Cancer On The Rocks 2019 Fundraiser 23rd November 2019
Cancer On The Rocks 2019 Fundraiser 23rd November 2019Words and Photos Stephen Johnson
After the last minute cancellation of Day 2 of the event on Tuesday 19th November 2019, it was down to the bands namely Gypsy’s Kiss, Blurred Vision, Collateral and Romeo’s Daughter to really bring the event to life and entertain the crowd, who had turned out to watch.
The event was held in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support and The Royal
Paul Lyons: Macmillan Regional Fundraising Manager
Marsden Charity. Regional Fundraising Manager for Cancer Support, Paul Lyons, had this to say with regards to the charity getting involved with Cancer On The Rocks ‘‘So, Rick Palin, who is head person for Cancer On The Rocks, approached Macmillan and said he wanted to do a benefit gig and said he wanted our help. My Job as regional fundraising manager for various parts of London, came on board to assist Rick and give him ideas in how to raise money and that might be, like, bringing in volunteers to collect money in their buckets at the venue and at this event, we brought in contactless payment machines, so, that anyone could pay by card’’ before adding ‘‘The idea for us is to help Rick and to not take anything away from what he’s doing ie organising it etc, i’m here to give him a hand in any shape or form I can.’’
When asked about how Charitable Rock fans are, Paul goes on to say ‘‘It will be interesting to see how things go tonight, I’m looking forward to the outcome of people putting money into the buckets and payment machines.’’
Judging by the amount of fans donating money all evening, they should do quite well for the Charity, fingers crossed.
Rick Palin: Cancer On The Rocks Promoter and Compere
Promoter and Compere, Rick Palin, had this to say with regards to the event taking place ‘‘Bush Hall in London, the venue for the Cancer On The Rocks event tonight, is a great venue and it’s a ideal place…close to the tube and to everywhere. We’re hoping we are gonna get a great crowd in tonight, because, the line up of bands we’ve got is stunning namely Gypsy’s Kiss, Blurred Vision, Collateral and Romeo’s Daughter. It will be a great night.’’
Rick goes on to say ‘‘What we’re doing with this Cause is a little blip in a fishpond, if you like, but it all helps and when you do something like this and you start looking at the research for it, then you become to realize that in the next five years, one in three of us will need the help of organizations like Macmillan, it’s a scary thought and you’ve gotta do what you can to help. That’s what Cancer On The Rocks is here for, collecting money at the event, to help with the research into finding a cure and making sure that everyone who comes to the event, see a kick ass show, y’know.’’
When asked whether he thinks Rock fans are more likely to give to a cause like Cancer On The Rocks than anything else, because you’ve got the branding and the bands playing the fundraising event, Rick replies ‘‘Rock fans are one of the most soft-hearted bunch of people that you’ll ever meet and that’s the important thing here. They are more than willing to give money to a cause they believe in.’’
Bands Perspective
Gypsy’s Kiss Singer/Guitarist David Smith Photo Credit Stephen Johnson
Gypsy’s Kiss Singer/Guitarist David Smith has this to say about how they feel about playing the event ‘‘Really looking forward to it tonight and it’s for a very worthy cause and there’s some really great bands playing, so, what could be better’’ before adding ‘‘Rick asked us to play and we said ‘We’d love to’ altho’ my concern was, does anybody wanna hear what we’re doing and much to my surprise, they do.’’
David goes on to say ‘’Macmillan and The Royal Marsden are two wonderful Charities and the work they do is invaluable to helping people with Cancer and supporting the family in any way they can. It’s great that Cancer On The Rocks is there to help with the fundraising to give to these two charities.’’
Romeo’s Daughter Singer Leigh Matty
Romeo’s Daughter’s Singer Leigh Matty had this to say with regards to playing the event ‘‘Well, it’s a cause that’s very dear to my heart, as I am unfortunately, one of the casualty’s of Cancer in my early thirties and so obviously, I am very interested into anything that raises money and helps Cancer research in any way’’.
Leigh goes on to say with regards to Rock Fans giving donations to Cancer Charity ‘‘Older Rock fans are more than likely to give money to a Charity such as Cancer On The Rocks, because they have more money at their disposal as opposed to young Rock fans, who don’t really have much money, maybe, that’s got something to do with it. I’ve never really thought about it in those terms, to be honest with you’’ ponders a smiling Leigh at the comment.
Summary Review Of The Event
Openers Gypsy Kiss put on a commendable performance with their Whitesnake/Thin Lizzy-esque Rock, that seemed to go down well with the crowd. Blurred Vision, however, had moments of being good, but at certain points, seem to lose direction. Collateral, on the other hand, were up for fun and Rocking the audience, but, they couldn’t hold the attention fully, which was a shame. Headliners, Romeo’s Daughter, on the other hand, had the crowd eating out of their hands from the moment they hit the stage and made sure to please the die-hard fans, as well
Gypsy’s Kiss Singer/Guitarist David Smith
as the ones, seeing ‘em for the first time. The hour they were on for, went by in no time at all and by the end of their set, they impressed everyone who attended.
If you would like to check the Cancer On The Rocks website and purchase merchandise. The money you’ll be spending, will be going to Macmillan and The Royal Marsden organisations to help with research into finding a cure for Cancer.
