Tours of the 1960's

[Chris]

Also ---- check out the update on the new book: Legends

Legends On Tour - The Pop Package Tours Of The 1960's
By Martin Creasy

[suncatcher]

admin said:

Also ---- check out the update on the new book: Legends

Legends On Tour - The Pop Package Tours Of The 1960's
By Martin Creasy

Thank you Chritstine! The pictures of the girls practically over-running the security guys are amazing! And I like this quote from Martin Creasy's website:

"And touring with them for a month in the spring of 1967
was the cool Cat Stevens . . . and the wildest man in rock Jimi
Hendrix!
The tour kicked off in blazing fashion - literally - at the Astoria at
Finsbury Park on Friday March 31 as the teen hordes looked on in
amazement as Jimi set his guitar alight as the ultimate show-
stealing stunt at the end of his performance."

Yusuf also mentions this incident in his KCRW "Morning Becomes Eclectic" interview that Butterfly recently linked us to:

butterfly said:

I don't know, if you all know this link. It is a radio interview from the end of 2006.

www.kcrw.com/music/programs/mb/mb061221yusuf

Go on "Listen", now you can listen to the interview and to the songs live in radiostation!!!

~Sun~

[Chris]

This Picture? The audience reaction is astounding?



Oh and for us older fans, wouldn't it be impressive to be able to stoop down like this young Cat, and not get hurt or topple over?

I've heard the KCRW interview, Sue, Butterfly. It's a nice interview. I listened to it back in December, but it is great to re-listen to it every once in a while. Have you notice how, when Yusuf speaks of Jimi Hendix, what a nice respect he had/has for Jimi.

Also, I heard on a (Cleveland) radio station today, that Englebert Humperdink is touring again. Look how many years have we come since that 1967 Walker Tour!!

I'm looking forward to reading Martins book.

[suncatcher]

Hi, Christine!

Yes, that picture and the one below it - "astounding" is right!
I couldn't agree more with your entire post!

Thank you!

~Sun~

[Daddy-o]

Thanks Chris for the pictures from Martin's fine book. There's so little in the way of photographic material from Cat's 60s concerts. Amazing material! The "gun" picture is absolutely great. The sooner we have time warp technology, the better!

Have a fab and groovy weekend.

George

[cristalina]

admin said:

This Picture? The audience reaction is astounding?



Oh and for us older fans, wouldn't it be impressive to be able to stoop down like this young Cat, and not get hurt or topple over?

Lol, I think I'd need support to get up straight from a stoop like that

I have to say that I never saw an audience reaction like that at any of the Cat concerts I went to

[bamboozle1]

Me neither Cristalina, when I saw Cat on the Bamboozle tour we were all very serious and sedate :-)

[Chris]

bamboozle1 said:

Me neither Cristalina, when I saw Cat on the Bamboozle tour we were all very serious and sedate :-)

It was the same for the Majikat tour, which is when I saw him. Most people stayed planted in their seats.

I would love to see a video of this event.

[Chris]

Speaking of the Walkers Tour.... this is from the Back In The Spotlight interview today.

snippet:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Q: The DVD is very well done and it's great that it also includes an accompanying documentary on your life story. Is it accurate that you toured with both Engelbert Humperdinck and Jimi Hendrix in the old days? What was that like?

A: Oh yeah. We were present at the first guitar-burning ceremony by Hendrix back in 1967 (laughs). It was interesting. But that was probably more nerve wracking for me because I didn't have a guitar in those days. I had to stand up and sing with a microphone and move my legs around and dance. For a shy person, which I kind of actually was, it wasn't easy. I learned some tricks from Engelbert Humperdinck about what to drink before getting onstage (laughs). That kind of helped, but it didn't really, because I sang slightly out of tune. Anyway, Hendrix was a very nice, gentle person when you got to know him. A very quiet man and very nice
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

[suncatcher]

Yes! I noticed that in the article, too.

Cat seems to have been very impressed by this whole episode - it was a first, afterall - it must have been "astounding" (to borrow Christine's word) to see a guitar burning, especially when Cat himself didn't even have a guitar.

Thank you for posting this quote, Christine.

~Sun~

[suncatcher]

I couldn't resist posting this link Jimi Hendrix DESTROY HIS GUITAR.

It'll break the heart of guitar players - such a beautiful guitar!

I found myself thinking, "Didn't his mother teach him better?"

No wonder Yusuf has remembered Hendrix's first guitar burning for all these years!

~Sun~

[Daddy-o]

Amazing performance this Sun! You know, looking at that great photo of the Cat performing 'I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun'.... now that was pretty radical for 60s days, "shooting" at the audience! It shocked people much later when Sid Vicious pulled off the same stunt! Hendrix was such an unbelievable guy and there is that spiritual, other worldly aspect to his music (drugs!!!). Absolutely fantastic. He doesn't look that shy and modest in the clip! I occasionally play this particular clip to my guitarist son and it's an absolute treasure, inspirational. Wasn't it Eric Clapton that said "I best go practice some more" when he saw Jimi?! Fabulous.

PS Martin Creasy's book is a historical gem.

Best

George

[helen]

cristalina said:

admin said:

This Picture? The audience reaction is astounding?



Oh and for us older fans, wouldn't it be impressive to be able to stoop down like this young Cat, and not get hurt or topple over?

Lol, I think I'd need support to get up straight from a stoop like that

I have to say that I never saw an audience reaction like that at any of the Cat concerts I went to

Me neither. I never reacted like that. I wonder what Yusuf thinks when he sees photos like this?
Mind you the gun would not be allowed now days.

[suncatcher]

ladyhelen said:

Mind you the gun would not be allowed now days.

Those were such innocent times. Like kids playing "cops and robbers" - everyone knew it was only pretend.

~Sun~

[Chris]

Wonderful documentary of that time. I just received my copy and it has kept me intrigued. To acknowledge the hysterical fans conversation. There is a section in the book, where the Walker Brothers make mention about how they thought they would be safe from overly excited fans. Because the cinema they were performing at had a safety net for them, the first 12 rows would be held for wheelchairs, only to find out that the fans didn't abide by the handicap section. The Walker Brothers weren't safe after all.

There must have been a huge difference between the fans of the 60's and those of the 70's.

[Vivian]

My copy should arrive in a few days. Can't wait.

Peace,Vivian

[suncatcher]

admin said:

To acknowledge the hysterical fans conversation. There is a section in the book, where the Walker Brothers make mention about how they thought they would be safe from overly excited fans. Because the cinema they were performing at had a safety net for them, the first 12 rows would be held for wheelchairs, only to find out that the fans didn't abide by the handicap section. The Walker Brothers weren't safe after all.

There must have been a huge difference between the fans of the 60's and those of the 70's.

Thanks for sharing this, Christine! I wonder if it was because the "concerts were almost exclusively in cinemas or town halls - or local concert halls," (according to Majicat's page on Legends.) Maybe the places felt so small and familiar that the fans lost their inhibitions? (Though of course, that didn't happen at Porchester Hall, so there must be more to it than this . . .)

~Sun~

[suncatcher]

george2 said:

Wasn't it Eric Clapton that said "I best go practice some more" when he saw Jimi?! Fabulous.

I love that quote, George! Not sure if it was Clapton - it's really amazing if it was.

~Sun~

[cristalina]

suncatcher said:

admin said:

To acknowledge the hysterical fans conversation. There is a section in the book, where the Walker Brothers make mention about how they thought they would be safe from overly excited fans. Because the cinema they were performing at had a safety net for them, the first 12 rows would be held for wheelchairs, only to find out that the fans didn't abide by the handicap section. The Walker Brothers weren't safe after all.

There must have been a huge difference between the fans of the 60's and those of the 70's.

Thanks for sharing this, Christine! I wonder if it was because the "concerts were almost exclusively in cinemas or town halls - or local concert halls," (according to Majicat's page on Legends.) Maybe the places felt so small and familiar that the fans lost their inhibitions? (Though of course, that didn't happen at Porchester Hall, so there must be more to it than this . . .)

~Sun~

I can't quite imagine the first 12 rows being held for wheelchairs, not in the UK anyway, in my experience you were lucky if you could even get in a cinema in a wheelchair, even as recently as the 80's/90's

Most of the Cat concerts I went to would be considered smaller venues (one extrememly small ;D) and I have to say the audience were there to listen, I never even encountered girls standing on the chairs, unlike my sister who had completely different taste in music to me, they all went wild when they went to see Tom Jones Maybe the audience were over excited because of Jimi Hendrix?

[suncatcher]

cristalina said:

I can't quite imagine the first 12 rows being held for wheelchairs . . .
Maybe the audience were over excited because of Jimi Hendrix?

Good points, Cristalina - it is hard to imagine 12 entire rows cordoned off and left basically empty.

And I do agree that the fans probably got worked into a frenzy by the presence of Jimi Hendrix (and The Walker Brothers and Englebert) - and then they simply went wild for Cat, too!

Martin Creasy says, "Entrance cost just a few shillings and the fans, carried away with seeing their heroes at such close quarters, would scream themselves hoarse." A bit of an understatement, since they also stampeded the stage!

~Sun~

[butterfly]

By the way, this is Engelbert Humperdinck's new album "Winding Road". Song No. 8 is a song of James Blunt, I think!!

Engelbert Humperdinck - Winding Road

He is now 71 years old and has been very succesful particularly in Las Vegas.