Christmas Daffodil at Angelus Restaurant 2015

London. Saturday 05-December-15

Not actually a Daffodil Dining Club event but we improvised. The usual Christmas "Daff" did not materialise which left us in a quandary for our usual works Christmas lunch. It is essential to make use of the taxman's allowance for annual parties and other social functions. So we rounded up the usual suspects Pete and Amanda and booked a meal at Angelus.

This restaurant was a one off venue for the Christmas Daff in 2010 and really impressed. Ever since then I have wanted to make a return visit. We had a lovely meal, so much so that we ate it rather than photographed it. Not sure whether we can have a work's party next year if we have retired, maybe it depends if the company is still registered.

For more about this fine restaurant see Open Table reviews.

Paul Weller at the Eventim Apollo

Friday 04-December-2015

Mary was off for a girls' night out in Winchester so I took up the offer of a lads' night out to see Paul Weller at the Eventim Hammersmith Apollo. This tour was to promote Paul's new album Saturns Patterns so I presumed that many of the songs were off that album.

The Telegraph gives it 4 stars. "Paul Weller, Eventim Apollo: 'the modfather remains a dynamic force. Former Jam singer delivered his new set with full-throated gusto, says Pete Naughton. [...] Over the following two hours, Weller and his fiercely well-drilled five-piece band – two drummers, a bassist, a keyboardist and former Ocean Colour Scene guitarist Steve Cradock – powered through a 27-song set that’s been finely tuned over months of touring this year." Full review...

Personally I found the sound pretty dire. One could hardly make out the vocals, lost in a mish mash of undifferentiated instruments. The Telegraph agrees: "The only disappointments of the evening came from the Apollo’s acoustics, which rendered some of Weller’s newer, rhythmically experimental material almost unlistenable."

I did not recognise hardly any of the set. Part of the Faustian bargain between artist and audience is that they play a mix of new stuff and some greatest hits to send the crowd home humming the old favourites. Reading the Telegraph review it would seem that Paul ranged widely across his back catalogue which just shows how little I know of his ouevre. All in all one of the most disappointing concerts I have been to for some time. Sorry Weller fans!

Still there was good banter with Grant and John and more pints of beer than are recommended in the latest Government guidelines [PDF].