17 posts from August 2009

I join Nick in Freuds.   It seems a central place to meet and perfect for an old time reunion.   I am shocked at how little the place has changed.  He is drinking a Long Island Iced Tea as well.  He is talking about becoming head of Creative Writing in Plymouth, which might be the making of him, could make him the Malcolm Bradbury of the West.   We drive to New Cross to see Blur play Goldsmiths.   Outside I meet Andy Ross and Helen in the queue, this really is like the old days.
  I remember Goldsmiths being smaller; having said that it is still a pretty compact box of a place.   And it is hot, before we start it is very hot.  The band walk on and they look impossibly young.   The Southend show last night was amazing and maybe they are still in recovery.   They look so young.   They wear their age in their eyes but not on their bellies.   Damon looks properly spooked.  After “She is so High” he admits it is odd being back here, to a place where he ran around mad, listening to music when he was young, he thought it was so much bigger.  All of them look overcome by the place.
The crowd is great tonight and they go properly stupid to all of the songs.  It quickly is pouring sweat from the ceiling and I am drenched.  Their shocked faces soon turn to one of genuine joy. I recognize the band I knew back in 1991, Damon pushing the PA stacks and I wondering if he will climb them again.   He stage dives, but that is as mental as it gets.   I much prefer them like this, striped back to a four piece, no horns, Mike Smith only occasionally embellishing on keyboards.   Nick is telling me this is the most important cultural event for the last 20 years and who am I to disagree.  So many old friends down here.   Paul Feneron and Cerne are here.   I really enjoy it and I was wondering if I had seen it all too many times already.   Nothing will ever compare to the night in Essex, that was one of the great gigs of my life, witnessing something I never thought I would ever see, witnessing it with Jo as well.   I will do one more, Hyde Park next Thursday and that will be it.

We get a tube down to Brixton.   The Blur comeback tour continues with a show at the Academy.   When we get down there a huge crowd surrounds the venue.  We spot Jamie Hewlett with Ceri and Matt Longfellow.  Matt is with his two children and we remark on how it is great getting all the old gang back together with quite a few little editions.  We enter down at the stagedoor and find a place in the crowd near the front. Luckily I have my earplugs and the girls the huge ear defenders that Angie has leant me that enable us to stand right next to the PA for the show.  It means that the girls can sit on the crash barrier and get a good look at proceedings.
It is a different experience to last week up in Essex.   I guess I know what is coming in the set.   Plus I have two little girls to keep amused the whole time.   I am delighted that they have the opportunity to see Alex dong his day job, see what made him famous.  More to the point see the band that changed their parent’s life.  It is a lot to ask of them, to sit there and enjoy a two-hour set.  At one point I worry that we might have to leave as Scarlet is complaining about how the ear defenders are making her head sweat, but she calms down, taking them off between each song and she gets back into the swing of it.   Alex spots us, gives a big smile to the girls.   He is sporting a tight white T Shirt for the show, making the most of his new physique.  I love Damon when he is in his attack mode, all hunched up and taut during the more punk rock songs like “Jubilee”, “Popscene” and “Advert” Most of the crowd which includes Theresa from work are just here to enjoy the classics from Parklife.  We are treated to Phil Daniels who marches on and his lyrics are flying everywhere.   He looks cheekier than ever and it is fun to see the pantomime between him and Damon.  

We are off to the Bush Hall tonight to see Lenka play her first London Show.   Backstage she is lovely, really sweet.   Looks good in this kind of Hawaiian print dress.  Her band are pretty eccentric, the actually open for her as well.   Feel like a band from a Judd Appatow movie, lots of big personalities.  Her show is fine, she is charming and the crowd  love her.  

I jump on the tube and head down to south London.   I am seeing a Blur rehearsal with Austin at the Brixton Academy.  I turn up thirty minutes late to find they have already finished.  In fact they only did a couple of songs today.    I walk onto the legendary stage where Damon is chatting with Tony Wadsworth and Chris.   It is an impressive view, out across the room towards that famous balcony.  Get to ride back into town with Graham, Alex and Dave.   This really does feel like old times, being with the thee of them in a taxi, “Where to, Freud’s?” asks Graham with a glint in his eyes, and for a moment it would not be difficult to transform us back to the merrymakers that we were fifteen years ago.   We really did have it all back then before the darkness kicked in.   I go and have a cup of tea off Conduit Street with the boys; it is good to be with them, talking about girls and boys.   They are off to Saville Row to pick up some jackets after this cuppa.

We get to the O2 and in the pouring rain I argue with the security to get under the building into the proper car parking area.   Ken meets us inside with our passes and we go and find Jo who is waiting outside the main entrance.   We find our seats in time to go and see Glasvegas who are opening on the tour.  I am impressed that there is such a big turnout this early to see them.   They look amazing as well, all of them have lost weight, and are looking stylish; Rab has jettisoned the trench coat and James is wearing a smart jacket.   He actually looks like Elvis Costello tonight that is until he strips down to a muscle man T-shirt and shows off ripped arms.  The set list is surprising as they throw Geraldine out first .   James is looking like a real star now though; I can start feeling very confident for the future.
   We grab a drink before coming back for Kings of Leon.  The screaming blows me away, I have never been to a concert where so many girls are losing it, clearly I need to get out more or move my roster around a bit.   It is a big deal to have the Kings back in London, this is the place that took them to their heart first and they know it.   For all of their international success we are still ahead of the game, selling 2 million records, a figure unimaginable for a rock band in 2009.   They have stepped up their game; the tracks sound amazing, lean raw.  There is a precise menace to “Crawl” a deliberate understated power here that is thrilling to watch.   Likewise “Pistol of Fire” it is slower and heavier than on record and way more exciting.  I could just sit back and watch each member of the band go through their paces, each of them is so compelling.   Nathan is particular is a drummer to rival any in the world.  I am so proud that Scarlet has been given sticks by the John Bonham of today.
"Fans" is so heartfelt, a song about the crowd that is giving up everything for the band.  When they perform “Sex on Fire” the screams go up another level, I didn’t think it could get this crazy.   “The Bucket” is magnificent; all of the tracks they pick off ”Aha Shake Heartbreak” arguably their most overlooked record go down a storm.   Mark leans across to me telling me how their songs have an incredible resonance in a room like this.   He is right, they are the last true stadium rock band on the way up, they have that quality that resounds with classic rock from the seventies and eighties.   I am so lucky to have it happen on my watch.  They are properly delivering tonight as well.   Watching Caleb and Matthew duke it out on duelling guitars is like something from the Allman brothers.
They encore with a matchless run, “Knocked Up” into “Closer” two of Jo’s favourite tunes, then into Revelry”, and finally “California Waiting” how good is that?  

I get a car to Kings Cross meeting Lee in WH Smiths.  We settle down in the train to Leeds and then ride the train up to Doncaster where we change onto a little DMU to take us to Bridlington Spa.  We arrive there at around 7.30.   It is a lot colder up here, but the skies are clear.   No sign of a taxi at the station but we are able to get hold of Helen Hampson who is up here with the band and calls one for us.   The drive takes us to our hotel down the narrow streets of this seaside town.  It could be a seaside town anywhere in England but the driver is listing off an endless series of closures in the local hospitals telling me it is like the third world up here.   He is certainly doing nothing to tempt me back to the north.
Our hotel, Sewerby Grange is not so bad.  A big detached townhouse with a few rooms which have been decorated pretty smartly.  I make sure Lee has the big room.  We head back into town and the driver is telling us the town has its own lap dancing bar and he thinks they have a couple of brothels as well.  I am just taking in the view as we turn out along the front and the whole North Sea opens up in front of us.   Seaside Towns may be depressing places when the sun goes in as it invariably does most of the year, but whatever happens, the sea is always there to remind you that life goes on and will do forever more.  It cannot help but take me to a philosophical place and I feel all the better for seeing such a vast expanse of sky and water.
   We quickly spot the Kasabian fans, red sunburnt faces, close cropped heads, arms aloft in football and oversized polo shirts.   We asked about a place to eat but I am not fancying my chances at any of these seaside restaurants.   What the hell, we are by the sea; let’s get some fish and chips in.   There is something undeniably poetic about sitting staring out across the water picking at the battered cod drenched in salt and vinegar with my wooden fork.
We head into Bridlington Spa Hall; it is almost exactly the same place at The Winter Gardens in Margate where the madness kicked off a while back.   The main room holds maybe 2,500, has an ornate balcony and a dome in the roof, should be a bitch for the sound man.  We queue for drinks but it is insane down here and we give up and go and join the masses.   The crowd is already kicking off, I am impressed at the amount of girls in here, we are crossing over to a new audience.    Helen finds us as does Mike Dewdney.  Everyone is happy, even Graeme gives me a big hug when he finally appears.
The show itself suffers from a somewhat polite sound but that might be where we are stood, beneath the balcony at the back.   They come on to “Underdog” which feels subdued but the place is soon in uproar as they launch into “Shoot the Runner”.   “Reason is Treason” keeps up the momentum but it is “Fire” that properly takes it over the top.  The place explodes, drinks flying through the air, so many people on each other’s shoulders, lads with arms round each other’s shoulders pogoing as one.  This will be such a moment at Glastonbury.   “Empire” has everyone engaged and “Fast Fuse” keeps the madness at full tilt.  Serge is playing this beautiful teardrop guitar, knocking out such an insane riff.   It is a crazy song but easily Tom’s best vocal.  They go off with “LSF” before returning with a mighty “Vlad the Impaler”   I really do love that song, its bass rumble driving everyone forward.  It is so fucking hot in here I am surprised they are not pulling out more bodies from the crowd.
Graeme pulls us all up to the dressing room.   They have this massive boardroom at the top of the building.   I am surprised, it is unusual for a manager to have you back in the dressing room as the band come off the stage and are trying to get their shit together.   They all arrive sweating and red faced.   They were playing football all afternoon on the beach and like everyone else in the city have a lot of sun burn.  But everyone is happy as we crack open the drinks.   Helen has brought bottles of champagne to celebrate and I realise I have to come up with a speech.  I pull myself together and deliver some righteous rhetoric about the journey we have all been on over the past year and there is much cheering.   Then Pete Gunn the TM arrives with the I-pod boom box and the party kicks off.  The band have been pretty together on this tour.   Liam Gallagher has been twittering to complain about how they are in bed by 9pm each night, God bless them for staying away from the Gallaghers on the tour, they know there is a job to be done.   Having said that Liam was twittering at 8am and I doubt he was getting up early for a jog.
   I am glad I made the effort to get up here.  At least I can see the band properly kick back and enjoy themselves.   They are celebrating a number one record in fine style as indeed they should; it is a major fucking achievement.  Serge pulls out songs that I love, “Baby it’s You” off the Deathproof album is one of my favourite recordings ever.   They play Cyprus Hill, The Beastie Boys, Black Sabbath and Phil Spector.    Led Zeppelin is a constant favourite .
   We head down to the bus at 2, there are still kids waiting outside, poor bastards, I really do feel for them.   The band are great, sign autographs, take photos everything.  

he gig is at Chappel and Wakes Colne Railway Station just outside of Colchester.   It is a place of myth in the Blur legend as the venue for the first ever Seymour gig played to celebrate Damon’s sister Jess’ 18th birthday.   The band always talked about it in hallowed tones and it is better than anything I could ever have expected.   We walk up to the station to be greeted by the sight of a maroon 0-4-0 saddle tank locomotive called Robert standing outside the well preserved Victorian Station.   We go into the ticket offices where two girls from CMO are looking after the guest list.  Over the bridge, past the ancient rolling stock on the line, across the level crossing and into the small crowd of well wishes milling about.   “Niamh” booms Damon as we arrive.   He looks amazing, a pair of Addidas shades and a black Fred Perry top.   Alex is back to his skinny Britpop best.   It’s like a ballet school in  rehearsals he chuckles, no one eating, all of us turning anorexic and chucking up our dinners”   Dave has just finished his law exams and is facing his role as a Labour MP in a challenging Tory seat.   Graham is surrounded by young fans, sporting a trilby, is bashful and friendly.   We find Jess who is lovely.   She tells us how Graham was originally her friend and they bonded over a love of music.   Damon of course was super competitive and so she took a back seat.   She remembers little of the 18th birthday party.   We chat with Steve Lamacq, another Essex boy and Stephen Street down here with Sarah.  
   A cheer goes up from inside the hall and we realise we need to be in  there, the band are already onstage.  There are maybe 150 of us, local fans, relatives and long standing colleagues.   I stand watching with Terry Felgate, Miles Leonard and his girlfriend, Chris Morrison standing behind clutching a glass of wine.  I don’t know what I expected to feel tonight, seeing the four of them back on stage again.   I was very happy that they had decided to reunite.   I am normally sceptical about such things, but seeing Damon at his Honest John’s evening made me realise how much I missed  him sing all of those incredible songs,  I  never expected to hear them again and here I am, the familiar opening chord of “She’s So High” cutting through.    Graham is hunched, glancing as always across the stage, smiling at the others, Damon is clutching the mike ferociously hard, really intense, Alex is up high on the monitors, showing off like mad, looking amazing
They cut from this into “Girls and Boys”, I reach out to grab Jo, she smiles at me, but she is feeling pretty emotional about it all.   Everything I hear tonight takes me back to the moments when these songs impacted our lives.   I am back in Thames Teddington Lock Studios, at the recording of the Word in February 1994 and Blur are performing “Girls and Boys”.  Then it is “Tracy Jacks” such a simple beautiful song, easily overlooked but so emotionally powerful.   “There’s No Other Way”, the song that really did start the madness, that took them into the top 5.   “Jubilee”, Top of the Pops after they had won four Brits, Elastica on the same show, Damon performing on keyboards.   Such a ferocious song, the crowd really kicking off for the first time.   This is what it is all about, the band being menacing, dangerous, edgy again.   “Badhead” a perfect songs about hangovers, such a gorgeous tune.   This is what Parklife the album was all about, emotional life affirming melodies; the eponymous single was at ods with it all.   
Damon picks up his small acoustic guitar to play “Beetlebum” cut to Kensington Park Road in 1997.   I remember clearly thinking how incredibly soulful he sounded for the first time, that was when the magic really started with this band.   “Trimm Trabb” is Jo’s favourite song and I am delighted to hear more songs from later in their career, when they had cut back from playing live so much.    “Coffee and TV” is gorgeous, Graham wholly at home delivering it, then “Charmless Man” delivered with absolute ferocity again, Damon behind the keyboards.    “Tender” sees Alex turn his bass guitar upright to imitate a double bass as they deliver the song that took them on to another level, so fucking smart.   “Country House” is wonderful, not the millstone it ought to be.   “Colin Zeal” is followed by “Oily Water” priceless moments from the days locked in Matrix in Covent Garden, plotting against the world.    “Chemical World” helped take them out of that as did “Sunday Sunday” the song that drove Andy Partridge mad.   Then “Parklife” its arrival heralded by the barking dogs.  The song that took it supernova.    What I am staggered by watching all of this is just how fucking good this all is.   They are playing better than I ever remember from the past, this is exceptional, the rest of the country will not be able to believe it when they properly roll out across the summer.  “End of a Century”, “To the End” and the mighty “This is a Low” are the ballads that brings the set to a close and with a shake of the hand they are gone, leaving all of us stunned.
There is more, there is so much more.   Terry and I are working out what they missed from the set.    They return with “Popscene” and this is my particular highlight.   I am back to the Marquee in New York, November 1991, the sound of a band coming on full throttle against the world.   This is them at their most furious, Graham goes into overdrive, falling to the floor and writhing around like Angus Young as he delivers the solo.     They don’t let up and neither does the crowd as he launches into “Advert” and Damon   launches into the crowd, as impressive a stage dive as I have ever seen.   Then Dave starts up the round of those all too familiar drum patterns as “Song 2” begins to make itself heard.   This is the song that conquered America, that proved to be the biggest song of their career.   It is staggering trying to take in what an amazing journey it has been, so many songs, so many directions.   
They take it right down for “Out of Time” the beautiful song that launched their last album “Think Tank”.   Graham didn’t previously play on this but he fills in fine tonight, leaving Damon to deliver his acoustic guitar solo.  Then “Battery in My Leg” the one song on the album he did contribute to, a song all about the breakup of the band which I never thought I would see them perform.   Another surprise is the mention of “Essex Dogs”   They offer it up to the audience, “Who wants “Essex Dogs” Graham shouts throwing up his own arm along with most of the audience, “Who wand Sing?” sadly only a handful of us.  “I always said this should never be performed live” Stephen Street shouts into my ear as they struggle to get the rhythm track up and running.   I am delighted; at last, we get to see the band at their most twisted, away from all of the perfect melodies.   I am staggered that they actually rehearsed it.   “For Tomorrow” is the song that tipped the scales and brought the band back from oblivion.   I remember that at Finsbury Park, something magical happened there, something to make us all realise that they were special.   Seeing that on TV was what made Nick Kneale realise we were onto something.   They end with “The Universal” This is the one that finally reduces me to tears.   This is the moment I realise just how much I owe to those four boys up on stage.   Not just the remarkable career I have enjoyed in the music business, but meeting my wife, the birth of my children, Stevie and Scarlet would not be here enchanting us if it were not for me noticing a flyer in The Record and Tape Exchange advertising Blur, a new band on Food, playing The Bull and Gate.
 

We walk over the river and down Temple Bar to the theatre.   It is a beautiful night; everything in the world is desirable when the sun is out.  I recall the time I saw The Divine Comedy at the Olympia.   I love the show; it is one of the most enjoyable Manics performances I can remember.   They come out and play the entire “Journal for the Plague Lovers” album beneath the backdrop of the Jenny Saville sleeve.    It changes everything seeing them as a three piece again, not since the performances around the time of “Everything Must Go” were they like this.   It reminds me of when Richie was hospitalised just after The Holy Bible and they went out and played Reading as a three piece.   They were dangerous and tonight there is a bit of that back in their spine again.    I love hearing the new songs live, some of the best riffs that James has composed.   There is real poignancy as well.   The left hand side of the stage looks particularly empty tonight and it is difficult not to be moved by Nicky’s rendition of “William’s last Words.
We take a brief break for a drink during the interval before the band return to play the greatest hits set opening with a glorious “Motorcycle Emptiness” followed by the great version of “Your Love Alone”    There is not much I feel I miss out on.   “La Tristessa” is there as is “Little Baby Nothing”.   They have finally rehabilitated “Tsunami” which had lain dormant following the Boxing Day disaster.   The highlight of the night, in fact a real moment in my career is when Nicky dedicates “Faster” to Rob for letting them record “The Holy Bible” and to me for letting them record “Journal for the Plague Lovers”    I have come a long way from that day sat in my office in Charing Cross Road listening to the 10” of “Faster” for the first time and thinking just what a remarkable piece of music it was   I go downstairs into the stalls to use the toilet.   The sound down there is immense; it is such a brutal assault.  I return and sit next to Martin and get to watch the bouncers deal with any crowd trouble, pulling out the surfers.  I am transfixed by the girls in front of Wire.   They are devoted to him for the entire show.   They are pretty cute as well, all of them with big sunglasses which they all pull down during one number when Nicky is wearing his.  Martin tells me they follow the band everywhere and only have eyes for Nicky.   I do love the romance of this band; there are precious few of them left.

I head across to The Bloomsbury Ballroom where Daniel Merriweather is launching his album.   I run into mark Beaven there, he is on great form.  Angie turns up after I told her to go home and go to bed.   I do love her rock and roll spirit though.  It is great to be returning to the scene of Ronson’s launch two years on.   Especially when it looks like we are going to do similar numbers to Mark’s record.  It all feels real.   The gig sold out very fast and whilst we have packed the place out with media there are plenty of kids going wild for Daniel.   He looks great, relaxing into himself a lot more, letting his real fighting and drinking personality slip out.   I am surprised he lets some of his bigger songs out so early in the set.  “Stop Me” is the second song and “Water to a Flame” is fourth.   Adele was supposed to turn up and perform but in the end it is Talia who comes out.   It all goes up a gear when Ronson joins him on stage looking a million dollars and they belt through “Change” and “Money in my Pocket” with this amazing American rapper that Mark has discovered.  "Red' goes down a storm.    They return with Andrew Wyatt from Miike Snow on keyboards to perform “Live By Night” the song they wrote together.  
 Backstage everyone is celebrating and smoking heavily  the dressing room.   Ronson is in a great mood and I am happy to just enjoy the moment.  He is nearly finished on Duran Duran and then starts work at last on his record.  He introduces me to his girlfriend and to Sam his sister.   I head back to join the party. 

I need to go and see Sound of Guns at “St Barnabus in Soho.   They are a Liverpool rock band in the U2 mould that Sam Mumford is very taken with.  They could be the next Stereophonics.    There are quite a few faces down, plenty of old A&R men; I guess management must be available.   The singer has a good voice but the songs are  very familiar.