Setlist

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17	London's Burning 1977 Pressure Drop I'm So Bored With The USA Hate and War Cheat White Riot Police and Thieves Capital Radio Deny Remote Control Career Opportunities Janie Jones Garageland What's My Name 1977 White Riot

White Riot Tour with the Jam, Buzzcocks, Slits and Subway Sect.

updated July 2024

Audio - 'Feelin Groovy'

Sound 3 - 53min - low gen? - Tracks 17

*Feeling Groovy cdr also includes a bonus 4 Tracks broadcast on Granada TV's So it Goes from the gig at Manchester Belle Vue 15 November 1977.

Capital Radio

Quality

This good audience recording (this particular flavour going under the title Feelin Groovy) captures that energy and fury. The older tape had a longer intro, a tune up and intro, but was slightly more warbled. Both suffer copyitus, though I know of no better version in circulation than Feeling Groovy cdr (which has 4 Belle Vue. 15 Nov tracks from the Sort it Out UK-Granada TV programme).

The recording captures the instrumentation and particularly the vocals well but suffers from top end distortion. Its nevertheless an enjoyable listen and the sound improves a notch after the edited Deny track.

"Bet you people are only here cos you can't get eagles tickets for tonight"

"Bet you people are only here cos you can't get eagles tickets for tonight. Anyhow we'd like to do this first song for the 30 people who were here last time" ….Birmingham's Burning Joe screams…

Less than 7 months after a small, confused audience at Barbarellas watched in near silence (5 Go Mad In The Roundhouse CD), here was a packed , noisy audience to see this third gig of the White Riot Tour . Thanks to the media frenzy the punk explosion was rapidly gaining momentum and notoriety across Britain.

As Joe has since said this was the most exciting Clash period for him, punk was breaking out of the club scene and it must have seemed like they were riding a tidal wave of energy, political change and youth anger that would sweep away the old music establishment.

There is none of the later professionalism, pacing, stage craft (as Mick would put it) and musicianship just short bursts of manic energy, chaos and noise. Their aim was to explode musically on stage, check out the second White Riot here, a suitable case for the bomb squad

Clash Ad April 1977

Andrew Brookes - I've still got the original poster that I took off the wall after the gig. I did have 2 but gave one away the original poster that I took off the wall after the gig

"you're only here cos you could'nt get Eagles tickets!"

After Joe teases the packed crowd with "you're only here cos you couldn't get Eagles tickets!" the band canters into Birminghams Burning. The band on this the third night have a more relaxed sedate pace than later dates (manicness check Manchester) or even Guildford, the opening night. By the time they get to I'm so Bored with the USA , the band seem playful and relaxed. The fractionally more funcky approach is evident with a classic stroll through Hate and War, Mick confidently shouting the lyrics, an absent feature at Guildford on the opening night.

Joe shouts repeatedly "groovy, groovy", before Pressure Drop; words not normally heard in the punk vocabulary! "This is song called Cheat" shouts Joe. The tempo upped one notch. "We gonna play a recent pop song that didn't get to number one" as White Riot is played as just another song.

"Now at this point your gonna get the Clash pop opera, are the intellectuals here, the ones who got into Birmingham University, (yeah!!) well done feller's" precedes a thoughtful, chilled Police & Thieves, a highlight, with excellent lead guitar from Mick. Topper drives the beat whilst Mick chokes back his guitar.

There is an edit before Capital Radio as you can hear the radio held up to the mike by Joe, for a few seconds before the opening chords rip in. This was an introduction often used for this song, to highlight how boring radio was then (and now).

After some Joe spiel in which he suggests, "I suspect you will disappointed if we give you a love song", the band go up a couple of notches and rip into a tape edited Deny on the old copy (which is followed by a complete version).

Feeling Groovy cdr has just an edited together complete version and the sound improves in clarity from here, but only by a notch.

Remote Control CBS politics is derided before and after by; ‘We've just been told this is our new single.lets hear it for artistic integrity, from now on we're The Sweet, or maybe Chicory Tip!'. The band inject some anger in the performance from this point. A rousing Career Opportunities follows with Joe almost shouting the words and whole band bellowing the last chorus.

She's in love with a rock n roll world - as Topper bashes the band into Janie Jones which is greeted by the biggest applause so far.

A small edit ocurrs before Garageland which is dedicated to all those "trying to get your own crummy groups together". The audience is shouting all sorts (as they have generally throughout) at this stage as the band have a long interlude. "You'd better watch out if you spit at me now" warns Joe before the band overload the sound with a powerful Garageland. There is some distortion at this point but is made up for by energy… Joe alters the last few words. Joe seems to taunt the audience after that and a lot of abuse flies about in another long interlude.

The final three encore songs are played particularly furiously and one voice shouts out from the audience, "you're the Westway wonders"

The band finally kicks in with a real short thumping version of Whats My Name, like Garageland there is more distortion, though still easily listenable. Round the back of your house at night….this is f/b a loud anthemic 1977 with a subtle short instrumental middle. This is all ended with a screamingly loud and fast White Riot.

Birmingham Barbarellas, Birmingham Music Archive:

Link or Archived PDF

Barbarella's is one of Birminghams legendary venues. It stood on the site of what is now the RBS Bank in Brindley Place. If memory serves me right, the address was 37 Cumbernauld St.

Sarah Blyther - I was at that one. Fabulous night, remember them opening up with Birmingham's burningLoved Barbs saw many bands there.

Keith Rickett - Was there great gig. My first. I was by stage and some of me m8s were on a table and it collapsed Joe stopped gig to ask if they were OK great times !

Tony Porter - I was there

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