In The Thick Of It All

Well, yesterday's gig was one to remember all right. The café we'd arranged to meet in was closed, and there were drifts of people heading towards the station as we headed towards the Prince Albert for the Brighton gig with Pauline. we met her on the way and went to sit outside the pub with a coffee as more and more people started to appear, all very fired up with the desire to rebuff the attempts by a fascist crowd to congregate in their lovely, diverse city and poison the atmosphere. A phalanx of police horses trotted by all self-important and snooty.All was relatively calm outside when we did the soundchecks. The sound guy there is wonderful, and it's a great room to play. But outside the energy was building. Caryne and Dave had arrived for the gig and for them, too, I think it was quite an extraordinary afternoon. People came to the gig- those who could get past the dense crowds of people, all dressed in their best carnival clothes.It was time to go on, and outside the chants got…