Toyah Newcastle Mayfair 1980 & Durham University 1981
My first recollections of Toyah Willcox are of seeing her performances in the seminal punk film “Jubilee” and the film of the Who’s “Quadrophenia”. That started my interest in her and I went to see her live on four occasions I the years between 1980 and 1982. It may not be cool to admit it now, but I was a bit of a fan at the time, and enjoyed her life performances. You have to admit that this lady has achieved a lot including 8 Top 40 singles, over 20 albums, two books, over 40 stage plays and 10 films, and many TV shows. She is also, of course, married to enigmatic prog king Robert Fripp.
I first saw Toyah live on the 1980 IEYA tour, when she called at Newcastle Mayfair on 5th June 1980. This was her first visit to the north east, and I had been waiting for some time for a chance to see her. At the time Toyah was seen as being part of the punk scene, although she said “I don’t use punk whatsoever because my philosophies are so different, my morals are so straight. I’m not a punk, I’m a modern woman.” 
I recall the gig as a joyous, crazy affair. Toyah live was a manic bundle of energy, charging around the stage, screaming, rolling around, totally into the performance. The band weren’t far behind her, either. The music used dynamics, soaring choruses and thumping beats to drive the gig along. Great fun, and very impressive. Toyah was a serious artist and a real contender at the time.
This was before she yielded to the charts and the hit making machinery. “At some of our gigs the kids go bananas! But this one time it was particularly bad. A riot started before we’d even leapt on stage. 
I was furious, ‘cos a lot of kids wanted to hear us! I didn’t know what to do, so I stomped off till everyone calmed down!” (Record Mirror, 1980). A live album was recorded during the tour, at Wolverhampton Lafayette a couple of weeks after the Mayfair gig. The track listing is: Victims of the Riddle, Indecision, Love Me, Visions, Tribal Look, Bird in Flight, Danced, Insects, Race Through Space, Ieya. I guess the set at the Mayfair will have been similar.
In early 1981 Toyah toured university student unions; I attended a wild packed gig at Dunelm Ballroom Durham University on 26th January. Toyah was on the verge of massive chart success. The EP “Four by Toyah” would soon be released, which featured the hit “Its a Mystery”.
Posts Tagged ‘punk’
29 Oct
Toyah Newcastle Mayfair 1980 & Durham University 1981
28 Oct
Television Newcastle City Hall 23rd May 1977 and 10th April 1978
Television Newcastle City Hall 23rd May 1977 and 10th April 1978
Marquee Moon was one of those songs which seemed to follow me everywhere in 1977. The title track of Television’s highly acclaimed (and rightly so) debut album was on everyone’s playlist. If was so…. different from anything else at the time, and came from a different dimension to any of the more familiar variants of punk or new wave. No thrash, no poppy tune. Instead Marquee Moon had all the ingredients of great new music: Tom Verlaine’s extraordinary razor sharp edgy riffs, cutting in and out of the off-beat, and some seriously weird lyrics which were difficult to understand but seemed to tell some strange dark story. The rest of the album was equally as good, with great twin guitar work, an arty, precise, almost clinical feel and elements of classic rock. The critics loved it. Television’s line-up at the time was Tom Verlaine (guitar, vocals), Richard Lloyd (guitar), Fred Smith (bass) and Billy Ficca (drums). Television toured the UK with support from Blondie, playing at Newcastle City Hall on 23rd May 1977. There was a good turn out for the concert which drew punk, rock and pop fans.
Although both bands hailed from the same New York new wave scene, they were musically and artistically very different and those differences came through in their performances that night. Blondie were on the cusp of massive success, and were bright, poppy, fast and lots of fun. Debbie Harry was amazing. In contrast Television were serious, distant, and simply played their (excellent) music with no particular light show and very little interaction with the audience. A great concert, with two contrasting bands both performing well.
Relations weren’t great between Television and Blondie on the tour. Blondie’s Chris Stein said that Television were “competitive” and recalled the Glasgow show where “all our equipment was shoved up at the Apollo and we had like three feet of room so that [Tom Verlaine] could stand still in this vast space.”
A 1977 Television setlist would be something like this: See No Evil, Friction, Venus, Prove It, Elevation, Marquee Moon, Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
(Bob Dylan cover), Satisfaction (Rolling Stones cover).
The Damned has a similar experience to Blondie when they played with Television. Brian James: “When we did that first American tour, we had a gig on the West Coast supporting Television. We got there and they said ‘We’re not letting this bunch support us’. We were stuck on a limb. We went down to see them and play and we had tee-shirts saying ‘Television are c**ts’. It really intimidated them. Captain wrote a song called ‘Idiot Box’ — like TV — about them.” “I can turn you off, Well I just tried & left you off
Tumbling you may be art, But you sure ain’t rock’n’roll
People standing in the rain, Just to see that screen Verlaine
Supersonic I’ll come back soon, ‘Cause all we got is a Marquee moon” (Idiot Box, The Damned)
Television returned to Newcastle City Hall on 10th April 1978. The hall was far from full, and much emptier than the previous year. Support this time was The Only Ones, Peter Perret’s great band. This was at their time of their excellent single Another Girl, Another Planet. Another big contrast between support and headliner. This was a lack lustre performance by Television. They spent some considerable time tuning up, ignoring the audience, to the extent that several people walked out. The feeling that came over was one of coldness and distance.
Sorry to leave my memories on a less than positive note. Television were an exceptional band, a breath of fresh air and the sound of Verlaine’s guitar on Marquee Moon cut through everything else around at the time.
Many thanks to Mitch for the photos which he took at the 1977 concert.
10 Oct
John Lydon in Conversation Albert Hall Manchester 9th October 2014
“We were all warriors together” (John Lydon, Manchester, 9th October 2014)
The launch event for his new autobiography: “Anger is An Energy: My Life Uncensored”, which was released yesterday.
From the publicity for the event: “John Lydon will be taking part in an exclusive no-holds-barred live onstage interview with DJ/writer Dave Haslam, discussing his turbulent life, from his beginnings as a sickly child of immigrant Irish parents who grew up in post-war London to his present status as an alternative national hero, via the Sex Pistols, Public Image Ltd (PiL), collaborations with Afrika Bambaataa and Leftfield, compelling opinions and celebrated TV appearances. He’ll also be signing copies of his autobiography. This will surely be one of Manchester’s most memorable pop culture events of the year.”
About the venue (from the website): “A Grade II listed Wesleyan chapel in Manchester City Centre closed and hidden for over 40 years. Resurrected by Trof, the people behind Gorilla and The Deaf Institute, as an unrivalled events venue, restaurant and bar. The grand and ornate chapel has been restored into a stunning purpose built music hall and is set to become one of the most atmospheric music and events venues in the UK.”
I arrived in Manchester early, around 6pm, had a coffee and then joined the queue for entry to the Albert Hall. I took a seat in the front row, and waited for the great man to arrive. Shortly after the advertised start time of 7.30pm DJ Dave Haslam walked on stage, and introduced John Lydon, who received a standing ovation from the crowd. For the next hour or so Dave and John discussed John’s life. 
Lydon was as controversial and opinionated as you might expect, giving us his views on politics and how all the parties have moved towards the same ground, his early life and ill-health and his respect for the NHS, his relationship with Sid Vicious, that Sid was a fan of singer Leo Sayer, was named after his mum’s hamster.and how he stills misses him, his belief in the working class and family values, and some thoughts on the birth of punk and how it was needed at the time, and is needed again. The man wears his soul on his sleeve, and in strongly protective of the punk values which he obviously holds so dear. The audience clearly loved him, showing this by giving him several standing ovations. After an hour or so, Dave opened up questions to the floor, and gave members of the audience a chance to throw questions at John, via a roving mike. One guy asked his favourite gigs; he quoted a recent appearance at Manchester and at a massive festival in Croatia; another complemented his music tastes, which are wide-ranging and include the Kinks and Van Der Graaf Generator. After another thirty minutes or so the first part of the evening concluded and we all went downstairs to the basement where John was doing the book signing. It was 9pm.
I rushed downstairs as quickly as I could, but by the time I got there the queue was already large. I reckon I ended up about half way back in the queue, which swirled around and around the basement, controlled by rows of barriers. Reggae music was blasting as we waited in anticipation for our individual audience with Johnny Rotten, all nervously clutching our books. To his credit, John took his time to talk to everyone while signing, spending a few minutes with each person, and there were 2 or 3 hundred waiting. Because of this movement was slow and it seemed to take forever to get to the front. In fact it took me over 3 hours to get to meet John Lydon. I had a quick chat with him, and asked him if he remembered the first Pistols gig, which I witnessed in Whitby in 1976. I foolishly mentioned that the “Pistols were thrown off stage”. John looked me straight in the eye and said “What did you say? Nobody ever threw me off any stage.” I quickly corrected my statement and made it clear that what actually happened was that the DJ turned the sound off. “Ah.. Now that’s different” said John, smiling. It was after 12.30am when I left the venue. Got home at 3.15am. Tired this morning, but glad I went; it was a fascinating evening spent with a true legend and ‘one off’. Everyone there had so many warm feelings and so much respect for the guy; a man who continues to “always tell it as it is”. Lydon is an enigma; challenging, frustrating, rude, fearless, authentic, insightful; all of those things and more. The things I do to see my heroes 🙂 Happy days.
2 Oct
T Rex Newcastle City Hall 10th March 1977
T Rex Newcastle City Hall 10th March 1977
1977 was, of course, the year of punk rock. Marc was well aware of this and, in an interview in The Sun (February 1977) said that he had been waiting ‘for something like punk rock to come along…..I consider myself to be an elder statesman of punk” and declared himself “The Godfather of Punk.” Unlike many stars, he wasn’t afraid to put his money where his mouth was and “picked The Damned to tour with me because I wanted to put the best of the established bands against the best of the new wave bands, so we‘ll see who can out-punk the other every night” (The Journal, March 1977). A new T Rex album “Dandy in the Underworld” was released to fan and critical acclaim, and the band went out on tour with, as alluded to above, punk rock band the Damned as support. The tour was our chance to see a new, rejuvenated, slimmer Bolan, sharp-suited with smooth elfin looks, and a new band featuring Dino Dines (keyboards), Tony Newman (drums), Herbie Flowers (bass) and Miller Anderson (guitar). Although not every show was quite sold out, attendances were good, and the UK tour gained positive reviews. Bolan and T Rex were back on form and the future looked bright. From the tour programme: “Bolan today is a genuine star – the man who put magic back into pop music; seldom heavy and most often playful….Marc is a global super-star who has toured over 500,000 miles in the last two years….I am a teenage idol I suppose”. Big statements, but actually Bolan could live up to them.
I saw the tour at Newcastle City Hall on 10th Macrh 1977. The Damned were their usual crazy manic selves; it was quite brave of Marc to invite them on tour with him, as it could so easily have back-fired. In fact, the pairing worked well, with the Damned warming the audience up, and T Rex playing a set containing a good mix of old and new and which showed just how good a live act Bolan and his band could still be. Bolan was enjoying a new surge in popularity, and he even talked about the possibility of performing again with Finn and Took, as well as reuniting with producer Tony Visconti.
Set List: Jeepster, Visions Of Domino, New York City, The Soul Of My Suit, Groove A Little, Telegram Sam, Hang-Ups, Debora, I Love To Boogie, Teen Riot Structure, Dandy In The Underworld, Hot Love, Get It On
While driving home early on the morning of 16th September 1977, Marc Bolan’s purple Mini crashed into a tree, after failing to negotiate a small bridge near Gypsy Lane, Barnes, in southwest London, a few miles from his home. Bolan was killed in the crash, which took place two weeks before his 30th birthday.
Thanks to Michael and his excellent http://www.dandyintheunderworld.co.uk/ site of the tour for helping refresh by memories and providing pointers to some of the reference material of the time.
28 Sep
The Libertines Alexandra Palace London 27th Sep 2014
The Libertines Alexandra Palace London 27th Sep 2014
I finally got to see the Libertines last night at Alexandra Palace with Laura, David and Shauna, who are all fans. I wasn’t sure what to expect, being more familiar with the legend and the Pete Doherty saga, rather than the music. I had in my mind that it might be similar to going to see the Clash or, perhaps more like, Buzzcocks “back in the day”. Whatever my silly comparisons,it actually turned out to be great fun, with Pete, Carl and the band running through just about the entire Libertines catalogue to a packed Ally Pally crowd who danced, cheered, sang (and threw lots of beer) like there was no tomorrow. This was the second of three nights that the Libertines are playing at the massive London venue as part of their reunion tour.
The Alexandra Palace is a grand venue, set up on a hill overlooking the city, but it is hardly ideal for a rock concert. The sound was very murky at the start, but started to improve a few songs in. Pete is looking well, and he and Carl were clearly enjoying themselves. They came onstage just before 9.30pm to a deafening roar from the crowd. Everyone was pleased to see them, this band mean a lot to their fans, and the on/off brotherhood friendship of Pete and Carl is very much on again. The story of the Libertines is as much about two mates, their journey on the good ship Albion, and their attempt to (re)create a time of friendship, fun, and old Englishness, as it is about the poppy songs, the rocky punk riffs, and the slow, moving crowd singalong ballads. For a moment, looking at the grainy black and white images of Pete and Carl sharing the mike, it could be John and Paul up there.
Comments on Twitter this morning: “Pete in pretty good voice”. “Really enjoyed it tonight – they played well, very tight, sound was good, liked the lighting/video screen thing”. “Bloody magnificent”. “Absolutely smashed it”.
Setlist: The Delaney; Campaign of Hate; Vertigo; Time for Heroes; Horrorshow; Begging; The Ha Ha Wall; Music When the Lights Go Out; What Katie Did; The Boy Looked at Johnny; Boys in the Band; Can’t Stand Me Now; Last Post on the Bugle; Don’t Look Back Into the Sun; The Saga; Death on the Stairs; ; Tell the King; The Good Old Days
Encore: You’re My Waterloo; What Became of the Likely Lads; Up the Bracket; What a Waster; I Get Along
Returning to my comparison, I think musically more Buzzcocks than Clash. Scrub that, I’ll go for more Stones than the Beatles, and change my image of Pete and Carl, from being John and Paul to being Mick and Keef. Enough of my comparisons, which are getting silly. And no spitting these days.
It was fun to join a big party of 10,000 20-something and 30-something year olds, all enjoying a reunion trip on the good ship Albion. After all, it’s a trip they never thought they would make again, and one many of them have dreamed of. Last night two young mates stood on that stage, sang those songs again, and relived days , not so long ago, when the world was, for a short time, a different and happier place.
We joined the queues stumbling out of the venue, passed the crammed buses, walked down the hill and along to Wood Green, where we caught a bus back to David and Shauna’s. I’d bought some badges and we shared them out; David’s had a picture of the band, Shauna’s a skull and crossbones, Laura’s a mod target image, and mine simply said “The Libertines” in a Sex Pistols style font. I’ve just checked my lapel; I’ve already lost mine. So it goes 🙂
24 Sep
Silverhead live 1973 and 1974
Silverhead live 1973 and 1974
Actually….there a couple of more bands who deserve a day’s blogging before I move on to letter “T” (thanks Mitch and Neil). The first is Silverhead. Looking at singer Michael Des Barres gigography site, I reckon that I saw Silverhead three times, once supporting Wizzard at Sunderland Locarno on 13th July 1973, then supporting Nazareth at Newcastle City Hall on 19th October 1973, and then back, this time headlining, at Sunderland Locarno on 7th June 1974. I certainly remember seeing them at the Mecca (aka Locarno) and have my ticket stub for the Nazareth gig. These gigs blur into a glam rock’n’roll mist….
Silverhead were a British rock’n’roll proto-glam-metal band, with a style, sassiness and attitude, that made them stand apart, way out there from other bands of the time. Fronted by the singer and mime artist/actor, Michael Des Barres; the other members of Silverhead were: Robbie Blunt (guitar; went on to play with Robert Plant), Rod Rook Davies (guitar), Nigel Harrison (bass guitar; went on to play with Blondie) and Pete Thompson (drums). Silverhead only existed for two short years, during which period they recorded two albums, “Silverhead” and “16 and Savaged”, and played some crazy gigs which left a mark on anyone who saw them.
Looking back, Silverhead were way ahead of their time. The guys were the model for many sleaze/trash rock who followed. They all wore make-up, and Des Barres was a crazy, OTT frontman. There were hints of glam-rock in their stage show, but Silverhead were one hot rock’n’roll trash band, and Des Barres had a great screeching, raucous rock voice. These guys were fore-runners of punk, and role models for many sleaze/heavy metal rock bands of the 70s and 80s. I’ve just watched some video on YouTube of Silverhead live, and you can see exactly where Ratt, Motley Crue, Guns N’ Roses and even the New York Dolls (this was 1973 and Silverhead did tour the USA) got some of their ideas. Dave Thompson, in a review of their first album on AllMusic, calls Silverhead “the first and positively the greatest metal band ever to dress up like a bunch of weird-looking hookers.” And who influenced Silverhead? Well, you can certainly imagine that they listened to T Rex, and some of their music and attitude is not a million miles away from “BlockBuster” or “HellRaiser”; but they took the glamrock of Sweet and Bolan, coupled it with the loud rock of Slade and a hint of the Stones, and twisted it into something much seedier, rauchier and rockier. Live these guys were explosive with a high energy set which contained rock’n’sass classics, a couple of deep ballads, and the crazy adrenaline-charged screaming mania of Des Barres, posing bare-chested and wearing silver lurex trousers. They may have been playing to small clubs, or supporting more established acts, but you could tell, that in his head, Des Barres was already a big rock star.”Subtle as a flying handbag” (Dave Thompson, AllMusic).
Richard Cromelin reviewed a 1973 concert at the Whisky a Go Go, Los Angeles for Phonograph Record magazine: “Des Barres…loves to pose for the cameras, and like the best rock ‘n’ rollers he feeds off the energy that comes from the crowd in front of the stage…..He has a marvelous face as well, with sunken eyes and hollow cheeks that he uses to project a demonic, stylized sexuality…they make you feel their love of performing, their total involvement in and enthusiasm for what they’re doing.”
18 Sep
Nick Cave 20,000 Days On Earth Live Link Up Tyneside Cinema 17th Sep 2014
Nick Cave 20,000 Days On Earth Live Link Up Tyneside Cinema 17th Sep 2014
Last night Laura and I went to the Tyneside Cinema to take part in a live link up to London’s Barbican for “20,000 Days On Earth”. Artists Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard have created this film which follows 24 hours of the (approx) 20,000th day of Nick Cave’s life. The film takes an imaginative and in-depth look at the mysterious and charismatic figure of Cave, exploring his life, his art and his creative process. This authentic and compelling movie gives us a glimpse of how Nick Cave approaches writing, work, and music. What you begin to understand is that there is no real distinction between Cave and his art. During the movie, he talks quite a bit about transforming himself by creating his own mythology and narrative, based on characters, thoughts and memories from his life. His life has become a project, which he lives 24/7, and the film gave us a glimpse of a single day in that life. It is set partly in his adopted home town of Brighton, and includes clips of rehearsals with the Bad Seeds in France, Cave’s manic live performance, and visiting his personal archive. Guests including Kylie and Ray Winston pop up briefly to give their own perspectives of Nick. Cave talks about how he lives for the performance and how he believes that, when it works, a live concert can become a truly transformative experience for him, the band and the audience. 
The screening of the film was followed by a live performance by Nick Cave, Warren Ellis and Barry Adamson, plus a Q&A with with those three and directors Forsyth & Pollard, all broadcast live from London’s Barbican centre, and linked to 150 cinemas across the UK. The Tyneside was sold out for this special event, and rightly so. We all left understanding a little more about the enigma that is Nick Cave; you couldn’t fail to be impressed by the passion, intensity and belief with which he approaches his art, and the uncompromising and relentless work ethic of the man.
13 Sep
The Slits : Simply Whats Happening; Newcastle City Hall 23rd September 1979
The Slits, Don Cherry & Happy House, Prince Hammer & Creation Rebel: Simply Whats Happening; Newcastle City Hall 23rd September 1979
This was a very adventurous and quite ground breaking tour, which united female punk thrash icons The Slits with legendary innovative jazz trumpeter Don Cherry and Jamaican reggae masters Prince Hammer and Creation Rebel. An early example of punk acting as a platform for world music fusion, this collection of artists toured the major concert halls in the UK, calling at Newcastle City Hall. I’d seen the Slits perform twice before as support for the Clash, and also supporting the Buzzcocks. They had just released their first album “Cut”. Viv Albertine “We knew we were a first, which could be uncomfortable, and we were much more revolutionary than the Pistols and the Clash. They were rock bands, whereas we were using world music and reggae, filtered through our own musicality. We were like a female Spinal Tap, really: we argued, toured and wanted to make a classic album that never dated.” (Interview by Caroline Sullivan, The Guardian, Monday 24 June 2013)
The Slits line-up was the late Ari Up on vocals, guitarist Viv Albertine, Tessa Pollitt on bass and (soon to be Banshee) Budgie on drums. I think Neneh Cherry, Don’s daughter joined them for the tour. Ari Up was a crazy wild front lady, complete with dreads, outlandish outfits and nifty dancing.
From the programme: “This is simply what’s happening…..what’s happening here is real music played by people from three different cultures. Three different musics united by one expression – freedom.
Enjoy yourself, keep room in your head and heart for music from all different cultures and places – we all live under the same sun…” Disc O’Dell
Sadly, with no massive audience draw on the tour, attendance was not great. The Newcastle show was very poorly attended with only a couple of hundred people in a hall which holds 2,400. Pity, because this was an interesting evening with some different and challenging music. The programme (pictured here) is also very different and contains some scribbly doodling artwork and slogans, presumably drawn by one or more of the band.
12 Sep
Sham 69 Sunderland Polytechnic Wearmouth Hall November ? 1978
Sham 69 Sunderland Polytechnic Wearmouth Hall November ? 1978
This was one awesome gig, for many reasons. It was the first time that Sham 69 had played in the North East, and musically, and in terms of popularity, they were riding high. They had hit the UK singles charts three times in 1978 with their brilliant terrace punk anthems “Angels With Dirty Faces”, “If the Kids Are United” and “Hurry Up Harry”. Sham 69 were the only band to rival the Pistols and The Clash in terms of raw punk power, and you didn’t get any more authentic than Jimmy Pursey who wore his punk credentials and his political views well and truly on his sleeve. Unfortunately, Sham had also gained a reputation for violence at their gigs, which often descended into fighting and riots. They attracted a group of right wing skins, although Jimmy’s politics were very much towards the left. And their followers were fanatical, the Sham Army followed them everywhere, up and down the country. Add to this the fact that this was a students only gig, and you just knew that there was going to be trouble.
When we arrived we ran the gauntlet of a group of punks and skins who couldn’t get in, were pretty unhappy and ready for a fight. Inside; the hall was far from full, the audience consisting of a mix of students, local rock fans, a few punks and skins who had somehow managed to blag their way in, and a heavy travelling contingent from the Sham Army.
Jimmy and Sham were brilliant, but there were fights throughout the night both inside and outside the hall. Lots of singalongs with skins jumping on stage and Jimmy sharing the mike with them. Great songs like “What Have We Got” (F**k All!) and “Borstal Breakout”. Everyone belted out “If Kids Are United”. Loads of beer flying about. Jimmy pleading with people to stop fighting, almost in tears. Electricity in the air; generated by the raw power of the punk music, and the danger and tension of the event. Amazing, happy days.
“What have we got? (Jimmy)
F**k All (Audience)
What have we got? (Jimmy)
F**k All (Audience)
They’ve taken everything
There’ll soon be nothing left
Soon we’ll be walking the street
With nothing on our feet
What have we got
What have we got
I’d like to buy a shotgun
Shooting MPs conservatives, communists
They’re all the bleeding same”
(What have we got, Sham 69, 1978)
1 Sep
Siouxsie and the Banshees Newcastle City Hall 12th September 1988
Siouxsie and the Banshees Newcastle City Hall 12th September 1988
In 1987 Siouxsie and the Banshees released a cover album “Through the Looking Glass” which included great versions of “This Wheel’s on Fire” which made the UK singles chart, Billie Holiday’s “Strange Fruit” and Iggy Pop’s “The Passenger”. The following year they changed guitarists again, recruiting Jon Klein and keyboard player Martin McCarrick and recorded a new album “Peepshow” which featured new instrumentation including cello, accordion and horns, and were back in the charts with “Peek-a-Boo”, which was to be their last Top 20 hit in the UK. The “Peepshow” tour called at Newcastle City Hall; this was the last time that I saw the Banshees live. I don’t recall who the support act was; I know Suicide supported later in the year. It was a big production this time; Sioux: “the theme of the album and stage show had been influenced by my interest in a late ’20s/’30s vibe – Marlene Dietrich…it was a very black and white theme, and much more theatrical…I wanted to move away from rock’n’roll lighting and make more use of the stage.” Severin: “The stage set was really elaborate. We’d start the show off right at the front of the stage, and then a series of curtains would drop to the floor to reveal each band member”. Both quotes are from “Siouxsie and the Banshees: the authorised biography, by Mark Paytress (2003), which I found in a charity shop for £1.99 last week. Result 🙂 ! After the Peepshow tour the Banshees decided to take a break, with Siouxsie and Budgie going off to record a new Creatures album.
Setlist: The Last Beat of my heart; Turn to Stone; The Killing Jar; I Promise; Ornaments of Gold; Christine; This Wheel’s On Fire; Something Blue; Scarecro; Rawhead and Bloodybones; Carousel; Nightshift; Red Light; Peek-A-Boo; Rhapsody; Cities in Dust; Skin; Burn Up; Spellbound; Hong Kong Garden
Siouxsie is yet another artist who I haven’t seen for many years, and who I would love to see again. I had a ticket to see her at the Roundhouse 5 or more years ago, but couldn’t make it because of work. Big mistake.
That concludes my reflections on the Banshees. Still a few more “S”s to go yet….
Vintagerock's Weblog. 