It seems we hadn't been more than five minutes in Croydon, at the Palers' Basecamp, before conversations had resumed exactly where they'd left off in May 2002 ... 'One-Eye' was fixing us up with headphones to hear his great track for the next Palers' Project album, and (here, out-of-focus) demonstrating an improbably tiny telephone that also, astonishingly, allows him to check BtP ... to find out what we're all up to!
Salad Days are here again with Donna Blue and the lovely Larry Pennisi ... or is it the other way around? That's exactly the Hammond shirt in which Larry made his mark on Croydon last time!
I think that's the arm of Titti Ravnaas reaching across ... at this stage I was trying to fathom the exposure settings on a new camera
Now we're at Catford (Lewisham) for the gig ... the best in memory, I am sure ... and to meet new Palers such as Pamela Miller Chwedyk, the poet from Chicago who won tickets to the show in the BtP Christmas Conundrums ... here she is in the Broadway Bar, for the post-gig party, and with a frog necklace of unmistakable character.
There are lots of frogs in her poems too ... thanks for the book, Pam!
Suddenly the usual suspects are back in Jury's bar in Croydon, where One-Eye settles in for his habitual one-nighter, hampered only by the absence on this occasion of Dave Ball. Also pictured, Dr Sam Cameron, and webmaster Jens, inspecting his mobile phone.
Dave Knight, from Warrington, and Malène Lemoine from Paris. Her badge says 'These French girls always like to fight', and the shirt reads 'Fountains play and worlds collide'.
She asked Gary to explain why Procol were not playing Paris in 2003, as he's promised.
Well, 2003 is not yet gone ...
Donna Blue from North Carolina, Gilles Mauron and François Courvoisier from Switzerland, and Gary Hagarty from Essex ... lots of empty glasses, lots of talking hands
Linda Clare and Donna talking, Larry listening ...
... and Larry downs yet another tomato-juice!
Jeri Stevens and Paul Holland, from the USA, looking amazingly well and healthy at breakfast on the Sunday morning ... and talking about retirement ... how can they possibly be ready to do that ?
Larry looking perhaps a little startled in the morning light
Paul shows us his rather spanking camera ...
is that white sticker at all legible ?
It's a post-Clapton sticker left over from the night before ... these were the mischievous brainchild of Will Fraser (not pictured) and a lot were to be seen in the audience at the gig.
By the end of the night Gary Brooker was sporting one ... in due course we'll see a picture of that from a Swiss correspondent's camera.
Outside in the fresh air ... Gary and Keith, who merit two pictures, just for having such utterly appropriate names.
Gary Hagarty, from Essex; Keith Barrett, from Yorkshire
The Palers gather outside Jury's for the tedious journey to the next gig, at Milton Keynes. Left to right, above ... Roland, Malène, Titti, Larry, Jens Anders, Keith, Gary and One-Eye. Pretty much the same personnel below ...
Of course there were lots of other Palers about ... Pam (BJ's brother), 'Doc' Wallace and daughters, Martin and Nicholas Clare, Mike Chaudhuri and Sherry Goold are among those that got away ...