Beady Eye at Wolverhampton Civic Hall. Clare booked this some time ago and although I've never been a big fan of Oasis or the Gallagher brothers I was looking forward to it. In reality this is what we got.
We arrived at New Street to find that the pleasant train journey I dreamed of was in fact a replacement bus service due to engineering works.
After we had settled in we headed to City Bar but as it was Easter Sunday it was closed. The food and leisurely drink that I had hoped for became a Coke and a spicy veggie thing from McDonald's. With plenty of time to spare we decided to head back to the hotel for a bit.
Once in the room it dawned on me that we backed onto some sort of conference suite which seemed to be holding an Indian wedding reception. The music was so loud that, even though I couldn't understand the lyrics, I could hear them perfectly! I figured that it would go on quite late but reckoned that by the time we got back it would be getting on a bit anyway and so it was nothing to worry about.
We got to the Civic and after a short while Steve Cradock took the stage (to an equal measure of cheers and boos). I have never been a fan and on the strength of his performance last night I am yet to be converted. In a nutshell it was bland and unimaginative and with a stage presence to match. Oh, and the sound was terrible. Luckily his set passed by quickly.
As we waited for Beady Eye the crowd sang along to the tracks being played through the PA. The Beatles, Stones, Sex Pistols, The Jam and The Stone Roses' I Am The Resurrection. As that ended they took the stage.
Four Letter Word opened the set and as Liam swaggered onto stage the pints started flying as the crowd got into the mood. What surprised me the most was their sound. Compared to Steve Cradock it was crystal clear. Liam already had everyone eating out of his hand but with each track the crowd got livelier.
The night flew by and in no time at all they were finishing their set. They played The Morning Son and were gone. A couple of minutes later they were back. Wigwam and a decent cover of World of Twist's Sons of The Stage and the night was over.
We headed back to the hotel. With the bar closed we went to our room and lay there listening to the wedding reception guests (in the conference suite adjacent) singing along to Bob Marley, UB40 and so on. The party eventually wound up around 12.30 am. Peace and quiet and, at last, the chance to sleep.
Dropping off sometime between 12.45 and 1.00am I found myself jumping from my bed and running around the room grabbing what I could with the fire alarm blaring. I dashed out into the corridor, passing old ladies in their nightdresses as I headed for reception. 30 minutes after going to sleep I found myself outside having a cigarette with two Dutch blokes as Clare tried to establish what was going on. It turns out it was a false alarm. We all headed back to our rooms. Lying in bed I was too wound up to sleep. It must have been about 4am by the time I eventually got off. I woke up naturally at about 6.30am.
Showered, we headed down for breakfast. All you can eat for £5. The hotel went a little way to redeeming itself (despite the dirty crockery). Back to the room, we packed and headed to reception to check out and fill in a complaint form.
At the station we found that there was a train back to Birmingham. Getting home around 10.30ish I have spent the day lounging around. I reckon I'll sleep well tonight though!
Set list for Beady Eye
Four Letter Word
Beatles and Stones
Millionaire
For Anyone
The Roller
Wind Up Dream
Bring the Light
Standing on the Edge of the Noise
Kill For A Dream
Three Ring Circus
The Beat Goes On
Man of Misery
The Morning Son
Wigwam
Sons of the Stage (World of Twist cover)
