My mate Si, has been down from Newcastle for the weekend. He's a pro cameraman - spent the evening encouraging me away from the preset buttons on my Canon 40d! Loving it - he showed me loads of stuff that I can't wait to have a go at. Turns out, we just happened to hit the beach during one of the best sunsets of the year! It was amazing!

That Manuka stuff worked a treat. I really thought the night before the gig that I was going to be in trouble. Turns out, not only was it fine throughout the performance, but it's quite possibly the first time I've finished the set without feeling like I've just ripped the life out of my vocal chords. A set comprising the Foo Fighters, Pearl Jam, Reef etc is always going to be challenging, but I think / hope that I may just have found something that works a treat.

And how was the gig? Well we played in a marquee in someone's back garden to about 70 people. So a small affair - sometimes the hardest to crack. But I think we did a good job, we had fun. This chap, who was right into it on the dance floor, came up to us afterwards and said "I've seen Reef and the Stereophonics play live at a similar venue and you guys rocked it, you were much better!" He followed up with, "Your my best friend you are. I love you" which I suppose kind of invalidated the previous statement! Great buffet afterwards - shall we grab a sandwich for the road, turned into a lengthy, 'Have you tried one of these?' taste fest which lasted until well, just after 1am as it goes. When we left, the chap I mentioned before, was slumped outside on a chair, fag in one hand, drink in the other. As we bid him farewell, he raised his glass, "Aweshome, guys, aweshome', he slurred before returning his gaze back to his shoelaces. I hope our new found fan is feeling okay today.

I remember now! Before the gig I had this worry about my sore throat. But taking to the stage I felt fine and confident. But then a funny thing happened. The fingers on both of my hands went white! Lost the feeling of them from the bottom knuckle. The first three songs we play, I start on my own on the guitar - so that's Molly's Chambers, Something to Say and Foot of the Mountain. It goes without saying that what you want is a good positive start to the night. It felt like I was playing with my fists. I could see Wailin running his eyes over my fingers on the fretboard "What chords exactly are you trying to play?" I could hear him think! Never experienced that before - and took me a lot by surprise! Didn't take long for the pinkies to start hitting the right notes.