This year's holiday by the sea seemed to be too good a thing to pass up, with Holiday Rock fronting a raft of seaside attractions and top ballroom entertainment. Shivering their timbers (or in Rusty's case, his ivories) the fabulous Kingcats, the very talented Abbey Marie, an arcade's worth of amusement from Good Rockin' Tonight and down at the Punch & Judy end of things ' Jive Street (yes, I still remember Burt & Harry in the converted crate guys!). Quizzes, Fancy Dress, Pot of Gold and Theme Nights were all compared and DJ'd by the highly excitable Rockin' Billy and Dancin' Dave all of which looked and sounded great thanks to the hard work of one Phjil Hughes, in fact we had everything you need for a memorable week in the foreign. Well that's got everyone mentioned or at least everyone I can remember (oh! apart from Clive who guarded several stacks of CD's as if his life depended on it ' nice combo with the socks and plimmies by the way Clive and 'Photographer Bloke' who was all over the venue, flashing at every opportunity and last of course'..The Ferret) but if I missed anybody, to be honest you're probably better off anyway.

I'm actually writing this on Sunday, it being well over halfway through the holiday already so I'd better get back to the beginning and make a start before it's all over! We arrived somewhere around Tuesday after a fairly uneventful flight and after witnessing the usual paranoia that accompanies baggage reclaim the world over. Those nice people at the Hotel Estival Park had laid on a late buffet for us, which was very welcome indeed, thank you for that. We later retired to our room and took a turn around the balcony. We'd have rather done this arm in arm but due to space constrictions it was only possible in single file and took only about three steps in any direction. Nonetheless, we sat down to take in the Spanish scenery and the aroma of the Mediterranean which largely consisted of the roof of the hotel next door and the cacophony emanating from the kitchen loading door in the service road below, but it will always be 'Buena Vista' to us!

Wednesday arrived and you couldn't move for sunshine and smiley faces, which was pretty much the standard format for the whole week with most of us practising starfish impressions because it seemed rude not to. In the afternoon, and every afternoon (apart from Friday afternoon because John was under orders to go shopping) was the 'Big Holiday Rock Quiz', a keenly contested cerebral contortion for a piece of rare silverware (available at most Timsons outlets for about '2.50). We entered the fray with a team loosely consisting of a gang of transient sunbathers and scored somewhere in the mid twenties. On subsequent days, both the number of team members on duty and the scores headed south I'm afraid.

And now, to the entertainment and I'm going to kind of do this bit in one lump because I can't be asked to sort through it all in this junkyard or a memory of mine. What I can remember is that whenever The Kingcats began to play I was in a very good place indeed. Great rockin' music with pace that drew you onto the floor and kept you there. Did you know that there's a new Kingcats CD almost ready to be released? Well there is and you're gonna love it! Rockers, ballads and strollers were all executed with panache and vigour. You'll recall, if you've ever read any of my previous rubbish, that I am definitely not a fan of audience participation but the new stroller in their set and on the new CD, 'Just Walk On By' (wait on the corner ' ba bom bom bom!) had the crowd singing out the chorus with little or no encouragement, including me! That's my grumpy reputation down the toilet ' thanks Bill! I can't get that song out my head now! Other notable numbers such as 'Lucky Night' and 'Rockin' The Blues' were just brilliant. Abbey Marie also joined in the fun and was given a standing ovation for her excellent singing which included 'I Hear You Talking' and a duet with Dad ' 'Jackson'. This young lady gets just better and better. Drummer Kevin also achieved a certain amount of notoriety performing a tap dance! You couldn't see that much from the back of the room as a crowd had quickly gathered but judging by the applause it must have gone rather well.

Good Rockin' Tonight seemed happy enough to play a diverse mix of numbers including hits by Johnny Cash, The Mavericks, The Stray Cats, Matchbox and a bit of Cliff. In amongst that lot 'Stray Cat Strut' was pretty awesome and I seem to remember a pretty authentic 'Rockabilly Rebel' too. John's excellent guitar playing was shown off to good effect in 'Sleepwalker' and as you might imagine Mark was able to indulge himself between all of the Elvis and Cliff numbers. Our esteemed doorman John, AKA The Ferret, got up on stage for a bit of a sing song somewhere in the middle of it all. Rusty sat in with Good Rockin' Tonight for a few numbers which, as you might imagine, added a certain richness and depth. Yup! I enjoyed all of that.

Jive Street were on hand to party the whole thing up (which is a bit like 'Bigging it up' only wearing a funny hat!) with front man Kevin, who can bend a note like Beckam, enquiring if we were all having a good time and jollying everyone to get in the party spirit. Most of us had already consumed most of the party spirit and were happy enough just to be able to see straight! As usual, I really enjoyed their 'Endless Sleep' not to mention John's new drumstick juggling routine. One of our crew, Dave, known as Bob, but Always Handy (or is it Andy?) was really quite taken with the Jive Street drummer, delighting in his passion and verve. I put it down to too many blue coloured smarties and someone convincing him that snare drums are evil and have to be punished! Jive Street certainly added to the atmosphere of each of the theme nights and talking of theme nights, the Fancy Dress Night was great fun. Our bunch were dressed as School Boys and Girls at the St Trinians end of the scale (so I'm afraid that the photos are not printable here). There were folks in just about every guise you could think of all rockin' the night away. Crazy people, crazy holiday ' Outstanding!

John Daly

Early September on the Catalonian coast proved to be a festival of sun, sea, sand, good food, great music and terrific company. The Holiday Rock family - yes, it felt like a large and extended family - de-camped to the Hotel Estival Park to enjoy a week of the all-inclusive, four star service, coupled with an exclusive party of live music every evening, much to the envy of many other hotel guests.

The hotel's standards were high, in terms of accommodation, facilities and dining options, in a good location only a short walk from a long and clean beach for anyone wanting to make the most of the Mediterranean sea that had been conveniently heated up during the summer months. The indoor and outdoor pools, gym and spa complex also ensured there was something for everyone. The hotel staff and holiday reps from First Choice were helpful and efficient, as was Mark Keeley and everyone from Holiday Rock, constantly checking details and arrangements, with the result that everything seemed to run like clockwork, especially the sound system for the live bands.

Dancing Dave and Rockin' Billy spun the discs to get everybody moving, with Dave's daily jive workshop also proving popular with dancers of all standards. He even managed to teach the hotel entertainment staff a few steps! The daily afternoon quiz was also well supported, with many guests making the most of a hour or so in the sun by the pool, accompanied by some top rocking numbers.

There was a real party atmosphere in the air-conditioned ballroom, with some top drawer live music performed by two of the three bands each evening. The Kingcats were at their best throughout the week, pumping out the rockin' rhythms to great effect, from Kevin Dulford's percussion (and tap dancing!), Kevin Swain's thundering double bass, Rusty Lupton's flying fingers on keys, Gabriel Allen's ringing guitar and, of course, Bill Crittenden's authentic vocals and rhythm guitar. "Promised Land" and "Saturday Nite" were stand-out tunes, along with many other favourites. There were guest appearances by Abbie Marie, adding an R'n'B feel to numbers like "Kingcat Boogie", plus a brief Roosters selection, with Kevin taking lead vocals and Bill switching to lead guitar, all to a packed dance floor.

Good Rockin' Tonight were also on top form, from Guy Schalom's precision drumming, to Jason King's heavy slap bass, John O' Malley's stinging guitar riffs and Mark Keeley's wonderful voice and rhythm guitar. The band's overall sound was superb all week, including the fantastic harmonies from all band members and a wide selection of numbers to please all comers, from jivers and boppers, to strollers and smoochers. The band has really stamped it's name on certain tracks, particularly "It's Late" and "Highway Patrol" and deservedly accumulated a loyal fan base.

Last, but not least, Jive Street completed the bill and enhanced their reputation as a real party band, with great interpretations of many rock 'n' roll standards to keep everyone up beat. From John Packer's animated style on skins and Dixie Dean boxing clever on bass, to Inge Malcomson's roaring sax, especially during "Slow Down", all supporting Mick Williams on Gretsch and Kevin Stedman on rhythm both sharing lead vocal duties. There were nods to all the greats, from Carl Perkins to Johnny Cash and Bill Haley. "Extra! Extra! Read All About It" and "Blue Suede Shoes" were indicative of their musical talents, while a boogie version of "Goodnight Irene" proved to be a popular encore.

The pink and black themed night and pot of gold draw were enthusiastically supported, with one lucky chap walking away with over 370 Euros from the latter. Everyone, including the musicians, really pulled out all the stops for the fancy dress night however, with loads of school girls and boys, clowns, sexy uniforms, cartoon characters and super heroes amongst the throng. There should be some special photos to add to the sun tans and memories to take home by most people from a cracking week.

All credit to everybody involved in organising a smashing holiday. On this evidence, the week in Malta scheduled for June next year should go down a storm as well. Check out www.holidayrock.co.uk for full details and plan your tan for 2010!

Darrell Parsons