Astralsound News
14 May 2023
We've recently unearthed a pile of 4-track compact cassette tapes from the 1990s, most of them from concerts played by Tony and Bairbre (performing under the name Acoustic 2).
There's over 20 hours of recorded material, so although there probably won't be anything of release-quality, we're hoping to piece together an album's worth of live recordings (might we call it the Wow and Flutter Sessions?). For now, anything we salvage will be posted on an unlisted page. For anyone interested or curious there's a couple of songs there to begin with that were clearly mixed down at the time, although nobody can remember doing it. We'll be adding more as and when we get round to producing them.
17 April 2023
Yet again we're sad to report the death of Tony's mother, Barbara, at 14:01 on 26 February 20239.
Her funeral took place at St Matthew's Church, Cainscross, on 30 March. She was 92, and her physical and mental health had been declining for some years, more markedly during the Covid lockdown. She was very sociable, and the effect of protracted isolation on her was very visible to her close friends and family.
Bairbre and Eoin's recording of Psalm 23, and Tony's of Old Friends Gone, were played during the funeral. As before, downloads are free, but we would be glad of contributions to Cancer Research UK, a cancer charity she supported, having lost both a daughter and a grandson to the disease.
22 August 2019
We're again very sad to report the death of Tony's sister Jennie on 5 August 2019, six days before her 57th birthday.
Her funeral took place at All Saints Church, Bisley, on 16 August. To many that knew her she was an inspiration.
A recording of Tony's wife Bairbre and son Eoin singing the Crimond version of Psalm 23 (again, thanks to Paul Bryant who engineered and produced it) was used during the service, and can be played or downloaded here using the links below. Downloads are free, but we would be glad of donations to Penny Brohn, a cancer charity that was a great help to Jennie (you can get an idea of this from her 2018 address to the Penny Brohn Long Table Lunch).
8 February 2018
Much of the footage of Tich (see next paragraph) has long since been removed from Youtube, although clips of Barefootin' (at Treorchy Rugby Club) and Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau (Welsh National Anthem) have resurfaced. There are other bits and pieces if you look for them, but none of them have great sound or video.
7 April 2012
We have just been forwarded links to some footage of Tich Gwilliam (who died in 2005, see the bottom of this page) on YouTube. There are two clips of the Superclarks in Treorchy in the late 1980s, the first including quite a nice take of Barefootin', and the second (inevitably) Purple Rain. We've posted the links on Facebook. Even through the poor recording you can get an idea of his total mastery.
This incarnation of the Superclarks - Tich, Burke Shelley, and Dai Watkins - was the nearest thing to Cream in the late 1980s & early 1990s.
There also are a couple of clips of Tich doing his Hendrix "Stars & Stripes"-style version of the Welsh National Anthem.
It is great that at least this small reminder remains.
12 June 2011
We are very sad to announce the death of Tony's father, John Edbrooke Lloyd, at 22.15 on Monday 6 June 2011 (the day after his 57th wedding anniversary), in Withybush Hospital, Haverfordwest. He would have celebrated his 83rd birthday on 23 June. As well as suffering from Parkinson's Disease, he was in generally poor health.
Old Friends Gone was written by Tony with his death very much in mind. Downloads are free (you can also download the lyrics), but we would be glad of donations - however small - to Parkinson's UK.
The recording here was produced and engineered on 10 June 2011 by Paul Bryant (Lightquest), who also contributed the bass and percussion parts. We are greatly indebted to him for stepping up to the task at very short notice, and producing such an excellent result from Tony's very wobbly performance. The vocal harmony parts came from Tony's wife, Bairbre.
4 April 2011
The Little Film Company website - see 10 October 2005 - is no longer live, but you can still find Joeyleigh on YouTube.
20 March 2007
Painswick Blues concluded its long run of shows with a double-bill of Never The Bride on the club's final two dates 16 & 17 March. We've provided PA systems and sound-engineers for all the shows there since January 2003, and we'll miss the club's atmosphere and standard of music.
Future occasional shows are planned there (probably on a smaller scale), so keep your eye on their website.
8 January 2007
When The Hub in Cheltenham closed in September last year, the monthly Shush event needed a new venue. A successful re-launch party at Thirteen Degrees on 7 December has put the venue at the top of the list for regular Shush events in 2007 (check the Shush for the latest news and details).
20 November 2006
The decision of John Eeles (Spadger Sound) to withdraw from PA hire - he is still actively involved in festival management - has left a space in the business locally, and although we are sorry to see him leave, we are also glad of some of the new business this has brought us. One of the principal gains has been more frequent involvement with Dean Arts (in the Forest of Dean), and we have several events scheduled for 2007 - the first on 9 March - which will be detailed on our Gigs page as they get closer.
31 July 2006
Beyond The Border didn't happen in 2006 (see their website for future events).
22 May 2006
Pete Roe's CD - Propeller - has finally arrived. It was worth waiting for.
15 May 2006
The evening of rock on 29 April - featuring yoU2 (with support acts A+E and Chasing Flash - at the Watson Hall in Tewkesbury cleared £2,000 in aid of the Southmead Hospital Tiny Lives campaign. As well as that obvious success, it was also a great show. Future similar fundraising events are in the pipeline (watch this space).
Another fundraising event we were involved with at the Painswick Centre on 24 February - featuring Too Hot To Handle - raised over £1,300 for World Vision. Again, further events are planned.
9 January 2006
At the end of last year Nizlopi reached No. 1 in the UK charts with the JCB Song. We first met them at Shush a few months earlier. Most of the artists that perform there are just as good, so if you want a chance to see a UK No. 1 band before anyone else knows about them, give it a try!
10 October 2005
The Music Revolution in Bristol has been cancelled until further notice. We'll give you more information as soon as we have any ourselves. The Little Film Company recorded most (if not all) of the previous shows, & there are some samples on their Music page.
4 July 2005
Anyone who knew him or ever saw him play will mourn the death of Tich Gwilliam in a house fire in June. We have all heard people talk about guitar heroes (as Clapton put it: there's one in every crowd
), but Tich was pure Zen. Those of you who never knew him have lost more than those of us who did. His funeral - attended by many from the South Wales music community - was on 1 July. You can find tributes by Glyn Knight and Mike Monk at Wales on Line.