Today's Observer Music Monthly has a feature about 25 of 'the best gigs ever'. Of the gigs listed, I would love to have seen the Velvet Underground in NYC in 1966, or Elvis in 1975, or the Pistols and the Clash in their heyday. I would be less enthused by Oasis or Jay Z, but I bet Roxy Music in '73 were good fun. Stephen Merchant reckons that Springsteen was so good, he didn't once get up foir a piss during the gig. If this is the measure of a top night out, then I am lost for words...
Anyway, with a heavy sigh and a depressing sense of inevitablility, here's my random 'off -the -top of- my -head' list of my top 10 gigs:
1. The Pogues, Brixton, 1988
2. Kraftwerk, Leicester, 1992
3. Colorblind James Experience, Hull, 1989
4. Steve Earle, Harlesden, 200?
5. Iggy Pop, Nottingham, 1988
6. Alabama 3, Birmingham, 2001
7. The Fall, Nottingham, 2005
8. The White Stripes, Nottingham 2001
9. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Manchester, 2005
10. Beck, Nottingham, 1997
well that's just a random spurt of the first classics which come to mind././ the Ramones were great, although well past their best, Richard Thompson has never disappointed, plus Teenage Fanclub, Primal Scream, Micah P Hinson, oh and about a thousand more...
3 comments:
In no particular order(and excluding John Prine, since I mentioned him last week):
1) The Pogues, Brixton, 1987
2) Billy Bragg (with Tom Robinson, James Taylor Quartet and Tony Banks as MC), Kentish Town, 1992
3) Pixies/Waterboys/Fela Kuti/Wonderstuff/Elvis Costello et al, Glastonbury, 1989
4) Richard Thompson, Edinburgh, 1987 and High Wycombe, 1998 (Kate Rusby supporting)
5) Pixies, Alexandra Palace, 2005
6) Bruce Springsteen, Earls Court, 1999
8) Michelle Shocked, Edinburgh, 1987 (same day as Thommo)
9) Lambchop, Somerset House, 2001
10) Ibrahim Ferrer & Ruben Gonzalez, Royal Albert Hall, 2000
I don't go to many gigs - not any more, anyway - but I'd have the utterly predictable...
1. The Kinks, the day my A levels finished in 1988
2. Pete Townshend, Shepherds Bush Empire 1999
3. The fellow from Squeeze whose name escapes me, acoustic in Nottingham somewhere, probably around 1997-8, although part of me says that if you can remember neither name or date it couldn't have been all that memorable
4. Bob Geldof, Swansea, about 2000
5. Fish from Marillion, Tic Toc club in Coventry in about 1989.
Status Quo in 1990 were much better than expected, and the Wurzels doing a free gig in Sturminster Marshall's market place in about 2001 were well worth the money.
Bit sad, really.
Well - in response to you two fine gentlemen; firstly I must add the Pixies to my list, at Leics de Montfort Hall in 1990, it was after the Bossanova LP and it was one of the most exciting things I've ever seen. Michelle Shocked too, at Trent Poly in 1986.
Dan - the bloke from Squeeze was Glenn Tilbrook, and he is coming to Notts soon, let me know if you'd like to make a return visit! you saw him at the Old Vic with Martin Jeffery, as I recall...
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