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04/09/04 - BBC RADIO 2,
ABBEY ROAD, LONDON Review by Chris Goulding
It
was another boring old day at work, my eyes investigating the inside of their
lids when my mobile phone warbled. Oh! a text, I thought as I scrabbled into the
depths of my bag (I’m sure these phones deliberately hide themselves when
you most need them!). It was a message from Paula to say that BBC2 had just announced
a competition to win tickets to the Abbey Road studio to watch a live recording
by BA! Flipping heck- Abbey Road wowowow. I dialled the number and listened to
the recorded instructions – OK so they needed to know the number of weeks
EID was in the charts at number one-ermmm hope answer is 16 –and then you
have to leave your name and address – nah knew I would make a mess up of
that so I decided to use the internet instead.
With sweating hands I filled
in the boxes and hit SEND – hate that bit, always afraid that I’ve done
it wrong. OK OK OK I will admit I did contact Jess to confirm it was 16 weeks
LOL – felt more like 6 months at the time but I had to confirm!! To increase
my chances of winning I persuaded my colleagues (their eyes rolled but had to
agree cause they knew I’d keep on ALL day) my mum and my cousin to enter
(I only see her at weddings and funerals but what the heck). I even entered the
dog but didn’t want to push my luck my asking hubby!! Then
it was time to sit back and wait..and wait..and wait. The close was the 4 days
later but I was in Paris then (Darkness gig wowow) so I took my mobile with me
everywhere – up the Eiffel Tower, down the Champs-Elysees, in the Louvre
and along the Seine – just in case! The dam thing warbled countless times
with me excitedly opening up the text only to find it some stupid French mobile
provider saying welcome to France GRRR. I kept texting Jess to see if any winners
had been announced-probably winding her excited state up even more! Got
home and ran to the site – nope nothing announced –bum. Then onto chat
came Dawn to say her friend had heard she had won – great that meant that
at last winners were around. Problem was this made me more attached to my dam
phone – taking it to the loo, shower, coffee machine at work –every
bloody where. Like many baddies said, you glared at it willing it to ring.
I
went home at lunchtime the next day when my phone rang. It was my cousin –
oh what she want I thought DOH!. Hi Chris, she squealed, I’ve just had a
call from a very nice man at the BBC to say I’ve won tickets to see Bryan.
Well, the poor woman had me screaming, yelling and whooping down the phone at
her! I put the phone down not knowing whether to laugh or cry. The poor old dog
looked at me as if I was a Bonio short of a packet but decided to join in my excitement
in case it lead to a walk (have you ever seen a dog going wowow before –well
she did!)
I posted on the board my news, hopefully not to appear a show off
but to alert other entrants to stand by their phones!!
A long weekend followed
with yet another call from my cousin to say the tickets had arrived and that they
were quite special with a picture of Bryan on the front. Not trusting the Royal
mail good old hubby went the 100-mile round trip to pick them up for me. She told
me she wouldn’t be going to the show and that both the tickets were mine
–WOW. But wait a moment, what if they check ID at the door!! Oh Heck!! The
thought nagged at my brain so I spend every waking hour learning her full name,
address (including postcode!) and phone number just in case they interrogate at
the door – it was the thought of nightmares to be turned away from a BA gig!
Baddies in chat thought it hilarious and wound me up something chronic about it.
I then found out that Paula had won tickets too – she was bound to giggle
behind me in the queue and put me off!! I was very glad my dog hadn’t won
I can tell you!
At last the day arrived. I jumped out of bed (very unusual
spectacle for a Saturday morning for me), picked up El my daughter and then sat
on a train for a boring few hours as we headed up to London. Not being a usual
gig we had no idea what to expect so it was with some trepidation (and me still
confused as to my identity!) we found our hotel and an equally excited Dawn and
friend. We then made our way in the heat of midday
to the famous Abbey Road. The studio is a big austere
place – look more
like a country mansion than a recording studios. Jess was patiently waiting outside
the wall that surrounded the frontage – a cool wall that was covered in messages,
not only to the Beatles but also to every other star that had had the honour of
playing there (Ok YES we added BA to the graffiti!)
While we read the wall
Jess and Dawn went off inside to see if there was any possibility of poor old
ticketless Jess getting into see the show. The staff said it was a BBC 2 show
and out of their hands but we could by all means sit on the steps and start to
queue if we liked. They were such sweet people – they even let us in one
at a time (escorted, in case we did a runner!) to use their loo. So
there we sat (sprawled more like it) for a few hours watching the world go by.
Lost count how many people stopped and took pictures of the entrance – we
must be in loads of tourists shots! Even Lance (BA’s guitar tech) joined
us on the steps and I took his pic too. Voddy & Mandy joined us – quiet
a baddie gathering started to grow as Paula and her friend joined us not long
after. We didn’t know when the Dudes were going
to arrive so Dawn headed back to the hotel to eat etc. Before we knew it they
were dashing back looking very excited. They had spotted a blacked out carrier
heading our way and could it be them arriving? LOL turned out to be a busload
of Japanese tourists taking pics of the famous Abbey Road zebra crossing. So
off they trotted again but indeed a few moments later a vehicle drew up and out
piled Norm, Mickey & Co. They ran up the steps before it registered it was
really them – apart for Keith. The sweetie that he is he stayed with us for
a while chatting and asking if we wanted to take shots as he didn’t mind
at all. Then he went up the step leaving us with the biggest grins all over our
faces.
I quickly rang Dawn and told her to get back here quick (well what I
really said was ‘get ya arse here pronto’!) as no doubt BA was going
to arrive soon. He arrived with his head half hanging
out of the passenger window taking video footage of his own arrival at the studio.
The vehicle reversed down the driveway and he jumped out (video still rolling)
and down an alleyway. We shouted hi! to him and good luck, which he acknowledged
– holding onto the recorder with one hand and waving with the other. Then
this girl appeared screaming out bryan, BRYAN, B R Y A N!! – Can you sign
this please for my mum? LOL god knows what he filmed as she cheekily ran towards
him, tottering on her heels. He signed and then off he disappeared through the
back doors. (Chris makes mental note to practise shouting B R Y A N and to buy
a short mini skirt and crop top) Back to the steps
we went only to be removed (very courteously I might add) by the BBC security
(guys built like Sherman tanks with tree trunk necks too but putty in our hands!)
Seeing as BA had arrived our place was now outside the gates so off we went to
try and form an orderly queue. We explained that some peeps had no tickets and
they suggested they formed a line the other side of the gateway and would have
to wait til everyone had gone in before it could be decided if there was spaces
for them too. Time ticked by slowly and gradually
more and more people joined us to queue. It amazes me how people who have been
to 1 or 2 gigs think they know everything about Bryan and his music. We had to
tolerate one woman who went on incessantly –for 4 hours- I know I can talk
the hind legs off a donkey but she really was the limit. She never let off. If
you answered her question she went on and on, if you didn’t she still went
on and on and ON until you did. Behind us was a group of rather noisy group of
‘girlies’ and behind them a surly bunch that looked like the whole experience
was an inconvenience! Dawn asked security if she could
be let in to use the loo. The answer came back as a definite NO as BA was in the
building. Dawn’s reply was that she didn’t care who was in there, she
needed a wee! I don’t think he expected that answer so before we knew it
we were all asked if we needed the loo - escorted in of course! So off I trotted
and what an experience! You know that certain tunes have a special meaning due
to where you heard them etc. Well, Not Romeo has a special place for me –
as I heard it while sitting on the loo in the studio!! Bryan was rehearsing it!!
WOWWWW wee-along-with Bryan LOL The queue got longer
and longer and we heard some real classic reasons given to the security from people
wanting desperately to get in front of us. The best one was –I’m blind
and can’t see (yer ok –she was as normal sighted as you and me ) and
I’m short and need front spot! I will leave it to your imagination what my
comments were to them! At one stage there was a very heated argument between 2
women that nearly ended up in a riot. People that were ‘guests’ considered
that they should go I before the winners and so it was an almighty verbal shindig
at one stage. Security threatened to shove them all to the back but still these
2 women carried on arguing. I told them to shut it as the tolerant security were
starting to get a bit hot under the collar and the last thing you want is rattled
security guys – especially if he was going to check ID LOL Eventually
the gold hour arrived! A bloke appeared at the gate carrying a bit of paper with
a load of names on it. OMG OMG now who was I suppose to be now?? My brain went
to mush –couldn’t recall my own name so god knows what my cousins was!
Panic started to set in – would they find my camera too? He quickly checked
our ticket to make sure we were winners and not guests and we – in true Baddie
fashion – walked (like hell we did – galloped more like it) up the steps
and into the foyer. There was yet another ticket check and then we were escorted
(YES escorted like royalty) down a corridor (thick piled carpet I may add!) and
down some stairs (carpeted of course). Our guide left us at the bottom of the
stairs and we stood gormless not knowing what way to go. Oh sorry he said, as
I asked him where to go, just there on the left. We ventured along the corridor
and through double doors that lead into studio 1. It looked like a school hall
with very lofty ceiling but lacked the PE equipment and climbing bars attached
to the walls of my old hall! There were a few ladies serving drinks down one side-
more reminiscent of tea ladies at a jumble sale than a prestigious recording event!
A
bloke was standing at the entrance and I can’t believe I actually asked him
where do we stand! He looked at me in a puzzled way and said well down there madam,
at the front. DOH I did feel stupid but I honestly didn’t expect to be able
to get THAT close. So we walked –YES WALKED to the front. Somehow it seemed
weird not having security shouting WALK to you as I’m so used to at others
gigs as we hurtle for the barrier.
The stage was quite deep but only about
20 people wide so the 3 mics were quite close. So we arranged ourselves comfortably
along the very narrow and low barrier just under BA’s mic.
There was
an array of percussion instruments between Garys keyboards and Mickeys drums.
I thought that maybe Gary was going to have a play on the chimes and the gongs
but later realised that Danny Cummings had been bought in especially for the recording.
Cameras were being set up for the show too. Paula did spot that one of them nearly
lost his trousers during the very energetic angles he was shooting Bryan at later
on!
Pink (yes PINK) towels were set out for the band and lyric sheets placed
on a music stand for Bryan.
Things were starting to get very exciting so I
rang Jess to see how her, Voddy and Mandy were getting on outside. But I couldn’t
get a signal. I turned round to see how full the place was getting, to see about
5 rows back a beaming voddy holding up jess! They had all got in GREAT. Jess then
(with much applause from us Baddies) squeezed her way to the front – she’s
only 5 foot nothing so tucked in quite nicely!
I thought the dudes would come
on a few mins early to warm up but they didn’t. Time ticked on and the nerves
grew – don’t know what for as I wasn’t playing! When suddenly Keith
appeared followed by the others, with Bryan bringing up the rear. The place erupted
and he gave his usual ‘hi there’ grin. I’m so used to him going
straight into the first number that is seemed weird that he then stood back silently
apart from a quick quirky tune in the background while the DJ told us what was
going on. Bryan did cheekily come to the mic and say ‘Im Bryan’ though!!
You can imagine the cheers that erupted. The DJ proceeded to tell us that with
the rise of his hand he wanted us to cheer. We had a practise and then he said
the news was on at the moment – hurricanes in Florida, England score was
2-2 – then it was up to us. Then before we knew it up went his hand and we
all let out a tremendous cheer! It was then over to the dudes to get on down and
rock the socks off the radio audience and us. As
so many of you would have already have heard the session I wont do a set list
– instead I’ll try and describe what you obviously couldn’t see. The
dudes were dressed in the usual black t-shirts and blue jeans but for some reason
BA had long sleeves. Bet he regretted that, as the place was like a bake house
and he kept on using the cuffs to mop his brow. Them sleeves must have been sopping
wet by the end of the show! He also looked like his shoes needed a clean –
looked like he’d been playing footie in his best shoes – tut tut !
He
had music sheets on a stand and about 3 times during the show these flew off and
got strewn across the stage. The panic in his face was a picture to see - poor
guy. He couldn’t yell to Lance over the live airways so he was trying to
catch his attention whilst strumming and singing for him to put them back. Lance
rushed over and he had to hurriedly put them back in the right order for Bryan.
PANIC!!! (Note: at the next gig they were taped down LOL)
Throughout the gig
you felt like you weren’t just spectators to a great occasion but that you
were part of it. Difficult to explain but at a normal gig you are amongst thousands
of like minded fans but at this you felt a Baddie – and we all felt that
BA appreciated us being there. He did look down at our beaming faces a few times
wondering how the heck we were so word perfect when the rest of the audience didn’t
have a clue what he was singing. We were without doubt Baddies as both Paula and
El had BADdie t-shirts on and I had made a Room Service one from the CD cover.
I couldn’t help thinking during the show of all the Baddies round the world
sitting at their terminals listening to the show (and Jackie shouting out to BA
that she would be at the gigs in October). He looked very happy and surprisingly
relaxed. Keith however was very focused and concentrating hard on the job in hand
– it can’t be easy with thousands listening. It was good to see Bryan
sharing a bit of the lead guitar in certain tunes. The dudes all did the vocals
to the new stuff and Norm looked a bit more relaxed than he Norm—ally does.
Flying
was undoubtedly the best tune. We had obviously missed out on its first airing
that day on the board so it was our first listen. It was awesome to stand there
swaying together and watching the pure emotion on Bryans face as she played and
sang. Pure, pure magic. He briefly glanced down at us as he finished playing looking
for a reaction – I think our faces spoke a million words. The
cameras were still rolling throughout, with this wiz cameraman taking many under
nose, under armpit, weird angled shots – I would just love to see what images
he got. BA pointed to him at one point to go film Keith as he was about to do
a solo bit. So Bryan is turning producer as well now then LOL ? The
show was slowly drawing to an end – that hour went soo quick. Then came an
event that will stay with me forever. The tune was nearing the end and Bryan –
who was only a few feet from us – stuck the neck of the guitar at me. I didn’t
quite know what to do & I certainly wasn’t going to touch it and twang
something I shouldn’t. So I touched that back of his hand instead. With that
he swung the guitar round and pushed it away from his body towards me – inviting
it to be played. Well what more can you do than have a strum! El played the neck
while Jess and I twanged a few strings. It was just the best gesture that he could
have given. Totally awesome! I think the sound engineers
had seen what he was doing and switched his guitar off – thank god. The
song ended and Bryan went to thank the band but the DJ piped him to the post.
He looked a wee bit disappointed he couldn’t say thanks but hey that’s
show business!
We looked towards Keith and he gave us an enormous grin and
threw his plectrum. It bounced off the stage onto the floor but the cameraman
picked it up for me – nice guy.
Off ran the dudes, with Bryan spending
time to thank the DJ etc. He then tried to make his way to the back of the studio
to get out but 300 peeps had better ideas and wanted autographs. The crush was
very bad but I eventually managed to shove my ticket under his nose so that he
had to sign it LOL. He looked down and asked my name and a look of recognition
came over his face (more like oh gord its you again). I said Chris and he said
Christmas? If you like Bryan I replied cheekily – sign it Christmas if you
want. The peeps around were a bit taken back by our banter - Tee Hee
We then
all made our way outside – sad but there again extremely happy. The rest
of the band was just getting into their vehicle and we yelled our goodbyes with
Keith saying take care and blowing kisses. Security wouldn’t let us take
pics so we waited outside the gates to wave at them through their blackened windows.
They took ages to pull out into the heavy traffic so I expect they were fed up
of waving (I don’t know as we couldn’t see them at all!)
We hung
around a bit waiting for BA to leave. Some security bloke who thought we were
born yesterday said that he had gone ages ago but as El told him don’t be
daft whose car is that over there then? He eventually appeared and spent ages
with the passenger door open looking at something on the seat. LOL it was his
video camera – he was setting it up to go out the way he had come in –
filming. The car drove past us with him filming away. Heck! All he must have on
that film is the same group of baddies when he arrived and when he left. Then
he was off into the London traffic and we went back to admire the graffiti on
the walls (my mum would have sent me to my room and stopped my pocket money for
weeks if she had caught me as a kid scribbling on there LOL). But you just have
to do these things don’t you? So I added Bryan was ‘ere and the date
plus Keith Scott rocks!
We decided to go and paint eh town red (or pink seeing
as that’s the in colour lol) but the tube line was shut so that called a
halt to that idea. So we all trooped back to the hotel to feed £’s
into the Internet to chat to the baddies on line. It was really great to hear
that they had had a party whilst listening to the show. It sort of made it all
complete if you know what I mean. El & I went
off to our room a few hours later to brainstorm and write down as much of the
day as we could remember before it disappeared for our memory. This is why you
poor lot are reading so much waffle here as I don’t know what to include
and what to miss out from such a great experience.
I’m going to get all
melancholy now and say that I know it sounds stupid but there are moments and
events in your life that mean something to you. I don’t mean life, death
or marriage; I mean small insignificant things that stay with you forever.
Well
I’m sure that this is going to be one of those. Thanks Bryan but most of
all thanks Baddies – bloody good fun wasn’t it ! Setlist:
Room
Service
Can't Stop This Thing We Started
Open Road
18 Til I Die
Not
Romeo Not Juliet
Why Do You Have To Be So Hard to Love
When You're Gone
Cuts
Like A Knife
Blessing In Disguise
Back To You
Summer Of '69
Flying
The
Only Thing That Looks Good On Me Is You | 
