Sunsets from ESco

One of the benefits of working for ESco is that we have fantastic offices that are situated in an elevated position overlooking the rolling Essex countryside. In December we witnessed a couple of amazing sunsets and luckily I happened to have my camera with me to snap them. I've just uploaded the photos which you can see by clicking on the links below.

Sunset at ESco

ESco Sunset II

Becky Higg - "A Female Jack Johnson Meets Damien Rice"

That is how my dear friend Becky Higg describes her music - and she is pretty much right. I've known Becky since my uni days where I managed her band Glass Half Full (you may have seen me wear the hoody) and recorded their live and studio albums which are unfortunately now discontinued. Even when I knew her back then, the songs she wrote were captivating, and you could tell that she was going to go somewhere with her tunes and funky style.

Luckily for you, she has just released a new critically acclaimed album entitled Room to Move which is available for download at iTunes and Napster. For those of you just wanting a taster, why don't you head over to her website which can be found here: www.myspace.com/beckyhigg


She has a fantastic soul voice which is backed up by funky chilled guitars, laid back drums and jazzy double bass. If you want an easy new years resolution, then why don't you make it that you will download her album? I can certainly recommend it and would personally describe it as fantastic!

For you Christians out there, you'll be pleased to know that Becky is also a Christian and her music is obviously influenced by her personal relationship with God - just another reason why you need to giver her music a listen!

Here are some snippets about what others think of her music:

• "Stand out tracks Safehouse and Your Sofa are worth the price of the CD alone." Conrad Murray, Manchester Metro News.
• "Its difficult not to fall under the charm of this little English girl. Safehouse is a luminous, shining and refreshing debut single." Marie Charrel. www.musiqualite.net

And here is her official history:

Becky Higg's favourite word is papillon, or butterfly in English. Which says a lot really. The diminutive Bristol-born girl with a big heart has been winning plaudits in the urban rock haven of Manchester for the last couple of years; and with the rise of acts like Nizlopi and Jack Johnson, even the Northwest's rock capital is cosying up to her melodic folk soul. Born in 1978, Becky grew up in a musical family, listening to The Beatles, Ella Fitzgerald and The Beach Boys, before being hit by the Britpop movement in the 90s encapsulated by acts like Blur, The Verve and Sleeper. She first picked up her brothers guitar at sixteen and ever since then she has been creating the kind of mellifluous melodies most artists can only dream of. Her first mini-album, Your Sofa, was produced independently last year, and on the back of this eight song opus, she was picked up by burgeoning Manchester music house, MassiveUK. Her first official single, Safehouse, is an upbeat piece of spiritual folk, bringing together pretty guitar parts, full-blooded double bass, wistful drums and sumptuous vocal lines. It's quite simply a standout single and she is set to turn even more heads in 2006 with an official release of her debut LP, Room to Move. If one thing is certain for 2006, this butterfly is about to open her wings and fly.

New Year 2007 - I Was the Murderer!

This year Ang and I (with our good friends Tim & Debs) organised a murder mystery evening at our house in Linton with some friends from Cambridge. It was great fun and we all had many giggles. Unfortunately, I was the murderer, so couldn't really join in the game of detective - instead I had to put everyone off the scent and plan some decoys so they didn't catch me out. To finish off the evening we had a couple of goes at Sing Star!

The Best Outfit award goes to Ang Wood, Best Character to Tim Yau, Best Gun and Sunnies to Mark Chatfield, Best Elvis Impression to Ben Rexworthy, Best Boots to Debs Yau, Best Red Dress to Becs Rexworthy, Best Meow to Miriam Craddock and finally the Best Wand award goes to Me! If you want to see some funny photos, click on the link/pic below!

New Year 2007