Hi!
I travelled to London on Friday to see my first SH & CR concert. My daughter came with me, which was good of her, although a night in a hotel and a couple of good lunches is no great hardship!
Anyway, back to SH & CR – well almost. Tristan Mackay, the support act, sang a lovely song that he had written for his baby daughter, so emotions were already rising and Steve was yet to make his appearance.
There was a twenty minute interval. My daughter got me The Quality of Mercy CD to add to my growing collection and the programme from Symphony Hall Birmingham – great photos! She said ‘young’ Steve looked like Noel Fielding, can’t see it myself, well maybe a bit – must be the glitter. She ‘googled’ Steve and he immediately went up in her estimations when she found out that he is a fan of T. S. Eliot.
Throughout the concert, she dutifully tootled off to the bar for cups of iced water – Man it was hot! So, if you ever read this – thanks, daughter!
Back to SH & CR and a sweltering Greenwich Borough Hall. They walked on to the stage and roasted us with Here Comes the Sun – what else! They were amazing. This was my first concert, so until now I have only watched Steve on my computer, but seeing and hearing him live is a totally different matter. His voice is so physically strong, talk about improving with age...
I’m sorry if I don’t get all the facts right, but it’s now Sunday and the dream is blurring a little (if anyone has a set list, please post it). And yes. He looked great. Black jeans and shirt, I think.
After Here Comes the Sun, I think he sang Psychomodo and Sling it! (No physical devastation here – just pure elation and we were only three songs in). He broke off during Mr Raffles to talk about his memories of Greenwich and the surrounding area; his dad Ron Nice the milkman, learning to swim, football, the birth of his children at Greenwich Hospital and of course, ‘the beard’, so interesting and such fun.
Steve also sang (not in this order) Judy Teen, Loretta’s Tale, a raw and surging rendition of Sebastian that was incredible – literally ‘outasight’. Journey’s End, ‘sad truth is harder in the dark’, (oh dear, the eyes were starting to leak and Friend for Life, the penultimate song, was yet to come – tears before bedtime). The Coast of Almafi was a perfect song for the summer, dreaming and drifting... And as for The Lighthouse, Barry was incredible on the violin, breathtaking. We sang the chorus to Riding the Waves – poetry set to music - just great! Stranger comes to Town is one of the best songs I’ve ever heard and Steve sang it brilliantly, the power and emotion in his voice. Why isn’t this song played more often? It’s outstanding.
And so we come to the last song and my daughter uttered the immortal words: “Oh. I know this one!” But then, up until four months ago, I only knew the ‘pension’ song and I was eleven in 1975. I accidentally discovered SH & CR via YouTube, serendipity and all that, but reckon I’ve caught up pretty well, easy to learn when you love something so much. Needless to say, ‘Smile’ ended a perfect concert, applause and cheers from the fans and ‘bless you’ from Steve.
I have tickets for Manchester, but seriously don’t know if I can wait that long. I see an extra date has been added in November at O2 Academy Islington – should I, could I...daughter’s piping up about places to lunch – time will tell on this one.
Anyway, a massive thanks to SH & CR for a night to remember. You were fantastic. I hope Steve had top notch air con on his journey back to Suffolk.
All good things,
Becky x
Don’t feel guttered Stella, I could not have gone on my own, just shows what a loyal follower you are and how much Steve values his fans.
