CONCERT TICKETS FROM LONDON

I had a photo pass for this show and got some good shots of the band.

There was a power failure at this gig, though the venue wasn't a bad place to watch live music. I wasn't really in the mood for Jonathan Richman though, so I headed back to Camden to see...



...Spizzenergi at the Purple Turtle near Mornington Crescent. Apart from hits like "Soldier, Soldier" and "Where's Captain Kirk?" I didn't know much of their music, but it was good to finally see Spizz.

I was very impressed by Lady Gaga, though I don't know if I'd have paid full price for this ticket. I got this from Universal Music Japan, which was very generous of them.

Kings Of Leon in Hyde Park didn't really do too much for me, though it was good to see Paul Weller, who played "Art School," the first track on the eponymous first Jam album.

Foals at the Electric Ballroom was a good show, though I still think the gigs I saw them do in Japan in 2008 were better.

I was surprised at how good The Black Eyed Peas were in concert. This was another freebie from Universal, as they were interested in one of their artists, support act Cheryl Cole. The concert felt like a musical in some ways, in that each member of Black Eyed Peas had their own singing spots, while other numbers were collective efforts.

CONCERT TICKETS FROM NORTHEAST ENGLAND

This was the second time I saw the Bhundu Boys, at Newcastle University on 8 October 1987. I had seen them earlier that year in Oswestry, Shropshire and, though this did show didn't quite match that one, it was a good night all the same. 

This Stephane Grapelli show was in April 1989, and my friend and fellow English Studies student, Nick Collard, reviewed it for Monopoly, the student newspaper of Sunderland Polytechnic. As the music editor for the paper, I had asked him to write about the show, and a very good job of it he did.

I think this gig was in May 1990 and, in those days, Daintees shows were always something special.

I have a feeling that Cathal Coughlan supported The Fall at this show, though I may well be off the mark. I don't remember this being one of Mark E. Smith's best performances, but that's the nature of the band.

CONCERT TICKETS FROM WOLVERHAMPTON & BIRMINGHAM

The Boo Radleys had their moment in the spotlight in 1995 when "Wake Up Boo!" was a hit single for them. The same year, the band played Wolverhampton Civic Hall and, I must admit, they didn't impress me much.

This Wilko Johnson show Wolverhampton Wulfrun Hall on 20 December 1994 was up to his usual standard. As it was just before Christmas, it was also a great way to kick off the festive season with fellow gig-goers Trevor Sims and Chris Capper.

I first saw The Undertones at a free festival in Zuider Park, Rotterdam, in September 1980, so I jumped at the chance to see them at Birmingham Odeon the following year when a ticket became available.

Two days after The Undertones gig, I was back at the Odeon for The Teardrop Explodes. I don't know why, but this gig didn't match my expectations, though I remember that "Reward" and "Tiny Children" were very good. Julian Cope was fairly eccentric, though nowhere near like he was a few years later on his solo tours.

Towards the end of 1981, I saw Orchestral Manouvres in the Dark, or O.M.D. as they had now become, at the Odeon. They had a large teenage audience at this time and I remember feeling slightly aged, at the grand old age of 19!

I reviewed this Nanci Griffith show on 9 October 1995 for Rock 'n' Reel and was struck by the rather too civilised audience, some of whom were drinking tea in the interval.

This concert by Kirsty McColl on 19 May 1995 was a great memory, and all the more precious since her tragic death five years later.

Another singer who met an untimely end was Jeff Buckley. This gig in 1995 was fantastic, and I'm not just saying that because he died a couple of years later. The weather was appalling, with heavy snow delaying the train back to Shrewsbury after the show, but it was well worth the effort.

Dr Feelgood at Birmingham Odeon on 1 December 1980 was my first experience of seeing Lee Brilleaux, and I'll never forget his ill fitting suit and manic stare. A great show!

CONCERT TICKETS FROM SHREWSBURY

The Bodysnatchers were fronted by Rhoda Dakar and only released a couple of singles. I can't recall who the support was for this show.

The Look were a one-hit wonder who made the charts with a song called "I Am The Beat." From what I remember, the show was a pretty forgettable experience.

This was a gig in 1979, I think. The Tremors released a single on Redball Records called "Modern World" backed with "Smashed Reality," which got played by John Peel. I have a feeling that Dom Estos and the Stains were also on the bill.

This was a really good gig, by a band that should have had more recognition during the Britpop years, though Oasis have mentioned their influence on numerous occasions. Support band Clinton were regulars on the live music scene in Shrewsbury during the 1990s, though I don't remember much about them.

Membership card for the Jazz and Roots Club, held at The Buttermarket every Thursday, for 1995/96

As this ticket for The Beat at the Cascade was ripped in half as I walked in, I seem to remember that this took place in January 1980 and was one of the earliest shows by the band. 

Neon Hearts headlined this gig at the Cascade on 9 May, 1980. They were from Wolverhampton and didn't impress me much at all. The Stains, on the other hand, were a great band and, for me, remain the best Shrewsbury band I've ever seen. They released one single on Redball, called "Bored," backed by "Emotional Pills" and "I'm a Believer," the latter being a live favourite, though I always liked a number called "The Flash," which gloried in the lyrics, "If you want a body tingle/Go and mingle in the Dingle/Do the Flash."

Louis Gordon was (and still is, as far as I know) a singer/songwriter from Manchester who played some memorable shows in the early to mid-1990s. Towards the end of the decade, he worked with John Foxx on at least one of his albums.

Lew Lewis Reformer at the Cascade on 26 September 1979 was a solid dose of Rhythm 'n' Blues, and that's about all I remember about the gig.

Instastella at The Music Hall on 23 September 1995 were awful, from what I remember. They were from Manchester had a female lead singer, and that's about all I recall.

This was a festival that was held in Cleobury Mortimer, near Bishop's Castle, in 1996. I can't remember the lineup, though I have a feeling that Louis Gordon and/or They Went To Portugal were on the bill.

The Damned put on a great show, though there was a problem with the sound initially, prompting Rat Scabies to walk off stage. Supporting them were a band called The Anti-Nowhere League, who I thought were utter garbage. I think Fear Of Flying were a female-fronted group from Shrewsbury.

One of the leading mod bands during its brief revival in the late 1970s, Secret Affair released a couple of great singles before disappearing up their own pretentiousness. The band reformed a couple of years ago, though I don't know what they're up to now. Back To Zero were another mod band, though I can't remember any of their songs. The original support band, Squire, released a classic of its time though, "Walking Down The King's Road." 

Squeeze played in Shrewsbury in 1980 and must have been one of Jools Holland's last shows with the band, as he left the same year. I wasn't that impressed with Squeeze, especially as Wreckless Eric had played a fantastic set before them.

This was the first 'Big' gig I ever saw in Shrewsbury (not there have been many in the intervening 32 years), and came about because Elvis Costello had decided to play less fashionable towns and cities to publicise his new album, Get Happy, in 1980. The support band was Clive Langer and the Boxes.

CONCERT TICKETS FROM JAPAN

The Libertines at Club Citta, Kawasaki, on 1 December 2004 was a great gig, though there was no Pete Doherty for this one.

The Police at Tokyo Dome on 14 February 2008 was a bit of a disappointment for me. I saw them back in 1980 and they were much better in those days, and even talked to each other on stage.

Spiritualized at the Liquid Room, Shinjuku, Tokyo, on 15 May, 1998, was an all night gig, with Spiritualized on stage at about 2 a.m. The tour was on the back of Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Flying in Space, so "Electricity" was a particular memory.

The Foo Fighters can always be relied upon to put on a good show, and this one at Makuhari Messe, near Tokyo, on 13 April 2008 was no exception.

I had seen Franz Ferdinand at Fuji Rock Festival four months before this show at Kokusai Forum, Yurakucho, Tokyo, on 9 November 2009, and thought they were OK, but this was a really good gig, and the band had gone up in my estimation by the end of the night.

This was a curious event, as Jonathan Richman went on first, unexpectedly. It was held at the Hibiya Park Outdoor Theatre, Tokyo, on 26 August 2000, and featured The High Lows, The Neatbeats and The King Brothers as well.

Guest pass for The Kills and Blood Red Shoes at the Liquid Room, Tokyo, in 2008, I think. After the show, Hostess had a party with lots of free drink.

I won this Little Feat ticket in a competition on Peter Barakan's Inter FM radio show, Barakan Beat. The show was at the Yomiuri Hall, Yurakucho, Tokyo, on 10 December 1999, and was not really my cup of tea. I seem to remember that Kevin Parker and myself retired to the pub before the end.