Rush Newcastle City Hall 14th February 1978
By 1978 Rush has become massively popular with rock fans, and played two sold out shows at Newcastle City Hall on 14th and 15th February, 1978 with support from the Tyla Gang, fronted by ex-Ducks Deluxe “Godfather of Boogie” Sean Tyla. I attended the first night’s concert. From the tour programme: “Rush take approximately eight hours to set up their show for public viewing. It takes sixteen people in total to perform the necessary functions to convert an empty stage into a finely produced performance…..”Xanadu”: Any one who saw the band on the last part of our most recent.. British tour, will perhaps remember this one as having been featured in our show during this time, on the album it forms an eleven minute tour-de-force, and is certainly the most complex and multi-textured piece we have ever attempted. 
It also contains one of Alex’s most emotive and lyrical guitar solo’s, as well as a very dramatic vocal from Geddy….our immediate future is, of course, touring. We will be touring the United States and Canada extensively until February of 1978, when we plan to return to Europe for an extensive six week tour, encompassing all of Great Britain and continental Europe as well. … Our only hope is perhaps to contribute something enjoyable and important to those we meet along the way, and surely there are few things more enjoyable or more important than good music. If that’s all that Rush is, that’s all that we would be.” Rush were, and remain, very different to many other rock bands. They have always succeeded in producing music which is heavy, thoughtful, and musically intricate and perfect, blending elements of classic rock with prog. Their concert in 1978 was astounding, and many of my friends felt it was one of the best things they had ever seen. Setlist: Bastille Day; Lakeside Park; By-Tor & The Snow Dog; Xanadu; A Farewell to Kings; Something for Nothing; Cygnus X-1; Anthem; Closer to the Heart; 2112 Parts I – VII; Working Man; Fly by Night; In the Mood. Encore: Cinderella Man
Posts Tagged ‘prog rock’
23 Mar
Rush Newcastle City Hall 14th February 1978
22 Mar
Rush Newcastle City Hall 11 June 1977
Rush Newcastle City Hall 11 June 1977
I hadn’t heard of Rush at all when I first went to see them. I remember being surprised that this “new” Canadian rock band was headlining the City Hall. Of course, Rush weren’t new at all, and had already released several albums. Anyway, I went along to see them out of curiosity as much as anything, to find out what they were like. There was actually another reason that I went along to this concert, and that was to see support band Stray. I was a big Stray fan from the early 70s onwards and went to see them every chance I had. By 1977 Stray were coming to the end of the first part of the career, but nonetheless Del and the band played a storming set. 
Rush were touring to support 2112, and it came as a big surprise to me just how good they were. I was also surprised that a three piece band could be play such intricate musical, and that they could also rock and play so loud. The members were, as they remain today: Alex Lifeson (guitar), Geddy Lee (bass) and Neil Peart (drums). The other surprise was Geddy Lee’s high pitched vocals which took some getting used to. Rush opened with Bastille Day and the set included the epic 2112 suite, the wonderful Xanadu (which became a great favourite of all of us rockers in the late 70s) and the excellent Working Man and Finding My Way. I left the City Hall converted to Rush, and went to see them quite a few times over the next few years.
Setlist: Bastille Day; Anthem; Lakeside Park; 2112 Part I-VII: Overture; The Temples of Syrinx; Discovery; Presentation; Soliloquy; Grand Finale. Xanadu; Something for Nothing; By-Tor & The Snow Dog; The Necromancer; Working Man; Finding My Way; Fly by Night; In the Mood; What You’re Doing.
21 Mar
Rainbow Whitley Bay Ice Rink 8th September 1983
Rainbow Whitley Bay Ice Rink 8th September 1983
The next time Rainbow visited the North East it was to play in the cold and cavernous Whitley Bay Ice Rink, which was the venue of choice of bigger bands in the 80s, before Newcastle had an arena. This was now Rainbow MK VIIII (!) and the line-up was Ritchie Blackmore (guitar); Roger Glover (bass); Joe Lynn Turner (vocals); David Rosenthal (keyboards); Chuck Burgi (drums). Support came from ex-Runaway Lita Ford.
Whitley Bay Ice Rink was a pretty awful venue for a rock concert. It held a lot of people but standing on top of an ice rink covered in wooden boards is not the best setting for a gig, and it was always soooo cold. 
However Rainbow’s performance made up for it. Ritchie was on excellent form, controlling his guitar and the band with strange almost magical hand gestures. A bootleg recording exists of the show. It was a long set by Rainbow standards, probably around two hours. Very loud and a storming performance. One of the best times that I saw Rainbow live. I think Ritchie’s strat was smashed into pieces, which he threw into the crowd, if I remember correctly. This was the last time I saw Rainbow. The next time I saw Ritchie it was back in Purple at their massive comeback show at Knebworth.
Setlist: Spotlight Kid; Miss Mistreated; I Surrender; Can’t Happen Here; Catch the Rainbow; Drinking with the Devil; Difficult to Cure; Power; Blues; Stargazer; Stranded; Death Alley Driver; Fire Dance; All Night Long; Maybe Next Time; Since You Been Gone; Encore: Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll
20 Mar
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 23rd July 1981
A year had passed since Ritchie Blackmore and Rainbow last graced the stage of Newcastle City Hall, and things had yet again changed in the band. Graham Bonnet and Cozy Powell both resigned to pursue other projects following a very successful performance at the first Monsters of Rock festival at Donington. The new line-up was Rainbow Mk VII and featured Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Roger Glover (bass), Don Airey (keyboards), Bobby Rondinellu (drums) and Joe Lynn Turner (vocals). Their UK tour called at the City Hall for two nights, and I attended the first night, on 23rd July 1981. Support came from Rose Tattoo, an Australian hard rock and roll band, fronted by bald-headed and heavily tattooed Angry Anderson, who went on to major solo success with the power ballad “Suddenly”. I remember that there was quite a buzz about Rose Tattoo at the time, so I made a point of watching their set, and pretty good they were too.
By now I was getting used to the ever changing format of Rainbow, and I’d heard the single “I Surrender” which gave the band another big chart success. Joe Lynn Turner was another great front man and vocalist and took the band even further in the direction of classic AOR and even bigger success around the world. This was another amazing performance by Blackmore and the band.
Setlist: Land of Hope and Glory / Over the Rainbow; Spotlight Kid; Love’s No Friend; I Surrender; Man on the Silver Mountain; Catch the Rainbow; Can’t Happen Here; Lost in Hollywood; Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll. Encore: All Night Long.
19 Mar
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 19th February 1980
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 19th February 1980
It was now 1980, and Rainbow’s line-up had changed yet again. Blackmore had his eye on the commercial rock market, and wanted to move Rainbow’s music in the direction of more commercial straight ahead rock, away from their traditional “swords and sorcery” thematic. Ronnie James Dio was having none of this, so he was off, soon to join Black Sabbath. So the band morphed yet again. In came singer Graham Bonnet, last seen fronting The Marbles who hit the UK charts in the late ’60s with a Bee Gees penned pop classic “Only One Woman”. Bonnet has a great solid rock voice, with an amazing vocal range; although at the time I found it difficult to imagine anyone other than Dio singing Rainbow classics like “Man on the Silver Mountain”. But sing them Graham did, and he made a pretty good fist of it too. The line-up of Rainbow Mk V was Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Cozy Powell (drums), returning old Purple mate Roger Glover (bass), Don Airey (keyboards) and Graham Bonnet (vocals). 
The changing nature of the band didn’t seem to impact upon their popularity. If anything Rainbow were more popular, and once again sold out two nights at the City Hall. I attended the first night’s concert. Support came from NWOBHM band Samson featuring Bruce Dickinson (or Bruce Bruce as he was then). This concert displayed more shades of classic rock than the mystical dark elements on show during the Dio-era. It was a different type of gig, but no less enjoyable, and Blackmore was as on-fire as ever. The new formula had already paid dividends in the form of a massive hit single “Since You Been Gone”, which was followed by the almost as successful “All Night Long”.
Setlist: Eyes of the World; Love’s No Friend; Man on the Silver Mountain; Catch the Rainbow; Lost in Hollywood; Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll / Kill the King; All Night Long
18 Mar
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 1st November 1977
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 1st November 1977
Ritchie Blackmore and Rainbow returned to the City Hall in 1977 to promote their upcoming album “Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll”. The ever changing line-up had evolved into Rainbow Mk4 and was now Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Ronnie James Dio (vocals), Bob Daisley (bass), David Stone (keyboards) and Cozy Powell (drums). This time demand to see the band was massively high, resulting in two sold out performances at the City Hall. Support came from Kingfish. Once again, Rainbow put on an amazing show, with guitar pyrotechnics ala Blackmore, soaring vocals from Dio, and an amazing stage and light show. They just don’t make rock bands like this any more.
From the tour programme: “Welcome to one of the most exciting events in rock music today. This is not simply another travelling show. It is a spectacular of lights and music. Rainbow’s $100,000 computerised ‘firework machine’ brings a new dimension to the concert stage…Visually, it is stunning. Musically, it weaves through every emotion. But the emphasis on this tour is excitement. ‘If anyone has come for a nice, quiet night’ smiles Cozy Powell ‘they’d better head for the exit. If we don’t burst your ears, we’ll blind your eyes.’ Long Live Rock & Roll!”
Well said, Cozy.
Setlist: Kill The King; Mistreated; Sixteenth Century Greensleeves; Catch The Rainbow; Long Live Rock ‘n’ Roll; Lazy-Man On The Silver Mountain; Still I’m Sad.
17 Mar
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 14th September 1976
Rainbow Newcastle City Hall 14th September 1976
In 1975 Ritchie Blackmore was becoming disillusioned with Deep Purple, wanting to move their music in a different direction, drawing from his interest in classical music. He decided to try a few songs out with rock band Elf, fronted by Ronnie Jame Dio; Elf having supported Purple on the 1974 Burn tour. The liaison with Dio worked well and so Blackmore decided to leave Purple to form his new band Rainbow, although he was less than happy with the rest of Elf, and soon changed the rest of the line-up. By the time the band started to tour, and reached the UK; the line-up of Rainbow Mk2 consisted of Ritchie Blackmore (guitar), Ronnie James Dio (vocals), Jimmy Bain (bass), Tony Carey (keyboards) and Cozy Powell (Drums). Their first tour called at Newcastle City Hall on 14th September 1976.
Support came from Stretch, a band that was fronted by Elmer Gantry (of Elmer Gantry’s Velvet Opera and “Flames” fame). Stretch developed from a band put together in 1974 with (according to them) help from Mick Fleetwood, to perform as Fleetwood Mac on a US tour. In the end Fleetwood dropped out (and denied any involvement) and they toured without him, but punters soon realised that the band contained no members of Fleetwood Mac and the tour collapsed. They subsequently had a hit single in 1975 with “Why Did You Do It?”,which was a direct attack on Fleetwood. Stretch were a pretty good rock band, who I saw a couple of times in the mid-70s. 
Rainbow concerts were tremendous events. The stage was surrounded by a massive rainbow which consisted of 3,000 coloured lights. And Blackmore was at the height of his powers in both guitar prowess and showmanship excess. He would climb on top of the stacks up and onto the balcony. I remember one show (I think it may have been this one) where he stood on top of a massive stack bashing his Strat against the side of the balcony, until it (the guitar that is) was totally demolished (I think it also left a few dents in the side of the balcony which had to be repaired afterwards). Of course we all cheered him on. Great stuff. Dio had an unbelievable vocal range, and added lyrics, and an atmosphere, of demons, goblins and mysticism to the proceedings. Their songs were excellent too: “Sixteenth Century Greensleeves”, “Man On The Silver Mountain” and “Stargazer” are classics from the time. Blackmore retained “Mistreated” from his days with Purple. In the early days of Rainbow their concerts consisted of a relatively small number of songs, each one becoming an opportunity for epic jamming, particularly by Blackmore. The guy was amazing and his performance simply breathtaking in those days.
Setlist: Kill The King; Mistreated; Sixteenth Century Greensleeves; Catch The Rainbow; Man On The Silver Mountain; Stargazer; Still I’m Sad; Do You Close Your Eyes.
Note added 20th July 2014. I found the programme below in my collection. I guess it must be an unofficial programme which I bought outside the City Hall show in 1976. 
15 Mar
Uli Roth and Pallas Newcastle City Hall 21st May 1983
Uli Roth and Pallas Newcastle City Hall 21st May 1983
Uli Roth obviously has fond memories of Newcastle City Hall. When I last saw him in concert, at The Office in South Shields a year or so ago, the City Hall was facing possible closure, and Uli told us that we must not let it happen: “get a petition; do something, you can’t let it close, that hall is one of the most beautiful in your country”. Well Uli, we did. The City Hall gained a reprieve, and continues to host rock concerts. From the Newcastle Journal: “Newcastle’s under-threat City Hall has been saved from closure after the city council announced it would not axe 100% of its arts budget…Plans to remove the City Hall from the council’s books were met with strong opposition. Around 11,000 people, both online and on paper, signed a petition against the move, started by the North East Music History group.” Anyway, back to Uli Roth. Uli formed his band Electric Sun after leaving the Scorpions in the late ’70s. 
Uli is a charismatic and flamboyant character who developed his own guitar style. Technically excellent, and a massive influence on many of today’s players, he blends the blues with indian and classical influences, and this; coupled with showmanship and virtuosity, make him a unique guitar player. He is also massively influenced by Jimi Hendrix. This show at Newcastle City Hall was recorded and segments of it appear on the 2006 DVD release Historic Performances. I remember being totally stunned by his playing, and the epic nature of his songs. Support came from the excellent Pallas, who had just released their first single “Paris is Burning”. I picked up a copy of their fanzine “The Sentinel” (pictured here) at the concert. Pallas were one of the few bands flying the prog-rock flag in the early ’80s, when that particular genre had become very unfashionable in the wake of punk, and the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal.
25 Feb
The Pretty Things and Arthur Brown Newcastle Tyne Theatre 5th October 2002
The Pretty Things and Arthur Brown Newcastle Tyne Theatre 5th October 2002
When I was a kid, way back in 1968, I received some record vouchers as part of my Christmas present. Now lps were precious items in those days; I went to the local record shop and spent ages choosing which discs to spend my vouchers on. In the end I chose “Prophets Seers and Sages, the Angels of the Ages” by Tyrannosaurus Rex and “Crazy World of Arthur Brown”. Both good choices. A few months later I came across and bought a copy of The Pretty Things’ “S F Sorrow” in a second hand shop. I played those albums constantly on our new home stereo system. The Arthur Brown lp had such wonderful prog tracks as “Spontaneous Apple Creation”, “Child of My Kingdom” and (of course) “Fire” and “Fire Poem”, featuring Arthur’s manic soaring vocals and the late great Vincent Crane’s rich swirling Hammond organ. And S F Sorrow simply amazed me; with its rich mix of great pop hooks, R&B, and psych. “Baron Saturday”, “She Says Good Morning” and “Loneliest Person” were my favourite tracks.
I first got to see Arthur Brown live around 1973 at a Kingdom Come gig in Sunderland Polytechnic Wearmouth Hall. That concert was spectacular, and unlike anything I’ve ever see before or since. The show started with Arthur being tied to a large wooden cross in a simulated crucifixion, featured a massive brain being chased around the hall by the pope, and concluded with Arthur being dragged from stage in a straitjacket.
The first time I saw The Pretty Things live was at Sunderland Locarno, in January 1973. Their set at the time drew heavily from S F Sorrow and also included some of their classic 60s R&B singles. Phil May had the longest hair I had ever seen, and remains to this day one of our best rock vocalists and front men. I saw them a few times after that gig, supporting touring acts at Newcastle City Hall; once with Status Quo, and with a few other bands; exactly who I don’t remember, maybe Bad Company.
So some 30 odd years later, this gig at the Tyne Theatre teamed up two of my favourite acts. Arthur was as crazy and powerful as ever, and the Pretty Things played much of S F Sorrow, featuring a line-up which reunited many of the original band members. Arthur also joined The Pretty Things for a couple of songs. Arthur signed my ticket with a weird hippy third eye, and Phil May and the rest of The Pretty Things signed a reissue copy of S F Sorrow which was on sale at the venue. A great night. Oh and David came along with me and became a fan of Arthur and The Pretty Things that night 🙂
12 Feb
Robert Plant (& Jimmy Page) Knebworth 30th June 1990
Robert Plant (& Jimmy Page) Knebworth 30th June 1990
I next saw Robert Plant as part of a multi-act bill at a massive show at Knebworth Park in 1990. This was the Silver Clef Award Winners Concert and had an amazing line-up including Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Cliff Richard & The Shadows, Tears for Fears, Eric Clapton, Dire Straits, Elton John, Genesis and Status Quo. Pretty strong bill! I won a pair of free tickets in a competition (with KitKat 🙂 ) and Marie and I went down for the weekend. This was a great concert, which deserves a blog post of its own. I’ll save that for another day, and limit my reflections today to Plant’s part of the event. Plant was by now regularly featuring Zeppelin classics as part of his set, alongside his excellent solo material. He played mid-afternoon and was one of the highlights of the day for me, not least because of the venue, which was brought back memories of the last time I had been in that field; for one of the historic Zeppelin gigs, and the surprise appearance of Jimmy Page for the last two songs of Plant’s set. 
“Eleven years after Led Zeppelin’s historic two-night stand at Knebworth in England, Robert Plant returned to the concert grounds for a massive festival that featured sets by Pink Floyd, Paul McCartney, Genesis, Elton John and Eric Clapton. For his final two songs surprise guest Jimmy Page came out to join Plant on “Wearing and Tearing” and “Rock and Roll.” It was very well received, and a sign of things to come” (Rolling Stone magazine). Setlist: Hurting Kind (I’ve Got My Eyes on You); Immigrant Song (Led Zeppelin); Tie Dye on the Highway; Liars Dance; Going to California (Led Zeppelin); Nirvana; Tall Cool One; Misty Mountain Hop (Led Zeppelin); Wearing and Tearing (Led Zeppelin; with Jimmy Page); Rock and Roll (Led Zeppelin; with Jimmy Page)
Thanks to John for the image of his signed Page and Plant programme which comes from the 1995 US tour.
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