I Was There

A reader’s recollection of a key music event

This month:

Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, Bradford Queen’s Hall, Friday 1

May 1992

After a polite reception for the young support band from Germany from a small audience, the hall filled rapidly for Steve Harley’s entrance. They cheered as his band first appeared, and then roared when Harley himself stepped onto the stage. I remember the opener as Sweet Dreams/psychomodo, played faster and with much more of a rock rhythm than the recorded version.

From my gallery view, it was almost as entertaining watching the crowd as the band. At stage-left in the audience, I saw two characters appearing to argue, which then developed into pushing each other around, one wagging his finger at the other as he moved away. During Sebastian, I spotted a fan in deep concentration, mouthing the lyrics and jabbing his finger stagewards in time to the music.

Then, above us in the gallery, a light exploded. I leapt out of my seat (!) and the performance was halted for a few minutes. A young lady seized the opportunity to climb onstage and announce in the nearest microphone, “Marc Bolan is great!” Steve Harley, head down, just smiled and moved back as she quickly returned to the crowd.

The sound mix was very good, and Steve and his young band played this best-of Cockney Rebel performance with great energy, but with subtlety when needed. They seemed to be enjoying it as much as the crowd. For me, it was the first and best performance of all my many Cockney Rebel gig attendances.

This review of the late, great Steve Harley was written before his recent untimely death, but the writer’s name was left off. Was it you, reader? PL

who supposedly hung out with her in the late 70s.

I’d already bought Joel Selvin’s hardback look at the troubled life of Dominos drummer, Jim Gordon, so Michael Heatley’s 4-star review has spurred me on to finish it pronto.

Simon Mullins, email