Dense, diverse, and full of life - "Livin' the Dream", even in its' accounts of heartbreak and loss, is an antidote to cynicism and apathy.
One of the best things that ever happened to me was meeting Keith TOTP. He’s the true king of rock’n’roll, and until I met him I never knew the king of rock’n’roll was such a gent. Playing in his band is utterly joyous. From the first gig when I showed up with just a few chords written on a bit of paper, the ethos has always been (a) no rehearsals (b) minimal sound checks (c) just play whatever you want. Some nights I couldn’t hear myself and apologised afterwards for having “just made lots of noise” and Keith would just say “well, next time that happens, Charley Stone, just remember - that’s probably my favourite bit”.
Until I played with Keith I always wanted to plan things out in advance and be really precise and considered about what I was doing. It’s fair to say that my entire style of playing has changed as a result of being in his band - now my preference is to just go with whatever I’m feeling in the moment. Playing without a plan used to scare me, and I used to curl up inside whenever I messed up. These days I’ve reframed that fear as excitement. If it goes wrong, the fun thing is to find a way back from it. And abandoning all preconceptions means sometimes it goes somewhere so exciting I get chills on the back of my neck and feel like I’m in some liminal space that’s not quite here or somewhere else... and actually I’m getting that feeling just thinking about it...
Over the years he’s recorded 3 albums, and I’ve been one of about 20 band members on each one. Album number three has just come out this week. This review sums up what’s great about it, and why we all love Keith TOTP. He’s the best man.