Amazing in Cork

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

Amazing in Cork

Wes[Wolverhampton] · House on Fire

Cant make out whether it was their first gig in their own right in 27 years,whether it was because it was on their own turf[so to speak] or whether they have just matured like a fine wine, but how amazing was that gig.I thought the Isle of Wight took some topping but this just blew everything away.

All be it expensive it was worth every penny and more.Perhaps Argee had the right idea and going with no hotel booked or indeed no ticket biggrin .

Was great to drink into the early hours in the hotel with the lads and crew and have breakfast next morning with them.I even met up again in the airport as their flight was 20 minutes after mine.

Need Liz with me to risk taking the camera tho

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

It was beyond fabulous. Beyond superb. Beyond incredible. Beyond out of this world. Beyond blow me away.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

Great gig, and more importantly a total success in terms of the audience. Was standing a bit back from the front so got to see the massed ranks of the Rats fans, and they did really turn up. Must have been at least 3,000- the large general standing area was jam packed, and the seating areas to the sides were at least half full all around. So we can put to bed the idea that a Rats reunion would not work. The reaction was more enthusiastic, and dare I say, verging on fanatical than I could have dreamed of.Joke was standing a bit back too, and she confirmed the great crowd reaction. Those very near the front might have missed the sheer scale of the gig.

Also the age range was as good as could be hoped. People from their sixties down to accompanied teenagers, lots of people in their twenties and thirties. All sorts- gang of motor bike types, teenagers wearing Nirvana t shirts, usual alternative rock crowd, probably lots of 'normal people', who knew some of the Rats bigger hits and thought it would be good to see Bob Geldof.

Crowd might have been swelled by the great weather. I think the band was blown over by the reaction, Garry looked triumphant. Geldof moved from one corner of the stage to the other and had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand. Also noticed the audience knew most of the songs- even the younger people there.

It certainly bodes well for the autumn tour. Cork is just a city in Ireland and there is no special Rats connection (unless you count Bobs mother who was from Cork) so I don't see why the other dates will not sell well.

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

I was at the front and could well and truly feel the vibe behind me. The place was electric.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

Jules wrote:
I was at the front and could well and truly feel the vibe behind me. The place was electric.

Hope you enjoyed your time in Cork, and Ireland Jules. Trust me the crowd there was amazing. Worried that there might not be that much interest, but was totally proven wrong I'm glad to say.

I had a good walk around the complex before the gig, and it was like a proper big rock concert- the same sense of a big band playing. The great weather must have helped too, but for their first gig in Ireland for so long it was brilliant. Seemed to be a good crowd from England as the cheer went up when Bob welcomed those who had travelled over. Doubtless there were people from all parts of Ireland and Europe.

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

I had a lovely time. The weather was perfect, so were the Rats and I loved Cork. I've fallen in love with the accent. It is probably the most beautiful I've ever heard. I'm starting to save for Dublin now.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

Jules wrote:
I'm starting to save for Dublin now.

When is that happening? Was expecting the dates to be announced post-Cork.

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

I don't know anything, just expecting it will happen sometime soon??? Sorry, didn't mean to get you excited

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

Jules wrote:
I don't know anything, just expecting it will happen sometime soon??? Sorry, didn't mean to get you excited

ooh err! Have to take a view on Dublin when announced. If it takes place on Saturday 19th October, which seems likely given they are in Belfast the night before, then I'll pass. It will be too close to Cambridge/Roundhouse. If it is late November/early December then I'll start checking flight options.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

ArrGee wrote:
Jules wrote:
I'm starting to save for Dublin now.
When is that happening? Was expecting the dates to be announced post-Cork.

Good to meet you ArrGee. How did you get on with your all nighter? Did you get to do some late night drinking? Hope you weren't too 'wrecked' by the time you got home.

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

Yes, I hope it is later rather 19th Oct. the last one of the tour would be better. I'm doing 3 within a very short space of time another might finish me off.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

noelindublin wrote:
ArrGee wrote:
Jules wrote:
I'm starting to save for Dublin now.
When is that happening? Was expecting the dates to be announced post-Cork.
Good to meet you ArrGee. How did you get on with your all nighter? Did you get to do some late night drinking? Hope you weren't too 'wrecked' by the time you got home.

Very wrecked! I spent the night as a crushing bore. Pleased I did the all nighter as I would have been in the pub the next day in Cork and have to wait til 9pm to get home and probably written off Sunday as well. Good to meet you as well, and good to meet Joke after all these years. Very impressed with the t shirt turn out, even the locals were asking about them.

Joke · The Dutch One

ArrGee wrote:
noelindublin wrote:
ArrGee wrote:
Jules wrote:
I'm starting to save for Dublin now.
When is that happening? Was expecting the dates to be announced post-Cork.
Good to meet you ArrGee. How did you get on with your all nighter? Did you get to do some late night drinking? Hope you weren't too 'wrecked' by the time you got home.
Very wrecked! I spent the night as a crushing bore. Pleased I did the all nighter as I would have been in the pub the next day in Cork and have to wait til 9pm to get home and probably written off Sunday as well. Good to meet you as well, and good to meet Joke after all these years. Very impressed with the t shirt turn out, even the locals were asking about them.

It was lovely to meet you Arrgee. I hope we'll meet sometime again soon and have a proper chat. London maybe? smile

ronthecabbie · Diamond Smiles

Ok,the Cork gig was Brilliant but trust me, the Rats back in the day were loads better than that,you can't replace Fingers,and tho I love Darren you can't replace Gerry Cott,songs like Mary, Close as your ever be,neon heart etc just rocked.
The gigs both cork and iow were mindblowing but the '70s ate just unbeatable...
Can't wait for Dublin and the Autumn tours.bring it on.
I will agree wiv the vibe wen your further from the front u get the feel more,tho I loved it where I was ,Front row..

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

Joke wrote:
It was lovely to meet you Arrgee. I hope we'll meet sometime again soon and have a proper chat. London maybe?

Definitely! I'll be near the venue a lot earlier this time.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

ronthecabbie wrote:
Ok,the Cork gig was Brilliant but trust me, the Rats back in the day were loads better than that,you can't replace Fingers,and tho I love Darren you can't replace Gerry Cott,songs like Mary, Close as your ever be,neon heart etc just rocked.
The gigs both cork and iow were mindblowing but the '70s ate just unbeatable...
Can't wait for Dublin and the Autumn tours.bring it on.
I will agree wiv the vibe wen your further from the front u get the feel more,tho I loved it where I was ,Front row..

It will never be the same. In some ways it is better now, and in some ways lesser. The last five years have thrown up a few surprises from the Barton Rats through to the current lineup, and it feels like a re-birth. For those of us who were a little late to the party back in the seventies this has been a whole load of fun. I've met a lot of interesting people at the gigs, made some friends and had some great nights out. Maybe the Rats were better back then but it's been a lot more enjoyable in recent years.

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

ArrGee wrote:
It will never be the same. In some ways it is better now, and in some ways lesser. The last five years have thrown up a few surprises from the Barton Rats through to the current lineup, and it feels like a re-birth. For those of us who were a little late to the party back in the seventies this has been a whole load of fun. I've met a lot of interesting people at the gigs, made some friends and had some great nights out. Maybe the Rats were better back then but it's been a lot more enjoyable in recent years.

ArrGee I'm completely with you on all of this. The one gig I did do back then was out of this world, but we weren't doing thang an meet up thing, the stalking thing and everything else back then. This is all added fun, for which I'd have been far too shy back then to get so involved.

ronthecabbie · Diamond Smiles

If you didn't or couldn't go to the '70s gigs you can't have a comparison,being there is the only way to judge....

manatthetop · In the Long Grass

I agree with some of what your are saying. But cott was well gone. The rats played together long enough with out him. I did see them with and without cott. And time has well moved on. We all know we will not get the same as back in late 79 and into 86. They are a lot older so that has to be taken on. I just think it's nice to see Geldof agree to paly with the group again. he loved saving the world Nice to see him save the guys who helped make him into a star

ronthecabbie · Diamond Smiles

Totally agree,without Geldof you have nothing,I love the setup now as I think Darren is an asset to the band ,but like most bands who reform u never really hit the heights of the first time round,I think they will get better wiv more play time under their belts,and bob won't forget the lyrics like it did at Cork.
Think the roundhouse will be the one for me,great venue for gigs.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

ronthecabbie wrote:
If you didn't or couldn't go to the '70s gigs you can't have a comparison,being there is the only way to judge....

I did see them twice in the 1970s, it some ways it was better as they were a band on the up, but I'd say Cork was on a par with the gigs I saw at The Rainbow and Hammersmith Odeon. It may have been more interesting to have seen them before A Tonic for the Troops, but I'd never heard of them then.

suss · In the Long Grass

ronthecabbie wrote:
without Geldof you have nothing

Disagree I'm afraid. The success of Cork and reunion gigs just goes to prove how tight and powerful that band is when compared say to the band behind Bob's solo material. It's a unit, admittedly not complete without BG, but he needs them as much as the other way round. Why else has he failed to trouble the top 40 seriously in almost 30 years if he's that significant? Garry, Simon and Darren proved with Pete Barton and Bob Bradbury that the songs sound better when they play them, largely by being faithful to original sound.

Not denying that BG is the final piece in the jigsaw, but it's the sum of the parts that works. And fair play to them for agreeing that a set composed almost entirely of first 3 albums, without a singer playing acoustic, would yield best response.

If there was ever a case of it ain't broke at the dawn of the 80s....

What I will concede is that without Geldof the publicity, both then and now, would have been nothing.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

suss wrote:

...the songs sound better when they play them, largely by being faithful to original sound.

That's probably the key to it all. Though Geldof does some of the Rats material solo, it's not as good, whereas without Geldof the Barton/Bradbury Rats sounded pretty authentic. At the weekend, Elvis Costello with 2/3rds of the Attractions in tow was far superior to Ray Davies and his Kink less ensemble.

suss wrote:

... fair play to them for agreeing that a set composed almost entirely of first 3 albums, without a singer playing acoustic, would yield best response.

The best aspect of the reunion for me is that the Cork set list represents more or less the strongest material. The Barton/Bradbury Rats did stick to the first album, singles and Feelgood covers, but with the return of Eva Braun and Howard Hughes and even playing Elephant's Graveyard there is a better range of songs. I'd still like to hear Don't Believe What You Read, Blind Date and Living in an Island live again, but there isn't a dud in the current set, so I'm not too worried. They should just play longer.

-- Edited by ArrGee on Monday 15th of July 2013 09:49:14 AM

Jules · The biggest Geldof fan in the world, bar none!

Before I saw The Boomtown Rats Roberts and Crowe, I would have agreed that they needed Geldof to work and wouldn't be much without him. I was we'll and truly proved wrong. They are all equal pieces of the jigsaw.

ronthecabbie · Diamond Smiles

Elephants did sit well in that set,be surprised if they don't do something different with this song,to low key or me,wonder if bob could do late last night ,that's a proper track and would sit great in their set.
Pete Barton actually carries it off pretty well,but give me bob anyway,.
Rumour that Fingers may make an Appearance in the Autumn,could it happen well maybe sometimes..

ronthecabbie · Diamond Smiles

Didn't sit well that should read

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

ronthecabbie wrote:
Elephants did sit well in that set,be surprised if they don't do something different with this song,to low key or me,wonder if bob could do late last night ,that's a proper track and would sit great in their set.
Pete Barton actually carries it off pretty well,but give me bob anyway,.
Rumour that Fingers may make an Appearance in the Autumn,could it happen well maybe sometimes..

Lovely, a proper rumour! Is there a source?

suss · In the Long Grass

Think Elephant's Graveyard is a solid enough song, but not in the league of most of the set, and not ideal to come back with after blowing the crowd away only 2 minutes earlier. Prob need to swap it into main set and maybe (imho) save something like Joey for the encore.

Much as I/we love Late Last Night, it will also alienate 75% or more of the crowd, purely through lack of familiarity. Kicks, or Blind Date, or Don't Believe What You Read would prob be better received. Or if we want to plug B Sides, arguably It's All The Rage or So Strange ought to be most familiar to the masses, or maybe Do The Rat.

I'm just mightily relieved that some other tracks are getting an airing after so long without hearing live. It's a tonic for the troops!

noelindublin · Loudmouth

Live versions are always hit and miss for me. Geldof can really mangle some of his own songs- that said, there are really great live versions of different songs available. Overall it's a very inexact science, and I always prefer the records-you know what you are getting, and it's why you liked the songs in the first place.

I'm not too sure how much of a live gig the average fan can really take in. Some are preoccupied with taking videos or photographs. Some are drunken slam dancers. More seem to be talking on the phone or surfing the net at concerts.Add having your ears blasted off to the mix-needing to go to the loo, topping up their alcohol, or so many distractions.

All the visual distractions, even like other audience members, just seems to relegate the actual songs and sound to a fraction of the experience.Then I suppose live gigs are the original multimedia experience.

-- Edited by noelindublin on Tuesday 16th of July 2013 01:32:28 PM

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

suss wrote:
Think Elephant's Graveyard is a solid enough song, but not in the league of most of the set, and not ideal to come back with after blowing the crowd away only 2 minutes earlier. Prob need to swap it into main set and maybe (imho) save something like Joey for the encore.
Kicks, or Blind Date, or Don't Believe What You Read would prob be better received. Or if we want to plug B Sides, ... Do The Rat.

I don't know how well Elephant's Graveyard is known, would agree with not ordinarily making it the first encore song, though I thought it was a really great song to come back with when it was played at Hurtwood. They should have She's So Modern as the first encore song, that's the one to re-energise the audience!

Do The Rat just has to played at some point, and it's perfect for the encore, though maybe not first up. Kicks, Blind Date, and Don't Believe What You Read are probably better in the main set should they return.

I guess the problem is that songs will have to drop out for anything else to come in. Given the first ten singles are always likely to played in a full set, though Elephant's Graveyard could get dropped, realistically that leaves just eight songs. I've no issue with dropping Having My Picture Taken, but I want to hear Eva Braun, Howard Hughes, Neon Heart, Joey, She's Gonna Do You In, and Close As You'll Ever Be. the live version of When The Night Comes is pretty good as well.

They just have to play longer sets.

noelindublin · Loudmouth

ArrGee wrote:
suss wrote:
Think Elephant's Graveyard is a solid enough song, but not in the league of most of the set, and not ideal to come back with after blowing the crowd away only 2 minutes earlier. Prob need to swap it into main set and maybe (imho) save something like Joey for the encore.
Kicks, or Blind Date, or Don't Believe What You Read would prob be better received. Or if we want to plug B Sides, ... Do The Rat.
I don't know how well Elephant's Graveyard is known, would agree with not ordinarily making it the first encore song, though I thought it was a really great song to come back with when it was played at Hurtwood.    They should have She's So Modern as the first encore song, that's the one to re-energise the audience!
Do The Rat just has to played at some point, and it's perfect for the encore, though maybe not first up.   Kicks, Blind Date, and Don't Believe What You Read are probably better in the main set should they return.
I guess the problem is that songs will have to drop out for anything else to come in. Given the first ten singles are always likely to played in a full set, though Elephant's Graveyard could get dropped, realistically that leaves just eight songs. I've no issue with dropping Having My Picture Taken, but I want to hear Eva Braun, Howard Hughes, Neon Heart, Joey, She's Gonna Do You In, and Close As You'll Ever Be.   the live version of When The Night Comes is pretty good as well.
They just have to play longer sets.

I think Up All Night would make a good choice- should have been a single, instead of Charmed Lives. I find Kicks very adolescent, and smacks of having been written to order for teenage fans, rather than coming from Geldof's personal experience. Maybe I'm wrong (or just cynical).

From the debut maybe I Can Make It If You Can should get an outing. With so many good songs, it is so hard to please everyone. Who knows they may have a new song ie not The Boomtown Rats.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

noelindublin wrote:
I think Up All Night would make a good choice- should have been a single, instead of Charmed Lives. I find Kicks very adolescent, and smacks of having been written to order for teenage fans, rather than coming from Geldof's personal experience. Maybe I'm wrong (or just cynical).
From the debut maybe I Can Make It If You Can should get an outing. With so many good songs, it is so hard to please everyone.

I suspect there isn't too much clamour for anything after Banana Republic. Maybe if they play another pub gig they might experiment a bit and try out some other songs, but I suspect that for the forthcoming tour, it will be the Hurtwood set plus the new song.

The Barton/Bradbury Rats used to do I Can Make It If You Can but it seems to have slipped off the set list along with the Feelgood covers.

ronthecabbie · Diamond Smiles

That would be a good set Argee ,i wouldnt want picture in there,one song i do really like is "storm breaks" but doubt we will hear that,thats why i hope they rejig the set with a few different songs,that way we get to hear all of em,if we go to all the gigs that is.
Do The Rat and Bare Footin would bring the place down in Dublin.
Fingers was rumoured do to the london gig if he was free form what is is doing in Japan,wouldnt hold my breath though,but i dont think they would announce it, more of a surprise thing if anything at all.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

noelindublin wrote:
...prefer the records-you know what you are getting, and it's why you liked the songs in the first place.
I was familiar with the live versions before I heard Tonic for the Troops mainly because of the broadcast of Rock Goes to College and their appearance on Revolver. I still think She's Gonna Do You In is very diluted on record and can only be truly experienced live.
I'm not too sure how much of a live gig the average fan can really take in. Some are preoccupied with taking videos or photographs. Some are drunken slam dancers. More seem to be talking on the phone or surfing the net at concerts.Add having your ears blasted off to the mix-needing to go to the loo, topping up their alcohol, or so many distractions.
I get a bit hacked off with people shouting at each other in my vicinity. When Ray Davies was doing his acoustic Waterloo Sunset the other night there were a couple of old hags behind me shouting at each other about some domestic one was having. I don't know why they bothered to get more of less to the front just to do that. And as for the cameramen, they can fcuk off to the back as well. Cork was great cos most people at the front were just enjoying the moment even the drunken slam dancers, which I suspect would include yours truly . Once I have my spot I stay cos I try not to drink too much pre-gig and generally don't go to toilets whilst the band are on. However if I have a handy aisle seat that all goes out of the window.
All the visual distractions, even like other audience members, just seems to relegate the actual songs and sound to a fraction of the experience. Then I suppose live gigs are the original multimedia experience.
If only people participated rather than spectated. I have found that the closer to the front you get the better these days, but it's no guarantee.

ArrGee · Back To Boomtown

ronthecabbie wrote:
...Bare Footin would bring the place down in Dublin.
I'd love to hear that live, but suspect it's unlikely. It would be good to play anywhere, never mind Dublin.
Fingers was rumoured do to the london gig if he was free from what is is doing in Japan,wouldnt hold my breath though,but I don't think they would announce it, more of a surprise thing if anything at all.
I suppose Gerry Cott could turn up in London as well as he has done so a couple of times in recent years, but I'd be very surprised if he or Fingers played. Maybe a little walk on cameo like Cadogan Hall. Fingers was due to guest at one gig about four years ago, but the gig got canned.