Monday 1st February
The first live music I heard was at youth club; about once a month there would be a dance and some local band would play hits we all knew – Beatles, Stones etc: – badly. Extremely badly sometimes, but this was the closest we would likely ever get to our ‘heroes’; the Beatles played Ipswich Gaumont once, but I was far too young and had no money for tickets anyway.
I left home and came to London and here there were bands playing live all the time, but due to my crass stupidity and almost before I had unpacked my suitcase I got my first wife pregnant and it was downhill from there. One day I will write the book though bits of it have escaped in Catherine’s Story andThe Philanthropist. Needless to say I barely saw anyone – until, completely on a whim, Carol and I dashed to the Isle of Wight for one of the first festivals. We were camped miles from the stage and Carol didn’t want to push to the front and this was long before video screens so I heard but did not see a few acts. It is all a blur to me now but Hendrix was certainly playing that weekend. After a few years I finally got myself together and started seeing bands. Weeley pop festival was an eye-opener and I saw Lindisfarne, Genesis and Barclay James Harvest and the Faces and T Rex there. I started going regularly to gigs, and surprisingly the support acts were usually pretty good and I started to listen to all sorts of different bands.
I saw Bowie, McCartney and Dylan and Paul Simon and Neil Young a few times. I have also seen the Blessed Leonard many times; the nearest thing to Religion I have ever experienced. I went to a few festivals but never to Glastonbury, I really used to like the Fleadh in Finsbury Park, but as I have gotten older I do like a nice seat. Worse gigs were The Stones at Twickenham (couldn’t see a thing), Bowie at the old Wembley (Glass Spider Tour) and Dylan at Sheffield (he looked bored) but then I have seen some amazing live shows especially by Crowded House, Neil Young, Barclay James Harvest and Cockney Rebel and Dylan in ’78.
I don’t go to big concerts these days, and there is really nothing better than Rob or Geoff playing live at the Gambetta on a Friday night; all the old songs we love and know.