Last week’s trip to see “The Two Noble Kinsmen” at Shakespeare’s Globe prompted some familiar thoughts about venues and performances. There are certain theatres that I have been to many times over the years and whenever I return to them my mind is always taken back to previous visits. The Shepherds Bush Empire is one… Continue reading More thoughts about Shakespeare’s Globe (23 down, 15 to go) and other venues
There are years when I go to plenty of gigs, at least one per month. Some years, like last year, I go to hardly any. In 2017 there were planned shows that had sold out before I could get tickets, like Tony Visconti and the remaining Spider from Mars playing the whole of the Ziggy… Continue reading Andy White, and “50 quid man”
Last Saturday I drove to Oxford and back, from here in West London, to see legendary punk-poet John Cooper Clarke. He played at the O2 Academy on Cowley Road. I travelled with a couple of friends and my 13-year-old son, none of whom had seen him on stage before. I first saw him perform in… Continue reading 40 years of John Cooper Clarke
Ari Up, singer in punk band The Slits, died seven years ago today. May she rest in peace. She and the band had been on my mind in recent weeks, and when starting to draft this piece yesterday I discovered that the anniversary was upon us. Back in 2010 I read the news of her… Continue reading Ari Up and The Slits
Rest in peace Tom Petty, another singer and songwriter taken from us too soon. His first UK hit “Anything that’s rock ’n roll” in 1977 was the first 12” single that I ever bought and I was privileged to see him at the Marquee Club in London a year later, a semi-secret gig for which… Continue reading Tom Petty RIP
As I noted in this piece from last December, in my teenage years I often had front row seats for gigs at the Hammersmith Odeon. By the age of 15 I had moved on to smaller venues and venues without seating, from tiny pubs and clubs to places like the Lyceum and the Roundhouse. The… Continue reading Sharing a drink with Ozzy Osbourne
As a teenager I went to many gigs at the Hammersmith Odeon, and even went to a couple before turning 13. It was the largest cinema in the UK at the time (around 3,500 seats) and the scene of many childhood visits to the pictures, like those recalled in this piece. By the time I… Continue reading Front row seats at the Hammersmith Odeon
