On this day, 7 November 1985, Prefab Sprout played Cardiff University. Support was provided by Hurrah.
The band had just released their classic second studio album Steve McQueen.
The album released to highly positive reviews from critics and was a modest commercial success, reaching number 21 in the United Kingdom. Four singles from the album entered top 100 of the UK Singles Chart, with "When Love Breaks Down" reaching the top 30. Retrospectively, Steve McQueen has received lasting critical acclaim, widely credited as an indie pop benchmark and ranked by many British publications among the greatest albums of all time.
At the end of 1985, Steve McQueen was named the fourth best album of the year by NME,and placed 28th in The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics' poll.
The Sunday Times labelled the legacy edition as revealing McAloon's "genius" and described the record as being "buttressed by a phenomenal rhythm section and fairy-dusted with Wendy Smith's breathy harmonies". In Spin, Will Hermes deemed Steve McQueen Dolby's "supreme achievement" as a producer.Pitchfork reviewer Stephen Troussé highlighted Dolby's "profoundly 80s sonic palette", which Troussé said reflected "one of the defining qualities of the record... its pop ambition, its willingness to engage with its times, precisely by not being a sullen singer-songwriter would-be timeless classic."
Setlist
Horsechimes
Moving the River
Cars and Girls
Bonny
Faron Young
Hallelujah
Lions in My Own Garden (Exit Someone)
Wicked Things
Don't Sing
Goodbye Lucille #1
Tiffany's
When Love Breaks Down
When the Angels
Encore:
Cruel
Faron Young
On This Day 04/11/1981 Bauhaus
On this day, 4 November 1981, gothic rock band Bahaus played Cardiff’s Top Rank on their Mask tour. The band had just released their second studio album Mask.
Bauhaus expanded their style a bit on Mask, particularly by incorporating keyboards and acoustic guitar on songs such as "The Passion of Lovers", and funk rhythms and saxophone on tracks like "Kick in the Eye", "Dancing" and "In Fear of Fear".
The album cover is a drawing by guitarist Daniel Ash.The original artwork for the album was a gatefold sleeve with blue text on the inside and a stark black-and-white image of the band. On later editions this inside was replaced with white text and a montage from the promotional video for the song "Mask".
Setlist
The Passion of Lovers
In the Flat Field
Silent Hedges
Terror Couple Kill Colonel
The Man With the X-Ray Eyes
(Slow version)
In Fear of Fear
Hair of the Dog
Mask
Rosegarden Funeral of Sores
(John Cale cover)
Dancing
Hollow Hills
Spy in the Cab
On This Day 03/11/1989 The Beautiful South
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On this day, 3 November 1988, American singing band The Drifters played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall. The band had just released their debut album Welcome To The Beautiful South.
Formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway, two former members of the Hull group the Housemartins, both of whom performed lead and backing vocals. Other members throughout the band's existence were former Housemartins roadie Sean Welch (bass), Dave Stead (drums), and Dave Rotheray (guitar). The band's original material was written by Heaton and Rotheray.
Review -South Wales Echo
Released in October 1989 by Go! Discs and the next year in the United States by Elektra Records. Three singles were released from the album, which became top 40 hits in the United Kingdom: "Song for Whoever" (No. 2), "You Keep It All In" (No. 8) and "I'll Sail This Ship Alone" (No. 31).
The original album cover depicted two pictures by Jan Saudek, one of a woman with a gun in her mouth, and another with a man smoking. Woolworths refused to stock the album, in the words of the band, to "prevent the hoards of impressionable young fans from blowing their heads off in a gun-gobbling frenzy, or taking up smoking";
An alternative cover featuring a picture of a stuffed toy rabbit and a teddy bear was therefore made. A second alternative cover was also prepared for the Canadian edition of the album; this version omitted the picture of the woman, and featured only the smoking man.
On This Day 06/11/2006 Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band
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On this day, 6 November 2006, the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah band played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall. Combining elements of music hall, trad jazz and psychedelia with surreal humour and avant-garde art, the Bonzos came to public attention through appearances in the Beatles' 1967 film Magical Mystery Tour and the 1968 ITV comedy show Do Not Adjust Your Set.
On 28 January 2006 most of the surviving members of the band played a concert at the London Astoria, to celebrate the band's official 40th anniversary. Neil Innes, "Legs" Larry Smith, Roger Ruskin Spear, Rodney Slater, Bob Kerr, Sam Spoons and Vernon Dudley Bowhay-Nowell appeared.
There were also a number of special guests attempting with various degrees of success to be Vivian Stanshall, one of two members of the band not still living (the other being bass player Dennis Cowan). The various Stanshall impersonators included Stephen Fry, Ade Edmondson, Phill Jupitus and Paul Merton (who needed to read the words to "Monster Mash" from cue cards at the show). The classic Bonzo stage antics were in evidence, including performances on the Theremin Leg and Trouser Press. The show was filmed and was broadcast on BBC Four and also released on DVD in May 2006.
A countrywide tour, with Ade Edmondson and Phill Jupitus, followed during November 2006, starting in Ipswich and ending with two nights at the Shepherd's Bush Empire, where Paul Merton and Bill Bailey joined in for a handful of songs. David Catlin-Birch (lead guitar and vocals) joined the band for the tour; Catlin-Birch has also been a member of World Party and The Bootleg Beatles.
Officially calling themselves The Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band again, the group released a live double CD of the Astoria concert titled Wrestle Poodles... And Win! on 13 November 2006.
On This Day 02/11/1988 Helloween
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On this day, 2 November 1988, German power metal band played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall. The band had just released their third studio album Keeper of the Seven Keys: Part II
The album sold well, and success bloomed all over Europe, Asia, and even the United States. The album went gold in Germany and reached No. 108 in the US.
Two singles were released from the album, "Dr. Stein" and "I Want Out". "Dr. Stein" has a very long and moody solo, played with a blues tinge, very unlike other solos on the album, as well as an organ solo. "I Want Out" remains the band's best-known song, and has been covered by several metal bands, such as Gamma Ray (which Kai Hansen formed after leaving Helloween itself), Unisonic, HammerFall, LORD and Sonata Arctica. It is their last album to feature Hansen until 2021's self-titled album.
Founded in 1984 in Hamburg by members of bands Iron Fist, Gentry, Second Hell and Powerfool. It is said that the band is one of the most influential European heavy metal bands of the 1980s.
Its first lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Kai Hansen, bassist Markus Grosskopf, guitarist Michael Weikath and drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg.
On This Day 01/11/1995 Human League
On this day, 1 November 1995 pop band Human League played St David’s Hall on there greatest hits tour.
Formed in Sheffield in 1977. Initially an experimental electronic outfit, the group signed to Virgin Records in 1979 and later attained widespread commercial success with their third album Dare in 1981 after restructuring their lineup.
The album contained four hit singles, including the UK/US number one hit "Don't You Want Me". The band received the Brit Award for Best British Breakthrough Act in 1982. Further hits followed throughout the 1980s and into the 1990s, including "Mirror Man", "(Keep Feeling) Fascination", "The Lebanon", "Human" (a second US No. 1) and "Tell Me When".
The only constant band member since 1977 has been lead singer and songwriter Philip Oakey. Keyboard players Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh both left the band in 1980 to form Heaven 17, leaving Oakey and Adrian Wright to assemble a new line-up.
The Human League then evolved into a commercially successful new pop band,with the line-up comprising Oakey, Wright, vocalists Joanne Catherall and Susan Ann Sulley, bassist and keyboard player Ian Burden and guitarist and keyboard player Jo Callis. Wright, Burden and Callis all left the band by the end of the 1980s, since which time the band has essentially been a trio of Oakey, Catherall and Sulley with various sidemen.
LIVE LINE UP:
Philip Oakey - vocals
Joanne Catherall - vocals
Susan Sulley - vocals
Neil Sutton - synthesizer
Russel Dennett - synthesizer, guitar, vocals
Fergus Geronde - percussion
Phil Edwards - synthesizer
David Beevers - technica
Setlist
Being Boiled
These Are the Days
Love Action (I Believe in Love)
Filling Up With Heaven
A Doorway?
The Sound of the Crowd
Housefull of Nothing
Mirror Man
Blind Youth
Seconds
The Lebanon
The Stars Are Going Out
(Keep Feeling) Fascination
Stay With Me Tonight
One Man in My Heart
Human
Don't You Want Me
Tell Me When
Human Nature
(Gary Clail / On-U Sound System cover)
Encore:
Together in Electric Dreams
(Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder cover)
On This Day 31/10/1985 Madness
On this day, 31 October 1985, ska/pop band Madness played Cardiff University on their Mad Not Mad tour.
In 1985, the band released their sixth studio album, Mad Not Mad. Mike Barson’s usual keyboard parts were filled by an emphasis on synthesisers provided by Steve Nieve of the Attractions.
In later years, frontman Suggs has described the album as a "polished turd". The album reached number 16 in the UK charts, which is the band's lowest position on the album charts to date. Despite the poor chart showing, the album was listed as number 55 in NME's "All Time 100 Albums".
The singles for the album fared even worse, with "Yesterday's Men" peaking at number 18 in the UK charts. The subsequent singles, "Uncle Sam" and "Sweetest Girl", failed to make the top 20, which was a first for Madness singles.
Setlist
Keep Moving
Samantha
Take It or Leave It
Michael Caine
Mad Not Mad
Grey Day
My Girl
Tomorrow's Dream
House of Fun
4BF
(The Madness cover)
Yesterday's Men
Blue Skinned Beast
Night Boat to Cairo
Time
It Must Be Love
(Labi Siffre cover)
Burning the Boats
Shut Up
Madness
(Prince Buster cover)
Embarrassment
I'll Compete
Our House
Encore:
Uncle Sam
Baggy Trousers
Encore 2:
The Sweetest Girl
(Scritti Politti cover)
One Step Beyond
(Prince Buster cover)
On This Day 30/10/2014 Steve Hackett
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On this day, 30 October 2014, former Genesis guitarist Steve Hackett played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall on his Genesis Extended 2014 World Tour.
Hackett released his first solo album, Voyage of the Acolyte, while still a member of Genesis in 1975. After a series of further solo albums beginning in 1978, Hackett co-founded the supergroup GTR with Steve Howe in 1986. The group released the self-titled album GTR, which peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard 200 in the United States and spawned the Top 20 single "When the Heart Rules the Mind".
When Hackett left GTR in 1987, the group disbanded. Hackett then resumed his solo career. He has released albums and toured worldwide on a regular basis since.
Hackett's body of work encompasses many styles; in addition to his work in progressive rock, he has explored pop, blues, world music and classical music on his solo recordings. According to Guitar World: "Hackett's early explorations of two-handed tapping and sweep picking were far ahead of their time, and influenced Eddie Van Halen and Brian May."
Setlist
Dance on a Volcano
(Genesis song)
Squonk
(Genesis song)
Dancing With the Moonlit Knight
(Genesis song)
The Return of the Giant Hogweed
(Genesis song)
Fly on a Windshield
(Genesis song)
Broadway Melody of 1974
(Genesis song)
The Fountain of Salmacis
(Genesis song)
The Musical Box
(Genesis song)
I Know What I Like (In Your Wardrobe)
(Genesis song)
Horizons
(Genesis song)
Firth of Fifth
(Genesis song)
Lilywhite Lilith
(Genesis song)
The Knife
(Genesis song)
Supper's Ready
(Genesis song)
Encore:
Watcher of the Skies
(Genesis song)
Myopia / Slogans / Los Endos
