Ray Jackson’s Lindisfarne Christmas Show Newcastle City Hall 22nd December 2013
When this show was announced, it sounded pretty improbable to me, and I just wasn’t sure that it would work. We’d been too long without a version of Lindisfarne gracing our stages, and the legendary Christmas concerts were now distant memories. But a version of Lindisfarne featuring only one original member? What would that be like?
A few events led to this year’s concert. Along the way we’ve had: the Alan Hull memorial concert; the unveiling of a plaque in Alan’s memory outside the City Hall, (with Ray Jackson playing at both events); the threatened closure of the City Hall, which was seen as a call to arms by many local musicians; and Ray Laidlaw and Billy Mitchell performing The Lindisfarne Story (a show which I missed and really must try to see when it tours again next year). And then in May this year it all came together. The press release at the time read: “A new Lindisfarne debuts this Christmas. Ray Jackson, whose unique mandolin, harmonica and vocal styles helped create the original sound of Lindisfarne in the 1970s, is back, and will be performing live in concert with his new band for the first time this Christmas. Earlier this year a date for Ray Jackson’s Legendary Lindisfarne Christmas Show was announced……Jacka’s first Lindisfarne show for 23 years! After originally only intending to perform a single show at Newcastle City Hall on December 23rd 2013, (which sold out within hours of being announced), a 2nd show was added for December 22nd, also long since sold out. A 3rd and final Newcastle show has been added for December 20th, along with three others in Harrogate, Hull and Middlesbrough”. So the Jacka Man had taken up the challenge; supported, and no doubt encouraged, by Barry McKay, Lindisfarne manager from the 70s, and promoter of the original Christmas Concerts. Ray Jackson’s Lindisfarne are: Ray Jackson (founder member, on mandolin/harmonica/lead vocals), Dave Hull-Denholm (from the 1990’s Lindisfarne line-up, on guitars/lead vocals), Paul Thompson (from Roxy Music, on drums), Ian Thomson from the 1990’s Lindisfarne line-up, on bass guitar/double bass/vocals), Charlie Harcourt from Lindisfarne Mk 2, on guitars/vocals) and Steve Daggett (who toured and recorded with the reformed 1978 original line-up, on guitars/keyboards/vocals). For the concerts they were also joined by Tom Leary on fiddle.
As we entered the City Hall we were all given a party hat (David and I passed, both being Scrooges 🙂 ) and a free programme (donations were taken for charity). The packed out hall was greeted by Denny Ferguson as Santa (he warmed the crowd up well, but I was hoping for Mike the Mouth Elliott) and the atmosphere was friendly and high in anticipation. People were sitting up at the back of the stage behind the band, just like we did in the old days, and a huge Christmas tree stood in the corner. As soon as the new line-up started playing it was obvious that it was going to be a good night. The band recreated the Lindisfarne wall of sound and were true to their legacy and the band’s spirit, with Jacka, of course, being the star of the night. The show was in two parts, with most of the well known songs held for the last lap. 
The first set was something like this (from memory, and I will no doubt have missed some): Road to Kingdom Come, All Fall Down, Wake Up Little Sister, Scarecrow Song, City Song, Together Forever, Marshall Riley’s Army, Lady Eleanor (as haunting as ever), Court in the Act. The second set had everyone singing along to: Turn a Deaf Ear, Kings Cross Blues, Train in G Major, Uncle Sam, January Song, a beautiful Winter Song with Dave Hull-Denholm sounding uncannily like his father-in-law, Fog On The Tyne, We Can Swing Together (complete with a lengthy harmonica solo from Jacka including The Blaydon Races and the Theme from Z Cars (boo..) and just as I remember it from the 70s, and….an appearance by the High Spen Blue Diamonds Sword Dancers), Run For Home and closing with Meet Me On The Corner. The encore was: Roxy’s (or actually Canned Heat’s) Lets Work Together (a surprise and well played with lots of great harmonica from Jacka) and (of course, to send us home on our way) a great singalong to Clear White Light. Barry McKay said something about next year’s present being even better; could that hint at a Lindisfarne reunion? Rod Clements was in the audience last night, so who knows. A great night which reclaimed Newcastle’s Christmas for a legendary band, without tarnishing any memories, and gave a few thousands Geordies an early present. Well done and many thanks to Jacka.
Official Lindisfarne site: http://lindisfarne.co.uk/
Ray Jackson’s Lindisfarne: http://rayjacksonslindisfarne.com/
The Lindisfarne Story: http://www.lindisfarnestory.co.uk/
Posts Tagged ‘music’
23 Dec
Ray Jackson’s Lindisfarne Christmas Show Newcastle City Hall 22nd December 2013
20 Dec
Slaughter and the Dogs, The Drones and Fast Breeder Middlesbrough Rock Garden 1977
This gig introduced three early Manchester punk band to the North East. Slaughter and the Dogs were hailed as one of the craziest and most manic live acts at the time. The Drones were one of the first Manchester punk bands. Fast Breeder were an early band managed by Tony Wilson, later of Factory Records and The Hacienda fame, some of whom later became the Durutti Column along with Vini Reilly. Slaughter were a high energy mix of glam, rock’n’roll and punk, with shades of horror in their image. The singer came of stage in old coat covered in flour, and proceeded to run around goading us all. The guitarist, Mike Rossi, played out the rock n roll hero ala Mick Ronson, sporting a similar Les Paul guitar. These guys were crazy and got a good reception from a half full Rock Garden.
The name “Slaughter & the Dogs” was created by singer Wayne Barrett in 1975 by combining the names of Diamond Dogs and Slaughter on 10th Avenue, which points to the band’s roots and influences. They were one of the first Manchester punk bands and supported the Sex Pistols at their now-legendary gig at Manchester Lesser Free Trade Hall in 1976. This was the concert, which more than any other single event, was said to have spawned Manchester’s punk scene. Their debut single, “Cranked Up Really High” is recognised as a punk classic and it was this and other early material that they were playing that night. Their debut album, “Do It Dog Style”, was issued in May 1978.
19 Dec
The Ramones Newcastle City Hall 20th December 1977
The Ramones: Da Brudders hit Newcastle City Hall, 20th December 1977. 
I’m jumping out of sequence in my blogging over the next few days, as there are a few gigs that I am need to write about for another project I am working on, and focusing on them here will help me along my way. The first of these are my reflections on the first time that I saw the Ramones. Da Brudders had played the UK a couple of times before they ventured up north to Newcastle. They first came across to play a couple of gigs in London in July 1976; one at the Roundhouse as support for the Flamin’ Groovies on 4th July, and a headlining gig at Dingwalls the following evening. The influence of the Ramones on UK punk rock can’t be understated, and these gigs are widely recognised as being seminal in the birth and growth of the UK scene. The Guardian (in their “History of Indie Music”) listed this gig as one a key event: “On Independence Day 1976, the Roundhouse in London hosted the veteran San Francisco band Flamin’ Groovies. All the young punks came out that night, but not to see the headliners. They were there to see and (in the cases of the Clash and the Sex Pistols) meet the support band, the Ramones, who had inspired the first wave of UK punks, and whose appearance here would galvanise many more.” This concert took place just as punk rock was emerging in London, and before it started to spread to the rest of the UK. The Ramones toured the UK in May 1977, missing the North East; the closest they came was to play at Leeds University Refectory (wish I’d gone to that 🙂 ). Way “Up North” in Newcastle we had to wait until their second UK tour of 1977, which brought the boys to Newcastle City Hall on 20th December. The gig took place a few days before a triumphant return to London where they played a monumental set of 28 songs to a packed Rainbow Theatre. The Rainbow gig was recorded and released as the “It’s Alive” double lp. In fact four concerts during the UK tour were recorded (I think one of these may have been Newcastle), but the New Year’s Eve performance was chosen “because ten rows of seats were thrown at the stage after the concert and it was considered the best of the performances at the venue”. (Wikipedia).
So on 20th December 1977, the North East finally got to see the Ramones. We’d heard “Sheena is a Punk Rocker” and all sung along to “Blitzkrieg Bop”, and we’d read so much about this band. Now we finally got the chance to see them. The City Hall was packed. It seemed everyone in the region who was into punk rock was there, including several who had already formed bands, and many others who were no doubt inspired to go and do so. Support came from Scotland’s The Rezillos (note spelling error on the ticket) who blended an image lifted from 60s Scifi B movies with frantic and fast surf rock, and featured lively singer Fay Fife. This was before they hit the charts with “Top of the Pops”. 
They put on a suitably crazy and fun performance and warmed the crowd up admirably for the arrival of our comic book heroes. I’d gone along with a group of mates, and we had seats pretty near the front, with a clear view of all the action. The Ramones lived up to everything we had read and heard. They must have played at least 25 songs and yet they were probably on stage for less than one hour. The pace was fast and furious; 1. 2. 3. 4. and straight into the next song, each one a minor classic of teenage rock’n’roll angst. Joey held high a sign proclaiming “Gabba Gabba Hey” (I still don’t understand what the hell that means). Johnny frantically, yet effortlessly, buzzed those furious rock’roll chords out of his guitar, which was placed elegantly down on his knee. It was like nothing else I have seen before or since. These guys had speed down to a craft; it was almost as if they were willing themselves to play each song faster than the one before. By the time of this concert the Ramones had released three albums, and the tour was to promote their “Rocket to Russia” lp. The four brothers looked so cool in their denims and Lewis Leathers jackets (I always wanted a Lewis Leathers jacket; I had a cheap copy at the time but it just wasn’t the same 😦 ). From the Lewis Leathers website: “..in the ‘70s when the Ramones were wearing their leather jackets, the English Punks wanted to do the same, including the bands. The Clash went there, Brian James, Rat Scabies of The Damned, Steve Jones. Sid Vicious had an old Dominator jacket that he got off Viv Albertine of The Slits. The leather jacket was something to be seen in.” The set consisted of tracks from all three of their albums. Before we knew it..Phew..it was all over far too soon, and we were left to reflect on what we had just witnessed, and for many to go back home and try to play as fast as those guys.
From the programme: “Dear Joey, I think you’re the best Ramones brother. Are you really brothers?…They were once called the “perfect band”….The Ramones are now recognised as innovators of a healthy British Scene.”
In 1977 the Ramones were, of course: Joey Ramone – lead vocals; Johnny Ramone – guitar; Dee Dee Ramone – bass; and Tommy Ramone – drums. Setlist from the Ramones gig in Glasgow, which took place a couple of days before the City Hall show: Rockaway Beach; Teenage Lobotomy; Blitzkrieg Bop; I Wanna Be Well; Glad to See You Go; Gimme Gimme Shock Treatment; You’re Gonna Kill That Girl; I Don’t Care; Sheena Is a Punk Rocker; Carbona Not Glue; Commando; Here Today, Gone Tomorrow; Surfin’ Bird; Cretin Hop; Listen to My Heart; California Sun; I Don’t Wanna Walk Around With You; Pinhead; Do You Wanna Dance?; Chain Saw; Today Your Love, Tomorrow the World; Now I Wanna Be a Good Boy; Suzy Is a Headbanger; Let’s Dance; Judy Is a Punk; Now I Wanna Sniff Some Glue; We’re a Happy Family. I saw the Ramones on two further occasions at the City Hall, in 1978 and 1980, and will write a little about those gigs on another day. Hey Ho! Lets Go! Hey Ho! Lets Go!
18 Dec
Mungo Jerry in concert in the early 70s
Mungo Jerry in concert in the early 70s
For a short period in the early 70s, it must have been sometime between 1972 and 1974, I swear I saw Mungo Jerry almost every month. Now I know that will be an exaggeration, and my memory is probably playing tricks on me again, but I do remember seeing Ray Dorset and his band several times at Sunderland Locarno, and possibly once or twice at Newcastle Mayfair. I also saw them on the Friday night bill at the Reading Festival, on August bank holiday weekend in 1972, sandwiched between Genesis and headliners Curved Air. By the time I got to see Mungo Jerry the jug band of “In the Summertime” fame had morphed into a straight ahead boogie band. Gone was the washboard and the double bass, to be replaced by electric guitars and rock’n’roll. The line-up of Mungo Jerry seemed to change a lot, the only constant being front man and band leader Ray Dorset. Mungo Jerry had a lot of hits “back in the day” including the excellent “Baby Jump” which, along with “In the Summertime”, reached No. 1 in the UK singles chart. “Lady Rose” was another great song, followed by “You Don’t Have to Be in the Army to Fight in the War”, and “Alright, Alright, Alright”. 
“In the Summertime” was an absolutely massive smash, reaching No. 1 on the singles charts in the UK, the US, Canada, Ireland, Australia, Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and South Africa. Wow! The song has sold over 30 million copies, making it one of the highest selling singles of all time. Mungo Jerry last hit the top twenty with “Long Legged Woman Dressed in Black” in 1974.
You could go along to a Mungo Jerry gig and be sure that you were going to hear some high energy rock’n’roll, and sing along to all those hits. Ray Dorset was a crazy front man, lots or running about, leg kicking, a strong raucous voice, and great blues harp. Oh and I so admired those sideburns 🙂 Mungo Jerry (aka Ray Dorset) are still playing to this day, although their UK appearances are few and far between. Another one for my list of bands who I would like to see one more time.
17 Dec
Van Morrison & The Caledonia Soul Orchestra Newcastle City Hall 27th July 1973
Van Morrison & The Caledonia Soul Orchestra Newcastle City Hall 27th July 1973
I coulnd’t let this section of my blogging pass without writing about Van Morrison again. I first saw Van Morrison at Newcastle City Hall in 1973. He had just created The Caledonia Soul Orchestra which is often considered to be “one of the tightest performing backup groups of the 1970s” (Wikipedia). This was, without any doubt, one of the greatest gigs I have ever witnessed. The concert was put on by local promoter Geoff Docherty and his Filmore North organisation, and it cost me all of 60p to sit at the back of the hall and witness one of the greatest singers and performers I have ever seen. Van sang with such passion and soul that night. I’ve seen him several times since this concert, but nothing has come close to matching that peformance. The tour was captured on the live lp: Its Too Late to Stop Now, some of which was recorded at a show at London’s Rainbow theatre, which took place just a couple of days before the Newcastle gig. The Rainbow Theatre gig was voted by Q Magazine readers as one of the top live performances of all time. Morrison was going through a divorce at the time and it is often said that his selection of material and impassioned performances were evidence of his inner turmoil. “I would say that that tour represented the height of his confidence as a performer,” band member John Platania remarked”, and the resultant double live album is considered as representing Van Morrison at his peak. I can picture him now, singing great versions of Here Comes the Night and Gloria. Everything about that show was perfect. The band was tight, the string section added a depth to the songs, Van was singing great, and more importantly he was clearly enjoying himself, and the crowd were up for it. We knew we were witnessing something special. If I had a time machine and could go back and relive a handful of gigs this would be one of them. I next saw Van at one or two festivals, including Knebworth, but didn’t catch up with him again at the City Hall until 1979. By then Morrison was moving in a more pop oriented direction, and although I still enjoyed the gig, the power and passion of that early 70s show was lacking.
John Collis comments that “with the magnificent Caledonia Soul Orchestra on song he [Morrison] came of age as a magnetic stage performer, culminating in the release of the double set It’s Too Late to Stop Now one of the most impressive of all attempts to squeeze the stage excitement of a rock performer on to vinyl.” (Collis, Inarticulate Speech on the Heart). So today I’ll think a little of that amazing 1973 concert, and look forward to the next time I have the chance to see Van Morrison, who for a couple of hours simply spellbound me in the City Hall all those years ago.
Setlist from the Van Morrison Rainbow Theatre London concert of July 24, 1973: Warm Love; Take your Hands Out Of My Pocket; Here Comes The Night; I Just Want To Make Love To You; Brown Eyed Girl; Moonshine Whiskey; Moondance; Help Me; Domino; Caravan; Cyprus Avenue; Wild Night; I Paid The Price; Saint Dominic’s Preview; Gloria.
The Caledonia Soul Orchestra Line Up: Van Morrison – vocals; John Platania – guitar; Jeff Labes – keyboards; Jack Schroer – saxophones; Bill Atwood – trumpet; David Hayes – bass; Dahaud Shaar – drums; Terry Adams – cello; Nancy Ellis – viola; Tom Halpin – violin; Tim Kovatch – violin; Nathan Rubin – violin.
16 Dec
Morrissey Newcastle 2004 & 2006, & Sunderland 2008
Morrissey Newcastle 2004 & 2006, & Sunderland 2008
Although I saw The Smiths a few times in concert, I’ve only started going to see Morrissey solo since 2004, when he released the excellent “You Are the Quarry”, which is generally recognised as a return to form, and was his best selling solo album. Laura also started to take an interest in Morrissey and his music at that time. So we planned to go at see him at Newcastle City Hall on 7th September 2004. On the night Laura wasn’t too well, so David came along to the concert. This was my first time seeing Morrissey since I last saw The Smiths in the mid 80s, and to be honest I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. The show was excellent, with Morrissey in a good mood, and the capacity crowd giving him a great reception. He played a selection of solo and Smiths songs, including several from “You Are the Quarry”. “First of the Gang to Die” is a favourite of mine. 
David, Laura and I then saw him again at Newcastle Arena on 4th December 2006. Morrissey and his band played well that night, but the cavernous Arena was far from full, and the atmosphere and sound quality were, as a result, not on par with the City Hall gig. We then saw him at a packed Sunderland Empire on 1st February 2008. We had seats in the upper circle and although we were looking directly down on the stage (almost on the top of Morrissey’s head !) we really enjoyed the concert. Since then Laura and I have seen him at his 50th birthday show at Manchester Apollo (which was simply amazing and one of the best gigs I have ever been to :)), at Middlesbrough Town Hall, at Manchester Arena and Glastonbury. I blogged about those gigs at the time, and will write about The Smiths when I (finally) reach the letter “S”. I’ve bought his autobiography for Laura for Christmas, and must get another copy so I can read it myself. 
Setlist Newcastle City Hall 2004: How Soon Is Now?; First Of The Gang To Die; Don’t Make Fun Of Daddy’s Voice; Shakespeare’s Sister; November Spawned A Monster; Munich Air Disaster 1958; Let Me Kiss You; Subway Train; Everyday Is Like Sunday; I Like You; Now My Heart Is Full; You Know I Couldn’t Last; How Can Anyone Possibly Know How I Feel?; Rubber Ring; I Have Forgiven Jesus; I Know It’s Gonna Happen Someday; Irish Blood, English Heart. Encore: There Is A Light That Never Goes Out.
Setlist Newcastle Arena 2006: Panic; First Of The Gang To Die; The Youngest Was The Most Loved; You Have Killed Me; Disappointed; Ganglord; William, It Was Really Nothing; Everyday Is Like Sunday; Dear God, Please Help Me; Let Me Kiss You; I’ve Changed My Plea To Guilty; In The Future When All’s Well; I Will See You In Far-off Places; Girlfriend In A Coma; Irish Blood, English Heart; Life Is A Pigsty; How Soon Is Now?; I Just Want To See The Boy Happy; The National Front Disco. Encore: Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want.
Setlist Sunderland Empire 2008: Stop me if you think you’ve heard this one before; First of the gang to die; I just want to see the boy happy; Thats how people grow up; Mama lay softly on the riverbed; Death of a disco dancer; Sister I’m a poet; All you need is me; I’m throwing my arms around Paris; The Loop; The world is full of Crashing Bores; How Soon is now?; Life is a Pigsty; Why don’t you find out for yourself?; Stretch out and wait; Tomorrow; Something is squeezing my skull; Irish Blood, English heart; Please, please, please let me get what I want. Encore: Last of the famous international playboys.
15 Dec
Black Sabbath Sheffield Arena 14th December 2013
Black Sabbath Sheffield Arena 14th December 2013
Last night I went with my mate Norm to see those mighty metal pioneers Black Sabbath in concert at Sheffield Arena. Its been over 30 years since we both last saw Sabbath, so we were really looking forward to revisiting our youth and reminding ourselves who the true gods of metal are, and where it all started. We left around 4pm and drove down to Sheffield arriving just after 6pm. There was time for a bite to eat at one of the pubs over the road from the arena, before we walked over to the Arena to have a look at the merchandise (nice, but pricey, so we passed) and catch the support act, who were a young new UK band called Uncle Acid and the Dead Beats. Uncle Acid and the Dead Beats have been described as “the original Alice Cooper band jamming in a cell with early Black Sabbath and the Stooges” (Metal Blade Records), and that sums them up pretty well. Their heavy, dark riffs filled the hall, are very reminiscent of early Sabbath, and prepared the crowd for the main act. The crowd was a mix of heavy rock and metal fans of all ages; old-timers like us, and young metalheads, everyones knows how important Sabbath are in the history of heavy metal and classic rock. Right on time at 8.30pm, Black Sabbath took to the stage. We had standing tickets and made our way as close to the front as we could get. We knew what to expect, Norm has been watching a DVD of Sabbath on tour in Australia earlier this year, so we were anticipating a set full of classics. And that’s exactly what we got; Ozzy and the guys took us right back to their first album, and played all those great 70s metal anthems, with a few songs thrown in from their new album “13”. The packed arena was up and ready for a night of classic heavy metal. From the first chords of opening song “War Pigs”, everyone had their hands in the air, waving back at Ozzy who goaded us to “Go F***ing Crazy!”. The sound was clear, loud and crisp, and the playing excellent; all four band members were rocking, giving it full throttle and volume throughout the entire set. These guys invented heavy metal, and it still doesn’t get much better. I feared that they might not be able to cut it anymore, but last night they delivered 100% and then some. 
Ozzy looked pretty fit, and his voice was in much better shape that I had hoped or imagined. The guy still has stamina and kept a crazy pace going all night. Tony Iommi’s guitar playing switched between exquisite dark, doomy riffs and impressive solos, and Geezer Butler stood solid, pounding thunderous classic metal rhythms from his bass. Its sad that Bill Ward isn’t with them on the tour, but explosive new dynamo drummer Tommy Clufetos, who comes from Ozzy’s band, did an excellent job, full of energy and power. The stage set was impressive with large screens showing a mix of live video of the band, and images of darkness, doom, war, and blasphemy underlining that we were witnessing the classic dark heavy metal band. The show was almost exactly tow hours, and included “Snowblind”, “Black Sabbath”, “N.I.B.”, “Fairies Wear Boots” and “Iron Man”. The encore just had to be “Paranoid”. Stunning, powerful stuff. Sabbath showed us just what heavy metal is and can be, and for me last night they reclaimed their crown as the hardest, darkest rock band on the planet. Sometimes the old guys are still the best, and can still deliver.
Setlist: War Pigs; Into the Void; Under the Sun / Every Day Comes and Goes; Snowblind; Age of Reason; Black Sabbath; Behind the Wall of Sleep; N.I.B.; End of the Beginning; Fairies Wear Boots; Rat Salad/Drum Solo; Iron Man; God Is Dead?; Dirty Women; Children of the Grave. Encore: Paranoid.
We left the Motorpoint Arena at 10.30, drove up the MI, A1 and the A19 and were back home safe just before 12.30am, ours ears still ringing; and thoughts of a classic rock band running through our heads, some 40+ years since we first saw and heard them. It just don’t get any better.
14 Dec
Madonna Earls Court London 2001 and Manchester Arena 2004
Madonna Earls Court London 2001 and Manchester Arena 2004
I guess this should be classed as a guilty pleasure. I’ve seen Madonna twice in concert; in London at Earls Court for the Drowned World Tour in 2001 and at Manchester Arena on the Re-Invention Word Tour in 2004. I also saw her perform at Live 8 in Hyde Park in 2005. Going to see Madonna in concert is an experience in itself. There is an air of excitement and anticipation about her shows like no other; you just know that you are going to witness something different and special. Guilty pleasure or not, you have to hand it to her, this lady really does understand the art of performance, and her shows stand above those of other artists, in terms of their production values, concept and attention to detail.
The 2001 Drowned World Tour was the fifth concert tour by Madonna in support of her seventh and eight studio albums, Ray of Light and Music. The tour was her first outing for some time and featured a major production with many costumes changes, sets and dancers. The show was divided into five segments: Neo-Punk, Geisha-Anime, Country-Western Latin-Spanish, and Ghetto/Urban. The setlist consisted mainly of songs from Madonna’s most recent studio albums, with only a couple of old hits. Each segment had its own theme, stage set and costumes. This was some show.
I went with Marie and we were seriously impressed. The tour was a major success and went on to become the highest-grossing concert tours of 2001. The tour eventually played to 730,000 people throughout North America and Europe. The show is available on home video (I still have a VHS copy somewhere 🙂 ).
Set list for 2001 tour: Drowned World/Substitute For Love; Impressive Instant; Candy Perfume Girl; Beautiful Stranger; Ray of Light; Paradise (Not for Me); Frozen; Nobody’s Perfect; Mer Girl/ Sky Fits Heaven; What It Feels Like for a Girl; I Deserve It; Don’t Tell Me; Human Nature; The Funny Song (Oh Dear Daddy); Secret; Gone; Don’t Cry for Me Argentina; Lo Que Siente La Mujer; La Isla Bonita; Holiday; Music
The next time that I saw Madonna was with David at Manchester Arena in 2004. The concert took place on August 15th 2001 which was one day before Madonna’s birthday, and some enterprising fans, from the Madonna “Tribe” and thus known as “Tribers”, decided that we should all sing “Happy Birthday’ to her. I found the full story on http://www.ultimatemadonna.com/:
“The plan to sing birthday wishes to Madonna as a celebration of her 46th birthday tomorrow began as an idea in one forum threads a few weeks ago. Since then Tribers have worked hard on a secret plan on how to get an arena of thousands to sing to Madonna on Sunday night. This logistical nightmare involved informing the management of MEN Arena as well as Caresse Henry [Madonna’s personal manager at the time] of the secret plan.
Last night a letter was passed to the Musical Director and Stuart Price [Madonna’s musical director at the time] to involve them too. All expressed their interest and indicated that it was a great idea, but the planning and execution was left to the fans themselves. So Tribers got busy – banners spelling out Happy Birthday were made. Thousands of flyers were printed and handed out by Tribers on the door as people took to their seats and then once again in the sections. The flyers asked the audience to sing Happy Birthday 3 times in between ‘Papa don’t Preach’ and ‘Crazy for You’. Word soon spread and the stage was set. But would it work? Hell did it work! As Madonna started speaking Siedah Garrett interrupted and as one the crowd came together and sang Happy Birthday, the band and the dancers joined in, and the Queen of Pop was overtaken by emotion before thanking them and dedicating ‘Crazy for You’ to them.”
It was a great moment, and made the concert extra special for everyone there. This time Madonna performed several more of her hits which ,for me, gave this concert an edge over the 2001 show.
The central theme of the show was unity versus violence. It was divided into five acts with different themes: French Baroque-Marie Antoinette Revival, Military-Army, Circus-Cabaret, Acoustic and Scottish-Tribal segments. The show began with “The Beast Within”, a recitation from the Book of Revelation. Madonna appeared onstage on a rising platform, striking yoga poses and performing “Vogue”. The Re-Invention World Tour was the sixth concert tour by Madonna, promoting her ninth studio album American Life. Re-Invention was named as the highest grossing tour of 2004, earning $125 million from 56 shows and 900,000 total audience figures. The tour was recorded and a live album/DVD set was released in 2006.
Set list from 2004 tour: The Beast Within (Video Introduction); Vogue; Nobody Knows Me; Frozen; American Life; Express Yourself; Burning Up; Material Girl; Hollywood; Hanky Panky; Deeper and Deeper; Die Another Day; Lament; Bedtime Story; Nothing Fails; Don’t Tell Me; Like a Prayer; Mother and Father; Imagine; Into the Groove; Papa Don’t Preach; Crazy for You; Music; Holiday
13 Dec
Madness concerts 1979 to 1986
Madness concerts 1979 to 1986
I first saw Madness on the legendary Two Tone tour which called at Newcastle Mayfair on November 9th 1979. This tour brought Ska to the masses, coming off the back of the punk revolution, and featured the combined talents of headliners The Specials, Madness and The Selecter. The tour sold out everywhere, and was a complete success, but sadly the main reason it made the press was because of some violent outbreaks caused by a minority of troublemakers in some venues. The National Front and the British National Party were out recruiting at the shows, even though the bands who were performing on the tour openly distanced themselves from racism. It was a strange paradox, here we had fans dancing to multi-racial bands and singing along with songs whose lyrics preached racial unity, and yet the far-right was trying to sell politics which came from the complete opposite end of the spectrum. As I recall, there was quite a bit of trouble at the Mayfair gig, with fights breaking out throughout the night; and being one of a small number of people in the crowd with long hair, I did feel quite unsafe at times. None the less I survived 🙂 and it was a great night, featuring three excellent bands, and one of several nights I would spend with Madness over the next few years. By the time the Two Tone tour visited our towns, Madness were already hitting the charts and bringing their nutty humour and perfect pop tunes into our living rooms on Top of the Pops. In 1979 “The Prince”, “My Girl” and “One Step Beyond” had all been chart hits in the UK.
The next time I saw Madness was at Sunderland Mecca, which by then was also called the Mayfair (just to confuse things :)), on April 30th 1980. The place was packed and a hot sweaty fun night was had by all. I remember being right down the front in the pit, gettimg knocked and pushed all over the ballroom floor. I then saw them at concerts at Newcastle City Hall in December 1980, October 1981, and February 1983. I also saw Madness headline the first night of the Dock Rock Festival, which took place down at Hartlepool docks in the summer of 1986. Dock Rock was a great festival in many ways, although at the time it was seen as a big failure, particularly in terms of the number of people who attended (although 10,000 did attend over the weekend). Looking back now, the line-up was pretty strong; featuring Madness, The Wailers, and Dr and the Medics on the Friday night, Lindisfarne, and Dr Feelgood on the Saturday night and Gil Scott Heron, Steeleye Span, Pentangle and Champion Jack Dupree on the Sunday night. 
Going to a Madness gig meant a guaranteed night of fun. By the mid 80s there was no stopping these guys; and they had hit the UK single charts over 20 times, assembling a catalogue of tremendous pop tunes to draw from including “Baggy Trousers”, “Our House” and “House of Fun”. They also had some good support acts on those tours including The Moddettes, The Belle Stars and Jo Boxers.
Madness split shortly after the Dock Rock Festival in 1986, and reformed some years later. I saw them recently at a gig at Newcastle Academy, which I blogged on at the time.
Set list from the Mayfair 1979 concert: Tarzan’s Nuts; Mistakes; Believe Me; My Girl; Swan Lake-Razorblade Alley; Land of Hope and Glory; In the Middle of the Night; Bed and Breakfast Man; One Step Beyond; Rockin’ in Ab; Night Boat to Cairo; Madness. Encore: The Prince.
12 Dec
Muse Wembley Stadium Saturday 16th June 2007
Muse Wembley Stadium Saturday 16th June 2007
This was the first time we saw Muse and the first rock concert at the new Wembley Stadium. Up until this point Muse were pretty unfamiliar to me, but friends had told me how good they were in concert, so I bought tickets as soon as they went on sale, which was the previous December. The concert sold out on the first day and a second show was added. Marie, David and Laura all came to the gig. Support came from The Streets, Dirty Pretty Things, and Rodrigo y Gabriela.
We travelled to London by train and stayed in a Hotel in Wembley, walking distance from the stadium. The support bands were OK, although they suffered from poor sound, as is often the case at large open air gigs. Rodrigo y Gabriela were very different to anything I was expecting, full of acoustic latin rhythms, and The Streets got the crowd going and in the mood for the main act. Nothing could have prepared us for just how amazing Muse were that day. It was one of those gigs where everything just came right. The sound was excellent, the band played a first class set, the stage set was incredible and the crowd were with Muse as soon from the moment that they walked on to the stage.
The band appeared up high, on a large rising platform, accompanied by smoke and confetti. They then walked through the centre of the crowd on a raised walkway, surrounded by men in yellow radio-active suits and hazard masks. They started with Knights of Cydonia, and the whole place erupted; 100,000 people jumping up and down and singing along as one. And the atmosphere stayed like that for the next two hours. Laura still says it is the best big show she has experienced. We have seen Muse twice more since then, once at Glastonbury and once in Manchester, which I have already blogged on.
Setlist: Knights of Cydonia; Hysteria; Supermassive Black Hole; Map of the Problematique; City of Delusion; Butterflies & Hurricanes; Citizen Erased; Hoodoo; Feeling Good; Sunburn; Invincible; Starlight; Man of Mystery; Time Is Running Out; New Born. Encore: Soldier’s Poem; Unintended; Blackout; Plug In Baby. Encore 2: Micro Cuts; Stockholm Syndrome; Take a Bow
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