The Groundhogs are back mid 1980s
I guess it must have been 1984, and I saw a poster in Newcastle advertising a Groundhogs gig at Tiffanys nightspot. I wasn’t aware that that Tony had reformed the Hogs, so this was pretty exciting news. Looking back on those days before the internet, news of bands and gigs was much harder to access; we had to wait for the weekly dose of Sounds, NME and Melody Maker to find out what was going on. I’d seen nothing of a new Groundhogs line-up. The revival was a result of the success of the Hoggin’ The Stage live double album, which had just been released. The album had sold well and had caused a renewed interest in the Groundhogs. Tony was still gigging as the Tony McPhee band and was getting more and more requests for classic Hogs material, so he decided to reform the band. The line-up changed several times over the next few years, but I think at the time of the gig at Tiffanys it was probably Tony (obviously), Alan Fish on bass and Mick Kirton on drums.
I persuaded Marie to come along to the gig at Tiffanys. It was around 5 years since I had last see Tony McPhee in concert with Terraplane, so I was really looking forward to it. Tiffanys was a night club in the centre of Newcastle, which was host to many bands in the early 80s. On the night the Groundhogs played it was pretty empty. I would say that there must have been less than a hundred people there, which was somewhat disappointing. Nonetheless, the gig was great and consisted of a set of classic Groundhogs. Split 2, Cherry Red, Soldier, Eccentric Man, Garden, Groundhog Blues were all played exceptionally well and Tony was back on top form. It was just great to see the return of the band, and I was to enter a new phase of going to see them. The new line-up toured relentlessly over the next few years, and came to the north east many times, playing some obscure and odd venues. I’ll blog on some of my concert experiences with the Hogs in the mid to late 80s over the coming days. At the time I was just pleased that the band were back and that it was possible to see Tony play so often in such intimate settings.
Posts Tagged ‘classic rock’
29 Dec
The Groundhogs are back mid 1980s Newcastle Tiffanys
28 Dec
Tony McPhee’s Terraplane late 70s
Tony McPhee’s Terraplane late 70s
After the Groundhogs disbanded in 1976 Tony McPhee formed a new band called Terraplane, featuring Alan Fish on bass, and Wilgar Campbell (ex Rory Gallagher) on drums. This band gigged quite a bit, but didn’t release any new material. Two tracks (Down in the Bottom and Shake for Me) were taped as demos in 1977; and are the only recordings of Terraplane apart from some backing tracks for Billy Boy Arnold on an album called Checkin` It Out. Down in the Bottom is an old Howlin’ Wolf song which often features as the encore in the current Groundhogs set. I saw Terraplane twice, once at Sunderland Locarno, and again at an open air concert in Gypsie’s Green Stadium South Shields.
The thing I remember most about the South Shields gig was not the music. I’d just bought a really cool pair of black Denson Chelsea boots. These were old stock winklepickers from the 60s, which you could pick up cheap in shoe sales in the late 70s (which I’d bought them all up 🙂 ). This would place the gig around 1977 or 1978, I would think. I went along to the gig with a couple of mates, and we decided to take a short cut into the stadium over the back fence. The points of my winklepickers got stuck between the bars of the fence as I climbed over, and I fell forward to the great joy of my mates. My boots remained stuck in the fence, and I landed on the ground in front. The boots were badly scraped and all but ruined 😦 , and I felt rather stupid for the rest of the day. My memory tells me that the set was all new songs, and although I enjoyed seeing Tony and he played guitar as well as ever, the material was unfamiliar and I missed the old Groundhogs favourites. I seem to remember that Cherry Red featured as an encore.
By the early 80s Tony was fronting a band called simply the Tony McPhee band, who I never saw, although one of my mates did go to see them at Middlesbrough Rock Garden and came back with good reports of the gig. Tony’s autograph above was obtained at a later 80s gig, but I’ve included it here as I didn’t have any Terraplane material. The Tony McPhee band released one single: Time of Action, which was a limited edition pressing of 1,000, and is available from the Grondhogs official website. I’ll move onto the next chapter in my Groundhogs history tomorrow.
27 Dec
The Groundhogs four piece line-up Middlesbrough 1975 and 1976
The Groundhogs Middlesbrough 1975 and 1976
Tony reformed the Groundhogs in 1975 this time with a completely new line-up consisting of Mick Kent on bass, Mick Cook (ex Home) on drums, and a second guitarist; Dave Wellbelove. I saw this version of the Groundhogs on at least a couple of occasions; once at Teesside Polytechnic students union (I think in 1975, but it may have been 1976), and once at Middlesbrough Town Hall Crypt in 1976. I also vaguely recall seeing them at Newcastle University ballroom, but that could be my memory playing tricks. It was great to see The Groundhogs back in action again, but it seemed strange to see Dave Wellbelove sharing guitar duites with Tony. This line-up was much more rock-oriented, moving further away from the blues, and released two albums: Crosscut Saw and Black Diamond. Both are respectable, with a couple of highlight tracks on each, but they don’t reach the heights of Split and Thank Christ for the Bomb. A live album from this period, entitled Groundhogs UK Tour 1976, was released in 2004, and features the tracks: Boogie Withus; Promiscuity; Corn Cob; Eleventh Hour; Crosscut Saw; Fulfilment; Light My Light; Split Part 2; Cherry Red, drawing heavily from the Crosscut Saw album. Sadly this version of the Groundhogs was shortlived and the band was to split again in 1976, with Tony going solo, and fronting a new band Terraplane.
26 Dec
The Groundhogs 1973 and 1974
The Groundhogs Newcastle City Hall 1973 and other gigs in 1974
The Groundhogs called at Newcastle City Hall twice in 1974. The first of these two gigs featured Ellis (with Steve Ellis) and Spyda as support acts. For the second gig, the support was a band called Jonesy. Ellis featured Zoot Money, ex-Peter Bardens guitarist Andy Gee; ex-Fat Mattress bassist Jimmy Leverton (later replaced by Nick South); and drummer Dave Lutton. Jonesy featured Alan Bown on horns. The Groundhogs were at the peak of their success at this time, selling concert halls out up and down the country. They had just released the album Hogwash (1972), which was followed by Solid in 1974, and the set at the time featured the classics (Split I and II, Cherry Red, Garden, Mistreated, Groundhogs Blues, Eccentric Man) and sometimes tracks like Strange Town, Soldier and Ship on the Oceon, along with newer songs such as I Love You Miss Ogyny, 3744 James Road, and Light My Light. 
Free from all Alarm, and Sins of the Father were also sometimes featured in the set. The Groundhogs released two singles around this time: Sad Go Round and Plea Sing Plea Song. Tony was particularly busy during this period of his career, and took the time to record a solo lp, the Two Sides of Tong (TS) McPhee. He did a short tour in September 1973 to support the album, but didn’t play in the North East, so sadly I missed it. 
These gigs were the last time the Groundhogs were to play large concert hall tours, although they continued to gig constantly until the band split in 1974. The line up throughout this period was Tony, Pete Cruikshank and Clive Brooks. I saw them a few other times: twice at the Mayfair (once in 1973 and again in 1974; I recall the band Back Door being the support act on one of these occasions), once at Sunderland Locarno, and once at Spennymoor Top Hat Club. There may have been other gigs that I attended, the band certainly toured a lot at this time. Tony decided to split the band during 1974, but they were to reappear in a different form in the following year. I’ll blog on that line-up tomorrow. Many thanks to John for the scan of the great poster.
I found a setlist which is listed as being from a gig at Glasgow Greens Playhouse (later to become the Apollo) during the November 1973 tour: Ship on the Ocean; Light My Light; I Love You Misogyny; Earth Shanty; Sad Go Round; Dog Me bitch; Split 1; Joker’s Grave; Train Train; Lawdie Miss Clawdie; Soldier; Split 4; Split 2; Sad Go Round. I can’t ever remember the Groundhogs playing old tunes like Lawdie Miss Clawdie, but then my memory is not so good these days…….
25 Dec
The Groundhogs, Stray & Gentle Giant Newcastle City Hall 1972
The Groundhogs Stray & Gentle Giant Newcastle City Hall 1972
A group of us went to this gig, and we had seats right down the front. The line-up was very strong, with support from the amazing Stray and prog-rock heroes Gentle Giant. Gentle Giant were first up. This group grew out of Simon Dupree and the Big Sound, and are now looked upon as a legendary band. At the time, however, it all seemed just a little too weird for our simple rock tastes. Stray were favourites of mine at the time and were just great, with Del wearing his mirror suit, lots of strobe lights during All In Your Mind, and the exploding dustbins to close the show. My favourite Stray song at the time was Jericho, from the Suicide album. 
This was the Groundhogs first tour with new drummer Clive Brooks, and took place between the release of Who Will Save The World and the Hogwash albums. The set would have consisted of classics from Thank Christ For the Bomb, Split, and Mistreated from Blues Obituary. I suspetc that they may also have played some songs from Hogwash. I Love Miss Ogyny and 3744 James Road were to become great live favourites of the next couple of years. The programme tells me: “The playing of the Groundhogs as a group, and of Tony McPhee as a soloist goes from strength to strength. On Who Will Save The World Mac adds mellotron and harmonium to his electrifying guitar, and because of what seems to be essentially a guitarist’s approach to these instruments he adds a new dimension to their usage. The Mighty Groundhogs, now with super-Mac on sythesiser and mellotron as well as his whining, wheeling guitar are very heavy, very heavy indeed”.
24 Dec
The Groundhogs early 70s gigs: the classic line-up
The Groundhogs early 70s gigs: the classic line-up 
This is going to be a bit of a marathon, so please indulge me on this. If there is one band that I have followed consistently over the past 40+ years, it is The Groundhogs. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve seen them, and hope that collecting my memories in the form of posts on my blog, will help me recall some of the great times I have had at Groundhogs gigs. I intend to blog about this great band over the Christmas period, and its going to take me quite a few days (perhaps a couple of weeks!) to cover all the different line-ups of the band that I have seen, since I first caught them in concert in the early 70s. I’ll also cover the legend that is Tony McPhee as a solo artist during my bloggings.
The first time I saw The Groundhogs was at Newcastle City Hall in February 1971, when they were support act for The Rolling Stones. I’ve blogged separately on this gig from a Stones perspective, but I need to concentrate on my memories of Tony and the guys here. This was, of course, the classic power trio line-up of McPhee on guitar, Pete Cruikshank on bass, and Ken Pustelnik on drums. I didn’t know who was supporting the Stones until I got into the hall, and they introduced them as they came on stage. So it was a nice surprise to find out I was about to witness my first Groundhogs gig. 
This was just around the time that they released Split, and their (very short) set comprised a few songs from that and Thank Christ for the Bomb. The Groundhogs set was particularly short that night, as there were two performances of the Rolling Stones show, the first being from 6.30 to 8.30pm, which didn’t allow the support act to play for much more than half an hour. The Leeds University gig of the tour was recorded and released as the Live At Leeds EP, which shows the set as being: Cherry Red; Garden; Split Part One; Groundhogs Blues; and Eccentric Man. That night I became a lifelong Groundhogs fan. Their music was a unique mix of blues and rock, and they were truly at the height of their powers at the time. I saw this original classic line-up four more times over the next year or so; at Newcastle City Hall, Sunderland Bay Hotel, Newcastle Mayfair, and Sunderland Top Rank.
The City Hall gig was during 1971 and was a co-headlining show with Chicken Shack. Things didn’t go entirely to plan and for some reason The Groundhogs weren’t able to appear that night, so Chicken Shack headlined the gig, and very good they were too. The gig was promoted by local guy Geoff Docherty, who came on stage to apologise and tell us The Groundhogs would play a couple of weeks later. This was one of those gigs where you handed your tickets in at the door, so they gave them back to us as we left, so that we could use them at the rescheduled gig. One of my mates was quite enterprising and kept going in and out of the hall, and thus managed to collect a few extra tickets, which he sold on to people at school. So a couple of weeks later we returned to the City Hall, and as promised The Groundhogs did indeed play for us. I also remember that Bridget St John was support at one of those two gigs; I think it was the first night when Chicken Shack played. I remember someone threw a can, just missing her, and Geoff Docherty came on to the stage to tell the crowd to calm down. At the time The Groundhogs would start with Mistreated (from Blues Obituary), and then play a selection of tracks from their first few albums including Eccentric Man, Still a Fool (from the first album, Scratching the Surface), Split I, Garden, and Groundhog Blues. They would finish with Split II with a marathon solo by Tony and lots of use of the whammy bar, and return for an encore of Cherry Red. Tony was quite rightly rated as one of the best guitarists in the country at the time, and his guitar playing was stunning and a joy to experience.
A group of us went to see The Groundhogs play at Sunderland Bay Hotel sometime late in 1971. I decided to go at the last minute, missing a gig by Rory Gallagher at the City Hall so that I could see the Hogs with my mates. The place was packed and Tony was on top form; I remember this as one of the best times I ever saw the band.
In early 1972, I was at Newcastle Mayfair to see The Groundhogs and Chicken Shack share a bill again, at a dance for Ashington College students. Both bands did play this time, alongside a couple of other bands, as I recall. Chicken Shack were on top form with Stan walking around the dance floor playing his guitar, using an extra long lead. The Groundhogs had just released the Who Will Save the World? The Mighty Groundhogs album, and played a couple of tracks from the new lp: Earth is not Room Enough, and Music is the Food of Thought. I think this is the only time I’ve ever seen them play those tracks. Tony was also getting into some serious soloing at this point, playing a very Hendrix-ish version of Amazing Grace.
Around the same time, in early 1972, a group of us saw The Groundhogs at Sunderland Top Rank. We’d been to see Slade (who were excellent) at Sunderland Locarno earlier that night, and came into the Rink (as it was known) just as The Groundhogs took to the stage, having missed the support act Ashton, Gardner and Dyke. I managed to make my way right to the front, and stood right in front of Tony as he soloed on Amazing Grace and Split II. We also got back stage that night and chatted to Tony and Pete.
Its amazing how many times The Groundhogs played in the north east within the space of a year. In fact there were more gigs then these, including a concert at the City Hall where they were supported by Egg and Quicksand (see flyer), which I missed (and I still regret it!). Ken Pustelnik was soon to leave the band, to be replaced by Clive Brooks, and that version of the band toured extensively over the next couple of years, calling at the City Hall a few times. I’ll blog on those gigs in the coming days.
23 Dec
Golden Earring Newcastle Mayfair and Newcastle City Hall 1974
Golden Earring are something of an institution in their home country of Holland. They formed in 1961, and are still playing to this day. In 1973 they had worldwide success with the song Radar Love, which is just a great rock song. The following year they toured the UK twice; calling at Newcastle Mayfair in March and at the City Hall in November. I remember my mate Norm and I going along to the Mayfair gig. Â There was a massive queue to get in, and the place was absolutely crammed. We didn’t know much of their music, possibly only Radar Love, but really enjoyed the gig. Their lp at the time was Moontan, and I would imagine that the set was largely drawn from that album. 
The most memorable thing that I remember about the City Hall gig later in the same year was the support act, who were Lynyrd Skynyrd, and blew Golden Earring off the stage that night.It was an unlikely pairing of acts even at the time, as Skynyrd were an up and coming band, having just released their second album. In fact, many members of the audience left after Skynyrd’s set. Golden Earring have not been much of a visitor to the UK since those days; I think they may have come over only once or twice since. I always bought a programme at gigs, but for some reason I don’t seem to have a copy of the programme for this concert. Many thanks to John for sending me a scan of his.
22 Dec
The Grateful Dead Newcastle City Hall 1972
The Grateful Dead Newcastle City Hall 1972
Some gigs take on a whole new level of importance as time goes on. This is one such gig. When the Grateful Dead came to Newcastle City Hall to play a concert in 1972 I went along more out of curiosity than as a fan of this legendary band. I knew very little of their material; I’d probably heard Casey Jones, Truckin’ and Dark Star, but not much else. I’d also read that they played very long concerts, sometimes going on for 5 or 6 hours. Since then I’ve picked up most of their albums over the years, and appreciate just how great The Grateful Dead are. This gig is definitely one I wish I could go to again, knowing then what I know now, as the say. But, hey, such is life. At least I got to see them even if I didn’t savour this gig the way I should have.
I had a seat in the third row, and went along quite excited to see what these guys were like. The place was full of hard core hippy types, and there was a distinct smell of dope in the air. The Dead’s amplifiers were decked out in psychedelic tie dye colours, and there was a whole lot of gear on the stage. There was no support act, and the Dead came on pretty promptly at 7.30pm and started their set. The songs seemed a mix of countryish rock with long meandering psychedelic west coast guitar solos. I was seated more or less directly in front of Bob Weir, who sported a long pony tail which was almost down to his waist. Jerry Garcia was on the other side of the stage. Pigpen was wearing his cowboy hat and playing his Hammond organ. Sometime between 9pm and 10pm the Dead took a break before returning for a second set, which seemed to go on for ever. I enjoyed the concert, but it just went on a little too long for me. I also found it heavy going, because I wasn’t familiar with the material.
My dad used to sometimes drive through and pick me up from the City Hall, and I’d asked him to do so that night, as I figured I might miss the last train home. I think I’d asked him to come along for 11.30pm, as I thought the concert would go on quite late. As it was, I decided I better leave at midnight, as I knew he was sitting in the car waiting outside. However, I regret to this day leaving this gig early. I heard from others that they played until after 1am. These shows are, of course, now legendary; it is generally recognised that The Dead were at their best during this tour. This was their first European jaunt, and the tour was recorded, and a selection of songs released on the Europe 1972 triple album. The entire tour has recently been released as a box set.
Set I: Greatest Story Ever Told; Deal; Mr. Charlie; Black Throated Wind; Tennessee Jed; Big Boss Man; Beat It on Down the Line; Sugaree; Jack Straw; Chinatown Shuffle; China Cat Sunflower; I Know You Rider; Playing in the Band; Next Time You See Me; Brown-Eyed Women; Looks Like Rain; Big Railroad Blues; Casey Jones.
Set II: Good Lovin’; Ramble on Rose; Truckin’; Drums; The Other One; Comes a Time; Sugar Magnolia; Brokedown Palace.
Encore: One More Saturday Night
21 Dec
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall 1982 and 1987
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall 1982 and 1987
I saw Rory twice more at Newcastle City Hall, once in 1982 and once in 1987. I remember the 1987 gig, I particularly recall thinking that it had been some time since I had seen the great man, and looking forward to the gig. I also remember that he played a long set, with a lot of new songs which weren’t familiar to me, and quite a few of the old classics. I found a setlist for the London show of the tour, which shows him playing 25 songs, including old favourites: Out On The Western Plain; Pistol Slapper Blues; Tattoo’d Lady; Bullfrog Blues. This was to be the last time I would see Rory Gallagher live in concert. 
Setlist (from London gig on 1987 tour): Continental Op; Moonchild; I Wonder Who; Don’t Start Me Talkin’; I Ain’t No Saint; Shin Kicker; Kickback City; Loanshark Blues; Off the Handle; Failsafe Day; Out On The Western Plain; Walkin’ Blues; Pistol Slapper Blues; Keep Your Hands Off Her; Bad Penny; Follow Me; The Loop; Seems to Me; Tattoo’d Lady; Double Vision; When My Baby She Left Me; Shadow Play; Lonely Mile; Bullfrog Blues; I’m Leavin’. In later years Rory suffered health problems, caused by combinations of prescription medication and alcohol use, which resulted in liver damage. He had a liver transplant, but sadly died from an MRSA infection in London on 14 June 1995. A very sad loss. I’ve enjoyed blogging on Rory over the past few days; it has reminded me just how great he was, in many different ways, and how much I looked forward to, and enjoyed, Rory gigs. A great man, who has left a great musical legacy.
20 Dec
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall 1980
By 1980, Rory had moved to a harder rock sound, dropping many of the classic bluesy tracks which had been staples of his set throughout the 70s. So he was no longer playing Bullfrog Blues, Going to my Hometown, Messin with the Kid, as part of the main set, although he would sometimes play one or two of them during the encore, as I recall. Instead his set was focussing on tracks from his most recent albums; Top Priority (1980), Calling Card (1976) and Photo-Finish (1978). His stage show is documented on the live album Stage Stuck which was released in 1980, around the time of this gig at Newcastle City Hall. 
Although I still enjoyed seeing Rory, and he played with the same energy and passion as before, I missed the old familiar songs. The tracks on Stage Stuck give an indication of Rory’s setlist at this time: Shin Kicker; Wayward Child; Brute Force and Ignorance; Moonchild; Bad Penny; Key Chain; Follow Me; Bought and Sold; The Last of the Independents; Shadow Play. I saw Rory again at the Rock on the Tyne festival which was held at Gateshead Stadium in 1981. He headlined the second night, and came on after Dr Feelgood. The festival was held on the same weekend as the Reading Festival, and my mates and I decided to go to this local event and miss Reading that year. In fact, as things turned out, I never did return to the Reading festival. By this time Rory had put on a little weight, and wasn’t the same slim young guy that I had first seen 10 years or so earlier, but he had lost none of this power as a guitarist.
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