She was a Princess of the Night, I saw the writing on the waaa-ll!
Fabulous band.
Hot off the Friday Rock Show …
Yes buddy, you’re right! I’ve actually got a tape recording of the 45 mins of this gig that went out on Radio 1, and it does indeed have Biff leading a “Rock! With Tommy Vance!” chant between songs.I seem to remember they sang the jingle for The Friday Night Rock show with Tommy Vance. I used to love the song connection part of the show. Down the years I've seen them about 10 times maybe more great band, love Frozen Rainbow and Crusader.
Do you do wetransfer I've probably 250+ live recordings of Saxon with about 30 or so are FM broadcasts, soundboards or quality DAT recordings no prob for me to send you some, let me know.Yes buddy, you’re right! I’ve actually got a tape recording of the 45 mins of this gig that went out on Radio 1, and it does indeed have Biff leading a “Rock! With Tommy Vance!” chant between songs.
More widely I would love to hear some more recordings of those shows - I’ve periodically trawled the web looking but have had no joy :-(
Yes, the Friday Night Connection was fab - and bloody difficult for my young ears!
The one recording I do have is one of the All Time Chart he did - I think from 78 - 85 he did it every year based on Top 3 tracks that listeners sent in.
I’ll see if I can dig out what made the Top 10 and post it on here in next day or two (I think it’s the 85 or 84 one that I have) - I reckon you’d be able to guess a fair few of them anyway ;-))
Lovely review mate. The love pours out. I watched the doc on the last domino and was touched at how Collins deals with it all.
Well I'm turning back the years booked tickets to see Saxon/Girlschool/Diamond Head/Krokus at Manchester Apollo in January 2022, and a new band for me who've been around for ages Sabaton booked tickets in Leeds in March next year.
I put my first Genesis album on the turntable in 1973 when I had just turned 16. Foxtrot. From the opening doomed chords of Watcher of the Skies I was gone. The following year I absorbed every bit of music they had ever made culminating in seeing them live in Edinburgh in 1974 for the Lamb Lies Down tour. They were by a country mile my favourite band right up to the release of 'Then there were three' in 1978 when I considered the soul of what they had previously been vanished with Gabriel and Hackett. After that, I still listened to their albums up to Abacab and I still had a soft spot for them as a band but never the same. Their early music lives on through Steve and to hear his band live is what Genesis could have become in an alternative world.Cheers.
I didn't realise until after the gig that I hadn't seen Phil live since 1992; I did see Genesis in 1997 with his replacement.
Collins still gives a performance, even seated on something that isn't a drum stool. Whatever you think of his vocals now, you cannot deny that he is putting all that he has into them. In some ways there's even more emotion there. He's also blessed with decent comic timing. His corny old get different parts of the audience to cheer routine is still rather unbecoming of Genesis but delightfully handled by Phil.
I'm certain it was a first gig for many of the audience since the onset of the pandemic and that added to the occasion but it was an event.
I'm not sure why Diamond Head didn't become huge like Priest or Maiden I seem to remember they all were around at the same time.I think some of the guys that I sometimes go to gigs with in London are going to the London show.
I've already mentioned "touring" with Diamond Head recently I have seen the other three more than once in the past but not in a long while.
I'm pretty sure the first time I saw Saxon they were part of some sort of battle of the bands affair that took place before a headline show by The Ian Gillan Band at the Apollo.
There's stuff going up on YouTube all the time from last night's show but you really had to be there.
I put my first Genesis album on the turntable in 1973 when I had just turned 16. Foxtrot. From the opening doomed chords of Watcher of the Skies I was gone. The following year I absorbed every bit of music they had ever made culminating in seeing them live in Edinburgh in 1974 for the Lamb Lies Down tour. They were by a country mile my favourite band right up to the release of 'Then there were three' in 1978 when I considered the soul of what they had previously been vanished with Gabriel and Hackett. After that, I still listened to their albums up to Abacab and I still had a soft spot for them as a band but never the same. Their early music lives on through Steve and to hear his band live is what Genesis could have become in an alternative world.
Commercially though they were spot on to transition in the way they did to become the juggernaut they were/are. Watching Phil deteriorate physically is sad, particularly as the other two have 'grown old gracefully'. I thought watching the documentary he handled himself and his troubles with a great degree of stoicism and grace and its really nice to hear that his last tour is getting such great reviews and giving such pleasure to many. Glad you enjoyed it mate.
Btw what happened to Chester Thomson who played live with them before? Has he replaced by the young Collins?
I missed him this time round as Mrs S was not yet comfy with an indoor gig of 1000s.Ironically my real introduction to Genesis was Then There Were Three, which, for a few reasons, I am very fond of but it took me a long time to actually get into their early stuff and, although I went to see them at the Apollo in 1980, it wasn't until the release of Genesis that I truly started to get into them. I have a preference for the prog but I like their commercial stuff: love melodic rock and AOR.
IIRC, Collins was only prepared to do this reunion if Nic Collins had the drum seat so dear old Chester was not invited to the party. Nic is well up it so keeping it in the family works.
I am going to see Hackett for the first time next month...