Kate Bush - Before The Dawn (Take 4)...

Last night Toby, Michael, Stuart and I went to see Kate Bush's Before The Dawn at the Eventim Apollo in London's unglitzy Hammersmith.

It was my fourth and final viewing and Kate's last night.

The crowd were really up for it and it was probably my favourite night.
I knew exactly what to expect and when - which meant I could enjoy it more.
We had great seats too - further back in the middle so we could take in all the action at once.
Kate sounded great and really pulled out all thr stops - she did get quite emotional at some points and somewhat overwhelmed by all the love pouring onto the stage from the auditorium.

Gawd bless you Kate - you have out on an amazing set of shows and I've loved every minute of it. Here's to the next time.

Or as Kate put it just before the final encore of Cloubusting, "this is the last song I'm going to sing... for a while."

Kate Bush - Before The Dawn (Take 3)...

Last night Darren, Chris, Hudd and I went to see Kate Bush's Before The Dawn at the Eventim Apollo in London's unglitzy Hammersmith.

On third viewing I think I enjoyed it even more. Nothing went wrong, Kate sang like a nightingale (or is that blackbird) and I cried all over again.

I'm back again tonight for the last show and am taking Stuart, Mike and Toby.

And I got this from Toby this morning:-

"Around 36 years ago, a sensitive young boy in Kent was twirling around his parents' living room (doubtless emulating Wonder Woman) when he tripped on the shag-pile carpet, fell and split open his upper lip on the corner of a clunky 1970s glass coffee table. With blood pouring down his chin - and no hospital emergency department in town - the boy was taken to the on-call doctor and had his lip painfully stitched back together. The boy was, of course, me, but the doctor was none other than DOCTOR BUSH, father of Kate Bush, my first musical inspiration. I bore that scar on my lip for many years, proudly pointing to the bump and telling anyone who'd listen of my unique claim to fame: "Kate Bush's father sewed up my lip!". I always though that would be the closest I'd ever come to my heroine and, as the years passed and both Kate and my scar faded from public view, I gave up on ever being able to see her perform in real life. Well, tonight all that changes, as I attend the concert I feel like I've been waiting my whole life to see. And it's all thanks to the thoughtfulness of one very kind friend. Sincerely, thank you, Jonathan. What dreams await....!"

Kate Bush Merchandising...

Seeing Kate Bush's Before The Dawn show the other night I was a little disappointed about one thing. They had run out a particular item of merchandising that I wanted - did I say "wanted", I mean "needed". It's the Rescue Kit Metal Box (yes, I know it'll be ABBA's soap-on-a-rope all over again).

So I called the venue, and then the merchandising brand agent and finally the actual manufacturer. And guess what? They are making me up one specially and going to send it to me directly! And after I pointed out that the venue had run out they are going to make another batch to be sold at the Eventim Apollo too.

And you guys thought my craziness was confined to crawling around on the floor picking up Kate Bush confetti!

Update: I just heard from the Kate Bush merchandise manufacturer and branding agent. "we will have everything available after the shows have finished, and I’ll drop you a line to confirm when it’s live. The store won’t be via the Eventim, it will be through Kate’s online portal." So you'll all be able to buy your stuff from the Kate / Fish People web site after the run of shows has finished.

Update 2: I went down to the venue on Friday night and picked up my Kate Bush Rescue Kit by hand. They were very sweet.

Kate Bush - Before The Dawn (Take 2)...

Stuart, Darren, David and I went to see Kate Bush's Before The Dawn at the Eventim Apollo last night in London's unglitzy Hammersmith

On second viewing I enjoyed some bits more and some bits less.

*** MILD SPOILERS ***

Stuff that was better:-
We were seated way closer. 3rd row right in the middle. Kate was right in front of us.
Because I knew what to expect I could relax more
The songs aren't performed exactly the same each time (a bit rawer first time, a bit more melodic this)
More of the stage special effects worked this time round
The show flowed better because there were no interruptions
I got more confetti (!)

Stuff that wasn't better:-
The surprise element wasn't there
It was hotter in the auditorium - too hot to be honest
Bertie gets on my nerves even more

It didn't stop me bursting into tears all over again during Hounds of Love, Running Up That Hill and King of the Mountain though.

They were also filming the gig last night. Unfortunately there was a slip-up though. A props malfunction spoiled one of the special entrances of Kate's apperrance from behind a door (the ad libbing was funny though). I guess they can use the footage from tonight's filming instead. (We were down the front so maybe you'll see us jumping to our feet after HoL, RutH, KotM etc.)

I was a little disappointed last night about one thing. They have run out a particular item of merchandising at the Kate Bush gig that I wanted. It's the Rescue Kit Metal Box (yes, I know it'll be ABBA's soap-on-a-rope all over again). So I called the venue, then the merchandising brand agent and finally the actual manufacturer. And guess what? They are making me up one specially and going to send it to me directly! And after I pointed out that the venue had run out they are going to make another batch to be sold at the Eventim Apollo too - hopefully to get their for Friday's show

An Evening With Julie Andrews...

Last Friday night Stuart, Fay and I went to the Eventim Apollo in glitzy Hammersmith to see An Evening With Julie Andrews.

It was utterly brilliant! She was charming, funny and saucy.

The first half was Dame Julie reliving moments, showing film clips from many, many films and telling stories about early early life and career.

The second half was a Q&A with Aled Jones including more film clips.

It was the show the O2 one should have been.

Before The Dawn...

OMG! Kate Bush has announced some gigs. Called Before The Dawn they will take place at the Hammersmith Apollo Eventim in August and September.

Before the Dawn

I am delighted to announce that we will be performing some live shows this coming August and September.
       I hope you will be able to join us and I look forward to seeing you there.
          We'll keep you updated with further news on the web site.
                  Meanwhile, all details of concert dates and tickets are in the note below.
                    Very best wishes,
                             Kate


Before The Dawn at London's Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith 

AUGUST

Tuesday, 26th August
Wednesday, 27th August
Friday, 29th August
Saturday, 30th August

SEPTEMBER 

Tuesday, 2nd September
Wednesday, 3rd September
Friday, 5th September
Saturday, 6th September
Tuesday, 9th September
Wednesday, 10th September
Friday, 12th September
Saturday, 13th September
Tuesday, 16th September
Wednesday, 17th September
Friday, 19th September

Tickets

Tickets will go on sale at 9.30 am (GMT) on the 28th March 2014 and will be available exclusively from the following agents:

www.eventim.co.uk
www.gigsandtours.com
www.ticketmaster.co.uk

Please note that tickets are not available directly from the venue Box Office.  Additional order enquiries should be directed to the Eventim customer service department at: 
customerservice@eventim.co.uk or 08443760021

Ticket purchases are limited to a maximum of 4 per order.  For example, you can try to purchase up to 4 tickets for just one of the 15 concerts, or 4 tickets for 4 separate shows.

The name of the lead booker will be printed on the first ticket.  As the number of tickets is limited they will be allocated on a first-come first-served basis.

Tickets cannot be resold or transferred under any circumstances. If the promoter reasonably believes this to be the case the barcode on the ticket will be voided, prohibiting entry to the concert.

We hope to see you there.

Goldfrapp...

 Last Friday night Stu, Juggy, Si and I went to see Goldfrapp at the Hammersmith Apollo in London's smart but not so glitzy er... Hammersmith.

Ostensibly to promote new album Tales of Us the gig started as a slow burn with Jo, Drew, and Stranger. Dressed in black Alison was as shy/enigmatic/awkward as ever engaging little with the audience but letting her amazing performance do all the talking. She was largely backlit so appropriately enough for the time of year she appeared as a ghostly shadow with a haunting voice. And what a voice! Chilling, soaring, mesmerising.

As the night wore on the tempo picked up, the fantastic LED light show kicked in, the crowd rose to their feet and we danced like idiots. Sadly all too soon it was over. A great show, by a great band who are at the height of their powers.

Stand out track of the night for me was Clay. The story of two gay soldiers during The Second World War and their heartfelt love for each other. It made me weep.

Full set list was:-
Jo
Drew
Stranger
Alvar
Annabel
Clay
Yellow Halo
Little Bird
You Never Know
Number 1
Thea
Ride a White Horse
Ooh La La

Encore:
Clowns
Lovely Head
Train
Strict Machine