This is a relatively short set by In Cahoots – for two reasons. First, this was a transitional line-up with a new frontline of Theo Travis (this would be his only performance with the band) on saxes and flute and Simon Finch on trumpet. Second, they were a support band that night. “And who headlined?”, I hear you ask. Well, none other than Hatfield and the North, for their first formal live appearance in nearly 30 years (not counting the one-off 1990 TV show with Sophia Domancich on keyboards). This was a great evening of music, which also included an opening set by Richard Sinclair, solo and with various guests. I remember spending most of the evening standing alongside Jonathan Coe, for whom the return of Hatfield was also a dream come true, and other notable audience members were Lol Coxhill and, I was later told, Amanda Parsons.
This event was the starting point of 18 months of touring for the revived Hatfield, which sadly ended with Pip’s untimely death in August 2006.
In Cahoots’ set premiered two new pieces Phil had recently recorded for the new album “Conspiracy Theories“, which had yet to acquire definitive titles – on that occasion they were introduced as “Jan04” and “NewBass“. The set began with a nice snippet of “Truly Yours” with Theo on flute, and the remainder consisted of “ED Or Ian” and a strong performance of the perennial favourite “Green & Purple Intro / Hic Haec Hoc / A Simple Man” medley, of which a video exists, as the evening was professionally filmed and recorded. Of course a welcome postscript to this one-off was Theo’s major contribution to the Memorial Concert at the Vortex in January 2019, as documented elsewhere on this site.
Phil Miller – guitar
Theo Travis – tenor & soprano sax, flute
Simon Finch – trumpet, flugelhorn
Peter Lemer – keyboards
Fred Baker – bass
Mark Fletcher – drums
Many thanks for the upload. This was a night I will never forget.