Should be some interesting news on the band front in a month or so

Currently rehearsing with Jen Halper (vocals, harp), Manny Aigner (guitars/vocals), Mark Bichard (drums/vocals) and Dennis Milsom (keyboards/vocals) to add a new band to the local mix in 2018.  Watch this space.

"BiiK"

"BiiK" is a collaboration between Peter Reid (drummer with PBGB) and myself.  The concept and many of the ideas are Pete's - my job was to put them into a workable recording.
  
Pete played all the drum loops in using his Roland e-kit and I played all the bass, guitar and keyboard parts (many of which I turned into loops). 

It's big and it's dirty and was a joy to work on - a classic PBGB Pete'n'Neil collaboration..

It's up on the PBGB BandCamp page HERE.  Give it a listen.

"When Ya Gonna?" - more Shed fun :)

This started out as a PBGB jam in the Shed with John Drews, Peter Reid, Steve Faggotter, Graham Brown and me. I took the rudimentary instrumental tracks and added some words (and some length) in my home studio - et voila!

We had a ball doing this - whenever John drags a Hammond into the Shed it's always a good musical omen.

Steve Faggotter - Telecaster
Neil Porter - Bass, Vocals and Production
John Drews - Hammond organ
Peter Reid - Roland E-Drums,
Graham Brown - percussiony bits and pieces


When Ya Gonna?
©2017 Lyrics: Neil Porter

1

When you gonna
Lift your game
When you gonna
Say my name
When you gonna
Get it right
One day you gonna
See the light

2
When you gonna
Play your part
When you gonna
Break my heart
When you gonna
Walk away
One day you gonna
Up and stray

SOLOS

3
When you gonna
Show a sign
When you gonna
Say you’re mine
When you gonna
Take my hand
One day you gonna
Understand

4
When you gonna
Lift your game
When you gonna
Say my name
When you gonna
Get it right
One day you gonna
See the light

One day you gonna
See the light

One day you gonna
See the light

MARASTIQUE - Surfing World

Here's one from the archive - Surfing World Edition16 #5 article on Marastique.  Some continuity problems, but you'll get the gist.  Must have been early 70s.  Good times!

PBGB On a Roll with "Wood U Like Chips With That?"

PBGB recorded this in 2010. We'd written it for a gig we did for a local conservation group, and played it live once. We forgot about it soon after recording it as we changed personnel and the gig was over. This is the second studio recording we did at the time and features Chris Ralfs on bass, Gus Washbourne on guitar, Peter Reid on drums and me on vocals, guitars, keyboards and production.

I accidentally stumbled across it on an old hard drive and decided to rejuvenate it a bit and set it free. As it turns out, I didn't have to do much to it, just a tweak or two in Ozone 5 really.

I'm really pleased we found this, as it is from a very creative period in the PBGB Shed when we were trying out some pretty "out there" things - definitely the "golden age" of PBGB from my point of view.

Enjoy :)

Wood U Like Chips With That? 

©2010 Peter Reid/Neil Porter 

There’s protest in the forest 

Two different points of view you 

see 

One on the side of nature 

One on the economy 

There are those that see the 

forests 

As revenue, that’s that 

There’s those that see the trees as 

crucial habitat 

Some people protest 

They know just what it’s worth 

They put their bodies on the line 

To save the lungs of the universe 

They know their grandkids 

Need the forests and the trees 

Koalas in the treetops 

Let’s protect the air we breathe 

What do we want? 

When do we want it? 

Hands off our future 

We want it now 

What do we want? When do we 

want it? 

Do it now! 

SOLO x 2 verses (16 bars) 

What do we want? 

When do we want it? 

Hands off our future 

We want it now 

What do we want? When do we 

want it? 

Do it now! 

We can’t all join the protest 

But we can back the people who 

were there 

We can help to pay the fines 

We can show them that we care 

The forests are for everyone 

They belong to us all 

The trees hold our future 

Let’s not see them fall 

There’s protest in the forest 

Two different points of view you 

see 

One on the side of nature 

One on the economy 

There are those that see the 

forests 

As revenue, that’s that 

There’s those that see the trees as 

crucial habitat 

What do we want? 

When do we want it? 

Hands off our future 

We want it now 

What do we want? When do we 

want it? 

Do it now!

Featuring:
Peter Reid on drums
Gus Washbourne on guitar
Chris Ralfs on bass
Neil Porter on vocals, guitar, keyboards

"Dead Man Walking"

It's been at least 4 months since I wrote this, and it's been sitting around gathering dust for ages - until this morning, when I decided it was time to post it so I can start something new. Originally written with PBGB in mind, but I just can't seem to have any success with my songs in that context at the moment.
Lyrics could really be about anything these days - is it just me, or is the world in a mess - though I suspect the subject matter when I wrote it was the voting public responsible for the current nightmare in US politics. I've said it before: wtf were you thinking!
It's a solo effort - drums by Mason in Drummer.

Lyrics

Dead Man Walking
©2017 Neil Porter

D7 D7sus4
You’re just a dead man walking
You don’t realise
You’re just a poor fool talking
Like all the other guys
D#9
Dead man walking
F9
Poor fool talking
D7 D7sus4
D#9
Dead man walking
F9
Poor fool talking

Another blind man watching
Was there another way?
You must be hard of hearing
You had so much to say
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking

BRIDGE: | G7 | G7 | C | C | F9 | F9 | Fm7 | Gm7 |

You’ve got so much to say
But I don’t know what you mean
I hear the words OK
But I can’t read in between
Sometimes I wonder
Did you learn anything at school
You’ve got so much to say
Not saying anything at all

SOLO

I’m hearing what you’re saying
But I don’t understand
I see the game you’re playing
See through your messy plans
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking

You got my blood near boiling
I didn’t understand
Your squeaky wheel needs oiling
You need to kick some cans
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking

Dead man walking
Poor fool talking
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking

Dead man walking
Poor fool talking
Dead man walking
Poor fool talking

PBGB version of "Under The Southern Cross"

I wrote "Under The Southern Cross" in 2011 as a response to Cyclone Yasi which caused so much damage and loss of life in Queensland.

At the time, I recorded my own version of the song, and we went on to also record this PBGB version in The Shed in trio mode.  This has only recently re-surfaced after being inexplicably "lost" on a hard drive for over 5 years.

At the time, trio mode (Chris Ralfs on bass, Peter Reid on drums and vocals, and myself on guitar and vocals) was our regular lineup - this version is a good indication of how we were sounding, although I have added some keyboards and percussion and re-sung the vocals.  Other than that, it's pretty much live.

To me, this is the "golden" period of PBGB when we were original, with each of us working to our strengths in writing, singing and playing.  I miss the creativity and simplicity of these times, and the feeling of potential every time we "had a crack" at a new tune.

So, this version shows Pete's ability to provide a driving rhythmic backbone, Chris' relentless but inventive basslines and my slightly "out there" guitar work and vocals.  I'm also pretty pleased with the production on this.

Under The Southern Cross 

©2011 Neil Porter 

Dark night 

Under the Southern Cross 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Star bright 

Look at the things we lost 

Do right 

Do right 

Dark night 

Under the Southern Cross 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Big rain 

Out of the southern sky 

Big fright 

Big fright 

Hard pain 

After the longest dry 

Not right 

Not right 

Dark night 

Under the Southern Cross 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Hold tight, hold tight 

SOLO 

Don’t know 

How much it’s going to cost 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Can’t say 

How many lives are lost 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Dark night 

Under the Southern Cross 

Hold tight 

Hold tight 

Hold tight

Some Say We Get What We Deserve - WTF America?!

My Trump trilogy of songs has become quadrophonic!
I still don't believe he's been elected - America wtf were you thinking!?

There's a pretty liberal dose of midi in this - which is how I got the punch in the bass. Gavin plays drums.

I have had most of the backing track for a while and did the lyrics and vocals over the last couple of days.

Some Say We Get What We Deserve

©2017 Neil Porter

Some say we get what we deserve
You think I’m messing with your head
I think there’s dangerous times a-coming
I think there’s lots of work ahead

You’ve got a lot of nerve
“Things are broken” that’s what you said
I can’t see things getting any better
We got a can of worms instead

Some say we get what we deserve
Some say we get what we deserve

SOLO

You see a chance to start again
I see a nightmare riding in
It seems we’ve borrowed so much trouble
Some kind of mess you’ve sunk us in

Some say we get what we deserve
Some say we get what we deserve
Some say we get what we deserve

Some say we get what we deserve

CD #5 released "Looking Like The Real Thing.

"Looking Like The Real Thing" was (perhaps prematurely) released just before Christmas 2016.

It contains 15 songs from the last two years, and was written in Australia and France.  Many of the songs have had mp3 versions available for a little while, but this is the first release of CD quality aif tracks of any of the 15 songs.

Apart from two tracks where Jan joins in on harmony vocal, and "Snake Oil" which features members of PBGB (Peter Reid on drums, Kerrie Hynes on vocal and Mick Nadin on harmonica), all instruments and vocals are performed by me.

You can listen to it from the player below or go to the CD's BandCamp page and read lyrics, view track info, and even buy it at a ridiculously low price.

I reckon it's my best collection of songs so far.  I hope you like it too.