Members and partners enjoyed our annual summer lunch on 20th June at a new venue, the Pear Tree Inn, between Worcester and Droitwich. On 27th June our member George Bourne recounted “The Perils of Music”, an account of his activities with a succession of bands. Considering he had a full-time job and even ran his own company during this time, this was quite an achievement. For those members who have lived in the area a long time it was an exercise in nostalgia. George started as a child with a tin drum, had piano lessons and played in the school band. Leaving school at 15 he bought a drum kit and formed a band. The first gig was a disaster but he listened to records and formed the Music Makers Dance Band in the late 1940s, which included some members of Bretforton Silver Band. In the 1960s he played in the Premier Dance Band, an accordion band based in Evesham. When this finished he moved to a job in Worcester and joined the Musicians Union and had lessons on drums and on reading scores. Various bands followed, also many performances for the Evesham Amateur Dramatic & Operatic Society. In 1992 he retired from Contract West to concentrate on music and music technology, including music editing software. He then played with the Billy Davis band, which gave many concerts at the Evesham Arts Centre. He participated in the Bretforton Proms in conjunction with the Silver Band and the John Wood Big Band. George’s last performances were with Dolphin Allstars at Bishampton but it all came to an end in 2008 when he had a heart operation. This was a fascinating example of how some people cram such a lot into their lives (and music was only one of his extra-mural activities!). We meet at 10:00 every Thursday at The Boathouse, Evesham Rowing Club. Our July 11th Sue Johnson will be asking “Where Do Stories Come From?” Why not come along and join us? Full details can be found on our website www.eveshamprobus.co.uk Alan Smith