HAPPY NEW YEAR AND ON WE GO

Just a quick burst to say All The Best to my merry followers and friends.

Hope 2010 brings you everything you would like and need. 2009 has been quiet for musical goings on for me apart from my much lauded Words Falling On The Page album, a thousand thanks to those that have sent me their thoughts and reviews, and if you havent checked it out you can still download it for free, along with full artwork, liner notes and lyrics from the link to the left

2010 promises much though including a follow up to the above forementioned album from me, a rebirth of once saluted acoustic trio Cuban Paint, featuring legendary hanger-on Dunf and the newly Ukelele'd Hesh and The Cheesemakers? Well, we just need a place to bloody rehearse!!! Help anyone!

Many many new songs to unfold next year across all three formats, solo acoustic, trio acoustic and band, so here's hoping you're still along for the ride

Please keep checking the blog for updates on what we're up to, I expect a nice little update and maybe a recording or two to appear in January from the first fruits of the CP reunion.

So all the best for New Years Eve, drink deep and remember, always enjoy music responsibly

CheersAndy

Brand New Reviews just in...

After whats seems like, and actually has been, months without email/a reliable PC etc I am finally able to post these superb, very different, new reviews of 'Words Falling On The Page' from two different corners of the world. Massive thanks to folks below who took the time to read the sleeve notes, the lyrics and listen to the album properly. Read on MacDuff...

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So as you tell in the liner notes, the recording took place at home, and we all can hear this. I don't go further on the quality, which is good, but no studio quality. So we don't have to quote this on
every track.
Cover
I don't like parents talking 'bout their kids with talent, but this time you are definitely right. As I
think these are some superb shots made by your daughter. They show a grim looking Andy in
sunlight – so I think it's the theme for the record. As you tell – you are not happy with life in
england nowadays, but I'm sure you have a lot of hope – that's the sun. So nice cover, with an
superb photo. Congratulation to your daughter, I would like to make pics on that level :-)
Songs
The Silver Torch
The album starts with a fantastic song. Great chord-structure, lovely melody. You play some
amazing guitar and I am not missing any other instrument. I love the chorus. There are all the notes, that fit the song, but nothing else. So there is space for your own thoughts. Great track!
Picture Postcard (sing but never leave) A critical text here about the new digital world and against rubbish music, composed, recorded and mixed with no passion. I totally agree with this song. The chorus is really beautiful – both text and melody. Great song, which would be perfectly suited by a complete instrumentation.
Wishing & Believing
In this song, the chord-structure characters the whole song perfectly. Grim text that comes from the heart – you can really hear it. It sounds great only with guitars, but I can imagine this as a full instrumented song – drums, bass, guitar, organ/keyboards as well. Listening to it, I can really hear the “other” version, even if it's not existing yet. So I call this your “foot of the mountain”, 'cos it's great in 2 versions – nearly acoustic and complete.
When You Close Your Door
Even if you say, that there's a grim mood again, it is clear, that you're a person with great hope.
Love melody again with a guitar-playing, perfectly fitting the song.
More To Life Than Sorrow
A nice riff, but I wouldn't have played through all the song. So it seems to me like having an idea
for a song, but don't get farther. In my opinion a good demo for a coming song. Sorry for being
honest, but you wanted me to be so ;-). Even the part in the middle, not bad at all, but for me not finished yet.
My Life Over
Great song, sounding a little bit like a Lennon-Demo round about 1965/1966 :-)
I love this song, 'cos the text is perfectly for the father-child relationship. The kids show you the
way to be young again... So this is my own interpretation of this song. Lovely text. And you're right, the feeling of the performance is just great.
You Never Win
Another favourite. I love the nice flowing feeling of the verse. And really flowing the message: you never win. Fantastic. You can see this from two positions. The one is the looser, that always groans: no matter how hard I try, I never win to a fictive third person. Or the winner, that tells the second.... love this song. And the guitar work is admirable... perfect sound for this song.
Picture Postcard (Quality Quills)
A true text, packed into a nice melody. Well, it would have been better to write this complete review with my pen on paper and send it by regular mail... but I'm grateful for not having your postal address ;-)))
But I loke this song, 'cos it's so true. No one's writing cards or letters. Just mails and sms... I really hate this sms-thing... So great song, even if it's not a big thing.... just simple, true and GREAT!!!
Brave New World
Again, as in “you never win”, there's a critical, nearly brutal text with a lovely flowing melody. The text, great and again really true shows that you're thinking 'bout the world around. And you have to be cautious to get the message. It is easy to listen to your songs and say – well, great, lovely... sound really good. But that's not the point. The point here is, that you have something to say. You're looking round and you see, there's something going wrong – just as you tell in the foreword...
Hiding in Sunsets, Trading in Tears
Again a great text with a lot of possibilities to interpret it in my own way. In your annotations you give a hint of what you mean to say... nothing more to this. A lovely performance with a lot of passion in it.
Summary
All in all, this is a fantastic little home-made album. It's hard to compare it to studio-albums, 'cos of the lack of perfect production. But I really love the songs. They show, that you are a intelligent
person, looking round and seeing, that there a many things going wrong nowadays. But you're not going to hide, you tell with a lot of hope, that there is a light at the end of every tunnel... you just have to go in the right direction. As I told in the beginning, it is stupid to talk about the sound, knowing that it was made at home. But one thing... a little bit different guitar-sound would be fantastic. The older songs are great, 'cos the sound was a little different, so it's not going to be a boring sound.... why not trying some acoustic-guitar with pick-ups? But that's my opinion.
Well to be honest. I'm glad I did the download, and I'm glad to have listened to this album. I'm also glad to have contacted you. It would be easier for me to write in german, but that would be no help for you. So I hope you understand my english and there are not too many mistakes in it ;-)
Have a nice day
Peace & Love
Wolfram Jaschke, Germany

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There's a sense in which the common complaint about a lack of authenticity in music misses the point. Pop music can be glorious fun whether or not the artists wrote the songs, played the instruments, or whatever. Anyone who denies this is a lemon-sucking grump. On the other hand, there's a sense in which the complaint hits the point. Fun though pop is, there's something intrinsically valuable about music that articulates a clear artistic vision, a vision that belongs wholly to one person or group.

The complaint is, then, that the modern music industry tends to deprive us of such music by ensuring that every act it promotes appeals as much as possible to the mass mid-market, or to some carefully selected demographic, at the expense of allowing the artist to really express themselves. This tendency explains why it's so refreshing to hear records like Words Falling on the Page. Just from the cover photos, it's apparent that Andy isn't oblivious to his image. But you know that the carefully chosen objects with which he appears have been chosen by because they express something he wants to say, not because they might say something to a target audience. The heartfelt, detailed liner notes make it clear that this record is a deeply personal endeavour. We really are getting one man's music, his take on things he cares about, played and produced just how he wants it to be.

So let's talk about what that vision is. From the notes, you might expect to hear an angry, despairing record. And certainly, the mood isn't positive. But the album strikes me as something both less and more than angry. It's less than angry, in that the mood is more mild; resignation, sadness, futility perhaps. The world, as Andy sees it, is in a pretty bad way, and there's not much to be done about it. There's occasional rays of hope and sunshine, and nostalgia can provide an escape, but all in all, “today it's the brainless, thoughtless and gormless” who run things.

It's more than angry, though, because anger is a simple emotion, and its expression slips over into parody too easily. Instead, Andy spins us a nuanced, complex, fragile web of affect and feeling, one that is much easier to be drawn into and sympathise with than some string of crude fuck-the-world songs. It's understated; an elegy, not a requiem. It's undoubtedly authentic; it's authentically human. We get a genuine portrait of the artist, in the whole and in the round.

Still, authenticity's all very well, but it doesn't matter if the music is rubbish. Thankfully, it's not. Nothing's perfect here; Andy misses notes occasionally, once or twice the recording becomes raw and a little roughshod. But the record, in part, is about the world's imperfections, and it would be incongruous were that theme conveyed by perfectly glossed guitars and faultless vocals. Instead, the record is as accomplished as it needs to be, and no more than it should be. There's a perfect match between the themes and their expression. The melodies and their underscoring are delicate, ethereal, and in a way insubstantial. but several of them stick in your head, repeating as fragments. Again, this matches the mood; the feelings expressed are hard to pin down, evanescent, and yet the overall effect is lasting and engrossing.

The main strength of Andy's songs is his lyrics. He employs a vocabulary that's broader and more expressive than the standard rhyming-dictionary palette, without straying too far in the other direction of ostentation and pretension. He manages to be evocative of both particular times and places, and at the same time of more abstract moods and atmospheres. Rather than try to nail a subject or a feeling with a single line, he lets each song gradually unfold, in a voice that, again, is is surprisingly delicate, vulnerable, tremulous at times.

I've not said anything so far about individual songs, and in a way I don't want to. The moods and themes of the album are expressed by its whole, and singling out one tune or another detracts from the sense of the whole. But the melody of the opening track, The Silver Torch, is a perfect example of those haunting phrases of music that Andy does well. Picture Postcard (Quality Quills) evokes, in the same song, nostalgia, regret, specific sentiments, general ones, and a final twist of hope that maybe, it might be OK after all. Its counterpart, Picture Postcard (Sing But Never Leave) is both a heartfelt complaint and a defiant celebration. You Never Win is perhaps the closest the album comes to simple, outright despair, but it's tempered by the preceding two songs, which express, in a quiet way, thankfulness for what Andy has and hope that there's more good to come.

It would be stupid to exaggerate; this album is not revolutionary. It has antecedents, lyrically, melodically, and thematically, that Andy himself acknowledges. But it is, genuinely, an authentic record, and one that achieves a neat fit of mood, music, and lyric. Finally, perhaps most importantly and impressively, it's a brave and honest record. Andy has given us an eloquent and open picture of how he feels and what he thinks, and the experience of finding out is richly rewarding.

Nick Wiltsher, Miami, Florida

Back back back

Hi all, I'm back from two superb holidays in Northumberland and Norfolk, maybe next time I'll move onto another letter. nb - I once was a quizmaster at a pub at there was a team there called Norfolk & Chance, took me months to figure it out, but I was reminded of this last week.

Anyway just wanted to drop these thoughts into the ether or whatever it's called these days, just spent a week with family and a few songs came to fruition as the manor house (no shit) I was staying at had a resident guitar and I just couldn't help myself and maybe the themes are about love and peace (not in a hippy sense, more seperately, peace in a quiet sense rather than war and that) and serenity so perhaps the next album is finding a direction already, one song has a title and that is "Whoever, Wherever, Whenever". Your comments so far are inspiring me to begin work on another record almost immediately.

Anyways, trying to settle back into mundane, terrible regular life so ciao for now lovers

Andy

First words slipping in

The first few tentative words about the album are filtering in from the world, and I'm overjoyed to see that people really taking their time with it and giving it the time of day and here are a few snippets:

"...digesting...notes to follow..." Guru Greeny, Somewhere out There

"on the same lines as Greeny,after reading the notes, instructions etc i thought F*** it! its a bloody good album - I'm going to listen and enjoy it for a while rather than study it like homework. i'll hand in my essay b4 the end of term though. Promise! i'm onto my 3rd full listen of the album. I'm more into melodies than lyrics which is what puts me off a lot of acoustic stuff but i should have known better. you always have a decent tune!!" Dodgy Gary, UK

"Due to some technical problems, I have only been able to listen to the album at low volume at the office.
Here are my first impressions...
I do like the album as a whole. I fear that this will sound like a cliche: this album feels more honest and true to Andy as an artist. As a member of The Cheesemakers, Andy writes good tunes. His lyrics usually feature clever wordplay and tell stories. And I enjoy that. When I listen to the solo piece, I feel that Andy has created songs about things that are personal to him. I have not had a chance to see the lyrics so this may be off-base. Having said that, the feel of the songs seems to convey that to me.

As Andy Cheesemaker, he is the frontman/performer/entertainer. As Andy Ferguson, he is the artist." JR Remke, Chicago, USofA

"My review will be a very very cautious one, Need to have all my senses on the record, you know what I mean! I need to be in the right mood. Can’t listen it once in my car and make a review." Yann Viseur, France

(Check out Yann's wondrous Blog here - http://musiccornershop.blogspot.com/ )

It should be noted at this point that there is no-one out there whom has put more effort into promoting this album than Yann, and for no other reason than he likes the album and wants to help! It just helps a little to restore ones faith in human nature, I think. Yann and his Blog is Magnifique!

"Shite! Never liked him" Hesh, The Boldons, UK

So some tentative words here but I'm looking forward to the floods of detailed and extensive reviews that will no doubt be piling in this week :o)

Cheers me luvs

Andy

Ps - Go see Quadrophenia the new stage play when you get a chance, caught it last night at Sunderland Empire and was superb

WORDS FALLING FROM THE PAGE - SOLO ALBUM RELEASED TODAY!

ANDY CHEESEMAKER - WORDS FALLING ON THE PAGE

It is with great pleasure that I can announce that my debut solo album, 'Words Falling On The Page' is released today and can be downloaded for free using the link below. The package is zipped and comes with the ten music tracks, full colour artwork to be printed and fitted into a PVC sleeve as opposed to a jewel case, lyrics to all ten songs and detailed liner notes.

I'd be very happy indeed if you would give this album a listen, in the proper listening environment, accompanied by both the lyrics and liner notes so that you get the full picture and I'd be overjoyed if you could find time send me your thoughts, either by posting here on the Blog or by mailing me direct,

afne04343@blueyonder.co.uk , good or bad, detailed or brief, your time would be much much appreciated.

And so I surrender this work to the public and hope you find something from it.

Feel free to copy, distribute, give to relatives for Xmas etc, I want as many people as possible to hear this stuff.

Link to download on Megaupload - http://www.megaupload.com/?d=QTU7L37C

*Please note this new link takes you to the updated version with the improved Lyric Folder.

Cheers

Andy 2nd July 2009

Cheesemakers Rare Video Link Update

It seems, for a change, that the link below doesn't work!!!!! Agggh

Anyways, go to youtube.com, search Cheesemakers and on the first or second page will be what you're loooking for, the footage is from The Archer. Once you get one of them you'll see the others on the right in 'more from dodgygary'.

"Technology shows us, up to be bogus" Andy

Rare Vintage Cheesemakers Footage Found

Some fantastic new live gig footage has appeared on the You Tubes courtesy of long time Cheesemakers follower Dodgy Gary. It features virtually the whole set from The Archer, Jesmond, Newcastle on 21st September 2004.

The lot can be found at

http://www.youtube.com/resultssearch_type=&search_query=dodgygary&aq=f

some of it even seems to be in High Definition! The sound is great and it's a pretty top performance by the band including the amazing microphone juggling act during Leicester quickly followed by my attempt to sing into a mic stand without a mic on it, and then carrying on ANYWAY! Priceless. The perfect example of the show must go on.

Many thanks to Gary for unearthing this footage and making it available.

...In other news....the solo album is now in the artwork stage and should be up here for your delectation very soon

Andy

Solo Album COMPLETED

In other news...the world rocked on its axis today. Dodgy Gary will be happy for some SHOCK news.

Andy of The Cheesemakers met a deadline that he said he would and completed the recording of his debut solo album today!
Still standing?

The ten songs are now 'in the can', as they say and ready to rumble, although due to the delicate nature of the tracks, a rumble isn't too likely, more a brief murmur.
Now all that awaits are the taking of photos for the sleeve (great Fathers Day present in my opinion) writing of sleeve notes and loading it up to the mother-host. Having been stung by financial sums in recent releases, this will be an internet, Free Gratis, download only situation. Almost Bespoke in its nature.

With the 10 tracks will be a file of Liner Notes, a file of the Lyrics and a PDF file of the artwork for you to print out your damn-well-self.

This should occur within the next 7-10 days, after which I would request, nay beg for, some great and serious reviews that will appear, un-edited, here, on the Cheesemaker Blog.

I feel a sense of achievement, in that I set out to do this, as one piece of work based around one subject. Maybe a concept album, but more of a themed album. is there a difference?
The achievement is that Ive always written songs, always put releases together, but this is the first time I have written 10 songs for a particular purpose and reason, recorded them and put them out as one body of work. Im very proud tonight, I hope you share my projected pride.

Spoiler - Its a solemn listen with rays of light splitting through the curtains, so buy in suitable alcoholic accompaniment. 'Don't worry' though, Curtis Mayfield helped me complete the album today, because the record was so full of grimness I felt it needed some light and 'More To Life Than Sorrow' became the last song written and recorded for the album today in it's entirety and it brought me some hope, hope it does to you also, Brothers and the Whiteys!

Thats all for now
Details very soon on this Blog on how, and why, to get it!

Cheers all

Andy

p.s. - some fabulous news just in as regards archives on the band, more soon...

Jealousy Bites Archive Track & RELEASE DATE

Evening all

I'm feeling quite excited about the looming completion of the solo album, this will happen on Wednesday and the album will be available to download in full for FREE 7 days after that. Im so excited that Ive felt the need to upload another long lost treasure, nothing to do with the solo album but a long lost unused Cheesemakers track. Here it is in its rough, early demo crappy tape deck variation. Its called Jealousy Bites and harks back to the days when Hesh still strummed the strings for us.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=ZDXYU5G6

Enjoy and please be sure to check back on Wednesday 24th June for the solo album release links. Christ! That sounds like a release date, gadzooks! Best get the cover shots taken then!

Cheers me buggers
Andy

I Can't See Out of the Window

A bonus update. Today's solo album session was superb, two more new tracks recorded, mixed and fully completed. The tracks are called 'Brave New World' & 'Hiding in Sunsets, Trading in Tears' and both are pivotal to how the album runs. That takes the total to 8 done now, with one more on the slab requiring minor surgery and one final tune to record from scratch. I now have the dilemma of which one to choose from a list of about 25! Choices choices. I'll be doing that next Wednesday so the album will be completed then, without any doubt at all! Wow, that sounds like a deadline to me.

So then it will be knocking up some artwork and getting all the files together for a nice tidy package upload which will include all the stuff mentioned below. Exciting eh? Hope you're as excited as me! If anyone's there, of course.

I shall post more on what the albums about etc shortly, cos its a type of concept album or at least a thread running through it but I'll be able to tell the story better when the running order is decided and notes have been written.

That's it for the noo', time to get those sausages on for tea

Andy

Warm, sultry Wednesay afternoon in Northern England 2009

Summer Always Goes So Quick

A quick update here for you lovers. Its been such a long, long, time since I passed on any info, been obsessed with the past recently but I'm back now in the present and focusing on the future. Some status reports:

The solo album - Coming to fruition quite quickly now. Six songs finished, with four more to complete, two of which will happen tomorrow. Thinking of artwork etc now so I envisage completion in about 4 weeks. As stated before it will be available as a download, with all relevant bits n pieces such as full artwork, lyrics and liner notes. Let's embrace the future, eh?

The Cheesemakers - Not so good. We've lost our rehearsal space of about 8 years and are at a loss as to where to go. Going to Newcastle to practice wouldn't be high on my list of things I'd like to do, but we gotta get something sorted out. When Jim went on a forced hiatus, for several reasons, in mid-January we were hot, really happening, having grasped the shock of Hesh leaving with all six hands and making a real FIST of it. But delays are nothing new to us and we will abide. The Dude abides...

Live - Once the solo album is completed I will be embarking on playing it live, hopefully you'll see fit to come and take it in. The band will without question be back on the boards once we get the logistics sorted out, I can't do without it.

So that's it chaps for now, things are slow but sure at the moment, I have high hopes for the solo album and I hope you do too.

Hope you're also enjoying all the vintage stuff I'm culling from various sources and posting on here. Would hate to think I was just doing it for my own amusement, although it wouldn't be the first time....until the next time

Andy

Album Update from October 2002!

Another selection from the old website, what a lying bastard I was, the album was still 5 years off at this time!!! Ha ha

Andy

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Album Update October 2002

THIS IS THE SECOND ENTRY INTO THE JOURNAL OR DIARY FOR THE CHEESEMAKERS ALBUMOK FOLKS . HERE'S THE TRUE DEAL ON THE NOW 'LONG AWAITED' NEW CHEESEMAKERS ALBUM
FOR AGES NOW , PROBABLY SINCE APRIL , I HAVE BEEN TELLING YOU THAT THE ALBUM HAS BEEN ABOUT TO GO INTO RECORDING AND EVERYTIME YOU LOOK , IT'S GONE BACK A MONTH . THIS MUCH IS TRUE AND I KNOW THERES A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT THERE WAITING FOR IT . SO HERE'S THE CURRENT SITUATION
A FEW MONTHS BACK , THE CHANGES ONE LABEL HAD TO STOP PRESSING NEW RELEASES FOR VERY GOOD REASONS , REASONS WHICH WE WON'T GO INTO HERE . IN THE FOLLOWING PERIOD , 4 OTHER RELEASES WERE RECORDED AND READIED FOR RELEASE AND GIVEN CATALOGUE NUMBERS . SO BASICALLY , WE KEPT SHUFFLING OURSELVES DOWN THE QUEUE BECAUSE WE COULDN'T AFFORD TO SHELL OUT A GRAND ON RECORDING KNOWING THE RELEASE WOULDN'T HAPPEN FOR SOME TIME .
THE WAY WE WORK WITH THE LABEL IS WE PAY FOR RECORDING AND MIXING AND THE LABEL PAYS FOR PRESSING AND PRODUCTION . THIS WAY THE LOAD IS SPREAD
IN RECENT WEEKS THE LABEL HAS BEGAN TO MOVE AGAIN AND THE NEXT RELEASE IS CLOSE TO PRODUCTION , SO WE CAN BEGIN OUR ENGINES ONCE AGAIN . I'M PRETTY CONFIDENT THE CASH TO BEGIN RECORDING IS FORTHCOMING SO I CAN SAY WITH EXTREME PREDJUDICE THAT THE NEW CHEESEMAKERS ALBUM WILL BEGIN RECORDING BEFORE THE MONTH OF OCTOBER IS OUT !!!
THIS IS MY TRUTH

CURRENT STATUSTHE FIRST RECORDING SESSION WILL HAPPEN BEFORE THE MONTH OF OCTOBER IS OUT ONE SATURDAY MORNING/AFTERNOON & EVENING . WE WILL AGAIN BE EMPLYING THE SERVICES OF MAD ALAN AT WASHINGTON ARSE CENTRE . Each session will be a 10 hour affair with roughly 4 tracks recorded in that time . The first set of songs due for commital include :
LEICESTERCOME OUTYOU SOLD YOUR RECORDS (1983)
The track listing you can view on this page is nowhere near final and songwriting continues apace . very few songs are certain for inclusion and the race is well and truly on
Only one track from WHITE TRASH will be on the album - a completely new version of HIGHER THAN YOU
ONCE THE FIRST SESSION HAS BEEN COMPLETED I WILL UPDATE THIS PAGE WITH THE FULL STORY IN WORDS AND PIKSURES
FEATURESAll of the songs for the album have been written but there will be a fair amount of tinkering going on in the studio . I don't mean trouser shuffling ( although that's possible ) but changes to songs here and there . Geoff , our piano maestro will feature heavily on one track , as it's ridiculous to ignore such a talent . A prime fart from the anus of Jim the Fart Master will also appear somewhere on the album !
Samples will also be extensively used . Not in the dance music way , you undertand , where one sample is continually repeated over a repetetive drone , but mad soundbites and samples from films etc thrown in at any given point . I love this shit , can't wait !
The main style of the group will be prominent but the album will have it's fair share of eclecticism as we're no one trick pony , my lad !For instance , something special and unexpected is planned for the end of the album , a tune quite out of kilter with what most people see The Cheesemakers as , but is really quite a part of my songwriting . Also the aforementioned long lost punk classic , which may or may not be used and anything new that gets written in the meantime ( see "You Sold Your Records") Confused ? You will be . More will be revealed .


NEW SONGS ? OLD SONGS ?'Sheila called me on the telephone , what she say ?
Because of the recent surge in popularity of the band , the new album will be a mixture of completely new songs and completely old songs . The normal mindset of the band , is once something is recorded , then that's it - it's in the past . But recent months have proven that the band is becoming familiar with a whole new audience , who don't have the old recordings . Recordings which are now rendered old-hat by the quality of the White Trash EP . So the decision was made to select a few of the classics and re-record to higher quality along with the great batch of new songs already written .The only track from White Trash to feature on the album will be Higher Than You , and this will be a completely new , different sounding version
Along with the dozen or so original tracks , there will probably be a very special hidden cover version of a long lost song from the anal cleft of punk folklore
All in all , this should provide a very quick recording process and the album should be ready for release in the time it takes to cook a fresh chicken ! Mmmmmmm .....
WHAT'S GOIN ON ?HERE IS THE PROPOSED TRACK LISTING FOR THE ALBUM:
LEICESTERCOME OUTDON'T SAY IT WITH FLOWERSGET YOURSELF OFFSOUL INTO THE SKYHATE THE MILKMANTHESE THINGS HAPPEN SO WHAT DOES IT MEANYes folks ! the opera!THE BIG HAIRY WHEELHIGHER THAN YOU - new versionPICTURE YOUFLY BUSTERTHE CIRCLE OF A CIRCUS RINGDEMONSYOU SOLD YOUR RECORDSNIGHTMAREand of coursethe Secret Cover Version
Some of you will be familiar with most of these titles but I guarantee no-one will know all of them ( apart from me , obviously)

BACK CAT ?NO , NOT A FELINE ANIMAL YOU MOUNT ON YOUR BACK OR A DISLEXIC SUNDERLAND FAN ( aren't they all ? ) BUT WHAT YOU CAN GET . ALL OF THE CHEESEMAKERS BACK CATALOGUE IS AVAILABLE ON OFFICIAL BOOTLEG AUDIO CASSETTE , YES , EVEN THE DELETED ONES - GO FIGURE ! ALL IT MEANS IS THEY'RE NOT AVAILABLE ON CD ANYMORE BUT THE BAND ARE HAPPY TO RUN OFF A FEW COPIES ON MONKEY TAPE IF REQUIRED . MAIL THE CHEESEMAKER GENERAL OR SEE DISCOGRAPHY PAGE FOR MORE DETAILS . CIAO !
ALSO AVAILABLE BY THE CHEESEMAKERSCURRENTLY AVAILABLE !
WHITE TRASH E.P. on CD
LIVE UP THE ORIFACE - LIVE ALBUM on cassette only now !
IT'S TOASTED EUROPEAN CD VERSION on cassette only now !
IT'S TOASTED - 1999 featuring the original superior mix of the opera!
ELBOWS ARE NOT PSYCHADELIC - 1998 .
ALL OF THE CASSETTES ARE FREE OF CHARGE FROM THE E-MAIL ADDRESS ON ALMOST EVERY PAGE , AND FROM CHANGES ONE RECORDS . SEE LINK .FULL DISCOGRAPHY NOW AVAILABLE ON DISCOGRAPHY PAGE - makes sense really ?
DON'T SPOOK THE HORSE !

INFLUENZA THE INFLUENCE OF THIS BAND WILL NOT BE LOST ON THE ALBUM . I HEAR YOU LAUGH , BUT I SHIT YOU NOT ! CHECK OUT THE 'INFLUENZA' PAGE FOR A FULLER DESCRIPTION OF THE ANTZ' IMPORTANCE
I'M TALKING ABOUT THE PUNK VERSION , BEFORE THE NONESENSE .

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Discography

Good Lord! You shut your eyes for a moment, then 4 months have passed. Shocking behavious. Well here is another section of the old Cheesemakers website for your edification. This is the bands discography as it was at the time. Some fascinating old chestnuts here. Enjoy. p.s. updates on what's happening in 2009 soon......

Notes Ive added today come under '2009 note'

Andy

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HERE'S ALL THE RECORDED OUTPUT AVAILABLE BY THE CHEESEMAKERS . MAKE THEM YOURS !ALL THE TITLES ARE AVAILABLE ONE WAY OR THE OTHER . THE ORIGINAL CASSETTES ARE AVAILABLE FROM THE CHEESEMAKER GENERAL'S E-MAIL & YOU CAN GET THE CD'S FROM CHANGES ONE IN THE UK AND SUBTERRANEAN RECORDS IN THE US of A . DO IT NOW !

ELBOWS ARE NOT PSYCHADELIC - original Cassette
TRACK LISTING :
Come Out , Twenty To Ten , Bomb Bag , Get Yourself Off , Are You Gonna Sue , My New Pin , Waste Of Mind , Picture You , Space Doubt , Nowhere Man ( the same ) , Down , Alone In The Black , Soul Into The Sky , Fly Buster , The Kids Are Alright , Dum Dum Boys , Rain , Don't Say It With Flowers , Funtime , Melancholy Rains , Black Eyed Dog , A Lifetime Is A Longtime , A Lonely Dedication , Funtime - Live , Flowers - Live , Fly Buster - Mothership Mix , Soul Into The Sky - Lava Mix
That's right folks , 27 tracks ! That was the days when we'd put something of this magnitude out every bleedin year . Madness . Some lost classics in there which just don't make the set anymore . Also our first attempt at the 'opera' , ie a 3 song medley thing , pretty neat - pretty good . A few covers there for good measure as well .

2009 Note - There are some top songs on here that need revisiting and re-mastering. All of the releases here btw are slated for re-mastering onto CDs in the near/mid/me future.

IT'S TOASTED ! Original cassette versionTRACK LISTING :
These Things Happen So What Does It Mean ? , The Big Hairy Wheel , Hero , Beautiful Soup , What A Thing To Know , Fly , Silence , My So-Called Life , Place , Me & My Friends , Magic , I.D.E.A.S. , Just One Smile From You , My Room , My Brain Hurts , Holes , Radio Free Europe , Endlessly , Wishlist , Everyday Should Be A Holiday
Yup , another monster , 20 tracks this time , lightweights , eh ? The original appearance of These Things Happen , and the best mix for me . Also includes possibly the worst song I've ever written ? The best selections here were lifted and put on the below CD

2009 Note - Look at the classics on there inc the best ever rendition of the opera, never could be bettered, my greatest achievement in recording I think.

IT'S TOASTED - European CD VersionTRACK LISTING :
These Things Happen So What Does It Mean? , The Big Hairy Wheel , Hero , Beautiful Soup , What A Thing To Know , Fly , Silence , My So-Called Life , Soul Into The Sky , Come Out , I.D.E.A.S. , magic , Just One Smile From You , Holes
SOLD OUT - DELETED !
Cassette copies available on request

2009 Note - This was a self produced CD with reduced track listing to fit! Shows how prolific things were in them days

LIVE UP THE ORIFACE - CDTRACK LISTING :
Get Yourself Off , Hero , Don't Say It With Flowers , Bob Bizarre , These Things Happen So What Does It Mean , Uptight , Sheila's On The Bus , Fly Buster , Funtime , The Kids Are Alright
SOLD OUT - DELETED
Cassette copies available upon request

2009 Note - A memorable night indeed and a heavy performance. The other bands that night were also recorded including Rat:Daddy

WHITE TRASH E.P. - CDOUT NOW . 5 TRACK E.P. ON CHANGES ONE RECORDS DISTRIBUTED BY SHELLSHOCK IN THE UK . AVAILABLE AT ALL GOOD RECORD STORES BUT PREFERABLY AT CHANGESONE . FREE BADGE WITH FIRST 100 ORDERS !SEE DEDICATED WHITE TRASH PAGE FOR MORE INFO

2009 Note - sold out now I believe. Features the superb Tom Verlaine cover, never performed live

CUBAN PAINT - THE BREAKFAST SITUATION - CDFORTHCOMING RELEASE - NOTES TO FOLLOW

2009 Note - Never issued, which was a crime as this was superb album. I still have the Master Tape and this WILL be re-mastered onto a CD in the very near future. Cuban Paint was the acoustic outlet for me, Hesh and Dunf.

Cheesemakers Archive # 1 - London

Have just found a very old Cheesemakers site - even older than the three bravenet ones and thecheesemakers.co.uk - that dates back to about 2002 or so and am now in the process of retrieving all the articles and stuff that was on there are transfering here.

So first here is the story of a trip we made to London for our first gig in the capital city.

Enjoy
Andy 2009

###

CHEESEMAKERS AT LARGE - LONDON SPECIAL
HERE IS THE STORY , IN WORDS & PICTURES , OF THE CHEESEMAKERS DEBUT GIG IN LONDON ON JUNE 23rd 2002 AT WEST ONE FOUR , WEST KENSINGTON

The gig was an indoor festival type of thing with 8 bands playing . The promoters were Five Miles High , a promotions / management company who provide a magnificent rock 'n' roll resource at their website ( see lynx page ) . They manage B-Movie Heroes & Plan A , both of whom played at the gig
The gig was called Damofest , in honour of an Aussie dude called Damo who is strongly linked with all things rock and FMH and whom was also present at the gig .
The Cheesemakers were asked to play due to FMH strong link with Changes One , our label , and so we were wedged in at the bottom of the bill - happy to be so , I must add
There are many more photos available of the trip , far too many to put on this page , they will soon be uploaded into the photo section of The Cheesemakers Yahoo Group pages
So on to The Cheesies 2 day tour in words & pictures .

I must say this must be one of the best pictures I've ever taken . Jim silhouetted whilst perusing a publication Although Jim looks serene , the photo must come with the advisory that Jim was in fact leafing through Viz !!The journey down from the North East was a good one , and not un-eventful . One particular event was truly memorable and I will recount it for you laterPresent on the trip were all four band members : Me , Jim , Hesh & Geoff and Mr.Dunf Dunford , the bands 'roadie' . Geoff handled all driving duties over the two days will style and panache and got the vehicle back to the miserable hire company in pristine condition , although he 'hit a lot of flies' !!!

Another great picture , if I may say so , with Geoff's reflection deliberately caught in the mirror
So , to the event that occured on the journey down It was one of those things you normally just hear about . Someone tells you this kind of story but it never actually happens to you , familiar with that ? Well this time , it happened to US !!

There we are , travelling down the A1 , around Sheffield . There's a sports car in front and in the inside lane . Suddenly we notice some kind of activity in the car , the sunroof opens and out comes an attractive blond lady . Hmm , nice you say So we're all wondering what's goin on but we haven't time to discuss it before the top is whipped off , the bra goes next and there , not 10 yards away , travelling at 70 miles an hour is a semi naked blond lady with her perfectly formed breasts in full freshness there for all to see !!!

Our reaction ? What else could we do but cheer very loudly . A few seconds later and the car had taken a turn off ( perhaps they even pulled off ) and we spent the next 10 minutes looking at each other wondering if it had really happened .
Whatever happened from now on , we mused , it'll have been a good trip !!!

JIM @ SOUNDCHECK
Picture - James Tomlinson
Which we just made , thanks to GIT Van Hire not letting us have the vehicle until 9am on the morning , meaning after our much needed McDonalds breakfast it was 10am by the time we hit the road , so getting there for a quick 10 minute soundcheck was good going and ample time for us . Doors opened at 3pm and the floodgates of beer began at roughly the same time .



AND THEY'RE OFF
Picture - James Tomlinson. After a good hour drinking and meets mates and new aquaintances it was showtime and we ploughed into our set , which was made up of our short sharp punk numbers . The rock opera material had no place in a half hour set , and thankfully there was a great attendance as early as 4pm , which had been my only real concern about the whole event . Thanks for turning up to see us at that strange hour .


HESH PLAYING A BLINDER ON THE ELECTRIC LEAD GUITAR
Photograph - James TomlinsonThe sound on-stage was almost perfect . The band could all hear each other , which always helps , and we were thoroughly enjoying ourselves . The crowd were as well !
Including.....

BOB BIZARRE !!!
The question was raised in the song , 'Where are you now Bob Bizarre ?' and here's the answer . This is he dancing to his own song , albeit in slightly more sedate clothing
Remember this is at 4.10pm with a throng of strangers looking on , to quote the ong , 'Bob never cared , if they stared '
As Hesh pointed out , Bizarre was a star throughout our trip to London
All hail the magic of Bob Bizarre !



GEOFF ON ELECTRIC BASS GUITAR
Photo : James Tomlinson
Both Geoffs driving and bass playing were smashing ( as Ray Wilkins would say ) and he is a true team player . And the 'tache has gone , the 'tache is dead !!!

SETLIST
LEICESTER

BOB BIZARRE

THE BIG HAIRY WHEEL

HIGHER THAN YOU

HERO

HATE THE MILKMAN

SHEILA'S ON THE BUS

FLY BUSTER

'...AND THIS IS ME'

The phrase that would have Mike Yarwood haters galloping for the exits , thankfully no-one galloped for the exits when I opened my mouth to sing . For my part I felt I done good , no bum notes to speak of and some decent guitar flourishes and most importantly , no shit between-song patter which I'm occasionally prone to . Not enough beer or time at this gig , so the crowd were spared my Townsend-esque mumbo jumbo ( although of course not in the same league as our illustrious Pete )


APRES GIG
We alight downstairs near to the Westway to indulge in such fripperies as oxygen , more beer , cigarillos and passing young ladies
Here is Jim and Hesh partaking in a little horseplay to attract the opposite sex - notice she is laughing !
The Westway is where The Clash were born . All kneel .

GEOFF WITH MR & MRS BIZARRE
On the legendary Westway , roughly about 5pm . The beer was by now really sloshing and the band and entourage were well and truly settling into the post show reverie
Greeny , The Cheesemakers' guru , was present at the gig but remained un-photographed - watch out for the next installment of his column very soon


BACKSTAGE
All of the bands on the bill are jolly nice chaps and the backstage area was a small area crammed full of bands gear and belongings which created a great air of trust and humility , one which is rare in the world of gigs and tours - so I salute the other 7 bands present :

JOHNNY ZHIVAGO

PSYCHO A GO-GO

THE CHERRYKICKS

B-MOVIE HEROES

INHALE

PLAN A

STICKY SWEET
Check these bands out if you get the chance

AMAZING JOURNEY
We knew we had to get to Bizarre Mansions in Essex so we hit the road about 9pm . Sanity & and anyone familiar with road use in London would suggest using the ring road , but Bizarre - not being one of these people - decided a trip through central London was in order , so off we went up hammersmith and into the lions den , with Geoff at the wheel . Geoff who hadn't even been to London before let alone drive through it on a weekend evening !!!
Needless to say the journey was amazing and very eventful including many sights and sounds of England's capital city
People were shouted at , tramps were urinated on and we even saw Gandhi somewhere up near Westminster Ever heard the story of Ozzy Osbourne slashing on the Alamo ? Well in years to come , the legend of Jim and Bob Bizarre slashing on the houses of parliament will come to the fore
And so it came to pass that we arrived in Barking with just enough time for a few swift ones at Bob's local shit-hole before an absolutely superb Chinese curry for two English pounds , then more beer !!!...

4 am
And the lightweights are in bed - TOGETHER ! Jim and Dunf share a bed and god knows what else whilst me and Hesh brave MTV for another hour

EARLY MORNING COLD TAXI
Not that early actually , we arose from 8am onwards about every 15 minutes until we were all up and about , enjoying the morning sunshine in the Bizarre Gardens ( some kind of burning there )
After coffee , laughs , video games and more laughs we headed off back up from whence we came having conquered , got pissed and watched videos
Hesh read an entire book whilst sitting at the table on the morning after . Outstanding
A fairly un-eventful return journey followed apart from an amusing bait stop off in Cambridge
Thank to all who helped make this trip a success and here's to the next one

UP YOURS ME DEARS !!!

Andy, Summer 2002 (c)

The Elbows

I feel I will occasionally add something un-me related here when it merits it, and this certainly does. It's only an hour of your life, give it a try, who knows, it may well change your life!

I know someone it has had that effect on.

Video

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/event/elbow/

Audio

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/aod/radio2_aod.shtml?radio2/2100_sat

Andy

Moving The Goalposts

I'm allowed to do that I think, move the goalposts. At the arse end of last year I said I would set goals to achieve by the end of each month, thereby ensuring progress throughout the year. The goal at the end of January was to have the solo album recorded, well, that hasn't happened.

The reason for that is the songs that have been coming out, cos theres always songs coming out, have all been band-type songs that have needed to be worked on imemdiately, so we've spent all of January doing that, writing, working out and demo-ing a batch of new songs that will do the set-list proud, you will have listened to a few of them below.

So the achievement this month has changed, we've created a batch of new band songs instead that will probably now complete the track listing for the new album that we'll be working on in the spring.

Another aspect we've been working on is the the visual medium, and the shots you can see with this post were taken by Geoff (apart from the one with Geoff in) with his new mega-digital-pixel-ultra camera, very nice too. Many more to follow.

So the goal for February NOW is to complete the solo album....although that's subject to change. The bloody band keeps interfering!!!! Ha ha ha

Until then

Andy

Pick It Up As You Go

THE ROUGH SHAG SESSIONS Pt2 - And here is another one, another new track recorded the same way as two weeks ago. You need to have imagination to really envisage how these songs will turn out, but this was written at 5pm yesterday, introduced to the band at 9pm and recorded at 9.30pm.

This song has SUPERMASSIVE HUGE potential, 12 strings, brass, bagpipes, the lot! Please make comments to your heart's content. This is now serious, we're back.

You can download it NOW here:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=ZAEU25BJ

And here are the lyrics because the vocals are a bit quieter than the last one:

PICK IT UP AS YOU GO

There need to be some joy / For every girl and boy
This world is now a toy / That needs new batteries

You pick it up as you go / And carry this heavy load
From a prince into a toad / Compliments & flatteries

It’s all over before it’s begun

Twenty days go by / Without a fresh alibi
Now I don’t mean to pry / But it feels the same

As when Weller put it down / With a growl and twisted frown
We are gonna drown / And we’re all to blame

It’s all over before it’s begun
It seems our day is done
We need to feel the sun………on our skin

When I was growin up / When I was just a little pup
They said things were looking up / That was 30 years now

Its worse than ever before / You can stick your holy war
Its all been done before / Theres no sacred cow

Its all over before its begun

(c) The Cheesemakers (r) 2009

###

So some themes developing I think and a very strong record on the way. Things are certainly looking up for the band at the minute and achievements are being made.

One last note, be wary that Geoff got his camera out last night and was taking some snaps...maybe see some here soon! ;o)

Thats all for now good buddies

More soon

Andy

Radio Killed The Video Star

Anyone for tennis? Here's an idea. For one of aforementioned videos for a Cheesemakers song, I'd like to use random footage of Cheesemakers followers and associates and piece it all together to make a video. Doesn't matter what you're doing, making a sandwich, taking a shower (ahem), gardening at night, just send me a short clip, 30 seconds or so, and we'll put together a tribute to the hardyest of followers in the world. Send them direct to me at afne04343@blueyonder.co.uk If we have no takers we'll assume everyone hates us! :o)
Thanks for the comments so far on new stuff.
Andy

Calling All The People!

THE CHEESEMAKERS RETURN
As if to prove that The Cheesemakers are rumbling back into gear here are some photos from 24 hour ago in our brand new state of the art studio and also a brand new rough as a badgers' track.


The band are working hard at a new set list, bringing back in old favourites and polishing a few turds and it's coming along well. Live sets and another album are in the offing, as stated in the post last week



The song is recorded using the method we have to get rough working recordings so that we may develop and work on songs. Don't be put off by the roughness of the sound, here is how we do it:


We use a simple, back to the eighties Boombox type contraption, stick it on the floor with a pair of old mans size 48 kegs draped over it as a baffle, and record direct into the crappy in-built microphone. We then enter the 21st century and stick it through some audio cleaning software before changing it into an MP3 then usually sticking onto a CD. Now, we have embraced future technology by throwing up to Megaupload so that it may be the mother-host, where you can download to your hearts content.

Anyone unfamiliar with the process, click on the link, select Free User, watch the clock tick down 55 seconds or so in the queue, then click Download, then select whether you want to Open or Save, then Bob's yer bleedin' uncle. "You look like the PLUMBER!"

Here is the link:

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=1AGC0BIB

Anyway, japes aside, make no judgement on this song, or any of these type of tracks, they are mere working tapes, just wanted you to see how we work. This one was written Wednesday afternoon (48 hours ago) and the recording you hear is the third take ever!

So give it a listen, let us know what you think, get involved and be safe in the knowledge that sometime, someplace in the cold still of the night, these men are still making a bloody racket!

What's it about? Pretty heavy gear, the state of the nation, increasing unemployment, store closures on a daily basis, bank crisis', ministers caught with their pants down....sound familiar anyone? As the lyrics may be hard to pick out on this roughshod recording, here they are in their infancy, subject to change.

CALLING ALL THE PEOPLE
Here is the tale, its a closing down sale
Here is the tale, its a closing down sale
This is a live broadcast, Top class news
Its not a bleedin' podcast, but you still can't choose

It's all over the radio
You can't see it on a video
It's all over for us now

Calling all the people, Time to leave now
Calling all the people, It's time to leave now
The economy's and icon, Photographed in the nude
No astrology in Zion, I'm sorry if that's rude

It's all over the news
No prizes up for those who lose
It's all over for us now

The UK / It's not OK
Time sifting from the UK / Not OK
What's the UK / If it's not OK
Its all over for the UK
Andy 08/01/09

Brand new recording Exclusive

See? Told you I would post more often, although I have had NO responses or comments, ah well, I talk to my f###### self half my life anyway!

Anybloodyway, here is a link to an exclusive track, the first of the year, being made available due to a Paul Weller tribute album being shelved for the time being, so I can 'air' it. Hope you like it, fitting I think for the beginning of a year, it's called, As You Lean Into The Light.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=W3J1MMJP

Enjoy, speak to myself soon

Andy

Silver Torch Video Added

And another thing...have just added the video for The Silver Torch from the solo album at the base of the blogs for your edification and listening pleasure.
Stay safe
Andy

Two Thousand & Nein

And so another year begins after another ends and what can we say? Same old same old I guess? As I sit here late into 1st Jan listening to the endlessly brilliant Wilco at Tanglewood I guess I'm a sucker for the old 'new year, new opportunites' lark. What can I say I'll be doing this year? I usually make all sorts of predictions about what I'll be doing in a new year with my various artistic avenues but I've decided to not do that this year as in recent years I've ended up doing nearly bugger all!

No, this year I'm just gonna tell you what might happen and hope that you're still along in the interested seats. I've had a few words of encouragement from familiar and unfamiliar sources of late so I shall hopefully this year be cranking up The Cheesemakers for maybe a final blow out, persuing my live acoustic shows with (or without) Dunf and will DEFINATELY be completing the solo album, in fact that is my primary project for January. I have decided to take each month on its own merit and do something each calender month! so that's the agenda for January. By the end of January I intend to have all the tracks completed and made ready.

For the solo album I will be breaking with tradition and will only be pressing up 'physical' copies for those that want one and shall be employing one of those Savefile type sites to 'host' the album along with lyrics and artwork where people can download for free. I mean, come on, let's face it, no-one's gonna pay for it are they? If people are paying 1p for a Radiohead album, I've got no bloody chance have I? Bloody Radiohead, you gotta love em.

So come early February, I shall be using the darling You Tubes to promote the solo album, some sketches already up there, in the form of short, self-made videos, hopefully building up into a full length version of the album on You Tubes a la Midlake. BTW, keep your eyes open for a new Midlake album this year, brilliant band

The Cheesemakers? Well, we were encouraged by our one and only live set this year (see previous post) and we will be wheeling out the machine for (maybe) some final shows this year. We're looking for helpful people to help us out with dates, venues, gear shifting etc because unlike most 12 year ols behemoths, we're still ridiculously crap are arranging and executing the simplest of gig type tasks. The 100 Club gig in London has been shelved until 2010, hope we're still around then. There are also building up a big batch of new songs as well so hopefully a return visit to Royston Vasey to record the follow up to Panic Now will be in the offing, but if it happens it will certainly be quicker and much more 'live' sounding as I plan to record all of the basic tracks in a live room and add very little after the stew and it will be shorter as well, maybe 11 tracks.

As for other things, I'm feeling particularly arty and enjoy maiking short films that will accompany the music. If anyones out there who makes short movies that can be matched to Cheesemakers or solo tunes please feel free to send em over, as long as you don't expect any money, cos I can't remember the last time I made any money from playing music! Internet is great isn't it? We used to make £200 a night playing at a shit-hole in South Shields and for years now we can't even get a free pint for playing. Ho hum.

This will sound vain, but I really want people to be interested in what i'm doing and follow this blog and listen to what I'm doing, it's natural for any artist to want that, and I'm not asking much really. To quote Uncle Jeff, 'it's just a dream he keeps having'. So if you're into this please tell someone else who might be also, cos thats' what social networking is all about, is it not?

And rather like the idiot of the class who will throw pens at the teacher the more he gets encouraged, I will post more often if people express an interest.

So, I will NOT be telling you what I'm doing this year, just in case I actually end up doing nothing as usual and people go, 'ha ha, what a surprise'.........or maybe I will tell you some day ;o)

So until next time hardy followers, 'our love is all of God's money, every one is a burning sun'

Talk to you soon,

Andy

'No matter how late the time, I shall keep on trying'