Patch Ripp (The Ripps) was on top form Thursday night at Cox's Yard, Stratford Upon Avon. Sadly Rachel (the drummer!) was ill and so unable to perform, but all was not lost as Patch did an acoustic set off the cuff.The venue was packed and many younger fans had come to hear The Ripps, Sharks and Men in Caves perform on yet another wet summers evening. It looked like there would be no performance by The Ripps because of the illness, but Patch had made the effort to come over to the venue and see everyone and show his support for the other bands.
Unexpectedly, Patch did an acoustic set on stage, his way of saying "sorry" to anyone who had turned up to see The Ripps. Even after half a bottle of vodka and various other drinks, Patch still managed to perform. Some one rightly gave him credit saying: "It takes balls to get up there and perform on your own". The conversations on stage were quite humourous and flew over the heads of many in the crowd, we wondered if Patch would get around to playing a single song. Vodka is evil but the results are funny, shouting a variety of choice words to the audience was priceless!
I didn't know whether to record the solo performance or not, as it didn't seem fair to film Patch rather drunk on stage. So I recorded just one song - "New England", as I love this Billy Bragg tribute. Sometimes night turn out different from what you expect but it's a bonus when the unexpected turns out to be good.
Patch Ripp - "New England"
One of the things that most annoys me about badns is htat if a member is sick it's not the same 'cos he/she can't perform but lol I know we all get sick from time to time:P btw you must be really happy about The Enemy being at #4 in the official singles chart.
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