Andy Crofts, who is the frontman of The Moons, was raised on Kingsland Avenue
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The bass guitarist with the Paul Weller Band has spoken about growing up in Northampton. Andy Crofts, who is also the frontman of The Moons, has shared his memories living in Kingsland Avenue.
As part of Sarah Becker's The Street Where I Grew Up series, he said: "As a child, I spent lots of time with my grandparents in Boothville at 30 Keswick Drive. My mum used to work nights at the Rubicon casino so I was there all the time.
"I have so many great memories there with my Nan and Pap. My auntie Mandy and uncles lived there too so we were all kind of squashed in but I loved every moment of it.
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"I spent many years there and when I started school we used to literally open our back gate and there was my lower school (Booth Lower) a few steps away. Perfect! I never had a father so apart from my grandparents, it was always just me and my mum.
"We briefly lived in the Mounts area on Cloutsham Street at no. 60. We moved to our house in Kingsthorpe on Kingsland Avenue. Now, this is where I really grew up.
Andy said the area of Northampton was "our little world" and he would go on adventures like the kids in Stranger Things and Stand By Me.
"The street I grew up on was Kingsland Avenue, just by Nursery Lane – my mum still lives there to this day. That was our turf. I had the best friends and we hung out every single day, mostly getting up to no good but still the best memories. 
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"I learned a lot on that road. It was a pretty rough area back then so we had to get street-wise fast. My bedroom was tiny but my imagination was huge and I created my own little world which resulted in music and art.
It was just me and my mum there with a little front garden and a pretty good size back garden. The bus stop was just outside my house so when I used to come back from town, I’d get dropped off at my door which was great.
"All of my friends literally lived in the row of houses next to me and right up the road and even over the road so I only had to lean out the window and shout and someone would hear me. I would be out all day and night running up and down that street.
"In that bedroom, I learned to play the guitar and wrote my first ever songs and lots of songs over the years that would later evolve into The Moons’ debut album.
"I’m so proud of having grown up there and forever keep the best memories of being young and carefree trouble makers. Kingsland Avenue means a great deal to me. So much so that I wrote a song called The Old Brigade about my childhood and living on that street."
Andy Crofts will be playing some of the songs he mentions when he comes to Northampton for an acoustic set at The Playhouse Theatre on November 26 as part of a nationwide tour.
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