On Saturday 9th of May we had the pleasure of performing for Francesca and Rory’s wedding.  We had a fantastic journey early in the morning in our new Mercedes 6 wheeler ‘The White Knight’. We travelled south through the windy roads beneath Marlborough and eventually drove past the majestic Stonehendge. Most people drive quite slow to have a quick look at the amazing structure which was built 5000 years ago, we had a good look too!

We navigated through some picturesque villages and we soon arrived. Milborne Port is a lovely village on the border of Somerset and Dorset and the moment we saw the drive we knew it was going to be great wedding. The marquee was stunning, and very traditional too. We got the White Knight parked as close to the marquee as we could and unloaded and set up our equipment. The marquee was superbly decorated and all ready for the big day.

Wedding band Somerset

We sound checked and went to our dressing room which was in a brand spanking new building where the drinks reception was also being held. We were entertained by the piano player and singer Ian Towers. He performed lots of nice songs while we relaxed in our dressing room.

Our dressing room was so so new that a door hadn’t even been fitted yet which was great as it meant we got to meet some of the wedding guests, including Charlie the best man who was a great help. He helped find us some chairs and showed us where the tea, coffee and water was. He also introduced us to the catering team to let us know when we were being fed. It always helps to have a contact person on the day. Charlie was our man and he even used to be in a band! He made sure we had everything we needed. Here is a picture below of Charlie on the left with Rory the groom in the middle. Also a few pictures of us rehearsing our view from the dressing room and the wedding party.

We ran through some songs and had lots of cups of tea. The views from the newly built house were stunning and you could see for miles. At about 6.30pm we had our meal which was delicious. We rehearsed a few songs from our repertoire that we hadn’t performed for a while. We ran through ‘I shot the sheriff’ by Eric Clapton  and also went through ‘No Woman no cry’, ‘Mustang Sally’, ‘Video Killed the radio star’ and another Eric Clapton classic ‘Wonderful tonight’ which we hadn’t played for about 2 years! After going through Mustang Sally we had a conversation about The Commitments film and wondered what happened to the characters from the film? So a quick question; Which character of the film The Commitments went on to become the biggest star? Find out later on..

As the wedding breakfast finished in the marquee we got changed and ventured over and had a few pictures taken while we were warming up. Harriet bought some new eye shaped rings which the boys posed with.

The first dance was beautiful, dancing to Tom Odell’s ‘Grow old with me’ Francesca and Rory looked ecstatic! Rory even lifted Francesca up to a huge ovation! Simon Biffen the wedding photogrpaher from the occasion was also taking some amazing shots. Simon’s website is here. If you check out his website he really does take stunning photographs. Simon has been generous enough to let us use some of his photos. You’ll know which ones they are….the good ones!

As soon as The Zoots started the show everyone was up dancing having a fab time. Thank you so much to Simon Biffen for capturing the moment with the excellent photos. Ben, Stuart and Harriet ventured into the audience and taught some steps! More great pictures from Simon Biffen wedding photographer.
It was fantastic to get everyone involved in the show! The dance floor stayed packed throughout the whole evening. It was great to see the bride and groom on the shoulders of the ushers, lifted high in the air!

When the band came back on for an excellent second set with loads more songs from our huge repertoire. I really enjoyed the air drummers who were playing along with Mike in front of the stage.

Our lead guitarist Ben Jones ventured into the crowd for Sweet Child o mine. The band played on and on! The crowd went wild!

I was very proud of the band; Ben, Mike, Stuart and Harriet. They really worked very hard on the day, and throughout the evening and the early hours. We have alot of equipment to set up and they have to be strong, patient and versatile. They all work very hard to make sure they know their parts to over 200 songs whilst also making sure their suits are clean, presentable and all their equipment is in order. Harriet makes sure we know what songs we’re playing, the details of the day, a dressing room, tea, food and refreshments which is not easy. They are a great bunch of people to work with and all exceptionally talented. They are always very polite, smart and very professional. That’s why we The Zoots are doing so well! They are a great team. Thank you team.

At the end of the evening there was just The Zoots to pack down. There was also enough time for Ben to give Mike a hug and for The Zoots to say goodbye.

The answer to the question; Who went on to become the biggest star from the Commitments film? It was Andrea Corr from ‘The Corrs’ who played Sharon Rabbitte who was Jimmy (the manager’s) sister.

Thank you for reading, and a huge thank you to the Tizzard and Millar families for looking after us so well and booking The Zoots for such an amazing occasion. Thank you to Simon Biffen for the amazing photos.

All the best, Jamie Goddard  www.thezoots.com

Wedding band Somerset