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Post by Deleted on Mar 18, 2017 9:17:46 GMT
Great memories. I took a week off work in 2013, did 2 gigs in Glasgow, then a night in Manchester, night in Wolverhampton and then on to Hammersmith for 2 gigs there. Was a fantastic week. The Glasgow gigs were a bit of a blur if I'm honest, was very drunk having spent time in Ivory Blacks before hand. I still recall the feeling though, if not the finer detail. Absolutely wonderful to see them all on stage together. Hammersmith was the highlight for me. I still have a scar on my left elbow from falling over at the end of the first evening (very drunk and yes there is a theme here ) and then during the night itself I found myself completely starkers in the hotel corridor having mistaken the room door for the bathroom door. Fortunately my wife woke as a result of my banging on the door and she soon let me back in. The crowds throughout were great, Hammersmith especially, loved the all new (kinda) set list. Hearing Backwater with Alan growling ' Backwater Doctor....' after Rossi had emerged from the truly epic solo is something I'll never forget. I guess the novelty had worn off for me a bit in 2014 although I still travelled back to London for 2 gigs at Hammersmith. Band were noticeably tighter in 2014 than they were in 2013. Saddens me to think we'll never experience it again although the memories will live on forever - great band, great times
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Post by viking55 on Mar 18, 2017 12:12:20 GMT
I travelled for the 1st night at Hammersmith 2013 with my wife who likes Quo but isn't necessarily a fan. Was a fantastic Gig and the atmosphere was special. Band were magnificent. That satisfied me enough to see them all back together and I wanted the memory to remain special ! Hence I didn't attend any of the 2014 gigs as I could feel , in myself , a slight anti climax about it and I didn't want to go and feel that way. Great memories of that gig though !
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Post by smokie on Mar 19, 2017 0:29:09 GMT
@bam, brilliant post there, I think finding oneself locked out of your hotel room like that is not uncommon. That's happened to everyone, hasn't it?......
ivory Blacks. What were your impressions of that place? Good? Bad? Indifferent?
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Post by quodlibet aka granny on Mar 19, 2017 8:57:25 GMT
@bam , brilliant post there, I think finding oneself locked out of your hotel room like that is not uncommon. That's happened to everyone, hasn't it?...... ivory Blacks. What were your impressions of that place? Good? Bad? Indifferent? Ivory Blacks - good sound, good atmosphere as the Scottish fans are very friendly but have to admit the place is a dive. Convenient position near the station.
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mortified
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Post by mortified on Mar 19, 2017 15:17:41 GMT
2013 was very special although I didn't get to fully appreciate it all because I took ill earlier in the year, reacted badly to medication then had to start all over again. By March I wasn't 100%. So I had to sell Hammersmith and Wolverhampton tickets but managed to make it through to one of the Glasgow gigs. But I couldn't go mad like I usually do. Ivory Blacks was great fun but then with State of Quo on it was always going to be. I do remember it being very icy and snowy underfoot going to and from the gig. Alcohol and ice only mix when they're in a glass together! 2014 didn't match the expectation and, to be honest, I was a little disappointed with the set list second time round. But it was still great by anyone else's standards. I personally thought the DVD of the first tour should have been done at Hammersmith. Wembley seemed positively funereal by comparison but I disagree with Francis about the playing. It sounded brilliant to me. Perfection isn't always required - or even desirable! Mind you, he said that about Milton Keynes as well. He sees things differently to the fans I suppose. Different agenda altogether. This upset one or two at the time but when I saw the band at Falkirk stadium in 2013 about 3 months after the reunion, I actually enjoyed it more. That was probably down to my individual demeanour both times but it only goes to prove there are several factors at work when you go to any gig. I loved Alan's voice. It was as strong as ever. But one of my most niggling memories - and its not a big thing so I don't know why it bothered me - is the fact that the intro to Junior's Wailing wasn't the full blown 70's intro. Apart from the vocals it could just as easily have been the usual band playing it. April Spring Summer and Wednesdays and O Baby were the true highlights for me. Truly magnificent.
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Post by smokie on Mar 19, 2017 23:22:06 GMT
Thank you quodlibet aka granny, that has just confirmed my fears about the place but wanted another opinion. I was thinking about going to see Rhino there in May but I think I'll pass. A pity really as Status No are the support and I've have heard good things about them. Cheers
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Post by Deleted on Mar 20, 2017 6:53:25 GMT
Thank you quodlibet aka granny , that has just confirmed my fears about the place but wanted another opinion. I was thinking about going to see Rhino there in May but I think I'll pass. A pity really as Status No are the support and I've have heard good things about them. Cheers Granny has got it spot on really. It is a good atmosphere but the place itself could do with a bit of money spent on it. The toilets are medieval, truly have to be seen to be believed. Status No are very good, they kicked off the McVention I went to there a year or so back. Quo tribs from all over Europe played but they were without doubt one of the best.
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mortified
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Post by mortified on Mar 20, 2017 8:14:32 GMT
That Forty Five Hundred Times clip is superb. It truly captures everything I love about this band and their fans.
Unrivalled.
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Post by quodlibet aka granny on Mar 20, 2017 9:49:20 GMT
Thank you quodlibet aka granny , that has just confirmed my fears about the place but wanted another opinion. I was thinking about going to see Rhino there in May but I think I'll pass. A pity really as Status No are the support and I've have heard good things about them. Cheers Don't let me put you off smokie. I have been 3 years running and if I could cope I am sure you could. I had been contemplating travelling up in May but the hotels near the station are booked up or very expensive for that Saturday and I no longer have a Railcard, so a bit too expensive for a one night trip. StatusNo are very good and, unlike most other tribs of early Quo, they have a keyboard player. I would go if I could afford it.
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mortified
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Post by mortified on Mar 20, 2017 11:27:01 GMT
Thank you quodlibet aka granny , that has just confirmed my fears about the place but wanted another opinion. I was thinking about going to see Rhino there in May but I think I'll pass. A pity really as Status No are the support and I've have heard good things about them. Cheers Don't let me put you off smokie . I have been 3 years running and if I could cope I am sure you could. I had been contemplating travelling up in May but the hotels near the station are booked up or very expensive for that Saturday and I no longer have a Railcard, so a bit too expensive for a one night trip. StatusNo are very good and, unlike most other tribs of early Quo, they have a keyboard player. I would go if I could afford it. Yeah, we've looked into hotels for the Rhino gig in Glasgow. Believe it or not, we're going to see him in London because its better value. A very nice hotel near Oxford Street is actually cheaper!! Glasgow hotels on the Saturday are ludicrously expensive. No idea why. Apart from the usual daylight robbery by weekend hotel chain bandits. I've become pig sick of that over the years. So much so, its stopped us doing the odd gig we might otherwise have done.
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Post by smokie on Mar 21, 2017 6:45:06 GMT
Thanks @inna, I'll need to have a think about this but the opinions offered by @bam and quodlibet aka granny tally up with what a friend told me about the place. Sounds like revisiting the football grounds of the 70s and 80s and not sure if I'm keen enough to do that.
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Post by Quoincidence on Mar 22, 2017 4:23:15 GMT
That Forty Five Hundred Times clip is superb. It truly captures everything I love about this band and their fans. Unrivalled. So true. Although... this here might challenge it: I love how they went into Gotta Go Home full blast, although they messed up the Race with the Devil there. Well, a little bit. Thats Rossi just trying to play this bit again after 30 years
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Post by snakelady on Mar 22, 2017 8:06:11 GMT
Your first post made me read again your gig report from 2014 @inna - and then mine. I remember I was so looking forward to that gig. After all we already had the Hammersmith and Wembley videos from 2013 and watched them various times. Then the gig itself .. Everything was perfect first, the atmosphere, the band, the music - and then all started to go wrong with Alan's problems. I wouldn't want to witness anything like it ever again. Well, I won't .. We all thought it was down to Alan's pride that he kept asking why everybody was worrying about him but nobody ever mentioned Rick.
You can't help but wonder what had really been going on behind the scenes - and in this case I mean from a health POV. Maybe in hindsight these gigs without keyboard put too much strain on Rick .. ? But then he really enjoyed them, he never was one to look too far ahead anyway and his heart was probably already damaged beyond repair. Maybe that next heart attack in autumn would've been avoidable though, but it's all history now anyway ..
What I do know is, that the reunion gig was a wonderful opportunity to show to my kids the line-up that made a fan all these decades ago, even while I kept repeating how completely different the gigs had been back then. To hear these songs and played like that was worth it alone though.
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Post by frozenhero on Mar 22, 2017 9:39:40 GMT
2014 didn't match the expectation and, to be honest, I was a little disappointed with the set list second time round. But it was still great by anyone else's standards. I personally thought the DVD of the first tour should have been done at Hammersmith. Wembley seemed positively funereal by comparison but I disagree with Francis about the playing. It sounded brilliant to me. Perfection isn't always required - or even desirable! Mind you, he said that about Milton Keynes as well. He sees things differently to the fans I suppose. Different agenda altogether. I wasn't at any of the gigs though with hindsight I probably should have gone in 2014. I do have both DVDs and only recently re-watched them. In my opinion, Francis' lead playing on the 2013 Wembley DVD is absolutely dreadful the whole way through. Really, really terrible. It may be no worse than he has been playing the years before with the other lineup, but because there are so many solos it really rubs me the wrong way. It isn't until the quiet bit in Bye Bye Johnny that he seems to find some inspiration. In that regard, the 2014 Dublin DVD is far, far better. Night and day springs to mind.
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Post by snakelady on Mar 23, 2017 8:16:12 GMT
2014 didn't match the expectation and, to be honest, I was a little disappointed with the set list second time round. But it was still great by anyone else's standards. I personally thought the DVD of the first tour should have been done at Hammersmith. Wembley seemed positively funereal by comparison but I disagree with Francis about the playing. It sounded brilliant to me. Perfection isn't always required - or even desirable! Mind you, he said that about Milton Keynes as well. He sees things differently to the fans I suppose. Different agenda altogether. I wasn't at any of the gigs though with hindsight I probably should have gone in 2014. I do have both DVDs and only recently re-watched them. In my opinion, Francis' lead playing on the 2013 Wembley DVD is absolutely dreadful the whole way through. Really, really terrible. It may be no worse than he has been playing the years before with the other lineup, but because there are so many solos it really rubs me the wrong way. It isn't until the quiet bit in Bye Bye Johnny that he seems to find some inspiration. In that regard, the 2014 Dublin DVD is far, far better. Night and day springs to mind. You'd have gone to Stuttgart, same as we did and with the way the gig ended maybe it wasn't the worst decision to not witness that. I still remember how depressed the atmosphere at the venue became and that's how it stayed afterwards as well .. (see my report: link ). In one of the FF FTMO issues Lloyd mentioned about the first tour, that Francis, with the band as underrehearsed and bad as they were, hadn't been able to concentrate on his own playing, but had to keep the band together on stage and had to look after the others - and that during the second tour, when they were far better rehearsed, he was able to concentrate more on himself, his playing and enjoy the gigs more. Maybe that's an explanation ?
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