The City Fathers play The Jericho Street Fair June 2018
The City Fathers 2004 - onwards
The City Fathers Live at The Isis Farmhouse, Oxford. 19th June 2011
Tracks;
1. You Don’t Deserve It
2. Forever
3. Do Nothing
4. Seven Times Seven
5. City Fathers
6. Planet 509
7. It Won’t Take Long
8. Blackmail
9. Sign Of The Times
10. Nottingham
11. He Thinks He’ll Keep Her *
All songs by Paul Galley, except * Track 11. © Mary Chapin Carpenter and Don Schlitz 1992.
© Paul Galley: Tracks 4.+8. 1984; Track 2. 1985; Tracks 1,3+5 2004; Tracks 6+10 2006; Tracks 3,7+ 9 2009.
The City Fathers:
Paul Galley: Vocals, Guitar
Pete Lock: Vocals, Drums
Robin Morris: Bass Guitar, Vocals
Arrangements: PG, PL & RM (Mostly RM)
"We’re just a little 3-Piece Band, y’know, recorded live!
No overdubs; no remixing etc; just us, singing and playing and making real mistakes in real time!"
"Hello! I just thought you'd like to know that there is lots of City Fathers music on this page, for all you fans out there!
Above me is an actual video of the boys playing You Don't Deserve It Live at the Jericho Street Fair from 2018!
Below me on the left (your left, that is) is the unmissable recording of The City Fathers at The Isis Farmhouse - 11 tracks, all live(!) beginning with You Don't Deserve It (different recording).
Further below (Lake Ontario), where you can see the picture of the tower and the street-lamp, is a recording of The City Fathers EP - the track listing for that is next to Gordon.
I do hope this clears things up a bit!"
Interviewer: “The French have not made up their minds about the Beatles. What do you think of them?”
John: “Oh, we like the Beatles. They're gear.”
But….calling all introverts out there! Why do we do it? Why do we make ourselves go out there on stage and perform in front of people and, even, record it? Inside we are shaking, like jelly and yet, there we are, on stage.
“Oh, but you looked so calm, Paul. You always look so calm!”
Gordon Jackson couldn’t bear to watch himself on screen,
“Oh, but you looked so calm, Gordon. You always look so calm!”
and I’m with him on this!
I mean I can bear to watch Gordon, and he’s a very good actor….I just can’t bear to watch or listen to myself! Let’s hear it for introverts! But we won’t hear it ‘cos we’re in hiding. We can’t bear to listen!
It’s a strange paradox. It’s a strange parakeet!
Hence, here I am, choosing tracks to do justice to The City Fathers. Robin, our great bass player and collaborator (meant as a compliment) has recorded and presented me with literally 100 cds over the last 16 years! A hundred, all with detailed notes of our performances. I’m very grateful and I thank him. The only problem is, I haven’t listened to any of them!
Sorry, Robin! No disrespect intended. I think we have made some good recordings (some terrible ones, too) but I can’t bear to listen to them, well me, in particular. Y’see it’s probably OCD but instead of celebrating what worked, I’m always looking for the little mistakes, the drops in pitch and timing; the wrong chords; the wrong trousers….and I always think,
“Oh I could’ve done so much better!”
Mistakes glare out at me, mercilessly, and I want to run and join Gordon Jackson in the conservatory, hiding behind the sofa.
So, obviously, I’m best placed to make a City Fathers selection collection!
Unfortunately, though, there’s only me here….and….well it’s I supposed to be my Website, after all!
We’re just older children. That's all. After all
The City Fathers play The Jericho Street Fair in June 2019, this time. I'm not smiling much because this picture was taken just before my hypoglycaemic attack! So I left the stage pretty quickly to lie down in a gravel car park. Very...um....rock'n'roll!