Farewell Mike!
It was with sadness and joy that a number of us attended Mike's cremation service on 27th May 2008.
Mike joined the City Steam Jazz Band in 1995 and was with us regularly until he was taken ill with throat cancer in 2005. He played both banjo and guitar, but his special contribution to the music was the fun he injected into our gigs with his joyful singing of skiffle songs, like "My old Man's a dustman" and the "Rock Island Line". Once he started his skiffle set you could see that he was a great performer, an attribute perfected during his time with "The Settlers".
For some years he ran our band with enthusiasm and efficiency, and was instrumental in the setting up of our first website. He was the driving force behind the making of our CD, and even used us to make one of his commercial radio jingles!
The service at the Crematorium was a fitting celebration of his life, but afterwards we let our hair down at his local, "The Hunstman", in Ide. Musicians queued up to perform in his honour - first jazz players and singers, then skifflers and finally his old mates from "The Settlers". What a send off! I'm sure Mike would have wished he was there!
Mike joined the City Steam Jazz Band in 1995 and was with us regularly until he was taken ill with throat cancer in 2005. He played both banjo and guitar, but his special contribution to the music was the fun he injected into our gigs with his joyful singing of skiffle songs, like "My old Man's a dustman" and the "Rock Island Line". Once he started his skiffle set you could see that he was a great performer, an attribute perfected during his time with "The Settlers".
For some years he ran our band with enthusiasm and efficiency, and was instrumental in the setting up of our first website. He was the driving force behind the making of our CD, and even used us to make one of his commercial radio jingles!
The service at the Crematorium was a fitting celebration of his life, but afterwards we let our hair down at his local, "The Hunstman", in Ide. Musicians queued up to perform in his honour - first jazz players and singers, then skifflers and finally his old mates from "The Settlers". What a send off! I'm sure Mike would have wished he was there!