It’s been over 40 years since I first saw Culture Club in concert, and I’m pleased to say that their recent show at Newcastle Arena showed they’ve lost none of their flair. The gig was part of a special tour celebrating their first two albums, “Kissing to Be Clever” and “Colour by Numbers”, and featured those records played in full—track by track, hit by hit. I first saw Culture Club at Newcastle City Hall in 1983, just as they were really taking off.
At that point, they’d released their debut album, had already bagged a number one single, and the City Hall was packed out with fans eager to see what all the fuss was about. I remember George sweeping onto the stage in a multi-coloured suit with those trademark dreadlocks. It was a great show—more pop and reggae than rock, and noticeably quieter than most gigs I’d been to at the time. I also recall that after the concert, we went on to the Mayfair to catch Marillion—those were the days!
Move forward 40 years to when I saw Rod Stewart Durham Cricket Ground 30 June 2023. The support act was none other than Boy George and Culture Club. We arrived in time to catch most of their set including great versions of their hits “Church of the Poison Mind”, “Time”, “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me?” And “Karma Chameleon”. All played with George’s usual classic style. Excellent. George also returned to his roots and played a great cover of T Rex’s “Get It On”.
Rod returns with a new outfit and is joined by Boy George. George explains that the next song “The Killing of Georgie” means a lot to him personally, and how his mother gave it to him as a present in a brown paper bag. It was her way of letting him know that she realised he was gay. Rod and George deliver the song together and it is very appropriate and very moving. George explains that he has to leave because his Nan is not well. Fast forward to 2024, and George may be older, but he still knows how to put on a show. From the opening number White Boy, the band powered through both albums with confidence and style.
The visuals were slick, the band tight, and George’s voice—while perhaps a little lower than it once was—was still rich and expressive. The hits came thick and fast: “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me”, “Time (Clock of the Heart)”, “Church of the Poison Mind”, and of course “Karma Chameleon”, which brought the house down. The whole arena sang along and it was hard not to be swept up in the energy of it all.
Support came from Tony Hadley and Heaven 17—both well-received and great fun in their own right—but it was George who held the night together. He remains a fascinating performer: charismatic, stylish, and full of personality. It’s always a risk seeing a band so far removed from their heyday, but this was no nostalgia cash-in. It felt like a proper celebration of some classic pop music, played with heart and a bit of theatrical flair.
Set List: White Boy, You Know I’m Not Crazy, I’ll Tumble 4 Ya, Take Control, Love Twist, Boy, Boy, (I’m the Boy, I’m Afraid of Me, White Boys Can’t Control It, Do You Really Want to Hurt Me, Karma Chameleon, It’s a Miracle, Black Money, Changing Every Day, That’s the Way (I’m Only Trying to Help You), Church of the Poison Mind, Miss Me Blind, Mister Man, Stormkeeper, Victims, Colour by Numbers, Kissing 2 Be Clever, Get It On.
The first, last (and only) time I saw 
For some reason I passed many opportunities to see ABC in the intervening years. Time to make up for this schoolboy error. And this was some great opportunity indeed to catch up with Martin Fry (the only remaining member from the early days of the band), his vision and his extraordinary music. Looking back at his career Martin Fry is responsible for the beautiful, and massively successful, piece of music which lies in the album The Lexicon of Love.
Somewhere from the electronica soundscape of Sheffield which Martin Fry shared with the human league and other bands of the time, came a collection of beautifully crafted songs, many of which focused upon the 3 of Love and passed romances. The Lexicon of Love was, of course, a major album chart hit, and remains an important part of many peoples youth, including my own. Martin is currently touring with the Southbank Sinfonia, and filling venues across the UK. The conductor of the orchestra, Anne Dudley is someone who Martin worked with several years ago along with the legendary Trevor Horn.
The Glasshouse website announced the event: “Unique. Lavish. A masterpiece returns. ABC performs The Lexicon Of Love in its entirety, plus their other greatest hits with Southbank Sinfonia Conducted by Anne Dudley. The Lexicon Of Love was first released in 1982 and went straight to number one. Fusing dance floor finesse with a post-punk attitude, the album spawned timeless tracks such ‘Poison Arrow’, ‘The Look Of Love’ , Tears Are Not Enough’ and ‘All Of My Heart’. The album saw ABC enchant the world with their own unique brand of pop. The Lexicon Of Love Orchestra tour first came to fruition in 2009 with countless 5 star reviews from a one off show At The Royal Albert Hall with Martin donning his iconic gold lame suit.”
“It sees Martin joined by Southbank Sinfonia and long time collaborator Anne Dudley as conductor for a truly magical evening celebrating this pop masterpiece. Next year will be 15 years since that first partnership that sees audiences returning again and again. ABC fronted by Martin Fry were formed in Sheffield in the 1980’s when they decided they wanted to fuse the world of disco funk with their own unique post punk vision. ABC’s debut album The Lexicon Of Love sold over a million records.”
The Glasshouse was completely packed with an audience who have loved this album from the day they first heard it some 40 years ago. Everyone was singing along and dancing to great tracks such as “The Look of Love” and “All of My Heart”. The sound was exquisite and Martin looked fantastic in sharp suits (although no gold lame suit this evening); just the same as he did when I watched him perform those tracks on Top of the Pops.
The concert was in two parts with a short interval. I started the evening by investing in a T-shirt, two programmes (one for me and one for my friend John in the USA), a vinyl copy of the Lexicon of Love Live signed by Martin Fry and a double Jack Daniels. A lovely concoction of mementos and a nice drink to start the evening. The first set comprised a number of hits and more recent ABC songs including the great “When Smokey Sings”.
During the short interval I decided to pass on another alcoholic beverage and instead had a lovely small tub of chocolate ice cream. For the second set we were treated to Martin Fry in a lovely pink suit, the orchestra and band performing the Lexicon of Love in its entirety. This is what everyone had come to hear. There was mucho dancing in the aisles and in seats and lots of singing along. The encore was a reprise of “The Look of Love”. A great evening with an artist whose work has lived on through the years and was greatly enhanced by the addition of the orchestra. Elaine and I both really enjoyed it all.
Setlist: Set 1: Overture; When Smokey Sings; Viva Love; The Night You Murdered Love; (How to Be a) Millionaire; The Flames of Desire; The Love Inside the Love; Ten Below Zero; One Better World; Ocean Blue; Be Near Me.
This tour was billed as The 2002 Review, and was a package tour of bands under the “new romantic” banner. I guess 2002 was chosen as a “futuristic’ date. It certainly seemed a long way in the future at the time! “During the early part of 1981 the band (Classix Nouveaux) established their following with two major UK tours. The first was the much publicised 2002 Review which sprang from Sal Solo’s idea of combining a number of promising new bands in one package. This gave national exposure to Kirk Brandon’s Theatre of Hate and Shock” (from ChemistryDaily.com). Classix Nouveaux were formed from the ashes of X-Ray Spex plus shaven headed singer Sal Solo (great name). Theatre of Hate were fronted by Kirk Brandon, later of Spear of Destiny, and were much punkier that the headliner. Fad Gadget (Francis John (Frank) Tovey) was a synth-based musician and early proponent of industrial music. I don’t recall anything about the band Shock. I remember enjoying Theatre of Hate who delivered a very powerful set with great passion from Kirk Brandon. I was also impressed by Classix Nouveaux, whose set was quite dramatic, and Sal Solo a great, charismatic frontman. Great value; all for £3!
If you asked me, I would have said that I’d seen China Crisis a few times, however my ticket collection consist of only one stub, from a gig at Newcastle Mayfair, which probably took place in the early to mid 80s. I have vague memories of seeing them at Redcar Coatham Bowl as well, but that could well be a figment of my imagination. The band had some pretty pleasant tunes; I remember Wishful Thinking, King in a Catholic Style and Black Man Ray, in particular. In my head China Crisis sit in the same box as Aztec Camera and Talk Talk. Not sure what strange logic makes me place the three bands together, but there we go. Of the three bands, Talk Talk were, in my view the strongest, and were just great live; I will report on them another day. I’ve just played Black Man Ray on youtube to remind myself of China Crisis. Good song.
Dave and I went to see Culture Club at Newcastle City Hall in March 1983. This is the only time that I have seen the band. At this point in their career Culture Club had released their first lp “Kissing to be Clever” and had hit the singles chart twice, with the No 1 single “Do You Really Want to Hurt Me” and a No 3 hit with “Time (Clock of the Heart)”. This was their first major tour, before they became really mega, with the release of the massive “Colour by Numbers” album and the world wide hit “Karma Charmeleon”. 
Boy George was (and still is) a fascinating character, and it was to see him and to hear the hit singles that drew us to The City Hall that night. Support came from The Swinging Laurels, reportedly at the request of George. The concert was pretty good; George looked great in a multi-coloured suit/dress and had impressive dreadlocks. I remember the music as being a mix of pop and reggae, and the sound much quieter than most rock gigs. The gig was sold out, and had been for some time in advance. I seem to recall that we went on to the Mayfair after the gig that night to see Marillion. 
I haven’t seen Culture Club since that night, although I did sit in the next row to Boy George on a flight to Munich once. A bootleg recording of the Liverpool show of this tour gives the setlist as: Boy Boy (I’m The Boy); I’ll Tumble 4 Ya; Mister Man; Take Control; Black Money; Love Twist; Do You Really Want To Hurt Me?; You Know I’m Not Crazy; I’m Afraid Of Me; White Boys Can’t Control It; It’s A Miracle; Church Of The Poison Mind; White Boy; Time (Clock Of The Heart)
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