Hawkwind Space Ritual Tour Sunderland Locarno 1972 
“This is earth calling”…….”In case of Sonic Attack on your district, follow these rules…If you are making love, it is imperative to bring all bodies to orgasm simultaneously..Do not waste time blocking your ears…..Do not waste time seeking a soundproof shelter…….Try to get as far away from the sonic source as possible…Do not panic…”
I am starting the letter H today in my bloggings, and there is no better way to start than reflecting on the times I have seen Hawkwind in concert. I’ve seen the band lots of times over the years, so please indulge me, while I write about those experiences. It will take me a week or so. I blogged some time ago on my first Hawkwind experience, which was when I saw them as one of the support acts for the post-Morrison Doors at Newcastle City Hall. It wasn’t long before I saw the band again. The Space Ritual tour called at Sunderland Locarno in 1972, and was as epic as the legends suggest. Silver Machine and Master of the Universe were great favourites at the Mecca (the Locarno) at the time; the dancefloor always filled up when they came over the PA. So when it was announced that the band were coming to play as part of their Space Ritual tour, there was a lot of excitement, and huge anticipation for the gig. This was the classic Hawkwind line-up with Robert Calvert on vocals; Dave Brock on guitar and vocals; Nik Turner on sax, flute, and vocals; Lemmy on bass guitar and vocals; Dik Mik and Del Dettmar on synthesizers and Simon King on drums. 
The gig was everything you might imagine: very loud, a tightly packed ballroom, lots of flashing lights and strobes, Stacia dancing naked, strong smells of joss sticks and dope, strong bass and rock rhythms, lots of strange noises, weird space-rock, great psychedelic light show, booming sinister vocals from Calvert, Lemmy looking cool. This gig had every ingredient a rock n roll gig should and, as a young kid, I was just blown away and totally hooked on Hawkwind. From that point on I was a fan, and went to see them again and again; although I have to admit that I did lose faith a little during the late 80s and 90s. This is one of those gigs that I would love to experience again. If only I had a time machine…Happy days and happy memories. Setlist: Earth Calling; Born To Go; Down Through The Night; The Awakening; Lord Of Light; Black Corridor; Space Is Deep; Electronic No. 1; Orgone Accumulator; Upside Down; 10 Seconds Of Forever; Brainstorm; 7 By 7; Sonic Attack; Time We Left This World Today; Master Of The Universe; Welcome To The Future; You Shouldn’t Do That. Encore: can’t really remember, but I imagine it will have been Silver Machine
Posts Tagged ‘rock n roll’
17 Feb
Hawkwind Space Ritual Tour Sunderland Locarno 1972
16 Feb
Geordie in concert
The band Geordie are probably better known because of their lead singer Brian Johnson, who is now lead singer with AC/DC, than as a band in their own right. But they had a few hits in the early to mid 70s and gigged constantly, particularly in their hometown Newcastle and the rest of the North East of England. Geordie feautured Brian Johnson on vocals, and Vic Malcolm on guitar, and hit the charts with “Don’t do that” (their first single which reached No. 32); “All because of you” (No. 6); “Can you do it” (No. 13); and “Electric lady” (No. 32). Geordie grew out of the workingmens club circuit. There were many rock bands playing the clubs at the time, playing mainly covers of bands like Free and Deep Purple. Geordie developed their blend of rock to become a sort of heavy rock glam act, of a similar ilk to Slade and Sweet. 
In fact they supported Slade on a UK tour. I saw Geordie many times in concert during 1973 and 1974, particularly at Sunderland Locarno, where they performed on several occasions. Brian left Geordie in 1976 and was asked to john AC/DC in 1980 after the death of Bon Scott, and the rest is history. A Geordie gig was always good fun, and a great live singalong favourite (if a little corny) was their version of the traditional song “Geordie’s lost his liggie”…”he lost it down the nettie…..so he got a case of dynamite…and he blew the stinking nettie along the Scotswood Road…..it was in his bloody pocket”! Work that one out! Happy days.
15 Feb
Gary Glitter in concert
Gary Glitter in concert
I wondered whether to include disgraced star Gary Glitter in my bloggings at all, but in the end decided I should do so. I am treating this as a historical record of my concert goings, and given that I have seen Gary Glitter in concert on a few occassions, I felt I should comment on that here. The first time I attended a Gary Glitter concert was 1974 and he was high in the charts somewhere between the singles “I Love You Love Me Love” and “Remember Me This Way”. 
At this point he was very much a teen glam star and Newcastle City Hall was packed. By the end of the 70s Gary Glitter had hit hard times. The hits had dried up, but he was still out their gigging in small clubs. A group of us went to see him during this period at Middlesbrough Rock Garden. The small venue was filled with skinheads and punks who gave him a great reception. 
By the mid 80s he was enjoying a comeback of sorts, and was again filling Newcastle City Hall. 
The last time I attended a Gary Glitter concert was at a large sports hall in Durham. By this point he was touring every Christmas with the Gary Glitter Christmas Show or “Glitter at Christmas”, which had become a seasonal favourite with people of all ages. He was filling large halls and even arenas at this time. 
I also saw Gary Glitter play the part of The Rock in The Who’s performance of Quadrophenia at Hyde Park in 1996, as support act for Wham! at their farewell concert The Final in Wembley Stadium in 1986, and supporting Rod Stewart at Ibrox Stadium in Glasgow in 1983.
14 Feb
David Gates 1980 and 2001
David Gates 1980 and 2001
I’ve already blogged on David Gates alongside Bread, but I found a programme in my collection that I hadn’t scanned at the time, so I decided to include it today for completeness and as an excuse for writing a little more about David and his songs. David has written some great songs including the Bread classics: Make It With You; Baby I’m-A Want You; Guitar Man; Everything I Own; and If. What I didn’t realise was that he also wrote Saturday’s Child for the Monkees. Saturday’s Child appears on the Monkees first lp, and is one of their better album tracks. In the TV series our heroes Monkee around on the beach in a dune buggy, motorbikes, and the Monkeemobile! Happy memories. The last time I saw David Gates in concert was at a gig at Newcastle Tyne Theatre which Marie and I went to ten or more years ago. He was on good form, and sang all the classic Bread songs, as you would expect.
13 Feb
David Gilmour Royal Albert Hall London 2006
David Gilmour Royal Albert Hall London 2006
I went to this gig with David, having bought tickets at the last moment, just before they sold out. I was dithering about whether it was worth the trip to London to see David Gilmour, and by the time I decided I would take the plunge, the only tickets left were standing tickets right up in the gallery looking down on the stage. Security for the concert was such that no tickets were issued and we had to turn up at the Albert Hall with photo ID to obtain entrance to the concert. The tour was to support Gilmour’s new release On An Island, and much of the set was drawn from that album. The tour stopped at the Albert Hall for three nights, and further shows were added including Manchester Bridgewater Hall, which I would have preferred to attend. The set was a mix of tracks from the new album and a good selection of Pink Floyd classics. Gilmour’s band for the concerts was
old Floyd mate Rick Wright on Hammond organ, piano, and synthesizer; from Roxy Music: Phil Manzanera on guitar; Dick Parry on saxophones; Guy Pratt on bass; Jon Carin on synthesizer and Steve DiStanislao on drums. There were also a number of superb special guests including Crosby and Nash, Robert Wyatt, and for the encores the band was joined by Nick Mason on drums, making this in effect a Pink Floyd concert, or at least the same line-up as the last version of Floyd. The lightshow was subtle, but amazing; one of the best that I have ever seen. And I was delighted to see them play Arnold Layne, which I never imagined I would see performed live. It was also great to hear Shine on Your Crazy Diamond and my personal Floyd favourite Echoes, both of which were played true to the original. An amazing gig, and easily on par with some of the Floyd or Roger Waters performances I have attended. My only regret was that we didn’t go along on the first night, when Gilmour was joined by David Bowie for Arnold Layne. Now that would have been amazing to see. Setlist:
Speak to Me; Breathe; Time; Breathe (Reprise); Castellorizon; On An Island (with Crosby & Nash); The Blue (with Crosby & Nash; Red Sky At Night; This Heaven; Then I Close My Eyes (with Robert Wyatt); Smile; Take A Breath; A Pocketful Of Stones; Where We Start; Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Parts I-V) (with Crosby & Nash); Fat Old Sun; Dominoes; Arnold Layne; Coming Back to Life; High Hopes; The Great Gig in the Sky (with Mica Paris); Echoes. Encore: Find the Cost of Freedom (with Crosby & Nash); Wish You Were Here (with Nick Mason); Comfortably Numb (with Nick Mason). A DVD of the concert, entitled Remember That Night, was released in 2007.
12 Feb
Peter Gabriel Newcastle Arena 2004
Peter Gabriel Newcastle Arena 2004
Still Growing Up Tour; “In the Round”
This was the first time I had seen Peter Gabriel for over 20 years. It was also the first gig I went to for many years with my old friend John, who is now living to the USA. So it was a night of seeing old friends again; in more ways than one. It was great to see John again, and to go along to a gig, just like old times. And it was a pretty good gig too. The arena was set out with the stage in the centre, and we had seats right up close. One thing that you can expect from Peter Gabriel is the unexpected and this gig was no exception. Peter moved around the stage on a small two-wheeled vehicle to ensure that we all got a good view of him. At one point he rolled around the stage like a hamster in a giant ball, as shown on the front of the programme. 
Peter’s band for this tour was David Rhodes, Rachel Z, old band mate Tony Levin on his stick bass, his daughter Melanie Gabriel on backing vocals, Ged Lynch and Richard Evans.The set was a mix of tracks from throughout his career. There were several songs that weren’t familiar to me, but I recognised the opener Here Comes the Flood, and old favourites Games Without Frontiers, Solsbury Hill, Sledgehammer and the final encore Biko. A great concert by a truly original artist who never fails to surprise. Setlist: Here Comes the Flood; Darkness; Red Rain; Secret World; White Ashes; Games Without Frontiers; Burn You Up, Burn You Down; Downside Up; The Tower That Ate People; More Than This; Baby Man; San Jacinto; Digging in the Dirt; Growing Up; Solsbury Hill; Sledgehammer; Signal to Noise. Encore: In Your Eyes; Biko. Peter Gabriel is touring again later in the year, but isn’t coming to the North East. I think a trip to Manchester to see him may well be in order.
11 Feb
Peter Gabriel Newcastle City Hall 1983
Peter Gabriel Newcastle City Hall 1983
Support Act: Zerra One
Peter Gabriel was back at Newcastle City Hall in 1983. By now he had released four solo albums. The tour was billed as the Playtime 1988 tour. His fourth solo album displayed the influence of world music, and included the single Shock the Monkey. Peter was soon to move further towards the pop mainstream and mega-success with the release of his album So a few years later in 1986. 
This was the last time Peter was to visit the City Hall, and the last time he played in Newcastle for over 20 years. His tours from then on called at arenas and missed the North East out, until 2004, which was the next time I saw him in concert. The programmes scanned here are from later tours, picked up at a car boot fair somewhere! One of them is clearly from the So tour. 
Setlist included: Not One of Us; The Family and the Fishing Net; Shock the Monkey; Family Snapshot; Intruder; No Self Control; Humdrum; Lay Your Hands on Me; Solsbury Hill; I Don’t Remember; San Jacinto; On the Air. The band for the 1982/83 world tour was Peter Gabriel – synthesiser, piano, vocals; Jerry Marotta – drums, percussion; Tony Levin – bass, stick; David Rhodes – guitar; and Larry Fast – synthesiser, piano. This tour was more theatrical than previous tours and took Peter and his band around the world. In the USA he played some dates as support act for David Bowie.
10 Feb
Peter Gabriel Newcastle City Hall 1980
Peter Gabriel Newcastle City Hall 1980
Support Act: Random Hold
Peter Gabriel returned to Newcastle City Hall in 1980. This was the fourth time I saw the post-Genesis Peter in concert. The first time was on his first solo tour in 1977, which I blogged on yesterday. I then saw him at two festivals. The first of these was at Knebworth in 1978 where he shared a very strong bill with Frank Zappa, The Tubes, Boomtown Rats, Rockpile, and Wilko Johnson. The second festival was Reading 1979 where he appeared on Sunday afternoon, before Nils Lofgren (who replaced the Ramones) and Whitesnake closed the weekend. The thing I remember most about that night at Reading was returning to the campsite to find my tent had been stolen! I’ll blog on those festivals on another occasion. So that means I saw Peter every year from 1977 to 1980. 
During that period he released three albums. For me Peter’s first solo album is the best, but that could simply be because it is the album with which I am most familiar. By 1980 new inclusions within the set were the great single Games Without Frontiers and the protest song Biko, both of which were to become big favourites. The programme was entitled Tour of China 1984, and took the form of a little red book, based on that of Chairman Mao. The band for this tours consisted of Peter Gabriel (vocals / keyboards), John Ellis (guitar), Jerry Marotta (drums), Tony Levin (bass / stick), and Larry Fast (keyboards / synths). Setlist: Intruder; Start; I Don’t Remember; Solsbury Hill; Family Snapshot; We Do What We’re Told (Milgram’s 37); Modern Love; Not One of Us; Lead a Normal Life; Moribund the Burgermeister; Mother of Violence; Humdrum; Bully for You; Games Without Frontiers; And Through the Wire; I Go Swimming; Biko; On the Air. Encore: Here Comes the Flood.
8 Feb
Genesis Reunion 2007 Old Trafford Manchester
Genesis Reunion 2007 Old Trafford Manchester
In 2007 the rumours finally became true and the Genesis reunion tour was confirmed. There had been a lot of speculation to suggest that Pete Gabriel would be joining the band, but sadly that wasn’t to be. However I was still very excited at the prospect of seeing the band again after all those years. I’d missed a couple of opportunities to see Genesis during the 90s. I’d planned to go to Knebworth in 1992 and to the Calling All Stations tour in 1998 but ultimately didn’t make either gig. So I was determined to see them, and bought tickets for the Old Trafford gig of the reunion tour. Marie came along and we stayed in a hotel right next to the stadium. 
The set was a mix of tracks from throughout their career, and I was pleased to see the inclusion of I Know What I Like. Setlist: Behind the Lines; Duke’s End; Turn It On Again; No Son of Mine; Land of Confusion; In the Cage; The Cinema Show; Duke’s Travels; Afterglow; Hold On My Heart; Home By The Sea; Second Home by the Sea; Follow You Follow Me; Firth of Fifth; I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe); Mama; Ripples…; Throwing It All Away; Domino; Los Endos; Tonight Tonight Tonight; Invisible Touch. Encore: I Can’t Dance; The Carpet Crawlers
7 Feb
Genesis Knebworth 1990
Genesis Knebworth 1990
The next time I saw Genesis was on a multi-act bill at Knebworth in 1990. This was the Silver Clef Award Winners Concert and had an amazing line-up including Pink Floyd, Cliff Richard & The Shadows, Tears for Fears, Eric Clapton, Dire Straits, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Ray Cooper, Robert Plant (with guest Jimmy Page), and Status Quo. Pretty strong bill! I won a pair of free tickets in a competition; I think is was with KitKat, and Marie and I went down for the weekend. This was a great concert, which deverses a blog post of its own. I’ll save that for another day, and limit my reflections today to Genesis’ part of the day. Some of the acts such as Paul McCartney and Pink Floyd got to play pretty full sets, but most of the other bands were limited to a few songs. In Genesis’ case their set was four songs which were: Mama; That’s All; Throwing It All Away; and Turn It On Again. Phil Collins also did a four song set which was: In the Air Tonight; Sussudio; Colours; and Another Day in Paradise. By now Genesis and Phil Collins was blending and merging together in the public consciousness and even I was sometimes confused as to which songs were Phil and which were Genesis. It was good to see Genesis again, but their short set, and Phil’s set, just served to underline how different this band were from the Genesis of the early 70s. It was 17 years until I saw Genesis again.
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