Little Feat Newcastle City Hall 1977
Little Feat played two nights at Newcastle City in 1977, as part of a UK tour. I attended the first concert. There was no support act. The line-up of the band at the time was the late great Lowell George on vocals and guitar, Paul Barrere on guitar, Richie Hayward on drums, Bill Payne on keyboards, Sam Clayton on percussion and Kenny Gradney on bass. Feat were also accompanied for the tour by the Tower of Power horn section. The tour was to promote their sixth studio album Time Loves A Hero. I’d seen Little Feat previously when they supported The Who at their 1976 Charlton concert, but can’t pretend that I was a massive fan; although they were undoubtedly a fine band. To my shame I never took the trouble to listen to much of their stuff. This was still the case when I went to see them with my friend Ian in 1977, so most of the set was new to me. I did of course recognise Dixie Chicken, and enjoyed the concert. This was the band at the peak of their powers, and the show certainly showed off their excellent musicianship. 
I saw similarities to the Grateful Dead show that I attended at the same venue a few years earlier; lots of jamming, top class playing, and quite laid back southern rock. I really should have invested the time to get to know their material before I went to see them. From the tour programme: “Little Feat. Six albums strong, turning the fine edge of their music into a resiliency that has been able to withstand countless setbacks. Little Feat, finally at the juncture of in their colourful history where they’re able to have their cake and eat it too. Little Feat on the heels of Time Loves a Hero. It’s been six years of hard rock’n’roll labour but its obviously been worth it, from the beginning”. Lowell George sadly died of a heart attack in 1979. I saw the latest version of Little Feat at the Sage a year or so ago. Setlist: Walkin’ All Night; Fat Man in the Bathtub; Red Streamliner; Oh Atlanta; Day at the Dog Races; All That You Dream; Mercenary Territory; On Your Way Down; Skin It Back; Old Folks Boogie; Rock and Roll Doctor; Cold Cold Cold; Dixie Chicken; Tripe Face Boogie.
8 Sep
Vintagerock's Weblog. 
Posted by geoffvhall on September 8, 2013 at 11:31 am
Still a great band – we saw them a couple of years ago at the Robin in Wolverhampton – probably the same tour you saw, great live performers.
Posted by John Webley on May 27, 2019 at 11:14 am
I saw Little Feat at the City Hall around this time, surely this concert, but as I remember it there was a support band, The Outlaws.
Posted by TWIZ on July 29, 2019 at 9:48 am
yes I saw Little Feat on 2 occasions at the City Hall, but particularly the one where the Outlaws were support as i had the album, they were superb, Green Grass and High Tides was a stunner. I recall thinking this will be hard to beat , , , ,then as soon as Lowell and the boys came on it was amazing, the sound was superb, like a giant hi-fi of quality, the rhythm section of the feat was back then, the best in the business
Posted by Alun Rees on March 7, 2023 at 10:32 am
That concert was one of the highlights of the many live shows I saw during those years. The Outlaws were fantastic, young(er), free(er) and flying high. Like you, I thought they would be a hard act to follow. But then Lowell & gang came on and they took things to a higher level, it was as if they said to The Outlaws, “good stuff boys, but the grown-ups are here now”. Great, great night. Still makes me smile.
Posted by vintagerock on March 7, 2023 at 12:25 pm
Hi Alun many thanks for sharing. Yes Little Feat were on top form in those days. Happy days Peter
Posted by Clive Dickson on October 21, 2019 at 9:19 pm
Little Feat were recommended to me by the owner of a Leeds arcade record shop and I became a big fan. I travelled up from Leeds alone for this concert and stayed overnight in Newcastle afterwards. It was a seminal gig for me and I am happy to have heard Lowell George sing live. The band were amazed that they had travelled across the Atlantic to play to a sell out audience who knew every word of every song. I hung around the stage door and got autographs on my Program. The band were again taken aback by the enthusiasm and knowledge of the fans. A great band who deserve more appreciation.