The year is coming to an end.
Lots of stuff has happened. Lots of nice things.
A year ago the only things I really wanted to do were to record a full length album with a blazing brass section, and go on a proper tour round the UK. Both of those I achieved.

So hurray on that. I've met loads of wicked people and made even more good friends this year. I hope that this is only the start and I will continue to do so in 2010. I have a nice stripey diary all ready...

....................

2009 GIG LIST: (so far...)
JANUARY

13th The Old Bell, Derby
14th Orange Street Music, Canterbury
15th The Mother’s Ruin, Bristol
17th Western Hotel, St. Ives
18th The Labour Club, Northampton
19th The Birdcage, Norwich
20th The Jericho Tavern, Oxford
21st The Polish Club, Barnsley
22nd Monkey Chews, London
23rd The Angel Coffee House, Lincoln
24th The Independent, York
25th Living Room, Islington

.. ..

FEBUARY

1^st The George Daventry

2^nd Ryan’s Bar, Derby

3^rd The Fox and Duck, Sheffield

.. ..

MARCH

7^th Belper Leisure Centre, Belper

19^th The Birdcage Norwich

20^th Assembly Hall, Bolsover

.. ..

.. ..

APRIL
16th Big Blue Coffee Shop, Derby
17th The Jericho Tavern, Oxford
18th The Village Hall, West Peckham
19th Hob Goblin, Staines
20th The Mother’s Ruin, Bristol
22nd The Sapphire Lounge, London
23rd Orange Street Music, Canterbury
24th The Admiral Benbow, Penzance
25th The Western Hotel, St. Ives
26th Phoenix Cafe Bar, Exeter
28th The Foundry, Canterbury
29th The Tin Angel, Coventry
30th Monkey Chews, London

MAY
2nd Ashleyhay Festival, Derbyshire
3rd The Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham
5th The Birdcage Norwich
6th The Royal, Derby
7th The Stockroom, Sheffield
8th The Angel Coffee House, Lincoln
9th The Imperial Rooms, Matlock
10th Club 25, Hitchin

23^th Ireby Festival, Ireby

29^th The Brewery Tap, Derby

30^th Ed Fest, The Bell, Derby

.. ..

.. ..

JUNE

3^rd The Globe, Letchworth

6^th Commotion Festival, Oxford

13^th Durdham Hall, Bristol

18^th Monkey Chews, London

19^th The Mother’s Ruin, Bristol

20^th The Western Hotel, St. Ives

21^st The Railway, Deal

27^th Belper Music Festival, Belper

29^th Besty Trotwood, London

30^st Bertie’s Bar, Wimbledon

.. ..

JULY

2^nd The Mad Hatter’s Tea Party, London

10^th The Jericho Tavern, Oxford

11^th Whatstandwell Festival, Whatstandwell

12^th Emerge Festival, Heanor

12^th The Red Lion, Wirksworth

14^th Big Blue Coffee Shop, Derby

19^th County Offices, Matlock

.. ..

AUGUST
8^th Joe and Eve’s Wedding, Whatstandwell

16^th The Bell, Derby

.. ..

SEPTEMBER
17^th The Hobgoblin, Staines

18^th Acoustica Festival, Phoenix Arts Cafe, Exeter

19^th Eco Fest, Derby

19^th The Assembly Rooms, Derby

20^th The Bell, Bath

22^nd Chaplins, Bournemouth

23^rd Orange Street Music, Canterbury

24^th Hilltop Primary School, Maidstone

24^th The Green Berry, Deal

25^th Studio Bar, Penzance

26^th The September Festival, St. Ives

.. ..

OCTOBER

10^th Derby Traditional Music and Arts Festival, Derby

26^th The Royal, Derby

Hello all.

I'm looking to increase my band in size and fun.

I'm looking for the following:

Bass Guitar
Brass (preferably trumpet, but I'm open to suggestions)

Sex, age, race, etc irrelevant, but you must be over 18 and be free to tour and record regularly. You also need to be able to get to rehearsals in Derbyshire. Ability to drive is good but not essential. Oh and you need to be able to play your instrument well.. duh.

If you feel like joining my troop may be the perfect move for you then drop me an email with your details and preferably a link to you a clip of you playing: davidgibmusic@googlemail.com

Oo and please no time
wasters!

That is all :)
xxx

The lovely chaps at Alcopop Records have seen it fit to include me on their compilation CD.

And what a compilation it is to! It has the likes of Tellison, Unicorn Kid and and other such artsist that makes me most humbled.

Here's the wonderful gumpf. (SO exciting!!!)

Bottle – Buy now / MP3s only – Buy now

As featured in Loud and Quiet (full page) and no doubt garnering a sizable feature in ‘maps and bottles today’ – please, ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes upon Alcopopular 3… The latest in our relatively short line of compilations released on formats you wouldn’t necessarily expect.

First it was a 3”CD, then a tape – and now it’s a treasure map in a bottle… Yup! Featuring delicious exclusively (as yet) unreleased tracks from the likes of Pulled Apart by Horses, Apples, Paul Steel, Unicorn Kid, Stagecoach any more.. This physical glass bottle (all prettily Alcopopular) will arrive complete with ye olde map – leading you to the digitally downloadable booty that is these tracks

See – you can pretend to be a pirate and listen to some cracking tracks… Can’t beat that eh!

Full tracklisting here…
1. Tellison – Wasp’s Nest
2. Apples – Theo
3. David Gibb – The Oxfordshire Brigade
4. Stars and Sons - In The Ocen (piano version)
5. Town Bike – Cock Muff Bum Hole
6. Pulled Apart By Horses – E=MC Hammer
7. Stagecoach – We Got Tazers
8. Paul Steel – Psychedelia Smith
9. Unicorn Kid – Nuts n  Milk
10. Arrows Of Love – Prescriptions
11. Ice King of California - I Wouldn’t Want To Do That All
12. The October Game – Cast These Waves
13. The Computers – Track Four

Alcopopular 3 costs £5 for the full map and bottle experience, or just £4 to have the MP3 download link emailed straight to you, if (for some reason) you don’t think your music collection is lacking a bottle and treasure map format.

Bottle – Buy now

MP3s only – Buy now

In April/May me 'n' my gang headed out on a twenty date tour of the UK in a van with food and instruments. Here's some pictures and a ripping yarn of the events that took place.

DAVID GIBB'S FANTASTICAL WICKED SAFE AS MUSICAL ADVENTURE:
Featuring:
David Gibb
Elly Lucas
Ben Dew
Julian Butt

+ Supporting Cast

Chapter 1:
We set sail from Derbyshire after a wonderful album launch gig full of friends and merryment. We started things off with a good old gurning competition. Ben and I came 1st with a joint entry, with Julian coming in 2nd and Elly bring up the rear.




Chapter 2:
After a wonderful gig in Oxford (thankyou to Andy the soundman/Frank the promoter!) it was off to West Peckham Village Hall for a charity fundraiser. FACT - It's the smallest village in England. Very nice indeed. The night after we played Staines where we met a very drunk man who kept talking about Vaughn Williams and The Beautiful South in equal measure. Thanks to Angel for putting us on.

The next course of action was to pick up CD's from London, as they'd been delayed and unfortunately wern't ready for the album launch the previous night. Here's a cheeky snap of the opening ceremony:


Chapter 3:

Next up was a wonderbar show in LDN with our good friends The Momeraths and the fantastic Cocos Lovers. It was fun with music and dancing from everyone. However there was an interesting end to the evening with a very drunk unpleasant lady getting beaten up by a barman and our very own hero of the hour Ben Dew having to call the police. The policeman was very nice and took my myspace down and said he'd have a listen after his beat. The next day we took to the streets of London for some sight seeing. Elly and I went shopping whilst Ben and Ju went to the Museum of Musical Instruments. Snore.




Elly and I set about posting all the CD's to people who had ordered them. If you didn't get your CD it's most likely because it's hard to write addresses out properly in the back of a van.




Chapter 4:
We headed South-West to Penzance for a marvelous show hosted by the lovely Jak and Jamie of Table Sticks promotions. We had an amazing night, met too many lovely people to count on one body, and were treated like kings by Jak, which included a mega breakfast of a neverending supply of Omlettes.

The day after we played The Western Hotel in St. Ives with our good friends Lo Fi Lung supporting. Jak and her gang, plus loads of people who'd seen us play in Penzance came down to see us again which made everything extra special and generally nice.



Chapter 5:
Disaster had struck with both Canterbury shows being cancelled. However Dave from Hidden Away Music Nights (and also Cocos Lovers) came to the rescue and put us on at Berties Bar in Wimbledon. After a fun set which included a guest apperance from Paulo and Claire from The Momeraths on percussion, we headed back to their flat where we stayed up all night listening to cheesy vinyl, eating slightly tangy chocolate cake, and drinking whiskey. Elly and Claire got drunk, and swapped shoes.




Chaper 6:
Next was another London show at Monkey Chews hosted by the fabulous Joel from Ear Music Promotions. We stole a sign and took lots of pictures with it. It now comes with us everywhere..well it has done so far anyway.


Chapter 7:
It was time for a homely festival slot at Ashley Hay Festival back in the (Derby)Shire, organised by our very own Ben Dew. After our set we teamed up with Jack, Robyn and Holly from Mexican kids at home fom a big jam session thing in the beer tent after the main stage had finished. Robyn's mum was very drunk and kept telling Jack that he needed to "sort himself out." This was very funny.





Chapter 8:
After a few more shows that i can't quite remember we headed on down/up/east to Lincoln. Organised by the lovely Jessica from Simply.. music nights, we played there in January and were looking forward to coming back. Again Lo Fi Lung were supporting us. Here's some snaps.






Chapter 9:
I think that's about it. I haven't covered every gig and event, because it would take forever and be so dull no would ever read it. But that's a rough basis. There's still so many people left to thank, all the promoters and people who put us up, and all the friends and bands who made things that little bit more fun.

Here's some thigns to finish off with:




APRIL
16th Big Blue Coffee Shop, Derby
17th The Jericho Tavern, Oxford
18th The Village Hall, West Peckham
19th Hob Goblin, Staines
20th The Mother’s Ruin, Bristol
22nd The Sapphire Lounge, London
23rd The Bell, Bath
24th The Admiral Benbow, Penzance
25th The Western Hotel, St. Ives
26th Phoenix Cafe Bar, Exeter
28th Bertie's Bar, Wimbledon
29th The Tin Angel, Coventry
30th Monkey Chews, London

MAY
2nd Ashleyhay Festival, Derbyshire
3rd The Kitchen Garden Cafe, Birmingham
5th The Birdcage Norwich
6th The Royal, Derby
8th The Angel Coffee House, Lincoln
9th The Imperial Rooms, Matlock
10th Club 25, Hitchin



xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Thank you! :)

So I thought I'd write and tell you what's going on right now.

A week today I head out on a big tour to promote the release of my debut album which is out 'officially' in June (but will available at shows from next Thursday!).
There are now plans to record another album with more money, more time, and perhaps slightly less brass.
It was always my dream to create an epic pop album with loads of brass, something like a cross between Dexy's Midnight Runners, Van Morrison and Mika. I'd like to think I've achieved that, but I'll let you be the judge of that.

So the new songs that are being written are a bit more subtle, gentle, melancholy, sweet, twee, soft and lovely than the previous.

I suppose it what comes of spending more time with my dog, finishing school and becoming a drop out, and maybe, just maybe, growing up a little. But only a little mind..

Almost all the songs on my first album were written between the ages of 15-17 which is a thought.

I have a place at University which I don't know if I'm going to take or not. For the first time in my life I think I've realised I really like the place where I live. Unfortunately this revelation has coincided with the part of my life where I always thought I'd swan off to foreign parts and experience the world (I'm not sure what this entails but it probably has something to do with unusual types of alcohol, short trousers, sun burn and casual sex.)

But all that is a conumdrem for another day.
So yes. A new album, with a label and money behind it, lots more touring, and lots more things going on.

And maybe a hairtcut like this:

I am home from tour.

I've had an amazing two weeks, met some amazing people, had lots and lots of fun, and been to the seaside.



I've done some top 5 lists as well as a few pictures that got taken on our merry way.



Enjoy folks :)



Top 5 places we visited:

1. Wells Cathedral

2. St. Ives (the whole place in general)

3. Lincoln Cathedral

4. Oxford Castle

5. Siemens Mobile factory plant



Top 5 moments:

1. Julian getting hit by a wave in St. Ives

2. Taking the piss out of Elly pretty much the whole tour

3. Writing my name in the sand.

4. Getting drunk and making Elly count all my money on her bed at 2.00am.

5. Watching Julian getting as much free stuff as possible out of venues
in the UK. This included: cake, free tea refills(in Northampton and
Oxford), coffee, paninis mineral water, soup (in London and Norwich),
and a hotel room for 3 at no extra charge.



Top 5 driving songs:

1. More Than  A Feeling - Boston

2. Hard Times Of England Retold - Billy Bragg

3. The Boy With The Arab Strap - Belle & Sebastian

4. The Wrote And The Writ - Johnny Flynn

5. Every Beatles song pretty much ever - The Beatles



Top 5 purchases:

1. Checkered denim jacket from Lincoln

2. Real woolly jumper which smelt of sheep (in a good way) from St. Ives

3. My own body weight in sweets and crisps throughout

4. Weird whistle thing that made bird noises that Julian bought

5. Penny presses in Oxford and Wells.

....................

The English Retreat (Jan 08).... SANDNMAN MAGAZINE.... 'The English Retreat' is blissful slice of good old-fashioned jovial, quirky, British pop music. Verging somewhere in-between The Coral, Dexy's Midnight Runners, The Small Faces and Mika this song is the most cheekily delightful thing I've heard in a long time. The term 'lovely' as an adjective doesn't quite do it justice but will have to do for now. It bounds with a certain dynamic energy and has the most endearing break your heart vocals that you've heard for a while. Never could a song about leaving England raise such a smile. Long may David Gibb deliver his own uniquely interpreted radio friendly banter for years to come. .... Audioscribbler.co.uk.... There’s something unsettlingly Scouting for Girls/Hoosiers-like about the opening of The English Retreat, the first single from David Gibb’s debut album due out later this year. It’s most probably the simplistic, sprightly piano line that awakens early worries that the promising Derby-born lad’s taken a turn for the conventional Mondeo-rock, but thankfully it’s a fear that’s quashed early on as the backing band joins in with a fanfare of trumpets, trombone and - most impressively and integral here - accordion. Vocally Gibb’s still reminiscent of a younger David Ford, and the carousing spirit of the single recalls some of the better moments from ‘Songs on the Road’; it’d be hard on him to suggest that his evident skill for composition wasn’t up to the same standard, as it doubtlessly is. There’s also evidence of growth lyrically as well, since Gibb’s moved on from the awkward pep talk that marred some of the tracks on earlier EP ‘A Footpath of Hope for a Town in Despair’ into less dogmatic prose. The song’s not so much punctuated with turn-of-phrase gems as it is charming in its distinctive english wit about getting sick of dry-stone walling and - on a more individual note - the final line of ‘Maybe it all depends on who you really are inside’, which belies uncertainty in an understated, classically folky life-in-progress sort of way. It’s this undogmatic slant on the narrative that makes the song such a joy, bolstered with some rather traditional english eccentricities (come on, accordion and harmonica simultaneously?) that prove that even if Gibb were to leave the country - as his lyrics attest to - the country certainly won’t leave him. So, not a Scouting for Girls B-Side, then..... Toxicpete.co.uk....

I just love the glib intro to David Gibb as given in his press pack, 'David Gibb plays folk music. Sometimes he plays pop music. He ALWAYS sings like a girl, but is tall like a man. He likes to think of himself as a hairy Kate Nash. Hopefully he's wrong'!! Kinda sums the guy up well!! ....

David Gibb is somewhat enigmatic though; his songs tend to be light rather than heavy, he's sharper than Blunt and cheesier than Rice. Gibb's pop-folk way is more contagious than the 'clap' and often just as irritating! 'The English Retreat' finds David Gibb in true jolly-esque form; this is indeed an infectious and quirky little song and pretty much typifies his output. Gibb embellishes and punctuates this quite simplistic song with big 'horns' and a multitude of other, perhaps unexpected, instruments. The result is a hard-driven but uniquely soft-edged sound that goes straight to the feet and gets them a tappin'. His ebullient delivery is a joy to behold; his obvious love of music seems to ring out with everything he does or touches - Gibb exudes confidence, boyish playfulness and talent. ....

'The English Retreat' is a real blast and deserves serious air-time and exposure - surely Gibb must now be sitting comfortably on the edge of greatness; anticipating, eager, pepped-up and ready to rock! Gibb's style is at once charming, honest and believable and full of mature integrity - typically British, typically odd-ball! Is it pop or is it folk? Who the hell cares anyway? If it's folk then Gibb certainly brings a commercial edge to the form, if it's pop then it's pop with a deeper than usual meaning - intelli-pop, if you will!! ....

'The English Retreat' by David Gibb is feel-good music at its British best - damn near unputdownable and certainly a pleasant change from some of the more dreary and/or banal popular music we are so often subjected to. 'The English Retreat' raises spirits and leaves smiles in its wake - corkin' stuff from the Derbyshire troubadour with a difference! ....

Earmusic.co.uk....

Arguably somewhere between the lines of Ben Folds and a more lively Counting Crows musically, 18yr old David Gibb seems to be writing music beyond his years. Great concoctions of keys, guitars and brass, poppy lyrical melodies and an earnest vocal the key to his sound. ....

Subba-cultcha.com....

Beginning with a playful mix of horns and jazzy rhythms before exploding into something that’s not a hundred miles away from a rocksteady version of Jack Penate, the song needs another good hook to make it complete, but it’s a great start.....

Organ Magazine:
DAVID
GIBB – The English Retreat (Fuse) – Modern English folk-pop with a witty
wordy charm and a bit of an uplifting infectious Frank Turner feel. Full
of hope, despite the need to run away and avoid the cups of tea. He’s from
Derbyshire, he’s full of positive acoustic goodness, his songs are good,
his songs are charming and the grass is always greener over there away
from the dry-stone walls. CD Single comes in handmade covers, limited edition,
hand number and most importantly three fine songs – www.myspace.com/davidgibb

My single 'The English Retreat' is now available to preorder.
Just go to WWW.DAVIDGIBB.BIGCARTEL.COM
Here's a list of reasons to do so...
 1) You'll receive it a few days early. Not only that but when it arrives it'll look like this:

2) That little bundle is full of badges and stickers and other exciting things, as well limited edition tracks and remixes that'll never be released ever again. This is your one chance.
3)This is limited edition. Every single is numbered and handmade, so the sooner you preorder the higher the chances of being assigned copy number 1!
4) I'd really like you to buy it. It'd mean a lot to me. You'd literally make my day.

So a few more ways you can help out single wise....

1) Let all your friends know that I've got a single out and 'its not half bad either'. Word of mouth is genius. Seductively slip me into a conversation.

2) I've got A LOT of promo flyers to hand out. If you think you could help hand them out send me your address and how many you reckon you could give out.
However only do this if you really think you can give some out, as I can't afford to waste any!

Um. I think that's it. If you've got this far, then firstly - why? Go and do something productive.
And secondly thank you :) I REALLY appreciate any help at all!

Stay fun everyone!

I'll be updating this each time I recieve a new review so keep checking!

Toxicpete.co.uk
I get the general impression that David Gibb doesn't take himself as seriously as he should; this self-berating nu-folkster is overflowing with Britishness and light-pop attitude.  Clever writing and an unusual vocal delivery mean that Gibb has something curiously smart and viably commercial to offer his unsuspecting public.

Chirpy, quirky and down-home honest is the best way I can describe the work of this modest, modern-day troubadour. Understated boy-next-door reality with seasoned compositional skills maketh this man; Gibb mixes his charming, at times almost 'glib', words with a great understanding of instrumental dynamics and pop sensibility - David Gibb has much to offer the music world and this four track demo certainly demonstrates the poet and musician in the man.

Vocals apart, Gibb turns his versatile musical 'hand' to guitar, piano, Yamaha VSS-200 and harmonica. He calls in musical 'favours' from some excellent supporting instrumentalists here and between them they've made a damn fine job of getting Gibb's music knocked into a well proportioned and tantalising feast of modern pop-folk that's bright and infectious. Thankfully, Gibb doesn't over-do the studio work here; he keeps this EP very real, very clean-cut and therefore very accessible.

David Gibb shows great skill and awareness here; he's much better than he chooses to let on - he's got great commercial possibilities and he's someone that, given the right help, could easily make this all work. Really tidy stuff this from an excellent artist that deserves to be heard.

Read it here

UKmusicsearch.co.uk