Hammersmith Finale
So as Gary's still touring Jagged later this year that would make this concert the Hammersmith Semi-Finale in a way. Rather a footballing angle to things, especially as the nation seems gripped with it at the moment, and especially of course as Gary is such a great fan of the footie. Hmm you decide!
So shall I continue this in football-speak? After all my father was a great footballer and nearly played professional (left it too late and it didn't suit when he was asked) and my elder son has today been parading around in his football kit (full Brighton & Hove Albion kit with 'CY' (my dad's name and Adam's 3rd name) and no 8 (my dad's normal position) on the back). And doesn't he look the part! Well, not as I type this as he's sitting down watching CBeebies but you get the drift. I wonder if Raven is wondering round the Numan household with a trilby on or military jacket as I type this....? OK so I'll ditch the footie speak.
Still I digress - but then that's what you expect by now on this site - how did the 2nd June go? Well the day before I was very ill. I don't know what's been going around but it certainly stopped at me. Bowled me over so I was dizzy whenever I stood, and with headaches and stomach aches I naturally 'phoned in sick to work. And expecting to miss my first Numan concert through illness it didn't look good. More telephonic advice from my boss suggested I should 'see how I feel' before deciding to go or not since I didn't go to work either on the Friday so it didn't bode well. But then a curious thing happened. I felt better as my as 3pm approached - doubtless the expectation of a great concert and a fear I would miss it managed to psych my body up to an acceptable level (for walking without falling over anyway) and so at 3 I duly staggered down the road en route for the train and London.
Nearing London I was served a Lemsip by the delightful girl who normally served teas. I asked her what part of France she came from judging by her accent and she said Warsaw which I've always thought was in Poland or the West Midlands. So you can see I was firing on all cylinders by then - i.e. down to my normal standard. Meeting friends in the queue I realised how late I was but nevertheless was delighted to join the queue exactly the same time as some dear Numan friends of mine Rob and Marie who I haven't seen for ages. However I managed to lose them in the throng after the concert so 'hello again' and 'I hope you got back safe' and 'see you soon' and all that sort of stuff!
And so to the concert. Great opening again from The Rubicks. Not so sure about the White Rose Movement purely for one reason and one reason alone - the decision by the lead singer to have a go at the Numan audience or at least some of them. Patronising us as liking the Matrix and calling fans anglo-saxonisms don't really endear yourself. Know your audience. They're Numan fans, waiting for Numan. They are going to shout 'Numan, Numan' as they did between tracks during the Rubicks who had a good rapport with the audience and joked along with it accordingly. So we're all there to see Numan and we're going to shout 'Numan' as that's what Numan fans do. We'll still listen to back-up bands and will appreciate them fully if they're good. But knocking your audience will not help matters. Enough said.
And to Gary. Well a lot of us managed to catch the excellent NuWorld site before we left and so we knew what Gary was hoping to include and so awaited it expecting it during the encores as it was, and so most pople tended to cite 'Sleep by Windows' as their favourite come the end of the gig. It seemed to work well with Blind and Prayer for the Unborn. However let's not forget the rest of the concert. With enormous energy Numan worked the stage and it seemed his most energetic performance ever. The tracks were great and the whole thing just, worked. As for photos I tried to take them in such a way as not to interrupt my enjoyment of the concert (or anyone else's hopefully) obviously not using flash and not worrying whether they had worked or not (people seem to spend so long looking back at the digital pic they've just taken there and then and miss concert action - it's so strange) - so I'm not sure they were the best I've ever taken. Actually they're rather average but nevertheless a documentation of the event for those that like that sort of thing!
I'll put them on the site in dribs and drabs as per normal - starting with some today!
And as for the journey home - well I decided not to hang around to meet anyone or get a photo etc as I wasn't sure how long my health would last and besides I wanted to catch the Midnight Train to Georgia - or was it Brighton? No 7 mile walks home this time if you please.