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Sunday 30 June 2013

Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball Tour - Stade de France, Paris, 29th June 2013

(Photos by Rene van Diemen)

Three hour and ten minutes performance by Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band in Paris last night that included a front to back performance of 'Born in the U.S.A., a couple of Rock and Roll covers and an Acoustic three song set prior to the main set.
Acoustic pre-show:
This Hard Land
Burning Love
Growin' Up 


Setlist:
Badlands
Out in the Street
Lucille
Wrecking Ball
Death to My Hometown
Cadillac Ranch
Spirit in the Night
Born in the U.S.A./Cover Me
Darlington County
Working on the Highway
Downbound Train
I'm on Fire
No Surrender
Bobby Jean
I'm Goin' Down
Glory Days/Dancing in the Dark
My Hometown
Pay Me My Money Down
Shackled and Drawn
Waitin' on a Sunny Day
The Rising
Land of Hope and Dreams
* * *


Saturday 29 June 2013

Conversing with Me, Myself & I about the year so far. Part Two

Me, Myself and I.

Me: 'Damage' by Jimmy Eat World really impressed me a lot. Haven't listened to lots of their albums (picked up a couple here and there) but I've always kept an eye on them and they are sounding really good these days. They've grown up a lot and appear to be writing some quality tunes. Hard to find a poor tune on the album.



Myself: 'Wrote a Song For Everyone' by John Fogerty is probably my favourite of the year so far. To celebrate his 68th birthday JF released an album of collaborations performing the music of CCR and his own solo material. 
Got a Bootleg of the album launch show that was on his birthday and boy, he can still rock it and seems to still love doing what he does.


I: It probably won't win any prizes for Jazz album of the year or anything like that but 'Except Sometimes' by Molly Ringwald was one of the surprises of the year so far.
The Ginger Kid has done pretty well for herself.


Me: Paramore's last album 'Brand New Eyes' stayed on my playlist for a real long time but their self-titled 2013 release has not really had that pleasure. There's a few songs on it that I liked but I struggled with it, I honestly tried to like it but unlike previous albums it just doesn't hold together as a total body of work. Maybe the loss of former members and the addition of new ones hasn't dealt them a kind hand when it comes to studio output. Live they still sound good and the few live renditions of tracks from 'Paramore' have sounded solid but on the album itself they sound weak.


Myself: One band I'm glad are back and out playing live and releasing new music are Ruts DC. Their newest project 'Rhythm Collision Volume 2' is further proof that they still have a lot to give. Their live performances have been very spectacular as well. They are out on the road later in the year first on their own and then supporting The Damned.



I: The last but not least (and there's so many other albums we could have mentioned) is 'Oh No It's...The Wonder Stuff'. The Stuffies are on great form on this album and in particular on the 2nd disc loaded full of cover versions from artists that have their roots in the Midlands entitled 'From The Midlands With Love'. Many of the covers were released as Limited Edition singles and so it's great to have them all under one roof.


Conversing with Me, Myself & I about the year so far. Part One

Me

Myself

I

Me: So, with the first six months of 2013 almost over it would be good to look at some of the music that we have been listening to that's impressed us or for that matter not impressed us.

Myself: Ah yes indeed, so many good things we have heard.

I: In no particular order, apart from Alphabetical on our iTunes, I will begin with the great Aaron Neville and his album 'My True Story'.


What I really love about this album is two things, first the voice of Aaron Neville. There's such a soulful vibe to it and even at times it seems tinged with an unexplainable sadness that melts your heart when listening. Otis Redding and James Carr are probably the only two other soul singers who have that effect.


And secondly, it's going back to his roots of Doo Wop music. Just listening to the album made me go and dig out some of the great old Doo Wop albums from the 50's and 60's. I love albums that do that kind of thing. 

Me: Adam Ant's 'Adam Ant is the Blueblack Hussar Marrying the Gunner's Daughter' was a bit of a major disappointment for me. Besides have an awkwardly long title, the album itself was a bit over long as well. Seventeen tracks in just over 68 minutes, value for money no doubt when purchasing the CD but the quality of the music is pretty patchy in places. He could of got away with at least a ten track album and we wouldn't have got on his case so much because he's one of those guys who we grew up listening to back in the days of John Peel (The Peel Sessions are still some of the best stuff he's ever done).


Myself: 'The Journey' by Big Country was another that was a bit hit and miss I think. There's some tracks on it that I really like but overall I wasn't totally thrilled. Mike Peters has done a great job fronting the band but I have to say that at times on the album it was a little too Alarm like and not so Big Country like. Friends of mine think different and totally love it from front to back. Love the title track though and although still puzzled why they re-recorded 'Another Country' for the album (the single version is way way better) I still like the song.

I: My favourite reissues of the year so far have been The Boys first two albums.



Those two albums first came out when I was 14 and 15 years old and are loaded with brilliant songs. The band should have been bigger and had more success than they had because between them they crafted some mighty fine tunes.

Me: Talking of reissues, but in one sense it wasn't really a reissue because it was the first time that it has been released in full - Eddie and the Hot Rods 'Live at The Rainbow 1977' was another cracking release this year (just in time for my 50th Birthday!). Another of those great underrated bands who people are prepared to write off as just another Pub Rock Band. But they put out loads of great singles and a couple of fantastic albums in their time and showed that they were more than a Pub Rock Band. The setting for the album is at a peak in the bands' young career as they play material from the excellent 'Teenage Depression' album to a packed house in North London. The DVD that comes with it as well is fantastic to see and shows the band with all it's energy pouring out these top songs.



Myself: Next up Edwyn Collins. 'Understated' sees him back to his best. In total agreement with Noel Gardner of the NME who said, "Musically, the Scot still delivers a choppy take on ’60s-vintage soul and guitar pop, as he did fronting Orange Juice three decades ago. Time and circumstance have not blunted his abilities, and ‘Understated’ is lyrically empathetic, musically emphatic." They gave it 7/10 but that's clearly not enough, it's at least a 9/10.

I: Last one to end part one is 'Tape Deck Heart' by Frank Turner. He's one of those guys whom you either love or totally hate and very little inbetween. My only gripe about his music is that I wish he didn't swear so much because sometimes to me it seems totally uncessary and he comes off as the annoying schoolboy who thinks it's cool to use the f-word just to shock people. The album has some fine moments with songs like 'Recovery', 'The Way I Tend To Be', 'Four Simple Words', 'Polaroid Picture', 'Tattoos' and 'We Shall Not Overcome'.



 Part Two will be coming soon. 
Stay tuned.

Friday 28 June 2013

Rewind: Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band Ten Night Stand at MSG NYC 12th June - 1st July 2000


Hard to believe that 13 years have passed since these shows.

The Reunion Tour hit the final ten shows, 122 dates had already been played since 9th April 1999 when they opened the tour in Barcelona, Spain. They had opened the 2nd Leg of the tour with a 15 night stand at the Continental Airlines Arena, East Rutherford, NJ and now would finish it across the river in New York City with a huge flourish that would be recorded for both a live DVD and CD on the last two nights. (Footage from it will be posted at the bottom of this piece.)


Setlist: Code of Silence/Prove It All Night/Two Hearts/Darkness on the Edge of Town/Be True/Point Blank/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/Roll of the Dice/Dancing in the Dark/Born in the U.S.A./Backstreets/Light of Day
First Encore: Further On Up the Road/Ramrod/Bobby Jean/Born to Run
Second Encore: Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams  


Setlist: Further On Up the Road/The Promised Land/Two Hearts/Darlington County/Trapped/My Hometown/American Skin (41 Shots)/Code of Silence/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/No Surrender/Meeting Across the River/Jungleland/Light of Day
First Encore: Stand on It/Bobby Jean/Born to Run
Second Encore: This Hard Land/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams 


 Setlist: Code of Silence/The Ties That Bind/Two Hearts/Rendezvous/Atlantic City/The River/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/The E Street Shuffle/Born in the U.S.A./Racing in the Street/Light of Day
First Encore: Further On Up the Road/Ramrod/Spirit in the Night/Born to Run
Second Encore: Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams


  
Setlist: Code of Silence/Take 'Em As They Come/Prove It All Night/Two Hearts/Candy's Room/Independence Day/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/It's Hard to Be a Saint in the City/The Ghost Of Tom Joad/New York City Serenade/Light of Day
First Encore: Further On Up the Road/Ramrod/Bobby Jean/Born to Run
Second Encore: Growin' Up/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams


  Setlist: Another Thin Line/Don't Look Back/Prove It All Night/Two Hearts/Something in the Night/My Hometown/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/Sherry Darling/Secret Garden/The Ghost of Tom Joad/Backstreets/Light of Day
First Encore: Further On Up the Road/Ramrod/Born to Run
Second Encore: Incident on 57th Street/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams



Setlist: Code of Silence/The Ties That Bind/Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street/Two Hearts/Darkness on the Edge of Town/Point Blank/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/Human Touch/Dead Man Walkin'/Meeting Across the River/Jungleland/Light of Day
First Encore: Hungry Heart/Born to Run
Second Encore: Fourth of July, Asbury Park (Sandy)/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams


Setlist: Another Thin Line/Prove It All Night/For You/Two Hearts/Downbound Train/Mansion on the Hill/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/She's the One/Born in the U.S.A./Racing in the Street/Light of Day
First Encore: Further On Up the Road/Bobby Jean/Born to Run
Second Encore: Night/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams
 



Setlist: Code of Silence/The Ties That Bind/Adam Raised a Cain/Two Hearts/Trapped/Factory/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/Loose Ends/Back in Your Arms/Mary Queen of Arkansas/Backstreets/Light of Day
First Encore: Hungry Heart/Born to Run
Second Encore: Blinded By the Light/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams

* Sound is lost at the end of Out in the Street but returns for Loose Ends.

  
Setlist: Code of Silence/Don't Look Back/The Ties That Bind/Two Hearts/Darkness on the Edge of Town/Mansion on the Hill/My Hometown/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/Another Thin Line/The Promise/Jungleland/Light of Day
First Encore: This Hard Land/Born to Run
Second Encore: Growin' Up/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams


Setlist: Code of Silence/My Love Will Not Let You Down/Prove It All Night/Two Hearts/Atlantic City/Mansion on the Hill/The River/American Skin (41 Shots)/The Promised Land/Youngstown/Murder Inc./Badlands/Out in the Street/Tenth Avenue Freeze-out/The E Street Shuffle/Lost in the Flood/Born in the U.S.A./Backstreets/Light of Day
First Encore: The Promise/Ramrod/Bobby Jean/Born to Run
Second Encore: Further On Up the Road/Thunder Road/If I Should Fall Behind/Land of Hope and Dreams/Blood Brothers
 
 
Footage that was released on the DVD from the last two nights.
 
 
There's much more of the show on You Tube of course. Enjoy.

Thursday 27 June 2013

Bruce Springsteen - Wrecking Ball Tour - El MolinΓ³n Stadium Gijon, Spain 26th June 2013




The 115th show on the Wrecking Ball Tour saw Bruce and the band play wild three and a half hour set that included a tour debut of CCR's "Travelin' Band", "Better Days", "Drive All Night" and the return of Wrecking Ball album track "Jack of All Trades".


 (photographs by Rene van Diemen)

Setlist:
Links will be added when 
they become available.
 
My Love Will Not Let You Down
Out in the Street
Better Days
Ain't Good Enough For You
Travelin' Band (Tour Debut)
Wrecking Ball
Death to My Hometown
Spirit in the Night
Jack of All Trades
The River
Atlantic City
You Can Look (But You Better Not Touch)
Darlington County
Because the Night
She's the One
Rosalita
Shackled and Drawn
Waitin' on a Sunny Day
Drive All Night
The Rising
Badlands
Light of Day
* * *
Radio Nowhere
Born in the U.S.A.
Born to Run
Seven Nights to Rock
Dancing in the Dark
Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out
Twist and Shout
Shout
Thunder Road (solo acoustic)

Wednesday 26 June 2013

Graham Parker & The Rumour UK Tour!!


Graham Parker and The Rumour UK Tour Dates

Tuesday 22nd October Leeds O2 Academy
Wednesday 23rd October Glasgow ABC
Friday 25th October Bristol O2 Academy
Saturday 26th October London O2 Shepherd's Bush Empire

CLICK ON THE LINKS TO ENJOY THE MUSIC OF 
GRAHAM PARKER AND THE RUMOUR 




ALBANY 4TH APRIL 2013.

GRAMERCRY THEATRE, NEW YORK
14TH APRIL 2013.



Tickets available from Ticketweb

Boomtown Rats Return


Click on the Links to Watch the Performances



HURTWOOD PARK POLO CLUB MAY 4TH 2013.


The Gate, Ifield, Sussex 7th June 2013.
Like Clockwork.
She's So Modern.
I Don't Like Mondays.

 Isle of Wight Festival

Blondie - Isle of Wight Festival (16th June 2013)




Click on the Links to enjoy the music.


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