Spandau Ballet Live From NEC Press Screening June 2005
The event was held in the very plush Soho Hotel which is just close to Oxford Street in the centre of London. I was told by some of the locals who attended the event that the hotel used to be a car park and had only recently been opened.
I was about 20 minutes early for the start of the reception and I was shown downstairs to a reception area outside the screening room and function room that was going to be used for the pre and post screening drinks.
After I had been sitting there for about ten minutes the lift doors
pinged and out came a very pretty girl in crutches with a very
attractive man pushing a wheelchair behind her. As they were asking the
man behind the desk where to go, I wandered over to introduce myself to
Shelley and to Steve. Steve confirmed what I had been told by
another fan a few weeks ago, that he was now living in London and was glad to be really
busy at the moment. He is still working on the Quintesensa project and
they both hope to do some more Cloudfish work as the music that they
have currently on Shelley's site, has been very well received.
Incidentally Shelley fractured her leg after a nasty tackle when playing
a charity football match.
Steve and Shelley wandered into the screening room where they were
testing the DVD and I was then able
to go into the function room. I was standing talking to some people,
when a familiar Irish voice said "Agnes, how are you, I recognised your
voice". This was Gigi from Sony whom I have been talking to on the phone
over this DVD for the best part of 18 months and it was so nice to be
able to put a face to the voice at last. She introduced me to her
colleagues from Sony and was very complimentary about Spandaupages,
which was really nice.
Later in the evening and just before we went into the screening I was
talking to Steve Dagger and a friend of his called Matt when they
pointed out Paul Simper who was just standing talking behind us. I asked
if I could be introduced and this happened and I was able to ask Paul
all about the upcoming Spandau biography. This is due out in 2006 and
they hope to tie it in with the Greatest Hits DVD that EMI will be
releasing. When I asked about a title, he said "well we aren't going for
a song title now as that's been done and I think if everybody agrees it is going to be Angel
Boys". He explained that each of the stages of the band's
development Blitz Kids, New Romantics only lasted for such a short time
that this would not be reflective of the whole history of the band, but
they are all and always will be "Angel Boys". Long term Spandau
fans will recognise this title and I think it would be great if they
finally used it now after all these years. We had a bit of a joke
around some of the more obscure Spandau song titles that just wouldn't
work as book titles. "Pharaoh" for example.
Shortly after this I met Heather from Journeys To Glory and when
we went into the screening we sat together. Gary gave a short speech
before the screening started.
When I received the invitation I thought about digging out the
original VHS version of this concert. I decided against doing this. I
haven't watched this for ages and therefore wanted to see it "fresh".
The VHS version of this concert last came out in the Autumn of 2000 and
prior to this had been doing a great trade for Ebayers who had the
original release from the eighties. A lot of the people at Sony at
the function were interested in the fact that I had attended the
original tour as a teenage fan and were keen to hear if it lived up to
my memory. The answer to this is a big yes. It was utterly
thrilling. When this was originally broadcast on the Tube Special, it
was very soon after I had seen the show in Glasgow. At the time I was
working as a YTS in a local computer production plant (think HAL) and
sitting round the table in the dining room after it was broadcast I was
asked if it had been like "my concert". They were all really impressed
by Tony's fitness and the fact that he could run around the stage and
still be able to sing. I said it was indeed just like "my concert".
It wasn't really until seeing it large as life at this screening however
that I can really say that it was just like it was at the time. Exactly
100% as it was. Sitting in the dark, enveloped by the booming
sound made me very nostalgic for that time . They only showed
about half an hour of it, but this included the previously unreleased
"Revenge For Love". A smart move as this left the audience hungry for
more. Even if you don't have surround sound, the improvement in picture
quality and all the extras make this more a new item than a simple
re-purchase and you must get this either to re-live old memories or to
see Spandau Ballet at their peak and their prime before all the
heartache started. It would be worthwhile taking up squatters' rights in
front of the TV of any of your friends who may have a home cinema system
just to see this in all its glory. Get as many people round as
possible and sit in the dark. I know this sounds strange, but if you do
it you'll see what I mean! It will take you back to the TTB tour better
than even the Tardis could do.
After the screening I had quite a long chat to a journalist from the BBC
World Service who was commenting on the noticeable absence of other band
members. Martin was making his movie with Dennis Waterman and I'd known
for a few days before it that he wasn't going to be there. I
explained the situation with Tony and that Gary had been trying to
reform the band and that I was glad that the rift between Gary and Steve
Norman had now healed. Tony's attitude on the matter was different
however and that he still could not build back the trust that he feels
has been lost. I said that things over the last couple
of years had improved for Tony since the Community Centre type venues
that I saw him play in prior to Reborn. I said that a reunion tour
if it was going to be like what we had just witnessed, then yes, I'd be
in favour, but a "just for the money" Simon and Garfunkel type thing
with nobody able to look each other in the eye then that would be an
unhappy final chapter for the band. However I also explained that mine
is not the "party line" on the issue. Gary was standing
right beside us at this point and the journalist decided to ask him.
He said to him that I'd been saying about trying to reform the band and
that he (the journalist) thought how it was noticeable who was missing
and wanted to hear what he had to say on this. Gary answered his
questions regarding all of this and his "off the record" response, I found this enlightening and a bit
shocking to his state of mind on the issue(s).
If anybody is going to bridge the Gary/Tony gap then it might well be Steve Norman it's my impression that he has a much more relaxed approach and I think has still remained friends with Tony and could be the one to build up the trust and working relationships again to avoid the clash of horns.
If however things don't "heal" then the TTB shows what a wonderful
legacy they left. A time when life was very simple for all of us and
they all looked and sounded at their absolute best. If things do "heal"
and a tour like this is the intention then this is a wonderful advert
for what they could achieve.
The evening was a great success and I think a special nod should go to
Cat Hollis from Noble PR who organised the whole event.
Spandau Ballet Live From the NEC is released on 25th July 2005