Edgar Broughton The Adelphi Hull 21 April 2012
Out Demons Out! Norm and I went to see Edgar Broughton at the Adelphi Hull last night. Edgar is performing solo these days, just him singing his new songs with an acoustic guitar; the set consists largely of material that he has written over the past few years. We set off for Hull around 5.30pm and arrived around 7.45pm, after an uneventful drive via the York ring road, and found the Adelphi surprisingly easily. We popped into Wetherspoons for a bite to eat, and then went along to the venue around 8.45pm. The Adelphi is a great little venue which sits in De Grey street, just off one of the main routes through Hull. It has been running for many years, and has hosted gigs by some famous names such as Oasis, Pulp and Radiohead. It was the first time we had visited the venue and we were both pleasantly surprised. Support came from local, Scarborough-based, one man band Joe Solo, who gave us a set of folk protest songs, passionately delivered. For his last song he gave everyone in the audience a small percussion instrument and the whole room played along with him. Joe told us that it was 20 years since he first played The Adelphi. 
Edgar took to the stage around 10pm, starting with Soldiers of the Light, which is a recent song about his relationship with his brother. He has a unique voice; dark and mournful. The rest of the set was drawn mainly from his latest album. I recognised several, having seen him perform in York last year, and it was good to hear them again. The set consisted of something like (although not in this order, and I will have missed some): This England; Ice on Fire; My Salvation; Christmas Song; Red Star; There’s a Hole in It and Evening Over Rooftops (from the Edgar Broughton band days). He finished with Arabesque / All Fall Down / Speak Down the Wires, which is an Indian-based chant. The encore was two songs, the first of which was The Poppy (“an early eco song we wrote in 1971”). No Out Demons Out to Norm’s disappointment. The crowd seemed to enjoy the set; Edgar is as passionate as ever, and the songs still have strong elements of protest and social conscience. We left around 11.15pm and were back home by 1.15am.
Posts Tagged ‘folk’
22 Apr
Edgar Broughton The Adelphi Hull 21 April 2012
18 Apr
Ian Anderson plays Thick as a Brick Newcastle April 17th 2012
Ian Anderson Plays Thick as a Brick Newcastle City April 17th 2012
Went along with Will and Norm to see Ian Anderson and his merry band play Thick As A Brick 1 and 2. Thick As A Brick 1 is, of course, the original Jethro Tull album which was released in 1972, and Thick As A Brick 2 is a new album which has just been released by Ian. I was late getting away from work, so I had arranged to meet my friends through at the City Hall. I managed to arrive just 10 minutes after the 7.30 start time, so only missed a very small part of the show. The show was in two parts, with the first set being the old album. There was a short interval, followed by the new album played in its entirity. 
Ian has assembled an excellent band and the show is very theatrical with one guy playing the part of Gerald Bostock, and singing quite a lot of the vocals. The additional singer is a good move, giving Ian a break from singing at times. The show was supported by video and the use of props, and came over very well indeed. The situation around Ian Anderson and Jethro Tull is somewhat confusing to say the least. While it appears the Jethro Tull have not formally split, Ian Anderson is doing more and more things as solo projects, and Martin Barre has also started his own band, New Day, which will also feature Tull songs in their set. It also seems strange that Ian has chosen to revisit Thick as a Brick at this point, and that he is treating it as a solo project, when Martin Barre has been so intrinsic to the Tull sound for so long. 
Not with standing this, we all agreed that this was the best time that we have see Ian Anderson or Jethro Tull for some time. We also ran into a few old friends, which was nice.
15 Apr
The Hollies Sage Gateshead 14 April 2012. 50th Anniversary Tour
The Hollies Sage Gateshead 14 April 2012. 50th Anniversary Tour.
Went to see the Hollies again last night at the Sage Gateshead. It’s great to see that they have reached their 50th anniversary. A Hollies concert is exactly that; a concert. It isn’t really a rock gig, and it wouldn’t be fair to class it along the lines of a 60s show, as it is much more than that. This is a band with a great back catalogue, who have continued as a band through several line ups and the loss of key members, in particular Graham Nash and Alan Clarke. New singer Peter Howarth has now been with the band eight years, and is as natural in the lead singer role as anyone could be. The Hollies were they in my childhood years throughout the 60s. I used to buy ex juke box singles from the pub over the road. Bus Stop was one and I played and played it on a little record player. The Hollies may not have the social (or musical) significance of the Stones, The Beatles or The Who, but they were a very important part of the 60s, particularly in the UK. I was in a cheap seat looking down on the stage again. As ever the band were 100% professional and presented us with an evening of classic 60s songs. Tony Hicks still looks great and displays some nifty fret work on his electric sitar during the intro to The Baby and some great banjo on the intro to Stop Stop Stop. Bobby, is the elder statesman on the band and keeps them on all track form the “engine room” (Peter’s term) at the back.
Another great show by a band who just keep on going. If I have one criticism it is that the set has remained largely unchanged for the past few years. However, the band have reinterpreted several of the songs, and given them something fresh. Look Through Any Window has been completely rearranged. King Midas in Reverse is sung by Steve Lauri, rather than Peter. Peter performs Can’t Tell the Bottom from the Top alone with an acoustic guitar and gives it new life (he is a really good guitar player). Last night Tony played an acoustic guitar on Bus Stop, and it sounded the best I have heard it for years. They have also added a couple of songs which were hits in Scandinavia, namely Stewball and Very Last Day. Set list: Set 1: The Day That Curly Billy Shot Down Crazy Sam Mcgee; I Can’t Let Go; Jennifer Eccles; Yes I Will; On A Carousel; Then, Now Always; Sandy; King Midas In Reverse; Very Last Day; Emotions; The Baby; Look Through Any Window. Set 2: I’m Alive; Sorry Suzanne; Bus Stop; Stewball; I Can’t Tell The Bottom From The Top (Acoustic); Listen To Me; Here I Go Again; Gasoline Alley Bred; Weakness; Just One Look; Stay; Long Cool Woman In A Black Dress; Carrie Anne; Stop Stop Stop; He Ain’t Heavy He’s My Brother; The Air That I Breathe; Let Love Pass.
14 Apr
The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band Sunderland Empire 1969. Supported by Roy Harper and Yes
The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band, Roy Harper, Yes, Mad Dog
Sunderland Empire Theatre March 8th 1969
(Semi) memories of my first gig
The first concert I ever attended was the Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band at Sunderland Empire in March 1969. I was 12 years old at the time and had been getting into pop and rock music for a year or two. I’d started to buy the New Musical Express and was beginning to collect records. I managed to persuade my parents to let me attend the concert on the basis that there were two shows at 6pm and 9pm, and that if I went to the earlier show, I could safely get the bus home. None of my friends at the time were interested so I bought myself a ticket, reserving myself a seat in the front row of the stalls. First gigs are important in my view. They can shape musical taste and set allegiances for life. For me this gig set me on an unavoidable path to becoming obsessed with seeing bands, with rock music in general, and gave me a life long interest in Yes and Roy Harper, who both formed part of the supporting bill. I can still remember aspects of this gig some 43 years later as I write this. I sat fascinated at the performers on stage, and entranced by the loud music. In fact the volume was something that did it for me. The bands (I probably called them groups at the time) seemed very, very loud to me; I was almost frightened that my hearing would be damaged (in fact, it is starting to go slightly now, but it has taken a long time, and I can’t be sure that it is a result of going to rock concerts, but I suspect it is). And the power, passion and energy of the performers also struck me. First up was a band called Mad Dog. I’m not sure what happened to them, and the only song I can recall was a great version of Moby Grape’s Can’t Be So Bad, which appears on one of the Rock Machine albums. Next up was Yes who were a revelation, and fascinated me with their jazzy mix of rock and pop. And they played some songs that I knew: Something’s Coming from West Side Story and The Beatles’ Eleanor Rigby. They also played No Opportunity Necessary, No Experience Needed, which is a Richie Havens song and appears on Yes’ second album, and opens with the theme from the film The Big Country. Yes had yet to release their first album, and the line up at that time was Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Bill Bruford, Peter Banks and Tony Kaye. I was impressed by how Jon and Chris were dressed; Chris in particular was sporting a natty hat and impressive flares and boots. I recall that a compere introduced each band and chatted to the audience while the stage set up was being changed around, in the way that I imagine it worked on 60s package tours. Next up was Roy Harper who sat to the right of the stage on a high stool, directly in front of me. He had incredibly long hair (something else which impressed me) and was wearing a pair of beat up old jeans and big work boots. I think he sang Hells Angels, Nobodies Got Any Money in the Summer, and I Hate The White Man. I was surprised at the way he interacted with the audience; it was as if people knew him and were having conversations with him from the stalls. Finally the bill toppers took to the stage, accompanied by some amazing machines and props which were always an important part of the Bonzos show. The Bonzo Dog Band (they had shortened their name at this time) performed tracks from their first two albums Gorilla and The Doughnut in Granny’s Greenhouse, including such great (and fun) songs as: Cool Britannia, The Equestrian Statue, Jollity Farm, Look Out There’s a Monster Coming, Death Cab for Cutie (which I has seen them perform on TV in the Beatles Magical Mystery Tour show), Can Blue Men Sing the Whites?, Trouser Press (featuring some natty on stage trouser pressing), and of course I’m The Urban Spaceman, during which Viv Stanshall blew through a long plastic tube while swinging it around his head. And so the die was cast, I set out on my life long concert journey which has given me great joy over the years, and also caused me some trouble at times when I become obsessive and attend too many! Sadly I don’t have a ticket stub for this concert. I hadn’t got into the habit of saving them at that stage, and the tickets for shows at the Empire at the time simply listed the date, and not the artist, so didn’t seem worth keeping.
12 Apr
Boston Newcastle City Hall 1979
Boston Newcastle City Hall 1979
Boston were a massive deal in the mid to late 70s. Their debut album was an incredible success, selling 17 million copies, and More Than A Feeling seemed to be playing everywhere I went at one time. The band came to the UK in 1979 for a short tour which called at Newcastle City Hall for one night. The gig sold out immediately, and I was pleased to get tickets. I went along with a group of mates, and looked forward to the gig. Although Boston are quite middle of the road rock, they do it excellently, and their first album is a classic of the genre. 
The gig was great; loud, melodic rock at its best. I still own a copy of the first Boston album, althogh can’t pretend to play it very often. Boston have never returned to the UK, to the best of me knowledge, although they continue to tour in the USA. However More Than A Feeling remains a top rock song. Support act Trickster were a short lived UK melodic rock band who also supported on an ELO tour. Boston setlist from 1979 : Rock & Roll Band; Tell Me; Peace of Mind; Feelin’ Satisfied; Don’t Look Back; More Than a Feeling; A Man I’ll Never Be; Smokin’; Foreplay / Long Time; Something About You; Party.
11 Apr
Bauhaus Newcastle City Hall 1983
Bauhaus Newcastle City Hall 1983: Burning From The Inside Tour
Any band who has a song entitled Bela Lugosi is Dead can’t be bad. Particularly when they also cover Telegram Sam and Ziggy Stardust. I love old horror movies, and read Famous Monsters of Filmland every week during the 60s, and I was also a Bolan and Bowie fan, so Bauhaus’ image interested me enough to go along and see them. This tour was for the Burning From the Inside album, which was due to come out later that year. The programme for the tour reminds me how dark and doomy the band were; lots of dark pictures with very serious posing; this was the birth of goth. 
The programme starts with a T S Elliot poem: “This is the way the world ends” which set the tone for the show. The lighting was dark, and the music a mix of punk, rock and glam, with Pete Murphy displaying great stage presence. They had just had a hit with She’s in Parties. I remember them playing that particular song, and finishing with Bela Lugosi’s Dead. The band split up shortly after the tour, however they have reformed several times since. Setlist: Burning From the Inside; In Fear of Fear; Terror Couple Kill Colonel; Spy in the Cab; Kingdom’s Coming; She’s in Parties; Antonin Artaud; King Volcano; The Passion of Lovers; Slice of Life; Hair of the Dog; In Heaven; Hollow Hills; Stigmata Martyr; Kick in the Eye; Dark Entries; Bela Lugosi’s Dead
10 Apr
Big Country in Concert 1982 to 1987
Big Country in Concert 1982 to 1986
Stuart Adamson formed Big Country after leaving the Skids, and in my view their work far surpassed his earlier band. The Skids were a fun live band, very much a product of the punk era, whereas Big Country were much more innovative and adventurous. It was clear that Stuart was the musical driving force behind the Skids, co-writing, alongside Richard Jobson, the band’s most famous songs such as Into the Valley. I first saw them in Dingwalls in Newcastle, which was a club which ran in the early 80s, out of what had been the old German Bierkeller. 
Their first single Harvest Home had just been released, and their jangling, swirling sound which married scottish traditional folk with rock, sounded so new and fresh. They were soon having big chart success with Fields of Fire and In a Big Country, and could command headlining status on a tour of major concert venues. Their 1983 tour brought them to Newcastle City Hall, and the first of a couple of great nights I spent with them in that venue. Big Country and Stuart Adamson in particular connected with the audience in a manner rarely seen. 
At times band and crowd were at one, singing together those great anthemic songs, with Stuart rocking back and forth leading us all on, as if to battle. The support on the 1983 tour was One The Juggler, who were an interesting and now forgotten band; quite theatrical if I remember correctly. I also remember seeing them at Newcastle Dingwalls. 
I next saw Big Country on their 1986 tour, again at the City Hall. By then they had released their third album The Seer, and the single Look Away was their biggest hit in the UK. Once again, it was a great night with another stirring set from the band. The last time I saw Big Country was at Roker Park, Sunderland in 1987, when they appeared as one of the support acts for David Bowie on his Glass Spider tour. It wasn’t one of Bowie’s best performances, and in contrast Big Country delivered their usual storm and went down very well with the crowd. They were obviously a lot of fans of the band there, and I’m sure that many people felt that their performance was better than Bowie’s that day. The band has recently reformed after Stuart Adamson’s tragic death, and have been once again touring the UK.
9 Apr
Gary U S Bonds Newcastle City Hall 1981
Gary U S Bonds Newcastle City Hall 1981
Some gigs I remember very well, some I hardly recall at all. This is one that makes me strain my memory. Gary U S Bonds had hit the charts in the early 60s with New Orleans and Quarter To Three which was a No 1 in the USA. In the early 1980s, he had a career resurgence through a collaboration with Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, with some of the songs on his new album being written by Steve Van Zandt. Apparently Bruce and Steve had happened to be in a bar where Gary was playing, and were impressed enough to work with him, thus giving him, in effect, a new career. This UK tour came off the back of this renewed interest and a comeback single This Little Girl. I was obviously interested enough to go along to the City Hall gig to how Mr Bonds shaped up. I recall the place being pretty empty. I can remember him playing New Orleans, Quarter To Three, and I Want You To Be My Baby, and putting on a good showing. Gary is now over 70 years old and still performing. Good on him.
7 Apr
The Allman Brothers Knebworth 1974
The Allman Brothers, The Doobie Brothers, Van Morrison, The Mahavishnu Orhcestra, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, Tim Buckley.
Knebworth Park 1974 The Bucolic Frolic
This was the first of the great 1970s one day festivals to be held at Knebworth Park. I went along with my mates John and Gillie, catching a bus to Stevenage and them making our way to the site on the Saturday morning. We arrived just in time for Tim Buckley, who came on early in the day just as the crowds were entering the site. I remember his deep booming voice echoing around the field, but little else about his set. Next up was the Sensational Alex Harvey band, who were already a favourite of ours, and a great festival crowd pleaser. 
We made our way to the front to get a good view of Alex, Zal and the others who started with Faith Healer, which was still quite a new song at the time. Alex was an amazing front man, had no fear at all and was also a bit of a philosopher: “Don’t pish in the water. Don’t buy any bullets , don’t make any bullets and don’t shoot any bullets”. You couldn’t get more of a contrast than Alex Harvey followed by John McLaughlin and his Mahavishnu Orhcestra, but such a rich mix of music was quite commonplace at 70s events. John was dressed entirely in white and he and his band took us through a wonderful blend of jazz, rock and classical music which swept through the field. The Mahavishnu Orhcestra was a big band, featuring Jean Luc Ponty, who had recently made his name playing with Frank Zappa. Van Morrison was just amazing, and at his peak, in the early 70s, and his set at Knebworth was great. His band on the day was a three piece, which was very small for Van, and a contrast to the Caledonia Soul Orchestra who I saw him with a few weeks later. 
I was never a big fan of the Doobie Brothers, they were a bit too funky for me, however John recalls them as the highlight of the day. They went down ok with the crowd, but by then everyone was waiting for the headliners. Jessica and Ramblin’ Man were real favourites that summer, played at all the festivals, and The Allman Brothers Band had a reputation for being THE Jamming band, renowned for playing long sets and mega versions of their songs, particularly Whipping Post. They didn’t let the crowd down. Gillie, John and I spent some time wandering around the site that day, and Jessica was constantly playing in the background. The Allmans came on late and played until well after midnight. Greg Alllman said at some point during the set “We are going to play every damn song we know” after continued shouts for Whipping Post. We slept the night on the site and got the bus back home the next morning, running into some of John’s school friends on the bus. Allman Brothers setlist: Wasted Words; Done Somebody Wrong; One Way Out; Stormy Monday; Midnight Rider; Blue Sky; In Memory of Elizabeth Reed; Statesboro Blues; Come and Go Blues; Ramblin’ Man. Encore: Trouble No More; Jessica; You Don’t Love Me / Les Brers In A Minor. Second Encore: Whipping Post. Thanks to John for the scan of the flyer. John comments that is was overall a very exciting day, with a diverse, even eclectic, line up which happened a lot a the time and gave everyone a chance to appreciate lots of different styles of music.
6 Apr
The Boomtown Rats Newcastle City Hall 1978 – 1982
The Boomtown Rats Newcastle City Hall 1978 – 1982
Blogging every day is turning up a lot of memories for me. I didn’t realise how many times I’d seen the Boomtown Rats. I must have seen them on quite a number of occassions, as I found four tickets and programmes from Newcastle City Hall in my collection, covering the period 1978 to 1982. Actually, the first time I saw the band was before those City Hall gigs, in 1977, at Newcastle Mayfair. I remember that gig well. 
It was originally going to be at Middlesbrough Rock Garden and still appears as such in published Rats gig lists, however, it was moved to Newcastle at a couple of days notice, I have no idea why. It was a Friday night, which was normally a heavy rock night at the Mayfair and the ballroom was filled with a mixture of rock fans and punks. The Newcastle crowd gave the Rats a pretty hard time, with a constant stream of beer and spit being flung at them. 
The poor keyboard player, Johnnie Fingers, who was famed for wearing pyjamas on stage, was completely soaked right through. In the end Geldof called a halt to the show and the band left the stage without completing their set. Looking After No 1 had just been released at the time and the band were very much in the news and up and coming. They were the first new wave / punk band to appear on Top of the Pops. 
The next tour, around the time of Rat Trap brought them to the City Hall. A DVD exists of the Hammersmith show from that tour including live performances of the hit singles Looking After No.1, She’s So Modern, Like Clockwork and Rat Trap, along with other Rats favorites such as Joey’s On The Streets Again (very Springsteenish as I recall) and the audience participation number Do The Rat. They toured pretty constantly over the next few years, on the back of a string of single successes, reaching a peak with the great I Don’t Like Mondays in 1979. I loved that single, and recall being very excited about seeing them on tour at that time. They were great in concert, Geldof a ball of energy, and the band really tight. 
I also saw them at Knebworth on a show with Frank Zappa, The Tubes and Peter Gabriel, where they seemed out of place and performed early on the day, low down on the bill. My last Boomtown Rats experience was at Live Aid in Wembley Stadium, by which point Geldof had become involved in other things and the band was coming to an end. I’ve never been to see Bob Geldof in concert since, although I did see him at Live 8 in Hyde Park. 
I also went along to see him receive an honorary doctorate from Newcastle University as a ceremony at the Sage Gateshead, which was a different, and interesting experience. I found a setlist from 1979 on the setlist.com site, which reminded me of some of their old tracks
: Blind Date; (I Never Loved) Eva Braun; Neon Heart; Me and Howard Hughes; Don’t Believe What You Read; Like Clockwork; Rat Trap/Kicks/Joey’s On The Street Again; Living in an Island; (She’s Gonna) Do You In; 
She’s So Modern; Looking After Number 1; Mary of the 4th Form; Do the Rat. Encore: I Don’t Like Mondays. Looking back, they had some pretty great singles. I’d forgotten Like Clockwork, I can picture Geldof tick tocking the intro. Do The Rat always signalled some pretty manic dancing. 
To summarise my thoughts, the Boomtown Rats were a fun live band, high energy and much more pop than they were punk or new wave. Geldof was amazing on stage, a dynamic front man who truly engaged the audience. For some reason I’d almost forgotten them, or how good they were at the time. I still play stuff by contemporaries the Clash, Jam, Damned and the Pistols, but would never play a Boomtown Rats track. Perhaps that something I should remedy. The Boomtown Rats have reformed, without Geldof, in recent years, and have toured a couple of times. I wonder what they are like these days.
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