Leader David Broadbent

A good time was had by all. The band showed its metal in all six full band songs, Mike S’s plonking out of the introduction to Three Wheels… was flawless too, but the highlight of the night had to be the cracking performance of Wagon Wheel, (no video, unfortunately, as I didn’t want to miss out), which made a fitting end to David’s tenure as outright leader of Wakeylele. 

 Thanks to Thelma and Linda for providing surprise and tasty refreshments and to Joe for presenting the gifts and for reading the abridged version of the end of term report penned by the mystery man (or woman?) 

    Enjoy the summer break.

End of Very Long – Term Report

Name: David Broadbent

Band: Wakeylele

Position: Leader and MC, marketing director, trustee, baggage master, composer, would be comedian. 

General:

David has been largely responsible for making Wakeylele what it is today – a tightly knit band that enjoys playing together, be it at gigs or for weekly practices. From the early days with a handful of players who met at the King’s Arms on Heath Common under the name of Gaslighters, through Zoom sessions during the dark days of covid to the healthy number of group members now attending weekly sessions in Walton, David has been the driving force behind the mission to help everyone to be as good as they can be.

English:

David is very adept at adapting lyrics of a song to make something more relevant or amusing, as in his version of Five Hundred Days. He is also a master of transmitting interesting snippets of information to gig audiences and has also added the telling of corny ukulele jokes to his repertoire, ignoring the collective groans of the band as he does so. (It should also be said that he is far better at writing succinctly about a gig than the present contributor.)

 Drama/ P.E

David has developed a wide range of facial expressions when leading the band at gigs in order to get his messages across. Miscreants with timing issues are likely to receive a glare the like of which may leave the faint hearted in need of a cup of sweet tea in a darkened room. He has also perfected a prodigious leap into the air to signal the end of a song, no mean feat when it is accompanied by a strong downstrum on his ukulele.

Geography:

He has performed both stoically and heroically in a variety of demanding locations from the frozen wastes outside Cannon Hall Farm one December, the dank ‘flu – inducing November weather experienced at Farmer Copleys to the tropical and cramped conditions  inside Inwood Care Home at Horbury, to the heat and humidity under a gazebo at Thorpe Audlin, from the persistent rain under glowering skies at  Lofthouse Summer Fair  to the background  din and bustle inside the White Rose Shopping Centre at Leeds, the list is endless.

Music:

As a talented musician in his own right, David has been able to use his wealth of experience to great effect to a group which, in the early days, included virtual beginners. A separate practice day was started together with a very useful workbook, which is still available on the website. He has put an inordinate amount of time into arranging songs to make them fit for purpose with precise intros and outros and even suggested strum patterns. David can also transpose the key of a song while thinking aloud, although this knowledge has been known to draw a mixture of blank looks on the faces of some and fake nods of understanding on the part of others.

I.T:

An excellent delegator of all matters relating to computers, although he does have an Apple a day and indeed has more than just the one tablet – paracetamol and statins rather than Samsung, I believe.

Headteacher’s Comments:

David has been the rock on which this band has relied over a long period of time, enabling it to progress and thrive and he can be very proud of his achievements in making this possible due to his unstinting efforts combined with his expertise and obvious passion for music. We hope that he can now feel relaxed in stepping back from the pressures of being in sole charge of our happy band.

Well done, David!