Dan's FUN-draiser @ The Walrus, 8th August 2009

Lazing on a sunny afternoon

There's not many gigs that come with a complimentary "design your own bunting" competition. Or many pub BBQs that have chart topping songstresses in the garden. With their nannies. Or, for that matter, many village fetes where you can play Twister.

And while I'm sure no one would disagree with me that the world would be a better place if occurrences such as these happened more often, I'm very pleased to say that I was present when these stars aligned to produce Dan Gillespie Sells' FUN-draiser in aid of the charity work that his brother is doing in Uganda. The weather was kind and the small but beautifully formed beer garden played host to one of the most random afternoons I have enjoyed since I don't know when. There was a rather nice BBQ, a cake stall and a bring and buy, as well as a small stage for the musical entertainment. So far so normal. The really strange thing was that the place was filled with a mix of fans of The Feeling, who had been invited via Facebook and the band's website, 2/5 of The Feeling and their family and friends (including Richard Jones' wife Sophie Ellis-Bextor, their kids, and Dan's mum) and I'm sure some random punters who had just ventured out for a pint on a sunny afternoon and were probably quite dazed and confused.

The 'gig' part of the afternoon was kicked off by Anna McDonald who was the female vocalist on Columbia by TF (which is fab) and a guy whose name I didn't catch. They sang some nice cover versions and Anna had very memorable tights. They were joined by Mr G-S to perform a version of Superstitious by Stevie Wonder. Wallis Bird also did a turn, which was really well received but I have to say it didn't make much of an impact on me. However, many of my friends, as well as Dan, have a lot of time for her so I will defer to their opinion on this particular performer.

One of the nicest things about the afternoon was that it felt really relaxed and friendly, although at some points it did feel scarily like we had wandered into someone else's garden by mistake and we weren't supposed to be there.

We got to see a fab duet by Dan and Sophie - It's My Party - which was a great choice for Sophie's vocal. I don't think I've ever listen to the lyrics properly before but it was really lovely. Dan and Sophie sound great together so I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a proper duet at some point soon.



Then Dan, with breaks for raffle ticket drawing, sand a number of his own songs and a couple of covers. He said (and I believe him) that he hadn't practiced and he took prompts from the gathering for the play list, which included Strange and Rose, as well as Cat Steven's Wild World. It was so relaxed it was almost untrue.

What could be better than relaxing in the sun in the company of lovely friends with a pint of cider, colouring in homemade bunting while listening to amazing music and raising money for charity all at the same time? Same time next year please!!

The Feeling are currently recording their third album, much too slowly for my liking