Robert Plant Newcastle City Hall 28th November 1983
It was the early 1980s. Zeppelin were no more, and Robert Plant began to establish himself as a solo artist. He released two excellent albums: Pictures at Eleven (1982) and The Principle of Moments (1983), both of which had shades of Zeppelin and yet also enabled Plant to forge his own identity. In the Autumn of 1983 he embarked on a full UK tour, calling at Newcastle City Hall in November. Demand was high to see Plant on his first major outing since Zeppelin days, and a second night was added at several venues, including Newcastle. He was also having his first real solo single chart success with the excellent “Big Log”. The line-up of Robert Plant’s band for the 1983 tour was Robbie Blunt (guitar), Jezz Woodroffe (keyboards), Bob Mayo (keyboards), Paul Martinez (bass) and Ritchie Hayward (drums; Phil Collins played on the US leg of the tour). The concert consisted of tracks from Robert’s first two albums. We were all hoping that he would throw in a few Zeppelin classics, but that wasn’t to be. 
This was made clear in the souvenir programme: “Tonight there will be no Slverhead, Black Sabbath, Foreigner, no Little Feat, Adverts [referring to the bands which each of the members had previously played in] or Led Zeppelin. Only music from the last two years and maybe…a medley of our hit [referring to Big Log]”. Never mind; Plant’s solo songs were strong, and his band was excellent, including amazing guitar work by Robbie Blunt, who had been in the very under-rated bands Bronco and Silverhead. The set started with “In The Mood” which had just been released as a single.
Setlist (something like): In the Mood; Pledge Pin; Messin’ With the Mekon; Worse Than Detroit; Thru’ With the Two Step; Other Arms; Horizontal Departure; Moonlight in Samosa; Wreckless Love; Slow Dancer; Like I’ve Never Been Gone; Burning Down One Side; Big Log; Stranger Here… Than Over There; Treat Her Right
“My love is in league with the freeway, Its passion will ride, as the cities fly by, And the tail-lights dissolve, in the coming of night, And the questions in thousands take flight.” (Big Log, Robert Plant, 1983). I loved “Big Log” at the time and still do; it was a very different song, quite distinct in terms of the chart of the time and from Zeppelin music; but I could never figure out what it was about 🙂
At the Hammersmith Odeon show Plant was joined onstage by none other than Jimmy Page for the encore ‘Treat Her Right’.
Posts Tagged ‘classic rock’
10 Feb
Robert Plant Newcastle City Hall 28th November 1983
9 Feb
The Reading Festival 22nd – 24th August 1975
The Reading Festival 22nd – 24th August 1975
The Reading Festival hit its peak of success in the mid ’70s, and the 1975 festival sold out in advance. Although the previous years’ festivals that I had attended all seemed pretty full, you were still able to roll up and pay at the entrance. In 1975 the success of the festival and the draw of bands like Yes and Wishbone Ash ensured the site was completely packed, with hardly any room to be found in the campsites and car parks.
Friday line-up: Stella, Judas Priest, Wally, Kokomo, UFO, Dr Feelgood, Hawkwind. Judas Priest were an up and coming heavy rock band and were gigging constantly, as were UFO. Kokomo were a jazz/rock/funk outfit who were very successful during the ’70s. But the big success of Friday (and arguably the entire weekend) was Dr Feelgood, who were a massive hit with the festival crowd; Wilko and Lee being on red hot form. I was with a couple of guys who had recently become big Feelgood fans; “Back In The Night” had just been released and they were constantly singing it in my ear. “All around visible signs of the Doctor’s now-massive popularity – such as the many home-made banners (“Feelgood”, “Wilko” et al), the rapturous reception, the sea-of-weaving arms” (NME, 1975). “When Dr Feelgood stamped off they had within an hour, transformed this alfresco association into a tiny, sweaty, steaming R&B club. Charisma is too weak a word to describe what the Feelgoods had going for them that night.” (Brian Harrigan, Melody Maker, August 30, 1975). Hawkwind were ok, but it was cold, and they found it difficult to follow the Feelgood’s storming set.
Saturday line-up: Zzebra, SNAFU, Alberto Y Lost Trios Paranoias, Kursaal Flyers, Thin Lizzy, Alan Stivell, Heavy Metal Kids (billed simply as “Kids” in the programme), Ozark Mountain Daredevils, Supertramp, Yes.
My memories are of Thin Lizzy delivering an excellent set as always; they were gradually building up their own following and would soon break through to become massive; The Heavy Metal Kids being as OTT as ever; and Yes, who were amazing. I must also mention the Kursaal Flyers, who are sadly often forgotten in the history of pub rock; they would hit the charts in the following year with the great pop single: “Little Does She Know” (“I know that she knows that I know she’s two timing me”). Supertramp were on the verge of mega-success; they had hit the charts with “Dreamer” and had a considerable following. I was, and remain, a big Yes fan and their performance at Reading came at a point where the band were at the peak of their success. I recall it being very cold, with epic versions of “Close to the Edge” and “And You and I”, and a great version of “Roundabout” as an encore (very late and off to our tents). A bootleg exists of Yes’ set that night: Sound Chaser; Close To The Edge; And You And I; Awaken; The Gates Of Delirium; I’ve Seen All Good People; Ancient; Long Distance Run Around; Ritual; Roundabout.
Sunday line-up: Joan Armatrading, Babe Ruth, String Driven Thing, Climax Blues Band, Caravan, Soft Machine, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Robin Trower, Wishbone Ash. My memory of Sunday is of Wishbone Ash. Like Yes they were enjoying massive success at the time, and also like Yes they played a set of pure class, with the twin guitars of Andy Powell and Laurie Wisefield soaring through the cool, late Sunday evening.
Our DJs for the weekend were once again John Peel and Jerry Floyd. The weather was cold, with some rain, and the beer can fights were constant throughout the weekend. The festival had always been an organised, carefully planned event, but was becoming even more commercial. The nature of the festival, and its line-up, would transform further in the years which followed; with the emergence of punk and the re-emergence of heavy metal through the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal). Any elements of the jazz festivals of the 60s had also disappeared.
Thanks to BaldBoris for allowing his image of the festival to be used through the WikiMedia Commons licence agreement.
6 Feb
Public Image Ltd Newcastle City Hall 1983 and 1986
Public Image Ltd Newcastle City Hall 15th November 1983 and 10th May 1986
I next saw PIL at Newcastle City Hall in 1983. The line-up of the band had changed completely since the early days are now featured John Lydon (vocals); Martin Atkins (drums; I’d seen him a few years earlier in his band Brian Brain); Louis Bernardi (bass); Joseph Guida (guitar) and Arthur Stead (keyboards). By 1983 PIL had released several singles and three albums, including ‘Metal Box’. The set featured a mix of tracks from the albums, the singles and, surprisingly, The Pistols’s ‘Anarchy in the UK’. Gone was the strange discordant band I had seen in 1978; this version of PIL were more of a straight rock band, which was ok in some ways, but disappointing in others. A great show; the crowd went crazy when they played ‘Anarchy’.
Set List: Public image; Low life; Annalisa; Religion; Memories; Solitaire; Flowers of romance; Chant; Anarchy in the UK; This is not a love song; Attack.
Public Image Ltd were back in Newcastle three years later on 10th May 1986. This time the line-up was John Lydon (vocals); the late great John McGeoch (ex Banshees and Magazine, and simply excellent; guitar); Lu Edmonds (ex-Damned and a member of the current PIL line-up; keyboards, guitars); Allan Dias (bass); Bruce Smith (drums). Another great gig. On this occasion I felt that PIL were much truer to the original spirit of the band, partly as a result of John McGeoch’s amazing guitar work. This time they played The Pistols’ classic ‘Pretty Vacant’. Setlist (from a gig in Edinburgh the following evening, but I think Newcastle was similar; I certainly remember them playing Pretty Vacant): Kashmir (I assume this is a different song to the Zeppelin track?); FFF; Annalisa; Fishing; Poptones; Pretty Vacant; Banging the Door; Flowers of Romance; Bags; Tie me to the Length of That; Round; Home; Public Image; Rise; Low Life; World Destruction; Ease.
5 Feb
Public Image Ltd, Creation for Liberation Benefit Gig, Manchester Belle Vue, 23rd February 1979
Public Image Ltd, Creation for Liberation Benefit Gig, Manchester Belle Vue, 23rd February 1979
This was Public Image Ltds 5th gig, and their first in the North of England. I’d been a massive Pistols fan, having seen them twice in 1976 and 1977, so I was looking forward to this one. I’d bought their first album, and found it quite strange and rather disconcerting, it was so different to the Sex Pistols. Marie and I went to the concert which was in the massive Kings Hall our at Belle Vue Manchester. We drove down and stayed at a hotel in the city centre (the Portland I think).
The concert was entitled ‘Creation for Liberation’ and was a benefit gig in aid of the ‘Race Today Friendly Society’. Also on the bill were Bristol’s The Pop Group (punky/jazzy/art-rock), Merger (a great reggae band), and poets Linton Kwesi Johnson and John Cooper Clarke. We arrived early to see all the bands. I remember seeing a lot of people from the Manchester punk scene; a couple of members of the Buzzcocks were in the crowd. Everyone had turned out to see what John’s new band was like. I remember both dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson (“England is a bitch’ was a stand-out) and local hero John Cooper Clarke (super fast) going down well, and then there was a long wait for PIL. 
The line-up of PIL was: John Lydon (vocals), Keith Levene (guitar); Jah Wobble (bass) and Eddie Edwards (from the Vibrators sitting in on drums for this one gig). There was a long, cold, ait before PIL came on stage. When they did, they wandered on and Lydon famously said to the waiting crowd, “No gimmicks, no theatre, just us. Take it or leave it”. They then launched into ‘Theme’ and played a set which featured songs from their first album, and the controversial Pistols songs ‘Belsen Was A Gas’ (this was the last time that PIL would ever perform the song, and the last time that it was performed live until the Pistols played it again during their reunion tour in 2002). The sound was poor and murky and you couldn’t hear Lydon’s vocals very well at all. John was as scary and engaging as ever, but overall the band’s performance was a little shaky, and lacking the power and depth that PIL can achieve on a good night. I was hoping we would get a Pistols hit for the encore (I should have known that was never going to happen), but they simply played ‘Annalisa’ again. It was great to see Lydon on stage again, and in a strange way, this was a memorable concert. It represented everything that PIL was about at the time: challenging, strange, not quite what you would expect, noisy and discordant.
Set List: Theme; Annalisa; Low Life; Religion; Attack; Belsen Was A Gas; Public Image; Annalisa
Thanks to Paul B. Toman for allowing the use of his image of the PIL button badge through the Wikimedia Commons licence agreement.
4 Feb
Robert Palmer Newcastle Mayfair 19th May 1983
Robert Palmer Newcastle Mayfair 19th May 1983
Robert Palmer was a cool guy and a great R&B and soul singer. I first came across him when I saw him in Dada, a jazz/rock fusion band, who supported Iron Butterfly on their 1971 UK tour. Dada also featured Elkie Brooks, and the pair of singers were soon to form the great Vinegar Joe, who I was lucky enough to see several times in the early 70s. Palmer and Brooks were great together live; the cool, suave Yorkshireman was the perfect complement to Brooks’ fiery, wild and raucous stage persona. After Vinegar Joe folded, Palmer went on to forge a solo career, achieving particular success in the USA. By the time I saw him again at this gig at Newcastle Mayfair in 1983, he had released 7 albums. The tour was to promote the Pride album, and followed his success in the UK singles chart with Some Guys Have All The Luck which reached No 16, and was his biggest hit to date. 
The show saw Palmer looking particularly cool in a snappy suit, and singing his blue-eyed soul to an appreciative Newcastle crowd. A live recording exists of the Hammersmith Palais show of the 1983 tour which shows the setlist as: Every Kinda People; What Can You Bring?; Dance For Me; Want You More; You Can Have It (Take My Heart); Woke Up Laughing; Say You Will; Sneakin’ Sally Through The Alley; Pride; It’s Not Difficult; Some Guys Have All The Luck; Best Of Both Worlds; Sulky Girl; Looking For Clues; Johnny And Mary. I would imagine that the set at the Mayfair will have been similar. Palmer went on to even bigger success a few years later with Addicted To Love (and that iconic video) and She Makes My Day. He died of a heart attack in a Paris hotel room on 26 September 2003 at the age of 54.
2 Feb
The Reading Festival 23rd – 25th August 1974
The Reading Festival 23rd – 25th August 1974
This was my third visit to the Reading Festival; I felt I was a seasoned festival goer 🙂 . By now a large crew of local people were going to the festival, so there were lots of mates there, and we spent much of the weekend in the pubs in town, and down near the Caversham Bridge; particularly The Griffin. We would nip back to the festival site to catch the bands we wanted to see. The line-up in 1974 wasn’t particularly strong in comparison to the previous couple of years, and quite a few bands who had been advertised didn’t show (notably Eric Burdon, Ronnie Lane and Blodwyn Pig, all of whom I was looking forward to seeing). The Friday line-up was : Nutz, Johnny Mars, Hustler, Beckett, Camel, 10c, Fumble, Sensational Alex Harvey Band.
The first night of the festival saw the triumphant headlining return of the Alex Harvey band, who lived up to their name and were truly sensational. SAHB had appeared low down on the bill the previous year; there will have been many in the crowd who saw that performance, and knew how good they were. Johnny Mars and his Sunflower Blues Band gigged a lot in the early 70s; they played traditional blues; I remember seeing them at Sunderland Poly a few times; pretty good too. Fumble were a rock’roll revival band who also gigged a lot. Beckett were local North East heroes, featuring singer Terry Slesser. The SAHB setlist was something like this: Faith Healer; Midnight Moses; Can’t Get Enough; Give My Regards To Sergeant Fury; The Return of Vambo; The Man in the Jar; Money Honey; The Impossible Dream; Schools Out; Framed.
Saturday line-up: Jack the Lad, G T Moore and the Reggae Guitars, Trapeze, Sutherland Brothers, JSD Band, Procol Harum, Thin Lizzy, Long John Baldry, Heavy Metal Kids, Greenslade, Georgie Fame, Traffic.
Two bands stick in my mind from Saturday: Thin Lizzy who were excellent, and about to break through a year or so later, and Traffic. This was the classic Lizzy line-up featuring front-man Phil Lynott, the twin guitars of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson, and Brian Downey on drums; at the time of the Nightlife album; they were at the top of their game. Traffic were excellent. They had just released their album When the Eagle Flies, and their set at Reading featured a few songs from that album, plus some old classics. The line-up at the time was Steve Winwood (guitar, vocals, keyboards); Chris Wood (flute, sax); Jim Capaldi (drums, vocals); Rosko Gee (bass); Rebop (percussion). Stand-outs were Steve singing John Barleycorn, simple and beautiful with acoustic guitar, and Rebop’s congas and percussion throughout. I found a published setlist for Traffic, which shows they played: Empty Pages; Graveyard People; Who Knows What Tomorrow May Bring; John Barleycorn; 40,000 Headmen; Love; When the Eagle Flies; Walking in the Wind; Dream Gerrard. I also have it in my mind that they performed Feelin’ Alright, but maybe that’s my memory playing tricks again. Also worthy of mention are Procol Harum (great version of Whiter Shade of Pale and a big success during the late afternoon), the late great Long John Baldry (excellent voice and a hero of mine), Heavy Metal Kids (the late Gary Holton as crazy and manic as ever), and Georgie Fame who seemed a bit out of place as part of the Saturday night line-up, but carried on the jazz and R’n’B tradition of the festival and went down pretty well.
Sunday Line-up: Gary Farr, Chilli Willi and the Red Hod Peppers, Esparanto, Strider, Barclay James Harvest, Chapman & Whitney Streetwalkers, Kevin Coyne, George Melly, Winkies, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Harvey Andrews, Focus.
My main memories of the final day are of Steve Harley. Cockney Rebel had split a few months before the festival, and this one of Steve’s first appearances with his new band. They stole the show; appearing just as it was getting dark; the audience was with Steve from the start, and the performance was a triumph. Tumbling Down closed the set with a mass crowd singalong of “Oh dear, look what they’ve done to the blues, blues, blues”. It was clear that Steve was back, as cocky as ever; 1975 would bring him massive success with Make Me Smile.
I also remember watching Kevin Coyne (Marjory Razorblade), George Melly (a return after his success the previous year) and Focus who closed the show, and were also great, but seemed a little of anti-climax after Steve Harley’s performance.
DJs for the weekend were John Peel and Jerry Floyd. Oh and there were lots of cheers of “Wally”, “John Peels a c**t” (not sure how that one started), and a revolt at the prices of food in the arena, which resulted in a fish and chip van being trashed. Crazy, happy days.
1 Feb
Pete Seeger Newcastle City Hall 8th March 1978
Pete Seeger Newcastle City Hall 8th March 1978
Support from Louis Killen and The High Level Ranters
The passing earlier this week of the legendary Pete Seeger makes me cast my mind back to the one occasion I saw the great man in concert; which was at Newcastle City Hall in 1978. It is one of the simplest, yet most powerful performances I have had the pleasure of attending. I went along with a friend, neither of us massive folk fans, but the legend of the man transcends musical boundaries and drew us to the City Hall that night.
Seeger performed alone; seated centre stage on a simple wooden chair for much of the performance, accompanied only by his banjo, and sang all those great songs. He told us stories, sang his own tunes, and covered traditional and contemporary folk songs. There was a purity, authenticity and truth about his performance; Seeger was completely in tune with the audience; we all sang all with him to classics such as “Where Have All the Flowers Gone?”; “If I Had a Hammer”; “Turn! Turn! Turn!”; “Little Boxes”; and “We Shall Overcome”. The title “legend” is often applied to many different artists and musicians, but few actually deserve it; Pete Seeger is one who undoubtedly and absolutely does.
29 Jan
Procol Harum live Newcastle 1973, Reading 1974 and Middlesbrough 1976
Procol Harum live Newcastle 1973, Reading 1974 and Middlesbrough 1976
I am a big fan of Procol Harum, although I have only seen them three times in concert. White Shade of Pale, Homburg and Conquistador remain favourite songs of mine to this day. Their appearances in the UK are few and far between these days; although they do continue to play a small number of shows in mainland Europe. I first saw Procol Harum at a concert in Newcastle City Hall on 16th March 1973. The 1973 line up was Gary Brooker (keyboards, vocals), Alan Cartwright (bass), Chris Copping (keyboards), Mick Grabham (guitar), B J Wilson (drums), Keith Reid (lyrics). Support for the concert at the City Hall came from Hemlock, who were a new blues rock band fronted by Miller Anderson (ex Keef Hartley band). My memories of the performance are of a great, powerful set, which started with Conquistador, but I was also disappointed that they didn’t play White Shade of Pale that night. The setlist will have been something like this (based on published setlists of the time): Conquistador; Bringing Home the Bacon; Toujours L’Amour; The Devil Came from Kansas; Homburg; Fires (Which Burnt Brightly); For Liquorice John; Whaling Stories; Grand Hotel; Kaleidoscope; Robert’s Box; Power Failure; Simple Sister; Repent Walpurgis; A Salty Dog.
I next saw Procol Harum at the Reading Festival in 1974. They played, I think, on the Saturday afternoon, and were equally as good; and this time they did play Whiter Shade of Pale 🙂 . 
The next time I saw Procol was at a concert at Middlesbrough Town Hall on 7th January 1976. This time there were supported by the very brilliant and much-lamented Vivian Stanshall, who entertained us with a crazy set featuring Bonzo classics and his solo material. Procol were magnificent that night, the swirling chords of their majestic pieces reverberating around the beautiful main hall of Middlesbrough town hall. They were joined by Viv Stanshall for the encores which included a crazy song called the Browns, which Viv had written with Keith Reid; it was based on a story Viv had read in the newspaper about a family called the Browns. The setlist will have been something like this (based on published setlists of the time): Toujours l’Amour; Bringing Home the Bacon; Shine on Brightly; Fresh Fruit; As Strong as Samson; The Unquiet Zone; Grand Hotel; Conquistador; Pandora’s Box; Cerdes (Outside the Gates of); Souvenir of London; Power Failure; A Salty Dog; The Blue Danube. Encores: I keep Forgetting; The Browns (with Viv Stanshall); A Whiter Shade of Pale.
The Middlesbrough gig was the last time I saw Procol in concert, although I had a ticket for a gig at the Tyne Theatre in Newcastle in 2002, which was sadly cancelled. I still have my ticket which is pictured here. I hope I can get to see them one more time, and await their next performance in the UK. Thanks to John for his scan of the poster from the 1973 Newcastle City Hall concert with Hemlock support.
28 Jan
Paice Ashton Lord Newcastle City Hall 28th March 1977
Paice Ashton Lord 28th March 1977
Paice Ashton Lord were formed in 1977, after the break-up of Deep Purple. Ian Paice (Purple’s drummer) and Jon Lord (Purple’s keyboardist), joined Tony Ashton (keyboards and vocals; ex Ashton, Gardner and Dyke and Family) for the project. The band was completed with Bernie Marsden on guitar and Paul Martinez on bass. Paice Ashton Lord (PAL) released their first album, Malice in Wonderland, in 1977, and undertook their only UK which I saw at the City Hall. I think some of the dates on the tour were cancelled because of poor ticket sales. I saw the show at Necastle City Hall, which was not well attended. The group didn’t last for long, and broke up shortly after the tour: I think Tony Ashton broke his leg falling off a stage. The set consisted on tracks from the new alsbum, and as far as I can remember, they didn’t play any Purple classics. 
Support came from a band called Bandit who were fronted by Jim Diamond. Lord, Marsden and Paice went on to join David Coverdale in his band Whitesnake. Martinez joined Stan Webb’s Chicken Shack, before going on to play with Robert Plant. Both Tony Ashton and Jon Lord died of cancer; Ashton in 2001; Lord in 2012. From the tour programme: “This is the first tour of a band, already making a big impression on the music scene…this new band are certain of a brilliant future on their own merits which will in no way be reflected glory from the now past Purple band”. A CD of PAL in concert has the track listing: Ghost Story; On The Road Again, Again; Silas And Jerome; Arabella (Oh Tell Me); The Ballad Of Mr. Giver; I’m Gonna Stop Drinking; Steam Roller Blues; Remember The Good Times; Malice In Wonderland; and Sneaky Private Lee. I would imagine this was the set that I saw at Newcastle.
27 Jan
Del Amitri Newcastle City Hall 26 January 2014
Del Amitri Newcastle City Hall 26 January 2014
Support from The Os
I’ve never seen Del Amitri, and quite like some of their songs, so last night I was making up for lost time, and went to see them at Newcastle City Hall on the fourth night of their reunion tour. And good there were too. I’d forgotten just how many great songs this band have. They started with Always the Last to Know and Kiss This Thing Goodbye. The set featured an acoustic section which closed with a rousing version of Nothing Ever Happens. Other highlights were Roll to Me, and the final encore, the simply beautiful Move Away Jimmy Blue, which is my favourite and actually was the main reason I went along last night. 
Setlist (something like): Always the Last to Know; Kiss This Thing Goodbye; The Ones That You Love Lead You Nowhere; Just Like a Man; What I Think She Sees; Not Where It’s At; Hammering Heart; This Side of the Morning; Sleep Instead of Teardrops; Be My Downfall; Food for Songs; Tell Her This; In the Frame; Nothing Ever Happens; Roll to Me; Driving With the Brakes On; Spit in the Rain; Being Somebody Else; Drunk in a Band. Encore: In the Meantime; Here and Now; Just Before You Leave; Move Away Jimmy Blue.
Justin Currie speaking of the current tour in the Scotsman newspaper: “We started talking quite honestly about it….You know, will it be any good or will it be rubbish? We wanted to only enter into it if it was going to be decent, although only the audience can tell us that, of course.”
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