OMD - Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | Interesting article from Issue 58 of Classic Pop magazine on an obscure OMD gig, with Trevor Horn on backing vocals:

グループに参加

Euphoria Bliss

Interesting article from Issue 58 of Classic Pop magazine on an obscure OMD gig, with Trevor Horn on backing vocals:

Ian Peel's A to Z of Pop

L is for… The Lost Gig

I'm currently reading Pretending to See the Future, Richard Houghton's chronicle of forty years of concerts by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. But there’s one special show that’s missing…

Pretending… is the first official OMD biography since Mike Humphreys' Messages in 1987 and I can confirm this new one is as unputdownable as the last. The group have played literally hundreds of concerts over the years and Pretending sets out to tell the story - either by group or audience member - of almost every single one.

The only trouble is, one of their most memorable gigs is completely missing. Not even a passing mention of 28 September 2010's show at Supperclub (formerly the Subterrania) in London. But that’s OK, because I organised their performance, so can fill in the blanks.

I’d first seen OMD with the Andy McCluskey/Nigel Ipinson line-up on the Sugar Taxtour in 1991, followed by the debut show by Paul Humphrey's Onetwo in 2004 (where he sung Messages as a duet with Propaganda’s Claudia Brücken). And I've revelled in the more recent reunion shows, not least Dazzle Ships at the Royal Albert Hall in 2016. (Dazzle Ships has the bizarre honour of being the only album I've ever talked about in my sleep.)

But back to 2010. I was running Trevor Horn's ZTT Records when he decided to stage what he called The Lost Gig, a charity concert in which The Buggles reunited and perform their debut album, The Age of Plastic live for the first time ever. Tickets were selling well but after seeing Paul and Andy unveil their History of Modern album live as a two-piece I had an idea that I thought could make the show sell out instantly.

I asked OMD if they might play a special guest support slot. Which was rather bold as they hadn’t been a support band in the UK since their Factory Records era. Sticking my neck out even further, I asked if Claudia might join too, so they could morph on stage into Onetwo (the first and only time that would happen). They were interested but on one condition. That when Onetwo played Propaganda’s Duel, that single’s original backing vocalist –Trevor as it tuns out (who knew?) – should join them on stage for the first time ever to do the backing vocals live.

OMD agreed, Trevor agreed (he’d loved the thought of OMD supporting, singing Enola Gay in the meeting when I first suggested it), we sold all our tickets, and the audience roar when Paul and Andy took to the stage made the evening a success right from the off.

They kicked off with Electricity, introduced simply by Andy as "here's a song we wrote when we were 16". Just ten minutes before I'd been waiting with them backstage as he’d described playing gigs to me as like being in the trenches in the First World War. “Long periods of boredom peppered by moments of complete terror.”

I think there was more than a dose of healthy rivalry between the two groups. Andy later pointed out that they both released debut singles in 1979, though OMD got there first by four months. But at the time I was preoccupied by far more mundane thoughts like, just before we were about to start, realising there was no water available in the venue whatsoever which meant I had to run to a local corner shop and run back with 50 bottles of Evian for all the artists to have on stage, literally as the house lights were going down and those infamous pulses of Electricity started to boom from the PA.

May be an image of 1 person and text that says 'ClaasicPo October 2019, pogina21 IAN PEEL'SATOZ Z PEEL'S S A PP FOR... THE LOST GIG- GIG I'M CURRENTLY READING PRETENDING SEE THE FUTURE, RICHARD HOUGHTON'S CHRONICLE OF 40 YEARS OF CONCERTS ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES THE DARK. BUT THERE'S ONE SPECIAL SHOW THAT'S MISSING. refending. official Mike for first Tickets knew- should member the မ်းန evening success right right backing rocalist Trevor, itturs (who 求奇 being moments dose album Records when ANDY McCLUSKEY DESCRIBED PLAYING GIGS BEING THE TRENCHES FIRST WORLD WAR Trevor The vere debut album, Age Evian rtistst Electricity started boom tamous P'

すべてのリアクション:

コメント3件

「いいね！」

コメントする

すべてのコメント

Colin Thompson

One of those gigs that I'd have bitten my right hand off to see. I had no idea this had even happened.

6時間

Tim Phillips

He's maybe getting confused with The Pacific Age, but the Buggles album was The Age of Plastic, not The Plastic Age (pedantic I know!)

4時間

1件の返信を表示