Enjoy this great story by Bob Carruthers

My six year old daughter on seeing Mick Box for the first
time ,asked me in all seriousness if Mick Box was a hobbit.
She based this , I then presumed ,on his friendly manner , squat stature and what we used to call in the film business his" character " features.

 

Ever since ,it has become a standing joke in our house and the odd guitar playing Hobbit has occasionaly saved the day in a few of my more colorful bedtime stories. I had always thought that Mick's resemblance's to JRR Tolkien's wonderful creations ended there, but now I now know just how wrong you can be and that maybe there's more to a six year old's intuition than meets the eye 

 

Those of you who are familiar with Tolkien's work will recall how the Hobbit story starts with an episode where a large group of dwarfs are smuggled into the hero's home by the expedient of slipping the ever increasing numbers into the equation during those moments when the host is most distracted . Well Mr Box has certainly mastered what we are now calling the advanced Gandalf half reverse double switch...one moment the five members of the are band are standing there , acoustic instruments at the ready and rehearsals begin......you pop out to put on the kettle and when you come back to ask who wants milk you don't notice the pedal steel player whom the boys thought "might give the appropriate country tinge to " Why did you go ? "

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Well, even me ,the tight fisted Scottish Mc Scrooge of a producer, certainly can't argue with that, so back to the kitchen to get the cups..the doorbell rings and it's a pleasant young man who informs you that he has been brought in to bring "a celtic flavour to "Different World" with his lowland , pipes , tin , whistles and bodrahn...not wishing to betray any hint of the national stereotypes this extra player is waived through with only a mental note to remind him that all rail travel must be second class only ..but by the time you get to the biscuit tin there comes a shouted request for an extra cup because "er...some of these arrangements are crying out for sympathetic percussion and "we know just the man !

 

"..by now my suspicions are being raised to financial danger level at which point the average Scotsman has to enter the non spending stonewall zone "arrangements ?.."you mean there's a string player as well.?"."Well er no actually says Pip ,Mick's partner in crime,"..it's a quartet!" . Well I suppose you could'nt expect to do "The Easy Road" or "The Golden Palace " without one , so the all girl quartet troop in under the approving gaze of Phil Lanzon who just happens to have some arrangements up his sleeve.

 

By now the patent Scottish expenditure radar is on full alert so the suggestion that we should " get some extra milk "for when the girls come" is rumbled straight away ...we are obviously not talking wives and girlfriends here.. and Lee has to come clean as the champion of the" bring in some backing singers "movement, but even I with my Caledonian gaze never straying too far from the balance sheet have to admit that they do bring a certain something to " Come back to me " so even the oldest mugs are already being dusted down and a runner despatched for extra kit -kats when Mick broaches the next subject ...special guests ..." Did I ever tell you how much I liked Ian Anderson's flute playing".....looks like we may be needing a few extra cups yet...

 

An undertaking of this size and complexity usually brings with it a huge number of headaches , heartaches and general grief of all kinds. Heep Unplugged is one of those rare projects that begins to grow and blossom almost of it's own violation. It has been a joy to be associated with and as the rehearsals have unfolded it has been one of the highlights of my working life hearing those familiar songs evolve and take on a new life of their own.