I watched as my mate’s sister’s boyfriend put the vial up his nostril and sniffed. His head went red from the neck up. “Bloody hell,” I thought, “Vicks is strong in London!”
We were on the tube, heading to a Dr Feelgood gig. I’d never seen anyone take poppers before. I was 16, and either a little too naive or a little too obsessed with cold remedies.
The Feelgoods were one of a handful of groups we saw over and over at The Town & Country Club (the other regulars being The Pogues, Stiff Little Fingers, and Voice Of The Beehive, which seemed like a perfect mix and match to us). It was a little time-bubble of gig-going, which left these bands forever linked in my head, along with the image of my giggling, cider-sloshed mates, and puce-faced Steve.
Later, there was an even bubblier era. In the early 90s, when I was a young reporter on a local newspaper, I went to loads of gigs at Northampton’s Roadmender, scarcely believing my luck at scoring free press tickets. The bubble bands from this time were Super Furry Animals, Chumbawamba, and The Blue Aeroplanes, and once, memorably, Radiohead. Listening to any of them now makes me think of driving home in my gutless little Fiesta, the stereo on full blast, formulating my review in my head, trying to remember the setlist, thinking how sitting taking shorthand notes at boring council meetings were worth it for nights like these.
My bubbles are less frequent and frenzied now. Older, arguably wiser, indisputably wider, Mr Drakeygirl and I grab our gig-going chances when we can, and have to prioritise. There are only a select few we try by hook or by crook to see: Eels, John Grant, and The Decemberists. These are the ones I’ll think of when reminiscing back to my current middle-aged spread bubble period. They’ll always be linked, and their music will always be connected with a feeling of escape, of the headrush of hightailing it away from groaning, grown-up responsibilities.
I wonder when will my next time-bubble be? And who will be the live bands filling it? I haven’t got a clue. And that’s how I like it.
So, who were/are/or will be your bubble bands?
http://i1280.photobucket.com/albums/a493/drakeygirl1/The%20Pogues_zpssucuclx0.jpg
I put it to you, Drakeygirl, that if you were present at the aforementioned Town and Country alleged Club for a performance of one Wilko Johnson and a Norman Watt-Roy in December 1987, then so was I.
Ah no, inexplicably, I never did see Wilko at the Town & Country, Beezer. Lots of Brilleaux, but no Johnson, if you’ll excuse the expression. If we had been there, you might have caught my eye, and I might have got off with you. Or my mate Sam would have. She was a right bobby-dazzler, as my nan used to say.
Permission to say ‘Arse!’?
Actually, you may have caught my eye but, astonishingly, I wasn’t as’ handsome’ in those days. You would have got the shitty end of the stick as t’were.
I could have phrased that rather more delicately. But seem to have chosen not to.
Gig Bubbles.
Massive slurge from 1988 to 1992, including annual pilgramages to Castle Donnington Monster Of Rock, Reading Festival.
Hammersmith Apollo and Wembley Arena were often visited for Ozzy Osbourne, Iron Maiden, AC/DC and Marillion. Aerosmith, Quireboys and Whitesnake (???) also feature.
Brixton Academy was a rare treat but visited on occaisions (mainly Stiff Little Fingers and The Pogues (on different nights, obviously).
Other London venues include (I think?) The Forum (can’t remember to be honest, but it might have been that one – somewhere North London way anyway) and The Bull and Gate (mates band played a couple of times there), and some other musically inclined pubs around the area.
All this supplemented with regular jaunts to less well known, local, venues like Purple Turtle and Cartoons in Reading, and anywhere in Basingstoke with a band playing.
And then since mid-1992, I can count on one hand the number of gigs attended in each year (plus sporadic visits to Donnington).
I wonder if my first marriage in early 92 had something to do with it?
No actual gig bubbles since the olden days but I did have a rather splendid fixation on choc ices one windswept weekend in Colwyn Bay that lasted at least a full month back in 1982.
“one windswept weekend in Colwyn Bay that lasted at least a full month”
Pure poetry. God, I’ve missed this place.
Between 1996 and 2001ish it was nearly all metal, Korn, Metallica, Limp Bizkit (their first ever UK gig supporting Korn and Helmet at Aston Villa Leisure Centre) System Of A Down, Pantera, Rob Zombie, Coal Chamber, Human Waste Project, Incubus and Marilyn Manson. Mostly at Wolverhampton Civic and Wulfrun halls, with the odd bit of Birmingham Academy (formerly the hummingbird which had just reopened) and Milton Keynes Bowl for the Big Day Out or Ozzfest.
Returning to oz with a tea chest of African records from my time living over there. Was interviewed on triple R one night which extended to 4 shows over a month. Then got offered my own show. Think it was first world music show. Ran for ten years. And for those ten year s I got freebies to local and international gigs. This was 84 to 94
Early 90s gig frenzy in Taunton and surrounding districts… lots of grotty small gigs, saw Peej and Cornershop before they was-who-they-was, Jehovahkill-era Copey in Exeter (a splendid thing), The Moonflowers in a pub, complete with psychedelic lightshow and dancing girls, Hawkind-stylee.
Mid-90s Brighton gig frenzy, mostly an obsessive visitor to the (original) Concorde… everything from The Mad Professor to Robyn Hitchcock and various points in between.
My bubbles. Those were they.
PS. Drakey, I know it’s been said many times before but you can write. I mean, WRITE.
As a group of sixth form/uni friends we always appeared to be seeing one of New Order, The Fall, The Pogues or the Sisters of Mercy at some venue or festival from about 82 to 85