Primal Scream - Thursday 10th April - Hammersmith Eventim Apollo

Brief review:  Of course the Eventim Apollo will always be the Hammersmith Odeon to those of us of a certain age. It really is a fantastic rock venue and was well suited to tonight's show. A very dapper Bobbie Gillespie wore a black and white outfit and seemed in good voice. Personally, I thought the early part of the show took a while to get going, but then I do prefer the rockier tunes to the danceable ones (appreciating that they aren't exclusive to each other). Anyway, a set of decent length (1hr 45 mins) provided variety and I especially enjoyed the last half. Especially when a couple of the more slaughtered members of the audience had moved away (either being carried out or bouncing their way forwards).

But a special call out to the (non-drunk) guy who carried 4 pints on his own from the bar outside, through the crowd to a spot in front of us without spilling a drop. An amazing effort.

Venue and View:  Normal spot, front left, standing. Busier than expected.

Setlist
Don't Fight It, Feel It
Love Insurrection
Jailbird
Ready To Go Home
Deep Dark Waters
Medication
Innocent Money
Heal Yourself
I'm Losing More Than I'll Ever Have
Love Ain't Enough
The Centre Cannot Hold
Loaded
Swastika Eyes
Movin' on Up
Country Girl
+
Melancholy Man
Come Together (included a snippet of Suspicious Minds)
Rocks

Tyla - Thursday 3rd April - Cavern, Raynes Park

Brief review:  Tyla from the Dogs D'Amour with a relatively rare band show. Less chat than normal and a set which concentrated on the first 2 albums. Very enjoyable with a predictable guest spot from the Quireboys' Spike for "How Come It Never Rains".

Venue and View:  Standing towards the back

Setlist

* I'm fairly certain that Errol Flynn was missed out.

The Who - Sunday 30th March - Royal Albert Hall

Brief review:  We thought it would be impossible to get better seats than last year, but it turns out we were wrong. A fantastic view and support from Level 42 got the audience warmed up. And what an excellent bassist Mark King is (I think I last saw him at this venue in 1988!).

We hadn't gone to the first Who show this week (mainly on cost grounds, but also because experience shows that the 2nd show is usually better as they are more rehearsed!). The start of this one was underwhelming, mainly because it was so quiet (the Who are meant to be loud!). From our seats we couldn't hear Pete Townshend's guitar at all. Now it is notoriously difficult to get a good mix at the front of the stage, but Level 42's sound had been great. After about 5 songs, something changed, the volume went up and we could hear the guitar. Ironically, this must have triggered something in Roger Daltrey's earpieces as he started complaining about what he could and couldn't hear.

But from Pinball Wizard onwards, all was good and I enjoyed it as expected. We even got a live debut in "The Song Is Over" (from 1971!) There are rumours that this show could be a launchpad for another tour. Roger is 81, but his voice is still amazing, so count me in if that happens!

Venue and View:  3rd row, dead centre.

Setlists
Level 42

Heaven in My Hands
To Be With You Again
Running in the Family
The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up)
Starchild
Something About You
Lessons in Love
The Chinese Way
Hot Water

The Who
I Can't Explain

Substitute
Who Are You
The Kids Are Alright
Bargain
Pinball Wizard
Love Ain't for Keepin'
The Seeker (Acoustic)
Behind Blue Eyes (Acoustic)
The Real Me
5:15
I'm One
Love, Reign O'er Me
My Generation / Cry If You Want / See Me, Feel Me
Eminence Front
You Better You Bet
Baba O'Riley
Won't Get Fooled Again
The Song Is Over

Paul Heaton - Tuesday 4th March - Pryzm, Kingston

Brief review:  I really enjoyed Paul's show at Hammersmith in December and so leapt at a very late opportunity to get into this small scale gig at Pryzm in Kingston - effectively a "thank you for buying the album" show. Paul said he was nervous, but didn't know why ("maybe it's because I can see you all"), but was on good form as was vocalist Rianne Downey. This was the early show of 2 that evening and the 65 minute set was a decent mix of old and new material. Highly recommended!

Venue and View:  Front Left, standing

Setlist

Just Another Family
Old Red Eyes Is Back 
Silly Me
Five Get Over Excited 
H Into Hurt
Bell Bottomed Tear 
Small Boats
Fish 'N' Chip Supper
I'll Sail This Ship Alone 
Heatongrad 
Don't Marry Her 
One Last Love Song 
Happy Hour 
Rotterdam 

Who's Next - Saturday 8th February - Charles Cryer Theatre, Carshalton

Brief review:  The excellent Who tribute come to Carshalton. A very talented set of musicians across the board, but my attentions often focus on the skill of the guitarist - in this case Dante DiCarlo who's interpretation of a 1970's Pete Townshend in white boiler suit was spot on. And for the first time in well over 100 shows by the Who and numerous tributes, I got to hear "Long Live Rock" live. Fantastic!

Venue and View:  Central, standing.

John "Rhino" Edwards - Thursday 30th January - West Hampstead Arts Centre

Brief review:  An "in conversation" event with Quo's bassist for a Mick Wall podcast. Mick seemed to go out of his way to annoy the audience in the warm up chat, basically denigrating any band that didn't have it's full quota of classic line-up members and saying that people who went to see them are idiots. Not quite the exact words, but the small seated audience didn't generally share his views which were a bit rich considering his soon-to-arrive guest wasn't the original bassist of a classic rock band.

Anyway, Rhino was on good form with some amusing anecdotes and views from inside the Quo camp. As an interviewer, Mick does have a tendency to turn the conversations and experiences back to himself, but at least a brief Q&A session bought the focus back to his guest. An interesting, albeit non-essential experience.

Venue and View:  Seated centrally, towards the back

Magnum (Tony Clarkin Tribute) - Tuesday 21st January - O2 Forum, Kentish Town

Brief review:  A tribute concert to the much-missed Tony Clarkin (founder, guitarist and song writer for Magnum). An emotional evening, but it was great to hear Bob Catley on vocals once more, ably supported by the most recent incarnation of the rest of the band.

A fitting tribute to a rock legend.

Venue and View:  Front left, standing

Setlist
How Far Jerusalem
Lost on the Road to Eternity
Wild Swan
When We Were Younger
The Tall Ships
The Flood (Red Cloud's War)
Les Morts Dansant
Don't Wake The Lion (Too Old to Die Young)
+
Soldier of The Line
Just Like an Arrow
Need a Lot of Love
On a Storyteller's Night
All England's Eyes
Vigilante
Kingdom of Madness
+
The Spirit
When the World Comes Down