The event was hosted by Mojo editor, Phil Alexander whose mane of dark wavy hair was swept into a formal ponytail, trickling down the back of his dinner jacket. He was assisted on stage by a very pretty young blonde in a short dress; all very good eye candy. This kind of set the scene for the whole enterprise.
I was given the most flattering introduction by Phil. Duffy seemed astonished to receive her award from me. She is sweet and tiny. I am about a foot taller. It is a rule of thumb in this business – you are either extremely petite or really statuesque – no in betweens for stars of any magnitude.
The highlights of the evening for me apart from giving Duffy her well deserved award, were sitting next to old mate, Julien Temple, the film director who directed my ex, Nik Powell’s production of ‘Absolute Beginners’, meeting Jazzy B again after the Queen’s soirée at Buckingham Palace, and being introduced by Steve Davis to Stephen Alexander the new boss of the catalogue section at EMI.
They were a host of award recipients, a collection of credible acts representing many different aspects of music, including Led Zeppelin, Judy Collins, Paul Weller, Nick Cave, Last Shadow Puppets, Motorhead and The Specials. Everyone was well received except curiously enough Genesis and a rather badly timed joke by Rat Scabies. Neil Diamond gave a very gracious acceptance speech; the Americans are so good at this kind of thing. In complete contrast the biggest gaff of the evening (there always is one) was by Johnny Rotten from the Sex Pistols. He has turned into a very odd caricature of his former Sex Pistols self. When given his award he insulted and swore at everyone present. While this may have gone down well during the punk era it was strangely out of step with these current pragmatic times. Some things just don’t age well. Alf Garnett aged better.
I had a great time. It was like being back with family again. I felt thoroughly rejuvenated the next day – young even…. Hope to see everyone next year.
shavian
