moons ago wanting to book now, and I always remember when and where they saw me and who's party it was etc. My memory is the same for lyrics, I have hundreds of songs floating around in my head, yet if I went upstairs to get something I would forget what it was by the time I got there!! Is that a sign of middle age creeping up on me? Who knows ... ;-) I started singing at 15 years old in a holiday camp in Great Yarmouth called Seacroft. My uncle, Max Bedford, was (and still is at 75) a singer/guitarist with his own band and I was keen to join him on stage after years of watching him admiringly. Around 1997 I met a guy called Andy at a karaoke club me and my friends used to go to on a Sunday night, and after a few duets we decided to form a duo - Sensation! We did the pub gig scene for a couple of years and when you come from a small town it's easy to pack out a venue with friends and family alone! We had a blast. In 1998 I auditioned for a new 'Girl Group' who were set to be the new Spice Girls, yes really. From what I recall there were around 70 of us all gunning for a place in Norfolk's most talked about new band. After two auditions I secured my spot in REDZ. We had a good couple of years on the cabaret scene, on local radios and in newspapers... but it didn't go any further. I did however make friends with another band member, Lize, and almost 20 years on we are still best friends and she is the godmother to my 8 year old son. That's about the only good thing to come out of Redz ha ha. This is where it all started for me and by 2000 I was already well on my way to making a career from music, I have never looked back.