When Brian Wilson’s shows at the Royal Festival Hall in 2002 were announced they sold out in minutes. Audiences were treated to a superb performance of classic songs by the great man and his band, beautifully arranged and played.

February 2004 saw his return to the RFH, the UK & Europe for the "Smile" tour. For the first time, the "Lost" Smile album will be performed in its entirety, along with selected classic songs from the Beach Boys. As with the 2002 tour (see "News" 23rd March 2002), once again John Henry’s have been called upon to provide all the backline equipment for the band including a "Peachey Three Octave Marimba & Musser M46 Pro Traveller Vibraphone".

JHL supplied a full backline including, Yamaha Motif 7 & 8’s, Korg Triton rack, Kurzweil PC2X, Line 6 Vetta & Flextone 2 x 12 combos, Eden WT800 amps and 4 x 10 cabs, BBE 862 Sonic Maximiser, LP Percussion, Yamaha Maple Custom kit, Zildjian cymbals, JHL custom transformers to name but some of the 2000Kg shipment for the Whitney Houston shows in St Petersburg’s New Ice Arena Stadium and The Kremlin in Moscow during February. Our technician for the trip Cyril Thomas was so cold he bought a rabbit and wore it on his head to keep warm.

Once again the annual Brits Awards at London’s Earls Court saw John Henry’s supplying rolling risers and backline for the majority of artists appearing on the show. Backline equipment was supplied for Alicia Keys, the Black Eyed Peas, Busted, The Outkast, 50 Cent and Jamie Cullum. Beyonce Knowles had four Breeza fans to ensure her dress and hair looked fabulous on camera and the rolling risers kept the show moving smoothly for stage manager Rik Benbow. Looking after things for JHL on site were Lloyd Gilbert and Henry Cross.

Following their chart success last year the hardworking Black Eyed Peas are back in the UK and Europe this spring and once again on tour with JHL’s backline equipment. The band kicked off their current run at the Brits Awards opening up the ceremony with a spirited rendition of "Shut Up".

Making its debut with the band is JHL’s newly acquired and fully restored Fender Rhodes Suitcase 73 piano, which we sourced from Speakeasy Vintage Music of Pennsylvania, USA.

The Avedis Zildjian Company held their open day here at JHL’s Studio 5 on Friday 27th February and the buzz was incredible as around 70+ top pro drummers were invited to take a close and personal look at Zildjian’s newest sounds, on hand were Zildjian’s John DeChristopher (Artiste Relations & Event Marketing Worldwide) and Rab Zildjian from the USA and Bob Wiczling & Tina Clarke from the UK. On display were the latest models from Zildjian’s extensive range. A great day was had by all. See www.zildjian.com

Just prior to setting sail on its maiden voyage from Southampton, the Queen Mary 2 took on board a compliment of backline and sound equipment from JHL for Dame Shirley Bassey, who was performing two shows in the new liner’s 1000 seat auditorium on the first leg of its journey.

Driver Darren Alexander snuck in his trusty Box Brownie to capture this picture of the JHL 7.5T DAF alongside the mighty hull.

November was a busy month for JHL, supplying the cream of young female vocal talent- Beyonce Knowles, Alicia Keys & Pink. Beyonce flew in for shows in the UK, Europe and then on to South Africa to take part in the Aids Awareness concert. JHL took care of all her backline requirements and mobile dressing rooms. Alicia Keys breezed into town for a round of intensive promo, live sessions and a Radio One gig in support of her new album. We supplied backline and technicians to match. Pink was also in the UK and Europe in support of her new album and recorded a TV special as well as appearing at the MTV Awards in Edinburgh using JHL backline.

The Godfather of Soul, the legendary James Brown was in town last week, appearing at a charity bash at the Natural History Museum and recording a TV special with BBC 4, filmed at St Luke’s Church, Old Street. JHL supplied all the backline for the great man and his band for both shows including the brand new digital Hammond B3 - pictured here at soundcheck at the church.

Yes, its official, after 17 years Liz (Baron) has decided to hang up her pots'n'pans and retire for a quieter life away from the hustle and bustle of the "Blue Max" café at JHL’s London headquarters. Liz and Wendy (Liz’s assistant) have cooked a lot dinners during those years and will be missed by one and all. We wish her all the best and good luck in the future. Wendy has now taken over and has a new assistant so "bon appetit".

Once again, John Henry’s production resources were called upon to take care of Warner Music’s fourth quarter conference at the Landmark Hotel in London, converting the ballroom into a combined presentation suite and live music venue.

This year the featured artists were Aqualung, Clea, Tony Henry, Blazing Squad and The Darkness, interspersed with speeches, audio and video presentations. Working with Zigzag Lighting and Metro Presentations, we installed two box trusses to accommodate lighting, projectors and pyrotechnics, along with a suitable EAW KF850/SB1000 sound system, tiered stage and rolling risers to accommodate the variety of performances and a backline for Aqualung.

To handle the inputs of two live bands, radio and lectern microphones along with playback from CD, DAT, Minidisk and Video we installed two 40ch Midas XL3 consoles at the FOH position, with a 48ch Soundcraft Series 5 taking care of the monitor system. We also supplied an additional Mackie playback system for the hospitality bar in the Music Room and placed uplighters around the room to provide some additional ambience.

Delegates at the conference were treated to a hard rocking finale as The Darkness closed the show with an energetic set, culminating in a pyrotechnic "waterfall" at the end of the last number!
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