Mark Knopfler At The Metro Radio Arena

Mark Knopfler

Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle

18.5.2013

Mark Knopfler's return to North East England was a mixed experience.

Musically, everything was exemplary. The band mastered an impressive array of instruments, from guitars and saxophones to fiddles, flutes and even a set of uilleann pipes. Mark Knopfler's guitar playing was, of course, fabulous. On the other hand, I found his voice to be disappointingly weak, rendering significant chunks of the lyrics to overwhelmed.

The crowd was one of the worst I've known for being eternally mobile. It seemed that no row in any block was immune to the problem of people getting up, mid-song, to head for the bar areas. Then they would disturb everybody again on the way back. It was quite common to see whole rows of people laving at the same time. This sort of thing needs addressing.

There was no support act but the band played for a full two hours. Dire Straits songs were kept to a minimum (Sultans Of Swing and Money For Nothing were notable absentees) and the 2012 Privateering album was well represented (five songs, I think).

A good show, but it could have been better.


Set List

What Is It
Corned Beef City
Privateering
Father And Son
Hill Farmer's Blues
5.15 a.m.
Back To Tupelo
I Used To Could
Romeo And Juliet
Gator Blood
Haul Away
Postcards From Paraguay
Marbletown
Speedway To Nazareth
Telegraph Road

Encore

So Far Away
Going Home

Nine Below Zero At The Arc

Nine Below Zero

The Arc, Stockton-on-Tees

17.5.2013

Nine Below Zero came close to blowing the roof off The Arc with their potent blend of rock, rhythm and blues.

There has been a change in the line up since I saw them in 2011, with original bass player Brian Bethell back in the group as a replacement for Gerry McAvoy. Elsewhere it's still Dennis Greeves on guitar and vocals, Mark Feltham on harmonicas (as Dennis quipped - ''I've got many friends, but not many who suck and blow for a living'') and Brendan O'Neill on drums.

The pace of their set started off fast and continue to gain in speed and energy as the evening progressed. They played for one hour and forty minutes, finishing around 11.15 p.m.

Highlights included: I Can't Do My Homework Anymore, I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch), Watch Yourself, Twenty Yards Behind (''I think if you're going to write a song about a bum, that's as good as it gets'') dedicated to Wilko Johnson - ''A dear friend of ours, who's not very well'' Three Times Enough, I'm So Alone and Stop Your Naggin'.

The encore was a blistering 11+11 - which they famously played ''the last time we were on television'' when Nine Below Zero guested on The Young Ones - followed by Woolly Bully.

It was a very entertaining evening, blowing away - in no uncertain terms - any lingering cobwebs from a busy and tiring week

Here's a few more photos to finish with...

Follow their news and tour dates over at the official Nine Below Zero website.

Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell At The Sage

Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowell

The Sage, Gateshead

16.5.2013

Emmylou Harris has long been one of my absolute favourites. This was the third time I'd had the opportunity to see her, having previously enjoyed shows at Newcastle's City Hall and Manchester's Bridgewater Hall. I once saw Rodney Crowell too, at The Sage back in 2009, in what remains one of the most moving shows I have ever seen.

So one can imagine the anticipation in the air when their combined tour was announced. Acting quickly, I fortunately managed to book front row tickets.

Unusually for The Sage, there was no support act. As Emmylou put it: ''We've got the whole evening; we are the opening act that you're watching right now!'' That was fine by us, as it meant extra time with our favourites. The first half of the show lasted just under one hour; the second ran for approximately 90 minutes, wrapping up around 10.45 p.m. (a late finish for The Sage).

One point of the tour was to promote and enjoy their recent album, Old Yellow Moon - a collaborative effort that should have been tackled years ago, as acknowledged by Emmylou. ''It took us 40 years to make the record that we have out now!''

Enjoying a shared history of 40 years meant they were somewhat spoiled for choice as far as a set list was concerned. We were treated to a dream package of some of the finest songs from their respective back catalogues plus the majority of Old Yellow Moon. 

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Eight of the 12 new songs from (Hanging Up My Heart to Black Caffeine on the set list) were played back to back during the second half of the show, with another one - the title track - following as first finale. 

Despite a couple of mis-steps (I'm sure Emmylou's timing was slightly out during the initial part of Pancho and Lefty, and she had to read the words for Long Time Girl Gone By) this was a truly magical evening. Let's hope that they will continue to work together and return to the UK as soon as possible.

Highlights? Virtually everything, with special mentions going to Earthbound, Luxury Liner (great guitar by Jedd Hughes), Red Dirt Girl, Back When We Were Beautiful and Still Learning How To Fly.

Set List

Part 1

Return Of The Grievous Angel

Wheels

Pancho And Lefty

Earthbound

Till I Gain Control Again

If I Needed You

I'll Be Your San Antonio Rose

Red Dirt Girl

The Rock of My Soul

''A trilogy of heartbreak songs''

Heaven Only Knows

Love Hurts

Luxury Liner

Intermission

Part 2

Darlin’ Kate (Emmylou solo)

The Angels Rejoiced Last Night

Long Time Girl Gone By

I Know Love Is All I Need

A selection from Old Yellow Moon

Hanging Up My Heart

Invitation To The Blues

Spanish Dancer

Bluebird Wine

Dreaming My Dreams

Back When We Were Beautiful

Chase The Feeling

Black Caffeine

Still Learning How To Fly

Leaving Louisiana In The Broad Daylight

I Ain't Living Long Like This

Old Yellow Moon

Encore

Stars On The Water

One Of These Days

OMD At The Sage

OMD

Supported by John Foxx + The Maths

The Sage, Gateshead

13.5.2013

For years, I thought I'd never be able to see John Foxx play live. Now I've seen him three times in just under three years: the famous Roundhouse gig, the intimate Duchess show and most recently at The Sage.

Together with The Maths (Hannah Peel and Benge, but minus Serafina Steer, who is currently touring her own album), John Foxx was appearing to support Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (''OMD'') on their English Electric tour.

That meant a reduced set of songs, lasting around 40 minutes. It was a tight set but a strong one.

Set List

Evidence
He's A Liquid
Evergreen
No-One Driving
Summerland
Running Man
Burning Car
Catwalk
Underpass

The setting was dark, so the photos are not so clear. The sound was excellent though (and loud), as it was for OMD (and louder!).

I'd never seen OMD before and wasn't entirely sure what to expect. The stage was attractively constructed, with numerous lights and various changes in tone and colour.

Now back to their original line up - Andy McCluskey, Paul Humphreys, Malcolm Holmes and Martin Cooper - they took to the stage and within seconds McCluskey was dancing around like a man possessed. His energy levels didn't drop at any point through the set, but his dancing was rendered less bouncy when he strapped on his bass guitar for a number of songs.

He certainly knows how to work a crowd. An early rallying cry of ''I do hope you're not going to behave tonight. Let's treat it like the City Hall -  come on!'' brought the entire stalls to their feet. Even the two bull-headed Minotaurs sitting to my left eventually stopped talking among themselves to stand and dance after a few more songs and for the first time in my Sage life I saw some stewards doing the same.

By way of contrast, the other three remained fairly static throughout, with Humphreys becoming the focal point for just two songs: (Forever) Live And Die and Souvenir.

The set list featured a sprinkling of songs from their new album, English Electric, which all sounded good, plus all of the classics one would expect to hear.

Set List

Please Remain Seated
Metroland
Messages
Tesla Girls
Dresden
History Of Modern (Part 1)
(Forever) Live And Die
If You Leave
Night Café
Souvenir
Joan Of Arc
Maid Of Orleans
Our System
Talking Loud And Clear
Atomic Ranch
Kissing The Machine
So In Love
Sister Marie Says
Locomotion
Sailing On The Seven Seas
Enola Gay

Encore

Walking On The Milky Way
Electricity

It was an extraordinary and highly entertaining evening.

Here's a few more images to finish off with.

Larry Miller: Live and Outlawed

Live and Outlawed

Larry Miller

With six studio albums already under his belt, Larry Miller's new offering is a two-disc, high energy live recording, full of blistering solos and catchy riffs.

Still Ain't Done With The Blues sets the scene for what is to follow, with it's fast tempo and first guitar solo after just a couple of minutes. The tracks are long; the opener, at 7.05, is only the seventh longest on the album. This give each song the chance to breathe and creates plenty of opportunities to let Miller's scorching guitar off the lead for extended blasts.

Messin' With The Kid, an authentic 1960s blues song by Junior Wells, is the one full cover version on Live and Outlawed (although there's a medley in the middle of the album's longest track - 14.28! - Just As Blue As It Gets that includes Voodoo Chile and Shadow Play).

The pace then drops slightly from power rocker to rock ballad for the next couple of tracks, before cranking it up again for Gambler's Hill.

There's another change of tempo - and style - at the start of the second disc, with Outlaw Blues showcasing some very fine slide guitar and providing one of the albums highlights. Missy Mango sees the electric power return to sweep away the acoustic interlude. The traditional blues return with Mad Dog before the monster rock-out of Just As Blue As It Gets, which at just under 15 minutes represents the focal point of the whole album.

Exhausted ears will welcome Calling All The Angels, a slow-building ballad which is as tender as it gets here. Then it's back to the blues again for the finale, Backstabber Blues, which is one of the most outwardly conventional songs on the album, but still clocks in a little way from the 10 minute mark.

Track List

CD1

Still Ain't Done With The Blues
Messin' With The Kid
The Girl That Got Away
Delilah
Gambler's Hill
Cruel Old World

CD2

Outlaw Blues
Missy Mango
Mad Dog
Just As Blue As It Gets
Calling All The Angels
Backstabber Blues

Live and Outlawed is scheduled for a 10 June release and Larry Miller is currently on a UK tour. Follow the latest news on his official website and on the newly relaunched GFI-Promotions site.

The 39 Steps

The 39 Steps

Newcastle Theatre Royal

9.5.2013

''4 actors, 139 characters in 100 hilarious minutes!'' Yes! The official tag line is as accurate as a foreign spy's Luger at five paces.

I first read John Buchan's The 39 Steps 40 years ago (a present from my Grandmother) and have seen numerous screen versions since then. My first encounter with the play was back in 2009 at it's natural home, the Criterion Theatre. I was unsure how well the humour would work in what is essentially a very serious story, but found the whole thing utterly hilarious.

The 2013 UK tour provided me with a second opportunity - and I'm delighted to report the play was just as impressive the second time around.

The basic story should well known to readers and the official premise puts it into a neat nutshell: ''This blissfully funny show follows the incredible adventures of our handsome hero Richard Hannay, complete with stiff-upper-lip, British gung-ho and pencil moustache as he encounters dastardly murders, double-crossing secret agents, and, of course, devastatingly beautiful women''. Quite so.

The four actors work as hard as any cast one is likely to see: changing their characters at almost impossible speed, running around, climbing through windows and even clambering up and down the stage at various points.

As the play is based prominently on the classic 1935 version, there is a plethora of Alfred Hitchcock references (ranging from subtle to obscure) in amongst the square jaws, stiff upper lips, Scottish landladies and despicable spies.

This wonderful play should be at the top of the list for theatre goers. I fully intend going to see it again (and possibly yet again) in the not too distant future.

Here's a trailer to whet the appetite.



Head for the official website for further information.

CSC Teesside Update

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Well done to the Hartlepool Mail for continuing to provide excellent coverage of our local chess events.

Click on the pictures for a larger view.

Front page headlines!

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The Hartlepool Mail has a video version of the interview here.

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