Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall Dec 1978
Rory Gallagher tour relentlessly throughout the 70s. He would often return to Newcastle twice within the same year. In 1978 he played the City Hall in April, and he was back again in December. I never tired of seeing him, which was not the case with many other bands. During the late 1978 tour, which ran into 1979, Rory clocked up 100 concerts in 65 cities in 12 countries in 16 weeks. He was very much the working, gigging bluesman; out on the road playing his guitar to anyone who wanted to see him. Support for this gig came from Bram Tchaikovsky, who had recently left The Motors. Bram was, at the time, fronting his own post-punk powerpop band. 
This gig was at the height of punk, when many bands were re-examining themselves and their musical approach. Rory seemed untouched by all of that change around him, and did what he did best, turning up at a hall with his old trusty strat, a Vox AC30 or two, and belting out the blues for a couple of hours. This gig was to promote his latest album, which was Photo-Finish. Looking at my ticket I was pretty close to the front for this gig, with a direct view of the great man. These gigs were really something; I just wish Rory was still with us. Setlist (from a date in the USA on the same tour): Bought & Sold; Garbage Man; Secret Agent; A Million Miles Away; Shadow Play; Country Mile; Tattoo’d Lady; Sea Cruise; Bullfrog Blues.
Posts Tagged ‘music’
19 Dec
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall Dec 1978
18 Dec
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall April 1978
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall April 1978
Support Joe O’Donnells Vision Band 
I was back at Newcastle City Hall to see Rory Gallagher again in April 1978. When I think of Rory, I think of his battered strat; a tartan shirt; total commitment to his music and to the audience in the hall; his hair flying about and by the end of the night sticking to his face with sweat. He would arrive quietly on stage, often without introduction and the place would just go crazy for him. This is the first time I got a programme at a Rory gig; I’m not sure if there were any for previous tours. From this programme: “When the gods were making guitar heroes they didn’t bother giving Rory Gallagher any greasepaint or give choreography with which to woo his fans. They knew to leave well alone: that being a guitarist who transcends mere technical pizzaz with a blazing, emotional style that not only brings the electric blues style into the Seventies, but leaves it reeling, would be more than enough. 
And there couldn’t be an unlikelier axe hero than the shiy Irish guitarist, who plays with a fire most musicians are able to muster only on “good nights”. You get the feeling that they’re all good nights for Rory, that the thrill of playing his battered Strat is renewed every time he straps it on.” Support came from Joe O’Donnell, the programme tells me “is one of the finest electric violin players performing in the Celtic tradition. He’s also widely acclaimed as a first-class mandolin-player, singer and composer.” Joe hails from Limerick, Ireland, won two scholarships for the Royal Irish Academy of Music, had played with East of Eden stepping into the shoes of their celebrated fiddle-player Dave Arbus. He was featured on their hit album Another Eden and was touring to support his album Gaodhal’s Vision, a concept album of his own compositions, “heralded as a fusion of Celtic music with jazz and rock.” Rory set List (from Glasgow gig of the tour): Secret Agent; Body and Soul; Moonchild; Bullfrog Blues; Going To My Hometown; Down on 31st Street; Souped Up Ford; Tattooed Lady; Brute Force and Ignorance; Cruise On Out. Encores: Let Me In; Messing With The Kid
17 Dec
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall February 1977
Rory Gallagher Newcastle City Hall February 1977
By 1977 Rory Gallagher was at the top of his game. His band consisted of long-standing sidekick Gerry McAvoy on bass guitar, with the drum stool filled by Wilgar Campbell (1970-72), Rod de’Ath (1972-76) or ex-SAHB Ted McKenna (1976-1981). Keyboard player Lou Martin also featured for some of that time. Rory’s latest album was 1976’s Calling Card. His stage set would be drawn from the following classic Rory tracks: Messin’ With the Kid; Laundromat; Could’ve Had Religion; Pistol Slapper Blues; Going to My Hometown; In Your Town; Bullfrog Blues; Tattoo’d Lady; A Million Miles Away; Out on the Western Plain and Walk on Hot Coals. All of the great Rory gigs I saw at Newcastle City Hall during the 70s have merged together in my mind. I recall them as joyous, crazy gigs, with Rory and band lifting the roof off the City Hall, and the audience all singing along to Messin’ with the Kid, and Going to my Hometown, which featured Rory on mandolin. The pace was relentless and completly full-on for the entire set, with Rory dripping with sweat and his battered old strat ending the show even more battered than when he arrived on stage. There has never been anyone like Rory, before or since. He was simply 100% class, a great guy, and a superb guitarist. 
My ticket stubs give me a conundrum in terms of this 1977 gig. I have two tickets; they are both clearly printed with the date Wednesday 9th February 1977. However, one of them has been over-written by hand Friday 18th February 1977. They are for different seats a couple or rows apart. I can’t figure out what happened here. I found a Rory gig list which suggest that both gigs were played, but that wouldn’t explain the hand written ticket. My guess is that the first gig was cancelled or abandoned and I bought a second ticket for the rescheduled gig so that Marie could come along with me. Wish I’d kept a diary.
15 Dec
Rory Gallagher early 70s gigs
Rory Gallagher early 70s gigs
There are many advantages to blogging on the gigs I have attended, one of which is it forces me to reflect on artists who I haven’t seen in concert for many years. I was a big fan of the late great Rory Gallagher, and knew that I had seen him quite a few times in concert. However, looking through my tickets and the few Rory programmes I have (Rory wasn’t big on programmes), I now realise that I must have seen him around 20 times in concert. 
This includes many gigs at Newcastle City Hall, which he visited many times during the 1970s in particular, and at some festivals (Lincoln, Reading and Newcastle Rock on the Tyne) and gigs at Newcastle Mayfair and Sunderland Empire. I’m going to spend this week reflecting on Rory and the many memories I have on him in concert. 
I first saw Rory in concert with Taste, a gig which I blogged on yesterday. I missed him the first couple of times that he played the North East as a solo act, the first time I remember being at the Mayfair with Joe Walsh and the James Gang in support. Some mates went and told me how great that gig was. I had a ticket to see him play Newcastle City Hall in late 1971 or early 1972, but passed and went to see The Groundhogs at Sunderland Bay Hotel instead that night, as most of my mates were going to the Groundhogs gig. 
The first time I caught Rory Gallagher solo in concert was in 1972 when he played Newcastle City Hall. By this time he had released a couple of albums and the set already featured classics such as Sinner Boy, Laundromat, and In Your Town. Rory was THE MAN for many of us. He seemed like us, a young guy with long hair, wearing jeans, and seemed so down to earth. His guitar playing was just incredible, and he played with such passion and energy. I’ll spend the next few days writing more on Rory.
14 Dec
Taste Sunderland Empire 10 May 1970
Taste Sunderland Empire 10 May 1970
Today I am moving in my blogging from gigs I have attended by acts beginning with the letter “F” to gigs by acts with the letter “G”. This one is a bit of a cheat, as the band begins with “T”, but I couldn’t begin to cover the late great Rory Gallagher without reference to the time I saw Taste in concert. This was one of the first gigs I attended, and being over 40 years ago my memories are few, but very strong, because of the power of the event. If I had to use a couple of words to sum up Rory Gallager I would choose “passion” and “authenticity”. Rory was 100% passionate in his performance and in the way he delivered his own brand of the blues. There was also an honesty and authenticity about Rory; no frills, no big act or stage show; with Rory what you saw was what you got. I was 13 years old when I saw Rory and Taste at the Empire theatre in Sunderland. I had a ticket in the front row, right in front of the great man. I’d read about Taste, but didn’t have any of them albums at the time, so I didn’t know their material. I was so impressed that after the gig I went out and bought the first Taste lp, and I later also bought On the Boards. I don’t recall their being any support act that night. The set was drawn from those two lps. I definitely remember them playing Catfish, Sugar Mama, Whats Going on, and Blister on the Moon (that track still amazes me). I can picture Rory singing “I wish I was a Catfish” like it was yesterday. He was wearing a trademark checked shirt and playing his battered old Fender. The other members of the band were, of course, Richard McCracken on bass guitar and John Wilson on drums. I remember McCracken had a habit of biting and holding his hair at both sides of his mouth while playing. Rory’s playing was a revelation to me. I had a guitar at the time, and was glued to his ever move, as his fingers flew across the frets; trying to learn some of the riffs. I seem to recall that they also played a couple of slower tracks from the On the Boards lp; possibly the title track and If the Day Was Any Longer. That night, that 13 year old schoolboy that was me, became a life long Rory fan. I was totally blown away by Taste, and went home and bored my parents about them. Next day at school I told everyone just how great they were (most people hadn’t heard of them and ignored me!). Great memories. I’ll blog on some of the many Rory gigs I attended over the next few days. They were all great, but this performance by Taste holds a special place in my memory. I always felt that Rory solo never quite matched up to the raw power of Taste, and that he lost a little edge somewhere along the way, but maybe that was because this early gig was so great, because I was so close to the man, and because it was one of my first gigs.
12 Dec
Franz Ferdinand Newcastle Arena 2005
Franz Ferdinand Newcastle Arena 2005
Support from Editors. 
Franz Ferdinand were everywhere in 2004 and 2005. The single The Dark of the Matinée made a particular impression and their sharp, quirky tunes, very reminiscent of early Roxy Music and quite arty, suggested that they would be an attractive possibility to see in concert. David and Laura were also impressed by them, so along we went when their first arena tour called at Newcastle. Support came from Editors, who were quite dark with shades of Joy Division. The crowd were really up for Franz Ferdinand and the band put on an impressive show, including their hit singles and tracks from their first two albums. Setlist: This Boy; Come on Home; Do You Want To; Auf Achse; I’m Your Villain; The Dark of the Matinée; The Fallen; Walk Away; Eleanor Put Your Boots On; Take Me Out; Darts of Pleasure; You’re the Reason I’m Leaving; 40′; Michael. Encore: Jacqueline; Evil and a Heathen; Outsiders; This Fire
11 Dec
Bryan Ferry As Time Goes By Newcastle City Hall 1999
Bryan Ferry As Time Goes By Newcastle City Hall 1999
Over 20 years since I last saw Bryan Ferry solo in concert, Marie and I went along to the City Hall to see him on his “As Time Goes By” tour. He had just released the album of the same name, which featured Bryan singing old standards. The middle of the road nature of the album made me think twice about attending this gig, but Marie quite fancied it so we bought a couple of tickets. Bryan, as usual, performed well, and I quite enjoyed the concert which mixed the standards with a few Roxy Music favourites. 
Bryan had no support act for the tour, and performed the show accompanied by a band and string quartet. The show opened with a harp solo followd by the string quartet and the band playing a song before Bryan joined them on stage. There was an interval where the band played Sweet Georgia Brown, while Bryan had a short breather. Quite interesting, and different, and very well done. I always find Bryan an interesting and intriguing performer. He carries the image of the cool sophisticated guy, but onstage he often strikes me as being slightly awkward and uncomfortable, and comes over as quite a shy person. His vocal performance is always impeccable, and I have to admit his choice of songs is excellent, even if some of them are middle of the road. Setlist would be something like: The Way You Look Tonight; Love Me or Leave Me; Smoke Gets in Your Eyes; Chance Meeting; Carrickfergus; Where or When; Bitter Sweet; Out of the Blue; The Only Face; As Time Goes By; Sunset; September Song; Falling in Love Again; Just One of Those Things; Avalon; Jealous Guy; Let’s Stick Together; Love Is the Drug; Do the Strand
10 Dec
Bryan Ferry Newcastle City Hall 1977
Bryan Ferry Newcastle City Hall 1977
Things were busy for Bryan Ferry in the mid-70s. He released a series of solo albums, by 1976 Roxy Music had officially disbanded, and in 1977 he embarked upon his first solo tour. The UK leg of the tour was originally set to take place in late 1976, but was put back to early 1977. Bryan assembled a very impressive band for the tour consisting of former fellow Roxy members Paul Thompson on drums, Phil Manzanera on guitar, and John Wetton on bass. Ace guitarist Chris Spedding was also in the band, alongside Ann O’Dell on keyboards, a brass section of Mel Collins, Martin Drover and Chris Mercer and the trio of Dyan Birch, Frank Collins and Paddie McHugh, who came via Arrival and Kokomo. The set was drawn from Bryan’s solo albums and also included a couple of Roxy Music songs. This covered a mix of pop, rock, soul and more traditional middle of the road songs. 
I remember that the middle of the road nature of some of Bryan’s solo outings put me off a little, but I remember this as a very enjoyable concert. Bryan’s excellent versions of The ‘In’ Crowd and Dylan’s A Hard Rains A-Gonna Fall would be worth the price of admission on their own. A typical setlist for the tour was: Let’s Stick Together; Shame, Shame, Shame; Roadrunner; All Night Operator; Party Doll; You Go To My Head; Could It Happen To Me; In Your Mind; Casanova; Love Me Madly Again; Love Is The Drug; Tokyo Joe; This Is Tomorrow; The ‘In’ Crowd; A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall; The Price Of Love; It’s My Party; Tracks Of My Tears
9 Dec
Fun Boy Three Newcastle Mayfair 1983
Fun Boy Three Newcastle Mayfair 1983
Fun Boy Three were formed by singers Terry Hall, Neville Staple and Lynval Golding after they left The Specials. Although they only existed for 2 or 3 years in the early 80s, during that time they produced half a dozen great singles; including It Ain’t What You Do It’s The Way That You Do It (which introduced the world to Bananarama); The Tunnel of Love and Our Lips Are Sealed. By the time I got to see them at Newcastle Mayfair ballroom they had hit the charts quite a few times. The tour was put back a month (I don’t recall why), as can be seen from the new date which has been stamped on the ticket. The gig was good fun; three friends having a great time, and making great music. You can’t ask for much more really. I found a set list from a gig in Germany, which took place a couple of months after I saw them at the Mayfair. I would think that the set I saw will have been similar, and includes Gangsters from the Specials days: Faith And Hope And Charity; Pressure Of Life; The Telephone Always Rings; Farmyard Connection I; This Is My Home; The Lunatics Have Taken over The Asylum; Things We Do; Alone; Well Fancy That; Summertime; Alibi; Our Lips Are Sealed; The Tunnel Of Love; We’re Having All The Fun; Gangsters; ‘T Aint What You Do It’s The Way That You Do It; The More I See The Less I Believe; Farmyard Connection II; Best Of Luck Mate.
7 Dec
Fairport Convention over the years
I recognise the importance of Fairport Convention in the history of rock and pop music, and particularly folk-rock; however I have never been a massive fan of the band. I’ve seen them a few times in concert over the years, probably half a dozen or so in total. I used to play Meet on the Ledge a lot when I was younger; it featured on the lp You Can All Join In, which was a popular low price sampler album of the early 70s. Everyone at school had the album and Meet on the Ledge was a favourite track. I also had a Polydor 3 lp box set, which I think was called Pop Party, and had a couple of very early Fairport tracks on it, including If I Had a Ribbon Bow, which I thought was great fun. 
I also love Where Does The Time Go. Some of their other material is just a little too traditional folk for me. Having said that I’ve been to see them a few times recently and always enjoy their shows. I first saw Fairport in the early 70s at a gig at Sunderland Locarno (or it could have Sunderland Top Rank; or possibly at both…..). I remember thinking that they were suprisingly loud for a folk-rock band. I then saw them as support act for Zeppelin at Knebworth. I also saw a few Fairport related acts during the 70s: Sandy Denny solo, Richard and Linda Thompson and Dave Swarbrick solo. The ticket here is for a Fairport Acoustic gig which David and I saw at Alnwick Playhouse five years or so ago. We both enjoyed the gig, which was in quite initimate surroundings. The programme shown here is from a gig in the early 90s, which I don’t recollect attending to be honest. I think I may have bought this programme at a car boot fair some years ago! The last couple of times I have seen Fairport Convention has been at The Sage, Gateshead; I blogged on those gigs when I attended then. My admiration for, and interest in, the band continues to grow over the years. Long may they continue.
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