Johnny Marr Manchester Ritz 22 March 2013
Laura is a big Smiths fan. She has seen Morrissey several times and saw Johnny Marr play with the Cribs, and loves anything to do with the Smiths. This was our first opportunity to see Johnny solo, so as soon as tickets went on sale, we bought a couple for this home coming gig, which sold out quickly. We drove down to Manchester yesterday afternoon with plenty of time to spare, to allow for bad weather. Diving wasn’t too bad, although it was very slow going across the M62 because of snow and long queues. We arrived in Manchester around 5pm and went for a pizza in Revolution. Manchester Ritz is a great, quite small, venue in the centre of the city. Laura and I have been there once before to see Suede, a few years ago. We entered the venue around 7.15pm, in time to catch support act Furs, a London-based band who played some pretty good 60s tinged music. Laura bought a signed vinyl copy of Johnny’s new album; The Messenger, and I bought a set of badges. Johnny Marr took to the stage at 8.30pm to a great roar from his home crowd. The Ritz looms large in Smith history, as it was the first venue they played back in the early 80s, a fact that Johnny made reference to. The set was a mix of songs from the new album, Smiths songs and songs from his time with Electronic, the dance supergroup that he formed with Bernard Sumner of New Order. 
The new songs are good, with a few pretty strong tunes, but it was (of course) the Smiths tracks that got the best reception from the Manchester crowd. Laura was particularly pleased that he chose to play London, as it is a relatively unknown Smiths song. Standouts for me were a great version of I Fought the Law ala the Clash (took me back), and an astounding version of How Soon is Now? Johnny handles vocal duties himself, and did a great job too. There was mega singing along and dancing to How Soon is Now? and There is a Light. A pretty special night, which we both really enjoyed. Johnny Marr finished at 10pm prompt; there was a curfew as the Ritz turns into a club night at 10.30pm on a Friday. The snow was coming down quite heavily as we drove back across the M62 and the journey was pretty scary; thankfully we got home safe around 1am. Setlist: The Right Thing Right; Stop Me If You Think You’ve Heard This One Before; Upstarts; Sun And Moon; Forbidden City; European Me; London; Lockdown; The Messenger; Generate! Generate!; Say Demesne; Bigmouth Strikes Again; Word Starts Attack; New Town Velocity; I Want the Heartbeat. Encore: I Fought The Law; Getting Away With It; How Soon Is Now?; There Is A Light That Never Goes Out.
Posts Tagged ‘new wave’
23 Mar
Johnny Marr Manchester Ritz 22 March 2013
28 Jan
Girlschool Newcastle City Hall 1981 & 1982
Girlschool Newcastle City Hall 1981 & 1982
I saw Girlschool at Newcastlte City Hall again in 1981 and 1982. 1982 was a busy year for the band. The band teamed up with Motorhead on the “St. Valentine’s Day Massacre” EP. The EP contained a cover of Johnny Kidd & The Pirates’ song “Please Don’t Touch” and two tracks where the bands covered each other, with Motörhead performing Girlschool’s “Emergency”, and Girlschool playing Motörhead’s “Bomber”. The two bands performed together on Top of the Pop as “Headgirl” playing “Please Don’t Touch”. I can remember the performance to this day; it was great pun, and so powerful. If you haven’t seen it go to Youtube, I’ve just played it and it still blows away the cobwebs today. The record reached No.5 in the UK Single Chart during February 1981; the biggest hit for both bands at the time. 
It was with this performance in my mind that I went along to see Girslschool at the City Hall in April 1981. A setlist from a BBC in Concert show of that year shows the band as playing the following songs: Demolition Boys; Tush (great cover of the ZZ Top song); Midnight Ride; Breakdown; Take it all the Way; The Hunter (not the Free song; pretty punky and a live favourite at the time); Nothing to Lose; Race with the Devil (yes the Gun song; an excellent cover); Emergency. Girlschool live were great, and very much of that time, a blend of punk, NWOBHM, and girl power attitude. The Newcastle metal hords loved them and always gave them a great reception. A girlschool gig consisted of lots of guy in denim jackets covered in the customary questions shaking their heads off and going crazy. 
The album Hit and Run was released in 1981, along with the title track being released as a single. Both were big successes with the album reaching No.5 and the single No.33 in the charts. I think support for the 1981 gig was AIIZ. The band also headlined at Reading in 1981. This was the first year I missed Reading for almost 10 years of attending the festival. I went along to the Newcastle Rock on the Tyne festival. I’ve never been to the Reading festival again, which I regret. Girlschool’s third album Screaming Blue Murder was released in 1982. It didn’t do so well as its predescor, and the line-up of the band started to change at this point. The 1982 Newcastle gig was, I think, the last time I saw the band. Time to put that right.
27 Jan
Girlschool Newcastle City Hall 1980
Girlschool Newcastle City Hall 1980
Girlschool came together in 1978, evolving out of a band called painted lady, and drawing from punk, classic rock, and NWOBHM. Girlschool’s original line-up was Kim McAuliffe, Enid Williams, Kelly Johnson, and Denise Dufort, and they released their first single Take it all away in late 1978. Lemmy of Motorhead took an interest in the band and in 1979 I saw them as support act on the Overkill tour. A year later they were headlining their own tour and I went to see them at Newcastle City Hall. Girlschool live were a raw hard rock band with the energy of punk and some of the speed and volume of Motorhead. 
I saw them quite a few times in the late 70s and early 80s; supporting Motorhead, and possibly Uriah Heep, then headlining at the Mayfair and three gigs at the City Hall. Girlschool released their debut album, Demolition, in 1980. The album also produced the singles Emergency, Nothing to Lose and a great version of the Gun song Race with the Devil. I think support act for this gig might have been Angel Witch, who were a great NWOBHM band fronted by a guy with long blonde hair who looked a little like Francis Rossi. They had a great song Angel Witch, and are still gigging today, as are Girlshool. The current Girlschool line-up features Kim, Enid and Denise from the original band. Kelly sadly died from cancer a few years ago. Another band who I should make the effort to see again!
11 Jan
Georgia Satellites Newcastle Mayfair 1990
Georgia Satellites Newcastle Mayfair 1990
ROCK N ROLL!!!! The Georgia Satellites came as a breath of fresh air at the end of the 80s. They blended southern rock with old fashioned good-time rock n roll, and did it loud and fast with style. Their set was a mix of their own tunes, classic rock songs and some rock n roll standards. I remember this gig as loud, fast, and lots of fun. Their “hit” song was “Keep your hands to yourself” and they did a great version of “Hippy Hippy Shake”. I found a published setlist from 1989, which I would think gives an indication of what the band will have played at the Mayfair: I Dunno; Battleship Chains; Highway 61; Shake That Thing; Crazy; Don’t Pass Me By; The Myth Of Love; All Over But The Cryin’; Dan Takes Five; Another Chance; Bring Down The Hammer; Games People Play; Can’t Stand The Pain; Keep Your Hands To Yourself; Hippy Hippy Shake; Railroad Steel.
10 Jan
Generation X Redcar Coatham Bowl 1978
Generation X Redcar Coatham Bowl
Generation X were a breath of fresh air as a live band, fusing punk attitude with power pop tunes, and fronted by two powerful characters in Billy Idol and Tony James. Billy Idol was dynamite on stage; all peroxide hair, ego, curled lip and attitude. And Tony James understood that a good rock band had to build on our rock n roll heritage and not cast it all aside, as many his punk contemporaries tried. Generation X took the best of punk, T Rex, and Mott, blended in some pop hooks, and a little Elvis, and produced a band that was great fun. I saw them twice around 1978 and 1979, the line-up being Idol (vocals), Tony (bass), Derwood (guitar) and Mark Laff (drums). They weren’t the best band musically, and both of the performances I saw were pretty rough and raw, but there was an energy, image, and swagger about them that made their gigs enjoyable and memorable. The first time I saw them was at Newcastle University students union. At the time the local punk contingent held a lot of resentment and outright hostility towards students, partly because the punks saw the new bands as being “theirs”, and yet the gigs at the Students Union were “student only”. This led to confrontation at a number of gigs, in particular at the Clash White Riot tour gig in Newcastle, where punks were battling with students at the door in an attempt to gain entry. Quite a few punks from the town managed to get into the Generation X gig somehow, and there were some scuffles, and lots of beer being thrown about. The band played a short set, probably less than an hour, and finished with their then-current single “Ready Steady Go”. There was no encore, which incensed the punks. A chant of “Ready Steady F*** Off” started and the punks clambered onto the stage and started to wreck Generation X’s gear. The gig was good but the end was nasty, which soured the evening. The next time I saw them was much more fun. By this time they had released “King Rocker” and were living the part of being rock stars. Billy Idol was awesome and clearly thought he was Elvis, Tony James had his bass hanging down at his knees and was throwing rock star poses, and Derwood was wearing a Charge of the Light Brigade jacket and looking the biz. Mark Laff was at the back banging away and being Keith Moon. Great stuff. Bring back Sunday nights at Redcar Bowl and / or put me in a time machine and take me back to 1978.
Update 27 December 2021. Many thanks to Jimmy Burns (a.k.a. Punk Hoarder) who kindly provided me with an image of the poster for the Newcastle University concert. It brings back so many happy memories of a great, crazy night with my late wife Marie. We enjoyed so many early punk concerts together and many of them were crazy, manic and even dangerous. This was one of them and it brings back so many memories of people dancing on stage with the band (I think, although this could be my memory playing tricks!) And the nasty end when people started to try and smash up the bands gear because they didn’t return for an encore.
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
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.
6 Dec
The Flamin’ Groovies 1972 Newcastle City Hall and 1976 Redcar Coatham Bowl
The Flamin’ Groovies 1972 Newcastle City Hall and 1976 Redcar Coatham Bowl
Support in 1972 came from Mr Moses Schoolband and Man; Support in 1976 came from the Damned 
I first saw The Flamin’ Groovies at a concert at Newcasle City Hall in 1972. I keep all my ticket stubs, but don’t have one for this. I must have paid at the door, and not been given a ticket, which sometimes happened in those days. I know that tickets did exist for this gig, as I saw one for sale on eBay a few weeks ago; I bid on it, but sadly I was outbid at the last moment. I went along to the gig on my own, but ran into some friends from town, and joined them in seats near the front. The gig was general admission, with no seat numbers on the tickets, something which never seems to happen now. It was not well attended and there were plenty of empty seats. I went along partly out on curiosity; I had read some good reports of the Flamin’ Groovies from recent festival appearances, and also to see Man, who were one of the supporting acts. First up was a strange band called Mr Moses School Band. As I recall Mr Moses was the singer and he was totally outrageous, crazy and over the top. 
He finished the set by throwing the mike stand into the crowd, just missing us; again something that you never see these days (definitely not covered by Health and Safety risk assessments). Man were next up. I saw them lots of times in the 70s, at festivals and at the City Hall. They were always amazing; great musicianship, particularly from Micky Jones who played long meandering west coast influenced guitar solos on his Gibson SG which were outstanding and never boring. Spunk Rock was my favourite at the time. The Flamin’ Groovies were quite wierd. If you can imagine mixing 50s rock n roll with garage and blending it with the Rolling Stones you wouldn’t be far off. They started with Jumping Jack Flash, and did a few Stones covers. The singer must have been watching lots of film of Jagger, who he obviously modelled himself on, almost to the point of parody. Their well know album at the time was Teenage Head; I remember them playing the title track and another song which was well known at the time, which was called Slow Death.
Roll forward four years to 1976, and a group of us went to Redcar’s Coatham Bowl to see the Groovies. Once again, there was a strong support in the form of The Damed who were a new, young punk group and very much a band of the moment, while The Flamin’ Groovies were now being hailed as one of the forerunners of punk, a label which I found difficult to understand, given my memories of the City Hall gig. By now they had teamed up with Dave Edmunds and had just released Shake Some Action. I have blogged separately on The Damned, and briefly mentioned their performance that night. Suffice it to say here that they were amazing; young, fresh, fast, crazy, and angry and they just blew the crowd away that night. The Groovies were ok, but it must have been difficult for them to follow the Damned’s high energy performance. They were a very different band from the one I saw in 1972. There were no Jagger impersonations this time, or any old 50s rock n roll songs. The show focussed very much on their own material and on their latest album.
The Flamin’ Groovies now command almost legendary status; I’m pleased that I was lucky enough to see them on these two occasions.
Many thanks to Ken for sending me the two images of his ticket and signed flyer from the 1972 City Hall concert.
4 Dec
The Fall Newcastle Tyne Theatre 1980
The Fall Newcastle Tyne Theatre 1980
Support from Cabaret Voltaire, Clicks and Flesh
I have only seen The Fall once. There I have admitted it. I fully realise that they are seen as a super cool band, Peel faves and one of the only remaining originals of the Manchester punk / post-punk days, but for some reason I have never got round to seeing them again; the one time that I did see them being over 30 years ago. I keep meaning to catch up with them, and I have an outstanding promise to David and Laura to take them to Fall gig, but each time they have been in the area something else has come up, and I guess they just haven’t been high enough on my list of priorities. Still, I am sure that it is something that I will put right some day soon, and that I will get along to see them again one day.
Anyway, back to this gig. It was a pretty full evening, with support from Cabaret Voltaire, Gary Chaplin’s (ex Penetration) Clicks and local band Flesh. The venue was the Tyne Theatre which had only recently reopened; this was the first time I attended a gig there, although I do remember my Dad taking me to see King Kong T the venue in the 60s when I was a kid, and the theatre was known as the Stoll cinema. I went with Marie and we found The Fall different, challenging, and interesting. It was around the time of At The Witch Trails and I remember them playing Totally Wired, which was the only song of theirs which I knew at the time.
As I say, this is another band who I must add to my list of Bands To See Again While I Can!
9 Nov
Eurythmics Newcastle City Hall 1983
Eurythmics Newcastle City Hall 1983
Touch tour
I’ve only seen Eurythmics once in concert, during their Touch tour at Newcastle City Hall in 1983. By this point in their career they had enjoyed quite a few hits, and the City Hall was packed. I’d seen the Tourists a few times, and had also see Dave Stewart in Longdancer in his early days playing in his home town Sunderland. The set consisted of all the hits to date, and was pretty good too. I don’t recall who the support act was; it all seems a long time ago, although actually, compared to some gigs I have blogged about it of course isn’t that long ago…
They were a major band by the time of this 1983 tour, and had a lot of great songs. Annie and Dave were due to play at Live Aid in Wembely, and I would have seen them at that concert, but as I recall they pulled out because Annie was unwell. Setlist (from the London gig of the tour): The First Cut; Never Gonna Cry Again; This Is the House; Here Comes the Rain Again; Regrets; The Walk; This City Never Sleeps; Who’s That Girl?; I Could Give You (a Mirror); Take Me to Your Heart; Cool Blue; Love Is a Stranger; Somebody Told Me; Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This); Right by Your Side; Wrap It Up; Jennifer
Vintagerock's Weblog. 