Ah. Coming down to it, it's hard to express how I feel about the FranKo situation right now. A bientot is French for 'see you later' (roughly). I think. Because I hope we will see them again later. Yesterday, I floated the idea of setting a date in 2 years time to do a one-off gig again, no matter where they are or what they are doing. Is that smart? Or would it be just for me? Fans (some fans) can be fickle, and whilst there's no harm in that, it would be rubbish to arrange that and play to no-one! They loosely said that they'd see where they were in a year's time, and make a decision from there. That doesn't mean they won't work together in the meantime, of course. It feels like there is unfinished business, after all. I intend to keep a record of their continuing exploits online, because every one of them is worth keeping up with, in my opinion - and maybe people other than me will feel the same. So watch this space. If you want. Hmm. Wow. Thanks to these guys, I got to go to NYC, Thailand and tour up and down our fair country, meeting great people and playing great shows. I'm sure we may have played a stinker of a show here and there, but that's of little consequence now :) I am fiercely proud of their output and their musicianship. Of their camaraderie and sense of fair play. Of their skill. To say I will miss FranKo doesn't cover it. How they didn't get picked up by some major label early on I will never know. Songs the caliber of 'Run', '10 Feet' and 'Speak Up'... There was some true originality in there, and large swathes of music lovers don't even know these songs exist. What was your favourite? I always loved 'Change Your Life', though they hardly ever played it live. On a different tack, I think we made some enemies at the end, which is a shame. When music projects come to a halt, there are all sorts of political reasons why you don't announce it. And you get painted into a corner when quizzed on it, but still can't say. The band got some haters for that, but it was a decision taken behind the scenes and I should take the blame for that, not FranKo. I don't have to explain the reasons behind that decision: it's private. But it was done with the best of intentions. At the end of the day, it's just music, right? No, that's horseshit. For me, music IS life, or at least the soundtrack to our lives, but politics is different again. For anyone still annoyed, stay mad at me, but leave the lads out of it. I'm sorry for any upset caused. FranKo are all still great friends, and I believe they will be so for life. That should have been obvious to any of the lovely people who came out to say goodbye at these last 3 shows. Is it goodbye? I have no idea. Never say never. I was just a cog in the FranKo machine, but I still want to personally thank everyone who supported the lads and myself for the last few years. In particular, all the fans who turned up and made the mere fact of this band a possibility. Every one of you. You know who you are. And the extra special ones who went the extra mile and ran the street teams and spread the FranKo gospel... Well, you were simply amazing. How much love is that? Just awesome... The bands who we toured with. Remember Elliot Minor? 2009? Wow. Long time ago! Huge thanks to Dave Giles, who championed us every chance he got, and generously shared his spotlight. What a gent. Our families. Good grief, where do I start there? Frank, Amanda, Chris, Kate, the other Kate, Karen, Mark, Sue, and of course Ian, were never anything other than stalwart friends and supporters of the cause. And Beau! Beausephalus J Poynts III, and Sharon and Gary. Thank you all so much. The Ws in Nottingham - watch out, we have you on film! Thank you thank you thank you - you are the most generous and incredible of kind people. Anyone who ever fed us or put us up... Thank you!!! Hang on, did I win an Oscar earlier? Pretty sure I didn't. This sounds like a protracted acceptance speech. They never sound sincere! But this is. My life would be a very different shape without FranKo, but theirs, and mine, would be utterly different again without the boys at CMC. Frank and Chris have done more for FranKo and I than words can express, but I'm having a stab at it here. Hugely talented and generous individuals both, they made every aspect of the journey possible, so if you ever enjoyed a tune or a show that FranKo did, you ultimately have them to thank, too. And so what now? I'm on a train home. I wonder whether you'll be reading this on a smartphone or a computer... If you're here, you're interested. If you read this far, you're very interested. The FranKo story may not be over, but this chapter is. 'The best things in life come to those who wait...' sang Tommy. I'm sure we haven't seen the last of Richard, Chris, Richard and Tommy. And I'm sure the best is yet to come, for all of them... Watch this space... Onward.