Last week we found ourselves sitting in a pub somewhere in Devon feeling that strange sensation you get when a huge rush of adrenaline is seeping away, leaving your body tired but your heart and mind racing. The locals had turned to stare as we walked in and for a split second we wondered…had they seen us on TV? No, we were just a group of strangers invading their local and causing the chef to curse us as we ordered several pizzas 5 minutes before they stopped serving food.
As we sat down with our drinks we tried to wrap our tired brains around all that had happened and all that was still to come. This was the culmination of 18 months work, an ending of sorts, but as we talked there was a sense of excitement, that maybe this wasn’t an ending but simply a turn in the road for ‘Kolar’s Gold’…
We’d met the day before at Neal’s house to begin rehearsals for the Kolar’s Gold launch party. There was a lot to do. In the absence of the thousands of pounds we would’ve needed to bring our Indian collaborators to the UK we were working on new arrangements for the Kolar’s Gold music, and using technology that we had never tried before. Richard M had spent several weeks putting together samples of our Indian collaborators so they could be with us virtually, if not in person. Neal’s wife Gill let us take over her dining room and it soon resembled something of a recording studio, computer, drums and amps where the table usually stood.
The rehearsal went well, but was continually interrupted by Laura’s phone ringing and ‘No Caller ID’ flashing up on the screen. The calls were coming from the BBC, first BBC Radio Cornwall then BBC Spotlight. For several weeks the Cornish contingent had been working closely with a brilliant journalist Holly Clemens, but it wasn’t until the calls came through that interviews were firmed up and we knew the story of Kolar’s Gold would air the next day.
The following morning was an early start for Laura and Rich as they headed to Truro to make the Radio Cornwall breakfast show. Driving down with the radio on it was a huge surprise to hear Kolar’s Gold on the hourly news bulletins! Laura’s interview passed in a nervous blur, but there was time find some coffee and a fry up before heading back for Rich to record an interview with Debbie McCrory. On returning to Neal’s there was just time for a quick practice before the car was packed and we made our way to Plymouth to the BBC Spotlight studio.
It’s fair to say the prospect of performing live on TV was terrifying, but everyone we met at BBC Spotlight was incredibly welcoming and supportive and succeeded in putting us at our ease…almost ;-) Watching it on TV it’s easy to underestimate the work that goes into including a live band on the show. We’re very grateful for the effort that went on behind the scenes to make it happen! The response we had afterwards was overwhelming, with messages of support and new stories from the Kolar Gold Fields flooding in. If you missed our appearance on Spotlight you can watch it here.
Saturday. Saturday was one of those rare days that you know you will remember forever and one that had a profound effect on all of us. During the day we were frantically preparing for the launch, crossing fingers it would go well, checking and re-checking we had everything we needed, thankfully the team at the Burrell Theatre were so helpful and the preparations all went to plan. The real magic happened when the audience began to arrive. It’s hard to capture in words the feeling of being surrounded by so many wonderful people, the feeling of love and support we received from people we knew well, and from people we had only just met. We had wanted to express the stories from Kolar’s Gold as much as the music, and between the sound guys who worked so hard, and Gill who narrated beautifully we hope we managed to achieve that. Being joined on stage by the Aggie Boys for One and All, and the ladies choir for Lead Kindly Light were real highlights, as was seeing friends born at KGF sitting in the front row. In our second set we wanted to celebrate, and we did just that, continuing the celebrations afterwards in the bar where we tried to talk to as many people as we could. We want to say a huge thank you to everyone that came and made the night so special, for those that couldn’t make it we’ll be putting together footage from the night and will let you know when it’s ready.
Thank you to the hundreds of people that have been involved in Kolar’s Gold in so many ways. It has been the most incredible experience and we have a feeling it may not be over quite yet.
This week has been back to reality with a very big bump, but yesterday evening Laura’s phone rang again and ‘No Caller ID’ flashed up on the screen…..
