history
By Chris Lloyd

The Final Master

The New Year began with unwelcome news. Jerry informed us that he was leaving to start his own courier business. We had all come to respect and love him during his time with us and our Stage Manager had become a vital cog in the Talon machine. Nevertheless, his reasons were his own and we all wished him success in his new venture. Fortunately, Jer had left us with plenty of time to find his successor which was just as well as he was not going to be easy to replace. And so the search was on. We had almost three months to find and work in the new man in time for the Spring Tour that was due to open in March.

The long awaited Original album released in March 2005

More bad news came with the realization that our original album was to be severely delayed due to the mastering process not going to plan. Jonny and I had taken it to Cambridge to be mastered with great anticipation and excitement. After all the years of dreaming and planning, the months of intense writing and recording, the heated debate, self-doubt and eventually great hope, the ultimate prize was at last within our grasp. We arrived home that night convinced that the job had finally been done.. The following day we listened to the result and realized instantly that it was just not good enough. It obviously needed to be re-mastered but we were all extremely disappointed, frustrated and were in desperate need of a break from the whole thing. We decided that when Jon was mentally ready he would master the album himself. As the Producer, no one knew the songs better than he.

So, given time, and with a clear head we were confident that he would meet the challenge. Several weeks later Jon announced that he was ready for us all to listen to what he hoped would be the finished item. This was not an easy thing for Jon to do, as he had become extremely intimate with these songs. He had been working on the original project for over a year and was clearly by now, very keen to see the back of it. He was also well aware that he was about to put his name to this album and that his, and indeed Talon's reputation depended on it. We all listened to The Final Master and, deep joy... Jonny Miller had done the business. So finally, Better Than Before was released on the 1st March 2005. It was made available via a brand-new section of the web-site, which was designed by Anni and devoted entirely to our original work. We would also of course promote it over the course of our forthcoming 'Spring Tour' which was now almost upon us. Oh, and incidentally, we now had a Stage Manager.

Jeff Parker is a quiet unassuming man who likes to get on with the job behind the scenes in his own inimitable way. He's rarely seen front of house and prefers not to make an appearance on stage, and, despite a few early teething problems it was soon 'business as usual'. The 'Spring Tour' came and went in a flash it seemed, and already the summer was almost upon us. All in all the tour was successful enough although for the first time since Talon records began, audience figures took a slight dip. No need to panic just yet but nevertheless, not a trend we would wish to see continue. After the holidays we all got back together for regular visits to the rehearsal studios in Birmingham to put the original show together in readiness for the debut fourteen date Better Than Before tour due to open in September. That would be followed immediately by our Best Of Eagles Autumn Tour. We were about to enter the busiest and most rewarding few months in our eight-year history.

Chapter 10: Regent To Robin

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