Blackfoot Newcastle Mayfair 1982
Blackfoot made a few trips to the UK in the early 80s. I saw them as part of the 1981 Monsters of Rock bill, and I think I also caught them supporting the Scorpions at the City Hall. 1982 saw them headlining for the first time in the UK, off the back of the Marauder album which had been released the year before. Having come out of the Lynyrd Skynyrd school of southern boogie, the band moved towards a heavier rock style and regularly played alongside more straight metal bands.
At one point Ken Hensley of Uriah Heep joined the band. I think he may have been a member at this Mayfair gig in 1982. The one thing I remember about this gig was that Blackfoot were VERY LOUD INDEED. The Mayfair was packed and they rocked loud and hard and fast and a good time was had by all. The more I think about these old gigs the more I understand why my hearing ain’t too good these days…….I also saw Blackfoot as part of the 1985 Deep Purple bill at Knebworth. The setlist for that gig was: Can’t Be So Bad (great cover of the Moby Grape song which is one of my favourite songs); On The Run; Every Man Should Know (Queenie); Dry County; Wishing Well (Free cover: good choice); Morning Dew (another great song to cover; this band has good taste); Gimme, Gimme, Gimme; Train Train; Highway Song. I’ve just checked and see that Blackfoot are still around and toured the UK last year. I think I’ll aim to catch them next time they are over here.
16 May
Blackfoot Newcastle Mayfair 1982
15 May
Blondie Reunion Newcastle Arena 1999
Blondie Reunion Newcastle Arena 1999
So, some 19 years after I last saw Blondie at the City Hall, Ashleigh and I went to see the reformed band play at the Newcastle Arena. Ashleigh had, in the interim, been to see Debbie Harry when she performed at Sunderland Empire. The band had hit the charts with the single Maria and had released a new album No Exit. 
The concert was pretty good, as I recall, and the magic was still there. However, the sound was lost in the cavernous arena, and the venue was cold. Support came from Squeeze. Blondie have played a few times in the region since then, including a gig at Newcastle Academy which Laura attended. For me they are the perfect pop band, and bring back memories of nights out in the late 70s and early 80s.
14 May
Blondie Newcastle City Hall 1977, 1978, 1980
Blondie Newcastle City Hall 1977, 1978, 1980
I first saw Blondie when they appeared as support on the 1977 Television UK tour. They were the highlight of the evening; having just released their first album and the single X Offender. Debbie and the band were simply stunning, and quite a contrast to Television, who were also good, but much more serious. By the time they returned in 1978 they had hit the charts with Denis and Touched by your Presence Dear. That year saw the release of Plastic Letters and Parallel Lines, both excellent pop albums, and the hit singles just seemed to come again and again. 
Blondie were just untouchable as a live band and as a chart act in the late 70s and early 80s. The band were tight as anything, Debbie always looked stunning and sang great, and the set was crammed with catchy pop tunes. Their shows at the City Hall in 1978 and 1980 were both sell outs and great gigs. 
I also had tickets for a 1982 gig by Blondie at the City Hall. However the tour was cancelled as a result of Chris Stein’s ill health, and the band split shortly afterwards. 
Bootlegs exist of some of those early shows; one from 1978 shows the setlist as being the following: X Offender; Detroit 442; A Shark in Jet’s Clothing; In The Sun; Little girls lies; Denis; (I’m Always Touched By Your) Presence Dear; Fan Mail; Look Good in Blue; Rifle Rangle; In the flesh; Cautious Lip; Contact In Red Square; My Possession; I didn’t have the nerve to say no; Bermuda Triangle Blues (Flight 45); Kidnapper – Rip Her To Shreds; Kung Fu girls; Funtime ( Iggy pop cover)
13 May
Shift-Static The Cluny 2 Newcastle May 12th 2012
Shift-Static The Cluny 2 Newcastle May 12th 2012
So Shift-Static returned after a gig hiatus, the members regrouping from various corners of the UK to play a show in The Cluny 2, along with Houses, Baskin’s Wish, and Euan Lynn. A healthy crowd gathered to see this home gig, some having travelled especially for the show. Laura ventured from her normal situation behind keyboards, taking front of stage to deliver her haunting vocals. The set consisted of five songs, and lasted around 30 minutes, featuring some new tunes and one old favourite. Crowd members were shouting for recent online release Sky Burial, which proved to be a big hit. The songs are a sublime mix of electronica, dance, and guitar jangles, Gordon concentrating on the beats and the electrickery, Will on the jangle guitar, Charlie master of the samples and further beats, Joe pounding away on the rhythm bass, and Laura overlaying her textured, haunting vocals. The band received a well deserved positive reception from the assembled Cluny crowd, the new set hitting the right spot with everyone. Shift-Static next perform at Newcastle Miners Institute on Friday 25 May. Setlist: Intro; New Song; Father’s Footsteps; Five Bar Gate; Sky Burial.
12 May
Blue Oyster Cult Newcastle Tyne Theatre 2002
Blue Oyster Cult Newcastle Tyne Theatre 2002
I lost touch with Blue Oyster Cult for some time, after seeing them several times in the 70s and 80s. There was a 17 year period between my BOC experiences, between seeing them in 1985 at Newcastle City Hall and a gig at Newcastle Tyne Theatre in 2002. I went along with my mate Norm who is a big Blue Oyster Cult fan. The Tyne Theatre is a Grade 1 listed building, which opened in 1867 as the Tyne Theatre and Opera House. Its a lovely venue, and I have fond memories of going there in the 60s with my dad to see King Kong, which seemed a marvel to me at the time. The Tyne Theatre wasn’t full that night, but a respectable crowd had gathered to see BOC. The line up at that time featured old timers Eric Bloom, Buck Dharma, and Allen Lanier and the set contained a healthy mix of old favourites. It was great to see the band again, and the performance was as good as the old days, bringing back memories of those nights in the City Hall. BOC have been back once or twice since then, although I missed those gigs. Its about time I caught up with them again. Setlist: Burnin’ For You; OD’d On Life Itself; ETI; Pocket; Harvester Of Eyes; Teen Archer; Quicklime Girl; Perfect Water; Cities On Flame; Golden Age of Leather; See You in Black; Last Days Of May; Godzilla; (Don’t Fear) The Reaper; Dominance & Submission. It was great to hear Last Days of May again; it remains one of my favourites songs.
11 May
The Bureau Information Tour 1981
The Bureau Information Tour 1981
I’ve been reflecting on Dexy’s this week and renewed by acquaintance with the band on Monday when I saw them play in Whitley Bay. That also made me think to this gig, by the Bureau, which I attended in 1981. The Bureau were a Dexy’s spin off band, and consisted of most of the members, apart from Kevin Rowland. “We split from Dexy’s Midnight Runners because the musical ideas we always stood for just turned into posturing”. They also featured Archie Brown on vocals (from the Upset who had supported Dexy’s on an early tour) and Mick Talbot (who is now in Dexy’s; this is confusing) or organ. I recall little of this gig; in fact I can’t even recall where it was. I suspect it was at Newcastle Mayfair (although it could have been at the Poly or University?). I do remember them as a brass driven soul band. I’ve just checked and see that they have recently reformed and that Mick Talbot is with them again (as well as being a member of Dexy’s; this is just getting confusing for me).
10 May
Dexy’s Midnight Runners Newcastle Exhibition Park 1982: Radio 1 in Concert from the Big Top
Dexy’s Midnight Runners Newcastle Newcastle Exhibition Park 1982
Radio 1 in Concert from the Radio One Big Top
I went to see Dexy’s on Monday, and this has encouraged me to reflect on my previous experiences of the band. This gig was the second time I saw Kevin Rowland and the band, and the last time until I saw them again this week, and it was just amazing. I’d seen Dexy’s once before at the time of Geno, in Newcastle Mayfair. They were good that night, but nothing could have prepared me for this gig. The concert was one of (I think) two which were held in a large marquee on Exhibition Park as part of a Radio One in Concert weekend. The other gig was The Boomtown Rats, and I decided to go along to one of the gigs. I’m so glad I chose this show, because it was a revelation. Part of the reason that it was so good was the surprise element. Neither Come on Eileen or the album Too-Rye-Ay had been released at this point, and the image of Dexy’s that I had in my head was of the soul rebels in their donkey jackets and wooly hats. This was the first performance of the new gyspy folk Dexy’s, and the entire crowd was just stunned when the band came on stage, Kevin dressed in a pair of dungarees and with his new curly hair cut. You could see that everyone was just speechless and totally shocked by the complete transformation that the band had undergone. They were straight into a set which drew heavily from the forthcoming Too-Rye-Ay lp with its hybrid of soul and Celtic folk. They also included Geno, and Jackie Wilson said. The rest of the band were dressed in dungarees, scarves, leather waistcoats, and what was described at the time as “a generally scruffy right-off-the-farm look”. Kevin Rowland said at the time of the new image: “These are my best clothes. Again it just feels right for the music. Everybody else is dressing up sort of straight-laced and we come in wearing these and it’s like, y’know here we are, a bit of hoedowning is even possible”. And hoedown they did.
Once I got over the shock of the new image and the new line-up, I just sat back and enjoyed the music. How could you not enjoy those infectious folk tunes. This was the first time the new lp, including Come on Eileen was played live and the only time that the line-up featured the Searching for the Young Soul Rebels-era horn section alongside the Too-Rye-Ay-era strings. I knew that night that the new lp and those songs were going to be massive. Come on Eileen hit the charts and soared to number one a few weeks later and the band were back to play to a sold-out City Hall, a gig which I missed in order to see The Jam’s final North East gig at Whitley Bay (which was the right choice, but I still regret missing Dexy’s that night!). I remember going home buzzing about the gig, still not being quite able to take in or believe what I had seen. I tried to explain to my friends how good it had been, but they didn’t get it until they saw them performing Come On Eileen on Top of the Pops a few weeks later. This was one of those gigs which I wish I could return to and relive. The show was released on CD 13 years later in 1995 and features the following tracks: TSOP (The Sound of Philadelphia); Burn It Down; Let’s Make This Precious; Jackie Wilson Said (I’m in Heaven When You Smile); Come on Eileen; Respect; Soon; Plan B; Geno; Old; The Celtic Soul Brothers; There, There, My Dear; Show Me.
Note. I’ve just found (30 Jan 2014) a programme for the Radio 1 Weekend, which this concert must have been part of. The weekend featured all the DJs (Tony Blackburn, Peter Powell, Keith Chegwin etc) plus personal appearances by Dexys, Haircut 100 and others. There was also a local band stage which featured among others The Toy Dolls. The programme includes a free flexi single by Lindisfarne (although they were not appearing as they were on tour at the time). Fascinating stuff. I’d forgotten all about this.
9 May
New Order Newcastle Academy 8 May 2012
New Order Newcastle Academy 8 May 2012 
Laura and I went to see New Order last night at Newcastle Academy. So had were they without founder bassist Peter Hook? Pretty good, actually. We were sitting in the balcony and the sounds was reasonably clear from up there, although the vocals could have been higher in the mix. The set was a good selection of New Order classics, with Blue Monday as the encore. There were no Joy Division songs, which was a little disappointing as the encores have been Transmission and Love Will Tear Us Apart on the rest of the tour. The band played well, but didn’t seem particularly into it. The visuals were particularly impressive. There were problems with the sound mix throughout the show and some technical difficulties, and maybe that was why the show was cut short. 
The crowd remained in the hall for some time after New Order left the stage, not quite believing that there weren’t coming back. I sensed quite a few disappointed people as we left the hall, which was a shame, as the performance was excellent at times. Setlist: Elegia; Crystal; Regret; Ceremony; Age of Consent; Love Vigilantes; 1963; Bizarre Love Triangle; True Faith; 586; The Perfect Kiss; Temptation. Encore: Blue Monday
8 May
Dexy’s Whitley Bay Playhouse May 7th 2012
Dexy’s Whitley Bay Playhouse May 7th 2012
With the name streamlined from Dexys Midnight Runners to Dexys, last night’s gig was prior to the release of their fourth album, ‘One Day I’m Going To Soar’; the first Dexy’s album in 26 years. For this project Kevin Rowland’s Dexy’s features previous members Mick Talbot on keyboards, Pete Williams on vocals and Jim Paterson on trombone. It also features Neil Hubbard and Tim Cansfield on guitars, Madeleine Hyland on vocals, and Lucy Morgan on violin. This tour sees their first gigs for almost 10 years, taking in small theatres across the UK. Its 30 years since I last saw this band, and I have been really looking forward to it. I knew that this gig was sure to be something special, one way or the other. There was no support and no interval, with Dexy’s coming on stage at 8.30pm. Whitley Bay PLayhouse was packed and you could feel the anticipation. The band came on to a darkened stage, slick and smartly dressed in suits which looked like they had come from New York in the 20s. The show was very theatrical and is based on the story of a relationship between our hero Kevin and Madeleine Hyland, who first appeared on screen and later on stage in person. Kevin was as intense and passionate as ever, and at times I thought this was one of the best things I have ever seen. At other times, I felt the show crossed the line and became just a little too bizarre and absurd. The crowd clearly really enjoyed it, giving each and every song a tremendous reception. Laura, David and I were sitting in the second row and had a great view of the action. 
It was tremendous to be so close to such a great showman. The set consisted of the new album played through in its entirity, followed by an old Dexy’s song, which I must admit I didn’t know, with a rousing and joyful Come On Eileen as the closer. The crowd wouldn’t let the band leave without one more song, and they returned to play This Is What She’s Like. An astounding show, which at time hit great heights and depth. A night that none of the audience will forget for a long long time. Setlist: Now; Lost; Me; She Got A Wiggle; You; Thinking Of You; I’m Always Going To Love You; Incapable Of Love; Nowhere Is Home; Free; It’s OK John Joe, ?, Come On Eileen. Encore: This Is What She’s Like
7 May
Dexy’s Midnight Runners Newcastle Mayfair June 1980 : Intense Emotion Review
Dexy’s Midnight Runners Newcastle Mayfair 1980
We are going to see Dexy’s latest incarnation at Whitley Bay Playhouse tonight, and I am really looking forward to it. Kevin Rowland may be an enigma, but he is also a hero of mine. He is undoubtedly extremely talented, and puts his entire heart and soul into everything he does. I first saw Dexy’s Midnight Runners in 1980 at Newcastle Mayfair on the Intense Emotion Review. The title of the tour said it all. Kevin was determined to create a band which was a vehicle for his passion and his vision; a band with a strong image, and built on the concept of soul and emotion. Geno was a hit at the time and the band came on stage dressed in donkey jackets and woolly hats, and delivered a set of great soul and r&b. Rowland said at the time: “we didn’t want to become part of anyone else’s movement. We’d rather be our own movement” and “We wanted to be a group that looked like something…a formed group, a project, not just random”. Master of Ceremonies and resident comedian for the evening was Keith Allen (see picture; doesn’t he look young!). Support came from The Upset featuring local guy Archie Brown, and The Black Arabs. Kevin Rowland lists his listening as Astral Weeks by Van Morrison in the programme (good choice). 
This was around the time of their first lp Searching for the Young Soul Rebels. I remember them playing Geno, and a great version of Breaking Down The Walls Of Heartache, which is one of my favourite songs. The Mayfair was packed to the walls, and the place went mad when they played Geno; lots of singing along. At the time the band seemed to fit somewhere between The Specials, and new mod in the form of Secret Affair etc. In fact they were much more that. As Kevin said at the time: “I’m going to do what I really want to do: form a great group. We’ll wear great clothes and make soulful music.” And they did just that for a short period. The next time I saw Dexy’s was at a Radio One In Concert programme which was recorded in a marquee on Exhibition Park in Newcastle. By that time Kevin’s vision had changed into the gypsy folk which was Too-Rye-Ay, and that gig was just astonishing; one of the best gigs I have ever been to; I’ll post about that night in a couple of days. Can’t wait for tonight’s show. Will post on it tomorrow morning.
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