The first rehearsal tape.

About ten years ago I was working for a magazine and an interview was arranged with Mike Joyce. A journalist and I were dispatched up to his house in the more well off surburbs of Manchester. Mike is very friendly and a great guy to hang out with. The journo is talked into a jam with Mike in his studio basement.

After this we are sitting in his kitchen having a coffee and Mikes appears with a battered ghetto blaster and a cardboard box of cassettes. We look inside and are amazed by the contents of this box. With his characteristic enthusiasm he pulls a tape out and sticks it into the ageing player that looks like it might 'eat' every cassette you put into it. The sounds that come out are familiar but we can't quite place them. Mike grins and says "This is the Smiths first rehearsal" That amazing sound isn't quite there Mozs voice is slightly different that confidence is not fully developed, the rhythm section sound more like they want to be in a funk outfit. Only Marrs guitar sounds pretty polished. Overall though its quite impressive for the first ever time of playing together. There must be 30+ tapes in the box they obviously recorded alot of gigs, theres also some outtakes and studio runthroughs..Lets hope that some of these finally see the light of day..

He would do us a great favour!

I'm guessing he's been threatened w/ legal action if any of that stuff is released. Damnit!!

Saint Johnny wrote:I'm guessing he's been threatened w/ legal action if any of that stuff is released. Damnit!!

Then again, he wasn't afraid of playing that click track/cowbell demo on UK radio, so perhaps once...