TOUR REVIEW: Blur at Glastonbury

Blur has played the Glastonbury Festival four times in their career: in 1992, 1994, 1998, and 2009. Each one of the gigs has passed into legend (yes, even 2009 already!) and are regarded as some of the best shows of their career. The dates and set lists
were as follows:

June 28, 1992:

Popscene
Come Together
Into Another
Never Clever
She's So High
Oily Water
Colin Zeal
Luminous
Sunday Sunday
Pressure On Julian
There's No Other Way
Coping
Day Upon Day

June 26, 1994:

Lot 105
Sunday Sunday
Jubilee
Tracy Jacks
Magic America
End Of A Century
For Tomorrow
Chemical World
There's No Other Way
To The End
Advert
Parklife
Girls & Boys
Bank Holiday
This Is A Low

June 27, 1998:

Girls & Boys
On Your Own
Beetlebum
End Of A Century
Country Sad Ballad Man
Freestyle (early version of Trailerpark)
Popscene
M.O.R.
There's No Other Way
Repetition
I'm Just A Killer For Your Love
Coping
For Tomorrow
This Is A Low
Parklife
The Universal
Death Of A Party
Essex Dogs
Song 2

June 28, 2009:

The Debt Collector
She's So High
Girls & Boys
Tracy Jacks
There's No Other Way
Jubilee
Badhead
Beetlebum
Out Of Time
Trimm Trabb
Coffee & TV
Tender
Country House
Oily Water
Chemical World
Sunday Sunday
Parklife
End Of A Century
To The End
This Is A Low
Popscene
Advert
Song 2
For Tomorrow
The Universal

So why are they legendary gigs? Besides being great shows played at the biggest English festival, each concert has something unique and exciting about it. 1992's appearance has surprises in the set like Luminous and Into Another and is the famous show where Damon bodyslammed a PA stack which landed on his foot, breaking his ankle. He proceeded to limp off stage (as documented in the bootleg concert video, as well as the Starshaped DVD). 1994 was their triumphant gig in the summer of Parklife, where they purposely curtailed their set so that a stunning rendition of This is a Low was played as the sun set on the massive crowd. 1998's show was the only "big" concert of a low-key summer for Blur, and included surprises such as the first live performances (at least captured on an available recording) of Trailerpark (called Freestyle by Damon at this show), Essex Dogs, and a rare version of Repetition (not played since the early 1990s!). And of course, the 2009 show was the highlight of this past summer's reunion tour and was a fabulous show all around...I dare anyone to listen to the massive response from the crowd after Blur's 6 year absence and not tear up (as even the band themselves did).

Video footage exists for all 4 of these shows (of various completeness), as do audio recordings. In fact, all of the Glastonbury concerts have complete audio available except for 2009, which only has 15 songs available. Hunting down a complete copy is one of my newest Holy Grails (if anyone out there has one, please contact me privately).

In conclusion, Blur's appearance at Glastonbury have all been amazing gigs, showing that when the occasion necessitates it, they can rise to meet (and exceed) expectations with magical concerts.

TOUR REVIEW: Spring 1994 UK Tour

In the spring of 1994, Blur set out on a UK tour to promote the newly released Parklife, which was the turning point in their recording career and catapulted them to superstardom. While a few of the songs from the album had been played live since late 1993, this was the first time most of the album was played live on a regular basis, making up the bulk of the set list.

The tour dates are below (available recordings are in bold font):

May 1994:

10th - Rock City, Nottingham, UK
11th - Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, UK
12th - University, Bristol, UK
13th - De Montfort University, Leicester, UK
15th - University, Hull, UK
16th - Plaza, Glasgow, UK
17th - Queens’ Hall, Edinburgh, UK
18th - Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
19th - Academy, Manchester, UK
21st - Octagon, Sheffield, UK
23rd - Event Centre, Brighton, UK
24th - University, Reading, UK
26th - Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London, UK
27th - Shepherd's Bush Empire, London, UK
28th - Guildhall, Southampton, UK
31st - Town and Country Club, Leeds, UK

June 1994:

1st - Civic Center, Aylesbury, UK

About half of the known recordings are readily available. The typical set list was:

Lot 105
Sunday Sunday
Jubilee
Tracy Jacks
Girls & Boys
She's So High
London Loves
Trouble In The Message Centre
Chemical World
To The End
Advert
Popscene
End Of A Century
Parklife
There's No Other Way
For Tomorrow
Bank Holiday
This Is A Low

The big surprises, of course, are London Loves (which would be dropped after this tour) and Trouble in the Message Centre (which would be played regularly until the end of the year, making its final appearance in Toronto in early 1995 (a show I will review soon).

A great tour in support of a great album...if you have any other recordings from it (Glasgow, Reading, Brighton, Manchester, of the 2nd Shepherd's Bush gig are known to exist), please contact me privately.

SHOW: Princess Charlotte, Leicester, England July 13, 1990

Here is half of an early Blur show from 1990 (and all that is known to exist). Enjoy!

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=0ZEEAH0E

SHOW: Summersonic Festival, Osaka, Japan August 3, 2003

FINALLY, after I've been searching for it for 6 years, here is Blur's set from the second day of Summersonic in 2003. It took a lot of time and effort to find this show, but here is it, complete and in an excellent sounding audience recording which I'd like to share with all of you. Enjoy!

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=2FWHRBKE

Something special next week...

I'll be uploading something special next week, a rare show that took me a LONG time to track down. I'll share it with all of you Blur fans, so stay tuned!

TOUR REVIEW: 1995 US FALL TOUR

For the first time in a year, Blur toured the USA and Canada in September 1995 to promote their recently released #1 album, The Great Escape. The tour began in late September and ran until mid-October, concentrated mainly in the Northeast, Midwest, and California. The Winter US tour of 1996 took in some locations missed by this tour; thus this 1995 tour can be seen as the first leg of two for their overall USA tour. The tour dates are below (known recordings are in bold font):

September 1995:

25th - Black Cat, Washington DC, USA
26th - Academy, New York City, New York USA
28th - Axis, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
30th - Spectrum, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

October 1995:

1st - Warehouse, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
2nd - St. Andrews Hall, Detroit, Michigan, USA
3rd - Metro, Chicago, Illinois, USA
5th - First Avenue, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
6th - Moe's, Seattle, Washington, USA (Cancelled)
8th - Bimbo's 365, San Francisco, California, USA
10th - John Anson Ford Theatre, Los Angeles, California, USA

Of the available recordings, the only one not in circulation is the Chicago show, although it is definitely known to exist and I hope to uncover it soon. It would also be great to find a show from September.

The typical set list was:

The Great Escape
Charmless Man
Jubilee
Popscene
End Of A Century
Tracy Jacks
Mr. Robinson's Quango
To The End
Fade Away
It Could Be You
Stereotypes
Supa Shoppa
Girls & Boys
Advert
Bank Holiday
Country House
This Is A Low
He Thought Of Cars
Parklife
Sunday Sunday
Globe Alone
The Universal

As you can see, while no surprises, it's a great mix of songs from every album at the time (apart from Leisure). My favorite show from this tour is the San Francisco one, which has great sound and fantastic playing. I will try to share it with all of you sometime.

So to anyone out there who saw this tour or has heard recordings, what do you think of it? And of course, if you have any recordings from it, please contact me privately.

SHOW: WNNX Theatre, Atlanta, Georgia June 30, 1997

Here is a short promotional radio concert Blur did at the tail end of their summer US tour in 1997. Enjoy!

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=64DITACR

Black Book to be featured

Just to let you all know, Black Book will be featured on Thursday, Jan 28, 2010 as part of "3 Book Thursdays" on Perry Perkins' website:

www.pdxwrite.com

Check it out!

TOUR REVIEW: the short MLIR Promo Tour of December 1993

At the end of 1993, Blur undertook a short promotional tour of the USA to promote the recently released (in America) Modern Life is Rubbish. This was a very short tour consisting of the following dates:

November 1993:

26th - Bimbo's 365, San Francisco, California, USA
28th - Whiskey A Go-Go, Los Angeles, California, USA
30th - Cabaret Metro, Chicago, Illinois, USA

December 1993:

2nd - Opera House, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
3rd - Irving Plaza, New York, City, New York, USA
4th - Theatre of Living Arts, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
7th - Paradise, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

The sole recording available from this tour is the Philadelphia show (kindly sent to me by the taper...many thanks!).

The set list was the same as on the preceding UK and European tours of October/November:

Intermission
Popscene
Colin Zeal
Sunday Sunday
Pressure On Julian
She's So High
There's No Other Way
Oily Water
Coping
Bank Holiday
Girls & Boys
Chemical World
Commercial Break
Daisy Bell
For Tomorrow
Advert

No surprises in the set, but judging from the Philly tape, the crowds weren't as into this new British direction (at least at first) as other countries were...Damon has to yell at them to show some enthusiasm about halfway through the show! And they are utterly baffled by Daisy Bell (unsurprising...I don't imagine too many Americans are into English Music Hall!)

Still, it's an interesting little tour and I'd love to hear some other recordings from it...if anyone out there has some, contact me privately.

SHOW: Credit Card Arena, Sao Paolo, Brazil November 21, 1999

Here is a fragment (and all that is known to exist, so far) of Blur's show in Sao Paolo. Short but great and worth having. Supposedly a complete version of the show exists, and hopefully someday we will all be able to enjoy it. In the meantime, hope you enjoy this!

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=31J4Z02B

My New Year's Wish List

Below is the CURRENT list of *KNOWN* Blur live recordings I am actively looking for (please note this list does NOT contain "Holy Grail" recordings, such as a complete version of Glastonbury 2009 or the Gimme Shelter NME gig from 1992...these are the CONFIRMED KNOWN recordings):

3/30/90 Falcon, Camden, London
5/19/93 Washington Heights, Reading
5/29/93 University, Manchester
10/4/93 Queen’s Hall, Bradford
10/25/93 Vaartkapoen, Brussels
5/16/94 Plaza, Glasgow
5/19/94 Academy, Manchester
9/19/94 Masquerade, Atlanta
9/24/94 The Palace, Los Angeles
9/25/94 The Fillmore, San Francisco
6/10/95 Sonoria Festival, Milan
10/3/95 Metro, Chicago
11/4/95 Festival Hall, Osaka
1/26/96 Moe’s, Seattle
1/27/96 La Luna, Portland (full show)
2/26/96 Aqualung, Madrid (full show)
3/18/96 Capitol, Hannover, Germany
5/26/97 Budokan, Tokyo
6/10/97 Electric Factory, Philadelphia
6/18/97 Showbox, Seattle
6/22/97 Ogden Theatre, Denver
6/24/97 The Rave, Milwaukee
6/26/97 Riviera, Chicago
6/27/97 Clutch Cargos, Detroit
8/8/97 Sudoeste Festival, Portugal
9/13/97 Orpheum, Boston (w/soundcheck)
11/8/97 MBK Hall, Bangkok
12/12/97 Brixton Academy, London, England
3/30/99 Roseland Ballroom, NYC
4/1/99 Mayan Theatre, LA
6/20/99 Heineken Music Festival, Imola, Italy
7/31/99 Fuji Rock Festival, Japan (full show)
8/26/99 Goldsmiths College, London
8/28/99 Leeds Festival, England
11/18/99 Metrolpolitan Theatre, Mexico City (full show)
11/21/99 Credit Card Hall, Sao Paulo, Brazil (full show)
11/23/99 Metropolitan, Rio De Janeiro, Brazil
6/20/03 Showbox, Seattle
6/21/03 Vogue Theatre, Vancouver, Canada
7/23/03 Metropolis, Montreal, Canada
7/24/03 Theatre of the Living Arts, Philadelphia
7/26/03 Tabernacle, Atlanta
10/13/03 Circus, Stockholm (full show)
11/3/03 Riviera, Madrid, Spain
11/9/03 Gasometer, Vienna, Austria
11/22/03 Barrowlands, Glasow
6/24/09 Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, England (full show)
6/26/09 MEN, Manchester, England (full show)
7/12/09 T in the Park Festival, Scotland (full show)

The shows in bold font are ones where I am either in contact with the tapers/collectors or attempting to contact them. For many of these, talks are in progress, and for others, I'm still tilting at windmills...the hunt goes on!! My New Year's goal is to obtain most, if not all, of the shows indicated in bold font...a tall order, I know, but one I am going to attempt in any event!

Does anyone out there have any of these? If so (or if you have any others) please contact me privately! And thanks in advance!