Donovan in concert 1983 and 1990
I have been a big fan of Donovan since the 60s. I loved all of those hits, particularly the late 60s tracks: Hurdy Gurdy Man, Googoobarabajagal, Atlantis, Mellow Yellow and There is a Mountain were all favourites. But I didn’t get to see him until 1983, when he played at the City Hall. As far as I recall, he didn’t play the North East at all during the 70s. I did have a ticket to see him as support for Yes at Glasgow Apollo in 1977, but passed the gig up to see The Tubes who played Newcastle that night as part of their first UK tour. The 1983 gig was reasonably well attended, and Donovan was backed by a band for the show. The set was a mixture of old tracks and tracks from his recent albums, and there were quite a few songs that I didn’t recognise. Donovan was back in Newcastle 7 years later, when he played a concert at the Playhouse Theatre, which is a small venue up by the University. This concert was not very well attended; Donovan was almost forgotten by many people at this point. He had been passed by in the aftermath of punk and new wave, but his time was to come again. 
This gig was much more a greatest hits set than the 1983 concert. Donovan appeared alone, with acoustic guitar, sitting on a stool, delivering all of those great songs, and telling us stories of his life in the 60s. Just wonderful. Donovan released a live in concert album in 1990, and the track listing gives an idea of the likely setlist from the 1990 concert at the Playhouse Theatre. The tracklist is: Jennifer Juniper; Catch the Wind; Hurdy Gurdy Man; Sunshine Superman; Sadness; Universal Soldier; Cosmic Wheels; Atlantis; Wear Your Love Like Heaven; To Susan On the West Coast Waiting; Colours; Young Girl Blues; Young But Growing; Stealing; Sailing Homeward; Love Will Find a Way; Laléna. It was another 14 years until I saw Donovan again, at Manchester Bridgewater Hall. That gig was sold out; by that time Donovan had (re)gained the respect he deserves. I’ll blog about the Manchester gig in more detail in a day or so.
26 Aug
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