December 2004

Drew McAdam: DECEMBER 2004 NEWSLETTER
Tel: 01506 873013
www.drewmcadam.co.uk

Hi, how are you? In great spirits, I hope. Here is the DECEMBER Newsletter.(If you receive this it's because we've had some dealings in the past, you're a personal friend, or because you've expressed an interest in receiving the newsletter… or all of the above. However, if you have no wish to receive further issues - just hit reply and enter "unsubscribe" in the subject box. I won't take offence!)
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Well, did you have a good Christmas? Mine was nothing I hoped it would be... but I’m not going into that here. These things can happen at any time of the year; it just stinks when it falls during the Festive Season, don’t you think? So, tough. On with the show and into 2005. Wheeeehooo!
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NOW WE ARE MANY
My, how we’ve grown! I was counting up the number of individuals this newsletter now goes out to: people I cherish, loved ones, good friends, associates, and blokes I’ve met in pubs – and there are just under 2,000 of you! Well, may I wish every one of you a prosperous and peaceful New Year. God knows, we could do with it.
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LOST
If there really is a Sixth Sense, then it is the Sense of Direction – and mine sucks! Which is why, in a recent, unwelcome adventure, I managed to REALLY lose myself, en-route to a gig in the new-town of Cumbernauld. For those of you who are not familiar with this town, it’s a desert with windows, a municipality that has more roundabouts, A-class roads, flyovers, nameless streets, dual carriageways and sliproads to oblivion than anywhere on the face of this planet. Little wonder then that I should get so gloriously lost; exploring housing schemes and industrial estates in my quest for the Westerwood Hotel.

Spurred on by this unwelcome event, I invested in a TomTom GO GPS satellite navigation unit for my car. My advice to you? If you don’t have one – buy one. You just stick the little monitor thingy to the windscreen of your car (yes, on the INSIDE), type in the address where you want to navigate to – right down to the house number - and a pleasant female voice tells you – as you travel – every turn to take, every exit from every motorway. Everything. I just love my electronic stress-buster.

All I need now is a similar thing to tell me where my car keys are.

Oh, yes, one tip for you that I discovered: if you DO purchase a GPS and you have it connected to your computer to download all the speed camera sites, do NOT press "yes" when it asks you if you want to format the SD card (the memory card for the GPS). And do NOT sigh, roll your eyes and click "yes" when it asks you if you’re sure. Because it really DOES wipe the whole thing clean and you’ll find yourself on a return trip to wherever you bought the thing – without the aid of its navigation!

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GIGS THIS MONTH
Johnny Brown, an old school chum of mine from North Berwick, asked me to do a spot for the Life Assurance Association of Scotland at the Sheraton Hotel in Edinburgh. Then there were two evenings in quick succession at the Deer Park Beefeater in Livingston. I also had a charity gig in association with Central Police in Falkirk Town Hall, followed by a dash to South Queensferry for a 45-minute cabaret spot at Orroco Pier in South Queensferry. Another gig at Tiger Tiger in Glasgow (what a place THAT is!). Airth Castle on Christmas Day and an after dinner spot at the splendid Roxburgh Country House Hotel near Kelso.

However, the best gig – for me – was an informal, post-concert performance at the Braid Hills Hotel in Edinburgh for Steve Harley and Cockney Rebel. Steve and the band was performing in Edinburgh (and what a gig it was!) and I was invited back to "do my thing" and spend the night at the hotel.

Oh, and while we’re on the subject of Messrs Harley, he has been working on a DVD, with nine cameras, edited down to a proper film, 50-minutes long. But more: he brought a film crew to Edinburgh for an additional 40-minute piece, and I was honoured to be interviewed as a guest for the "extras" on the disc. What a gas! Of course, I’ll probably end up on the cutting room floor – good-lookers only on a music DVD, you know!

Biggest portion of the work this month has been a series of regular appearances at The Westerwood Hotel in Cumbernauld, culminating in a Hogmany gathering to see in the New Year. Busy, and fun. What more could I ask for?

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GIGS FOR NEXT MONTH
This list will be added to: Melville Castle, Three gigs in Edinburgh, After dinner in Aberdeen, Prestonfiled Hotel, Highland Hotel in Stirling, and Edinburgh International Conference Centre.
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BOOK
My new book will be heading off to the printers soon, now that I’ve finally finished correcting the proof copy. Can’t wait to see the finished product. (I love deadlines – especially that funny sound they make as they go whooshing past.)
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OVER AND OUT
And that’s it for the month. But for the year? It’s been a rollicking adventure, with trips to The Canaries and to New York. The surprise meeting with Uri Geller in London – coincidence of a lifetime, that. I’ve lost a couple of dear friends this year – but I gained new ones. Give and take. Take and give. The saddest moments were when those who are dear to me took life too seriously. The best moments were when those nearest and dearest to me smiled. Warmly.
I hope we’ve all learned something from 2004 and we can take it forward with us into 2005.

Peace to you, yours, and your neighbours.

Drew