COMBAT ROCK
Early in 2011 Avril Young a member of the VIA Scottish Team and someone who has written some fantastic poems for the charity came up with an idea to get a band to put on a gig to raise funds for the charity. She asked a band if they would play a gig then spoke to her cousin, Paul McEwan who said he would DJ and MC during the event.
The Organisers Paul McEwan and Avril Young
This idea grew and grew and became COMBAT ROCK with 11 bands agreeing to play for free throughout the day for 1 hour each. The event was held at the Soul Nightclub in Dundee and was a fantastic success with all the bands playing a set which everyone who attended enjoyed immensly.
VIA would like to give a huge thanks to all those who worked hard to put the event on and Avril has told VIA that this is just the beginning for COMBAT ROCK as all the bands have said they would love to take part next year for a bigger event with more bands and more people attending.
The Cundeez
During the day the Cundeez took to the stage and played a song called 'Coloured Ribbons and Tarnished Brass' which was taken from a poem written by lead singer Gary Robertson who was the winner of TV's 'SAS are you tough enough?'.
The song and poem were a dedication to his two grandfathers who fought against Rommels Desert Rats in 1942, one serving with the Black Watch and one with the Royal Artillery.
The song had the whole audience sitting watching transfixed, especially us veterans who were there and the Cundeez have kindly allowed us to put the video on our website. Thanks to all the guys.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ofxq-i_fPQc
Fantastic effort from everyone involved as this shows the true ethos of VIA by coming up with an idea and working hard to see it through to success. Can't wait until next year......
"Thanks for sharing that with us Gary. It is a fantastic story about your grandfathers experience in North Africa and the humour is what keeps the forces moving through some very difficult times. Thanks for the support from yourself and the rest of the band and of course all the bands who took part on the day."
"Hi Billy, sorry for the delay in getting back to you, been a wee bit hectic just now. Anyway, we'd be delighted to come on board as The Cundeez and help V.I.A in any way we can. The 'Coloured Ribbons an Tarnished Brass' track came from an original poem which I wrote many years ago for both my grandfathers. One in particular 'Nobby Clark' used to tell me of faking his age to join the Black Watch and as a raw teenager, being thrown right into the first battle at El Alamein in North Africa. He was a stretcher bearer and lost his best mate who was lying right next to him as they took cover in a bomb crater while the Germans lay down a horrendous box barrage. He still cried when he recalled that an had me in tears on many occasions. He also spoke of the humour which I'm sure is what gets the lads and lasses through the terrible situations even today. I actually cried when I wrote the poem while i was working in the factory at the time. We put some music to the poem and Graeme Watt at Dundee's Seagate Studio added the powerful images from World War Two. We're looking forward to Combat Rock 2012 already!!!! Keep up the great work guys. Cheerz The Cundeez"
"Thanks to you all for all your efforts. Please excuse me that I don't know all the names of who to thank for putting on the day in support of VIA. It was a truly fantastic day out and I can't wait for the next one."
"" overwhelmed by all the bands who agreed to join the fight !!....this was a very worthwhile event and i was honoured to meet some of the serving and veterans associated with V.I.A., it was a pleasure to do and i would not hesitate to make this possibly an annual event !!....heres hoping we can make the event even bigger and better in the near future :)...i would like to thank all who took part whether playing in the bands, organizing venue , the owners of the soulnite club ( whom made the event possible) and all patrons who attended and made this a memorable event !...heres to the future and keep up the good work......keep the faith "....all the best andy, billy, bryan, tam,boab and eoin....The Hydels :)...as vera once sang...."we`ll meet again, don`t know where....."....rite enough of my garbo for now .....thank you very much :)"
"Hi guys, Gary here from The Cundeez. Just a wee note to say we had an absolute ball playing at the V.I.A gig in Dundee's Soul Nightclub. It was a privilege to be invited and play for you guys. Hopefully we can do it again next year and make it even bigger! Here's a wee link for the song we did called 'Coloured Ribbons and Tarnished Brass' which I wrote for both my grandfathers. We managed to raise over £800 for Troops Relief charity. Thought you might like to see the video. Best wishes and keep up the great work. http://youtu.be/ofxq-i_fPQc"
"The Organisers and the Bands surpassed themselves, a fantastic night for a very worthy cause. As a mother of a serving soldier I am very grateful to everyone and look forward to attending next year. Thank you and keep up the good work. "
"it was an absolute pleasure and heres to next year...Combat Rock 2012 Bigger and Better :)"
"absolutely brilliant night and going to thoroughly enjoy doing the next with everyone x"