Morrissey Manchester Arena 28 July 2012
Welcome home Morrissey! Laura and I went to see the great man perform at the vast Manchester Arena last night. We arrived early, had a look at the merchandise, but decided to pass as Laura was looking for any Morrissey vinyl. We also noticed that all the fast food stalls were selling veggie. Morrissey had obviously insisted that no burgers were to be sold. Support came from Kristeen Young, who has opened for Mozza for some time now. Her weird screechy music bemused the audience as it usually does. During the interval the customary video show displayed some choice obscure cuts, several of which we had seen before, and a couple that were new to us. I recognised Shocking Blue, Vince Taylor (who Morrissey must have modelled himself on to some extent), New York Dolls, Bridget Bardot, and a great video of Francoise Hardy travelling through the night lights of a city (London and Soho?) in an open top car singing “All Over the World”; just perfect. And then a taped rant of some of the world’s ills is played across the PA (Adolf Hitler, torture, Nelson Mandella’s imprisonment, cancer, etc, you get the idea) which must have gone on 5 minutes or more, and Morrissey’s onstage early at 8.35pm. The early entrance took the crowd by surprise, and many people were still entering the arena at that point. The screen shows a cheesy picture of Adam West and Burt Ward (60s Batman and Robin). Morrissey was on good form, and in a really good mood: “Wherever you may roam, there’s no place like… Hulme”. He told us that he “hadn’t been invited to the Olympic opening ceremony because my smile is too sincere”. The Diamond Jubilee also got a mention: “How much longer do we have to put up with that moronic family?” The band were all wearing “We Hate William and Kate t-shirts”. The set bore some similarities to last time Laura and I saw him at Middlesbrough, but there have been quite a few changes, including a couple of new songs that Laura and I didn’t know. The Arena was pretty packed with only a few empty seats right up back at the very top. Guitarist Boz was in drag and introduced by Morrissey as Gaynor Tension (whats all that about?). An image of Oscar Wilde with the speech bubble: “Who is Morrissey?” kept popping up. The sound was clear and loud, from where we sat in the arena, although I know others felt that the sound was poor. Great lights, and the band seemed to me to have a much heavier, darker sound this time round. Towards the end Morrissey gave the mike to the crowd, and let a few fans make comment. One guy thanked Morrissey for meeting him in Belgium (I think) and mentioned that he had given Morrissey a T Rex book. 
Morrissey got one guy up on stage, who hugged him; this prompted lots of people trying to get on stage and some crowdsurfing at the front of the mosh pit. Morrissey dedicated the evening to John McBeath, a promoter from Manchester who passed away earlier this year. The image of Adam West and Burt Ward returned at the end. Highlights for me were: Everyday is Sunday; How Soon is Now; Please Let Me Get What I Want, Still Ill, which I don’t think I’ve seen him play since the days of The Smiths. Meat is Murder was quit extended with lots of old video footage of animals being slaughtered. I wonder if this is the same footage that was used on the Smiths’ Meat is Murder tour. It looks pretty similar. The crowd were quite subdued; the reaction wasn’t anywhere near what we’d expected, given this was a homecoming gig and his only British gig this year. Nothing like the 50th birthday gig at the Apollo. Notwithstanding that this was a good gig, which both Laura and I really enjoyed. He finished shortly after 10pm, and we were home by around 12.45am. Setlist: You Have Killed Me; Everyday Is Like Sunday; You’re The One For Me, Fatty; How Soon Is Now?; I’m Throwing My Arms Around Paris; Ouija Board, Ouija Board; Maladjusted; When Last I Spoke To Carol; Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me; People Are The Same Everywhere; I Know It’s Over; To Give (The Reason I Live); Scandinavia; Black Cloud; Action Is My Middle Name; I Will See You In Far-Off Places; Meat Is Murder; Let Me Kiss You; Speedway; Please, Please, Please Let Me Get What I Want. Encore: Still Ill
Posts Tagged ‘new wave’
29 Jul
Morrissey Manchester Arena 28 July 2012
22 Jul
Elvis Costello Sunderland 1980; Newcastle 1981 and 1982
Elvis Costello Sunderland Mayfair 1980
Very few of the top punk and new wave bands came to Sunderland, as most bands tended to call at Newcastle and/or Middlesbrough for their North East gigs. So when a punk act did come it was a big event. My 1981 the old Sunderland Locarno (or “Mecca” as it was more commonly known) had been renamed The Mayfair, taking the same name as its Newcastle counterpart. Sunderland Mayfair regularly featured heavy rock acts, and one or two punk / new waves bands also crept on to the schedule. The place was absolutely jam packed for Elvis Costello. I remember being down the front on the dance floor and being squashed and pushed all over the place. 
The next time I saw Elvis was a year later in 1981, when he was back at the City Hall. Elvis was incredibly prolific in the early years of his career. By the end of 1981 he had released 6 albums and 17 singles, and the vast majority had climbed high in the charts; an incredible achievement. This meant that he has a vast catalogue of songs to choose from in concerts, and his sets just got longer and longer over the years, often featuring in excess of 30 songs, which is some going, and certainly set him aside from many of his punk contemporaries. His shows were a great mix of high energy new wave, catchy jangly pop, beautiful moving ballads, with a classic cover thrown in every now and then. 
Costello was back at the City Hall a year later, at the time of the Imperial Bedroom album. 
The last time that I saw Elvis at Newcastle City Hall was some thirty years ago, in 1982. Support that evening came from The Bluebells, who were to hit the charts with Young at Heart a couple of years later. I saw Costello at Live Aid at Wembley Stadium, and then lost touch with his work. Reflecting back on these gigs has made me realise just how good he is, and I’ve promised myself that I will make every effort to see him when he comes to the Sage Gateshead in 2013.
21 Jul
Elvis Costello Newcastle City Hall 1979
Elvis Costello Newcastle City Hall 1979
Support Acts: Richard Hell; John Cooper Clarke
Elvis Costello was back at the City Hall in early 1979 fronting a great triple bill, with Richard Hell and the Voidoids and John Cooper Clarke as support acts. I’d seen Richard Hell as support for the Clash at Newcastle Poly, and John Cooper Clarke popped up quite often as a support act in those days. Both acts were well worth watching, of course. Richard had been a member of Television and, briefly, the Heartbreakers, and was known at the time for his signature tune “Blank Generation” and for “inventing’ ripped, safety-pinned shirts. John Cooper Clarke was a revelation in those early punk days. His rapid, caustic humour delivered in that greater Mancunian drawl always went down well with the Geordie crowd. Songs (are they songs?) such as “I Don’t Wanna Be Nice”; “Psycle Sluts 1&2” and “(I Married a) Monster from Outer Space” stick in my mind even to this day. 
Elvis Costello had kept on turning out those classic hit singles in the year since his last City Hall performance. “Oliver’s Army”; “Accidents Will Happen” and “Radio Radio” were all new to the set this time around. The set was much longer with two extended encores. I’ve just played last song “part Girl” on Youtube to remind myself how great Elvis was in those days. I must also mention Elvis’ band The Attractions, who were a very important part of his sound. Local guy Bruce Thomas played with Paul Rodgers in the 60s, and I saw him several times in the very under-rated band Quiver. The other members were Steve Nieve on piano and Bruce Thomas (whoo I’d previously seen with Chilli Willi and the Red Hot Peppers) on drums. Setlist: Goon Squad; Hand In Hand; Oliver’s Army; (What’s So Funny ‘Bout) Peace, Love And Understanding?; Green Shirt; The Beat; Accidents Will Happen; Lip Service; This Year’s Girl; Lipstick Vogue; Watching The Detectives; Big Boys; You Belong To Me – including a line from The Last Time; Pump It Up. Encore 1: (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea; Mystery Dance; Radio, Radio. Encore 2: No Dancing; Party Girl
19 Jul
Elvis Costello Newcastle City Hall March 1978
Elvis Costello Newcastle City Hall March 1978
Support Mickey Jupp
I’d seen Elvis Costello on the Stiff tour, and was really into his early singles and his image. He quickly graduated to playing concert halls, and this was the first of many times that he has played at Newcastle City Hall. His success was pretty rapid, and that clutch of early singles is impressive. Within a year he had delivered two ace albums and the singles Less Than Zero, Alison, Red Shoes, I don’t want to go to Chelsea, and Watching the detectives. Amazing when you think of it. His image then was very distinct; a strange nurdy mix of Buddy Holly, Hank Marvin, and yet still very cool. On stage he was sharp, stuttering, passionate and totally enthralling. I really enjoyed seeing Elvis Costello in the late 70s and early 80s, and haven’t been to see him for some time. I missed his recent visit to Newcastle, but note that he is returning to the region next year to play at The Sage Gateshead, and have promised Laura that we will go along this time. Reminiscing about my early Elvis concert experiences has made me realise just how great he was, and I am sure still is, so I look forward to see him next year. I’ll post a few more recollections on early Elvis gigs over the next few days. Setlist: Waiting For The End Of The World; No Action; This Year’s Girl; Night Rally; (The Angels Wanna Wear My) Red Shoes; Hand In Hand; Less Than Zero; The Beat; Lip Service; (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea; Pump It Up; Lipstick Vogue; Watching The Detectives; You Belong To Me; Mystery Dance; Miracle Man
12 Jul
China Crisis Newcastle Mayfair mid 80s
China Crisis Newcastle Mayfair mid 80s
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.
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