Disharmony In My Head

Following on from what was the greatest gig I ever went to - a sentiment echoed by Andy Kershaw in his recent autobiography, except he saw The Clash a couple of days earlier than me in Leeds - I thought I'd deal with one of the greatest disappointments I ever went to. Given the number of gigs I've been to over the years there are bound to have been a few duff ones, one or two have been so bad I've left early, but I didn't have such high expectations of those as I did of this one.

It's October 27th 1979 in Manchester and on the back of a host of 'hit' singles, The Buzzcocks are playing a hometown gig at The Apollo. Not only that though, supporting them they have Joy Division who have recently released 'Unknown Pleasures' to great critical acclaim. It should have been at the very least, the gig of the year. But it wasn't. The sound was a complete and utter mess and it completely ruined what should have been a fantastic night out. In fact they played two nights and I went to the first. People I knew went to the second night and it was great apparently as by then they'd sorted out the sound problems.

Since then, if a band is playing multiple nights at the same venue, I would never plump for the first over subsequent nights unless there were other factors to be taken into account. Sound(!) advice I thought until many years later a friend pointed out that if you went to the first and it was fantastic, then with any luck you'd be able to get a ticket to go again the following night.

Come For The Party, Come To Make Sure

I've dealt with some of the gigs I went to as a student in Manchester and I'll go on to wrap them up in a final post at some time. But there's one gig that deserves a post all of its own. A gig so stupendous that I'll remember it forever. A gig that I only went to through the great kindness of a friend. I'm not one for making lists of the best gigs/singles/albums/bands etc. but if I were, this gig would be no. 1. It's never been surpassed.

"A friend of mine from the course got me this ticket and I wouldn't mind going but I think it would mean an awful lot more to you than it would to me." Thankyou very much to my old flatmate Tim Sheehy for some of the nicest words that were ever spoken to me. I don't know why I hadn't bought a ticket to go and see The Clash at Manchester Apollo on their 16 Tons Tour but I hadn't and now a good friend had supplied me with a ticket.

The Clash at Manchester Apollo February 4th 1980

I wish I could say that I can remember every minute of it but after 30+ years, there's no chance. What I do remember is that it was loud, very loud, and my ears were still ringing from it 4 days later. This was probably the beginning of the end for my hearing as I now suffer from mild tinnitus in my left ear but I don't think I'd change a thing. I also remember the feeling of elation that stayed with me for the rest of the week as well and can still recall sitting in the luggage rack of the 192 bus on the way home afetr a fantastic night out. I wish I could have seen them earlier in their career and I wished I'd gone to see them again later but I'm happy that I had that one magical night from a band at the top of their form.

Inflammable Material

Coming a little late to the punk scene, Stiff Little Fingers (named after a Vibrators’ song) followed in the footsteps of The Clash by writing overtly political songs, largely about “the troubles” in Northern Ireland. Their gritty sound also mirrored that of The Clash and they even included a reggae number on their first album but they were no copycat band and I loved them. If I could possibly put together a list of my favourite singles of all time, “Alternative Ulster” would be on it.

Stiff Little Fingers at Manchester Apollo May 28th 1979

Stiff Little Fingers at Manchester Polytechnic October ?? 1979

Stiff Little Fingers at London Astoria December 10th 1992

Stiff Little Fingers at London Forum March 25th 2011

I first saw them at Manchester Apollo in 1979 and have seen them several times since. When moving from London up to Sunderland I needed a gig to say goodbye to the place and out of what was available, it seemed only fitting that I picked one of theirs. I was son inspired by them whilst a student that one of my course mates even managed to get me to pen a review for the student union newspaper - my one and only appearance in a journalistic capacity. It’s rubbish but here it is anyway:

NO BLOOD OR TEARS BUT LOTS OF SWEAT

When writing about a band like “Stiff Little Fingers”, several words immediately spring to mind such as ‘dead ace’ or ‘superb’. This was definitely the case on Tuesday night at the Polytechnic.

“The Donkeys”, a Liverpool band of some repute played an excellent, but unfortunately 15 years too late, gig. The close harmonies seemed to have stepped straight out of the “Merseybeat” era and their rendition of “Please, Please Me” could easily have passed for the “Fab Four”.

Last time round, S.L.F. played the Apollo and have regretted it ever since but the Factory was too small & they didn’t know the Poly existed. The Poly is certainly the happy medium in both size & sound quality.

S.L.F. charged straight into “Alternative Ulster” and from that moment on it promised to be a great night. They played a well balanced mixture of old & new songs & the new songs seemed to have more power, more depth & more musical ability than all the old favourites, without losing the S.L.F. identity.  If the other songs off the new album are half as good as the ones they played, then it will certainly be a biggie. Finishing off with “Wasted Life”, S.L.F. left the stage to overwhelming applause, cheers & whistles.

In the usual style of S.L.F., the encore was silly, the 1st song was stupid but superb & “State of Emergency” superb. Despite 5 minutes of cheering, they failed to return for a 2nd encore, but what a fantastic concert.

The First Apollo

I wish I’d kept all my tickets but inevitably, I wasn’t thinking ahead and as a young reckless student, these things get lost. But I went to loads of gigs during my three happy years in Manchester, it’s just a shame that I can’t remember them all. I’ve got quite a few tickets and I have memories of other gigs and have managed to track down dates on the internet so I’ll go through them here, a few at a time, and remember what I can.

Boomtown Rats at Manchester Apollo 13^th December 1978

I’d always quite liked The Boomtown Rats despite them being rather too poppy for my taste. Having just had a hit with “Rat Trap” they undertook a “Seasonal Turkey Tour” to celebrate. A good night I’m sure and I think this was probably the first time I’d been to Manchester Apollo. It certainly wouldn’t be the last and was the venue for the best gig I’ve ever been to just over a year later.

Elton John at Manchester Apollo April 25^th 1979

I went back to Manchester early after the easter break just to go to this gig. I don’t particularly like what Elton turned into or the music he produced later on in his career but the early stuff stands up well. The gig started with just Elton on stage playing lots of great songs but the gig was transformed half way through when the most excellent percussionist, Ray Cooper joined him. Elton Started playing “Funeral For A Friend” with Ray Cooper joining in part way through, they then segued into “Love Lies Bleeding”. Absolutely stunning.

Judas Priest at Manchester Apollo May 15^th 1979

The first gig I ever walked out of. A friend had a spare ticket and persuaded me to go with him, against my better judgement. Too much leather, hair and spandex for my liking and that was just the audience. I should have known what I was in for after the poodle headed, leopard-skin leotarded, support band, whoever they were, came on but I stayed to see the main act. I wish I hadn’t bothered.