For 80's old farts like me (Here and Now 2001)

Member Name: offy

Product:	Here and Now 2001
Date:	23/01/02 (252 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Heaven 17

Disadvantages: Paul Young, I am old!

I was in my prime in the early 80’s. Remember that heavy make-up on men as well as women, the BIG hair, the electronic music and the frills of the New Romantics? When I found out about a concert that could take me back to these heady days, I just had to go.

The Here and Now concerts started in 2000 with Culture Club and Human League heading the bill. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see this set of concerts. I obtained tickets for the Here and Now 2001 concert on 10/11/01. They were quite expensive at £28 including a booking fee, but with 7 popular acts to see, it seemed worth the money.

I travelled to the Birmingham NEC in a state of excitement. I had never been to a concert there before, and I was surprised to see how large it was. We had tickets in the flat area in front of the stage rather than the raised seats around the edge. When the concert got underway, everyone stood up and started dancing, which meant that I could not see very well only being 5 foot 5 inches tall. The acts were:

•• T’PAU ••
The tall, thin, striking, redheaded Carol Decker started the show. She has a beautiful, clear voice and the band sounded great. She sang T’Pau’s hits Heart & Soul (1987) Valentine (1988) and one of my favourites China In Your Hand (1987). I cannot fault her voice or her performance, but as she was the first act on (with no warm up) the atmosphere had not yet got going.

•• NICK HEYWARD ••
The lead singer from Haircut 100 certainly didn’t look like a little boy anymore! His songs got everyone up dancing and getting into the swing of things. Again, he has an excellent voice and the band sounded great. He sang Love Plus One (1982), Nobody’s Fool (1982) and Fantastic Day (1982).

•• GO WEST ••
Apparently the lead singer from Go West has been touring recently anyway, so his act was very polished
and lively. He really got the crowd going, leaping around the stage and doing strange things with the microphone. They performed Call Me (1985), King of Wishful Thinking (1990) and We Close Our Eyes (1985). Superb sounding band – spot on performance.

•• HEAVEN 17 ••
I have always been a big fan of Heaven 17, and to me this was the highlight of the evening. They were absolutely brilliant. They adapted Temptation to be a modern dance song, and then went into the original version. Apparently, they are also touring, so even if you are not a great fan of the 80’s music, but like dance music, go and see them. You will not be disappointed. The lead singer is Glen Gregory and he has two superb female backing vocalists. At this point I had turned from a staid 36 year old into a screaming girlie I was having such a good time. My friend (who is quite reserved) was looking at bit shocked by my behaviour, but what the ****, I was enjoying myself! They performed (brilliantly, did I say before?) (We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang (1981), Penthouse & Pavement (1981, the wonderful, slow Come Live With Me (1983) and the fantastic Temptation (1983 & 1992). I believe they should release the dance version and hopefully get a hit in 2002.

•• CURIOSITY KILLED THE CAT ••
I was never an avid fan of this band, but they put on a great performance, singing Down to Earth (1986), Misfit (1987) and Name & Number (1989) the latter song apparently only credited to Curiosity. It was interesting watching the lead singer, Ben, doing his loping dance that I remembered from the time.

•• KIM WILDE ••
Kim looked and sounded stunning. I had recently seen her on one of those 80’s nostalgia programmes looking a bit bigger than we remember (what do you expect 20 years on?). Well, for this concert she had lost loads of weight and was clad in skin tight l
eather – the men loved it! What I particularly enjoyed was that she did not dilute the 80’s sound - we got exactly what we expected, to be transported back to the sounds of our youth. This was the first time Kim had been in concert for years, but it did not show. She pranced all about the stage in that sexy manner of hers and gave a wonderful performance. She sang Chequered Love (1981), the great You Came (1988), Never Trust a Stranger (1988), the moody Cambodia (1981), the old Motown hit You Keep Me Hanging On (1986) and finished with Kids in America (1981) at which point my friend disowned me as I was shouting at the top of my voice ‘We’re the kids, we’re the kids, we’re the kids in America!’. By the way she did forgive me enough to drive me home.

•• PAUL YOUNG ••
Paul was the headline act, and I was very disappointed. Basically, he did not sing even one song as we remembered it from the 80’s. Instead he ad-libbed all the time, so the tunes became barely recognisable. At one point he jumped into the crown and disappeared for a few minutes – riveting viewing! Having seen this poor performance I would never bother going to a concert of his again, I’d rather listen to the records (or CDs). He (sort of) sang Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home) (1983), I’m Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down (1984), Love Of The Common People (1983), Come Back & Stay (1983) and Every Time You Go Away (1985). At the end, there was a finale where all the acts got back on stage and joined in with Every Time You Go Away.

To conclude, I had a superb evening, although I felt let down by Paul Young (and I was not the only one to say this). I have the excuse that I am a great 80’s fan though – it wouldn’t have been everyone’s cup of tea. I have already bought my tickets for the Here & Now 2002 concert in April 2002. There is a slight problem
with this though, as the headline act was due to be Adam Ant and he has recently been sectioned under the Mental Health Act! Other acts appearing are: Toyah, Howard Jones and Spandau Ballet (minus the Kemp brothers). I hope to see you there!

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