Van Halen Newcastle City Hall 17th June 1980
Van Halen in 1980 was all about crazy, OTT, wild rock excess, and the classiest, loudest rock’n’roll on the planet. We just knew when we arrived at the City Hall and saw loads of mega size trucks parked in a line outside, that this was gonna be some show. That feeling continued when we entered the venue and saw that the stage had been built outward so that it covered the first few rows of the stalls.
Van Halen’s 1980 contract rider says it all. The venue was required to provide: potato chips with assorted dips; nuts; pretzels; M & M’s (WARNING: ABSOLUTELY NO BROWN ONES š ); 12 peanut butter cups; 12 assorted yogurt (on ice); 48 large, bath-size cloth towels; 100 cups for cold drinks (16 oz., waxed paper); 50 styrofoam cups (minimum 10 oz.) for hot drinks; forks, knives and spoons (metal, not plastic); serving utensils, corkscrew, bottle and can openers; salt and pepper (in shakers); tablecloths; napkins (paper); 2 large bars Ivory soap; large tube KY Jelly! Wow!
Van Halen arrived on stage a little the worse for wear; there had obviously been some back stage drinking activities. Although there performance may not have been as tight as in previous visits to the City Hall, what they lacked in slickness they certainly made up for in craziness.
Setlist: Romeo Delight; Bottoms Up!; Runnin’ With the Devil; Tora! Tora!; Loss of Control; Take Your Whiskey Home; Dance the Night Away; Women In Love; Jamie’s Cryin’; Bright Lights, Big City; Everybody Wants Some!!; And the Cradle Will Rockā¦; Light Up the Sky; Ain’t Talkin’ ’bout Love. Encore: Ice Cream Man; You Really Got Me
I saw Van Halen on one further occasion, when they appeared second on the bill to AC/DC at the 1984 Monsters of Rock festival at Donington. The word on street (or, rather, in the field) was that Halen would blow AC/DC off the stage, and although, that didn’t quite happen as AC/DC delivered a stella performance (how could they not, as headline act, with a big show, and the darkness of night on their side?) Van Halen were undoubtedly great that day. “Jump” and the album “1984” had just been released and they were on a roll. Dave Lee Roth had some great rap with the crowd, famously saying in reaction at some cans being thrown about: āDonāt be throwing no shit up on stage, but thatās alright I know who threw that bottle and after the show pal Iām gonna f**k your girl friend manā. They played tracks from their new “1984” album, did a great cover of Roy Orbison’s “Oh, Pretty Woman” and closed, as usual, with their cover of the Kinks “You Really Got Me”. And then a big bell came down from the roof of the stage, signally the arrival of AC/DC (but that’s another story).
Donington Setlist 1984: Unchained; Hot for Teacher; On Fire; Runnin’ With the Devil; Little Guitars; House of Pain; I’ll Wait; Everybody Wants Some!!; Oh, Pretty Woman; 1984; Jump; Panama; You Really Got Me
There really was no-one else like Van Halen in the late 70s and early 80s. Pure rock’n’roll class.
Posts Tagged ‘heavy metal’
21 Dec
Van Halen Newcastle City Hall 26th June 1979
Van Halen Newcastle City Hall 26th June 1979
Van Halen were just about the hottest new rock’n’roll act on the planet. I’d seen them once before when they supported Sabbath on their 1978 UK tour and they blew Sabbath off the stage. This time they were back to play two nights at the City Hall. I went along on the first night (note the typo in their name on the ticket š ). Van Halen had the perfect recipe for hard rock. In David Lee Roth they had the ultimate flamboyant rock god singer, mane of blonde hair, shirt open to his waist, tight skinny jeans and energy, craziness, and jumping around like you have never seen. Oh and the guy could sing too. Eddie Van Halen was the slickest cool showman guitar player, with a the fastest finger tapping technique you’d ever seen. These two guys were 110% showmen with massive egos, both sparring for the audience’s attention; you could just see why conflict between them would surface in later years. Eddie’s brother Alex Van Halen was hidden behind a massive drum kit pounding away, and bass player Michael Anthony was far from the silent type, providing back vocals and dancing while keeping solid rhythm. 
This tour was around the time of the release of their second album and their set contained classic Halen tracks: “Runnin’ with the Devil”, Eddie’s guitar solo “Eruption” and the band’s first US hit single, “Dance the Night Away.” They also did great covers of the Kink’s “You Really Got Me” and “You’re No Good”. These guys were LOUD, fast, crazy, straight in your face, triumphant and a whole lot of fun. We came out of the City Hall with our ears ringing and smiles right across our faces.
Setlist: Light Up the Sky; Somebody Get Me a Doctor; Runnin’ With the Devil; Dance the Night Away; Beautiful Girls; On Fire; You’re No Good; Jamie’s Cryin’; Feel Your Love Tonight; Outta Love Again; Ice Cream Man; Ain’t Talkin’ ’bout Love; Eddie Guitar Solo (Eruption and Spanish Fly); You Really Got Me; Bottoms Up!; Atomic Punk
18 Dec
Venom Newcastle City Hall 3rd October 1985
Venom Newcastle City Hall 3rd October 1985
Venom are, according to their official site: “the original inventers and founders of Black Metal, the creators of Thrash, Speed, Death and Power Metal, the deadliest force ever to hit the music scene, the original sinners playing the Devil’s music at its highest intensity, the ultimate Rock n’ Roll band in the universe, Venom, hell f**ing yeah!!!!!!!.” Venom, as you might have gathered play LOUD, fast, evil, rock. They have songs called “Die Hard”, “The Seven Gates of Hell”, “Don’t Burn the Witch”, “Welcome to Hell” and “Bloodlust”. Wow! I think you may get the idea.
Venom hail from the 70’s and the North East of England, namely Newcastle, and were formed by Conrad Lant (aka: Cronos). Cronos wanted to create the ultimate metal band that was “heavier and more over the top than anything anyone had ever seen or heard before, more Satanic than Black Sabbath, louder than Motƶrhead, with a pyrotechnic show to rival Kiss, and with even more leather and studs than Judas Priest”. Great concept. Cronos completed his line-up and his plans for metal world domination with Jeffrey “Mantas” Dunn on guitar, and Tony “Abaddon” Bray on drums, and Venom released their debut album in 1982. Venom made their debut at the Hammersmith Odeon in London in 1984. They always said that their stage show was so massive and that theyād never play a UK date until they could headline at a venue that could house “every last pyro and effect”. āWe did it to shove two fingers up at the music industry” recalls Cronos. “we were told… there was a certain way of doing things in this industry. You had to get in a van and do all the s**t hole clubs… I said āBollocks!!!, then booked the Hammersmith Odeon in London and sold it out.”
I saw them with my mate Dave at the City Hall in 1985. According to the ticket support came from Exodus and Chariot, who I have no recollection of. The gig was not that well attended, with an estimated 400 people in the 2,400 capacity hall. From the programme: “Good evening hellspawn, to the most unholy unacceptable and unspeakable blitz of metal you will ever see in your comparatively paltry lives. You are about to experience the grossest amount of sonic assault, volatile visuals and plain power Uber….you are about to experience Venom, the most magnificently powerful metal monster in the world….Ladies and Gentlemen, from the depths of Hell — Venom.”
Venom live were LOUD with scary screaming vocals over a fast thrash metal noise, and flames, explosions and other crazy pyrotechnics. Think a twisted version of Motorhead + Kiss + Sabbath + Slipknot.
An experience like no other. Truly epic.
Setlist: Too Loud (For the Crowd); Black Metal; Die Hard; Nightmare; Countess Bathory; The Seven Gates of Hell; Teacher’s Pet / Poison / Teacher’s Pet; Buried Alive; Don’t Burn the Witch; In Nomine Satanas; Welcome to Hell; Warhead; Schizo; Satanachist.
Encore: Leave Me in Hell; Bloodlust; Witching Hour
14 Dec
Uriah Heep Carlisle Sands Centre 30th October 2004
Uriah Heep Carlisle Sands Centre 30th October 2004
Support from Doogie White’s White Noise
Thanks for sticking with my during my week of ramblings on Uriah Heep. This will be my last post on that mighty, great band (at least until I see them again).
It was 2004 and I was suffering Heep withdrawal. I had foolishly lost touch with the band and it had been 19 years since I last saw them perform at a gig at Newcastle Mayfair. I read that they were touring the UK, and saw the nearest concert to me was at Carlisle Sands Centre, so I decided to go along. Carlisle is a 60 or so mile drive, and the Sands Centre is a leisure centre cum concert venue just outside the city centre. I arrived in time to catch support act Doogie White and White Noise. The ticket lists Manfred Mann’s Eartband as support, but this wasn’t the case. Doogie White was the singer in a later line-up of Blackmore’s Rainbow, and his set contained quite a few Rainbow favourites.
The 2004 line-up of Uriah Heep was Mick Box (guitar), Lee Kerslake (drums), Trevor Bolder (bass), Phil Lanzon (keyboards) and Bernie Shaw (vocals). Shaw and Lanzon both joined the band in 1986, and Shaw is now their longest serving vocalist. It was really great to see Uriah Heep again. I wasn’t sure how many old songs they would play, and whether I would know many, but I need not have worried. They started with Easy Livin’, and also played Stealin’, Gypsy, The Wizard and July Morning. The encores were Bird of Prey and Lady in Black. Shaw is an excellent front man with a great voice, and does justice to those classic Heep songs. It all came back to me, and I was once again a big fan. I’ve seen Uriah Heep on four further occasions since then, in Stockton, Workington, Newcastle and Holmfirth, and have already blogged about those shows. During that period Trevor Bolder has sadly passed away, and Lee Kerslake has retired from the band. Mick Box continues to lead the band. Long may they continue to rock.
Setlist: Easy Livin’; Shadows of Grief; Pilgrim; The Other Side of Midnight; Stealin’; Wise Man; The Wizard; Devil’s Daughter; Sunrise; Gypsy; July Morning; Look at Yourself
Encore: Bird of Prey; Lady in Black
12 Dec
Uriah Heep Newcastle Mayfair 1982 & 1985
Uriah Heep Newcastle Mayfair 1982 & 1985
So….the mighty Uriah Heep were reduced to one member, guitar wizard extraordinaire Mick Box, who “locked myself in my flat for two days and drank myself senseless in complete self-pity.” Like any true wizard Box was not to be defeated and he soon began to forge a mystic plan for the future of Heep. He contacted his old mate and former Heepster drummer Lee Kerslake who was now with Ozzy Osbourne in Blizzard of Oz. Kerslake rejoined Uriah Heep,bringing bass player Bob Daisley with him. They were joined by ex Heavy Metal Kids keyboard player John Sinclair and vocalist Peter Goalby from Trapeze. The new Heep line-up shared the song writing duties and produced the 1982 album “Abominog” which was well received by fans and critics. Uriah Heep were well and truly back and went out on tour. Their success was, in part, helped by a resurgence in interest in heavy rock, as result of the emergence of the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal). Their sound was moving more in a hard rock / heavy metal direction and away from the swirling operatic progisms of “Demons and Wizards”. I first saw the new line-up at Newcastle Mayfair in June 1982. Note how the ticket declares the concert as bing by “Uriah Heep with Mick Box”, so that punters knew what to expect. Support came from NWOBHM band Rage. I went along not sure what to expect from Uriah Heep, and half prepared to be disappointed, but I was seriously impressed by the new line-up. All credit to Mick Box, who could have given up at that point, but rebuilt the band which he continues to lead to this day.
I saw Uriah Heep again a couple of months later in August 1982 when they appeared low down the bill at Donington Monsters of Rock festival. The line-up was, in order of appearance, Anvil, Uriah Heep, Hawkind, Saxon, Gillan and Status Quo.
My next Heep experience was when they returned to the Mayfair in 1985. By this point Bob Daisley had left and Trevor Bolder had returned to the fold. Note how the ticket cleverly uses the font from “Uriah Heep Live”. Sadly that concert came just over a week after the passing of the great David Byron.
1985 Set List: Sell Your Soul; Stealin’; The Other Side Of Midnight; Too Scared To Run; Rockarama; Angel; The Wizard (dedicated to David Byron); July Morning; Bad Blood; Party Time; Gypsy; Easy Livin; That’s The Way That It Is; Look At Yourself
1 Nov
Tygers of Pan Tang Newcastle City Hall 13th May 1981 & Newcastle Mayfair 3rd Sep 1982
Tygers of Pan Tang Newcastle City Hall 13th May 1981 & Newcastle Mayfair 3rd Sep 1982
The Tygers of Pan Tang were formed in Whitley Bay. For readers who are not from the North East, Whitley Bay is a seaside town. close to Newcastle upon Tyne. The original Tygers line-up was Robb Weir (guitar), Rocky (bass), Jess Cox (vocals) and Brian Dick (drums). They released the single “Don’t Touch Me There” in 1979 and the album “Wild Cat” in 1980. I saw the original band several times at gigs in the north east; I think at their old stomping ground The Rex Hotel in Whitley Bay, and possibly at the Old 29 and/or the Mecca in Sunderland. I also saw them supporting Magnum at Redcar Coatham Bowl and The Scorpions at Newcastle City Hall. John Sykes (later of Thin Lizzy) joined the band during 1980; soon afterwards Jess Cox left and was replaced by Jon Deverill.
The new line-up recorded their second album “Spellbound” and went out on a headline tour to promote it. 
I won a competition in a local paper and as my prize received a clutch (I think it was 6 or 8!) tickets for the City Hall gig, a sweatshirt, a copy of the new “Spellbound” album and some badges. Result š ! So I played my prize to get to know the songs ready for the gig. A group of us met in Steels club on the night of the concert and drove through to the City Hall in a couple of cars, clutching our free tickets (note the ticket stamped “COMPLIMENTARY”. Support came from Magnum (a bit of an about turn, as the Tygers had supported them just a year earlier) and Alcatraz, who I can only assume were a NWOBHM band and not to be confused with Alkatraz (a Man spin-off band who I had seen a few years earlier) or Alcatrazz (a band formed in 1983 by vocalist extraordinaire Graham Bonnet, guitar ace Yngwie Malmsteen and ex-Maiden drummer Clive Burr). 
The City Hall wasn’t full for the gig, but the Tygers performed a set of class metal, fronted by the powerful front trio of Jon Deverill who stood stage front open shirted, mane of long hair, confidently and powerfully screaming the vocals, John Sykes who was already a rock star in his head and you just knew it to watch him, and founder and guitar anchor Robb Weir. They released a great version of “Love Potion No 9” around the same time. John Sykes left shortly afterwards the tour to join Thin Lizzy, and was replaced by Fred Purser from Penetration, which is the line-up I saw at the Mayfair in 1982. The Tygers were one of the better bands to emerge from the NWOBHM genre. Robb Weir fronts a reformed Tygers to this day.
PS. I’ve just found this great flyer, in a pile of things in my room. It shows bands coming to Newcastle Mayfair (Rock on Friday!) in 1980: Vardis, Quartz, Anglewitch and Tygers of Pan Tang (with special guest DJ Alan Robson š ). All very NWOBHM. It also advertises “Forthcoming attractions in October: 5 Giants of the rock world: Gillan, The Scorpions, Cheap Trick, Motorhead, AC/DC. Tickets on sale now!” Happy days.
31 Oct
Twisted Sister Newcastle Mayfair 15th April 1983
Twisted Sister Newcastle Mayfair 15th April 1983
Twisted Sister were crazy, sick, evil, motherf**kas. Going to see Twisted Sister was like going to a military drill, where the sergeant major dressed as a woman, made you swear, and ridiculed you if you didn’t join in and go totally crazy. These guys took all the evil, nasty, vile, scary, bits from Alic Cooper, New York Dolls, Slade, Bowie and The Stones, dragged them through their worst nightmares of Frankenstein and Dracula, and produced a metal band with an attitude and image like we had never seen before. Twisted Sister music was anthems and choruses sung again and again over slabs of loud, crashing, metal. Oh, and by the way they were just great šĀ Perfect for a loud rock night at the Mayfair.
Lead singer and 110% crazy guy Dee Snider looked like a 6 feet something biker, dressed in drag, with the tightest, most disgusting bright spandex pants, make-up smeared all over his face like he had been out partying all night, and the craziest mane of bright yellow hair. “We are Twisted F**in’ Sister”. “And I am a sick muthaf**ka!” “Are you a sick muthaf**ka?!” “Say it, I am a sick muthaf**ka!” “Hey that f**in’ guy up there isn’t f**in’ saying it! Does he think he is at f**in’ Woodstock?! We ain’t no f**in’ Grateful Dead, maaaan.” “Come on man, f**in’ shout it. I am a sick muthaf**ka!” “”What do we say to f**in’ people who don’t want to f**in’ party seven days a week, 365 f**in’ days a year? We are sick muthaf**kas! We are sick muthaf**kas!Ā We are sick muthaf**kas!” There was no escape.
Snider: “I tap into everything negative in my personality. I think about the things I hate, the things I’m angry about. I let it all out ā I curse, scream, roll around ā and afterwards, I feel good…. Metal is an outlet for negative emotions ā anger, frustration, hostility. There’s always anger, and you need to let it go. You want to punch somebody in the face ā Heavy Metal, you punch your fist in the air. You want to stomp on somebody, you stomp on the floor. You want to scream at your parents, you scream into the air.”
Wonderful. No Twisted Sister; no Motley Crue, no Ratt, no Poison.
Setlist: What You Don’t Know (Sure Can Hurt You); Sin After Sin; Bad Boys (Of Rock ‘n’ Roll); Destroyer; We’re Gonna Make It; Tear It Loose; You Can’t Stop Rock ‘n’ Roll; Shoot ‘Em Down; Run for Your Life; I Am (I’m Me); It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It); Blaydon Races; Ride to Live, Live to Ride; Under the Blade; Let the Good Times Roll
I saw Twisted Sister later that year at Donington and more recently supporting Alice Cooper.
“We are sick muthaf**kas!”
16 Sep
Sweet Newcastle City Hall 2nd November 1973
Sweet Newcastle City Hall 2nd November 1973
“Are you ready, Steve? Aha.
Andy? Yeah! Mick? OK.
Alright, fellas, let’s go!..”
Sweet were a closet heavy metal band, but then you knew that already. Sure, they hit the UK singles charts with some pure (and great) glamrock pop songs, but if you took the trouble to turn those records over, the B sides featured some proper straight-on heavy rock. Determined to seek out the secret rock band hiding behind the glitter, I went along with a couple of mates, and 2,000 screaming girls, to see Sweet at Newcastle City Hall. It was at the height of their fame in late 1973, and the place was jam packed. Sweet came on stage to “The Stripper” music, and launched headlong into “Hell Raiser”. Their camp rock show didn’t let up for the next hour. What can I say? The girls screamed. Sweet played all their hits, and camped it up; seriously tongue in cheek. Wonderful.
Support came from Sun Chariot, according to the ticket (now who were they and whatever happened to them?)
Setlist: Hell Raiser; Burning / Someone Else Will; Rock ‘N’ Roll Disgrace; Wig-Wam Bam; Need a Lot of Lovin’; Done Me Wrong Alright; You’re Not Wrong for Lovin’ Me; The Man with the Golden Arm; Little Willy; Teenage Rampage; Rock ‘n’ Roll Medley: Keep On Knockin’ / Shakin’ All Over / Lucille / Great Balls of Fire / Reelin’ and Rockin’ / Peppermint Twist / Shout
Encore: The Ballroom Blitz; Block Buster!
The next time I saw Sweet was at Sunderland Locarno a few years later. I think it was around the time that they were in the charts with “Love is Like Oxygen”. By then their glam period had passed, and many of their teen fans had moved on. It was a rainy weekday night, and the ballroom was pretty empty. But, being the troopers that they were, Sweet put on another great performance.
“And the man at the back said
Everyone attack and it turned into a ballroom blitz
And the girl in the corner said
Boy, I wanna warn ya, it’ll turn into a ballroom blitz
Ballroom blitz, ballroom blitz, ballroom blitz
It’s it’s a ballroom blitz, it’s it’s a ballroom blitz”
22 Aug
Scorpions Newcastle City Hall 15th April 1982
Scorpions Newcastle City Hall 15th April 1982
Scorpions singer Klaus Meine had some throat problems in 1981 which required surgery on his vocal cords. At the time there were doubts about whether he would ever sing again. The band were working on their next album, Blackout at the time and their friend Don Dokken (later to front his own band Dokken) was brought in to sing with them in rehearsals. Meine made a full recovering and returned to record the album, with Dokken’s background vocals also remaining on several tracks. Blackout was released in 1982 and went on to become Scorpions best selling album to date, eventually going platinum. Meine’s voice was as strong as ever and response to the album was excellent. The Blackout album produced three singles: “Dynamite”, “Blackout”, and “No One Like You”.
Scorpions toured in 1982 to promote Blackout. The tour was originally set for February, but was postponed until April (hence the hand written date change on my ticket) possibly because of Klaus’ health problems and the resultant delays to the album’s completion. The tour called at Newcastle City Hall and I attended the first night.
Support for the UK tour was Wolf, a NWOBHM band from Carlisle, previously known as Black Axe. I can’t pretend to recall Wolf, but I found a review of their album Edge of the World on the Metal-Archives.com website, which suggests that they were a really good metal band: “a powerful, and utterly amazing NWOBHM album; this one basically serves as a testament to how strong a caliber of music can be made using the āstandard NWOBHM sound.ā….this is absolutely essential NWOBHM that every fan of the genre needs to get….. Stunning”.
Another great heavy metal gig. It was a long time until I saw Scorpions again, when they were special guests for Judas Priest a few years ago.
Setlist: Blackout; Loving You Sunday Morning; Always Somewhere; Make It Real; Coast to Coast; Don’t Make No Promises (Your Body Can’t Keep); We’ll Burn the Sky; Holiday; Another Piece of Meat; Lovedrive; He’s a Woman – She’s a Man; Is There Anybody There?; Dynamite; No One Like You; Can’t Live Without You
Encore: The Zoo; Steamrock Fever
Encore 2: Now!
21 Aug
Scorpions Newcastle City Hall 7th October 1980
Scorpions Newcastle City Hall 7th October 1980
Scorpions were on a roll. Only five months after their last visit to Newcastle they were back at the City Hall, this time for two nights. In fact, they were so popular that, as well as playing two concerts at the City Hall, they also played one night at Newcastle Mayfair ballroom, bringing their show to the Friday heavy rock night. All three nights sold out, pretty good going for a band that was playing tiny clubs a few years before. I attended the first City Hall concert, which was on 7th October 2010, and was another great gig. Support came from US Southern boogie band Blackfoot.
From the tour programme: “The Scorpions is mentioned in one breath with giants such as Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Ted Nugent and AC/DC. They are one of the best bands that I know and they sure play incredible music. 
The Scorpions are the first German band to go on a real world tour. …The stage was their school. They rose from faith in themselves.”
“The ladder we climbed, we built ourselves. Each single step was made with hard work, desperation and confidence, and we know it will last” Rudolf Schenker.
Schenker was 100% correct. Scorpions success did indeed last. Shortly after this tour they went into the studio to record their next album “Blackout”, which was to be their most successful to date. And who could have predicted that, over 10 years later, they would be high in the UK singles chart with their No 2 hit, the classic heavy rock ballad “Wind of Change”?
Setlist: Lovedrive; Don’t Make No Promises (Your Body Can’t Keep); Loving You Sunday Morning; We’ll Burn the Sky; Animal Magnetism; The Zoo; Holiday; Lady Starlight; Always Somewhere; Pictured Life; In Trance; Steamrock Fever; Can’t Get Enough
Vintagerock's Weblog. 