Prog News, Press Releases - Spock's Beard to tour UK without Nick

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Spock's Beard to tour UK without Nick

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Topic: Spock's Beard to tour UK without Nick

Posted By: Harold-The-Barrel
Subject: Spock's Beard to tour UK without Nick
Date Posted: January 29 2011 at 05:00

yes its true, i just found this message on their website and I must say its a very strange thing to do and given their reasoning "to broaden the bands fanbase" its seems to me misjudged, unless of course a certain other Mr Morse is coming back albeit briefly. What say you?

January 28, 2011

Hi Everybody

As you probably know, Spock's Beard is scheduled to play the High Voltage Festival in London on July 24 as support for Jethro Tull. We are also working on a few more UK dates to go along with that to be played in the days after the High Voltage Festival.

The dilemma we are faced with is this: Nick may or may not be able to do these dates due to his commitment with Cirque du Soleil. He won't know for sure whether or not he'll be able to do this for some time, but we thought rather than wait we should disclose the fact now that we may need to have someone else front the band for these shows.

Normally in this situation we wouldn't even take a gig with this possibility hanging over it, but in this case we'd be absolute morons not to take this opportunity to present ourselves to lots of new prog fans that have never heard us before. This type of show is something that we've been striving towards literally for years and is a rare opportunity for us to increase our fan base.

While this may be a massive disappointment to some of you, the reality is that for the people who we really need to present ourselves to (the people who don't know much about us), and in fact the reason why we took this gig in the first place, we will be Spock's Beard and we will hopefully make a good enough impression on them that they will add themselves to the ranks of our beloved supporters.

(By the way, the promoters were informed of this possibility before we even accepted the gig and they are OK with it.)

Our goal is not to trick anyone or do anything underhanded, nor are we in any way considering a personnel change. We are simply trying to increase our fan base with this opportunity, and we sincerely hope that you understand.

Hope to see some of you there!

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You must be joking.....Take a running jump......

Replies:

Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: January 29 2011 at 10:08

High Voltage will likely have 15,000 plus fans. The usual Spocks Beard gig will be at very small venues. Its understandable isn't it that they don't want to miss this opportunity?

Posted By: Theriver
Date Posted: January 29 2011 at 10:41

That is totally understandable.

Posted By: Slartibartfast
Date Posted: January 29 2011 at 13:13

You need to start some more threads about this under some more categories.

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Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened...

Posted By: Harold-The-Barrel
Date Posted: January 29 2011 at 13:19

Slartibartfast wrote:

You need to start some more threads about this under some more categories.

Huh?

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You must be joking.....Take a running jump......

Posted By: sleeper
Date Posted: January 29 2011 at 20:24

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores (last years Euro tour ended up being more a case of Germany and a few other places) and to be honest they're great live so with or without Nick I'd go and see them if they played close by.

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Spending more than I should on Prog since 2005

Posted By: Harry Hood
Date Posted: January 30 2011 at 02:07

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Posted By: Harold-The-Barrel
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 04:42

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores (last years Euro tour ended up being more a case of Germany and a few other places) and to be honest they're great live so with or without Nick I'd go and see them if they played close by.

Oh I'll be there alright!

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You must be joking.....Take a running jump......

Posted By: chopper
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 07:23

richardh wrote:

High Voltage will likely have 15,000 plus fans. The usual Spocks Beard gig will be at very small venues. Its understandable isn't it that they don't want to miss this opportunity?

They won't be playing to 15,000 people if they're only doing the prog stage.

Sounds like an opportunity to get Neal back for one gig.

Posted By: Garion81
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 11:51

^It wouldn't be just one gig. They are just announcing it now so there are no surprises. It maybe a close to the event call whether nick can get the time off. Dave Meros posted this over at Progressive ears:

Hi,
Time to answer a couple questions - -

First, before we get all excited, let's wait and give Nick a chance to find out if he can do this UK trip with us or not.

He does have a break between Cirque shows right then, which is very good. However, he may have some obligations during that time or his schedule may change, and no one can give him any definite answers about that right now, so we're kind of in limbo for an indefinite period of time. .. hence the announcement.

The announcement on the SB website was just a disclosure of a possibility. We didn't want to get a month away from the trip, find out that Nick could not do it, and then announce it after people had bought tickets and made travel plans.

Yes, we do want to focus more on the newer material. We are the Spock's Beard of the last few CDs and that's what we want to sell.

We have a sub lined up already just in case, he's AWESOME and perfect for the gig, and I'm not going to tell you who it is. ;-) There is no benefit to anybody by telling you who this is until we actually know that the situation requires this person to step in.

Just another day in the life of Spock's Beard! ;-)

Cheers.........Dave

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"What are you going to do when that damn thing rusts?"

Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 11:59

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores .

Nah. I saw them in 2008. You did too.

http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=49976&title=spocks-beard-the-point-cardiff-2nd-july-2008" rel="nofollow - http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=49976&title=spocks-beard-the-point-cardiff-2nd-july-2008

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http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow">

Posted By: galleti7
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 12:56

Neal Morse N O W !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Tongue

Posted By: galleti7
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 12:57

Neal Morse N O W!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Posted By: sleeper
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 14:34

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores .

Nah. I saw them in 2008. You did too.

That threads dated 2007 (and I did go see them that night, great show even if *Frost were a no-show) and I dont think they've played in the UK since then.

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Spending more than I should on Prog since 2005

Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 14:42

sleeper wrote:

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores .

Nah. I saw them in 2008. You did too.

That threads dated 2007 (and I did go see them that night, great show even if *Frost were a no-show) and I dont think they've played in the UK since then.

Clearly it is 2008.

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http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow">

Posted By: Garion81
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 14:59

I saw them on the North American "tour" last year. (One concert in LA). I have to say the X material was fantastic live. It was my third time seeing them without Neal and this was the best one.

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"What are you going to do when that damn thing rusts?"

Posted By: chopper
Date Posted: February 01 2011 at 16:44

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores .

Nah. I saw them in 2008. You did too.

That threads dated 2007 (and I did go see them that night, great show even if *Frost were a no-show) and I dont think they've played in the UK since then.

Clearly it is 2008.

Yes it is!

"Posted: July 07 2008 at 15:03

Sounds like a teriific gig there, bodes well as I'm going to see them tonight at Bilstons Robin 2."

Posted By: sleeper
Date Posted: February 02 2011 at 10:11

chopper wrote:

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores .

Nah. I saw them in 2008. You did too.

That threads dated 2007 (and I did go see them that night, great show even if *Frost were a no-show) and I dont think they've played in the UK since then.

Clearly it is 2008.

Yes it is!

"Posted: July 07 2008 at 15:03

Sounds like a teriific gig there, bodes well as I'm going to see them tonight at Bilstons Robin 2."

Yikes! How did I read that wrong?!

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Spending more than I should on Prog since 2005

Posted By: Snow Dog
Date Posted: February 02 2011 at 10:22

sleeper wrote:

chopper wrote:

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

Snow Dog wrote:

sleeper wrote:

It'll be the first time in about 4 years that SB have played on these shores .

Nah. I saw them in 2008. You did too.

That threads dated 2007 (and I did go see them that night, great show even if *Frost were a no-show) and I dont think they've played in the UK since then.

Clearly it is 2008.

Yes it is!

"Posted: July 07 2008 at 15:03

Sounds like a teriific gig there, bodes well as I'm going to see them tonight at Bilstons Robin 2."

Yikes! How did I read that wrong?!

Who knows? LOL

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http://www.last.fm/user/Snow_Dog" rel="nofollow">

Posted By: Harold-The-Barrel
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 04:25

Hi Everybody,

It's official! World class singer/guitarist TED LEONARD {Enchant / Thought Chamber} will be filling in for Nick at both Sweden Rock on June 11th and the High Voltage Festival in London on July 24th.

Ted is a great guy and an amazing talent, and we know he will do a fantastic job with our songs. This promises to be a great ...opportunity to introduce Spock's Beard to lots of people who may not be familiar with us. We guarantee performances that will uphold the high standards you know us for.

We are really looking forward to these shows and we hope to see you all there. Thanks for supporting the Beard! \m/...\m/

Cheers!

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You must be joking.....Take a running jump......

Posted By: Mr ProgFreak
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 05:51

Why the teary emoticon? Ted Leonard is an amazing singer.

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https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike" rel="nofollow - https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike

Posted By: Harold-The-Barrel
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 12:39

Mr ProgFreak wrote:

Why the teary emoticon? Ted Leonard is an amazing singer.

.

WHY? Because he's not a member of the band and this whole process of hiring a singer is just wrong, if the band can't fulfill their commitments they shouldn't be playing. I really don't care how good the singer is or who he is, if they had hired Peter Gabrielor Jon Anderson or dug up Caruso i'd have felt the same

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You must be joking.....Take a running jump......

Posted By: Mr ProgFreak
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 14:24

^ Spock's Beard have been friends with Enchant for a long time - I still remember from one of the SB DVDs the Enchant poster in Neal's recording room.

I'd actually like to see that show - SB sung by Ted Leonard. It's like Spock's Beard - with a beard! Or maybe the beards cancel themselves out ... LOL

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https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike" rel="nofollow - https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike

Posted By: Andy Webb
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 14:37

Of course they overlook the obvious choice:

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http://ow.ly/8ymqg" rel="nofollow">

Posted By: darkshade
Date Posted: March 19 2011 at 15:27

^ who will be at the High Voltage festival as well Ermm

**EDIT** im sure they considered it (or maybe not) and thought it might be awkward... who knows...

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http://www.last.fm/user/MysticBoogy" rel="nofollow - My Last.fm

Posted By: Mr ProgFreak
Date Posted: March 20 2011 at 03:51

^ I wouldn't be surprised if he joined them on stage for one or two songs ... Smile

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https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike" rel="nofollow - https://tagyourmusic.org/users/Mike

Posted By: Andy Webb
Date Posted: March 20 2011 at 09:20

^ that's likely

this is the encore of a show where neal played the light-- this is the nick era

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http://ow.ly/8ymqg" rel="nofollow">

Posted By: Garion81
Date Posted: March 20 2011 at 13:25

Garion81 wrote:

^It wouldn't be just one gig. They are just announcing it now so there are no surprises. It maybe a close to the event call whether nick can get the time off. Dave Meros posted this over at Progressive ears:

Hi,
Time to answer a couple questions - -

First, before we get all excited, let's wait and give Nick a chance to find out if he can do this UK trip with us or not.

He does have a break between Cirque shows right then, which is very good. However, he may have some obligations during that time or his schedule may change, and no one can give him any definite answers about that right now, so we're kind of in limbo for an indefinite period of time. .. hence the announcement.

The announcement on the SB website was just a disclosure of a possibility. We didn't want to get a month away from the trip, find out that Nick could not do it, and then announce it after people had bought tickets and made travel plans.

Yes, we do want to focus more on the newer material. We are the Spock's Beard of the last few CDs and that's what we want to sell.

We have a sub lined up already just in case, he's AWESOME and perfect for the gig, and I'm not going to tell you who it is. ;-) There is no benefit to anybody by telling you who this is until we actually know that the situation requires this person to step in.

Just another day in the life of Spock's Beard! ;-)

Cheers.........Dave

You think they were ever going to consider using Neal after reading that? And you assume Neal would want to do it anyway. How can Neal rehearse for his own set of music if he has to tour with SB? It really was not going to happen. I think Ted Leonard will do an fantastic job on the material and yes I think Neal will come out and Play on something like The Light at High Voltage. Of course these guys all know each other. The prog musician community in California is not all that big.

And for the comment that shouldn't be doing it at all is really ridiculous How many opportunities do you think they get to do shows at all? Of course they are going to play. Nick is under contract to Cirque this is his full time job not Spock's Beard and his schedule is very restrictive. These guys all have to take vacation time from their day jobs to set these tours up and doing it off of High Voltage was probably the only was they could cover the expense. Sorry if you feel they won't be good without him but if I were you I would jump at the chance to see the X material live. I saw them last Sept and the X material was fantastic. I have seen them 3 times without Neal and this was the best hands down. There will be little drop off with Ted fronting them.

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"What are you going to do when that damn thing rusts?"

Posted By: Ivan_Melgar_M
Date Posted: March 20 2011 at 13:57

Harold-The-Barrel wrote:

Mr ProgFreak wrote:

Why the teary emoticon? Ted Leonard is an amazing singer.

So, let me see:

If a singer has other commitments where he's making money. the other members have to retire or wait for him?

When Pele and Maradona were injured, they were replaced, when any member of a band resigns (excepts guys like Ian Anderson or Robert Fripp) or can't join a tour, they can be replaced.

Iván

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Posted By: Harry Hood
Date Posted: March 23 2011 at 01:06

Ivan_Melgar_M wrote:

Harold-The-Barrel wrote:

Mr ProgFreak wrote:

Why the teary emoticon? Ted Leonard is an amazing singer.

So, let me see:

If a singer has other commitments where he's making money. the other members have to retire or wait for him?

When Pele and Maradona were injured, they were replaced, when any member of a band resigns (excepts guys like Ian Anderson or Robert Fripp) or can't join a tour, they can be replaced.

Iván

Honestly at this point a King Crimson without Fripp is one I'd see in a heartbeat (assuming the rest of the lineup was unchanged). Not to downplay his contributions, but Ade's been the driving force of the band for some time now (and for the better I'd say!)

Regarding ther topic at hand, while it's a strange and unexpected choice, it will at least be interesting. And I'm sure Neal will come out for The Light or something, so that'll be cool. Let's give this a chance..

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