THE FABULOUS EGGS....what came first? History and Press.
Some articles and history behind THE FABULOUS EGGS!!!!
The Gathering of "THE CLAN"- Article in Wigan Local Press re- Wigan Cricket Club.
The Gathering of the Clan
The Clan came out of a drunken night in the garage of a bungalow in Standish which involved a few old guitars and one amplifier. A few thousand pounds later and after a little more practice “The Clan” was born. From a garage band with very little equipment they now gig with top of the range guitar equipment (including Stuart’s Warwick Bass amplifier mountain that could wake the dead!!) and a professional quality PA system.
Stuart “Snake Fingers”, Michael “I can’t hear it” and Andrew “bum note”McDonald, father, son and nephew/ cousin along with great uncle Steven “Chords” Eady and Gaz “can I amp up my drums”Edwards are The Clan. Formed in 2003 performing their first gig April 2004, The Clan has come along way.
Stuart once said at a practice, “this was the best hobby ever”. That was how the band got together and that is how it is continuing. The remit is to have fun and they play songs they want to hear and perform. The difference in the ages of the members along with the varying tastes of the band means the music varies widely, a very eclectic mix you could say.
Andrew, Stuart, Michael and especially Steven are very influenced by The Beatles, Gareth, Andy and Michael like some of the “heavier bands”- Stuart likes all types of music but introduced the younger members to the harmonic joys of The Eagles and has introduced some weird and wonderful tunes (you may soon experience the delights of the much practiced “Little Green Bag”!). Songs the band currently play include, Take it Easy and Lying Eyes- The Eagles, Don’t look Back in Anger and She’s Electric- Oasis, Rocks- Primal Scream and Rock and Roll classics Johnny B.Goode and Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ on.
The Clan has played many gigs now- some of them paying (not quite enough to pay for all the equipment- if it were a business they would be bankrupt!). They have played Wigan Cricket Club on many occasions, outdoor gigs, weddings, and many charity gigs at various venues. Most recently The Clan has featured on “Drivetime” with Johnny Walker- they certainly are up and coming and their next gig is sure to advertise “As featured on Radio Two!!!”.
Wigan Cricket Club has been a godsend for the group. Without the use of the Cricket Club the Clan would be no more- due to the use of the club the band is always happy to perform at Cricket Club events, due to the support they have shown to The Clan. The Cricket club gigs give the opportunity to showcase new songs and test them against a friendly audience.
The Clan members like any good band are involved in side projects. Stuart of course acts as band and tour manager his time is busy taken up with Clan projects such as corporate functions and schmoozing with important contacts for gigs. Steven has been a professional musician before performing in many bands in the Glam Glory days of the seventies through the New Romantic eighties and into the Brit Pop nineties. He still enjoys performing and recording in his home studio.
Gaz records “Hard Metal” and “Rock” with other bands and very often will act as a roadie offering help and support to other acts. Michael rehearses in another band “Mon Ouisch” performing covers as well as writing some of their own material. Andrew McDonald works hard writing and recording his own material in his home studio- he has his first track available to Download at www.moyst.com. “Think about you” was selected from a demo sent to Moyst Music Publishing, and is available to purchase online – Listed under the name Mack- “Think about you”. It is available as a Track download- or a mobile ring tone. Also discussions with Top Banana Management are in the Pipeline for Andy to get some musical works published!!. The Clan will soon be international!!
Future plans are for the band to get even better through quality practice. More gigs to follow in this year. Hopefully the bands concerts next year will feature some original material and may even feature a release through the same publishing company as Andrew’s side project Mack. If Steven gets his way the band will be performing a Jive Bunny/ Stars on 45 type Medley as he has been trying to get the band to do a Medley since the very first practice session!! So far his attempts have been unsuccessful.
After a successful tour to Clitheroe pre Christmas the Clan played the 40th Birthday Bash for the Beautiful manager of the Cricket Club Judith. A very successful gig and the first of 2006. With the dedication of Hey Jude to the “Hostess with the Mostess” the evening came to a suitable climax!!. Hopefully many more to come!!!!!
Booking enquires to be made through Stuart McDonald at Wigan Cricket Club.
Article Submitted by Randy Pants- The Clan Biographer/ videographer 2003- Present.
THE FABULOUS EGGS ARE COMING!
Article by Andy Mack for THE MAIL ON SUNDAY.
When I was approaching thirty I really did start to feel old. I was unable to carry on playing sport as years of abuse had left by legs shot at. I did not like going out to the town centre as it was full of kids. I was annoyed at everything- I was a grumpy old man!!!
As a “youth” I had played in bands and have continued to “noodle” on my guitar. I decided like many other thirtysomething males that I would take up the guitar again.
The humble guitar is becoming the new mid-life crisis for the male species, taking over from motorbikes and going to the gym. The guitar has achieved a massive boost in sales recently mostly from thirty something males. Everybody seems to be taking up the guitar.
Guitar music is the new “pop” and guitar bands are everywhere. Oasis are a supergroup, Artic Monkeys are the new boyband. Guitar music has never been healthier.
Guitars are cheaper than ever and new technology means equipment previously out of reach to the amateur is available cheaply. Homestudios and multi effects systems are a must have for every budding guitarist new and old!!
I became disillusioned with bands in the late nineties and stopped guitar and bands completely. I saw a couple of bands (I played the same venues as) make it big, including Oasis and The Verve or simply “Verve” as they were known then. When my opportunity came Britpop had come to a halt and manufactured dance music took over. Time to get a real job!!
In 2003 I received the call that I had been probably waiting for but did not realise….”Do you want to form a band?”. This call came after a drunken house party were the guitars were dusted off, improvised drums and a full-blown jam session was underway in my mother’s garage. We had caught the bug.
The covers band known as “The Clan” was born. “Chords Eady” on lead guitar, “Snake fingers McDonald” on Bass, “Oasis Mike” on Rhythm Guitar “Gaz Winnscale Disaster on Drums“ and myself “Bumnote McDonald on Rhythm/Lead Guitar. We all took a turn at “singing” our favourite tracks.
After a year of club and pub gigs doing covers (and having the time of our lives I the process), I decided to try my hand at writing songs again. In January 2005 I took to writing some solo acoustic tracks. I had come to respect Noel Gallagher and his song writing a lot I loved his solo work. I took Noel as inspiration and set off writing. I though I was going to be huge, but at the end of the day it was just for laughs.
My mother had brought me up listening to The Beatles and Bob Dylan. I was and still am a massive fan as The Beatles. I thought I could write songs as well as Noel Gallagher and John Lennon. No problem. Fame and riches beckoned!
I played my first solo gig at Joshua Brooks in Manchester in May 2005. What a buzz. I had such a great time performing my own songs to a willing and listening crowd. I continued to gig through out 2005 and 2006 and enjoyed it immensely. At the same time I was still performing regularly with The Clan.
These solo acoustic gigs are great. I turn up with just a guitar and play to sometimes a couple of hundred people on my own. I get to support “proper bands” with big guitars and big budgets and feel part of “the scene”. Muso’s are usually a friendly bunch as well- so I have made some great new friends.
As a solo artist, I have played some great venues – some famous and some soon to be passed into folklore! The Dry Bar, Joshua Brookes, The Attic, The Arch, Night and Day, The Retro Bar in Manchester. The Zanzibar, Barfly, The Cavern, Stamps Bar in Liverpool. The Tavern, Kings Electric, Club Nirvana and The Tudor House in Wigan. These are some of the great venues I have played this year.
Some towns have set up clubs dedicated to the promotion of live music. My hometown has The Wigan Music Collective (www.wiganmusic.com). They run a weekly live music night for local bands in Wigan. They run from an excellent venue in the town called The Tavern- a pub, which also hosts a “Metal” live music night, an acoustic night and a comedy club.
Also in my northern hometown is Lupine Promotions (www.lupine.org.uk). Run by two school friends they set up a night in Wigan to promote Wigan Bands and it just developed into something bigger. They have had bands such as The Artic Monkeys and Babyshambles play their events. They run an excellent bi monthly event at Kings Electric in Wigan were I have made a fool of myself on a number of occasions!!!
Usually when booking these gigs, the promoters (usually students) say, “we can’t afford to pay you anything but you can have as much beer as you can drink!” HEAVEN. Playing guitar a few beers with my mates and usually for free it cannot be beaten.
As well as meeting the new and upcoming bands- there are plenty of famous faces knocking round the club scene in Manchester and Liverpool. I am always a bit star struck when I meet someone but always amazed at how nice and helpful they usually are (and they are always short!!).
I was enjoying myself but I needed a new challenge- I was addicted to guitars. I had recorded some tracks on my equipment at home- all acoustic based as that is the genre I was performing. I decided to write and record an album of “proper” songs- songs that I would like, songs for me.
I have seen so many of the bands I have performed with get signed and dumped. The best bands never get spotted- MonOuisch (www.monouisch.com) - pronounced “Monweesh”!! Wigan based punk rockers but too bad to record!!- Ali Whitton and the Broke Record Players (www.myspace.com/aliwhitton) Leeds based Acoustic Performers- too nice to record and The Troubadours (www.myspace.com/thetroubadorsmusic) Wigan based Scally scouscers but brilliant- are some of the best bands I have ever seen, but they are not signed to record labels.
Sometimes I would even meet touring bands. These guys had been sent out by their manager or label to play at every back street venue they could find all over the country. I remember one band in particular The High Plane Drifters (myspace again www.myspace.com/thehighplanedrifters). Two guys, a drummer and a guitarist. They were phenomenal. I thought they were excellent.
They had travelled to Wigan from Stockton on Tees in County Durham- a long journey for a 25-minute set. They ended up playing to me and the other bands who were on. If the other band hadn’t stopped they would have played to me and the bar staff. What a shame. Wiganers missed one of the best acts I have ever seen. The Guitarist/ singer was a cross between Jimi Hendrix and Tom Jones- dressed to the nines and rocking the blues- Awesome!
A lot of the bands that I have seen signed to record labels, are the bands a label thinks they can mould into what they want. They are usually “safe” and generally do what they are told. They do not sign bands the likes of The Sex Pistols (or MonOuisch) anymore. When it came to completing an album it takes months and costs hundreds of thousands of pounds.
I decided in November 2006 I had till Christmas to write the tracks and two weeks in January to record them and my budget was £0. Cool!
I set up a studio in my garage with second hand equipment and my guitars. I cannot play drums (I have two left feet I can’t kick a football let alone kick in time!) so I resigned to the fact that I had to use a drum machine. I do not count the equipment in my budget as I already owned it, but if I were to add it to my budget, the budget would be- £849.99 all-inclusive.
I had ideas for songs so I just went with the flow. I seemed to be using a lot of my influences. The Beatles, KISS, The Rolling Stones as well as more modern influences such as Oasis and Stereophonics. My mission statement was to do it myself and to enjoy it.
I didn’t write any songs suitable in the lead up to recording so in November I went into the studio (after tidying up the lawnmower and the kids bikes) and just started to record. In my first day I recorded two tracks from ideas I had. It basically rolled on from there. I recorded ideas and then lyrics and just went with the flow.
I had idea what I wanted to write and the style I wanted to write in and genre. I wanted to be Rock. I had grown up a “Hair Metal” fan- KISS, Bon Jovi, Van Halen etc but I had developed into more. I love The Beatles, The Stones the Kinks, in fact I am passionate about all music. I find I dissect it and critique it all. I see similarities across genres and compare tracks to others they sound like. Am I the only one who thinks The Fratellis sound like Bugsy Malone.
I found myself to sound very 70’s rock and glam rock, which surprised me. I wanted to me more modern. When it comes to recording the ideas I find it to be very spontaneous and not at all contrived in anyway. I do not know how it will end up or what I am going to write when I start.
If I had an idea for a song I would record it into my mobile phone. If I had an idea for lyrics I would scribble it down. I’d really find myself writing about genuine incidents. Arguments with people would end up as a song. A good night out would end as a song. I saw a film on late night television and wrote a verse as I watched it!
The whole recording process was very enjoyable. I would play finished “products” to my family and friends to see what they thought. I would sit, on my own, in the studio (now leaking, very damp and cold) and drink copious amounts of beer, it was great.
I often read about bands having a good time in the studio I can see why! However, I do not see the reason why it takes so long- or again why so many people have to be involved in the whole process. But really- I have no reason however to be stressed. The only deadline I have is my own. These bands have to live up to their last album. Only six people have my last CD.
But why does it cost so much? Why does it take so long? Kiss (my favourite band when I was a lad!) released an eleven studio albums between 1974 and 1980- were any of them any good- I thought so and so did millions of others. Oasis on the other hand (another of my favourite bands) releases nowhere near match this output (are their albums any better?).
These reasons (and failing myself to win a recording contract as an acoustic performer) were the reasons why I took to record on my own. I thought genuinely “I can do that!!”
January 10th 2007 and my album is finished. Fourteen songs of genius (or so I thought). I listened to my album over and over again. I loved it. Record companies I knew would not be listening or even want to listen to it. I had no way of promoting my music. I was not a band. I had recorded the album as a band project. If it were to be a success as a record I would have to give the impression I was a band!
I could not perform the songs as a solo artist- The Clan does covers only and the average age of The Clan is 40!! If I send the CD of to record companies, publishers or management they only ask when are you next playing live? I would not be able to deliver.
I was stumped. One thing that every band I know has in common is Myspace.com. A social networking site for blogs and chat. Millions of individual profiles and Myspacemusic provides webspace for bands and solo artists.
As a solo artist, MACK I of course have a Myspace profile www.myspace.com/mackacoustic. In one year I built up a healthy profile of 700+ friends and about 2500 hits. I have four songs on this page for users to rate download and listen to. These are my acoustic tracks. My profile would not do for my album of ROCK!!
I used this MACK profile to get local gigs and to promote any appearances. I did not want to flood it with new material. I decided the best option was to start again with a new profile and “create” a band!
I decided to create a Band profile. I needed a name for my imaginary band…. a name that came from my cousin. He initially wanted to call The Clan “The Fabulous Eggs”. I was all for that name- I loved it but we were out voted. I decided to revisit “The Fabulous Eggs” with my new project.
I set my Myspace account up as www.myspace.com/thefabulouseggs and The Fabulous Eggs as my profile. I uploaded four tracks from my album to the page. Under band members I put down “anyone and everyone” and gig dates are made up venues and stadium dates well in the future!!
Within a week of being on the page it was hijacked by spammers and other undesirables- I changed my login and email to prevent this happening again! It nearly put the kibosh on the whole plan!
I added other bands as friends in similar genres- I added all the people that were friends I knew on myspace. I got a lot of requests from Japan for friendship and mainly women for some reason.
I kept my profile simple and an eggy theme. My profile picture is egg sweets, the other pictures are all egg related. My “tag” line was THE FABULOUS EGGS ARE COMING!! TELL YOUR FRIENDS!!
Within 4 weeks I had 700 friends and my music had been listened to 2500 times- on average 55 hits a day!! This was much better than the MACK profile. I was getting better hits as The Eggs than myself. I was not disappointed that an imaginary band was getting me hits than me. I was eggstatic.
Myspace has been described as “cybercrack”. As MACK I used myspace as a tool- for gigs and promotion. I did not go on the page everyday, just when I needed to. However, as THE FABULOUS EGGS I found myself as a myspace addict. I had to go on everyday. Check who had added me- see how many hits- check my mail- have a chat with my cyber friends. I became obsessed.
Within two weeks of being on myspace as The Eggs, I had been offered gigs and other opportunities. I posted a blog as I had a hangover and I received 50 cures. I had fans!! The best offer was to appear on a prom CD of “unsigned” artist and bands. It is great I feel like a genuine band member and I am not!!
A song I had written also caused a stir in the Wigan area. It was called “Pemps”. Pemps was a very popular members only nightclub in Wigan. It had gained the same respect in the area as the much loved Casino. It had recently closed. Pemps was my venue of choice. I wrote a song about the club as it had closed recently. Myspacers from Wigan uploaded the song to their profiles and spread the word.
As a result of the Pemps song another Myspacer set up a page dedicated to Pemps. This song is now the theme to the page giving THE FABULOUS EGGS a whole new audience!!!!
I have cheekily sent my CD of as a promotional album with a “biography” to Radio stations who play new artists- my song Pretty Dirty Dancer has been on local radio- It has been sent to Huw Stephens at BBC Radio 1 but no luck yet!! I have had some radio airplay as The Fabulous Eggs and we (there is only me!!) have had a mention on a couple of late night quiz show (email is a wonderful tool). The next step is more radio, and the press.
Another website which has caught THE FABULOUS EGGS bug is www.northwestbands.co.uk. I created a band page and sent out “friends” and “fans” requests. I posted 8 tracks off the album. I very soon had 3 songs on the top ten and a number one song with “Dirty Little Secret”. I was on top of the world!!
I will keep plodding with The Eggs promotion. I hope one day a version of THE FABULOUS EGGS will perform live- who will be the members I do not know….. The Fabulous Eggs have eggsisted since January 21st 2007. At the time of writing this article the Eggs were eggspanding. Hopefully an article in the national press will increase awareness!! I love The Fabulous Eggs- and I am clearly my biggest fan! Just watch out though coz…..
THE FABULOUS EGGS ARE COMING