Andy Lyth Nov 18, 2024

From Vinny Peculiar’s blog, March 13th 2009:

Last night I went to Night and Day to see Jelly’s Last Jam, it’s been awhile since and it hasn’t changed a bit. Bass player Martin Clarke met me outside the venue and insisted, against my better judgement, that I smoke one of his slim panatelas. Ten minutes later I was doing just that not that I inhaled or anything. I really like Jelly’s Last Jam and not just because I have the loan of their rhythm section. They are not your typical indie guitar band [they have no guitarist for starters], their songs are piano driven, engaging, dramatic and rich in Queen like flourishes. I know they have what it takes to succeed. I’m worried though that every band I really love ends up splitting up or giving up and such whilst the ones I loathe more often than not become mega stars! I was explaining this to Andy from the band last night, telling him how I first saw The Police on the Old Grey whistle test and thought they were pants…commercially it didn’t turn out that way. And how I saw U2 at Kidderminster Town Hall and convinced myself they were the most average band in the land and would all too soon disappear off the face of the earth. Wrong again. That was 1979. Thirty years later I’d like to think I can more readily recognise potentially successful artist in the making, and separate such from the acts I actually like or not but in truth I’m still rubbish at it. I just go with what I like, and it invariably bares no resemblance to commercial potential. I would be a rubbish A&R man that I do know, I mean, look at that Vinny Peculiar, if he wasn’t such a dogged self deluded type he’s be history by now, and to many he probably already is.

Meanwhile the Jellys gig turns into a huge triumph for them, the crowd are in raptures, the performance is flawless and tour support with The Killers is just a matter of months away [well it is in my head as I try and explain to Paul after the show]. They have a new single out on Monday, it’s called Alibi – it’s great. VPx