ARMS ALOFT IN ACTON TOWN - 2007

November 15th, 2007 - Arms Aloft In Acton Town Hall

Tymon Dogg and The Quikening (line up: Tymon on vocals, 'pyramid' harp, violin and Spanish guitar; Sarah Anderson on violin; Muz, bass; Joe, keyboards and the great new addition to the band, Jasper on drums and Alex T on percussion) played a tribute gig at Acton Town Hall in London on November 15th, 2007 in support of the FBU (Fire Brigades Union) strike which was one of the the last live shows close friend Joe Strummer did in 2002, and on that historic occasion Mick Jones also joined the band on stage. Later in the evening, Tymon joined Mick, Billy Bragg, and an assortment of musicians from various bands that performed in the course of the evening for a grand finale. The following comments/reviews are from people who caught the show.

Lana Sim

"The venue was packed, having been sold out since tickets were first announced for sale, for this tribute to the late Joe Strummer. A gig at Acton with the Mescaleros in support of the FBU (Fire Brigades Union) strike was the last live show Joe did and on that historic ocassion Mick Jones joined the band on stage. In a fine act of tribute to his old mate, Mick joined Billy Bragg, Tymon, and an assortment of musicians from all the bands that performed in the course of the evening, for a grand finale that included the Clash song, Jail House Doors. Tymon's set was greeted with a mixture of fascination and enthusiasm. His music is so different to most of what is around that some people don't know what to make of it; others just know they love the passion and musicianship!The Quikening line up for the night was Tymon on vocals, 'pyramid' harp, violin and Spanish guitar; Sarah Anderson on violin; Muz, bass; Joe, keyboards and the great new addition to the band, Jasper on fearsome drums and Alex T on percussion. The Quikening's production was also greatly helped by awesome sound man Ian Slater, currently on tour with Babyshambles. Backstage whispers included a report that Tymon and Mick Jones had discussed working together on one or two tracks for forthcoming projects... an exciting possibility!"

Merrill Aldighieri

"I was indeed present for both concerts and shot lots of footage of both events. Tymon and his band the Quikening were in superb form. This was my first time seeing them and it was great. The show both nights was packed with a varied entertainment lineup too. I was on stage and found the respect of the band to Tymon's leadership touching. It was exciting to feel the crowd at Acton Town Hall catching the energy of the Quikening. Many were there for nostalgia of the CLASH, but they got a great dose of new music that carries traditions to new heights. At the Acton Hall show there was a massive rally of all the participants in the show for a grand finale jam. I was one of only 3 women on stage in a massive choir of guitars, singers, testosterone! You could hear Tymon's violin weaving it's notes in the spaces inbetween this massive wall of sound. There was lots of fun stuff going on backstage too. People were so thrilled to see Mick Jones, and he was radiant with good will, charm, a heart-warming presence. I asked somebody to take our picture together, but my camera has a bit of a delay and all we got was somebody's elbow!"

Tami Peterson (TWP - strummernews.com)
	"Tymon brought the house down - breaking TWO violins while doing the ending to "Lose This Skin". Mick was duly mobbed when he came in and was presented, along with Tymon, with a firefighters axe from the stage. It was a great night - and the guy at the bar kept calling me Janis Joplin which was much appreciated!!!"

sucksupbudgie (strummernews.com)

"Fantastic night Tymon did an awesome set. This anniversary tribute to the punk icon was held at Acton town hall exactly 5 years after to the date. All money raised to go to various charities including Jail Guitar doors Billy Braggs charity and Strummerville foundation for new music. What a fantastic evening... Billy Bragg suggested that all the performers would go on at the end of his set and do Jail guitar doors and Garageland. Tymon and his band were a joy to watch breaking 2 violins as he played with such passion obviously loose some skin was a highlight. Chris Salewicz did a short reading from his book before Billys set. Realy nice to see him there to support the cause. Icing on the cake had to be Mick turning up, what made that moment especially lovely was a kid about 12 years old thrusting his CDs at his hero as he crossed the threshold.Mick spent a bit of time signing peoples tickets and had a look around the merc stands and a chat to the people there.I was stood next to him when he watched Tymons set and also saw him again watching Billys.I always remember the Clash doing this back in the day and have seen Mick at c/s gigs doing the same. Good to see some habits never die. The fireman's axes were presented to Mick and Tymon as all the artist that had performed lined up backstage for the encore hummed the tune to "Garageland" and "Jail Guitar Doors" to Sarah, Tymons very beautiful and talented violinist as she didn't know the songs. Everyone was in high spirits wondering how it was going to go."

Rocky Cyclone
	"(Some Highlights)... Tymon trashing so many violin bows! Tymon lying on his back playing violin... guitar hero... stylee! And who could forget the packed stage encore??? Unbelievable!!"

Sylvia Valentic

"Since it was the first time ever that I've seen Tymon's solo set I'm not too clued on the song titles and stuff, but I did enjoy it big time, and I can say the crowd at the front felt the same as they all clapped and cheered at Tymon's and Sarah's (hope I got the name right!) violin face-off towards the end of the set, which culminated in Tymon's spectacular shredding of the stick strings, breaking it in half and throwing it in the baying crowd. The set kicked off with a song for which Tymon used the new world harp, and it was followed by a traditional line dancing song, then a song for which Tymon used his acoustic guitar, and finally ended with a couple of songs where Tymon and Sarah showed their fiddling prowess. Billy Bragg's blistering set was like an icing on the cake... great night!"

Bernie Hannon
	"Superb performance on thursday night!! sure joe would have been proud of you! When are you playing again in London????"