Thin Lizzy Reading triumph 1977 and Newcastle City Hall 1977 & 1978
1977 was the year of punk, but it was also another very successful year for Thin Lizzy. Lizzy’s attitude transcended the barriers between heavy rock and punk. Phil Lynott speaking at the time: “I could feel it, at the time there was three bands: Dr Feelgood, The Heavy Metal Kids (Gary Holton had that real front y’know) and there was ourselves y’know? And all them bands were quite aware that the kids wanted something different, wanted to be attacked again, wanted aggression and stuff like that. And like within that period we were away, it really got its image with the ‘New Wave’ and the papers really gave it its image. Now I knew the punk thing was going on before I went away, but it really took off.” Phil fitted the image of the street punk, and even played with Jones and Cook of the Sex Pistols in an occasional band “The Greedy Bastards”. So they sort of fitted with the mood of the time. 
Phil again: “I just like blood and guts….I’ve seen every Clint Eastwood movie goin’. I get off on aggression. One of the main reasons I get up on a stage is to let the aggression out, to put the aggression to a good purpose like rock and roll. I’m sure I’d be f**kin’ locked up now if I didn’t play in a group. I’d be in this jail I’m always singin’ about.”
Thin Lizzy returned to the Reading festival for a triumphant headlining Saturday night performance. This was the year when the festival site became a mud bowl, with a lake of mud in front of the stage. “1977 The festival officially became ‘Reading Rock ‘77’ this year and an almighty downpour turned the event into a sea of mud. 1977 also saw the first appearance of punk at the festival in the form of The Electric chairs, who were pelted with mud and bottles.” (gigwise). We needed a great band and a great performance to cheer us all up, and Thin Lizzy gave us that. They played a classic set including: Jailbreak; Dancing in the Moonlight; Still in Love With You; Cowboy Song; The Boys Are Back in Town; Don’t Believe a Word; Emerald closing with The Rocker as encore. This was Thin Lizzy at the very best, the classic line-up of Lynott, Gorham. Robertson and Downey couldn’t be beaten.
I saw Thin Lizzy again later in the year, touring in support of the “Bad Reputation” album. They played at Newcastle City Hall on 11 November 1977, supported by Irish punks Radiators from Space. They were back again on 20th June 1978 at the time of their classic “Live and Dangerous” lp. Both shows were excellent. The set that these guys had at the time was simply amazing, including straight-on rockers Jailbreak and The Rocker; the hits Dancing in the Moonlight, The Boys Are Back in Town and Don’t Believe a Word; ballads like Still In Love With You, mysterious celtic tales like Emerald and my favourite at the time Cowboy Song. Great stuff.
Phil would say: “Are there any cowboys out there?” [massive roar from the crowd]…”this is for all the cowboys…”
[cue the quiet guitar intro]
“I am just a cowboy, lonesome on the trail.
The starry night, the campfire light.
The coyote call, and the howlin’ winds wail. [wah wah]
So I ride out to the old sundown.”
[…and the full band comes in, the familiar twin guitar riff starts and away we go…..]
“Roll me over and turn me around, let me keep spinning till I hit the ground
Roll me over and let me go, riding in the rodeo
Roll me over and set me free, the cowboy’s life is the life for me”
You just couldn’t beat it. Pure class. 1000%.
(Thin Lizzy, 1976)
Posts Tagged ‘heavy rock’
21 Oct
Thin Lizzy Reading triumph 1977 and Newcastle City Hall 1977 & 1978
20 Oct
Thin Lizzy Newcastle City Hall 1st November 1976
Thin Lizzy Newcastle City Hall 1st November 1976
1976 was Thin Lizzy’s year. The album “Jailbreak” gave them the breakthrough that they had been working so had for. Released in March 1976, it featured the worldwide hit “The Boys Are Back in Town” which broke the band and reached no. 8 in the UK. “Jailbreak” had all the right elements; the wonderful twin guitar sound of Scott Gorham and Brian Robertson, great rock tunes which were heavy yet not metal, fascinating stories of the street (bet Phil listened to Springsteen), great use of Celtic mythology drawn from Phil’s Irish heritage, and an attitude and vibe that shone through in the sleeve and Phil’s image, and which completely captured the mood of the time. The album features some of Lizzy’s best compositions such as as “Emerald”, the single “Boys are Back”, and the title track “Jailbreak” which all quickly became concert favourites and would remain in their live set throughout their career. Suddenly Lizzy went from being the club band you could see all the time, to rock heroes who were selling out concert halls and theatres up and down the country.
Phil Lynott fell ill with hepatitis during a US tour; the tour was cancelled, during which time he wrote the follow up album “Johnny the Fox”. The album was recorded in August 1976, but there were tensions between Lynott and Robertson; including disagreements over the credits for their next hit single “Don’t Believe a Word”. “Johnny the Fox” is a good album, but falls short in comparison to the “Jailbreak”. The band went out on tour in the UK to promote the new album, supported by Clover, featuring Huey Lewis. They performed 25 concerts during the UK tour, all of which were completely sold out. I saw the Newcastle gig which was powerful, energetic and a celebration of Lizzy’s recent success. The crowd welcomed the band back as conquering heroes and Phil was becoming the ultimate rock frontman, who could command a crowd like no-one else at the time. A simple thing, like reflecting light off his mirrored bass front plate so that it cut across the concert hall and dazzled us all, seemed fantastic at the time.
Phil told us stories, got us to sing along with him, and led his two fantastic guitar compatriots Scott and Brian, and drummer Brian, in some perfect rock music. “Emerald” and “The Rocker” were my favourites, and when they played “The Boys Are Back in Town” we just knew that the song was about Phil and the guys, but we also felt that it was about us; and that we were all “boys” together. A wonderful, uplifting performance. We were so proud that this band, who we had followed through the clubs, ballrooms, and festivals was taking on the world, and was doing it with rock songs which we could relate to.
“Lizzy have walked away with the cup this year” and “….. there is no better bona fide rock band in England, maybe the world, at this moment than Thin Lizzy.” (David Housham reviewing the Bristol gig in the music press at the time).
A bootleg of the Newcastle show exists which includes the following songs: Jailbreak; Massacre; Emerald; Johnny; It’s Only Money; Still in Love With You; The Boys Are Back in Town; Rosalie; Suicide; Warriors. Encore: Baby Drives Me Crazy. I suspect that they may also have played “Sha la la ” and “The Rocker”.
Thanks to Mitch for his photo which was taken at this gig.
Oh, and I forgot to mention the length of Scott’s hair, which I was so jealous of. I never quite figured out why mine stopped growing at a certain length, and never quite reached my waist 🙂
19 Oct
Thin Lizzy live 1972 – 1975
Thin Lizzy live 1972 – 1975
Apologies if you have read some of this story before. I’ll be spending the next few days with my memories of Thin Lizzy in concert, and I though I’d start by recalling when I first saw the band in 1972, which I have written about before, as part of a post about a concert by the recent Thin Lizzy line-up.
Anyway back to 1972. It’s a Friday night and I’m in the upstairs bar of Sunderland Locarno (“the Mecca”). There’s a tall black guy standing next to me. He’s chatting away to everyone in a strong but soft Irish accent. He seems a friendly guy; looks like he could be in a band. An hour or so later the night’s group take to the stage. They are called Thin Lizzy, and the guy from the bar is the front man. None of us have heard of them; someone tells me that John Peel plays them quite a bit and that they have an album out called “Shades of a Blue Orphanage”. They play pretty well; the front man has great presence, the guitarist is pretty good and the drummer’s impressive. I find out later that the tall guy is called Phil Lynott and the other members are Eric Bell on guitar, and Brian Downey on drums. Roll on a year. I’m watching Top of the Pops and Thin Lizzy are on my TV playing an Irish-folk sounding tune “Whiskey in the Jar” which has a great guitar riff. Next day I go out and buy the record. My journey with Lizzy was beginning. Over the next few years Thin Lizzy play Sunderland a few more times, hitting the stages of the Mecca and the Rink. They appear down the bill at the Reading festival a couple of times. Each time I see them they get stronger and tighter, but they also seem to miss out on that “big break”. I must have seen them 5 or 6 times during the period 1972 to 1975.
The next time I saw Thin Lizzy will have been on 22nd June 1973, again at Sunderland Mecca. By now they had released “Vagabonds of the Western World” which featured live favourite “The Rocker”. Support came from local band Beckett: “Thin Lizzy and their cover of Rosalie. Back in early ‘73, my band Beckett…..most of us hadn’t heard any Bob Seger, so his album [Back in ’72] was played incessantly…..On June 22nd..we were booked to play our local Mecca in support of Thin Lizzy who were riding the success of Whiskey in the Jar. While our crew were loading our gear into the lift under the venue, Lizzy turned up and we all stood around in the sunshine chewing the fat … while playing in the background was our tape of Back in ‘72. Phil was much taken with Rosalie and they decided, there-and-then, that they would cover it in their live show. Bob Seger and Thin Lizzy: two of the most heart-poundingly exciting live rock shows I ever saw.” (Keith Fisher of Beckett, http://www.thinlizzyguide.com/tours/ ).
I next saw Lizzy at the 1974 Reading Festival, half-way down a varied bill which featured Georgie Fame, Procol Harum, Trapeze, and Greenslade, and was headlined by Traffic. By 1974 the classic twin guitar line-up was in place: Philip Lynott, Brian Downey, Scott Gorham, and Brian Robertson, and they had released “Nightlife”. The classic band was now together and was starting to form that classic sound. The attitude and presence were there; some of the songs and the success took a little longer. I saw them back at the Mecca on 25th October 1974 with support from Quicksand.
In 1975 Thin Lizzy released “Fighting” which features “Rosalie”, as mentioned above. I was back at Reading, and so were Lizzy, this time a little further up a bill headlined by Yes, Wishbone Ash, and Hawkwind. They played: Fighting My Way Back; It’s Only Money; King’s Vengeance; Still in Love With You; Showdown; Suicide; Rosalie; The Rocker; Sha La La. Encore: Baby Drives Me Crazy.
I may have seen them once or twice more. I have vague memories of a gig at Sunderland Top Rank (the “Rink”), perhaps with Status Quo. Or maybe I remember Quo playing the Mecca, while Thin Lizzy played the Rink on the same night (or vice versa)…who knows….the gigs all sort of blend into one now. I know that Lizzy toured in ’73 supporting Slade and played Sunderland Rink, but I missed that gig as I was seeing Santana at the City Hall on the same night. What I also know is that Lizzy were gigging constantly throughout those years and played in the North East many times. There were a great live band and I guess I took them for granted. I was lucky enough to be able to see the band honing their craft and developing into the class rock act that we all know and love.
In 1976 everything changed for Thin Lizzy. They released “Jailbreak”, the single “Boys are back in town” was played everywhere and massive success followed. For some crazy reason I missed them on the Jailbreak tour (I still regret such things today), and remember kicking myself for doing so at the time. I made up for it by catching most of their tours from then on, which I’ll write about this week, starting tomorrow with Autumn 1976 and the “Johnny the Fox” tour.
Many thanks to Mitch for his action shot of Phil Lynott which he took at Newcastle City Hall on 1st Nov 1976 (I’ll write about that gig tomorrow) and to the great site http://www.thinlizzyguide.com/tours/ which catalogues Lizzy tour dates.
16 Oct
Ten Years After Newcastle City Hall 29th October 1972
Ten Years After Newcastle City Hall 29th October 1972
“Who is the best guitarist?”
We would have endless discussions like that at school, debating about our personal favourites and almost coming to blows with friends. The music press wasn’t much better, with the Melody Maker polls, and articles which discussed in great detail the technique of all our idols. It was, of course, accepted that Hendrix was the master, but then what was the ranking after that? Eric Clapton was the blues “god”, the standard by which we measured blues guitar; Jimmy Page was pure rock and riffs, Peter Green was all emotional blues and “feel”, Jeff Beck was the elusive genius, and Alvin Lee? Alvin was fast, speed, technique, flash, and rock’n’roll. Alvin wasn’t into any sort of show. He strapped on his red Gibson, walked on that stage, and played. And boy how he played.
“Who is the best guitarist?”
It was silly really. All of those guys had their own style, their own brand, and they were all so different and so excellent in their own way. The debate was ill-founded, futile, and only caused arguments and bad feeling.
I saw Ten Years After again on 29th October 1972 at Newcastle City Hall. Support came from the excellent Frankie Miller who was backed by Brinsley Schwartz. 
This was another great gig. John reminds me that loads of us went. Everyone I knew from school who was into rock was at this gig, we ran into loads of mates; there must have been 20 or 30 of us. Ten Years After were once again, great. The setlist was probably something like this: One of These Days; You Give Me Loving; Good Morning, Little Schoolgirl; Rock & Roll Music to the World; Turned Off TV Blues; Standing at the Station; I Can’t Keep from Crying; I’m Going Home; Choo Choo Mama; Baby Won’t You Let Me Rock ‘n’ Roll You, and will likely also have included a classical guitar piece and a scat guitar jam.
I do remember several encores that night, and us all rushing right down to the front, cramming the area near the stage. When it looked like it was all over, they would come on again, while we nervously looked at our watches, in fear of missing the last train, which I think we did, incidentally. However, all was not lost, there was a later bus, which took us all over the place. We then had to walk a few miles, arriving home in the early hours.
“Who is the best guitarist?”
If you had asked me that night, I would, of course, have said “Alvin Lee”. 100% and no contest 🙂 Happy Days.
Thanks to John for the image of his poster.
15 Oct
Ten Years After Newcastle City Hall 16th September 1971
Ten Years After Newcastle City Hall 16th September 1971 
Back in the late ’60s we carried our lp sleeves almost as badges of honour. I looked up to the sixth formers who would come to school wearing their great coats or afghans, proudly clutching their latest albums under their arm for all to see. It was a way of showing everyone exactly what sort of music you were into. The coolest of the sixth formers would walk around carrying Cream’s Wheels of Fire, Tyrannosaurus Rex’s Beard of Stars, Led Zeppelin 1 or 2, The Mothers’ We’re Only in it for the Money or Lumpy Gravy (very cool), or Beefheart’s Trout Mask Replica (even more cool). Two other albums which featured were Ten Year’s Afters’ Stonedhenge and Ssssh (which had a great red fuzzy blurred semi-psychedelic picture of Alvin Lee on its front cover). The sixth former’ had a record club where they played these lps on an old Dansette player. As a younger student, I wasn’t allowed to bring my own lps, but they did let me sit in once or twice. They all sat cross-legged, listening intently, nodding their heads, looking knowingly at each other. I was totally in awe of them and of the magic sounds which came out of their old record machine. Some of that music was the sound of Alvin Lee’s guitar, and it just blew me away. 
One of the first times that I heard Ten Years After was the track Speed Kills which appears on a sampler album The World of Blues Power Volume 2. The track, as the title suggests, features some amazingly fast fretwork from Lee. I was trying desperately to master the guitar at the time, and Alvin Lee was one of my idols. I tried, usually without success, to learn those licks. I would play the lp at slow speed and try to work out what Alvin was playing and how he did it. I then had to transpose the key because of the difference in speed; it hardly every worked, much to my frustration. I guess it was never really meant to be. I ended up going to see my guitar heroes, always secretly wishing I could have been one of them. My other early experience of Ten Years After was the hit single Love Like a Man, which was a big favourite of all my friends. The other event which sticks in my mind when thinking of Ten Years After, and which I have to mention, is of course the Woodstock film. We all trooped down to Studio 1 cinema to see Woodstock on the first day that it was shown in town, wearing our best weekend hippy gear. Now the film has many great moments, but the one that had the greatest impact on me was Alvin Lee performing I’m Going Home, which was simply breath taking. The performance, the speed, the energy, the crowd reaction, the way the images cleverly flashed from one view of Alvin to another; to a young teenager sitting in the third row of the cinema it was mind blowing. That was the moment that confirmed me as a big fan of Ten Years After, and in particular, of Alvin Lee. 
The first time I got to see Ten Years After in concert was in September 1971. Support came from (pre massive fame) Supertramp (the cover of their album seemed very rude to a young guy) and folk singer Keith Christmas. Both supports were excellent. Those were the days before I discovered the temptations of the bar, and watched ever minute of the support acts. But I was there to see the man who had amazed me in Woodstock; Alvin Lee. And he, and Ten Years After, rose to the occasion and gave us a blistering performance. TYA had just released their sixth album (they had been busy guys) A Space In Time. I think they started with One of These Days, which was also the opening track of the album, and a very powerful song. One Of These Days starts with the sound of Alvin’s guitar gradually increasing in volume, he then cuts the chord, and his lone voice launches straight into the first line “One of these Days Boy!”, Leo Lyon’s bass thunders in and away we go, Ric Lee gently touching his cymbals, and the song takes off, Chick Churchill’s swirling Hammond provides a backdrop for Lee’s guitar, which is quite restrained compared to some other songs. Great! And on stage in front of me was Alvin Lee, playing his famous red Gibson 335; yes it was the same one he played at Woodstock. 
I don’t remember exactly what they played; I think it included the moody, lurching and doomy I Can’t Keep From Crying, Sometimes, their great cover of Good Morning Little Schoolgirl, and of course they played Going Home; I watched Alvin’s fingers intently, trying to pick up some tips. But there was more to Alvin Lee than speed and technical guitar flash, the guy understood the blues, was a master of light and shade, used dynamics of sound and speed to great effect, and could play rock’n’roll just like Chuck. And he had a perfect rock voice. One song, I don’t know which, featured Alvin scat singing along with his guitar, showing his jazz influences. And Ten Years After weren’t just Alvin Lee. Lee Lyons pounded away at his bass, head hung over his instrument, speeding along with Lee. Chick Chruchill provided that classic ’60s swirling Hammond sound, and drummer Ric Lee understood the light and shade of blues drumming. I next saw Ten Years After when they headlined the Sunday night of the 1972 Reading Festival. I stood in that field, as close to the stage as I could get. They played Going Home and I thought I was at Woodstock 🙂 Happy days. We will never ever see the like again. I saw Ten Years After a few more times and I’ll spend the next few days reflecting on just how great they were, and how sadly missed the great Alvin Lee is. Many thanks to John and Mitch for their images of posters from the City Hall gig.
8 Oct
Pat Travers Newcastle City Hall 30th March 1980
Pat Travers Newcastle City Hall 30th March 1980
Canadian guitarist Pat Travers was one of the hardest working guys in the music business during the late 70s and early 80s. He took the power trio concept of Cream and Hendrix and developed it further, playing in his own unique style which mixed technical flash with hard rock, blues and jazz. And this guy just gigged and gigged. He seemed to pop up everywhere at the time, always full of energy, and guaranteed to grab an audience by the scruff of the neck. I remember seeing him at Reading Festival in 1976 and 1980, supporting Journey at the Mayfair, at Redcar Coatham Bowl, and I’m sure I saw him support one or two people at the City Hall too. By 1980, Pat Travers was touring in support of his seventh album “Crash and Burn” and the three piece format had been expanded by the addition of a second guitarist. Support for this gig at Newcastle City Hall was Diamond Head. The concert was poorly attended, which was a shame, because Pat and his band delivered a blistering and loud set, which showed what a great guitarist and showman he was. Pat Travers live was fast, loud and rocking. Very under-rated, he often seemed on the brink of massive success, but it never quite materialised. He was, of course, gigging away at the time of punk, which won’t have helped, and his brand of bluesy jazzy rock’n’roll didn’t quite jell with NWOBHM fans. He continues to play to this day and has been over to the UK in the last year or so. Writing this reminds me how great his music is. Another guy I really should catch up with again.
Just watched him playing “Snortin’ Whiskey” from “Crash and Burn” on Youtube. Awesome. Reminded just how electric rock can be. Have a look if you get the chance.
Setlist from Reading August 1980: Rock ‘n’ Roll Suzie; Your Love Can’t Be Right; Life in London; Born Under a Bad Sign; Boom Boom (Out Go the Lights); Snortin’ Whiskey; Hooked On Music; Hammerhead; It Makes No Difference
“Snortin’ whiskey, drinkin’ cocaine
Got this feelin’ I’m gonna drive that girl insane
Insanity!”
(Snortin’ Whiskey, Pat Travers, 1980)
7 Oct
Robin Trower South Shields Customs House 17th April 2005
Robin Trower South Shields Customs House 17th April 2005
Roll forward 25 years, and I was seeing Robin Trower again. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, and had all but forgotten many of the songs because, although I have a few of his albums on vinyl, the only one I played was “Bridge of Sighs” and to be truthful, I hadn’t played that for a long time. I needed have worried. Trower walked on stage, waved at the audience, and launched straight into “Too Rolling Stoned”. I immediately recognised the riff, and the years melted away. The guitar playing was as excellent as ever, with the familiar heavy use of wah-wah, and the usual twisting of the face, as Robin squeezed the notes out of his strat.
The singer was Davey Pattison, who I’d seen before many years ago in Ronnie Montrose’s band Gamma, and he did a great job, sticking closely to the original vocal. He has a soulful voice, which matched somewhat the original vocals of the late and very under-rated James Dewar. The mix was a little murky at the start of the set, with the vocals lost in the mix, but things improved as the set progressed. Trower and his band were great, playing a mix of tracks from throughout his career. It was great to see him again.
The gig was reviewed Rahul Shrivastava for the BBC website: “There are no gimmicks, no light show, just four men playing great, bluesy rock ‘n’ roll….there was no denying the passion with which he played his instrument.” The review sparked a few comments from others who attended the gig: “It’s over 25 yrs since I saw Robin at Hammersmith Odeon; always wanted to do so again. So good was this gig that both me and my wife were lost for words… Awesome” (SteV1Da).
“To experience Robin Trower is to be a witness to the mastery of true artistry created on the electric guitar. How rich in talent Robin, and a great few are part of an incredible music history…” (Michael Gibbs). “They used to say that this guy was a ‘Hendrix clone’ Well all I can say is that if Hendrix could play like that he must have been some guitarist! The control and pure artistry were a delight and I hope that this is the first of many returns to the North East.” (Chas Thomason).
Setlist: Too Rolling Stoned; Sweet Angel; What’s Your Name; Rise Up Like The Sun; Daydream; Living Out Of Time; Breathless; Day Of The Eagle; Bridge Of Sighs; Close Every Door; I Want You To Love Me; Please Tell Me; Another Time, Another Place; Little Bit of Sympathy
Encore: Come To Me; Secret Place
Thanks to John for the poster image and for the photo which he got signed for me at a Trower gig in the States.
I’ve seen Trower once more since, and have already written about that gig.
6 Oct
Robin Trower Newcastle City Hall 12th February 1980
Robin Trower Newcastle City Hall 12th February 1980
In 1980 Robin Trower released his seventh studio album “Victims of the Fury”, and went out on tour to promote it. Support for the tour was NWOBHM band Samson. I saw the tour was it called at Newcastle City Hall. It was a few years since I’d seen Robin Trower in concert and I was really looking forward to seeing him again. It was the last night of the tour and the band were on their usual amazing form.
It is unfair to draw too many comparisons between Trower and Hendrix. Although Trower has undoubtedly been influenced by the master, and has said so himself on several occasions, he has his own unique guitar style, and is himself a true master of the guitar. Sadly whenever conversation turns to classic guitar greats the names of Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Richie Blackmore, Alvin Lee and Peter Green will be mentioned, but it isn’t that often that Trower gets a mention. That’s a shame because his playing stands up their with those greats.
Robert Fripp, another guitar great, recognises this and says so in the liner notes on the reissues of one of Robin’s solo albums (1996): “Robin Trower is one of the very few English guitarists that have mastered bends and wobbles. Not only has he got inside them, with an instinctive knowing of their affective power, but they went to live inside his hands. It is the rare English guitarist who has been able to stand alongside American guitarists and play with an equal authority to someone grounded in a fundamentally American tradition. Trower has been widely criticised for his influences. This has never bothered me. I toured America in 1974 with Ten Years After top of the bill, King Crimson second, and Robin Trower bottom. The chart positions were the opposite….. Nearly every night I went out to listen to him. This was a man who hung himself on the details: the quality of sound, nuances of each inflection and tearing bend, and abandonment to the feel of the moment. He saved my life. Later, in England, he gave me guitar lessons.”
Back to the City Hall concert. It was classic Trower drawing for throughout his solo career and starting with the beautiful “Lady Love”. They also played my favourites “Bridge Of Sighs” and “Too Rolling Stoned”. Great stuff.
I found a review of the concert on Robin Trower’s official site, by Alan Howard, who drove with his friend from London especially to see the last night of the tour, having already seen the show at Hammersmith a few days before: “The good people of Toon town just went absolutely mental, so delighted they were to see the band. What a great start! So it continued. For some reason, this audience were much more appreciative and vocal than their southern counterparts….It was a great show featuring once again the ‘Victims’ lightshow visuals with their distinctive neon barbed wire icon, as featured on the album cover.”
Set List: Lady Love; The Ring; Day Of The Eagle; Bridge Of Sighs; Jack And Jill; Too Rolling Stoned; The Shout/Hannah; Daydream; Victims Of The Fury; Only Time; Madhouse; Little Bit Of Sympathy.
Encores: Messin The Blues; Rock Me Baby.
Thanks to John for the image of his Trower “flash”.
Tomorrow I’ll roll forward and write about a more recent Trower gig.
5 Oct
Robin Trower Newcastle City Hall 22nd Feb 1976
Robin Trower Newcastle City Hall 22nd Feb 1976
Come 1976 and Robin Trower was one of the most popular acts in the country. He toured the UK in February and March calling at the City Hall for two nights this time, and closing the tour by playing to 8,000 fans at Wembley Empire Pool. Support for the tour was local north east pop rock act John Miles. I remember driving through to the City Hall to buy tickets the day they went on sale. It had been snowing heavily and the roads were quite treacherous. My mate and I watched in horror as the car in front of us slid off the road and into the trees at the side of the carriageway. We made our way safely to the box office and bought tickets for the first night.
The concert was excellent, with Trower on top form, his feet surrounded by an array of effects pedals which enabled him to create some unbelievable sounds with his trusty Fender Strat. 
The Trower band had changed slightly with a new drummer Bill Lordan playing alongside Trower and Dewar. They were tight and loud, and delighted the City Hall crowd with classics like “Bridge of Sighs”, “Lady Love” and my fave “Too Rolling Stoned”, tracks from their current, third, album “For Earth Below” and a couple of new songs which would feature on the fourth album “Long Misty Days”. Brian Harrigan reviewed the Wembley gig for Melody Maker: “There ain’t nothing like Robin Trower at full blast……in the 
cavernous Wembley Empire Pool, they thundered like a three-man blitzkrieg.”
Typical 1976 setlist: Day of the Eagle; Bridge of Sighs; Sailing; Lady Love; Long Misty Days; The Fool and Me; Too Rolling Stoned; Daydream; Same Rain Falls; I Can’t Wait Much Longer; Alethea; Little Bit of Sympathy; Rock Me Baby; S.M.O.
Many thanks to Mitch for his photo of Trower which was taken at this concert and to John for his image of the poster for the concert the following night.
17 Aug
Slade Newcastle City Hall 18th December 1981
Slade Newcastle City Hall 18th December 1981
The last time I saw the original Slade line-up live in concert was at Newcastle City Hall on 18th December 1981. Slade were where they should be, performing to sold out concert halls up and down the country. It was great to see them back at the City Hall, Slade were very clearly enjoying themselves, and it being close to Christmas festivities, of course they played that song. We were a few rows from the front, and my ears were ringing for days afterwards.
Slade played a couple of more times in the north east, at Newcastle University in 1982, and on 17th December 1983 at Durham University. It is possible that I was at the Durham gig, but without a ticket or programme I can’t be sure. I do have vague memories of seeing Slade there, but I think it may have been in the 1970s. On 18th December 1983, the night after playing in Durham Slade played the Royal Court Theatre, Liverpool, which was to be the original band’s last ever full UK show. A UK tour was scheduled for 1985, but was cancelled.
The front cover of the tour programme shows Slade on stage at Reading in 1980. The concert was recorded and released as the live album “Slade on Stage”. Reviewing the album, Kerrang said: “Watching Slade live is one of the most exhilarating experiences known to mankind. 
Its a completely over the top manic and raucous package, delivered at a pace that makes even Kiss seem like old men. So pin back your ears, reinforce your walls and listen to Noddy Holder bellowing through 10 gems including ‘Take Me Bak ‘Ome’ and ‘We’ll Bring The House Down’. Some light relief is supplied by ‘Everyday’. What are you waiting for? Go Out and buy it now.”
Setlist: Rock and Roll Preacher; When I’m Dancin’ I Ain’t Fightin’; Take Me Bak ‘Ome; Till Deaf Do Us Part; M’Hat, M’Coat; Everyday; A Night to Remember; Lock Up Your Daughters; Gudbuy T’Jane; We’ll Bring the House Down; Get Down and Get With It
Encore: Mama Weer All Crazee Now; Cum on Feel the Noize; Merry Xmas Everybody; Born to Be Wild
That concludes my Slade memories, which I’ve enjoyed writing. Looking back makes me realise just how great a rock band Slade were, and how important they were to me.
I’ve seen the “new” Slade a couple of times recently, and may go to see them again one day. They put on a fun show, but it just isn’t the same without Noddy and Jim (sorry Dave and Don). Now a reunion of the original band would be something to see 🙂 but I guess that’s not going to happen.
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