Weeell, now, if you get me on to this…!
Obviously a question of generational differences here. I kind of stopped going to gigs beyond the eighties, with one or two exceptions (Page and Plant in Lyon, 1995). So I don't know your stuff, as far as most of you go, live. But in my heyday, I went to a cartload, from about the end of the sixties through till the mid eighties.
Special mentions:
First gig ever: the Rolling Stones, about 1964, Harrow Granada. They would have been pretty good, I think, if I had been able to hear a single blessed thing. Screaming girls drowned out everything. An entire auditorium of Teenage Maenads. Frightening atmosphere, really. Exhilarating, too, even for the ten-year-old that I was (taken by big brother!) Mick had good moves. Keith looked as rough as he does now, if not more so. Charlie cool as you like. He always is.
Stunning gig at Malvern Winter Gardens: Taste, opening, followed by Deep Purple. My ears rang for fully twenty-four hours. No problem about hearing either band. Taste were fully as good as Ritchie Blackmore and his merry men. That must have been in late 69 or early 70. I suppose I could look all this stuff up if I could be arsed. But I've got a good memory, and I trust it.
All of Wishbone Ash's gigs, starting with the one at Sheffield City Hall, opening for Mott The Hoople. They made it impossible for MTH to follow them. Hitched over Snake Pass with a mate to see that one, and kipped on the floor of a hall of residence room at Sheffield Uni. That must have been in winter of 70-71. I then saw them four more times, I think. Once at a pub in Leytonstone (east London), the Red Lion. Once at Free Trade Hall. Once at Lyceum (London). That one was special – with a special girl. One last time at Roundhouse (London), about 1974. As with no other band I've seen, they had a gift for getting the crowd absolutely raving.
Zep at Manchester Uni, Students Union building, early 71. Nothing really needs to be said. Still, in many ways, the ultimate rock group for me. Although much of their best work was still to come.
Pretenders in Tokyo, 85, maybe 86. That Chrissie…
Overall, I've always said that the best live band I ever saw was probably Colosseum. Saw them about five times over a three year period, from 71 to 74. And I was at the free gig at Manchester Uni, when they recorded the Colosseum Live double album. I reckon I'm in one of the photos on the inside fold-out, visible only from the back (well, could be me…) Not everybody's taste in music, obviously, but when they got going they were just flying. I don't think I've seen any band in which each member was being spurred on by the others to be at the top of his game. They just took huge pleasure in each other's musicianship.
