I’m off to Download Festival in Leicestershire tomorrow. Live music, a few beers, hopefully plenty of sunshine, and some precious time with my 20-year-old son Alfie. I can’t wait.
Recently, I’ve seen young band Penguinz at the Riverside in Sutton Bridge and ska punk outfit Faintest Idea at the Blue &Gold Club at Lynn FC. I hope also to be attending the Latitude Festival in Suffolk with Alfie next month, where I plan to take in one of my favourite bands of all-time, Pulp.
That’s not where the live music stops though, as, once again, we have three free weekends of the stuff coming up, right outside our offices in Lynn’s Tuesday Market Place.
Festival Too has been rocking West Norfolk since 1986 and is enjoyed by thousands every night, funded by public donations and generous local businesses.
From the first-ever line up of Tammy Jones, Eight The Street, Caribbean Harmonics and Anglian Jazz Orchestra, it has grown and grown, with the names on the bill getting bigger and bigger.
Brian Poole of the Tremeloes fame has been the most frequent visitor, with five shows in the Nineties, while Edison Lighthouse, Edwin Starr, Raymond Froggatt and Vintage Hot Orchestra have all appeared four times. The first time I can remember watching was Starr’s performance back in 1992 when I was a young reporter at the Lynn News.
Excellent Abba tribute band Voulez Vous’ performance in 1995 also stands out for me, with iconic Liverpool band Gerry and the Pacemakers attracting a huge crowd the same year.
After moving away from West Norfolk in the late 1990s, it wasn’t until 2016 that I reacquainted myself with the Festival, taking my two very excited 11-year-old girls to see The Vamps.
This year, with my feet firmly entrenched back in Lynn, it’s From The Jam I’m most excited about. But with Neville Staple, Liberty X, D:REAM, Example, Feeder and Newton Faulkner also on the bill , it’s looking like another wonderful Festival Too to remember.
