Music fans of every kind will enjoy Graham Duff’s autobiography “Foreground Music: A life in 15 gigs”. It’s a structure we could all follow whether choosing gigs as examples of phases, significant events, psychological revelations… I review it in “Reads”, but thought between us there could be some corking stories to share. I’ll start:
The Cramps, 1984.
After a rather dissolute year of early 80s decadence, finals were upon me, and I decided to knuckle down, cognisant that I could be spending the rest of my life signing on and getting wrecked in south-east London, then find I was 35. I had a month’s washout to tighten-up the synapses and handle the philosophy and psychopharmacology. One slight problem: a Cramps concert scheduled for December was rearranged for the night before a “Philosophy of the Mind” paper, and I was NOT going to miss that. My pals, a good-hearted bunch of degenerates (“Mad”, where are you? it’s been 35 years) had no such worries, so could get appropriately fucked-up. I turned up at their house pre-gig, and within 15 minutes had gone from “No, I better not”, to “more, please”. It got messy.
We got to the Hammermith Palais and my introvert’s viewing spot was undermined by Mad somehow lifting me to his shoulders (I was very skinny then, and looked like Joey Ramone), and I ended up in the mosh pit with various psychobillies giving it loads to “She Said”. Somewhere on the last tube home, I realised I needed a gypsies desperately, and at the wait at Algate East, took the opportunity to relieve myself in the fire bucket. The Station guard caught me, and I had to clean out and refill (with sand) the offended object. The last tube came in, and though I thought he would let it go to teach me a lesson, we got it. EVENTUALLY I got to bed about 3 am, rising sobriety and jittery wiredness knacking my mental composure. I set the alarm for 7am for a calm resurfacing.
At 9.15am I realised I’d slept through. I threw on what I had worn the night before (black jeans, leather biker jacket, leopard skin look t-shirt) and arrived 2 minutes before for a 10am start, no coffee, no nothing. The next three hours flew by as I regurgitated John Searle and Nagel (no, not like that, you dirty devils), and i found a groove coasting on adrenaline.
What did I learn from this, and why is it significant? I learned that the important thing is to do your prep in the process of things, not cram last minute and hope it works out well, as shit always happens. (See Gil Scott-Heron’s wise advice, “panic now, before the rush”). Doubtless, this is why The Cramps could play blinding gigs: they had done their prep so had mental and muscle memory when they needed it, fucked-up or not. Always do your homework, kids.
I may well have been at that gig. I think I saw the Cramps on every UK tour in the 1980s. Googling reveals that they did 2 nights at the Palais and 1 at Hammersmith Odeon on consecutive nights, I would have gone to the Palais. Fantastic live band in my experience (although I have friends who saw them and thought they were dreadful, which I can believe!). Psychedelic Jungle was one of the best rock albums of the 1980s.
I last saw them in Brixton in 1990. It appears Blur were 3rd on the bill. That completely passed me by, I don’t know if I saw them. I remember it mostly because afterwards I decided I was too old for rock gigs. My friends had already come to the same decision so i went on my own. The audience was as young and degenerate as they were in the early 80s heyday. I was 30, had injured my ankle so needed a walking stick and felt completely out of place, but loved the gig anyway. I just couldn’t believe that such a young audience knew all the songs.
Strangely, 29 years later I am no longer too old for rock gigs.
Hmmm … the only time I ever saw the Cramps, they were supporting the Police at the Lyceum, London on 17 June 1979. They weren’t really my cup of tea, but I certainly enjoyed reading Vincent’s and Alias’s Cramps gig stories.
I saw The Cramps at The Hacienda in 1984. They were always fantastic live, putting on a spectacular show. I think 1979 was too early for them. They were just getting their act together then. I do know their second album was interrupted by a dispute over royalties with Miles Copeland, who, of course, managed The Police.
That gig is available on DVD, I’m sure I have a copy of it.