Gigography
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This list of gigs by Europeans and How We Live has
grown substantially since I started it in Summer 2000. I've added more
comments and details from Geoff, Steve, Colin and Ferg, plus various reviews
and photos. The list here was compiled from tour ads, music magazine
classifieds, reviews and various other sources. If you can fill in any more
details, then please email me, at t.glasswell@btinternet.com (Geoff Dugmore) "They were all fab in their own way" |
1980
Thanks to Nick Atkins (early Europeans sound engineer), I have
been able to compile a list of early shows performed by the band:
02/09/80 Rock Garden, Covent
Garden, London
01/10/80 Ronnie Scott’s, London
13/10/80 The Bridgehouse,
Canning Town, London (support)
16/10/80 Half Moon, Herne Hill (support)
18/10/80 Basildon
20/10/80 Top Rank, Brighton
28/10/80 The Ship, Maidstone
(Steve Martin, fan) I worked at a pub called The Ship, in
01/11/80 Sunderland
07/11/80 Half Moon, Herne Hill,
London (support)
08/11/80 ROK rockstore
London (support)
11/11/80 The Ship, Maidstone
20/11/80 Peckham, London
23/11/80 The Ship, Maidstone
04/12/80 Dagenham
05/12/80 Newlands Tavern, Peckham,
London
08/12/80 Richmond Hotel, Brighton
17/12/80 The Towers, Walthamstow,
London
18/12/80 Central Hotel, Gillingham
19/12/80 Porchester
Halls, Bayswater, London (supporting Paul Goodman)
20/12/80 Lewisham Odeon (support)
21/12/80 Half Moon, Herne Hill,
London
22/12/80 The Ship, Maidstone
1981
20/02/81 Imperial College, London (supporting John
Otway & Wild Willy Barrett)
06/03/81 Queen Mary College, London (supporting John Otway)
(Steve Hogarth) “The Europeans were John’s backing band on the
‘All Balls and No Willy Tour’ and we were known as the ‘Band Behind the
Curtain.’ We were literally behind a
sheet. I was party to a lot of wreckage
on that tour but never personally damaged fortunately. I remember one night seeing John take off his
shirt and he had the full imprint of his pedals across his back, where he had
done a forward roll over his own equipment!”
(John Otway) "I sang in front of a screen and they were featured in silhouette behind me - This was the only way I could get them on the same stage"
(Colin
Woore) "Nearing the end of the set, I would
drape a towel over my head and then put on a top hat - Wild Willy Barrett
magically appearing. We were pretty knackered after a few nights though as we
were also the support act and were supplying and moving the PA and all the
gear."
(Geoff
Dugmore) "I remember that quite well. We rented
him our PA system and in return we got to open up for
him. So, we opened up for him as the Euros but we had
to play for him as well as this 'band behind the curtain. In some respects it was a lot of fun, although when I look back on
it I think we were probably being used. I think it was youthful naivety and the
desire to succeed ! "
(Steve Hogarth again!) "We were behind a white screen and Otway was in front. We were backlit so the audience could only see our silhouettes. Colin used to wear a tea-towel on his head under a top-hat so they all thought it was Willy Barrett. I guess it was my first real tour. We worked hard but it was a blast. All our friends came to see us. They were mostly Scots. They're all millionaires now"
18/03/81 The Venue, Victoria, London (supporting John
Otway)
13/04/81 The Pits, The Greenman,
London (supporting Purple Hearts)
Image
from here
15/05/81 Birmingham (supporting Chelsea)
16/05/81 Wolverhampton (supporting Chelsea)
22/05/81 City of London
Polytechnic (supporting Chelsea)
05/06/81 Clarendon Hotel,
Hammersmith (supporting Chelsea)
06/06/81 Clarendon Hotel,
Hammersmith (supporting Chelsea)
07/06/81 The Rock Garden, Covent
Garden, London
25/06/81 The Ship, Maidstone
26/06/81 Aston University,
Birmingham (supporting John Otway)
19/07/81 Kensington, London
20/07/81 Clarendon Hotel,
Hammersmith, London
21/07/81 The Greyhound, Fulham,
London (supporting Spang)
23/07/81 The Ship, Maidstone
25/07/81 The Half Moon, Herne
Hill, London
27/07/81 The Rock Garden, Covent
Garden, London + ‘Brunel’
22/08/81 The Marquee, London (supporting 'Everest The Hard Way')
I
was sent a copy of a ‘bootleg’ cassette made at this 1981 gig by a fan (ZM). He
also sent me a copy of the Marquee gig listing leaflet & poster, although
there is no mention on the band’s name!
Sound quality is average – what you would expect from being taped
unofficially at The Marquee! This early Europeans setlist
is fascinating. ‘Sanctuary City’ ‘Tokyo’
‘(Drink) Pink Zinc’ and ‘Trend on Trend’ were Motion Pictures / Scotch numbers. ‘Tunnel Vision’, ‘Going to Work’
& ‘Joining Dots’ were songs that Steve brought with him from The Newtrinos. ‘Uniforms’ ‘American People’ and ‘Someone’s Changing’
were original songs that the Europeans had worked on together in early 1981.
‘Idiots’ is the only track I’m not familiar with here, and is more than a
little strange, sounding like an embryonic version of ‘Climb the Wall.’
(ZM) “[I have] vague hazed
images. Possibly people dressed in white. We were back to London from Scotland.
Used to get around, travelling and seeing concerts. Use to go to see nearly
everything at the Marquee. Also saw Budgie, before moving to the Reading festival. The track list is unusually precise. I must
have copied it from the setlist.”
23/09/81 Greyhound, Fulham, London
(supporting Buzz)
27/09/81 The Ship, Maidstone
28/09/81 The Rock Garden, Covent
Garden, London
29/09/81 Starlight Rooms, West Hampstead, London
(Review
: Melody Maker, 10th October 1981) "Amazing what a few months can do.
An average four-piece club outfit, The Europeans looked straight and sounded
straight. That was April. Now they've gone overboard on image and their songs
have gone into overdrive. Gone is the casual 'wear-what-you-like' look of old.
In are tight white skin piercing trousers, colourful tops, black leggings and
bare feet. Still experimental, the new image requires refinement but it's a
great improvement. The material's the killer though. Sharper than ever, songs
like 'Joining Dots' & 'Tokyo' are blasting, pumping, aggressive slices of
punchy pop; a nod to the tougher edge of the Sinceros,
while 'Going to Work' (an anthem for the unhappily employed) convinces with its
abrasive guitar riff curling through the verse and the power of the song's
sentiments. And they've got a lot more up their sleeves as well; definitely a
band to keep your eye on.- Paul Strange."
30/10/81 Queen Elizabeth College,
Kensington, London
06/11/81 Half Moon, Herne Hill,
London
26/11/81 Manchester University
27/11/81 City University, London
28/11/81 Guildford University (supporting John Otway+ Jon Benns)
02/12/81 The Rock Garden, Covent
Garden, London +Mxyztplk
04/12/81 Bath College of
Technology (support)
05/12/81 Christs College,
Liverpool (support)
06/12/81 Kingston Polytechnic
07/12/81 101 Club, Clapham, London
08/12/81 South Dorset Polytechnic
11/12/81 North Staffordshire
Polytechnic
12/12/81 Folkestone
18/12/81 The Regal, Hitchin (support)
21/12/81 Oxford
22/12/81 The Ship Inn, Maidstone
??/??/81 Mile End Road (supporting
John Otway)
??/??/?? The 100 Club, London
??/??/?? Snoopies, Richmond,
London
??/??/?? The Hope & Anchor, Islington, London
??/??/?? The Thomas a Beckett, Old Kent Road, London
??/??/?? North East London Polytechnic
??/??/?? The Crypt, Hastings
1982
08/02/82 The Assembly Rooms (supporting John
Otway & Wild Willy Barrett)
13/02/82 City Hall, St Albans (supporting John
Otway & Wild Willy Barrett)
17/03/82 Rock Garden, Covent Garden, London + Troops for Tomorrow
30/04/82 City University, Islington, London (supporting Secret Affair)
16/05/82 Starlight Rooms, West Hampstead, London + Vital
Note who was playing the venue only two nights
before the band!
03/09/82 Quay Club, Exeter
05/09/82 Maestro’s, Glasgow
06/09/82 Tiffany’s, Newcastle
07/09/82 Mainline, Doncaster
09/09/82 Warehouse Club, Leeds
10/09/82 Sound Cellar, Cambridge
06/09/82 Tiffany’s, Newcastle
24/09/82 BBC Studios, London
Europeans appeared on the
flagship BBC live music show ‘The Old Grey Whistle Test’, playing ‘The Animal
Song’ and ‘The Spirit of Youth.’
29/09/82 Central London Polytechnic
??/12/82 ‘Peace Party’, Capitol
Theatre, Horsham (supporting Scarlet
Party)
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(David Western,
Europeans artist / designer): I first met the band at a benefit gig i helped to organise at the Capitol Theatre in Horsham,
West Sussex in December 1982. The
addition of the Europeans
to the bill really raised the event as we'd been impressed with their single
'Animal Song'. This became the main
influence for the screen printed poster. Europeans were featured as headliners and stars of
the show [which they certainly were] but at Polydor's insistence they played
second on the bill to Scarlet Party, an entirely forgotten mod revival
outfit. The poster itself had the
desired effect and led to the commission of the LP sleeve. |
“Here’s the original screen printed poster for the benefit
gig in Horsham, Sussex where i first met the band.
Seems like a good place to begin as Europeans were suitably impressed enough to commission
me to design their debut album cover. Please note that this rather
ambitious poster was printed in 6 colours at the last minute on a makeshift
printing bed in my mate’s kitchen. He made a wonderful job of it
considering those crude conditions and the mis-registration is part of it's charm. There may be
better copies but this is the only one i have.
It was a fairly small print run with most of them pasted up around town.
So this, as far as i can tell is one of the
salvaged copies. Also note the influence of 'The Animal Song' and Europeans prominent
position on the poster. The spitfire, by the way was drawn by my Dad,
Mike Western who worked on many British comics.”
1983
25/05/83 The Venue, Victoria, London (supporting Mink DeVille)
Photos by Per-Ake Warn. Visit his website at http://www.monokrom-photos.com/ to see them full size, plus lots of other great B&W band
shots!
31/05/83 Lyceum, The Strand, London (CND Benefit, supporting Midnight Oil)
02/06/83 Maida Vale, London (BBC Radio One session)
According to the book ‘In
Session Tonight – the complete Radio 1 recordings’ by Ken Garner, Europeans recorded
a session for BBC Radio One at Maida Vale studios in London on this date. It was transmitted on the Kid Jensen Show at 8pm on 15/06/83. The
tracks played were: Spirit of Youth, Falling, Going to Work and Innocence.
(Info from
10/06/83 Central London Polytechnic
11/06/83 Angies, Wokingham
13/06/83 Rock City, Nottingham (supporting Midnight Oil)
16/06/83 Dog & Trumpet, Coventry
17/06/83 JB's, Dudley
18/06/83 Nottingham Trent Polytechnic
23/06/83 Triffids, London + Honest
24/06/83 Angies, Wokingham
27/06/83 Faces, Birmingham
30/06/83 Newham College, Birmingham
02/07/83 Crystal Palace, London (Concert Bowl
Festival)
04/07/83 Faces, Birmingham
05/07/83 Fridge, Brixton, London
09/07/83 Half Moon, Herne Hill, London + Philip Jap
??/07/83 Alexandra Palace, London
‘No 1’ magazine (16 July) reported that ‘a charity
gig at Alexandra Palace nearly ended in a brawl because it was too loud for
some, and too quiet for others. “The rival factions started on each other, and
halfway through our set the stage was full of threatening, red-faced officials”
they moaned. “We wouldn’t have minded so
much, but it was so embarrassing. The
venue holds over 3000 people – bit only a couple of hundred turned up.”
19/07/83 Fridge, Brixton, London
(Geoff
Dugmore)
"Every year A&M had an annual conference in London, and we went to it
one time and got so drunk it was unbelievable! I remember waking up the next
morning, on my own, in the suite that had been hired by the president of
A&M. I don't know how! We had a gig that night at 'The Fridge' in Brixton
and we were so hideously hung over it was horrendous, but the gig was good. We
did a residency there."
20/07/83 Highgate Lazers,
London
22/07/83 Dingwalls, Newcastle
23/07/83 Leadmill, Sheffield
26/07/83 Fridge, Brixton, London
27/07/83 Highgate Lazers,
London
30/07/83 Dingwalls, Hull
02/08/83 Embassy Club, London
03/08/83 Highgate Lazers,
London
04/08/83 Warehouse, Leeds
10/08/83 Liberty's, Birmingham
11/08/83 Dingwalls, Bristol
12/08/83 Moles Club, Bath
18/08/83 Jungle, West Kensington, London
20/08/83 Tin Can, Birmingham
??/09/83 'LA' Palace, Los Angeles, USA (+ The Ascenders)
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(Ferg Harper) "The record company were a little over generous in the 'entertainment' that they were giving us prior to the show. Without saying too much, there were several lagers quaffed, and certain other substances involved, so by the time we hit the stage, we were not in the best condition. It was probably the most pivotal gig of our career, in as much as MTV producers and all the media were there to watch it, and we basically came out and played the whole set at 78rpm instead of 45rpm ! Apparently the front of house sound wasn't the best either, 'cos it was a very echoey venue. I remember at the time, our guitarist Colin was going out with Toni Childs, the American singer, and she was a great champion of our cause. She'd lived with us in London, and come to our gigs. And I just remember when we came off stage she said "What the f*ck happened?" And we were like, 'Oh, was it not good ?' And that was probably the critical point of us not getting the full backing in America that we probably should have. |
(Steve Hogarth) "The song 'Better Dreams' (from
the 'Ice Cream Genius' album) is about Los Angeles for the first time...how it
struck me. I remember getting into an elevator lift and when the doors closed I
realised it was just me and Debbie Harry. Then it stopped, she got out and
Little Richard stepped in!"
(Review
: Billboard Magazine, 24th September 1983) "What can you say about a show
whose high point was when the keyboard player tripped over his own riser and
fell spread-eagled on the stage, his microphone hitting the boards with a
syncopated ka-thunk! You can wonder why A&M flew
Scotland’s Europeans to the US for a limited tour
(New Yok and Los Angeles) in support of the new ‘Recognition’ EP. The band had barely 45 minutes of material to
present, and played to the smallest house the Palace
had seen all season. This despite the fact that the band’s ‘Animal Song’ is on such
heavy KROQ rotation that it has become the station’s theme piece. Lead singer Fergus Harper dresses like a Chinese peasant and wears a hairstyle
best described as ‘exploding mushroom cap.’
His antics, combined with keyboardist Steve Hogarth’s imitation of a refugee from ‘Adam and the Ants’,
attempt to add life and energy to songs that won’t stand up on their own
merit. The group perform: Innocence,
Recognition, Falling, Television (sic – probably Tunnel Vision) and AEIOU (not
to be confused with Ebn Ozn’s
‘AEIOU and Sometimes Y). And they did
Animal Song twice. If we missed one,
it’s because their songs all sounded pretty much the same. The show was opened by Orange County’s ‘Ascenders’
who had been signed to Boardwalk, poor boys.
They played their straightforward pop with frenzied attention, hoping to
get yet another once-in-a-lifetime break.” Ethlie Ann Vare.
??/09/83 California, USA
??/09/83 The Ritz, New York City, USA
(Ferg Harper) "I think that was the only gig on the American tour where we really excelled. We got used to being in America. The sound was good, we had a good stage to play, good lighting. I was one of those gigs that just fired off. There were quite a few people there. Billy Idol's guitarist was there and he thought we were fantastic. And 'Flock of Seagulls' were there. They had seen us in Los Angeles, and liked us enough to follow us to New York and watch this gig. And everybody when we came off said 'oh, that was absolutely blinding.' It was shame we hadn't done that gig in the Palace in L.A, but, hey, you can't control these things !"
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(Geoff Dugmore) "By the time we got to 'The
Ritz' we realised what it was that we were supposed to be doing. We weren't
there to have party. It wasn't a holiday. We were actually there to work. A
lot of that was down to our manager who guided us unbelievably badly through
that whole thing." |
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(Steve Hogarth) "I tie these little rags around my fingers. I've always worn them, since years ago I cut one of my hands very badly, and a year or so later I started wearing bandages round my fingers. It's become a superstition and whenever I don't, terrible things happen. Once, at The Ritz in New York, I didn't wear them and the PA blew up. The bass gear went down, and so did the keyboards. The band had to go offstage, and we couldn't come back on again for ages because nothing worked!" (Rogues Gallery Interview 1991, Dave Ling) |
Wed ??/09/83 Boston, USA + Sister Sledge
(Ferg Harper) "I remember we met Robert Plant at that gig in Boston. He was there for some bizarre reason. I don't know why!"
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(Colin Woore) "We were on tour in the US following a lot of airplay on the East and West coasts of the Animal Song and MTV exposure of the video (raw meat edited out by censors of some kind). The gig in Boston was in a large club that could put on two separate shows on their back-to-back stage on the same night. The backstage area, as we found out later, was communal. Robert Plant was in Boston and came down to see the show with his girlfriend. We'd never met him before but new that he was in an old band called "Led" something. Sister Sledge were performing on the other side of the stage behind us that night, but we hadn't had any contact with them. After our show, he came backstage to say hello. We were all really hungry and had barely eaten anything all day, so we all got stuck in to the excellent rider food which we thought had been supplied by the club for us. Just as we were polishing it all off, Sister Sledge appeared from their last encore, which was " WE ARE FAMILY " or was it "WE ARE FAMISHED" only to witness the last bits of their food being devoured. That really went down like a Led......something." |
Thu ??/09/83 The Living Room, Providence, USA
Fri ??/09/83 Brooklyn, New York City, USA
Sat ??/09/83 Peppermint Lounge, Manhatten, New
York City, USA
16/09/83? Dingwalls, Camden, London +
Kane Administration'
22/09/83 Halesowen Liberties, Birmingham
24/09/83 Rockathon, Shepton Mallet
27/09/83 Queen Mary's College, London + 'Annabel Lamb'
28/09/83 The Regal, Hitchin +
'Annabel Lamb'
29/09/83 Angies, Wokingham
30/09/83 Crocs, Rayleigh +
'Annabel Lamb'
01/10/83 Porterhouse, Retford + 'Annabel Lamb'
04/10/83 Kings College, London + 'Annabel Lamb'
(Review : Sounds, 22nd October 1983) "...The Europeans are a whole hospital ward of accidents in a musical sense. Virtually each song has a rousing, memorable chorus (even if they all sound a little similar), but the verses tend to ramble incoherently and get lost in the cross-rhythm. Still, they have several saving graces: their infectious enthusiasm, the screeching attack of guitarist Colin and the edgy, pulsating emotion of 'Going to Work', their one truly great song. At the moment, the Europeans are too anxious, too wired for frantic response to get near the heart and soul of an audience... - Johnny Waller"
05/10/83 Sheffield Polytechnic (Freshers Ball)
06/10/83 Warwick University +
'Annabel Lamb' (Freshers Ball)
07/10/83 The System, Liverpool + 'Annabel Lamb'
08/10/83 Bradford University +
'Annabel Lamb' (Freshers Ball)
09/10/83 Bangor University +
'Annabel Lamb' (Freshers Ball)
(Y’ Seren
UCNW Student Newspaper 27th October 1983) “Usually we pull a reaction out
of the audience, but tonight the audience pulled a reaction out of us” enthused
Steve
Hogarth, the keyboard player of the Europeans, after their gig at Bangor
Student Union on 9th October.
Their set started off slowly, working up to an explosive finish, in
which the crowd was sprayed with a fire extinguisher. This, Steve later exclaimed was a result of
natural exuberance.” – read the full
article here)
“
10/10/83
Lancaster University + 'Annabel Lamb'
11/10/83 Birmingham Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb'
12/10/83 Huddersfield Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb' (Freshers Ball)
13/10/83 Hatfield Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb'
14/10/83 Nottingham Trent Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb'
15/10/83 Wolverhampton Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb'
17/10/83 Leeds
University + 'Annabel Lamb'
18/10/83 Fagins (or The Hacienda),
Manchester + 'Annabel Lamb'
19/10/83 Leicester Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb'
Photos by Thomas Oldfield on Flickr. See all the
photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/7159476@N04/sets/72157626450337950/with/5599000826/
20/10/83 Bournemouth Academy +
'Annabel Lamb'
21/10/83 London City Polytechnic + 'Annabel Lamb'
22/10/83 London School of Economics + 'Annabel Lamb'
25/10/83 Hammersmith Palais, London + 'JoBoxers' & 'Milkshakes'
27/10/83 De Bark, Venray, Holland
28/10/83 Eucalypta, Winterswijk, Holland
Gig Poster from here
29/10/83 The Hague, Holland (AM) & Arena, Rotterdam
(PM)
The band played a three-song set at a large CND festival in the Hague and a smaller club gig in the evening. The Melody Maker reported that "lengthy delays, language and technical difficulties, a lack of Dutch co-operation and Geoff Dugmore's heavy bout of 'flu' had prevented them from putting on a decent show." There was a poor turnout for the evening gig (50 people rather than the expected 500!) largely due to the entire Dutch railways system being blocked by the huge crowds from the CND festival, trying to get home!
(Geoff Dugmore)
"We played at an open air festival in Holland somewhere in time and I
remember having a fever of 104 and feeling crap but in true Europeans style
carried on. During the gig I felt great but after got taken to hospital where I
remember a nurse sticking a thermometer up my bum !
Not a great way to remember a gig."
30/10/83 Paradiso, Amsterdam (supporting The Cocteau Twins + Dead Can Dance)
Gig Poster from here
The band played a radio session before their evening
Amsterdam gig:
“Europeans successfully blast the Dutch airwaves with a live 30 minute set of some of their best material. The sound is superb, "American People" chopping past neatly on a salvo of thundering drums, dazzling keyboard runs, eerie, crackling guitar and boisterous bass. The band warm to their task, turning up the heat for "Falling", a bleak "Tunnel Vision", a great new song called "Typical", culminating in a triumphant "The Animal Song." (Paul Strange, Melody Maker - read the full article here)
(Geoff Dugmore) "That was a very weird gig. I actually thought that it was a fantastic show, and I remember coming off stage and feeling very elated. Then we listened to the 'Cocteau Twins' with Liz Fraser singing in floods of tears, and it really took the wind out of my enthusiasm that night. I'd never seen anybody perform with such emotional conviction, bearing their soul so openly on a stage. It had a striking effect for me personally. "
??/11/83 Dingwalls, Camden, London
(Review : NME, 5th November 1983) "The recipe from which Europeans were concocted is a common one : add a dollop of the Associates to a dash of Bryan Ferry, and stir with a far too generous helping of the not so Thin Tanned Duke. It doesn't take an Egon Ronay to see that this mixture doesn't gel. In the studio, the drums / bass / guitar / synth line-up make a somewhat lifeless stab at the white Euro-rhythmic disco beat, as championed by Simple Minds. On stage, The Europeans over compensate for their lack of drive on record resulting in all semblance of melody being lost somewhere between the monotonous bangs and crashes. The Europeans try too hard to appeal to all, and end up pleasing no-one. - Ziyad Georgis."
18/11/83 University of Sussex +
The Glass Lemmings
25/11/83 'The Tube' (UK TV)
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The band played 'American People', 'Innocence' and 'Tunnel
Vision' on this Channel 4 music show. (Ferg Harper)
"That was one of the better ones, apart from Steve almost ending
someone's life by throwing that fire extinguisher! It knocked the electronic
box off the wall and nearly killed one of the stage hands !
And did we care ?" |
08/12/83 The Garage, Nottingham
09/12/83 North Staffordshire Polytechnic, Stafford
(Simon Buckmaster, fan): "I knew one of the guys who was big in the Student Union at
the time, and he liked the Europeans, so he booked them for the Christmas Ball. The concert was
more polished and less energetic (than their previous gigs at the venue).
I got one of Geoff's well beaten drumsticks at the end of the show, which I
kept for many years."
10/12/83 Huddersfield Polytechnic
13/12/83 Dingwalls, Camden, London
14/12/83 Dingwalls, Camden, London
15/12/83 London City University
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(Mark Thompson,
Manager)
“I hired a mobile studio for two days, brought in David Lord (a close friend)
and recorded two consecutive nights at London University. David, I and Paul
Owen (the band’s live engineer) mixed it over Christmas. By the way, everything was original on the
album except the applause, which was dubbed from a Bob Dylan live album!” (Geoff Dugmore) "It was a great night, great crowd and we played our butts off, as I remember." ('Live' Record Sleeve)
"Highlight of the entertainment .... was a scintillating set by the Europeans, a band
who were so hot on the night you could almost feel the fire slide up your
back." |
1984
(Steve Hogarth) "The biggest Spinal Tap Moment I ever had was in the Europeans. I once ran off stage and crashed out some exit doors which
slammed shut behind me, leaving me out in the street in the snow on a cold winters night, wet through with sweat from head to foot. I
had to run round the building to the front doors where security refused to let
me back in. I could hear the band back on stage for the encore as I shivered in
the street!"
20/01/84 The Chelmer Institute
25/01/84 New University of Ulster, Coleraine (cancelled)
26/01/84 Queens University, Belfast (cancelled)
27/01/84 TV Club, Dublin + Amazulu (cancelled)
According to
the NME, the these Irish dates were cancelled “owing to the collapse of Eammon
Andrews’ entertainment business”
28/01/84 Golddiggers,
Chippenham
The show was filmed for the BBC's 'Sight & Sound' music show, and broadcast live (simultaneously) on BBC2 and Radio One. The set was : (warm-up / sound tests) American People / Going to Work; (broadcast set) Typical / Spirit Of Youth / American People Innocence / Falling / Joining Dots / A.E.I.O.U. / Animal Song; (non-broadcast songs) Tunnel Vision / Writing for Survival
(Ferg Harper) 'The broadcast faded off as I sang an extraordinary flat note ! Quite a disappointing end to the evening. I thought 'Shit, you did have to sing that flat bit right at the end !'"
(Geoff Dugmore) "We kept getting these great 'In
Concert' TV and Radio things and I could never quite understand why, because we
didn't seem to sell any records. That was the strange thing about the Euros -
we could sell out venues but we could never translate it into album sales. In
retrospect, I think we were a 'musicians' musicians' type band as opposed to a
'pop' band. "
29/01/84 Henri Afrikas, Glasgow + Amazulu
30/01/84 Fat Sams, Dundee
The band announced in the national music press that they were looking for local supports for their 1984 UK Tour. They received 174 tapes, and chose the lucky bands listed below.
(NME? Jan 1984): "The response confirmed the Europeans' belief that agents, social secretaries and bands themselves could do more to provide opportunities for local acts during a tour rather then simply selling off the support slot to groups with major label deals. A Europeans spokesperson said last week 'It should not be regarded as a privilege for bands to play support slots on decent stages in their home towns, but rather as a right.'"
31/01/84 Edinburgh University + Back at the Front
01/02/84 Huddersfield Polytechnic
02/02/84 The Venue, London + Apocalypse + The Opposition
03/02/84 Wolverhampton Polytechnic + Wildflowers
04/02/84 Manchester Polytechnic + The Herbs
06/02/84 Clouds, Preston
07/02/84 The Beer Keller, Liverpool + Wildflowers + Ad Astra
08/02/84 Pink Elephant, Luton + Tora Tora
09/02/84 North East London Polytechnic + Junk
10/02/84 The Box, Arnhem, Holland
11/02/84 De Eland, Delft, Holland
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(Inge Kuijt, Big Europeans Fan)
“I was shopping in town with my friend Ciska,
when we walked past our local venue in Delft, Holland, and we saw this very
large, very yellow poster of 4 very good-looking blokes. It turned out they
were playing a concert there that night and we instantly decided, ‘this we
have to see!’. We ran to the nearest record shop and bought a 12-inch single,
which we played for the rest of the afternoon, so we would be able to sing
along to a few songs at least. The 12-inch was American People, the
four ‘pretty boys’ were Europeans. The gig was amazing. My friend Ciska
and I were at the front, and after about two songs we got into the grip of
the music and we danced and danced until we almost dropped down dead. Europeans had just released their LIVE
album the month before and they played all of it. The stage was pretty small,
so the band didn’t have a lot of room to move about, but it created a very
intimate atmosphere. The sheer energy of the performance was overwhelming. A
few times during the concert I looked at Ciska and
she looked so happy, so excited and thrilled, as if she was having a most
unusual experience. And then I realised I must look the same, because I knew
what it was she felt.” See Inge’s own recollections
page for the continuation of this story... |
(All Photos by Inge Kuijt)
A video of this
concert exists, shot with a single camera from the back of the venue:
12/02/84 Der Melkweg,
Amsterdam, Holland
(Inge Kuijt, Super Fan): “The next day the sun was shining, and it was warm outside, so of course nobody was at the hotel when we phoned! We decided to go to Amsterdam early anyway, and found the band having a drink at a pavement café on the Leidseplein. A happy reunion. The gig that night was even better than the previous one in Delft, or was this just because I already had an inkling that they would become ‘my band, for now and forever’?”
(Photos & setlist, once
again, by Inge Kuijt)
(Photos from http://seizoensgebonden.blogspot.co.uk/2015/05/the-europeans-melkweg-amsterdam.html)
21/02/84 Venue, Derry, Northern Ireland
22/02/84 Queens University, Belfast, Northern Ireland
23/02/84 Ulster University, Coleraine, Northern Ireland
24/02/84 SFX Centre, Dublin, Ireland + Amazulu?
25/02/84 Leisureland, National University
of Ireland, Galway (UCG) + Amazulu
The band appeared on RTE TV show ‘Anything Goes’ in the morning and
played the University ‘Tramps Ball’ at Leisureland in
the evening.
02/03/84 Sheffield Polytechnic
03/03/84 Glasgow College of Technology
04/03/84 Spring Street Theatre, Hull
09/03/84 Brunel University, Uxbridge
10/03/84 Bristol Polytechnic
13/03/84 Town Hall, Bournemouth
15/03/84 Westfield College, London
16/03/84 Dingwalls, Camden, London
17/03/84 Kent University, Canterbury
(Ferg Harper) "I think that was the one where I lost my teeth ! I seem to remember a problem with one of the monitors. I decided to strip a bit of wire with my teeth, and I pulled my two front teeth out ! So what I had to do for the gig was to get a big bit of chewing gum, stick it in and 'shing like thish.' Trying to keep this chewing gum in my mouth so I could pronunciate !"
23/03/84 Valencia, Spain
24/03/84 Madrid, Spain
12/04/84 Les Bain Douche, Paris
13/04/84 Les Bain Douche, Paris
(Geoff Dugmore) "The concerts in Paris in April '84 were at a venue called Les Bain Douche. I remember it well. It was my birthday and we had a fantastic party after the show."
15/04/84 Hammersmith Palais, London 'Gang of Four' farewell concert + 'Abacush'
??/04/84 Uncle Po’s, Hamburg
(Rock & Folk Magazine #207, April
1984) “Hamburg
in winter. It’s freezing. Even in the
"hot" streets, it's freezing. Then you can go into pubs. The Europeans were performing at the Uncle
Po, some sort of smoky pub smelling beer. A real paradise island for a Scottish
band ... And a treat for the freezing rockers: two sets of a nervous rock. Frantic and original, oscillating between
harsh guitar and a cool invading keyboard.” (Full article here)
29/04/84 Alabama Halle, Munich +
Psychedelic Furs
(Steve Hogarth) "We did a club gig in Munich where we opened for the Psychedelic Furs... Richard Butler was walking through our dressing room on the way to the stage, and he was floating! It was like he was walking on tip-toes, grinning like a cheshire cat. He seemed like a magical person, it was like he was all full of something... it radiated from him... some kind of peculiar, creative, insane love. I must have been in the room with him for about two-and-a-half minutes and that was enough. I thought, I'm gonna find out all about what this guy does, because he's just got something... one of those things you can't quite put your finger on, but it's very spiritual."
07/05/84 Markthalle, Hamburg, Germany
Filmed by European Music show Rockpalast
(See the Video page for more pictures)
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The Set : Typical / Spirit Of Youth / American
People / Burning Inside You / Love Has Let Me Down / Writing For
Survival / Innocence / Listen / Don't Give Your Heart / Falling I / Joining
Dots / A.E.I.O.U. / Animal Song / Tunnel Vision / Falling II / Going To
Work |
??/05/84 Norway, Sweden, Finland Denmark
?
06/06/84 The Venue, London + Opposition
(Ferg Harper) "I had lost my voice and managed
to restore it by using every throat sweet and mixture known to man. Amongst the
cures I had been gargling with an aspirin solution and drinking neat whiskey
during and after the gig. As a result of that I somehow managed to burn right
through part of my stomach causing massive internal bleeding in the following
days. I was rushed to hospital with only one-fourth of my body blood remaining
and was transfused with about eleven pints of blood as the hole gradually
sealed itself several days later."
05/10/84 Leas Cliff Hall, Folkestone
First night of the ‘Recurring Dreams’ Tour. (Photos & Set List courtesy of Inge Kuijt)
16/10/84 Swansea University
(Ferg Harper) "By that stage, I was playing a little keyboards in between to try and recreate the sound of Recurring Dreams on stage. We had to do a lot of extra stuff to try and make [the show] sound like the album, so I was playing a bit of synthesizer. It actually worked really well, and we all sang harmonies."
17/10/84 Rayleigh Pink Toothbrush
18/10/84 Town Hall, Fulham, London
19/10/84 Colchester Woods Leisure Centre
20/10/84 City of London Polytechnic
21/10/84 Limit Club, Sheffield
22/10/84 Warehouse, Leeds
24/10/84 Huddersfield Polytechnic
25/10/84 Kiesas, Leicester
27/10/84 Baths Hall, Scunthorpe
29/10/84 Manchester Free Trade Hall
02/11/84 Mid Kent College, Maidstone
03/11/84 London School of Economics + The Blow Monkeys + Hoorah Boys Hoorah
(Ferg Harper)
"The place was packed. I remember the whole crowd jumping up and down,
really lapping it up. Everybody was singing the songs, and it was just one of
those magic evenings where everything clicked so well. The lights were great,
the sound was great, we were performing right on the pinnacle, we had everything
absolutely down tacked. It was a totally professional,
fabulous show. And we knew it. We came off feeling absolutely electrified by
it. There was an incredible buzz when it all went right like that."
(Photo by Ullis Wesley)
07/11/84 Lorre, Delft (cancelled)
08/11/84 Tivoli, Utrecht (cancelled)
09/11/84 Arena, Rotterdam (cancelled)
10/11/84 Paradiso, Amsterdam (cancelled)
12/11/84 Mascotte, Zurich
13/11/84 New Morning, Geneva
14/11/84 Atlantis, Basle
15/11/84 Atlantis, Basle
(Geoff Dugmore) "The unity left us at 'The Atlantis' in Basle, in 1984. I have a very strong recollection of sitting in a bar and suddenly being very aware that two 'camps' had evolved. There wasn't the same 'four people against the rest of the world' thing that we had before. It had all changed."
17/11/84 Szene, Vienna
19/11/84 Maxims, Stuttgart
I recently got my hands on an audience recording of this show. More info soon.
The
Set : Innocence / Writing For Survival / Typical / You Don’t Want
Me In Your Life / 1001 Arguments / Love Has Let Me Down / Hometown / American
People / Acid Rain / Don’t Give Your Hear To Anybody / AEIOU / Tunnel Vision /
Falling // Freedom / The Animal Song (again)
20/11/84 Domicil, Munich
21/11/84 Batschkapp, Frankfurt
(Photos from German Newspaper 11/84)
22/11/84 Hunky Dory, Detmold
23/11/84 Odeon, Munster
24/11/84 Jugendzentrum,
Nordhorn
25/11/84 Zeche, Bochum
26/11/84 Luxor, Cologne
Live & Backstage photos by Inge Kuijt. Thanks Inge!
27/11/84 Schauberg, Bremen
28/11/84 Fabrique, Hamburg
29/11/84 Outpost, Eindbeck
30/11/84 Metropole, Berlin
(Steve Hogarth) "I did the occasional gig at The Metropole with the euros, and we had some wild times. It just seemed like everybody was so conscious of the fact that they were entirely encircled by this oppression and bleakness, that they were partying to spite it. There was this sense of nobody knowing when it was gonna end, and it was like 'it could be tonight, so let's get out and have a good time. So there was that edge, and that determination to be outrageous, and to do everything that wasn't allowed, just to cross the wall."
(Ferg Harper) "There's a film of us doing 'You
Don't Want Me (In Your Life)' at the Metropole in Berlin. Geoff's got a copy of
that. There was an interview as well, and we were absolutely shot. We really
looked like we'd been on tour for like a month, drinking heavily. We all looked
slightly shocked, because we were sleeping in the van."
01/12/84 Metropole, Berlin (?)
02/12/84 Alexandra Palace, London
03/12/84 France (?)
04/12/84 Lyon (?)
05/12/84 Rouen (?)
06/12/84 Montpelier (?)
07/12/84 El Dorado, Paris (?)
08/12/84 Nantes (?)
16/12/84 Marquee, London+ DJ Jerry Floyd
(Ticket stub from Inge Kuijt)
17/12/84 Marquee, London+ DJ Jerry Floyd
(Ferg Harper) "I remember the Marquee dates as always clicking together. I remember the guy who managed the Marquee at the time, said that we were the best band he'd seen since The Police had played there."
(Geoff Dugmore) "By that time we were so anxious, and aware of the fact that it was all slipping away from us. We were more pre-occupied with that than we were with doing the shows. The whole thing was drifting apart. We were clutching at straws rather than being a unit anymore."
21/12/84 Dingwalls, Camden, London
+ Kalimba + 'Compared to What'
(Melody Maker, Dec 1984): "A much under-rated A&M pop
act, Europeans have recently
dropped their wacky image and have drastically changed their material.
Straight looking and highly melodic in their latest LP Recurring Dreams
(totally ignored by the music press and radio deejays) is a strong statement of
poignant, purposeful pop. Highly recommended."
(Ticket
stub from Inge Kuijt)
1985
24/02/85 Shaw Theatre, Euston, London
A benefit gig (with 'The Soul Windows' & 'The Hank Wangford Band') for the 'Medical Campaign Against
Nuclear Weapons. This was the last ever concert by Europeans.
(Ferg Harper) "The Shaw Theatre was the last one. I don't quite know why, It was a one off date near the end, but it was very good. We didn't know that it was our last gig."
(Geoff Dugmore) "I don't really recollect too much
about it. I remember finishing playing and thinking 'Is the last time we are
ever going to do this ?'... which it was!"
1986
19/06/86 Angies, Wokingham
(Raine Shine, keyboard player)
"Had a good rehearsal and generally hung out in
the sun until it was time to get ready. People started arriving - Next thing I
knew, Steve was on stage singing 'Promises' so we all whooped and Colin got on
to do 'Working Town'. Next thing, me and Andrew were on to do 'Acid Rain' and
then we were into 'India' and it didn't really dawn on me that I was on stage
until 'Beat in the Heart' 'cos I was enjoying myself too much to get freaked
out! Made a few bummers but nothing too major except bringing on the elephants
too soon in 'Wrap me in the Flag' - Got off stage and the audience were
demanding an encore so we went back and did 'Freedom' which I jumped on
keyboards on - and the first gig was over." (Raine Shine's
exclusive How We Live Tour Diary is
now online)
23/06/86 Dingwalls, Camden, London + Love Thy Train
05/07/86 Dudley
11/07/86 Angies, Wokingham
25/07/86 Tunnel Club, Greenwich, London
28/07/86 Rock Garden, Covent Garden, London
03/08/86 Marquee, London + 1000 Mexicans + Martin Ball
07/08/86 Half-Moon, Herne Hill, London
+ Cut the Wire
08/08/86 Angies, Wokingham
13/08/86 Dingwalls, Camden, London +
1000 Mexicans
14/08/86 Moles Club, Bath
15/08/86 Tropic Club, Bristol
22/08/86 Red Lion, Gravesend
11/09/86 Colliseum, St Austell (first night supporting Chris de
Burgh on his ‘Into the Light’ Tour)
12/09/86 Colliseum, St Austell
14/09/86 N.E.C, Birmingham
15/09/86 Edinburgh Playhouse
16/09/86 Edinburgh Playhouse
(Steve Hogarth) "I had been eating certain
substances which are normally smoked in cigarettes. I wouldn't advise you to do
this. I ended up completely forgetting everything - my immediate past as well
as my distant past and I had to go on stage at Edinburgh Playhouse (sold out)
with no idea of how any of the songs went, or any of the words. Two minutes
before stage time I was being heartily sick into the car park at the rear of
the theatre. I was still outside on my hands and knees when I heard the band
strike up. Walking to centre stage with the band already playing and no idea
what I would do when I got to the mic. It's one of the outstanding nightmares
of my life."
17/09/86 Newcastle City Hall
18/09/86 Newcastle City Hall
(Judith Mitchell, fan) "I remember How We Live more than most support acts. Hogarth wore a long black duster-type coat and sat a piano, with, I think a keyboard on top. I do remember him sitting and even standing on top of the piano at one stage! 'All the time in the world' was getting a bit of airplay on Gary Davies' Radio One lunchtime show, and when I heard the 'How We Live' tape, I recalled the catchy chorus straight away. This had me very perplexed as I knew I'd seen them somewhere, and a trawl through my tickets of past gigs had me wondering. I finally managed to figure out it was Chris De Burgh I'd seen with 'How We Live' - much to Hogarth's embarrassment! In 1991, I was backstage at the 'Holidays in Eden' show in Bradford, and asked Hogarth to sign a few tickets. I'd put the Chris De Burgh one in between, and when it turned up he went as white as his shirt!"
20/09/86 Bingley Hall, Stafford
21/09/86 Liverpool Empire
22/09/86 Manchester Apollo
23/09/86 Manchester Apollo
24/09/86 The Marquee, London
A night off from the Chris de Burgh tour! Support came from 'Monty Zero.'
(Review: Sounds, 18th October 1986) "Usually
it's easy to tell what type of band are about to play by the dress sense and
hairstyles of the crowd. But if you walked in to the Marquee tonight, you'd
have found it bloody impossible. The audience, you see comprised of coloured,
spikey hairstyles, a girl wearing jackboots, arty farties,
pessimistic housewives and cravat-wearing tourists - a pretty mixed bunch huh?
Either How We Live
can't be categorised, or their recent tour with Chris De Burgh has attracted a
highly diverse following. Their music is breezy, middle of the road, cool
calypso, plus both smoochey and lively rock -
although listening to their recent single 'All the Time in the World', you'd
never guess that this band could offer such a mixture. Elfin frontman Steve
Hogarth draws the crowd in. He sings loud yet effortlessly, and springs,
crouches and writhes, energised by the sounds around him. He plays piano and
the notes tipple like a waterfall with cymbals making metallic splashes among
the guitar lathered waves. Each song is markedly different and there's hardly a
break between each finger clicking number. How We Live know how to live. It seems
that life is there to be enjoyed rather than merely endured, and they do their
best to loosen up the unwilling. - Kez Owen"
26/09/86 Wembley Arena, London
27/09/86 Wembley Arena, London
28/09/86 Wembley Arena, London
29/09/86 Wembley Arena, London
01/10/86 King's Hall, Belfast
02/10/86 King's Hall, Belfast
06/10/86 Brighton Arena
07/10/86 Brighton Arena (Last night of
the Chris de Burgh tour)
08/10/86 Dingwalls, Camden, London
1987
26/03/87 Mannheim (first night of German mini-tour supporting Chris De
Burgh + others)
27/03/87 Offenbach
20/06/87 Oldenburg, Weser-ems-Halle
24/06/87 Hannover, Messehalle
25/06/87 Berlin, Waldbuhne
(Colin Woore) "The Berlin gig took place in a stadium that was a natural amphitheatre in the middle of some woods where Hitler made a lot of his speeches. We had to enter the stage through Hitler's secret tunnel, which you entered through a hole in the ground in the woods behind the stage area, through a concrete bunker, bringing you onto the stage through a pair of huge metal doors at the back of the stage. Apparently he used this for theatrical effect - the big doors would open and out he would come. It was eerie."
27/06/87 Munchen, Galopprennbahn
28/06/87 Munchen, Galopprennbahn
(Colin Woore) "The
Munich date was the biggest audience we ever played to - 102,000. It was
a whole day thing, with Tina Turner, Eurythmics, Chris de Burgh, and a couple
of others. We were first on. I started it with the 'Dry Land' guitar
riff."
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