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2002 TOUR |  |
 Come on in Admissions Free |
2002 TOUR REVIEW |
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WELLER ON TOUR 2002 |
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LEAS CLIFF HALL,FOLKESTONE It all started one rainy July day on the South East Coast. Booked into Fawlty Towers and made the 100 yard walk to the venue, strange place, a little pyramid in the middle of a nicley mown lawn which is the Leas Cliff Halls entrance. Safely out of the typical British summer weather, beer in hand, we sit and wait. About 5pm the coach pulls up outside and the time has come, Weller is in the building, not long now. New merchandise arrives courtesy of Kevin, some new target T-shirts in Blue and Red, the old Star T is still on the go and a rather natty Motowm style in Black. Mugs, new badges and the chance to join the Paul Weller Membership. More about that later.....get a chance to have a chat with our Steve before the soundcheck and thank him for the info he provides us with, he says Paul is "simply not interested in the internet", "Can't you talk him round?", "I've tried but he just has no interest at all"....Well we are glad you are Steve!!! back to the hotel for a quick change, I contemplate ringing reception and complaining about the view, decide not to tho. back to the venue. Doors open at 6:30, get a drink, and reserve our places right under Mr W's nose...It's an odd place The Leas Cliff, very long but not very wide the stage has been extended for tonight but it is in the not very wide part...very strange. First on Stage is Kevin Iverson, he plays an acoustic set of about 5 songs, very good they are too, he'll be doing the other gigs so get in early and give him a listen, a Jolly nice chap too, give him your ears and encouragment. Next up are Little Barry...Little Barry is the singer and guitarist, dopn't expect a dwarf, he ain't that small, the drummer, who is funky, looks like one of the hair bear bunch...they play a funky, guitar led set of about 1/2 and hour, again, very good, catch em if you can... Then it's showtime!!!!! Heres the setlist: SUNFLOWER - and he and us are giving it some. BULLRUSH - Yes,AK Magic Bus!! FRIDAY STREET - Minds Alive!! HUNG UP - Thumb looks like its working again then BULLETS FOR EVERYONE - oh my god!!! what a stomping track, it fair rattles along. WHIRLPOOLS END - there is a heaven and I think I've found it ALL THE PICTURES - Great, just great.New beginning too! LEAFY MYSTERIES - Now this is catchy as hell, I've heard it 3 times now and I loooooove it! UP IN SUZES ROOM - Nice to hear this again, we've missed you! ALL THE GOOD BOOKS - Great new track, Paul plays piano. HOLYMAN - wot? no war!!!still damn fine. THIS IS NO TIME - great to see this back on the list..ahh so thats how you play it properly!! FOOT OF THE MOUNTAIN - A brilliant version with a couple of added extra bits. BROKEN STONES - What can I say!!! classic stuff PICKING UP STICKS - "not everyones favourite, but I like it!" says a very smiley Weller. Great solo from Steve W. YOU DO SOMETHING - smooch, smooch. STANLEY ROAD - Stonking really stonking! OUT OF THE SINKING - "There's a boat that, will take us away", well the Cross channel ferry is just down the road if that's what you mean! PEACOCK SUIT - plenty of puddles around to be narcisstic in, thats for sure. INTO TOMORROW - Weller is giving it loads and we are loving it! CHANGINGMAN - Go on my son!! STANDING IN THE UNIVERSE - Another new one..FAN-BLOODY-TASTIC!!!!!!! encore WILDWOOD - "and I say" COME ON!!! WOODCUTTERS SON - Great stuff to end with...Weller and the boys have really enjoyed the night, They have laughed all the way thru it. They got confused about the guitar changes, about three times he put the wrong guitar on...he didn't care and nor did we.. The crowd...mmmm..not your usual Weller crowd, if you know what I mean. I think the acoustic tour has brought in a more, without being direspectful, Radio Two crowd, far more, shall we say, mature, altho the bloke behind me shouted for Boy About Town all night and I did hear a shout for In the City.....I don't think so do you!! Hot, very hot and sweaty we leave the venue, thoroughly satisfied with the evenings activities. WE WANT MORE, WE WANT MORE!! |
| WINTER GARDENS, MARGATE I take back everything I said about the weather, Thursday was glorious sunshine, hurrah... We said our goodbyes to Basil and Sybil and had a mooch round Folkestone for a while, then headed off to Margit. We find the Winter Gardens, which is, I'm sorry if you live there, in the arseend of the town. The whole place looks run down with derelict buildings all over the place, and if they are not derelict they look like it. Even the offy has run out of beer nearly. The man Ed turns up and we take in the sun and wait for the coach to arrive. The venue is much better tonight. Coach arrives and Weller does a walkabout, signing this, signing that, he signed a guys mini that already had OCS's signatures on. He was even brave enough to have his picture taken with ED, I dont think you can see the gun Ed had held on him in the picture above can you? He looked really relaxed and said he really enjoyed last nights show, I tried to give him a copy of 'Covered by Splinters' but he said he already had one, hadn't had a chance to listen to it yet tho...phew. Safely ensconsed inside the place starts to fill up, Kevin does another good set, bit more confident tonight I think, Little Barrie play a faultless set too. Even tho the hall is packed we have an enoumous amount of room atb the front, which is nice for a change. The set is exactly the same as the night before, the 4 new songs just get better. The crowd is a quiet one tonight until Paul tells us to " go get a lager" this sparks the crowd and its noisey from there on in. Again, as the night before, the whole band are relaxed and laugh and joke their way thru the set. Steve Cradocks playing just gets better and better, Damon, as Steve said is one of the best, the new boy on keys sends swirly hammond sounds thru the air and Steve Whites solo in Picking up Sticks goes on for about 5 mins, about 3 times Weller goes to come back in but is forced to put the brakes on as Whitey does his thing. After Universe they go off and it is an age before they come back on again. but we get Wild Wood and Woodcutters again, then the lights come on and its into the cool Margate air for the ride home. Two great shows, both with PW playing with real passion and aggression. OH I DO LIKE TO BE BESIDE THE SEASIDE...... I hope you are up for it in Middlesbrough, coz they surely will be.... |
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TOWN HALL, MIDDLESBROUGH Home for a few days with Oasis at Finsbury Park on the Sunday then off up the dreaded M1 to Leicester for an over night stop off, sun is shining on the way up north. Arrived in Middlesbrough in the pouring rain!!! to see the hardened Middlesbrough population in shorts and T-shirts, no really they were.... Parked up and found the Town Hall, a BIG old building with towers and spires, you know the type. Wandered up the steps where the gear was being loaded and wandered into the hall, nice size, very tight...should be good. Middlesbrough sold out in 2 hours by the way... Saw Kevin Iverson, I'll say that again so you don't forget, KEVIN IVERSON, "Remeber that you saw it here first". I really hope he makes it coz he puts his heart and soul into it and is such a nice bloke with it. Anyway, over to the Hairy Lemon to have a jar with Kev and his Dad Kev..meet Dave from the Liverpool Massive who is with his mate Sean/Shaun whichever! a Weller Virgin, is he in for a treat tonight or what!"! Meet a couple of guys from Birmingham and have a good old Weller natter. Then it happens, Ossy walks in and I am introduced to the people around him, this is Caz, this is Zig, this is Alv and this is......Lynn!!!! I get me tin hat out of the bag and hide behind Ossy but it isn't needed, all water under the bridge etc etc and she is as sound as a pound, a true Wellerphile and that's good enough for me.... Mark S, mein host for the night turns up with his wife Lesley, Mark SX, Paul S, Dougie arrive and the party is complete. 14 of us 1 of me, sounds like Weller o'clock to me, hope you don't mind sharing.... The Town Hall beckons and we are drawn by an invisible force across the road and into the main hall. As I said very tight, nice size. gonna be rammed and hot!! Kev does his thing, a new support band play a fine set, Modeleste, or something like that, forgive me... Then the lights dim and the band take the stage, Paul looks cool as f*ck in a white shirt, black trousers and a snazzy pair of loafers...the only abnormality in his outfit are his socks, bright blue and red hoops, what's that all about then??? The crowd are well up for it as are the boys...you can just tell..the opening riff to Sunflower powers out of the speakers and rips into the crowd with venom, and they spit it right back.... The set continues exactly as the two previous gigs so no surprises for anyone. There was one surprise, the lights all go out during...someone correct me, 'All the Pictures'??? pitch black for half a song. The girl next to me hasn't moved a muscle for half an hour, I keep thinking, why did she bother, why isn't she sitting in the back row upstairs asleep out of the way, then Weller points at her and says " you not enjoying it?? you haven't smiled once" to which she smiles, then for the rest of the gig taps her little finger on the barrier in time with the songs....jeez The new songs get a good reaction again. Steve W, Steve C, Damon and Seamus, get better everytime, what the hell are they gonna be like at Hyde Park...wooohooo... and all too soon it's over, the hall empties out and I have to nearly drag Dave away from the merchandise stall as we are the only ones left. I would like to thank Mark and Les for putting me up, or should that be putting up with me for the night, you are both stars.... One downer tho, car got broken into during the night, bloody kids, nicked my two satsumas, two penguin bars and a bottle of coke. Even that didn't dent my memory of Middlesbrough, it'll always be, noisy (my ears were still buzzing the next afternoon), hot & where the two messageboards met and both survived to tell the tale..... So off to Carlisle....what will we find there?? |
| SANDS CENTRE, CARLISLE Bloody hell, the suns out!!!!!Get to carlisle at about 3:30 after a great drive thru the twisty roads and ups and downs of the Pennines. Time to get the window fixed, National Windscreens rung, I await a call from the local window fixer to say I'll be there soon, Instead I get a call from paul H to say he hears from mr killer I need somewhere to stay the night as I was gonna stay in the car. So he offers me his sofa. what a diamond geezer. we arrange to meet at 7 outside the main doors, sorted, I settle down to wait for the window to get sorted then I can relax...Paul arrives at about 7:15 with his wife Joanne...still no sign of the fixer, the phone rings, its him its him, and guess what, paul used to work for him so he is down to the Sands car park within 15 mins and done his business with 20, paid and on his way...what a small world it is... so I manage to get into the venue at abou 7:45, miss K.I and miss half of Modeleste's set, settle into my position in the second row back from the barrier, it worried me how easy it was just to walk thru...oh well.. On comes Boys, they get a good reception, but as I have since been told, Carlisle are a very quiet crowd, as Paul finds out, He rocks like a well, rock I suppose, as always and the band grin their way thru the normal set. Until the end, then it changes, they have been finishing with Standing in the Universe and coming back with Wildwood and Woodcutters, tonight tho, they finish with Into Tomorrow and come back with Wildwood and Changingman, and thats your lot, NO Universe...denied!!!! See this is what happens if you don't make enough noise...even if it is against your nature to shout And clap and scream and sing Well-er, Well-er it is in your best interest to do so as you get more songs..... So we filter out of the hall, and I bump into two guys from the BBC who I saw earlier were in with Paul, they told me that they were producing a documentary for Radio 2 tracking the career of The Who from their humble Shepherds Bush beginnings to around the time of Who's Next....and they were talking to paul asa they would like him to narrate it.. It will, be going out in 2 parts on 31st August and 7th September, so look out for that. Bumped into the man Tim who had popped up from Liverpool after deciding to come at 5:00 that afternoon, hats off.... so back to Fat Elvis' house to mourn the loss of his drums and to watch him play the guitar are you ready for this.....he plays a right handed guitar, left handed and upside down......really wierd to watch and boy can he play it too.... And so too bed, and a very comfy sofa it is too. My heartfelt thanks goes out to Paul and Joanne, it's amazing how many good people are out there....and you two are near the top of the list..... A nice drive down thru the Lake district on the M6, again in the sunshine towards Manchester in prep for Friday's biggie...weather is looking good people, it was very sunny and warm today in the big M and the forecast is the same for tomorrow or today if you are reading this Friday morning, which you probably are coz its now nearly 1 o'clock. But as they say it ain't over till the fat lady sings.....so...... Jade give us a song you minger... |
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OLD TRAFFORD CRICKET GROUND, MANCHESTER Just got back from my 700 mile trek round Englands fair land...And I have to say I've had a ball...with a slight hiccup in Midds (the Car). I read the review of the gig today in Manchester Evening News and the first paragraph reads: So far this week Old Trafford has seen a superstar dandy & three punk chumps, which both beat cricket, but the Move Urban music events biggest crowd so far turned out to witness all that nonesense stripped away. Last night it was real music played by real men. Couldn't have said it better myself ;-) Manchester was mad as a fish!!! Just like I remember the Jam gigs and PW around Wildwood days. I ache like a bugger today that's for sure... I managed to wade thru the bodies and get front and centre and I had a wail of a time...I must remember not to wear slip on loafers when moshing like a loon, I nearly lost them a few times... I didn't make it in to See Haven, Shed 7 or Joe Strummer. And I have to say I wish I had missed Ian Brown too, I know a lot of the people I was with like Brownies solo stuff and they thought it was great but its not my cup of char I'm afraid...the best part of his set, which was beset with technical difficulties hence it was cut short, was the half a minute of Fools Gold which was tagged onto the front of Love like a Fountain...AS for PW, he was immense last night, the set was almost the same as previous nights with the exception of the missing, You Do, Suze's and All the Pictures.. I broke up one fight and passed a guy over my head who had been laid out somewhere behind me, so there were a few boneheads in. The majority of the assembled throng were there to see and hear PW tho, lots of singing, clapping, cheering etc..A great great night... I'd like to thank the following people that attended the last 5 gigs with me for making it such a great time.. Karen, Killer, Donna, Ossy, Caz, Ed, Nicki, Ben, Amanda, John, Louise, Tony, H (the crowd surfing muppet), Gary, Shaz, Mel, Maria, Curly, Lynn, Alv, Megsy, Lorna, Zig, Mark S, Les, Paul H and Joanne, Mark H, Paul S, Dave, Sean, Marie, Dave, Steve, Kaygol(sp?), Tim, Robchester (glad you got in mate), the two guys from Birminham, and Uncle Tom Cobley.After the first leg of my tour I'd like to give the biggest shout out to my hosts :Shaun, Mark S and Les, Paul H and Joanne & Killer and Donna, you are all stars.... final thanks to Nicky, Kev the Scouse, Clive, Roger, Alf, Kevin the support, Kenny, John and finally I hear you cry... PW, SW, SC, DM, SB. A week off now then it's off to Plymouth a week Monday..see you there.... |
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SOUTHAMPTON |
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HYDE PARK, LONDON |
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