Lindisfarne Farewell Carlisle Sands Centre 31st Oct 2003
Sadly Lindisfarne went off my radar from the mid-80s onwards. I’d lost faith in the band, and my concert going activities had also declined a little for work and family reasons. However, I still kept an eye on what the guys were doing and how the line-up changed over the years, but I never felt the need to go and see them in concert. Suddenly I read that they were to fold. This was announced during their Autumn 2003 tour, which was due to end with a concert on 1 November 2003 at the Newcastle Opera House. The final line up included Dave Hull-Denholm, Billy Mitchell, Rod Clements, Ian Thomson and Ray Laidlaw. The break-up was announced at quite short notice, and by the time I found out the Newcastle concert was understandably completely sold out. I realised that there weren’t going to be any more chances to see the band, and felt I had to attend a Lindisfarne concert one more time. 
At first I planned to go along to the Opera House on the night of the concert and attempt to buy a ticket outside. However, I figured that this might not be easy, and that it could also be very expensive, so when I learnt that tickets were still on sale for their concert the night before in Carlisle, I decided to take the next best (and easier and probably cheaper) option and drive across to see them in Cumbria. So, almost 20 years since I last attended a Lindisfarne concert, I saw their penultimate gig at Carlisle Sands Centre. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was excited at the prospect of seeing the band again, and hearing the old songs. I bought a copy of the Newcastle Evening Chronicle on my way across to Carlisle, as it contained a feature about the end of Lindisfarne. The Sands Centre is a medium size venue and leisure centre just outside the centre of Carlisle. There was no support act, with Lindisfarne playing the entire concert, with an interval. 
The “new” line-up of the band was much better than I had expected and vocalists Billy Mitchell and Dave Hull-Denholm managed to recreate the old tunes in a way which gave them fresh life, but also remained true to the original. The set comprised all the old favourites: ‘Lady Eleanor’, ‘Meet Me on the Corner’, ‘Winter Song’ as beautiful and haunting as ever, Run For Home’, Fog on the Tyne’ and the encore was ‘Clear White Light’, just like the old days. There were quite a few newer numbers which I didn’t recognise. It was just great, and I was so pleased that I made the effort to see the band one last time. The audience were quite subdued, which I am sure was not the case at the final Newcastle gig. On the way out the band were signing autographs, so I got them to sign my copy of the Evening Chronicle, and I bought a copy of the Lindisfarne book, Fog On The Tyne, picture here, which they also kindly signed for me. 
Their final concert was filmed and released as a DVD, ‘Time Gentlemen Please’. The track listing is: No Time To Lose; Rocking Chair; This Guitar Never Lies; Remember Tomorrow; This Too Will Pass; Freedom Square; Ghost In Blue Suede Shoes; Lady Eleanor; Under The Promenade; Rock’n’Roll Phone; Statues And Liberties; Meet Me On The Corner; Born At The Right Time; Winter Song; Can’t Do Right For Doing Wrong; January Song; One Day; Road To Kingdom Come; Unmarked Car; Jubilee Corner; Unfinished Business; Whisky Highway; Run For Home; One More Bottle Of Wine; Fog On The Tyne; Devil Of The North; Clear White Light.
That concludes my ramblings on Lindisfarne, at least for now.
23 Sep
Vintagerock's Weblog. 
Posted by greenpete58 on September 23, 2013 at 4:55 pm
Lindisfarne was never well known here in America, but I’d read about them in rock encyclopedias, so when I saw “Nicely Out of Tune” and “Fog On the Tyne” in a used record store in the ’80s, I picked them up. I absolutely love those albums. For me the band exemplifies the best in English folk-rock. When I saw that the 3-piece was appearing here in Ohio, U.S.A. in 2002, I made a point to see them. All three were exceptionally friendly, even though they were probably burned out from traveling far from home and performing in half-empty venues. I was especially impressed with the songwriting and vocals of Dave Denholm (I had no idea he was Alan Hull’s son-in-law).
What a great band…thanks for your reminiscences!