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Events and Reports - Enuff Z'nuff - Tour Report - Live in The U.K. - Nov. 2003 with Crash Kelly and Drugdealer Cheerleader
London, Camden Underworld, Wednesday November 19th (written by Michael)
People on the Enuff Z'nuff fanboard had arranged for all of us to meet at the Underworld pub before the show. However, when Steen and I entered the pub there were no Peace signs to be found. In the corner we found Matt, who had offered us rides to Newcastle and Nottingham plus Rik and a couple of his buddies. We had a few pints and overall we were just excited about being back in the UK to follow our favorite band on their Tour.
We didn't catch the first band Gems, but got there just in time for Drugdealer Cheerleader, who were on the whole tour as well. Somehow they didn't impress me with their energetic Rock 'n' Roll. Didn't exactly sound like my style of music and overall I just couldn't wait for Enuff Z'nuff to hit the stage. I you read the full report you will notice that Drugdealer Cheerleader later managed to convert me into the music - more about that later.
I was looking forward to Crash Kelly, since their debut album is excellent. I briefly said hello to lead singer and frontman Sean Kelly before the show and you could easily sense that he was excited about being back in the UK. Crash Kelly played almost all songs from "Penny Pills" and they put on a great show. I noticed that they made a new finish to their Alice Cooper tribute Love Me Electric. Crash Kelly ended their 30-minute set with the Thin Lizzy classic Waiting for an Alibi and their own drinking tune Irish Blessings 95.
Shortly after Enuff Z'nuff came on stage and it was obvious that the approx. 200 people were happy about the return of Enuff Z'nuff. Last time was only 7 months ago, when Enuff Z'nuff toured the UK with L.A. Guns. Monaco was well dressed in a suit and tie. Chip mike stand was covered in pink and green feather boas. Surprisingly they started off with Saturday from their latest studio album "Welcome to Blue Island". It was great hearing some fresh stuff from the EZN boys. Saturday worked well as a 3 piece since the song in the studio form is stripped down without any flashy guitar solos. Chip had some problems with his bass amp, which seemed to annoy him throughout the whole show. Overall the sound was quite poor.
Chip played a green Hamer 12 string bass, which gave the songs more body and provided the 3-piece band with a more full sound than on the bootlegs I heard with them as a 3 piece. Third song One Step Closer To You was another nice surprise since Enuff Z'nuff only occasionally did play that tune with Donnie in the band. Once again I was surprised that they digged up She Wants More from the first album, since it has Derek Frigo all over it. Monaco did a great job on the intro solo as well. Overall Monaco was quite busy playing both guitar, solos and singing lead and since he was so occupied he didn't have the energy to act like a frontman and interact a lot with the audience. On top of that the poor guy was recovering from an ear infection and he was numb on the left side of his face. As always Ricky was smiling throughout the whole concert and he is just a fantastic drummer.
The speculations about Enuff Z'nuff continuing as a 3-piece were put to shame, and the band proved that it's all about the songs. Of course the new EZN misses something without the presence of Donnie and on Baby Loves You I thought they could have used an extra guitarist. However, the really cool thing about this performance was that they played dusty songs like a brilliant version of The Way Home completely. John did all the piano parts on the guitar and added some nice leads to it. Of course The Way Home led to Coming Home, which I thought they aced - it totally rocked.
They closed their regular set with Fly High Michelle and New Thing. Since they had been on stage in less than an hour I was pretty confident that they would return for encores. The first encore was introduced as "A song we didn't know" and to my great surprise they kicked into Black Rain, which I never think they ever played live. They made a little mistake in the beginning, but that was overshadowed by the huge element of surprise by playing Black Rain. Chip' backing vocals on this were excellent and John Monaco did a superb job both vocal wise and on the guitar. Since we are in the home country of the Beatles, the show had to end with Revolution. The audience gave Enuff Z'nuff a huge applause, but Chip left the stage right after clearly annoyed by the troubles with his bass amplifier.
Setlist London (in order)
Saturday
Heaven Or Hell
One Step Closer to You
We're all Alright
She Wants More
Baby Loves You
The Way Home/Coming Home
Fly High Michelle
New Thing
Encores:
Black Rain
Revolution
Overall I was overwhelmed by the surprising setlist. After the show we waited for the band to appear. Chip was the first one out and he soon recognized Steen and I and promptly asked, "Have you guys come for this show or the whole Tour". Chip's face was one big smile, actually looked like the album artwork to "Welcome to Blue Island" when we in unison answered that we were there for all England dates. As a fan it warmed my heart to see how happy Chip was and he acknowledged us as fans by saying "You guys are loyal - you are always here".
Since Ricky wasn't coming out we took a chance and went to the band room backstage to say hello. Of course he was talking to some girls, but we briefly said hello. Unfortunately "The Underworld" had a club night, so they emptied the place soon after the show. Somehow, Steen and I never got out so we stayed in hope for the DJ to play some Hard Rock. After a beer and almost one-hour with Nu-metal and skater Rock we had enuff and went outside the streets of London and the first guy we bumped into was Ricky Parent in a kiosk.
Apparently the Tour bus was still there so we went there and hung out outside the bus till Monaco and Chip came out. Chip asked us if we wanted to join him and get something to eat. We found a nice fast food joint and got some Chicken Doner rolls. They were so delicious that Chip talked about them for the rest of the Tour. I got a nice talk with Chip about the production on Enuff Z'nuff albums, also got some insider information (off the record, so I won't mention that) and Chip told me about a band called "Ivory", which he produced and co-wrote songs with. The "Ivory" disc should be out on Stoney records soon and the songs should be marked by Chip's co-writing. Also he mentioned a project called "Super Nobody" with Chip in charge and he would try to get various singers on the album. Hopefully Donnie Vie and Robin Zander among others.
Chip was in a great mood and entertained everyone from the staff to customers at the fast food joint. The Crash Kelly guys joined us and we all got some laughs, when Chip did his stand up comedy thing. Later we went outside and Chip did some requests on pot prices among the local dealers, who hung out at the corner. At around 2 o'clock we called it a night and we said goodbye to Chip just on the corner of where the Tour bus was parked. As we went down the street I saw a couple of guys running in our direction and jokingly I said to Steen, that they were probably after Chip.
When we hooked up with Chip the next day at soundcheck in Newcastle we found out that it was the truth. Apparently 8 guys jumped on him trying to steal his money. Luckily people on the tour bus came to Chip's rescue and he was not hurt or influenced by the incident.
Newcastle, Crash & Burn - Thursday November 20th (Written by Steen)
Woke up with a major headache... Yesterdays show was still ringing in my head (But in the good way). Well, no time for headaches... Gotta get ready for todays show in Newcastle. Luckily I didn't have to think too hard today as our new found friend and drinking buddy Matt, was driving Michael and I up there. A 7 hour drive with Enuff Z'nuff on the speakers was just what I needed to get ready for the show. That and a nice nap on the back seat.
After a little pathfinding in Newcastle's lower east side (the more shady area) we arrived at the venue around six. A nice bar with a stage in the corner. Enuff Z'nuff had just finished their soundcheck when we walked in the door, but we were allowed to get a drink and sit down and listen to Crash Kelly and Drugdealer Cheerleader do theirs. Now was finally the time to meet up with my old friend from two years ago, Newcastle Brown Ale. While the bartender advised Michael not to drink more than 6-7 of these, I didn't think much of that advice as they tasted really goood. This reunion had some quite interesting side effects on my mental condition later that evening I must say. Mental note: Always listen to the wise bartender...
People started dropping by when the doors officially opened at Seven, but not nearly enough to fill the place. My estimate said that only around 40 people showed up. This was just enough to fill up the area right around the bar and this was where people seemed to be stuck for the whole night.
Drugdealer Cheerleader set the stage on fire with a very enthusiastic concert. I was impressed with their energized performance and they tried their best to get the crowd going, but to no avail. There was no crowd! Everybody were staying at the bar. While their music had not quite captured my attention yet, it was certainly fun watching them. Especially lead singer Hilda was completely energized, doing flying karate kicks (An interesting version of The Crane from Karate Kid), air boxing and lots of jumping up and down. I stayed in the lounge area drinking beers, relaxing and getting ready for Enuff Z'nuff, but I certainly regret that now, knowing the development that happened in the next few days.
Crash Kelly didn't seem too bothered by the low turnout and played a good concert with the highlight being the already contagious 11 cigarettes. They did what every good opening act should, rocked the place and got us in an even better mood for tonight's highlight, Enuff Z'nuff...
Around the time Enuff Z'nuff hit the stage I was having flashbacks to their legendary show in Carlisle two years ago when only 40 people were there. This night was the same, but tonight everybody except Michael, Alec, Matt and I stayed at the bar area. In Carlisle it felt like Enuff Z'nuff playing to a small gathering of their closest friends. Here in Newcastle it felt like having Enuff Z'nuff playing in my own living room, just for me. Well, we were there to show them our support and so we did... With a nice big area to jump around in and no one nearby to jump into by mistake we did our best singing along and trying to give some energy back to the guys on stage, who I must admit overall seemed a bit down.
Comparing to the London show the sound was much better this night. The setlist pretty much had the same songs, but had been completely shuffled around and that gave the show a nice element of surprise. Opening with a great powerful version of Baby loves you we were kickstarted in to a jumping frenzy. The people at the bar must have thought we were mental. Even though Monaco was suffering from several diseases he did a great job covering both guitar and vocals this night. I was impressed with the way he handles both lead vocals and guitar at the same time, very professional. Though I wish he would have some more energy on stage, it was only understandable with the condition he was in. The good sound and the special atmosphere of being so very close to the band gave the show a one of a kind feel. Downpoints to the show was the short playing time of just around 40-50 minutes with no encores. I don't blame the guys because of the low turnout, but they really didn't show much enthusiasm during the show, though they shined momentarily. Highlights included One step closer to you which was very fitting this night and again we got a great version of Black Rain which has turned out to be a great live song.
She wants more works great live too, coming off really heavy but my personal highlight was hearing It's no good performed semi acoustically.
While I missed a Saturday and Sanibel Island, which both were on the set list, I enjoyed the show immensely. Before we left Denmark we were not sure if we'd make it to this gig in Newcastle, but I am happy that we went there to show our support. While the band didn't deliver their best performance on the tour, it was an improvement on the opening gig in London, and that was good enough for me.
Setlist (No way in the right order...)
Baby Loves You
She Wants More
New Thing
Fly High Michelle
It's No Good
We're All Alright
Heaven or Hell
Way Home/coming home
One Step Closer To You
Black Rain
After the show we hung around a little while and I met up with Claire who I had met on the tour in 2001. It was really cool meeting people after two years and still it seemed like only yesterday... I was feeling kind of dehydrated after the show so, what else could I do but grab another Newcastle Brown, before leaving for what was to become one of the biggest events of the tour, the afterparty at Alec's pub!
Alec had been kind enough to let the three of us sleep at his pub, but he also decided to re-open the pub and invite all three bands to come and party with us that night! Michael, Matt and I followed Alec on the 30 minute drive to his pub where Enuff Z'nuff, Crash Kelly and Drugdealer Cheerleader would arrive a little later. Alec opened the pub and started serving very cheap beers, I sat down in a comfy chair with my ice cold Newcastle Brown Ale and waited for the bands to arrive. I had an eerie feeling that the guy driving the bus would not be able to find this place as it seemed to be in the middle of nowhere in the darkness, but sure enough, suddenly a special atmosphere filled the room as the guys from Enuff Z'nuff, Crash Kelly, Drugdealer Cheerleader walked through the door. The atmosphere was very relaxed as people gathered around tables and talked about all kind of things.
So many funny, cool and embarrassing things happened that I can't get into all of them. But cheers to Matt for stepping behind the bar and serving beer like a true professional. A big cheer also goes to Eddie, the roadie from Drugdealer Cheerleader (Nice guy Eddie) for getting even drunker than I did. Don't worry the pictures will not see this side of the Internet :)
As the evening turned into night Michael and I found out that the guys from Drugdealer Cheerleader and Crash Kelly were extremely nice, down to earth and cool dudes. Talking to them made me realise that they were like us, people who wanted nothing more than to rock, have a good time and people to enjoy their music. Being especially interested in our opinion of their music and their performance we were brutally honest and I felt a mutual respect was established between us.
At one point I got to sit down and have a very cool chat with Chip, talking about what it would take to get an Enuff Z'nuff concert together in Denmark one day. A project that didn't seem impossible at all, so someday, when the time is right we will make this happen.
Sometime during the night the Newcastle Brown Ale were beginning to have an interesting effect on my brain and I found myself walking around the pub crashing in on random conversations with a very loud Monty Python quote. I will not get into all the details but it seemed like "Drop you panties Sir William, I cannot wait till lunchtime" was an audience favorite. The guys from Drugdealer Cheerleader and coolest tour manager ever, "Lightning Chris" joined in for some fun too and we had a most excellent time. From this day on, I was known to Chris as "Sir William!!!" which he would call out whenever he spotted me and I of course would return the obvious reply ....
I will not get into my antics later in the night. Let me just say that Matt gave me a vivid description the next day. To say the least I was pretty embarrassed when we left Alec's pub and was not at all sure that I should ever drink Newcastle Brown Ale again...
Alec, you know how to put a party together man! The night turned out to be a really special experience and a definite highlight of the tour. So thanks Alec, we hail you!
Nottingham, Junction 7, Friday November 21th (written by Michael)
A bit tired, but still in heaven after last night's fabulous aftershow party. On the ride from Newcastle to Nottingham Matt, Steen and I all shared individual experiences of the great party.
The Nottingham show was a late show in British terms, which meant show start at 9 o'clock. We went to the venue early, since there was a nice bar downstairs. First guy we spot is Chip wearing a cool flurry hat. Chip waves at me and yells out loud "Have you heard the great news - We are coming to your country to play a concert" I must have looked like a big question mark, since it came a total surprise with Enuff Z'nuff in Denmark. Of course my partner in crime, Steen, forgot to tell me that at the afterparty Chip offered that Enuff Z'nuff would play in Denmark as a special favor for us. We got a very favorable price and all we needed was to supply a drum kit, PA system and a venue of course. So if anyone from Denmark reads this and is interested in helping setting this up, please send an e-mail.
I reinforced my already strong relation with Chip, when he gave me his personal phone number to call him in Chicago. Chip left for soundcheck and the Crash Kelly guys came downstairs. Great guys. Got a lesson in the great country Canada from a chat with Crash Kelly drummer Scotto. Monaco also came down to hang out. We all asked how he was feeling today. Monaco had been to the hospital the day before they left for England and clearly still in pain, so we were all worried when the poor guy said that he felt worse than yesterday.
A really cool thing about the UK Tour was the fans you met. All of them were really nice people with the same passion for Enuff Z'nuff. Before this show we had a few beers with top bloke Colin, Chicago resident Cara and overall we met a lot of familiar faces from Enuff Z'nuff last headliner Tour in 2001.
The actual venue was on top floor of the bar. It was really small with the stage at the end of the room and a bar taking up the whole left side. The first band on tonight's bill was the local band "The Plastics". Somehow Drugdealer Cheerleader wasn't on tonight's bill, which was a shame. After last nights party I realized that those guys were really nice guys and I wanted to give them a second chance by being open-minded to their music. Even though Drugdealer Cheerleader didn't play, they all showed up in person to hang out at the venue. Respect!
Crash Kelly hit the stage and it was obvious that this was their homebase in England. Quite a few people knew the words to their songs. Since Newcastle I had been thinking about the story plot of 11 Cigarettes, which is a story about a 16 year old boy, who gave his Hanoi Rocks limited edition single Don't You Ever Leave Me to a girl, who soon after broke his heart. Suddenly I realized that the song was about Sean himself. After 11 Cigarettes, which was introduced as a country and western song, it was time for some kick ass rock 'n' Roll and the band blasted out Movie. They changed the order of the setlist, but the finish was again Irish Blessings 95 and Waiting for an Alibi. Crash Kelly's reproduced the classic Thin Lizzy twin guitar sound quite well. Just as I thought the show was over they played a punk tune called Disgusteen. Really a kick ass live track. Bass player Ky Anto is the punk rock element on stage, while Sean is a great performer with a great stage presence. Guitar player Allister Thompson is the opposite of the 2 performers, since he is quiet and rarely moves on stage. However, he seems to be into the music and his vocals are a plus to Crash Kelly's live sound. Crash Kelly also filmed the concert for an upcoming DVD.
We were all in a great mood, since Enuff Z'nuff also were about to film their concert for a DVD, so we expected a stellar performance. With a little help from Newcastle Brown Ale as well, we had a great time and in between the bands we shot some hilarious group photos and it's true that every picture tells a story. Thanks to Matt, Colin, the 2 Andy's, Drugdealer Cheerleader + busdriver, Eddie, Cara, Crash Kelly and the great Tour manger Chris for posing on the priceless photos.
Drugdealer Cheerleader + Bus driver and two fans
Enuff Z'nuff didn't go on stage before 15 minutes to midnight and with the strict curfews in England we already knew that it was going to be a short show. They played the same songs as in London, but changed the order. Enuff Z'nuff started out with Baby Loves You. On stage Chip wore his Police hat from the New Thing video and Monaco was again well dressed in suit and tie. John wore some big sunglasses, which made him look like something from an alien movie. After Baby Loves You John desperately looked for eye contact with either Chip or Ricky, since he apparently didn't know what song was next. I could lip-read Ricky shouting Heaven Or Hell to him.
Since they were filming for a DVD I expected the band to be on fire, but there was tension between the band members on stage. The flow of the concert was a bit ruined because after each song John turned to Chip or Rick to find out what song was up next. There was no interaction between Chip, Ricky and Monaco. An example was during New Thing, where Monaco after the first chorus turned his back to the audience and the mike stand. Chip tried to get eye contact with him whether he should sing second verse as he sometimes does. There was no interaction between the two and Chip sang the second verse. However, they sounded great. The small venue was packed with a little less than 200 people. We all cheered for them to return for encores and they did Revolution with Sean from Crash Kelly on guitar. Monaco signaled to Sean to play a solo and Sean seemed a bit surprised, but played a solo after which Monaco took over and played an amazing solo. Monaco is an amazing guitarist. For final song they played Saturday, which Monaco once again aced vocal wise. His voice sounds not that far from Donnie's.
There were no surprising elements this time. Personally I requested Chip to play Sanibel Island and Mary Anne Lost Her Baby. I think Enuff Z'nuff played it safe, which I totally understand, since the show was being filmed.
After complaining a little bit to the bar owner about the early closing hours we headed home. Just outside the club I met Sean and since I got a revelation from 11 Cigarettes I impolitely had to interrupt his conversation with a girl to ask him if he ever got the Hanoi Rocks record back. He promptly answered "Never did, Mike" and as the sensitive guy I am it nearly broke my heart hearing that. I promptly said something unwise, that it was a loose/loose situation then. Hope Sean forgives me for the punctual comments, but I was just so moved by both the story and the great melody.
Sheffield, Corporation - Saturday, November 22nd (Written by Steen)
Woke up with a headache... We quickly left Igloo Backpackers and went to the club to meet Colin who had offered us a ride to Sheffield. After a couple of detours we finally found the hotel Colin was staying in. Being the great guy that he is, he offered us to crash on the floor of his room for the night. After a little thought we decided that there were no downpoints to that plan. Free accommodation means more money for beers, so the deal was settled.
England had won the Rugby World Cup that morning so the pub where we went to get something to eat had some loud singing Englishmen, who were thrown out for being too loud... It was nice for a change to watch some drunken people instead of being one of them. Later in the afternoon we had a little party in our hotel room with some gin and vodka, we had brought from home. Funniest moment was hearing Colin calling his wife and telling her he was not sure he would survive the night if we kept on pouring drinks for him.
We left early hoping to get a chance to meet the bands before the show and maybe get a view from inside the tour bus, and sure enough the tour bus was right there, parked outside the venue. We waited outside for a little while but Chip quickly spotted us and gestured for us to come inside. We went for the door to the bus like a band of rabid wolves. Being locked from the inside we could only wait in excitement as Chip made his way downstairs and opened the door, welcoming us into the bus with a big bear hug. We took a seat in the downstairs area and talked a little to Chip. The other guys were going for food and soon Ricky returned with a sandwich for Chip. I must say it was quite an experience watching my idol eat a sandwich "The Chip way" (Michael's definition). I have never seen anything like it. Chip sure knows how to entertain. Leaving to get his hands washed we hung around for a little while before heading inside the venue. We couldn't miss Drugdealer Cheerleader!!! Maybe we would get a chance to see the top floor of the bus tomorrow?
The venue was really weird today. The bar was taking up half the room and the stage was raised maybe 1 meter above the floor, with the speakers standing on the floor on level with the audience. Still the venue was a little bigger than Nottingham. The sound was extremely loud, but quite clear all things considered.
Got a beer in the bar and headed for the front to enjoy Drugdealer Cheerleader. Their music was having an interesting effect on me, getting better and better with each listen and this show was one of their best on the tour. Michael and I were in the first row enjoying the show, pogoing up and down, singing along and doing the infamous windmill, fully synchronized with lead singer Hilda (almost). Once again the energy oozed of the stage and top marks goes to all band members for kicking ass this night. Songs like Give give give me more more more and Playing with a razor had gotten under my skin by now and I enjoyed them more more and more.
Crash Kelly put on a cool rocking show as well. I had to go to the bathroom the entire concert, but I just felt like I couldn't leave in the middle of their set. Just needed one more song. My bladder situation made me pretty still during the show, so there was time to watch the band enjoy themselves on stage. Especially Sean (Vocals, Guitar) had a great attitude, including some outrageous facial expressions. It was great to watch a guy so into his music. Overall the band did another excellent show with the still infectous 11 cigarettes, but also the melodic Easy and the fifth being my personal highlights. We even got a little sing a long to celebrate the rugby victory.
I had just gotten the most amazing pink strawberry drink when Enuff Z'nuff hit the stage...
As soon as the first notes were played it was clear that Monaco was feeling much better today and it seemed like he had found some huge source of energy, especially during the first part of the show. The first four songs were the absolute highlight of the whole tour and gave a great vision of what the band could do if everything turned out right for them. Monaco gave it all he had and if this is a sign of how he performs when he is feeling well, there is a great showman hidden in him. Opening with a powerful version of Saturday was only fitting. It really got the crowd going and showed what a perfect show opener this song is. Heaven or Hell and We're all allright kept Michael and I singing our hearts out while doing our very own "out of beat" pogo. During the first songs Monaco was all over the place, climbing on the speakers for a solo spot, urging the crowd to sing along and generally coming of a real frontman, turning people on to the band. This was what I had been hoping to see for the whole tour.
Baby loves you started out as a killer version with everything going for it, but I felt that the slower middle part was too stretched out and it seemed to drag the crowd a little down from their ecstatic mood. During this song some tension between Chip and Monaco started showing again and it lasted though the rest of the show. Sometimes this tension gave the show some extra power, but other times it took some of the magic away. I felt a little uneasy watching the antics on stage, thinking "Why can't these guys just enjoy themselves instead of bitching at each other all the time."
Still we got a very entertaining show with the first part being the highlight, but also songs like The way home / Coming home, Black Rain and One step closer came off really well tonight. But with only one encore, no new songs on the setlist and the obvious tension on stage I still felt like something was missing. Still, the best show of the tour so far.
Well, I couldn't stand around getting all dehydrated, so I went straight for the bar for another pink strawberry drink... After the show the venue turned into the most excellent Hard Rock club I have ever been to. I noticed people disappearing from the bar area and they all seemed to be going through the same back door. Walking through a door behind the bar I walked into a huge hall where DJ's were playing Hard Rock all night. This was where we spent the rest of the night partying with Drugdealer Cheerleader, Eddie, Cara, Colin and all the other friends we had met until the place closed.
Not knowing a lot of the songs that were played, the highlight for me was when they finally played some Metal. (Note from Michael: The bands played were Mötley Crüe, Faster Pussycat, Ratt, Poison, Vain, Quireboys, Wildhearts, Def Leppard etc. all based in the Hard Rock/Glam/Sleaze style). Hearing the opening notes of Master of Puppets I jumped onto the dance floor and quickly found a group of fellow headbangers. We went completely crazy during this song and when the DJ continued with Maiden's Fear of the dark and we started singing even louder things were getting out of control. Ozzy's Crazy train was the last "Metal" song of the evening, I guess we were a little too crazy. I must send a big Hail to the guy who, in the midst of my wild "dance" poked me on the shoulder and said he had found this camera on the floor and if it was mine... Yes, I had apparently lost my camera during one of the three songs. Too much jumping had completely broken the belt clip I found out later. How fortunate that no one had jumped on it. If I had lost the camera there would have been no pictures on this report, so I hail you, unknown Metal man.
When the club closed around 3 we went back to the hotel to get some sleep. As always I was really hungry, so when I spotted a kebab grill bar right down the street from the hotel I naturally went for the chicken nuggets without a second thought. What then happened will be censored forever, but this certainly was another fantastic day on the tour of the year.
Setlist
Saturday
Heaven or hell
We're all alright
Baby loves you
She wants more
One step closer
The way home / Coming home
Black rain
New thing
Stourbridge, Rock Cafe 2000, Sunday November 23th (written by Michael)
In my opinion the Sheffield show was absolutely amazing. Johnny Monaco was all happy and the great response he got from the audience just encouraged him to deliver an even better performance.
We got a ride with Colin and were accompanied by Drugdealer Cheerleader's super Roadie Eddie. We were all a bit tired from yesterdays great party at Sheffield's Rock club, but we put Enuff Z'nuff "Favorites" on the car stereo and forgot all about 4 days lack of sleep. Almost unbelievable how fast the 4 days had gone and how much I enjoyed myself hanging out with great people and each night experiencing my favorite band in concert along with 2 other top class bands. A bit sad that it was the last day of the tour, but we had to make it a night to remember then.
After finding a place to stay we joined Colin for a beer at his hotel. We had only been there for about 15 minutes when Tour manager Chris walked in with Allister and Scotto from Crash Kelly. They had also booked a room, so after taking care of business, a busy Chris took time to sit down and join us for a beer. Gotta love Chris since he also is a huge fan of Enuff Z'nuff owning all their albums both on CD, vinyl and cassettes. Chris was quite interested about the possibility of playing Denmark and we had a nice chat about that, while we all were sober. So a gig in Denmark is absolute possible. We also got an insight in the life of a Tour manager, which is hard work.
We went to our to our room to get a shower and a drink. I turned on the TV and while zapping through the channels for some music; it was either a Robbie Williams live concert or the gospel channel. Of course we took the gospel channel and from above (god?) we got the first Enuff Z'nuff sign of the day. Some dude started the same song, which Donnie Vie used as intro lines to his Jesus in Drag. The second sign of the day came, when we got outside our hotel heading for the venue. The first thing we noticed was a huge sign from an industry hall across the street, which had a billboard saying "Paraphernalia". A coincidence? - I think not.
As usual both Drugdealer Cheerleader and Crash Kelly hung out before the show. I walked around and made sure that they didn't leave without saying proper goodbye, since it was the last show.
First band on the bill was Deadline, who also played in Sheffield. Deadline sounded like an AOR band with an Eddie Van Halen wannabe guitarist, similar to Journey. I though they were better in Sheffield though. The turn out for the show was not impressive, but from walking around the city you could easily tell that this wasn't the Rock capital of mid-England. Also it was Sunday night - so it was against all odds to draw a huge audience.
Drugdealer Cheerleader
I should be mad at Drugdealer Cheerleader, because after their convincing performance at Sheffield it was stressful to be at the show. Now there were 3 great bands and with only 10-15 minutes between each band it left little time to refill our beer, go to the toilet and talk to other fans.
Drugdealer Cheerleader kicked off their show with energetic singer Hilda running and jumping on stage with a wild look in his eyes, while singing "Playing with a Razor" - not the kind of guy you wanted to open your door to if he was selling lottery tickets. However, Hilda always had a huge smile on his face and you gotta love a guy, who choose EZN's Right By Your Side among the songs played at his wedding.
First I thought that Drugdealer Cheerleader were too punk, but after a few shows I learned that it was just a kick ass edge that worked perfectly live. Bass player Marty and Guitarist Neil were also brilliant on stage. A highlight was the three of them jumping up and down with one's feet close together for Give Give Give Me More More More. Actually a cover song, but a great melodic tune, which both Steen and I still hum to this day. Ringo is a solid drummer, who laid the foundation to their Rock 'n' Roll and also did backing vocals.
After partying with these guys for 5 days, you got to give the band creditability, when they perform a song with the meaning title Up all Night. The show ended with Secrets, where Drugdealer Cheerleader invented their little niche to get people going with windmills in best Pete Townsend style.
Overall Drugdealer Cheerleader's show were marked by high energy and their show can be described with one of their song titles: Maximum Power.
Drugdealer Cheerleader setlist - used at all shows
Razor
Out of Sight
Don't Show Me
Maximum Power
Up All Night
Give Give Give Me More More More
Disneyize
Secrets
Crash Kelly
With excitement I looked forward to the final episode of Crash Kelly and once again the nice Canadians delivered the goods.
Sean Kelly is a true pleasure to watch on stage. He has a cool attitude and while playing a great guitar riff or solo he always had to pout. As stated earlier 11 Cigarettes really got to me and forever I will consider the song as the Tour soundtrack. To show my appreciation and enthusiasm about Crash Kelly, I had told that to Sean several times and on stage Sean actually dedicated 11 Cigarettes to Steen and I.
For the last shows Crash Kelly had been trying out a new song and it grew on you, so in Stourbridge I really enjoyed the song, which is in the same vein as the "Penny Pills" songs. Another highlight was the title track, which is influenced by the old Glam style. Sean had a routine by pointing at various girls for the ending, which is a repetition of "Girls like you never seem to go away".
Crash Kelly got to play 35 minutes and songs like Love Me Electric, She Gets Away and Wanna Be Like You are pure rock 'n' roll songs, which potential is fully unfolded performed live in concert.
This was bass player Ky Anto last show as well, since his main band Robin Black should join the Tour for the Ireland dates. On last song Disgusteen Sean introduced the bass player, who would play with them in Ireland and he played bass on Disgusteen, while Ky helped Allister on backing vocals.
Enuff Z'Nuff
After Enuff Z'Nuff's kick ass performance in Sheffield expectations were high. Monaco went to the mike stand to adjust it and though he barely touched it, the microphone felt down on the floor. People gave John a big applause and upon last night's success Monaco seemed recharged, so he took the accident with a big smile.
They started out with Baby Loves You and during the middle play with "Love me tonight" Monaco handed over his guitar to Tour manager/guitar technician Chris and tried to get the audience up for a sing-along. Monaco has made his own lines for the middle play to Baby Loves You and the part was almost too long, but it was nice to see Monaco act as frontman.
On the intro to We're all Alright I watched a smiling Ricky Parent behind his drumkit and realized how hard he actually hits his drums. I didn't see Ricky much on this Tour, but when he is on stage behind the kit he always plays fantastic. After the first 5-6 songs John Monaco took a break and asked the audience what they wanted to hear. Steen and I soon replied by singing out "Sanibel Island waits, We're gonna have a ball". However, John just smiled at us and started Vacant Love instead. Great with some variation, since the setlist for this show was the same as the other shows with Vacant Love switching place in favor of Revolution.
Chip once again gave a lesson in playing a 12 string bass. Saturday was once again among the greatest, since the power rocker fits the 3-piece band. The last song was once again Black Rain, which you cannot get enuff of. Another brilliant version even though they made a mistake in the beginning. Later on the Tour bus Chip and Monaco were talking about who made the mistake and Monaco wanted me to settle it. I simply told them that it sounded like John hit the wrong guitar pedal for intro and it think I was right, since Monaco agreed without complaining. However, digging out a song like Black Rain is one of the strong points of the trio. They play songs that Enuff Z'Nuff never did with Donnie. That also makes it a bit harder to compare the 2 line-ups.
Songs played (almost in order)
Baby Love You
Heaven or Hell
We're All Alright
She Wants More
Vacant Love
One Step Closer to You
The Way Home
Coming Home
Saturday
Fly High Michelle
New Thing/Black Rain
After the show we had to say goodbye to great guys in Drugdealer Cheerleader plus their driver and super roadie Eddie. The good-byes made me realize that this amazing Tour was coming to an end. Hung out with Sean Kelly and took some last pictures to immortalize the great memories. When the venue closed Chip asked if we wanted to come on the bus. Of course we would. We went to the upstairs lounge and to be honest we were all a bit tired from 5 eventful days. Monaco circulated between the upstairs and the downstairs lounge. We all sat and listened to The Darkness, which Chip bought on the first night of the Tour at 6 o'clock in the morning at a gas station. Overall there was a big buzz about The Darkness. Chip went to his bunk to get some CD's from his private collection among them Enuff Z'nuff with Neal Schon and a mixed CD's with Ivory (the band Chip produced and co-wrote with) plus some songs off his SuperNobody project. Unfortunately we didn't get to hear them, since Ky Anto from Crash Kelly was the DJ and he was playing his own bands Crash Kelly and Robin Black. Chip asked when they should play in Denmark, since he was up for doing it as soon as January. I couldn't give him a date yet, since it still was new and a bit unreal to me.
At 3 o'clock we said goodbye to Chip and Ky Anto. We went downstairs and said properly goodbye to Sean Kelly, who was a big part of making this Tour so fantastic. John Monaco had joined the Crash Kelly guys and he even gave me a hug for flying in for the Tour. I thanked John for some great shows and we left the Tour bus with Chip waving goodbye from the top floor window.
| You can click most of the pictures for a bigger version.
Drugdealer Cheerleader
Crash Kelly
Sean Kelly
Monaco
Chip
Ricky
Newcastle
Guess how many people are hiding behind the camera...
Alec, Matt, Eddie and the two Vikings
Nottingham
Sheffield
Stourbridge
A true fan
All pictures taken by Michael & Steen | Written by Michael & Steen
Wednesday, December 17, 2003 |
This article has been shown 9347 times. Go to the complete list.
RevelationZ Comments
| Comment by andrew knight (Anonymous) - Thursday, December 18, 2003 | (Another) Great interview and review lads.
I hope to finally catch up with you when you come back for the next gig.
Keep up the awesome web site, and great pictures.
Andy
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| Comment by cyrinda foxe-shepard (Anonymous) - Friday, December 19, 2003 | i hail you wonderful lads that you could devote yourselves to this tour. LOVED the pics. monaco looked quite sharp..nice image revamp for him. the bass player w the thunderbird looks very hot. did he wear any underwear?
xx
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| Comment by Traci (Anonymous) - Friday, December 19, 2003 | GREAT report, guys! I haven't seen EZN "live" for almost 2 years now, and you inspired me to look into future local dates...
Michael, as always, you take a helluva picture, (keep in touch, OK?)...
You guys have a great magazine here.
Peace~
Traci "MisWis"
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| Comment by Andy B (Anonymous) - Sunday, December 21, 2003 | Great review guys. Makes me wish I'd made the Newcastle and Stourbridge shows too (gutted to miss Vacant Love especially).
Thanks for being top dudes and look forward to coming to Denmark for the show there. (You never know, it may happen!)
Cheers
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| Comment by Sean (Anonymous) - Monday, December 22, 2003 | Wow guys...you've done a great job of documenting this tour, and reading the article brought back great memories of the tour and of meeting you guys!
Crash Kelly is currently looking into doing some dates in Denmark..I'll definitely keep you posted!
Happy Holidays!
Sean
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| Comment by Scotto (crash kelly) (Anonymous) - Tuesday, December 30, 2003 | Great to read this article,and look at the pics....it brings back fond memories of a fantastic tour!! Great to have had you gentlemen along for the ride !!Untill we meet again!!CHEEEERS!!
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| Comment by Allister (Anonymous) - Saturday, January 3, 2004 | Thanks guys-
You seem to understand the vibe of our band quite well. Thanks to you and to the DDCL and Enuff Znuff lads for the good times.
Allister
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| Comment by Claire (Anonymous) - Sunday, January 4, 2004 | Your right - it was cool meeting up again. The gigs were great, really like Drugdealer Cheerleader.
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| Comment by Ringo (Anonymous) - Wednesday, January 7, 2004 | It's all been said, but I'll say it again...great tour, great to make new friends, great to meet cool people, great hospitality, one great big paaarrrrtttyyyyyy!
Hope to see you all again soon!
Ringo
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