Thought I'd drop you a quick note, as Dad mentioned he was sending through to you a copy of some of the songs from our band. In advance, as I don't expect it's got to you yet, I thought you might like some background.
We originally formed the band, The 14 Carat Grapefruit, when at school some 25 years ago! We had a serious (!) Band preposterously called Venetian Blind, a rather pompous effort in retrospect, and a few of us wanted to have fun as an outlet. 14 CG was formed to be purely a support band, and rules were clear - no rehearsals and all music to be written within 48 hours of stage performance - edgy stuff!! We had a couple of very good musicians (not me) which helped, but it made the music very raw and simple, with a lot of invention, which we rather liked.
When we all went off to University, everything unwound, and I lost touch with everyone until just over a year ago, when I met up with the lead singer/lyricist at a Wedding. He was in touch with one other, who in turn knew a few more, and after much healthy e-mail stuff, we had a 'Blues Brothers' moment and decided to get the band back together for a day in a studio.
Rather strangely, instead of the original band, a whole load of old blokes with little hair and expanding waistlines turned up! Nevertheless, we had a great day reminiscing (it's not what it used to be, you know, reminiscing) and although we were extremely rusty, managed to play something.
It's funny how life changes - we always liked to be a bit alternative, but the band members now consisted of a leading fund manager in the city, the senior partner in a Manchester law firm, the owner of one of the best financial planning consultancies in London (note the intense modesty on my part here) and a very successful property developer. Very rock 'n roll!!
Anyway, the guys who live in London decided that this was too much fun to leave it at that, and we have now officially reformed the Grapefruit, with a new guitarist and drummer that we already new, and have been gently trashing out songs ever since.
We have also discovered our niche. Gone are the whimsical dreams of playing Wembley. Instead, we can firmly be placed in the 'comedy/offensive' category (indeed, I think we have created the category). We are slowly building a set that should find something to offend everyone. Why? Well, just because, really..... A lot more fun that love songs, and far better live.
The CD you'll receive is a bit of a mish-mash of stuff, some recorded in a studio, some in my office boardroom (the wonders of technology). This represent about half the current material, and not necessarily the best, just stuff that is available to put on a disk at the moment. We have other little gems, including 'Deathwish', a ditti whose opening lines are:
Ossama Bin-Laden gives all the boys a hard on
He's the rich Sugar Daddy of his pouting jihadii.
You get the drift. The current working title is therefore more a personal profacy for ourselves if we ever play it live.
As the CD you get will have no titles anywhere, here is the song list:
When your little boy says Bol!@cks - the frustrations of parenthood.
Minger - 2 versions on the CD, this is the studio version, faster and angrier than the other.
Filler Material - it is what it says
Cleaning Lady - a rant by any other name
Wrinkled Prunes - one of our original songs, and one of 2 I wrote, so a bit more Bass guitar!
Simon and Ann - ditto above. Written about the lead guitarist when at school, smitten by young love, to the extent that he was forever lending her things as tokens of affection, often including things that weren't his! Meaningless to anyone else, but we like it!
Bishop Wagstaff - a reggae riff to a peadophile vicar.
40 years of Sweeties - a sweet song to offend the clynically obese.
Information Technolgy - the total angst of dealing with computers
Minger - original version recorded in boardroom, which we still like (perhaps more than the studio version)
Hope you like them, or at least tolerate the music, as some of the lyrics really are very funny.
Lesley, needless to say, thinks this is all some sad middle-aged crisis - she may of course be right, but less expensive than a ferrari or mistress.
If you'd like more, I'll get future stuff out to you, to own and cherish as part of your collection. If you'd rather not, I quite understand!!! Probably best not played with young children, or the sensitive types, in earshot!!
Anyway, enough from me. Hope everything is good your end - from what I've gleaned from Dad, it all sounds excellent.
Hopefully be in touch soon.
Love
Adrian Ware
