Shepherd's wry

ADRIAN Edmondson may have had a variety of career changes in his working life, but his motivation for each has always been exactly the same – to have fun!

Best known as the anarchic punk Vyvyan Basterd in the Young Ones, inspired by the Sex Pistols, then as the equally anarchic Eddie Hitler in Bottom, he has also written novels, directed films, even done a bit of straight acting and appeared on the odd TV celebrity reality show.

He has always simultaneously dabbled in music as a hobby but now at last he is realising a childhood dream of fronting his own band, and arrives at The Hippo in Plymouth tonight with his new folk/punk incarnation The Bad Shepherds.

"My wife can't understand why I want to go to all these sweaty venues with sticky floors," says Adrian of his partner, comedienne Jennifer Saunders, "But I love it – it reminds me of when Rik (Mayall) and I started out when there was no pressure."

He recalls how different this is from previous comedy tours.

"It so small scale – when we were touring Bottom, they were such huge events we had massive lorries and hordes of people. Now we can get all our instruments and ourselves in one people mover – it's so much more sociable!"

As far back as he can remember he has always had a burning desire to front his own band: "I don't know who hasn't," he continues, "I've been playing music since I was 12 and I've always been in bands, usually comedy spoof bands."

Inevitably there had to be a punk element in any Edmondson incarnation.

"I was 19 when punk happened, and it was so exciting, vivacious and energetic compared to the likes of Emerson, Lake and Palmer.

"We very much copied the punk DIY ethos in comedy, realising that you didn't have to do humour in the traditional Bernard Manning style…"

But the folk element of the Bad Shepherds was perhaps a tad more random.

"I used to like folk music without realising it was folk! Lindisfarne and Fairport Convention on Top of the Pops, I thought was just pop music. Years later we were doing Bottom one time and in another part of the venue I heard Kate Rusby and John McCusker and I just loved the noise and energy which reminded me of the punk gigs I used to go to.

"Then, a couple of years ago after a boozy lunch, I bought a mandolin on a whim. When I got home I started playing all the punk songs I'd played on my acoustic guitar on the mandolin and it was such a good noise."

Martin Allcock, multi-instrumentalist, former keyboard player with Fairport and Jethro Tull, together with composer, arranger, and all round great folk muso Troy Donockley were up for the challenge.

"I gave them a batch of punk songs, most of which they weren't familiar with, and told them to treat them like folk songs."

Of course the two genres not only work off the same energy but engage similar issues, both being music of the people, concerning protest or social comment.

"Both styles are quite naive, generally performed by untrained musicians with handed-down skills, given three chords and told to get on with it!

"That's the intellectual stuff, but basically we do it 'cos it's great fun.

"We do have room for comedy moments as I've worked out that as the opposite of the Good Shepherds we are in fact the anti-Christ!" he says, tongue firmly in cheek, "so with that in mind I have done a few re-writes of The Bible. Tonight will be a fun evening of folk, punk and blasphemy!"

Adrian's daughter Ella Edmondson and her band will be supporting tonight.

Tickets for the Hippo show are available at £15 with no extra charge from co.uk" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">www.hippolive.co.uk.

You can also get tickets from www.ticketweb. co.uk or by calling 08700 600 100.