How I Spent My Vacation ======================= (Or, A Fast And Easy Way To Blow $5000CDN) Sixteen years after the first (and last) time I saw Gary Numan perform live, I find myself in the Hog's Back Hotel just outside Guildford (in the UK, doncha know), recovering from last night's incredible show at Southampton, part of the 1996 Premier Tour. Gary Numan is indeed getting better every year, both in the studio and on the road. My adventure began several months back. Several email messages back and forth between Matthew Holbrook and myself resulted in our agreeing to sign up together for the "Numanoids On Tour" coach tour. Matthew (bless his soul) handled all the arrangements in the UK and generally did all the footwork in getting it all together. My cost (apart from actually flying over and whatnot) was 320 gbps (about $720 CDN) - this gives me tickets to the final six shows on the Premier Tour, plus luxurious coach transportation between each gig, plus half of a twin hotel room (shared with Matthew), and capped off with breakfast in the morning. Considering the fact that I'm there to see Gary live, this would have been a bargain if they'd tossed us in the back of a pickup truck and dumped us in front of a hostel every night - the value-for-money ratio here is unbelievably good. The Premier Tour - Show #10 - April 2, 1996 - Southampton --------------------------------------------------------- Fast forward to April 1996. I'm in the UK and have been here for two weeks, visiting with family (ostensibly my "main" reason for coming, although you and I know better). It's Monday April 1st, and I jump off a train at Bath Spa and am met by Matthew Holbrook (who, in grand British style, greets me with a sincere "Howdy!"). He shows me the sights - both around Bath, and in his house... specifically, his very extensive Numan collection (his collection of vinyl weighs more than I do). The next day (April 2nd), we find ourselves again at Bath Spa train station, this time boarding a London-bound train. We arrive at Paddington Station nearly two hours ahead of the coach's scheduled departure, so we amuse ourselves hanging around the station (much, I'm sure, to the consternation of the ever- present security personnel), punctuated every five minutes by my asking Matthew, "how much more time do we have to kill?" (and every 15 minutes by my going outside and smoking a cigarette). At 14:40 we board the Numanoids On Tour bus, and lemme tell ya - they are NOT kidding. I'm not a very "visible" Numan fan for the most part, meaning I don't wear leather jackets with the Sacrifice logo on the back, etc. This group.... WOW! In comparison, I felt like an infidel - THESE people were fans and I was merely an admirer. Don't take the wrong impression - to date they've been the most friendly, good-natured, and ACCEPTING group of people it's ever been my privilege to know. Of course, I was helped in this by the fact that I became a bit of a celebrity myself.... "oi, 'ave you met this bloke over 'ere? 'e's flown over 'ere from Canny-da to see Gary!" :-) So off we go to Southampton. Matthew gives me some last-minute details about what to expect (of the show, of the other fans, of the hotel accomodations, etc.), but by this time I'm so fired up that it's all going in one ear and out the other. After checking in to the hotel, we head over to the venue. Myself and Matthew are accompanied by two of his friends - Jason Smith and his girlfriend Kirsten Meigh. Jason is thought by many to be "the world's biggest Gary Numan fan" - this man has totally devoted his life to Gary Numan. We're walking through the park, and Jason is COMPLETELY decked out as a Gary Numan lookalike, including hair and makeup (and Matthew himself is dressed very Numan-like as well). I'm decked out wearing a very bright red Calgary Flames (ice hockey) jersey, with the number "96" on the sleeves and back, and the name "Gary Numan" proudly displayed above the back number. Some of us were feeling rather self- conscious about our attire: Jason was heard to remark (not an exact quote): "here I am, walking through a park in Southampton next to a guy with bright flashing neon clothes, and I'm the one who feels embarrassed". We arrive at the Southampton Guildhall and head inside. In the line-up we meet up with Robert Eggleston (master of the "Are Friends Electric?" web site) and his wife Maria, turning it into a Numan-page convention. Inside the door is all the merchandise... t-shirts, sweatshirts, posters, and a tour programme (written, coincidentally, by Matthew Holbrook). To my very great surprise - and delight - one of the back pages contains a list of Numan Web Sites. Heading the list is, of course, "NuWorld", but seven other sites are also listed... including, gasp!, my own "World Wide Webb" site. This was apparently not Matthew's idea - 'twas Gary's. Obviously, I was walking on air for quite some time after discovering all this. Unfortunately, the Digest wasn't mentioned... probably an oversight and less worrisome than it might have been, since most of the listed sites mention the Digest in detail. So now we're in the hall. Matthew, Jason, and Kirsten go up front as close as they can get in order to fry their brains - they're standing about 2 millimetres from a very large, and very loud, stack of speakers. Robert, Maria, and myself hang back a ways, ostensibly to protect our ears, but in fact to better position ourselves for access to the bar. The support band, "Cubanate", then come onstage in a flurry of distortion and mangled chords. To describe this band as "bad" would be to do a great disservice to the word "bad". Instead, let's go with adjectives like "awful", "trash", "terrible", "horrific", "excruciating", "nauseating", "dreadful", "beastly", and maybe even (insert Eric Idle accent here) "appalling!". But somehow, they don't seem to adequately describe the situation. Most of the performance was lost in a squeal of distortion... except, unfortunately, the lead singer's profanity, which apparently is used to disguise the fact that he has no vocal talents whatsoever. I haven't been told to go fuck myself that many times since I tried picking up women in the local lesbian bar. After about 10 minutes of this, we can't take any more. We head upstairs to the balcony and even this is too loud, so we hang about in the corridor behind the balcony, where at least we can hear ourselves think if we shout the words. And it is here that Cary Johnston of Meridian Television found me. Cary is producing a half-hour feature on Numan and his tremendously loyal fans, to go out on Meridian Television this Thursday or Friday (April 4-5) and possibly repeated on other ITV affiliates later. He takes me downstairs to the lobby, cameraman in tow, and interviews me there. I explain on camera how far I've come, how long it's been since I've seen Numan live (nearly 16 years), why I'm a fan, and what the hell is that shirt you're wearing, Joey? After the interview, I rejoin the Egglestons and we endure the rest of the Cubanate show. At 8:40pm, we're finally granted a reprieve and this lame excuse of a band finally gets the hell off the stage. We head back downstairs, stock up on more beer, and rejoin the crowd (again, a safe distance back). At 9:05pm, my long wait ends. The lights go down, the curtain drops, and Gary emerges onstage to an incredible outpouring of enthusiasm by the fans. He starts out at the top of an elaborate stage-set, then descends a staircase, grabs the mike, and launches into "Prophecy", a song from the upcoming Exile album. If you've been hoping that Gary continues his "dark" themes to this album, you're going to be very pleasantly surprised - the new songs SURPASS Sacrifice in this respect (and, I might add, they're very very good too). The track listing on the night was something like this: Prophecy, A Question Of Faith, Noise Noise, ME! I Disconnect From You, Replicas, The Seed Of A Lie, An Alien Cure (from Exile), Are 'Friends' Electric?, Films, Bleed, Everyday I Die, Are You Real?, Dark (from Exile), Absolution & Cars. First Encore was Love And Napalm & We Are Glass, and the Second Encore was Remind Me To Smile. What immediately struck me was just how INTO the show the fans get. I'm standing in a room filled with (an estimated) 2,700 screaming Numan fans who are jumping, screaming, clapping, and dancing in time with the music, stopping only to jam their fists skyward at various musical "posts". I was absolutely overwhelmed - I've been to a lot of concerts and I've never seen anything at all like this, and I haven't even begun talking about the actual SHOW yet. The show itself was absolutely brilliant (especially after you accept the inevitable lyrical foul-ups, particularly on "A Question Of Faith"). Gone was the standing-there-staring Gary I remembered from the 1980 Teletour - here was 1996 Gary, jumping, dancing, pouting (he does that SO well), and singing - it was a very strong vocal performance. The lights were scaled down a bit from previous concerts (so I'm told), in keeping with the new image (which tends to be much "blacker" in many respects), but are still damned impressive. Gary's image is rather more difficult to describe - to see for yourself, check Matthew's and Gary's pages. It has been described as a "jack- booted funeral director from Ursa Minor" - and that does rather fit. The fans, as I said, were VERY much into the show, but they seemed to crank it up a notch on three songs in particular: "Are 'Friends' Electric?", "Love And Napalm", and (oddly, I thought) "Cars". People were dancing harder, pumping their hands in the air further, and singing so loud that at times they actually drowned out Gary's vocals. It was absolutely incredible to be a part of, and I quickly put a large dent into my film supply, snapping photographs at every opportunity (some of which, when developed, will appear on my web page and others). The show was tight, smooth, and full of energy. The two new musicians didn't seem to have any problem fitting in - David Brooks on keyboards is widely experienced, while Rob Harris on guitars brought his own understated energy to the performance. According to the Programme, Rob "turned up outside Gary's house one foggy night, all dishevelled and starving and begged for a cup of tea". I think someone is playing with our heads on this one. :-) I don't remember the trip back to the hotel that clearly - my mind was still back in the Guild Hall. But somehow I stumbled back to the room, meeting Matthew en-route. We changed and headed down to the hotel's bar and settled in for a night's partying with fellow Numanoids. Matthew had hinted (as has Gary in the Digest) that since we were staying in the same hotel as Gary and the band, there was a good chance that Gary might pop in later. And, sure enough, he did. He then immediately popped out, as did Matthew. I was a little disappointed, but about five minutes later Matthew came back, and above the din managed to beckon me to follow him. We went out to the lobby, and there was Gary, Gemma, Ade, and all the rest, enjoying pizza and chips. (Note for accuracy: Gary himself in fact does not eat pizza) Matthew then introduced me to Gary, and like a complete idiot I of course mumbled something about having waited 16 years to meet him. However, from that point on I had a fantastic time. People came and went, joining and leaving the various conversations. Gary and I (and others of course) discussed topics ranging from CGI HTML scripts to operating systems to Quebec seperationists (after all, I'm the resident expert on things Canadian). Gary in person is quite a bit different from the on-stage persona - as, I suppose, is virtually every performer. In person he's a real guy, with real opinions and real emotions. What really impressed me about the man is that he treats those around him, including guests like myself, as complete equals. I honestly didn't know what to expect, but I have to admit this took me just a little bit by surprise. Gary is friendly, personable, and engaging - the type of person and personality that usually turns up in my closest friends. After about 2 hours, Gary and company headed into the bar. Not wanting to overstay my welcome, I stayed in the lobby with several other guests and we drank, smoked, and chatted away until about 5am, at which point I headed off to bed before I collapsed from exhaustion (but taking five minutes first to phone home - Mom hadn't heard from me in over a week). It's now 6:30pm on April 3rd - in about 45 minutes we jump back on the bus and head down into Guildford for tonight's show at the Civic Hall. And I know it's going to be another great night. The Premier Tour - Show #11 - Guildford - April 3rd, 1996 --------------------------------------------------------- As we alight from the bus (oh, look, I'm using British words now), we notice Gary, Gemma, and several members of the band in a 3rd floor window near the back of the Civic Hall. Gemma waves, we wave, then Gary & Co. wave. A good time was had by all. The venue is rather smaller than the Guild Hall in Southampton, but we try hard to cram our way up near the front. Big mistake. Obviously we forgot that last night's support band, Cubanate, was on again tonight. Even the liberal use of cotton wadding in our ears (great idea, Matthew!) wasn't sufficient to drown out the alleged music emanating from the stage - worse, because we're closer, we're now in spitting range of the lead singer, whose saliva supply seems never-ending. Tonight the distortion isn't quite so bad - I can now make out some of the tripe he's screaming at us, including such winning phrases as "you people better get your fucking shit together cos I certainly ain't enjoying meself up here!" (our response to the band had been lacklustre in the extreme) and "I'm queer! I'm the future! I'm a fucking genius!" And, inevitably, they give up, and 20 minutes later Gary will come onstage. The sound system so far seems better and things are shaping up like tonight's show will be better than last night's. But... the floor begins to get packed. And then more packed. Soon there is literally nowhere to move - you're stuck in a non-moving ocean of humanity. About 5 minutes into Gary's performance, I bailed out and headed to the back of the hall (which was still quite close) so that I could begin processing oxygen again. The performance itself was, again, brilliant, although later Gary was heard to admit that he felt it was not quite as tight as the night before. He found himself in the minority on this one - everyone I spoke to saw virtually no difference (with the mistakes on "A Question Of Faith" from the night before being rectified). I initially agreed with Gary but later changed my opinion to "I don't know" - reason being, I spent this concert hovering around the fringes. I darted left and right, up on the balconies, this way and that, using up most of 2 rolls of film (36 exposures) and fighting for good sight lines and angles. As a result, I WATCHED the concert rather than experienced it, and there *IS* a huge difference - ask any hard-core Numanoid what the difference is between going to a show and watching one on video. I missed out a bit, but I got some EXCELLENT photos. The only flaw on the night, other than the oppressive crowd, was a slight technical problem with Gary's microphone sometime around halfway through. For about 3 songs, his vocal levels were lower and occasionally buried by the music, but they soon got this sorted out and he came back stronger than ever. Because I was able to move about quite a bit, I began noticing something that slightly surprised me - and made me feel quite good. Yes, Gary's fans tend to be around age 30 or so and are long-term fans, but I also noticed quite a few people younger that (including children) and several quite a bit older, including at least 6 or 7 that I noticed that must have been close to 60. Gary's music appeals to people of all ages (and sizes, shapes, colours, and hair-styles, and of course nationalities). After the show, we hop back on the coach and return to the hotel. Matthew and I discuss the idea of not bothering to head down to the bar, as we got very little sleep the night before. Finally, however, we decide that we'll go down for an hour or two and see if anything interesting happens. Well, we were there for about 4 hours, which should lead you to the conclusion that things did indeed get interesting. Shortly before Gary and the band arrived, an unexpected visitor appeared at the bar - some fella named Bill Sharpe. I of course didn't pass up the opportunity to get his autograph, and we chatted at length. He told me that he's never been over to Canada but would like a visit. He couldn't tell me whether there had been any decision on rereleasing the Sharpe+Numan material at this time. Shortly after this, Gemma arrives... with another unexpected guest. Nogbad The Bad, aka Gary's kitty-cat. I've never met a more docile, and well behaved, cat - my cats are continually plotting behind my back (once they figure out how to use the can- opener, they won't need me anymore and will begin working out the details of my demise), but Nogbad was just happy to snuggle up to Gemma and let people stroke him. Then again, given the same situation, wouldn't you? :-) And then, of course, Gary and the band arrive... with yet ANOTHER unexpected visitor - John Webb. He told me that he's "gracefully retired" from doing live gigs. And of course, I got his autograph as well. Because I'm quite busy running around getting autographs from everyone (I'm still missing David Brooks and Richard Beasley, while Nogbad declined), I don't even try to chat with Gary. But after a couple of hours, Gary pops over to our table, sits down, and we chat for about 15 minutes. Unfortunately, this was cut rather short by the arrival of an "over-exuberant fan" (others feel I should use stronger language, but I'm in a good mood) who immediately monopolizes the conversation. Then when Gary says he and the band are going to bed early and begins to leave, the fan (known to all as "Mr. Boring") makes a request for another autograph (after already having obtained several). Gary blasts him with, "I wanna go to FUCKING BED", to which Mr. Boring did not react in the slightest. Resigning himself to being held hostage until the autograph was given, Gary relents, and in fact sticks around for another 10 minutes or so (during which Matthew and I wind up talking with each other, as we can't seem to get a word in edgewise). Gemma finally comes over, smashes Mr. Boring over the head with an empty beer bottle, throws Gary over her shoulder, bellows "Me Jane! You Tarzan!" and runs out the door. Well, OK, it may not have happened in quite that way, but I'm sure that many present would have applauded if it had. Gemma to the rescue! :-) The Premier Tour - Show #12 - April 4th, 1996 - Birmingham ---------------------------------------------------------- Hey, look, we're in Birmingham! Matthew tells me that this is about as exciting as being in.... well, Delaware. But, aside from the crowds on the streets, I quite enjoy it. After arriving at the Grand Hotel (regular room rate is 110 gbps per night for a twin) and checking in, we take a "short walk" that turns into about two hours. We sample the local culinary delights (Burger King) and we browse through something called "Oasis", which seems to be several shops rolled into one. They sell some SCARY things here... including some rather interesting fetish-ware. Matthew's looking for some banana boots like Gary wears on stage - he does find them but not in his size. We walk over to the venue - it's about 3 city blocks from the hotel. The Birmingham Town Hall was the first venue I saw to actually bother with a SIGN out front advertising the concert. In addition to that, there were people out front handing out leaflets, exhorting everyone at the show to head over to XL's night club after the show where they'll be playing some Numan tunes and featuring a personal appearance by Gary himself. The Birmingham Town Hall is an impressive looking building inside, featuring some absolutely stunning old-English architecture. Unfortunately, it's also somewhat smallish, forcing Gary's stage set to be a bit reduced... the three pillars on each side of the set were removed, as were the centre steps. Even after this, Gary had to be careful he didn't fall off the bloody stage, things were that cramped. Seating arrangements were a bit odd - on the floor was temporary seating (abandoned shortly after Gary took to the stage) with a large upper balcony as well. A number of the floor-area seats were underneath overhanging balcony, cutting off the view and making photography (snap, snap, grin, grin, nudge, nudge, say no more) virtually impossible from most areas where a photographer could actually get to. However, I did manage to get some good shots as despite all this, our seats were relatively good, in the sixth row off to the left of the stage. Despite these problems, the show was a smashing success. The energy level of the crowd was as high as I've seen, and the performance came off extremely well despite the limited space in which to play. I began to notice that the crowd was reacting very positively to the new material which, presumably, most of them had never yet heard. "An Alien Cure" was particularly well received - after the initial getting-used-to-it period the crowd began dancing nearly as much as they did for "Cars", which again was a big hit. What was most notable about this performance was that Gary and the band seemed to be in a rather mischievous spirit, perhaps finally settling into a "comfort zone". Remember, there are two new band members here and this was all new to them. Tonight, however, there was much smiling and grinning and laughing amongst all on stage, particularly between Gary and Rob Harris (guitarist, who shares the lower stage with Gary throughout the performance). When they came back for the first performance, Gary even acknowledged the crowd's virtually non-stop requests for "Jo The Waiter" - unfortunately it wasn't in the set list, and it was rather late in the day for the new band members to learn it now. Instead, there followed very energetic renditions of "Love And Napalm" and "We Are Glass", and of course "Remind Me To Smile". After the show, we of course all headed over to XL's. While generally a good time was had by all, things were a bit ugly when Gary and company arrived. The DJ didn't help things along by announcing it every time Gary went to the toilet, and thus he was perpetually mobbed. This was eventually settled by cordoning off an area for Gary and the band, and public access was blocked by a particularly beefy security guard. There were, however, some definite highlights to this evening. For me personally, it was bumping into Richard Beasley, who introduced himself to me, asked if I was "the bloke from Canada", and within 2 minutes had bought me a beer (a Carling Premier Lager of course). He couldn't chat for long but promised to chat more later (which of course he did). As I've already said, everybody associated with Gary is friendly and personable and this was just another example of the "just folks" mentality that reigns. It is, I'd say, the absolute coolest aspect of my entire visit. In addition to this, our friend Jason Smith (the Numan lookalike) was particularly well received. The doorman at the club waved us right through - he though Jason *WAS* Gary. This happened at least six other times throughout the night, notably as the final song was playing. Jason's on the dance floor, dancing to "Bleed", and pulling out all the stops - posing, pouting, and dancing. Added to this is me - I'm moving around snapping photos with Kirsten's camera. This immediately leads one couple to jump to the wrong conclusion and they start asking me "what's he like?" - and I, being far too drunk by this time, take a little while to realize that they think he's Gary. Oh well - what they don't know won't hurt 'em and they're happier this way. :-) The Premier Tour - Show #13 - April 5th, 1996 - Manchester ---------------------------------------------------------- From Birmingham, we travel by coach to Manchester. I've been rather impressed by everything I've seen up to now, but after we arrive I find I agree with everyone on the coach - Manchester is the absolute armpit of the UK. Kinda like downtown Winnipeg. :-) Sasha's Hotel looked like a real seedy dump from the outside, but turned out to be extremely pleasant on the inside... until we began running into niggly little problems. For example, Matthew had to leave a 20 gbps deposit with the front desk before he could place a phone call from our room (a modem call to update his Nu-Zone web site). They also tried to charge us for our free breakfast the following morning (which, incidentally, was abysmal), and didn't provide the bar services that we had contracted for until Peter Gilbert (the tour organizer) started barking loud and long. We took a taxi to the show (pun intended) because we wanted to get there early, in order to get a spot on the front row. Tonight's show is being filmed, and we all want to be in Gary's next video release. As we entered the Labatt's Apollo, the film crews were outside capturing the moment. One cameraman came right up to me and followed me at close range for about 6 or 7 yards. Once inside, Matthew, Jason, and Kirsten quickly located choice positions against the front railing. I follow, but quickly realize that I'm just not gonna be able to hold out for the whole concert way up there, being crushed from behind. I'm a little claustrophic to begin with and I'm also being battered internally by what we're affectionately calling "Gary's Cold", which has gone through quite a few of us on the coach. I retire back to the balcony seat as allocated on my ticket. I was told not to expect much of the opening band, Let Loose. They're known as a teeny-bopper type of dance band and we're expecting lots of 12-year-old girls in the audience screaming for their heroes. This may all have been true, but the band that stepped onto the stage delivered a great performance that was at once forward-looking yet also honored time-tested rock and roll traditions, including a well-done cover of Robert Palmer's "Addicted To Love". The singer appointed himself Master Of Ceremonies and showed that he could really win over a hostile crowd: initially, the Numanoid fans were not responding to the performance but they eventually got into it, with the singer exhorting them to clap hands a la Numan. Turns out that the drummer is a major Numanoid himself, who between songs sent the crowd into a tizzy by playing the opening drum bit from "Films" (and the whole band started into two other Numan songs later on before stopping and confessing they were just pulling our legs). This was a great performance of good old fashioned rock and roll, and NOT the teeny-bopper dance crap that we expected. We definitely got our money's worth, and this band really deserves some extra credit when you consider that this was not their normal sort of audience. They themselves headlined their own show one night later and packed ten thousand fans into the venue. And then Numan & Co. hit the stage. As I said, I'm up on the balcony this time, a bit further back and quite a bit further up than I've been so far. Any doubts I had about the quality of the seats evaporated after just one song. The full stage set has returned (including pillars) and the light show is absolutely incredible... rather than being in an inferior position, it seems that I've got the best possible vantage point. Gary also has the use of a large amount of stage area to move around in (unlike some past performances), and he's a performer that makes good use of every inch of it. After all, we're here for a show, not just the music - and the show is the best one I've seen to date. Gary seems particularly fired up - I'm regretting leaving my camera back in the hotel room for this show because I would have gotten some incredible shots. Then again, I'm going to be able to buy a video of this later this year (as will you) - I'll settle for that, happily. Crowd response was mostly excellent, although there were a few pockets of Let Loose fans who tended to respond only to Gary's more well known songs, which this time around meant "Are 'Friends' Electric?" and "Cars". However, by the time we reached the encores, just about everyone was in the party mood and doing their best to imitate the Numanoid arms-in-the-air and assorted handclaps. Gary and the band bowed together to the crowd before leaving the stage after the two encores, having received three standing ovations. I also discovered that the "black-lights" that Gary uses extensively tended to make the large flaming-C logo on the front of my shirt stand out like a searchlight in the crowd: nearly every member of the band mentioned to me after the show that they had spotted me in the crowd quite clearly. Maybe I'll be on the video... :-) We take the coach back to the hotel (with me stopping briefly to buy some bootleg posters from out front of the Apollo) and head downstairs to the pub... which is closed. We don't care, we buy drinks from the pub next door and bring 'em back. And as usual, about an hour and a half later Gary makes his appearance. This time I sit back and relax - Gary's in a large crowd of people and I'm still feeling unwell, no point giving Gary his cold back. (Grin!) In fact, I bail out early and go to bed, although not before meeting Paul Denman (author of the Complex web site) and friend and having some interesting conversations with them. TJ Davies also put in an appearance - she's still one of the finest looking women I've ever seen! The Premier Tour - Show #14 - April 6th, 1996 - Milton Keynes ============================================================= We arrive in Milton Keynes about an hour ahead of schedule (to our delight), which gives us plenty of time to look around. I'm quickly enveloped in a feeling of homesickness, because Milton Keynes looks and feels just like any modern Canadian (or American) city, and bears some striking similarities to my home town of Calgary (after you overlook the fact that they still drive on the wrong side of the road here). It's open and airy, and designed from the ground up with the motor car in mind (unlike the large majority of the rest of the UK). There are parks and grass everywhere, and the shopping mall (or "arcade") we walk through is absolutely huge, over 1 kilometre in length. Others on the tour found Milton Keynes to be less pleasant than I did - it was described as stark, cold, and bleak (lots of glass and concrete), and even being described as the Twilight Zone ("You are now in Milton Keynes. You will never leave."), but I can't really blame 'em for this - it's like being in another country and that can be very off-putting. What was off-putting, though, was the venue: the Milton Keynes Woughton Centre. Sounds like a nifty place: in fact, it's a recreational complex, and Gary playing in a gymnasium smaller than the one at my high school in Calgary. Indeed, we wound up with a very, very stripped down stage show. The only thing that survived almost-intact was the light-show... the stage, the stairs, the pillars, and some of the lights had to be left behind because there just wasn't room. The opening band was called Inertia and I've been warned that they'll likely exceed Cubanate for badness. I stick around for the first song or so... and while I don't find it quite as bad, it certainly isn't good. I'm still kinda sick, so I retire to the bar (in the gymnasium next door) and wait for Gary's show to begin. To be honest, I'm expecting a bit of a let-down because of the reduced set. But Gary, ever the trouper, isn't about to let it bother him, and it's quickly apparent that I've nothing to worry about. He comes out strong as ever, and the reduced lighting show (to my surprise) actually works BETTER with this reduced set... the result is a surprisingly good and INTIMATE show. I begin the show watching from the rear but gradually move forward, getting a feel of the crowd at each stop along the way. No matter where I was, it was like I could reach out and touch the stage. The crowd, however, was disappointing at the beginning. It seemed less of a Numan crowd than a bunch of people who couldn't afford to go on holiday this Easter weekend and decided to kill a Saturday night at whatever concert happened to be in town. Indeed, until "Are 'Friends' Electric", the response is quite disappointing... not much dancing, and only scattered hand-claps. But from this point on (kicked off by a well-known and well-loved song of course), the crowd begins to become much more energetic. Indeed, during the first encore, Gary pays them a nice compliment, saying that the previous night's show had been the one filmed but he wished they'd filmed this one instead. Back at the hotel, we run into a bit of a problem... namely, not enough seating for everybody. There are fewer people than the night before but there's a lot of folks standing because there's barely any seating. Indeed, Gary puts in only a very brief appearance, and leaves after again getting mobbed (a la the XL Club back in Birmingham). This is a bit of a disappointment, not only for me, but for another Canadian fan that I've bumped into, a fellow from London, Ontario named Andy McKenzie. He satisfies himself with meeting Rob Harris and Richard Beasley, and even gets his photo taken with them... these men are extremely gracious. Andy satisfies himself with the fact that he has already met Gary briefly back in Southampton, at the signing session in a local HMV record store. The Premier Tour - Show #15 - April 7th, 1996 - London ====================================================== We arrive at the Jarvis International Heathrow Hotel, and indeed we're almost directly underneath the approach to the airport (making things a tad noisy, but otherwise it's a very nice hotel). We strike out in search some decent food near the hotel, settling for a sandwich at the local Esso station (another reminder of back home). We jump on the coach and head on down to the Labatt's Apollo (formerly the Hammersmith Odeon) to take in Gary's final show of the tour. For me, this is bittersweet: on the one hand, I'm finally going to see Gary perform at *THE* Numan venue - the place where so many live albums and videos have been recorded. On the other hand, it's the last one. After this, it's all over. Before we enter the venue, we have a group photograph taken in front of the coach, and I manage also to get Peter Gilbert and Francis Drake (our hosts on the Tour) to pose along with Vic the driver. The concert kicks off, again, with Cubanate opening the show. For a change, they were merely annoying rather than intensely irritating. The band performs just as strongly as on previous outings but the lead singer tones down his anti-social antics quite a bit - and at least now I can see what he's trying to accomplish. THIS performance I can at least respect, even though it certainly isn't my kind of music. I gotta tip my hat - if a fan of this type of music were in the house, they would have enjoyed a fine show. Me, I simply endured it. And then the big event started. And what a show! Gary and the band pulled out all the stops - while they were merely fired up on past outings, tonight they were on rocket fuel. I assume this had to do with the fact that it WAS the last performance, and it was in front of Gary's "home crowd" (kinda like when you follow your favorite hockey team - the games they play in other cities are great, but the ones they play in the home arena are extra special to everyone). This crowd is very definitely Numan's - they're spirited and they're enjoying every second. There is a feeling of magic in the air, that we're watching something very, very special, that will never come again. Numan will tour again, and he'll be great again, but it will never be THIS show again. This is an event to be remembered, and believe me, we will. The only flaw to the show is the fact that Gary's show is wedged in between performances of a stage show at the Apollo, and certain stage elements of that show could not be removed. As a result, a few items from Gary's show had to be dispensed with... for example, the stairs (again). Gary himself apologized for this and said "we'll try to give you a good show". We were totally non-plussed... the mood we were in, Gary and the band could have been sitting on cardboard boxes and we wouldn't have noticed. That said, however, the light and stage show was, again, absolutely brilliant, despite the fact that Gary again was limited to pretty much moving left and right on the stage (with about six feet forward and backward in which to work). Crowd favourites were the usual suspects ("Cars", "Are 'Friends' Electric?", etc.) as well as a few others that really showed the hard-core Numanoid makeup of the crowd: I noticed the crowd singing along to such classics as "Films", "Me! I Disconnect From You" and "Are You Real?", as well as newer songs like "Love And Napalm", "A Question Of Faith", and "Bleed" - which set this crowd somewhat apart from the other shows I saw on the tour. The show's end was highly emotional... for me, for everyone in the audience, for the band, for Gary. It's all over but the great memories and the love... the love we have for Gary and the love he has for us (don't kid yourself - this is one performer who really does care about his fans a great deal). And let's not forget the band - they're as caught up in all of this as any of us are. I spoke with both David Brooks and Rob Harris and they both tell me that they were not quite expecting anything quite like this: for them, this has been an experience of a lifetime... one that this reviewer at least hopes that they can repeat. They both redeemed themselves admirably in filling some very, very large shoes (Kipper and John Webb), doing so not by trying to replace their predecessors but by trying to succeed them - there is a difference. And of course we had Richard Beasley and Ade Orange as the experienced hands, yet experience doesn't seem to have dulled the thrill - they clearly enjoy what they're doing for a living, and to my way of thinking there's nothing more you can ask from your job. These fellas have found something special here, and you can see it in their eyes every time they play... just as you feel it in your own heart as you listen. Back at the hotel, a tremendous spirit of camaraderie quickly settles in on all present (including Gary and the band, who arrive about an hour and a half after the end of the show). Names and addresses are exchanged, and promises are made to see each other soon. And I find that I've subconsciously reached a decision - I will be back. In the six short days that I've been touring with these people, they've become close friends, almost family. This is something that one should never let slip away, whatever the cost - yes, I will be back again. And again. And again. Whatever it takes, whatever luxuries I have to sacrifice to pay for plane, train, and coach tickets, I will definitely be back, as often as possible. ================================================================= And that pretty much wraps it all up. I'd like to add, for the record, that I really owe a lot to Matthew Holbrook. As I said at the top, he handled all my organizing, he purchased the tickets, he took care of all the details, and he's been a great friend and advisor on "the world of Numan". He's put up with my incessant chattering on the differences I've noticed between the UK and Canada (and/or differences in the UK between now and my last visit in 1979), he's let me drag him into pizza restaurants and burger joints, and he's even bought me drinks and meals. Plus, and most of all, he puts up with my cigarette smoking like a real trouper (grin!). I know I would have had a good time coming over here without Matthew's help, but having that help has transformed a "good" time into an absolutely brilliant one, an experience that I most certainly will never, ever forget. Matthew, I owe you so much that I feel I can never repay my debt... but that won't stop me from trying.