Way back in 2003 when I was starting out, Jools Holland was one of the first artists I photographed with any degree of professionalism. As a pianist myself, I think he is fabulous to watch. So I was gutted when I was initially turned down for a photo pass as he apparently no longer allows agency photographers in to his shows. Well in the end after a couple of polite emails I was allowed by his manager to come and shoot the show, and I was also allowed to syndicate to my agency, Getty Images.
There were only a few of us there – probably a good thing as there’s no pit so you’re right there with the crowd seated at their expensive seats, and we shot the first three songs. After that we had to wait before shooting the first song when Mel C of Spice Girls fame joined him on stage.
The only thing was, he doesn’t keep to a set list, so instead of coming on at 9pm as planned, she came on nearer 9.30pm which meant we got another half hour of the set to shoot. If truth be told, I was happier with my shots of Mel C than I was of Jools, but it was a good night all round.