Jim Hobbs
Mon, 25 May 1998 19:04:46 -0400
HI there. Just got back from Haigh Hall and I'd thought I'd let the list know that I have the Radio One broadcast on MP3.. though I will have to edit it into seperate songs first. I will put it up on my webpage when I get a chance... or if I do not have enough space Ajay has said he may do so.... I also have 3 or 4 songs on some video format that will be going up evetually: my site is: Music Is Life http://www.compsoc.man.ac.uk/~jimhobbs ======================================= If anyone is interested here is an account of my day, Sunday 24th May: I've seen the Verve only once before - Brixton Academy January 98. At the time I had glandular fever and could hardly move out of bed, but despite my mum saying I couldn't go, I went anyway. I was really emotional at the gig, the music moved me, but I was dissapointed that I nearly fainted from exhaustion and not bing able to eat for 3 days.... but enough of that jizz. So on to Wigan then: Me and my mate Charlie missed the quarter to 4 train from Manchester (the first in a series of disasters that night!), so I was dead pissed off cos I thought I would definitely miss DJ Shadow (apparently he didn't play anyway). The next train was an hour later... when we finally got to Wigan, we got a taxi the 3 or 4 odd mile journey to Haigh Hall. HAd a good old chin wag with the driver about the location of Upholland and basically slagging Wigan in general... Haigh Hall itself was a *really* beautiful setting, I'm no nature lover but it was hard not to appreciate the place. As we walked along a neverending path to the entrance we could hear an announcer come on stage - it sounded like it was the first thing that had been sadi all night, so that cheered me up as I thought I would still get to see DJ Shadow (no such luck). Entering the arena was kinda mad too... the stage was set at the bottom of a gradual slope with an amazing backdrop of Wigan, spread out before us in all it's splendour (ahem). Forgive my ignorance but just who was the old guy who looked like John Peel with a seriously amusing voice. Was it John Martin or summat? I guess having 33,000 laugh at you isn't the best feeling. Nah, to be honest some bits of his set was okay.... the music sounded a little early Verve-esque at times. After that treat (!) the DJ for the evening played "Dry The Rain" by The Beta Band, which was a result. What seemed like *ages* later a strange long-haired man stumbled onstage. Puzzled looks were exchanged but when Justin took the stage along with that old guy on guitar with short hair, we realised it was Beck. Me and Charlie weren't really that excited about seeing Beck, I'd seen them before at V97 and at a Later with Jools filming. However, the crowd seemed to really get into it, there was an almighty surge of the crowd towards the front of about 30 metres, I kinda felt sorry for the people down the front. I thought BEck's set was fantastic. Beck's DJ though nearly stole the show though as the band went off for 5 minutes allowing the DJ to showcase his fucking amazing skills... mixing and scratching like a right bastard, I was astounded by it. Then Beck took the stage again and they played a few more tunes and left the stage.<P>It was then the turn of the Verve. Me and Charlie managed to get *right* to the front of the arena. I couldn't believe how close we were. There was like 2 people in front of us and then the barrier. Fantastic! The Verve took to the stage to estactic applause and crashed into "This Is Music". The next hour and a half were truly brilliant and well worth the £23 and hours of queueing to buy them. Personal favourites were Weeping Willow, BSS, and History. A bit disappointed they didn't play any older stuff, there was just a few off ANS and the majority from UH, but it was still all gorgeous. Although a lot of the crowd were wankers, I mean what sort of twat pays £23 to see The Verve and spends most of the night picking fights? That pissed me off a little as right down the front about 3 fights started, but generally the rest of us were good natured, helping each other get up after the next surge where everyone ended up falling over and getting trampled! My gig ended with me crowd surfing to COME ON! and it felt great. However what wasn't so great was missing the last train, due to Wigan Council's fucking inadequacies of planning the gig. For fucks sake did they not think that 33,000 people would be trying to get out at once? The gig finished at 10:35pm and it took about an hour to get out of just the arena. MY last train was at 11:24pm (yeh, that sounds sensible. How about laying on some *extra* trains!?) so by the time we got back onto the main road it was like 5 minutes till my train left and there were no taxis in sight to carry us the 4 miles back to the station. The first train the next morning was 06:22 so me and Charlie ended up spending the night in Wigan, and all I can say is that it is a SHITHOLE. We must have walked about 15 miles that night, reminiscing to when I was 9 and went to Wigan Pier, this time it was 3am and pitch black, but still a laff. God the things to do in Wigan at 3am to amuse yourself are very limited. We survived the freezing cold night and I finally got back to my Halls in Manchester at 8am. I mean it was quite funny I guess that we missed the traina and got left stranded but I wouldn't want to go through it again. The only cool thing was that I met some guy whose brother is in The Beta Band, how random is that!? Anyway, if you've got this far in the post then you deserve a medal... all I can say to thiose non-believers is that you had to be there to experience it all... RICHARD ASHCROFT IS GOD! Let me know what you thought of Wigan cos I'd like to put your reviews up on my site! Email me at [EMAIL PROTECTED] ______________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free Email at http://www.hotmail.com ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To be removed from the list, send a message with the word "unsubscribe" in the body to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----------------------------------------------------------------------