Omaha Rainbow : Issue 22
You can imagine how well I wanted John to perform in his two concerts at The Venue in London. If you were there you won't need me to tell you how good he was. If you missed him, I can only say he was even better than I'd dared hope he would be. Yes, he really was that good.
To my astonishment I was to discover that John was deeply disappointed with the response to his first night's show. Whilst in America, I had seen John play at the beautiful Red Rocks open-air amphitheatre up in the mountains outside Denver, Colorado. Afterwards, we ate at the Howard Johnson's opposite his hotel, and John talked at length about his impending (and long overdue) return to England. He remarked on how impossible it was to reconcile the demands of his old fans with the expectations of those who have only recently discovered him through the chart successes of 'Gold' and "Bombs Away Dream Babies." It was then that I assured him the English audiences would contain a considerable proportion of long-time fans who would be very disappointed not to hear some of the old favourites.
Just four weeks later John was onstage in London. The first night's audience hung on every word as John went through a show that happily balanced the old material with the new. Just to remind those of you who were there - and to inform those who couldn't be - John's programme was as follows...
Fire in the Wind/Runaway Fool of Love/New Orleans/ Somewhere Down the Line/Daydream Believer/Moon River/ Wind on the River/All Time Woman/The Last Hurrah/ MotherCountry/Monterey/Odin (Spirit of the Water)/July You're a Woman/California Bloodlines/Chilly Winds/The Runner/Midnight Wind/Wheels of Thunder/18 Wheels/Gold.
It took me well over half-an-hour to get out of The Venue as so many people wanted to let me know how much they had enjoyed the concert. Neither they nor I knew that their obvious enthusiasm had failed to communicate to John onstage. He had intended to follow 'Gold' with 'Heart of the Dream' before bringing on Pete Thomas to play drums on a final 'Never Goin' Back'. Our collective failure to convey our enjoyment of a great show meant that John was left feeling sure he had 'blown it.'
I didn't discover any of this till I went to interview Chris Whelan at the hotel before the following evening's show. Desperately, I tried to convince him that far from having 'blown it,' the evening had been a triumph. John would not be convinced. "I know, Peter, I was there," he said with deceptive logic.
Understandably, I awaited that evening's show with some apprehension, but this was cast aside the moment John stepped onstage. His reception was tumultuous instead of reverential, and established the mood for an evening that became more boisterous and exciting the longer it went on. Here's the programme this time.
Fire in the Wind/Lost Her in the Sun/Runaway Fool of Love/Somewhere Down the Line/Daydream Believer/ California Bloodlines/July You're a Woman/On You Like the Wind/Monterey/Odin (Spirit of the Water)/The Runner/Midnight Wind/Wheels of Thunder/18 Wheels/Gold/ Heart of the Dream.
Backstage, after the show, John was understandably elated. "John's looking satisfied enough right now," I remarked to Chris Whelan. His reply was indelicate, but absolutely right. "Yeah, tonight he came. Last night was like getting a phone call in the middle of a fuck."
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I think there is little doubt that if John had been able to play those London concerts when they were originally scheduled for at the end of July, then he would have had a genuine UK hit single with 'Gold.' As it was, the record peaked at 42, and we were denied the incredulous pleasure of seeing John on Top of the Pops - something else that was scheduled for that original visit.
While I was in America this summer, 'Gold' reached the number 5 slot in the Billboard charts where it stayed for two weeks, while the album got to number l0. For a long-time fan it was amazing to hear John on the radio wherever I went. In fact, the very first time I turned on the radio 'Gold' was being played. Walking back to Roxy's from the supermarket one day in Dallas I heard 'Gold' blasting out of a garage. It was at times like that it was brought home to me just what a hit record can mean for an artist. John's show in Denver was well received, but the audience went wild as the opening chords of 'Gold' were played.
'Midnight Wind' was released as the second single just before I left America. As I write this it has begun to drop down the charts having reached a peak of two weeks at 28. In the context of 'Gold' this may be no big deal but who of us, a year ago, would have turned up our noses at anything by John achieving that status in the American charts?
Added to this, John has achieved considerable success in Canada and Australia, with both album and single going top ten in each country.
Here in the UK RSO will be releasing a third single from the album at the end of November - 'Runaway Fool of Love' b/w 'Heart of the Dream.' I'm still convinced that 'Lost Her in the Sun' could be the hit single over here if only it were released. Perhaps they feel that as the song has been at number one in the Lomax Gold Collection, anything else would be an anticlimax.
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A "Bombs Away Dream Babies" Songbook has been published in America. At present I've yet to see a copy and I gather there are no present plans to publish it over here. However, by the time I next do this column I will make sure I've secured a copy, and if it's not to come out over here I'll see what we can do about getting some copies imported. It would be helpful to know what sort of demand there would be, so do write and let me know if you would be prepared to purchase a copy.
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There's so much more I wanted to talk about in this O'Bsessions,
but space is at a premium, and what you will read on subsequent pages is
much more enlightening. Beginning on the opposite page is Roger Scott's
interview with John. I'm extremely grateful to Roger and Capital Radio
for allowing me to publish it.