I have been meaning to see From the Jam for some time. However, each time that the opportunity arose I passed, thinking that they were simply a tribute band to The Jam. Having seen them I realise how wrong I have been. Of course, I knew that Bruce Foxton, the original bass player from The Jam was a member, but I still thought that this would not match a real Jam experience. I have written many times on the blog of seeing The Jam back in their early days at Newcastle Mayfair, then headlining Newcastle City Hall and finally their farewell tour at Whitley Bay Ice Rink. They were always fantastic, their blend of new wave, punk, The Who and 60s mod producing classic singles and powerful concerts. And their sharp dressing was iconic and even persuaded me to buy some Jam shoes.
I was surprised just how true to the original Jam ideology and mod culture From The Jam were. They were in fact a revelation to me. Much, much better than I expected. The Boiler Shop was completely sold out, packed full of mods from every era, some wearing sharp suits and others wearing Parka coats. And to my pleasant surprise, the support act was Purple Hearts who I remember well from the late 1970s and early 1980s; I saw them several times during that crazy period.
The website of From the Jam tells the story of Bruce: “The words legend and icon are sometimes used too frequently these days but not when being used to describe Bruce Foxton. Since the punk explosion during the summer of 1976 when, as a part of The Jam, Bruce Foxton’s thumping bass lines exploded onto London’s live music scene. The next year the anthemic “In The City” album and single were released to the record buying public and the shockwaves sent out by the music of The Jam lives on today. He was recently voted by readers of NME as the 7th Most Influential Bass Player, which shows the high regard he is held in by fans, musicians and the music press alike.
In The Jam, Bruce and drummer Rick Buckler were the driving force, power and rhythm section behind singer, guitarist, and songwriter Paul Weller. Bruce’s versatility is evident, taking lead vocals on “David Watts” (The Kinks) and writing “News Of The World”, which to this day appears as the theme to the BBC’s Mock the Week show and has introduced his work to a new generation of fans.”
I recall seeing Bruce alongside Simon Townshend (brother of Pete and also a member of The Who) in 2006 as The Casbah Club supporting none other than The Who themselves. Since then he has gone on to form From the Jam with Russell Hastings who has been working with Bruce since 2007. “Russell has been the only frontman to work with both Rick Buckler and Bruce Foxton since Paul Weller split The Jam in 1982 and has been earning respect from fans across the world as a frontman and with his guitar skills. As a genuine Jam fan, his passion and understanding of The Jam’s history is second to none and has toured the world playing to packed houses of Jam fans for years.”
It is nice to know that “Bruce is again friends with Paul Weller which he emphasises is more important than music…… Paul asked Bruce to perform on his Wake Up The Nation album and join him on stage at the Royal Albert Hall on 25th May 2010, to a rapturous standing ovation from the audience. “No one could quite believe what they were seeing, it was history in the making and grown men had tears in their eyes” said one fan.”” (Again from the From the Jam website).
Support band Purple Hearts are: “an English mod revival band, formed in 1977 in Romford, eastern Greater London. They were often considered one of the best English mod revival groups, the NME calling them “one of the few mod bands to actually cut it on rock ‘n’ roll terms. In September 1979, the band scored a minor hit with their debut single, “Millions Like Us” which reached number 57 in the UK Singles Chart. The band then toured the UK with Secret Affair and Back To Zero on ‘the March Of The Mods’ tour in 1979.” I remember the March Of The Mods tour very well and have written about it on this blog. It called at Newcastle Mayfair and there was complete mayhem, involving fights between skinheads (“We hate the mods”) and mods (“We are, we are the mods”) and tables being thrown from the balcony of the ballroom onto the dancefloor below. The bouncers came in, complete with Alsatian dogs and brought some control to the situation. Crazy days.
Jackie and I arrived in time to catch Purple Hearts who were excellent, playing a mix of songs old and new; each track blending punk with 60s mod. A great start to the evening. We went to look for some From the Jam merchandise. The guy at the merchandise stand told us “I am selling Purple Hearts merchandise, the guy selling From the Jam merchandise has not arrived yet but all the merchandise is under the table”. Well, I don’t know what had happened but he never appeared so we were unable to buy any From the Jam gear. Never mind. Perhaps I will be tempted to buy something from their online store.
After a short break the main act took to the stage exploding into “All Mod Cons” followed by a string of Jam hits. Each song sounded true to the original, Russell Hastings performing the front man part extremely well, and the full band accompanying Bruce and Russell were great. Hit after hit followed: “David Watts”, “Billy Hunt”, “A Bomb in Wardour Street”, “Down in the Tube Station At Midnight”, “Pretty Green” (now I realise where Liam Gallagher got the name for his clothing range: I recently bought a shirt from the site and foolishly did not wear it for the occasion), “Town Called Malice”, “That’s Entertainment” and closing song “The Eton Rifles”. The entire crowd sang along; this band is the real thing and, judging by my experience at The Boiler Shop they have a very strong and loyal following.
The encores were “Beat Surrender” (I had forgotten just how good that song is), “Going Underground” and finally, back to the start with “In the City”. Fantastic. I would have liked to have seen them play “The Butterfly Collector” (my favourite Jam song) and close with “The Batman theme” just as they did in the early days. But then you can’t have everything.
If like me, you hesitate about going to see From The Jam, please don’t. I think you will really enjoy them. Many thanks to Jackie for the photographs and to Chris and Jan for helping me create the blog entry.
Setlist (something like this): All Mod Cons; To Be Someone (Didn’t We Have a Nice Time); Mr. Clean; David Watts; In the Crowd; Billy Hunt; It’s Too Bad; Fly; The Place I Love; English Rose; ‘A’ Bomb in Wardour Street; Down in the Tube Station at Midnight; Pretty Green; Town Called Malice; That’s Entertainment; Lula; Heat Wave; The Eton Rifles. Encore: Beat Surrender; Going Underground; In the City.
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Posted by Mark Watson on May 27, 2024 at 3:15 pm
I remember the march of the mods tour. I was at the Mayfair and remember the trouble, terrible. I’ve seen from the jam and whilst they were good it didn’t feel right. I saw the jam a number of times in newcastle, a brilliant band. Id prefer to see bruce and russell doing there original albums, the latest one is very good.
Posted by vintagerock on May 28, 2024 at 11:25 am
Hi Mark yes The Jam were always fantastic and the March of the Mods tour was pretty scary. I wasn’t aware of the solo stuff. I will check it out many thanks Peter
Posted by Mark Watson on May 28, 2024 at 3:29 pm
Also Peter, you recently said you enjoyed the wedding present. They are now doing two shows in stockton in June. I’m traveling from the South coast to visit family and I’m going to both shows. Try and get along, I really enjoy your blog and went to many of the shows you talk about. It would be nice to say hello.
Posted by vintagerock on May 28, 2024 at 5:06 pm
Hi Mark many thanks for the heads up about the wedding present in Stockton. I will check my gig schedule which is hectic but will try and make it if I can cheers pleased that you enjoy my blog and thank you for your support Peter
Posted by vintagerock on May 28, 2024 at 6:11 pm
Just bought tickets for the Sunday matinee so see you there Mark Best wishes Peter
Posted by Mark Watson on May 28, 2024 at 7:12 pm
Great stuff. The Wedding Present always start on time, always do 90 minutes, unless they let it be known its a shorter set, never do encores, and are always brilliant. Also, dave gedge will be on the merch desk and he’s always happy to chat.
Posted by vintagerock on May 29, 2024 at 11:40 am
Sounds good Mark. Yes Dave signed a book for me at the City Hall. Happy days Peter