TOUR REVIEW: Spring 1993 UK Tour

In the spring of 1993, Blur set out on a tour of the UK and Ireland to promote their new album, Modern Life is Rubbish, which had finally been released after being held up for more than a year by their record company. There isn't much known about this tour (I'm working on that!) beyond the tour dates and set lists. First, the tour dates:

May 1993:

25th - Washington Heights, Reading, UK
26th - University, Leicester, UK
27th - Academy, Hanley, UK
28th - Roadmenders, Northampton, UK
29th - University, Manchester, UK
30th - University, Hull, UK

June 1993:

1st - Irish Centre, Birmingham, UK
2nd - University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
3rd - Stanmer Park, Brighton, UK
4th - Astoria, London, UK
5th - Tivoli, Dublin, Ireland
6th - Limelight, Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK
8th - University, Bristol, UK

Now, the known recordings are highlighted, but to date none of them have been circulated. A good friend of mine who taped the Manchester show is going to be sending it along soon so we may finally hear a show from this tour very soon. I've also been in contact with a fellow who has the Reading show, but so far no movement on that front. Now, there are a few reasons that make this tour and any recordings from it so desirable. First, there are NONE around right now, so there is a HUGE gap in Blur's concert history because of that. Second, set lists from the Reading and Leicester shows have been found and indicate that Blur played Starshaped at these shows. This fantastic song had not ever been even hinted at on other recordings, and if it was indeed played, this short tour would be the only time ever. In fact, the supposed set list from these shows, which is below, is quite intriguing:

Intermission
Popscene
Come Together
Colin Zeal
She's So High
Sunday Sunday
Oily Water
Starshaped
Pressure On Julian
Commercial Break
For Tomorrow
There's No Other Way
Chemical World
Coping
Never Clever
Parklife
Advert

Not only is there loads of material from the first two albums, but the aforementioned Starshaped, as well as the first ever live versions of Parklife (I previously had thought the Cologne show from June 1993 was the first time they played this song...because right now this is the earliest available show from '93). Clearly, being able to fill in this period in Blur's history and hear if Starshaped was indeed played would be wonderful. Third, it would be very interesting to hear Blur's mindset and mood during this tour after they emerged from all of the damage heaped upon them in 1992, a year that still bothered them years later in their career.

In the meantime, we'll have to wait and see if anything surfaces. Do you have any of these shows on tape or know someone who does? If so, please let me know privately...thanks!

SHOW: Cliffs Pavilion, Southend, England June 21, 2009

Here is Blur's complete set from Southend on their 2009 reunion tour...includes the rarely played (in 2009) Battery in Your Leg and Essex Dogs...enjoy!


http://www.megaupload.com/?d=SB5FXDL2

TOUR REVIEW: 2009 Reunion Tour

In honoring the one year anniversary of Blur's magical tour from last summer, this review will focus on the shows they played last summer in June and July 2009. After six years of inactivity and no hope among fans they'd ever get back together, Blur reunited in December of 2008 and announced a show at London's Hyde Park on July 3rd, 2009. The response was so great that they added a second show on July 2nd and later expanded it into a full scale tour, including appearances at some major summer festivals, the centerpiece of which was Glastonbury.

The tour dates are below (available recordings highlighted):

June 2009:

13th - East Anglian Railway Museum, Colchester, UK
15th - Rough Trade East, London, UK
20th - Brixton Academy, London, UK
21st - Cliffs Pavilion, Southend, UK
22nd - Goldsmiths College, London, UK
24th - Civic Hall, Wolverhampton, UK
25th - O2 Academy, Newcastle, UK
26th - M.E.N. Arena, Manchester, UK
28th - Glastonbury Festival, UK

July 2009:

2nd - Hyde Park, London, UK
3rd - Hyde Park, London, UK
5th - Les Nuits De Fourvière Festival, Lyon, France
10th - Oxegen Festival, Ireland
12th - T In The Park Festival, Scotland, UK

Regarding recordings, all of the available shows are complete audience tapes except for the two Hyde Park shows (commercially available as official releases), Glastonbury (taken from the TV broadcast, incomplete), T in the Park (incomplete, taken from TV). The Colchester, Rough Trade, Goldsmiths, and Newcastle gigs are mostly complete and cobbled together from various audience video sources.

The interesting thing about this tour is that the way it was set up was a geographical and chronological summation of Blur's history, starting where they played their first ever gig (in Colchester), moving to where they met up in London (Goldsmiths) and moving on through important places to the band (Wolverhampton, where Smoggy and Stu are from), Manchester, Glastonbury, and leading eventually to Hyde Park for two massive outdoor shows, playing in front of 50,000+ people each night.

The set list was:

She's So High
Girls & Boys
Tracy Jacks
There's No Other Way
Jubilee
Badhead
Beetlebum
Trimm Trabb
Coffee & TV
Tender
Country House
Charmless Man
Colin Zeal
Oily Water
Chemical World
Sunday Sunday
Parklife
End Of A Century
To The End
This Is A Low
Popscene
Advert
Song 2
Out Of Time
Battery In Your Leg
Essex Dogs
Death of a Party
For Tomorrow
The Universal

The interesting songs are highlighted...sadly, they didn't last long in the set...Colin Zeal was only played on the first night in Colchester, Charmless Man was dropped after Brixton Academy, and Essex Dogs and Battery in Your Leg were dropped after Southend. After those songs were dropped, the set list remained the same throughout the tour, with the exception of T in the Park (more on that later). Death of a Party was added for the Hyde Park shows and remained there throughout the balance of the tour.

One thing that was obvious is that the guys were still on top of their game in terms of their musicianship, turning in top-notch, high-energy performances and conveying onstage they were having a LOT of fun! It's hard not to get misty-eyed listening to The Universal, for example, when spinning the Hyde Park show, or getting pumped up and jumping around during Tracy Jacks...the shows were that good!

The Rough Trade show was a secret show announced on the radio right before the concert, so tickets were hard to come by. The Brixton Academy show was invite-only for family and friends, while the Manchester show was the only arena show on the tour (and funnily enough, the only one that didn't sell out!). After the Hyde Park shows, Blur played a show in France and a massive festival in Ireland, which leads us to their final show in Scotland. The T in the Park show nearly didn't happen, as Graham got food poisoning and was rushed to the hospital hours before the show and nearly didn't make it back. Luckily, he was able to play, although they shortened the set because of this.

Still, all in all, this was a wonderful and magical tour that not only brought Blur's music to their fans once more, but brought together Blur fans from around the world, both at the gigs and online (many of the good friends I've made abroad were due to our online excitement, discussions, and sharing of experiences during last summer)...I think it's safe to say it holds a special place in the hearts of MANY Blur fans for a variety of reasons, all of them positive!

I'd love to hear a complete Glastonbury or some audience tapes of the shows that are only available from poor quality audience video...not only would it be very enjoyable, but it would help flesh out the story of this tour more. If you have any or know someone who does, let me know privately!

In the meantime, keep enjoying the music and the memories...I know I will!

And I will try to get the Southend show up this weekend...in the meantime, the Glastonbury show is HERE.

New layout

So I've made a new layout for the site...I personally think it looks much better and is easier to read and navigate...what do you all think?

Comments welcomed!

SHOW: Brixton Academy, London December 11, 1997

In keeping with the most recent article on Blur's 1997 UK Winter tour, here is the second London show and the first show at Brixton Academy, broadcast on BBC Radio 1. A great show in soundboard quality, and this is the rare complete version (most versions of this broadcast are missing a few songs)...enjoy!


http://www.megaupload.com/?d=H04SYDMT

TOUR REVIEW: UK Winter tour of 1997

After spending nearly all of 1997 touring around the world, Blur ended the grueling but rewarding year with a UK tour, beginning in late November and ending in mid-December, a week before Christmas. As you can see from the poster above, this was not a small tour, and demand for tickets was VERY high. Having spent the year making three trips to America, tours in Europe, Australia, Japan, and Southeast Asia, not to mention trips to far-flung outposts such as Iceland, Greenland, and the Faroe Islands, it must have been some comfort to return to the UK, where Blur hadn't toured since January/early February (apart from some festivals and one-off shows).

The tour dates are below, and the available recordings are highlighted:

November 1997:

28th - The Point Depot, Dublin, Ireland
30th - Ice Arena, Hull, UK

December 1997:

1st - SECC, Glasgow, UK
2nd - Arena, Newcastle, UK
4th - NYNEX Arena, Manchester, UK
5th - International Arena, Cardiff, UK
6th - NEC, Birmingham, UK
7th - Arena, Sheffield, UK
9th - Wembley Arena, London, UK
11th - Brixton Academy, London, UK
12th - Brixton Academy, London, UK
13th - Brixton Academy, London, UK
16th - BIC, Bournemouth, UK
17th - Centre, Brighton, UK

Unfortunately, only five shows are available: the opening night in Dublin, Glasgow, and the first three of the four consecutive shows in London. I don't know of any other recordings from this tour, but if anyone out there has some, please contact me!

As you can see, in addition to playing four shows on their London hometurf, they also play in Alex's hometown of Bournemouth, as well as other locales around the UK.

The typical set list was:

Beetlebum
M.O.R.
There's No Other Way
Colin Zeal
Globe Alone
Popscene
On Your Own
She's So High
For Tomorrow
Country Sad Ballad Man
Swallows In The Heatwave
Chinese Bombs
Advert
Bank Holiday
Girls & Boys
Death Of A Party
This Is A Low
Theme From Retro
The Universal
Parklife
Coping
I'm Just A Killer For Your Love
Song 2

There were some minor variations, most notably swapping in Jubilee and Oily Water during at least the second Brixton Academy show (Damon mentions on the Radio 1 broadcast of the first show that they'll change the songs up a bit for the three Brixton Academy shows, and they did). One thing to notice from these shows is how tired the band seems, even while turning in inspired performances and seeming to be in good spirits on stage. Damon repeatedly throughout this tour mentions to the crowd that they're "not gonna tour again" after this tour wraps up, prompting many at the time to believe that Blur were packing it in. While they obviously didn't do that, they did, for the most part, take 1998 off (only playing three warm-up gigs and Glastonbury...see HERE). Of course they also spent '98 writing and recording 13 and would again tour heavily in 1999. Perhaps Damon was just wiped out from the long slog around the world...they literally spent from January to December on the road, with some small breaks in between.

The performances we have on recording, however, are generally excellent, with some blistering performances. This tour would mark the final time a lot of the material from the Blur album would be performed live (Movin' On, Theme From Retro, Swallows in the Heatwave, and others that would disappear after the 1998 shows, such as Chinese Bombs, M.O.R., Country Sad Ballad Man).

I know a lot of people who went to shows on this tour and still talk about how amazing they were. If any of you were there, how about sharing some memories with us in the comments section?

And of course, as always if you have any recordings, please contact me privately!

10,000 Visitors and counting!

Today BLAAP recorded the 10,000th visitor to the site...not bad since it's only been around since late October (some 7-8 months)...thanks to all who visit and contribute feedback/comments/material to the site and project. I hope you enjoy it, and look forward to more stuff in the coming months!

Blur at Glastonbury: Which one is best?

So now that all four of Blur's Glasto sets are available for your listening pleasure (1992, 1994, 1998, 2009), go ahead and re-read THIS and then vote for your favorite set (and tell us WHY!) in the comments section!

SHOW: Glastonbury Festival June 26, 1994

Here is Blur's legendary set from the Glastonbury Festival in 1994, brought to you in this VERY rare COMPLETE soundboard recording...it sounds great! I also have a complete audience recording of this show, but the sound is atrocious and it's interesting only for comparison purposes.

Enjoy!

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=CXYR0ZHU

SHOW: Glastonbury Festival, June 27, 1998

Here is Blur's set from Glastonbury in 1998 to go along with the previous article. It takes two sources to patch together the entire show, which is why the sound changes for some songs. Not a perfect soundboard recording, but damn good and definitely worth it.

Enjoy!

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=UI7QS4BT

TOUR REVIEW: 1998

After the insane amount of touring Blur did up to and including 1997 (where the entire year was literally spent on the road), Blur took it easy in 1998. Their headlining slot at the Glastonbury festival was the only major gig of the year. To prep for it, they played three low-key warm-up shows (one of which was a fan-club only show). The tour dates (if you want to call it a tour!) are below. The available recordings are highlighted:

June 1998:

23rd - Alley Cat, Reading, UK
24th - Q Club, Birmingham, UK (fan-club only show)
25th - Pavilion, Bath, UK
27th - Glastonbury Festival, UK

Recordings of every show apart from the first one in Reading are in hand and offer fascinating listening. (Damon and Graham also made an appearance at the Meltdown Festival in London in July, playing a set with Silver Apples...a recording of this also exists and is superb, even though it's not technically a Blur show).

The interesting thing is the set list they used for these shows...a real weirdo of a running order:

Girls & Boys
On Your Own
Beetlebum
End Of A Century
Country Sad Ballad Man
South Park (aka Freestyle aka 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

So many strange things about the set, including Girls and Boys and On Your Own as openers, the revival of Repetition (which seems such an odd and random choice...the only previous live recordings are from the early 1990s Leisure-era shows), the live debut of Trailerpark (under a couple of working names, a year before it would appear on 13), and the first ever live performances of Essex Dogs. Now, while this is a great song (in my opinion, at least...I know many fans don't care for it at all), it was a rather strange choice to introduce into the set as an encore, especially at Glastonbury! However, it seems to have gone down really well, judging from the recordings.

An interesting thing to note is that the tapes of the Bath and Birmingham shows sound like the small club shows they were, with lots of intimate and humorous exchanges with the crowds. The band sound like they're having a blast and the crowd sounds like a non-stop party, just how you'd want a gig to be. By the time they get to Glastonbury, the band are constantly worrying about the crush of the crowd at the front and the abysmal weather conditions for the poor festival-goers (1998's festival was very muddy, wet, and unsanitary). They even stopped a song in the middle and threatened to leave the stage if things didn't settle down in front (during Country Sad Ballad Man). According to many accounts I've read, Blur were so appalled by the conditions of the festival that they vowed never to perform there again (and they didn't...until 2009, of course)!

All in all, even though the number of shows they played is quite small, they offer fascinating listening and act as a bridge between the headiness and success of touring the Blur album and the experimental era of 13.

By the way, if anyone has a copy of the Reading show, please contact me privately!

TOUR REVIEW: Fall UK tour of 1991

While 1989 and 1990 saw the young Blur touring sporadically, 1991 saw them settling into the grueling tour schedule they'd follow for the next 8 years (with the exception of 1998's lay-off). At this point they had three singles released (She's So High, There's No Other Way, and Bang), one of which brought them early fame (There's No Other Way, which reached #8 in the charts) and their first album, Leisure, which again was reviewed very favorably in the press. By the time the fall of 1991 came around, Blur were on a roll and touring heavily. The tour dates are below (available recordings are highlighted):

October 1991:

4th - Town Hall, Middlesbrough, UK
5th - Octagon, Sheffield, UK
7th - McGonagle's, Dublin, Ireland
8th - Mandela Hall, Belfast, North Ireland
10th - Leicester University, Leicester, UK
11th - University of East Anglia, Norwich, UK
12th - Manchester Academy, Manchester, UK
14th - Institute, Birmingham, UK
15th - Liverpool University, Liverpool, UK
17th - Fnac/Les Inrockuptibles Festival, Lyon, France
18th - Fnac/Les Inrockuptibles Festival, Lille, France
19th - Fnac/Les Inrockuptibles Festival, Paris, France
21st - Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
22nd - Leeds Polytechnic, Leeds, UK
23rd - Corn Exchange, Cambridge, UK
24th - Kilburn National Ballroom, London, UK

As you can see, this UK tour included a three-day jaunt to France to appear at a festival. The typical set list was:

Popscene
Fool
High Cool
Bad Day
Oily Water
Slow Down
There's No Other Way
Turn It Up
She's So High
Wear Me Down
Come Together
Day Upon Day
Sing
Explain
Commercial Break

In addition to playing the bulk of Leisure onstage, some new material was previewed as well during this period, including Popscene (which would be the next single) and Oily Water. More new songs would be added to the set in early 1992. It's also nice to hear great b-sides like Explain and Day Upon Day in the set, as these would disappear once 1992 rolled around and more songs that would eventually end up on Modern Life is Rubbish were added to the set.

Immediately after the final show in London, Blur headed to America for their first US tour...this UK tour sees them hitting their stride and playing with confidence, so much so that by the time they get to the USA, they're firing on all cylinders.

There are so many shows from this tour that are not only not available on recordings, but it's even unknown whether more exist. If they do, please contact me privately. It would be fascinating to piece together more from this tour, especially earlier on when it began!