The Parliament Club sits again
Glen Matlock and Paul Cook of The Sex Pistols and Vic Goddard of Subway Sect were just some of the punk legends who followed the example of Rolling Stones' Ronnie Wood and took in West London's newest (but oldest) pop sensation at The Black Horse in Richmond last Friday.

The Fallen Leaves were formed last summer by some of the faces from 1977 - Rob Green - last seen at the Music Machine in 1979 -, ex- Subway Sect guitarists and bassists Rob Symons and Paul Myers and 'King' James Bradley. They have pared-down sound that never lets up on the beat but takes the melody and mood in different directions with every three minute epic.

Friday night was their sixth appearance together and the club was packed out. The group shambled onto the stage several times to fix hardware malfunctions before lead singer Rob Green strode up to the mike resplendent in a silver mohair suit and announced "This is the alternative Brit Awards!" The band drove through eight numbers in just under thirty minutes with Rob Green wrapped around his 50's style mike like an electrocuted Howlin' Wolf. Their best songs sound like they were written in a time machine travelling between the late 60's, 1978 and yesterday. Passionate and humorous tales of thwarted love and premeditated revenge and innovative, metallic chord structures overlay the tightest of rhythm sections. Their calling card - 'Trouble' - would not have sounded out of place on Big Hits (High Tide and Green Grass) with Rob Green pouring out a torrent of regret for poor personal behaviour over Rob Symons' guitar pyrotechnics. 'Repetition' plays as its name with power-drill chords that build up and up until the whole band collapses the song abruptly into an apocalypse of discordant noise. As ever The Fallen Leaves leave well before their welcome ends. Nonetheless the band gets ever tighter, the songs get better and the crowd gets bigger. Catch them before you need to pre-book and use binoculars.

The organisers welcome demos from local bands who may be give the chance to play. They should be sent to Rob Green at The Parliament Club, 28 Queens Rd, London SE14 8PJ.

Information on future events will be posted on The Parliament Club

Stone rolls in at new club
BRINGING live music back to a place that was crucible of English rock a new Richmond club has opened with a performance by Rolling Stone legend Ronnie Wood.

Run for and by local people, with no professional promoters or managers, The Parliament Club will hold four or five events a year.

Local band The Fallen Leaves run the venue based at The Black Horse, 181 Sheen Road, Richmond. Wood was there on opening night, Friday November 26.and climbed on stage to jam with headline band The Downliners Sect and his brother Art.

The Fallen Leaves are themselves steeped in history, guitarist Robert Symmons and bass player Paul Myers were founding members of the Subway Sect, debuting at the 100 Club Punk Festival in September 1976.

The organisers welcome demos from local bands who may be give the chance to play. They should be sent to Rob Green at The Parliament Club, 28 Queens Rd, London SE14 8PJ.

Information on future events will be posted on The Parliament Club