Isn't she lovely
It has always occurred to me that when I sat up the top of the Athletic Park Stand in Wellington on a cool summer evening in the 1988, that I was witnessing the most under rated concert around.
The park was not exactly what you might call "pumping", the rugby field below was full, the crowd were circled around the stage on the opposite side of the main stand, but when Stevie Wonder started to sing and play the piano I knew this was something special.
My Dad got me a tee-shirt from his job at the radio station which I kept for years. Goodness knows what it would be worth now if I still owned the darn thing. It would even have been made in New Zealand.
Stevie Wonder's voice carried all the way up to "the gods' of the main stand where I sat and watched him below like I had him playing on my radio at home.
Yet there weren't many people there at all to see one of the world's most fantastic performers. I have a feeling Bryan Adams played before hand, but I can't confirm this as, as much as the internet seems to have as much information you can ever want, doing a search for band tours of the 1980's in New Zealand proved to be fruitless. I could not find one list of this information, let alone who the support or opening acts were.
However, Athletic Park played homage to many other huge bands in the 1980's. U2 and Billy Joel performed there.
I saw U2 in 1989, and I did manage to find a website stating all their tour dates, and their support acts, so I can add BB King to my list who was the support act for that tour in November of 1989.
This concert was packed to the max, you could smell the smoky air, and people were packed in by themselves. I went by myself. In fact, my 1981 Ford Laser was parked up one of the side streets near the park, and I remember walking back after the show to my car, hundred's of people pouring down the streets all the way towards the cricket ground before finally reaching my car. It was fantastic. I loved both these shows.
Billy Joel also played at Athletic Park in 1987, and I think, I'm pretty sure I went to this as well.
It was a time of big bands touring New Zealand, many for the first time. It was reasonably cheap to attend, certainly not like today of $100 a ticket. My memory is a little poor but I think tickets were around the $40 - $50 mark.
My first real taste of a big concert was in 1987. I was nearly 18 years old, and I went with my friend and her family (there was about 6 of us I think!) who were all local bro's and we piled into their car from Manurewa in Auckland and cruised to Western Springs. You can just imagine what we were like, a bunch of young teenagers going to a big concert.
This was a completely new experience for me, and we were crammed into the middle of the crowd at the stadium.
The band was Eurythmics. There was no room to move and I could hardly see them, I think I got lifted up to see at one point.
There was security on the gates, we had to show our bags if we had one. In those days the only thing they looked for was booze being smuggled in which people used to do, and I'm sure still do!
I loved it, it was a real young South Auckland vibe, a polynesian mix of people, fascinating.
Certainly something I won't forget.
It was a time when you drove places just to see a band because you knew you might not see them again.
My mum saw the Beatles in Wellington, and my Dad saw Johnnie Cash live at the Dunedin Town Hall in the 1970's.
What I would give to see Johnnie Cash now.
I went to Cliff Richard at the Town Hall in Wellington in the 1997, and The Eagles at QE 11 Park in Christchurch when it poured with rain in the mid 1990's. I wasn't a big fan of the Eagles but I went because I could I guess, and the fella Don Henly was playing at that show.
One person I really wanted to see in my life time (believe it not!) was Michael Jackson. My chance came in 1996 when I was in Sydney, and so was Michael. I took a teenager with me, bought seats, and wow, this was the "History" tour, and what a show.
It was the first real show I had seen where it was really entertainment. The tickets cost a fortune, but I figured well what the heck.
How times change. Now in the last five years, I've seen the Verlaines, VB, The Clean, Mother Goose, The Chills, The Bats, and David Kilgour in Dunedin.
But deep down this pony is a disco, r + b mixed with Tony Bennett, Sam Cooke, Housemartins, Zombies type - a Grey Lynn/ Raglan tribe gal with a punk rock attitude.
Oh, and yes I did see Prince Charles and Princess Diana on their 1983 New Zealand tour!
Anything else? Yes. I've some how started to re-start by complete random purchase something that is looking like a vintage collection of New Zealand made fashion, and design.
Bags, coats, dresses, cardigans, socks, chairs, crockery, cups and sauces, cutlery. It's my raglan side.
But I can't find any shoes in size 10. I"m still looking.
And because I'm a complete nerd I bought a very special bundle of New Zealand made - I'm having the ultimate "green" christmas.
Recycled. Vintage. New Zealand made. I even purchased a vintage tinsel Christmas tree. (For myself of course).
Now that is what I call a Christmas.