50 gigs

Following on from Jude Rogers and David Hepworth...
1. The Pirates in Hull – my first at the Ritz or similar grotty nightclub
2. Human League – meant to be the second but eventually at GMex on an 80s package
3. The Beat/Au Pairs – first uni gig, and still one of the very best
4. The Beat – last year at a grotty pub in Bradford– amazingly brilliant
5. The Beat – Last Year at a grotty pub in Bradford – somehow it all failed second time around
6. Beck – Manchester Apollo - the best I’ve ever seen
7. Bruce Springsteen – Roundhay Park 85 – first big gig. Ok, but put me off festivals
8. Radiohead – Warrington – next big gig. And worth it
9. Thom Yorke – Latitude 2009 - my first festival and a wonderful experience
10. Pere Ubu – Carlsberg free festival in Copenhagen, following the Blue Brothers Band and just before Kool and the Gang. Who booked that?
11. The Undertones – Hull – just happened to be passing
12. The Undertones – supporting Peter Gabriel at Crystal Palace, their last English appearance – we slept on the streets
13. The Go-betweens – Leeds, when I drank in the pub with them and Tracey Thorn beforehand
14. The Eagles in a corporate box at MEN, with an Aussie friend of the Go-betweens
15. Alanis Morrisette at MEN – amazingly disappointing
16. Symbol at G-mex, good but even he can’t ignore Prince’s back catalogue
17. Robert Plant – and evening of swing jazz at Leeds Uni – god how they called for Stairway
18. The Waterboys in Newcastle – fine until they turned up the volume
19. REM in Newcastle city hall – Nick Lowe supported- can you believe I didn’t know what they looked like?
20. The Who in Newcastle – but Keith was already dead, and really so was the band.
21. Pixies in Newcastle – my 27th birthday with the girl I loved and her new boyfriend. Now out on bootleg
22. Dr Remi Engala and the Orchestra Super Matimbele – Stockton Riverside Festival – every year and totally brilliant
23. They Might Be Giants – Redcar Bowl 1989 with the woman who I would date and marry 7 years later
24. Sisters of Mercy- Leeds Uni -3 shows in one term, moving up the venues each time. They lived round the corner from me
25. Motorhead – Leeds Uni – never saw them for more than a minute, but I HEARD THEM
26. The Pogues – Leeds Uni – I delayed starting work for a week to see them
27. Gil Scott Heron – Boston, USA 1990 – found out he was on by accident and drove 50 miles on the off-chance
28. Gill Scott Heron – Newcastle Riverside – met him backstage, but the drugs were taking hold
29. David Byrne – Nottingham – that’s near Cambridge isn’t it? Oh, not really. Worth the trip
30. David Byrne – Newcastle – he’s actually good said the people I dragged along
31. Husker Du – Leeds Uni – these guys had a plan
32. Julian Cope – Riverside on the Peggy Suicide tour – my female friends all wanted to have his children. Did I really meet Courtney love at a previous JC gig?
33. Kitchens of distinction – riverside – why were they not big? Why?
34. Smashing Pumpkins – Newcastle night club – they have anger issues. Really.
35. Fatima Mansions – Middlesbrough crypt – another one with anger issues.
36. Sugercubes – Newcastle night club – curiouser and curiouser said Bjork. Who’s the twat with the trumpet said everyone else.
37. Jesus and Mary Chain – Leeds Uni for 15 minutes. It was only a small riot
38. Jesus and Mary chain/Blur/My Bloody Valentine/Dinosaur Jnr – Rollercoaster tour on an Ice rink in South Shields. Bloody cold. Bloody loud. Blur surprisingly good
39. Blur – MEN greatest hits tour – and got better. That Boy Coxon can play.
40. Richard Thompson - a tent in York – and so can this boy. First time was such as surprise
41. The Velvet Underground in Edinburgh. The first reunion gig. I never thought I would see that, and could not understand how few people wanted to see them.
42. Billy Bragg – Bradford Uni 2006 – he was as drunk as the rest of us, but we had a good time. Phil Jupitus sang Beastiality
43. Franz Ferdinand – Bradford St Georges hall – the homecoming show. Mach shau!
44. Aztec Camera – Newcastle – how can he reproduce it all so perfectly, so effortlessly?
45. Tinariwen – Bradford st Georges – guardian reading worthies have supreme pleasure
46. The Mission – Leeds Uni – more tins of hairspray than booze
47. Steel Pulse – Leeds Uni – no need to bring your own, get high just breathing in
48. The Streets – Leeds Uni 2007 – is that what rave was really like? I got it for just a song
49. The Smiths/Red guitars – Leeds Uni - and the Smiths were blown off stage
50. Madness – Leeds Uni – 2 hits, a new song, repeat for 2 hours of delirium