Glenn Tilbrook - One For The Road (DVD)

==Introduction==

Glenn Tilbrook used to be a pretty big fish in the music business. Thirty years ago he was a member of Squeeze, a band hailed at their peak as "the next Beatles". Originating in Deptford, southeast London, they had a handful of huge hits and a smattering of lesser ones - many of which have become modern classics through inclusion on compilation albums and repeated radio play over the years.

However ...
...and broke up in 1999 leaving Tilbrook facing the launch of a solo career in middle age.

Unable to afford to tour with a band, he took the decision to do acoustic tours, performing a mixture of old Squeeze favourites and his solo material in small venues, accompanied solely by his own guitar playing.

==Background==

Squeeze were relatively successful in the college radio scene in the USA back in the 1980s and ... more

Introduction

Glenn Tilbrook used to be a pretty big fish in the music business. Thirty years ago he was a member of Squeeze, a band hailed at their peak as "the next Beatles". Originating in Deptford, southeast London, they had a handful of huge hits and a smattering of lesser ones - many of which have become modern classics through inclusion on compilation albums and repeated radio play over the years.

However the band last tasted chart success in the mid 1990s and broke up in 1999 leaving Tilbrook facing the launch of a solo career in middle age.

Unable to afford to tour with a band, he took the decision to do acoustic tours, performing a mixture of old Squeeze favourites and his solo material in small venues, accompanied solely by his own guitar playing.

Background

Squeeze were relatively successful in the college radio scene in the USA back in the 1980s and this documentary features Tilbrook's first solo tour of the country back in 2001 with a team of just 3 other people - his partner Suzanne, a cameraman and producer/director Amy Pickard.

Pickard is a long-time Squeeze fan from Ohio and in this charming documentary she films Tilbook tour the US from coast to coast, predominantly in an ageing and unreliable RV (motorhome), another money saving device on this cut price tour.

It is a revelation to see a highly successful and talented musician such as Tilbrook doing a tour such as this - but of course this is the reality for many musicians once the limos have gone and corporate record labels stop paying all the bills.

The Film

The film starts in Buffalo, New York, with the news that the RV they had planned to commence the tour in is unavailable, leaving Tilbrook to fly on the cheap with Southwest to get around, and use a far less attractive van (or people carrier as they are called this side of the pond) to get about.

Eventually another RV is procured and there is a wonderful scene where Tilbrook is given advice from a nerdish salesman at the RV dealership. Tilbrook seems oblivious to the salesman's advice that "things always go wrong with RV's" and you can sense he is already envisaging himself at the wheel in some wide open spaces and dismissing anything the salesman has to say.

He and cameraman Hans are given a crash course in the rudiments of driving in and camping in an RV and hit the road enthusiastically. This enthusiasm lasts all of 30 minutes, when the generator on the RV breaks down bringing the drive to an abrupt halt.

This is to be a portent for the rest of the trip - the RV is unreliable but beloved of Tilbrook who is extremely enthusiastic about RV living.

This enthusiasm isn't just limited to the RV however - his passion for music is well documented here, with clips of him doing a tour which is unconventional and also very personal. He comes across as a very likeable, down to earth and creative person. I have met Tilbrook on a couple of occasions and he was as warm as he appears in this documentary I am happy to say - and he is someone who truly values his fans.

Tilbrook plays mostly very small venues on his tour - some of his audiences number only 50. He takes the opportunity to really engage with them - inviting fans to join him onstage playing guitar, playing outside the venue with his fans providing backing vocals for him and even playing a song in a fan's home.

Watching this enables you to see what a talented musician Tilbrook is - he plays Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Chile" on an acoustic guitar with great flair and his vocals are incredibly good. The Squeeze songs he performs just with his guitar and voice are also shown to be incredibly good - so many songs just don't stand up that way.

Other scenes which are enjoyable are ones where Tilbrook pitches up in an RV park in South Carolina and introduces himself to the driver of an RV identical to the one he is driving and discovers this man is a Squeeze fan, where he goes shopping in Target for the very first time, proclaiming he is "aroused" at the experience (something I can relate to!) and when he appears on local TV in San Diego lower down the bill than "pet of the week".

The most moving part for me is seeing Tilbrook learn of the death of George Harrison. He is clearly upset and affected by this news and he is seen at that night's show dedicating "Some Fantastic Place" to Harrison. Tilbrook wrote the song with Squeeze partner Chris Difford following the death of a very close friend and any Squeeze fan will know it's the song both men consider their finest.

Pickard also interviews Tilbrook about his life and snippets are interspersed throughout the film, giving an insight into this talented man.

My only criticism is the scene where a Scottish fan is interviewed in Texas, and Pickard feels the need to add subtitles. His accent isn't that thick and I feel they are patronising.

"One for the Road" is a slight work - it comes in at only 70 minutes, but if you like Squeeze, road movies and people who have a natural sense of fun, enthusiasm and self deprecation, this is a great documentary which I can highly recommend.

The DVD also includes some public access TV footage Pickard shot in 1991, an interview with Chris Difford dating from 2002 and an audio commentary from Tilbrook.

This review has previously been published by me on dooyoo under the same user name 

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