It is quite a few years since I last saw the human dynamo that is Suzi Quatro. I first saw her on one of her early visits to Sunderland Locarno in 1972. I then saw her many times at the same venue as she kept returning while she was at the top of the charts with great rocking hit records “Can the Can” and “Devil Gate Drive”. She was a class act then and remains so to this day. I have seen her once or twice over the years since then. I think the last time was supporting Status Quo at an outdoor summer concert near Middlesbrough. This time the lady is 73 years old, still rocking and this is 50 years since she was Number 1 in the charts. Fantastic.
The Glasshouse website proclaimed Suzi thus: “Influential. Unstoppable. Timeless rock legend. A Suzi Quatro concert is a high-octane rock extravaganza; commanding the stage with her signature leather jumpsuit and rockstar attitude. Backed by her band, she rips through beloved retro hits as well as new material with her raspy vocals and searing bass lines. Quatro’s lively performance and rapport with fans create an electrifying experience celebrating one of music’s pioneering female rebels.” Well, I can’t argue with that.
I arrived in little late after a hospital visit to see my mam who is not so well at the moment. This meant I missed some of the first set. Suzi had no support act and performed two sets with a short interval. Sadly, I missed her singing “Stumblin’ In” which is one of my favourite songs. Never mind I saw her close the first set with a lovely quiet song on which she accompanied herself on piano and a great cover of Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World”. During the interval a double Jack Daniels went down just nice and relaxed me ready for the second half of the show.
Suzi returned complete with leather catsuit and performed a rocky set of her own hits and some great covers. She explained that she has recently released an EP on which she has covered some of her favourite songs. Up on the screen behind her was a picture of Suzi in the early 1970s just as I remember. Fantastic. So we got “Can the Can”, “Devil Gate Drive”, “If You Can’t Give Me Love” and returning to covers, a great version of Credence Clearwater Revival’s “Bad Moon Rising” and the final encore was a beautiful rendition of Eagles “Desperado”. Suzi can still rock out with the best of them. Everyone was up on their feet and enjoying one of the best female rock stars I have ever seen.
Many thanks to Joanne for the photos and Chris for navigating the site for me.
Setlist: Set One: The Wild One; I May Be Too Young; Daytona Demon; Tear Me Apart; Shine a Light; Stumblin’ In; No Soul/No Control; The Devil In Me; 48 Crash; Slow Down; Rockin’ in the Free World; Can I Be Your Girl?.
Set Two: Motor City Riders; I Sold My Soul Today; Bad Moon Rising; She’s in Love With You; Overload; Too Big; Glycerine Queen; Can the Can; Devil Gate Drive.
Encore: If You Can’t Give Me Love; Sweet Little Rock & Roller; Desperado.
These Boyz Make Big Noize! 
Then a concert at Newcastle City Hall around 1974 when they were at the height of their fame, lots of Noddy Holder top hats and screaming girls, followed by a Whatever Happened to Slade concert at the City Hall where shock horror Dave Hill appeared with a bald head and massive earrings. Next an appearance at Middlesbrough Rock Garden, filled with skinhead fans who went crazy and the band were somewhat down on their luck, followed by an iconic appearance at the Reading Festival where they replaced Ozzy Osbourne at short notice and once again triumphed with the rock crowd, resulting in them becoming heavy rock heroes for several years.
And finally some concerts again at the City Hall and Sunderland Polytechnic. Happy days. Throughout these years they were always a fantastic live act, very loud and much more of a rock band than you would expect. You had to see them to believe it. They were literally one of the best live acts I ever had the pleasure of witnessing.
The concert was opened with support act 
After a short interval during which I purchased a lovely red Slade Alive T-shirt which features the logo from the album of the same name which I bought when it was released in 1972 and played it again and again. It contains the live stage show of Slade in 1971/72 which included a lot of covers like opening song Ten Years After’s “I Hear You Calling”, the Loving Spoonful’s “Darling Be Home Soon” and the closer for which they turned the volume up to 11 Steppenwolf’s “Born to Be Wild”. Magic. If you haven’t yet heard the album I fully recommend it to you.
The current line – up of Slade is quite different to the last time I saw them. As well as the concerts I have mentioned above, I have also seen the new line – up of Slade a few times, including a show for the fan club at London’s KOKO nightclub. Each time they have been great but tonight was a revelation. This time the frontline consists of Dave Hill centrestage, standing aloft on a speaker cabinet, flanked on either side by bass guitarist/violinist to his left and keyboard player to his right.
All three of them sing together and along with Dave’s guitar cranked right up to as LOUD as possible they recreate the sound of the original band. They were absolutely deafening and delivered many of the hits from throughout the band’s career. They finished of course with “Merry Christmas Everybody” complete with Santa hats. Fantastic. Elaine, Jan and I all really enjoyed it. This was the best time I have seen them for many years. Of course it is not the original line – up, but Dave Hill and the boys do a great job.
This event has been going for many years, starting off in Leeds and then moving north to satisfy the need for an annual convention for the many fans of the great band Free in the north-east. My friend John, who is a massive Free and Paul Kossoff fan has been wanting to go for many years. However, he now lives in the USA, so arranging things to attend this event has been tricky. Things changed and this year he happened to be over in the north-east at the same time as the aforementioned convention.
Demand for tickets for the convention was such that the originally scheduled Saturday night sold out quickly and a second night, on the preceding Friday, was organised. It quickly sold out also. I had got us tickets for the Saturday night and John decided he would also attend the Friday night event. John is based in North Yorkshire when he stays in the UK, but made the journey up to Cullercoats both evenings to attend this convention. True dedication. He reported back to me that it was excellent and we were both looking forward to the Saturday show.
John arrived at my house around teatime and, with my carer Jan, we quickly set off to Cullercoats both excited about the event. In the past, the convention has featured guest performances by Free drummer Simon Kirke, and the late bassist Andy Fraser. This time we were treated to three Free tribute bands, and an excellent raffle and auction event. We arrived at the venue just before the start time of 7 PM and the organiser was very helpful in finding us a vantage point close to the stage. Many thanks indeed.
First up was a band called Stealer who played a great set based around the second Free album (the “Woman” LP). Stealer are a 3-piece rock band based in Lincolnshire play classic rock and blues covers from Free and Bad Company. They have their own following and play all over the UK. A good start and warmup to the evening.
After a short changeover the next band on stage were the Heartbreaker Collective who were absolutely fantastic. They played a set of Free classics and really did justice to the music and soul of Free. All musicians were excellent and the singer looked so cool, with a really great hairdo! See the images.Apparently this band come together once a year for this event. Considering this they were simply awesome. A group of passionate young musicians! The dancefloor soon filled and many people were up and dancing, reliving their youth. A great atmosphere.
Then it was time for the raffle. Seven items were raffled including a first prize of a magnificent Free at the Isle of Wight poster and a second prize of a lovely Paul Kossoff poster. Sadly, we did not score anything in the raffle. Next up was an auction of items signed by Paul Rogers and Simon Kirke. At this point we had to leave to catch our taxi.
A great event, and it is a massive credit to the organiser who is clearly a massive and passionate Free fan. Thank you so much John for recommending we attend. I bought a Bad Company programme from a previous tour, which I do not have in my collection. A great addition.
I am not sure who suggested going. Maybe it was my sister-in-law Elaine or carer Jan, who both accompanied me to the show. Never mind, thank you to whichever one of you it was. I don’t think I would have gone along to 
The tour publicity heralded the concert thus: “The King is back! One of the most unique concert experiences of recent years is set to return for 2023 having won the hearts of critics and fans a-like, as Elvis is set once again to be back, in an arena near you! The full-scale concert brings the King up close on screen alongside the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra live on stage performing the King of Rock and Roll’s most well-known “rocking” songs and his tender, heart-wrenching ballads, with a special guest to be announced in due course. A show like no other, expect an overwhelmingly encapsulating and enthralling evening!
This is the only chance to experience the man who changed the course of popular music, selling an unparalleled 1 billion records worldwide, his popularity unwavering as the critical and commercial success of the Baz Luhrman produced biopic Elvis showed us in cinemas this year! The collaboration between the music of Elvis and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra has spearheaded an incredible phenomenon, with new orchestral arrangements of the music of the most legendary artists of all time being presented with the original recordings of the artists’ own voice which led to three huge-selling and critically acclaimed albums (If I Can Dream, The Wonder of You, and Christmas with Elvis and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra).
With Elvis never having toured the UK, or performing with a full sized orchestra as were two of his dreams, these shows are a chance to both honour the legacy of an icon who has defined popular culture for over half a century, and for fans to see ‘The King’ live, who never had the chance to before.”
I have always been a fan of Elvis. Ever since I was very young and bought copies of “King Creole” and “Heartbreak Hotel” on 78 from a local second hand shop. I played and played those records. I then saw the 1968 Comeback Show on TV at some point and was totally knocked out by the guy, his energy, swagger, style and voice. Without Elvis, would we have The Beatles, and modern day rock ‘n’ roll? Who knows. I also remember buying “In the Ghetto” when it was in the charts. I love that record to this day.
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra took to the stage to a loud round of applause. A large screen behind the orchestra displayed the initials “EP” to remind us of what we were about to experience. They performed “I Can’t Help Falling in Love With You” with the lyrics displayed on the big-screen. The orchestra was augmented by a band with an excellent guitarist and a group of very soulful singers. Next, another large screen descended from the rafters and Elvis, from Las Vegas, was singing “Burning Love” to us. The sound was amazing and this was the start of a wonderful journey through the life of Elvis Presley. Possibly the greatest singer and artist the world has ever seen.
We were taken through a range of Elvis classics including “Trouble”, “That’s All Right Mama”, “Hound Dog” and “Heartbreak Hotel” with footage alternating between early and mid-1970s Las Vegas performances to film from the aforementioned 1968 Comeback TV Show triumph. All of this reminded me of how great a performer the man was. I can’t quite recall the order of proceedings but there was a short interval during which I had a lovely tray of chips (lots of salt) having had a pint of beer on the way in. I also purchased a T-shirt which I am proudly wearing as I type this with my speech software and a programme (pictured).
There was a tour of Graceland, courtesy of Elvis’ old friend who now manages the estate (I would love to visit) and the voice of Priscilla Presley talking about her life with Elvis while images of Priscilla, Elvis, a young Lisa Marie and happy family memories were shown.
The aforementioned “Suspicious Minds” had everyone up on their feet dancing and singing. They remained so for the rest of the performance which closed with the magnificent “American Trilogy” from Las Vegas and “If I Can Dream” from the 1968 TV show. Very emotional stuff. Much, much better than I had expected.
Setlist: Burning Love; Welcome To My World; Steamroller Blues; Fever; You Gave Me A Mountain; You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me; I Just Can’t Help Believing; Just Pretend; You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling; Amazing Grace; I Can’t Help Falling In Love; In The Ghetto; How Great Thou Art; Bridge Over Troubled Water; Trouble/Guitar Man; That’s Alright Mama; Hound Dog; Don’t Be Cruel; Heartbreak Hotel; Are You Lonesome Tonight; All Shook Up; Blue Suede Shoes; Memories; Love Me Tender; The Wonder Of You; Suspicious Minds; What Now My Love; Big Hunk Of Love; American Trilogy; If I Can Dream.
Another 60s show. No apologies this time. You know what, I enjoy the old hits and it doesn’t seem to matter anymore as to whether there are original members or not. I guess we return to my old question “When is a band not a band?”.
The bands on show here, as far as I can ascertain, contain only one original member between them all. But more on this later. I went along with carer Elaine and my old friend Norman and you know what? We all greatly enjoyed the “Sensational 60s Experience” and I knew every song! And this 60s concert even had a proper compere, just like a 60s package tour should. He looked great with lovely long blonde hair. I will use some of the tour blurb to describe each band and then will add my own comments on the lineup and the performance.
Opening the show were: “
“
Closing the first half were: “
Opening the second part of the show were: “
Closing the show were: “
A Stream of Memories: please bear with for this blog entry. The afternoon and the brought back lots of memories. I will ramble through them here.
I would buy every one I saw and I ended up with multiple copies of each album. So I had 5 copies of Sergeant Pepper, 7 copies of Please Please Me, 6 copies of The White Album, and so on. I gave family members full collections of all the albums and singles. I sold some on eBay. I am busy collecting a full set again on eBay, so that I have a set downstairs to play on my retro record player. I have sets upstairs but I can’t get to them in my wheelchair so I leave them intact and I start again!
I know this is crazy, but it is the madness of being a hoarder. Anyway, to get the point, Jan my carer and I were playing two albums: Hard Days Night and Beatles For Sale before leaving for the concert. I started thinking; without the Beatles where would we be? Would they be any pop and rock as we know it? Would there be any Waterboys? Anyway we left for the concert with “Babies in Black” and “I’ll Cry Instead” ringing through my head. Magic.
Newcastle Tiffany’s. The last time I saw the Waterboys was around 1985, when “Whole of the Moon” was in the charts. It was at Newcastle Tiffany’s, an old Mecca nightclub which was a great venue where I witnessed many great concerts: Altered Images when “Happy Birthday” was number 1 in the charts, Cocteau Twins, and many others. Happy days, lots of memories.
Surprisingly, for me anyway, the current band does not include violin which was central to the sound of many of the Waterboys better known songs. Instead, the Waterboys now comprise two keyboard players, who take the lead on many of the songs. One guy to the left of the stage is dressed in tight crushed velvet plum coloured flares (which he changes into tight white/black striped trousers during the interval), with a long coat and long flowing white hair to match. He plays a swirling 1960s style Hammond organ, pushing it backwards and forwards and running his fingers up and down the keyboard. He also comes to front of stage and plays a guitar keyboard (the same sort as Edgar Winter uses). He is a real showman and a great asset to the band. The other keyboard player is dressed in very smart mod gear with a natty hat to match. He concentrates on playing excellent electric piano. And Mike is front stage snarling, spitting out the songs and playing great see-through Perspex guitar, acoustic guitar and a selection of wonderful instruments.
I said I would return to the subject of loving Newcastle City Hall as a great venue. Mike Scott: “it is great to be back at the old City Hall. I have played the Sage many times, and it is a lovely venue, but it is a long time since I played the City Hall. It is good to be back here and to say “hello Newcastle” (big cheer) again” (or something like that). I don’t know many of the songs, “Fisherman’s Blues” stands out and is fantastic. “Ladbroke Grove” tells the story of Mike’s early years living in London, “It Was Over” relates the tale of an early schoolboy crush, “Piper at the Gates of Dawn” is a spoken word extract from Wind in the Willows and sounds quite mystical, appropriate and magical. Springsteen’s/Patti Smith’s “Because the Night” is mixed with a Scott song “The Pan Within”.
They return for an encore and finish with “The Whole Of the Moon” and everyone is up on their feet, singing and dancing. Mental note: go and see the Waterboys every time I can in the future. Thank you so much Ciaran for tempting me to go. It was great advice. Happy days. Thanks to Jan for the photos. I bought a lovely signed poster on the way out.
Setlist (something like this): Set 1: Where the Action Is; Glastonbury Song; How Long Will I Love You; Ladbroke Grove; A Girl Called Johnny; This Is the Sea; All Souls Hill; When Ye Go Away; Blackberry Girl; Because the Night / The Pan Within.
There was no better band than 
And great songs: “Fool’s Gold”, “White Honey”, and the show-stopping reggae-tinged “(Hey Lord) Don’t Ask Me Questions”; it still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up just thinking about being at a gig with the entire audience singing along “Hey Lord; Don’t Ask Me Questions”. There was just no-one to touch them on a good night; power, passion, rhythms, rock, dancing, and Graham Parker on fire in terms of his singing and his overall performance. See my programme from the distant past.
Graham Parker and the Rumour gigged relentlessly from 1976 on, and I saw them lots of times. My old ticket stubs tell me I was at gigs at Newcastle City Hall on 23rd March 1977 with Southside Johnny as support, 17th November 1977 (my late wife Marie’s birthday, she agreed to come along although she wasn’t a fan, and a drunken guy behind us spilled a bottle of Newcastle Brown Ale all over her head, I was never forgiven for that night), 5th March 1979 and 5th April 1982 (by that point the Rumour had departed and the concert was Parker solo). I also remember a great gig at Newcastle Poly and seeing Parker as part of the supporting bill for Bob Dylan at his massive Blackbushe concert. There were probably others which escape my fading memory.
So, it is time to see Graham Parker again. This time at my local venue, 
At the outset of his career, his albums crackled with pub rock energy, snide witticisms, and perceptive insights, earning him a devoted following of fans and critics, who lavished praise on his debut, 1976’s Howlin’ Wind, recorded with the Rumour, his backing band of pub rock all-stars. After delivering Squeezing Out Sparks in 1979, which was a smash with critics and won him a larger audience in the United States, Parker courted a crossover career with solo projects such as 1982’s Another Grey Area and 1985’s Steady Nerves before settling into a cult following in the late ’80s and continuing to garner critical acclaim as his music mellowed but his lyrical perspective stayed sharp.”
Today Graham is once again surrounded by excellent musicians including old friend and legendary guitarist Martin Belmont, who I first saw in Ducks Deluxe in the Marquee club, London in 1974. He then became, of course, a member of the Rumour. Graham is no longer the angry young man but he is still a very soulful singer and yes, he still reminds me of Van Morrison. The set comprises songs new and old, many drawn from Parker’s latest album. But we also get treated to “Hey Lord, Don’t Ask Me Questions” and everyone sings along. As part of the lengthy encore Graham performs an exceptional version of Sinatra’s “That’s Life”. He really has mellowed in his later years. Finally, we are back to old favourites “Boogie Shoes” and “Soul Shoes”. Sadly, although someone in the crowd shouts for it, no “Fool’s Gold”. I can’t have everything. Still excellent after all these years.
Setlist: Ancient Past; Nothin’s Gonna Pull Us Apart; Under the Mask of Happiness; Last Stretch of the Road; Music of the Devil; It Mattered To Me; If it Ever Stops Raining; Hotel Chambermaid; Black Lincoln Continental; Get Started. Start a Fire; Lost Track of Time; Sun Valley; Back to Schooldays; (Hey Lord) Don’t Ask Me Questions; Since You Left Me Baby.
And so my search for Rod the Mod continues. This was the third time I had seen 
Each time I hope for old classics and Rod returning to the days when he was a spiky haired mod and had Ronnie Wood by his side in The Faces. And each time he delivers. Alongside the Las Vegas Rod Stewart, every now and then, he returns to the past and takes me back to my youth. Of course at the Albert Hall he really did have Ronnie Wood by his side.
First, the not so good side of the evening. It was pouring with rain all night and we got absolutely drenched. Also on the way in they were offering tickets at the door for 2 for £10, quite annoying when I paid full price for my tickets. Apparently only 5000 or so tickets had been sold out of 15,000. I would put this down to the fact that it is only 6 months since Rod played in the North-East. Also maybe some people would have come along on the night if the weather had been better, but as I said, it was sadly raining heavily all evening. But let’s quickly move on to the positives because this was still a great concert.
The support act was none other than 
After a short break Rod took to the stage. He opened with a great version of the late, sadly missed, Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” and then I was transported back to 1971 and memories of Sunderland Top Rank and Sunderland Locarno with Rod the Mod singing “You Wear It Well”. Another Faces memory with “Ooh La La” and seeing that tour at Newcastle Odeon. Back to Robert Palmer territory and “Some Guys Have All the Luck”. Excellent so far. Soon it is another classic “Baby Jane” and memories of when that song was released and seeing Rod at Ibrox Stadium Glasgow. Apologies for all the reminiscences but please bear with an old guy and his memories 🙂
More classics follow: “I Don’t Want to Talk about It”, Cat Stevens’ “The First Cut Is the Deepest”. Then we are right back to 1971 again and “Maggie May”. I forget that I am drenched, this is classic Rod and at 78 he is still on great form. “I’d Rather Go Blind” is dedicated to the late Christine McVie. A few more songs and then Rod hands over to the female singers to deliver “I’m Every Woman”.
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.
A few more songs and then it is back to the female vocalists, a final rest and costume change for Rod and “Lady Marmalade”. Rod returns for “Stay with Me” which of course takes me back again. Rod do you really still need to sing “Do You Think I’m Sexy?”?. Finally I am back in Newcastle City Hall for his first solo tour, the single of the time and the usual closing song “Sailing”. Massive singalong. We (Jackie, Elaine and I) all enjoyed it even though we were completely soaked.
Setlist: Addicted to Love; You Wear It Well; Ooh La La; Some Guys Have All the Luck; Having a Party; Baby Jane; Forever Young; I Don’t Want to Talk About It; The First Cut Is the Deepest; Maggie May; I’d Rather Go Blind; Young Turks; Downtown Train; Rhythm of My Heart; I’m Every Woman; The Killing of Georgie; You’re in My Heart; Tonight’s the Night; Have I Told You Lately; Lady Marmalade; Stay With Me.
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