Happy Boxing Day peeps! Hope your Christmas was ace and you’ve left over turkey, pringles and baileys to get creative with!
One of my favourite things about Xmas is the Christmas special of my gig night, The Sunday Service. It’s on the last Sunday of every month, generally showcasing three ace bands from near and far, at Verve Bar in Leeds. The Christmas Special Brew however, is always my fave of the year, as we ask back a whole bunch of bands that we’ve enjoyed over the year, and get them to play short sets of 3 songs each, including a festive cover track! It ends up super Christmasy and because it’s also generally fuller than usual, we hosted it at Verve’s sister bar, Call Lane Social.
Upstairs is Leeds’ only Tiki Bar, adding a bizarrely tropical vibe to the festive proceedings.
We’d hosted it here last year too (check out a Facebook gallery here)
First up was the amazing Palooka
I helped him sing his homespun Christmas cover called ‘I swear I saw him’ which might honestly be the best Xmas song I’ve ever heard.
If I can find it somewhere to link you guys in, I will! It’s SOOOO good.
Next up was the lovely Jennie Chapman. She usually has a full band (AKA: the Pets)
But the drummer was sick and we had to make do with just Jennie and a pet. 
Her Xmas covers were a delight, and I can’t wait to hear her new studio recordings.
Joining us again in as many months (see last months SS images here) was the insanely gifted lap-guitar bluesman, Ben Pike.
You’ve got to see this guy go on the lap slide, it’s amazing.
Some of Ben’s pals, Adam & Sam of ‘Louis Louis Louis’ joined him for his Xmas cover, Louis Armstrong’s ‘Christmas in New Orleans’
Next up was the amazing Dan Wilde – who’s both ace and has played for us many times before.
He drove all the way from Cambridge to play the Xmas special!
All round musical Maestro Dan Norton led us in some audience harmony driven covers in the style of Bing Crosby!
Silver Bells was quite special.
Also making a long trek was Mr Gavin Mart, who laid out a hypnotically rocked up cover of Come All Ye Faithful!
Lots of impressive foot stomping all round!
Wrapping up the night like a Christmas gift to all was last month’s SS stars Louis Louis Louis!
These guys are a ‘jump jive’ outfit!
I reckon they’d make a wedding band that would guarantee dancers immediately on the floor!
We’ve never had dancers at the Sunday Service before, and at this Xmas special, we did! Happy days.
As always, it was a massive success alround, and at the end thought it’d be rude not to photograph the revellers!
Fun times all round…
Thank you and happy Christmas to everyone who came!
B