Wine.....I need WINE!!!!!
3am and I'm home from a very late one - and shattered.
'twas my first ever Add2Event gig and at a very nice fee indeed. The enquiry came in two weeks ago (long story short, the bride had been mucked around with her original venue and couldn't get too much booked in the way of entertainment until the enquiry a couple of weeks ago).
So, a University building it is then, which is half demolished and being rebuilt, and entails parking on double yellows in the middle of Cambridge (eek!), unloading up a couple of smallish sets of stairs and into something resembling the House of Commons (different I'll give you). Then off to take out a mortgage to pay for the parking for the evening.
I'd not met the bride or groom due to the time contestants on this one, plus they were using an excellent wedding planner I know. So, armed with a minimal playlist, the promise of listening to a rather good swing band for a couple of hours after the first dance, and knowing it was going to be the load-in/out of nightmares, I packed VERY carefully. It helped that space was at a premium and that the bride wasn't too keen on lots of flashing lights.
Load in/out took.....drum roll please....just 20 minutes either end (I'm definitely feeling the benefit of all the exercise and weight loss this year!). Boiling hot, absolutely drenched in sweat, but ready to roll way ahead of time.
The bride and groom were a relaxed couple, and neither the planner or the photographer could call how the evening was going to go. Bets were on though that it wouldn't last to the prescribed time of 2am.
First dance dispatched, it's over to the swing band who got the whole floor rocking (I wouldn't have predicted that, neither would the planner). Eventually 11pm (my start time) rolls around and we're straight into a cheddar fest as per the bride's instructions. The floor was packed until about 1am when the B&G made their excuses and left, closely followed by a lot of their guests.
Unfortunately I'm left with a hardcore of a dozen who weren't giving up easily. No problem - still plenty left in the armoury to get through until 2am and finish on the bride's requested end track.
And that's where I turned from hero to zero in a matter of 8 bars! The remaining 5 (who were well and truly struggling to stand I might add), took offence at the track, and threatened to go, to which I cheekily uttered "goodbye then, have a safe journey home".
They left, and we ended 5 minutes earlier than scheduled (this one really should have ended at 1am to be honest).
Other than the upset at the end....another really good night :)
Oh....the track in question I hear you ask? Bill and Jennifer (it was the bride's choice). Can't please 'em all and at least it stopped the drunken calls for one more track at the end :)
That's it now until the 27th, when I have a marquee wedding that thinks it's going to midnight (I very much doubt it....it's a hotel right in the centre of a built up area and I'm expecting to be told 11pm on the night....and yes, I have tried finding out for definite). The only big downside to that particular wedding is the playlist....it's currently over 300 tracks long :o
Right...time for that wine :)