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Sgt Pepper's Only Dart Board Band, Haslemere Hall, Surrey

4th June 2005

Haslemere. I was only just well enough to leave the house, having spent the past three days in bed with tummy-lurgie. But damnit, I'd had my ticket for this gig booked up for months and I wasn't going to let a bout of the squits the better of me -- at long last, I was going to see Sgt Pepper's Only Dart Board Band -- an ambition since I'd read Martin Dimery's excellent journal of a year in the life of a tribute band, Being John Lennon, earlier in the year.

Getting there was not a bundle of joy (I must have navigated Farnham's one-way system at least three times before getting back on track) but despite this I arrived with a little over half an hour to spare. The car park was empty and theatre doors were closed. There wasn't another soul in sight.

After an aimless wander around the village I got back to find a dozen or so people milling around outside the theatre and someone rattling keys on the other side of the door. "We're friends of the band", one guy was explaining to the woman inside. Eventually she let us all in and so I scatterd a pile of BBFC fliers around the foyer before going off to find the bar, which slowly but surely began to fill up with punters. A bubbly woman came up and sold me a programme for 50p (50p! how much of a bargain is that?!) and we got chatting. I asked if it would be possible to meet the guys after the show and when she found out I was with the fan club she disappeared backstage for a few minutes. "They'd love to see you in the interval", she told me on her return.

Sgt Pepper's Only Dart Board Band are not your average Beatles tribute. Well, for a start, there are five of them. John Legend, Sir Paul McCoatoff, Rolf Harrison and Ringo Stalin -- but wait, who's that little old man? Is it Paul's Grandfather? (He's very clean!) No, it's Sgt Pepper, "dapper ex-traffic warden", and he's here to help the boys out on keyboards (and occasional guitars) in Billy P's absence. If the names weren't enough to give you the clue, this band has a slightly irreverent, "Rutlesish" sense of fun and they're keen to be different from the rest. There are so many Beatles tributes out there, all fighting for the same market. In the quest to be the best, many seem to forget one very important point: the Beatles were funny guys. There was a lot of banter throughout the evening and introducing themselves, the Sgt Pepper band made it clear from the start that they weren't trying to BE the beatles -- just to do their music, dress up and most of all, to have fun.

Something else that made the this show stand out from rest was the musical content. No chronological tour through the 60s, from moptops through psychedelia to the scruffy endings in '69; for the first half of tonight's show we had a complete performance of the Abbey Road album. This is something that no other British Beatles band has done (American band Fab Faux has -- as well as the entire White Album -- but not in costumes). The scene was set by a pair of belisha beacons framing the stage and the costumes were of course, like those worn by the Beatles on the cover of the Abbey Road LP -- with the notable exception of Sgt Pepper (Rob Waller) who was decked out in Pepper regalia -- and Paul (John Freeman) was wearing shoes, for safety reasons!

Whilst trying to stay accurate to the recordings, a little flexibility is allowed (after all, not even the Beatles themselves performed these songs live). The Sgt Pepper band pride themselves on their totally live performance, with nothing supplied by backing tapes. The approach set them in good stead, meaning they were free to give a little of their own interpretation; introductions are looped and vocal parts shared around. Ringo evidently wasn't in the mood for singing that day.

The interval came round quickly and I was ushered (along with a reporter from the local newspaper) backstage to meet the band -- after a preliminary check to sure they'd all got their trousers on first. It's always a bit strange meeting a band for the first time, especially a tribute band. Out of costume with no wigs on there's always that worry you won't recognise them, won't be able to tell who's who. This time, of course, it was doubly weird because it was like meeting the characters from out of a book -- which of course is exactly what it was, since John Legend is in fact played by Martin Dimery, author of aforementioned Being John Lennon, without which I would not be here tonight. Along with Martin himself, Lester Mason, who plays Rolf Harrison, Rob Waller and John Freeman were all recognised from the book.

It was a crowded little dressing room with lots going on in a short time -- costume changing and moustache-painting -- but they guys were great, found me and newspaper-lady seats and put me at ease very quickly, asking loads about the BBFC, my fascination with the Beatles and tribute bands and pouring out anecdotes. They all signed my copy of Martin's book -- Martin was pleased and surprised I'd brought it along and hadn't just bought one in the foyer earlier in the evening.

The second half was a cut-down version of their normal set -- a rip-roaring race through the best of the Beatles, some early, some late -- all in Pepper costumes. A surprise guest performer appeared in the shape of a member of the audience who'd brought her own tambourine along. Maybe she was expecting a T.Rex tribute.

[Flyer]
The flyer for the evening
[SPODBB]
Sgt Pepper's Only Dart Board Band
[Martin and Rob]
Martin and Rob

Photos © urban-spaceman.org