Culture Club Tour In Dublin Ireland December 2nd, 1998
By Glen Cunningham
This is an account of the Irish gigs that Culture Club played here recently, it was a wonderful 2 days as this will testify.
On Weds. the 2nd of December Culture Club played their First ever Irish gig. They were to play in Dublin the following night, but I really wanted to make the best of their visit to my country and with whispers surfacing about tensions within it may have been my only 2 chances to see all 4 on stage, so I drove the 100 or so miles up to Belfast.
I hung around outside the venue for a while on the afternoon, but not a lot seemed to be happening so I switched to the hotel, where it was much the same. I decided to call it a day on the stalking front, and waited for my friend, Lulu, who although he isn`t a big fan, quite enjoys The Boy`s works. We arrived at the Kings Hall at 18.30, 30 mins before the gates were due to open. We could hear the Human League sound checking as we parked the car, and then A.B.C. as we took our place in the queue, which to my dismay was about 70-80 people deep.
The gates opened and we piled into the arena. No-one semed too concerned about getting to the front so in the end I took my rightful place at the front, standing next to the guy who was first in the queue!! He told me that he only got there at 17.45!! The atmosphere was good although most of the people I spoke to said that they had mainly come to see the Human League!
At about 20.10 Martin Fry and ABC took to the stage, kicking off with "Show Me", before going thru` the hits like "Smokey Sings", "How To Be A Millionaire", "Look Of Love", "All Of My Heart" and more, All in all they had the stage for about 50 mins and the crowd seemed to enjoy it.
A lengthy delay followed as The Human League set up and eventually came on at 9.20. They ran thru` an excellent set, Phil Oakey looking amazingly handsome and energetic, highlights included "Mirror Man", "The Lebanon", "Fascination" "Tell Me When" and of course they finished with "Don`t You Want Me".
Then the excitement set in. I realised that I would now never again say how much I regretted never seeing Culture Club together in concert, then the lights went down and a familiar voice went "WHOOOO" .The time was 22.25 and the curtain went up. There they were Jon, the one I had thought cutest first time around, Roy, The man who brought them all back together again, and Mikey, with his trademark beaming smile, and handsome features. Zee was there, alongside her was Linda Duggan, John Themis stood behind them, Richie Stevens had the percussion duties and Chas the keyboard player.
The familiar intro for "Church Of The Poison Mind" blasted the concert into action and out came Boy George right on cue. Wearing a snazzy blue suit with Diamonte decoration and a fab blue spangly hat he was on top form. The band, as a whole seemed a little nervous as the first British tour since `84 got underway, saying little and not really interacting at all.
The hits flowed; Move Away, Tumble 4 Ya, Time, and then Some Strange Voodoo. When George started singing he was a little off key. Then out of nowhere came the quality of voice that I had never heard George sing at. It was outstanding. I wasn`t sure but I thought that he had a tear in his eyes as he sung. It was a really moving moment, listening to this song about Michael Dunne, who is of course Irish, as is George and Linda.
Then the crowds first real scream came for "DoYou Really". The band were visibly relaxing and starting to have fun. Another No1 hit followed with "Everything I own" which was a little halfhearted, and probably could be cut if thet needed to save time. "The Crying Game" followed "Because we are all getting on so well they said I could sing this". Then "I Just Wanna Be Loved".
A stunning version of "Thats The Way" showcased the stunning vocals of Zee, and an even better "Black Money" had the crowd focusing as much on Zee as George, to the delight of both of them. "It`s A Miracle" and "Miss Me Blind" and then the team disappeared. Back a couple of mins later came Roy and George, with George wearing THAT hat, and "Victims" began and one by one all the Club returned to the stage, Jon blowing George a kiss after it. There was just one song missing and that had to follow. The crowd went wild for "Karma Chameleon" and off they went again, only to return for the last song:"Starman" and off they went.
It was a great experience for me although it seemed that crowd didnt share all my enthusiasm. So we headed to the stage door to try our luck, where we spoke to Kevin O`Dowd who told us that they were still inside and would be out in about 30 mins. That seemed like a worthwhile wait so wait we did!!
Jon came out first and was very charming, to all the 20 or so people waiting. I waited for him to finish with the others and pounced!! He signed my Greatest Moments c.d. posed for a photo and chatted about the gig, saying he thought that the crowd were very reserved. Mikey followed in a bigger rush but did stop to sign my c.d.and chat about maybe doing a new album. Then out came George and Roy. Everyone jumped on poor George!! I thought it best to chat with Roy first, and he told me that doing a new album was down to George, and he signed the c.d. I finally got to George and got him to sign the new solo c.d. He said it was his first time signing this one, and to listen to track 3 as it was the best. I told him that I would listen to it in the car on the way home, and he was impressed that I had travelled up from Dublin for the concert!!I danced back to the car and drove home feeling quite contented.
Dec 3rd
The next day I went to the Royal Dublin Showgrounds, for 17.30 to get a good place in the queue. I had no need to worry, the 3 there before me wanted to see the Human League, and the next to arrive after me came at 18.20!!!
My beloved, Stuy, a mad Lesbian called Carol, and Lulu came, courtesy of some free tickets from the promoter. The gigs went much the same as the night before, with ABC and The Human League, getting HUGE applause, and me thinking that Culture Club would not get the same as surely the fans came for the preceding bands? Not at all. The reception was amazing!!
Jon recognized me from the previous night and waved and smiled, and Zee kept making faces and sticking her tongue out at me!! I didn`t think she realised that I was there the previous night as I hadn`t spoken to her. I couldn`t understand why Some Strange Voodoo was struck off the list, and when George announced that they were doin` "Do You Really" the band had a collective Heart attack!! It was supposed to be "Time", so a little improvisation was needed.
The crowd were really responding to everything and the whole thing was even better than the previous night. "Starman" came and went and it was over. And the crowd had loved them!!
I had a backstage pass, but the security was oblivious to it, and I felt bad about going in if my friends couldn`t. So it was plan B, and off to the stage door. There was no-one else around, and Jon and Mikey came out together, Jon asked me which concert I had preferred, as did Mikey and were both happy to pose for photo`s, even saying "No, take that again I looked away". They were really nice and seemed happy to chat. Then Zee came out, and she said "I saw you in Belfast, didn`t I??" We had a great chat about solo records (expect one next year, produced by George) and she was amazed that I had her solo stuff.
I asked her why Some Strange Voodoo was cut and she said "It`s crazy, they want to drop Black Money now" Lulu asked her why Helen wouldn`t do it and she was really gushing about Helen`s ability. I said "Is George still inside?" She said yeah go on in and took us in!!! First I saw Roy and had a quick chat and got some cd`s signed and another photo, and then went over to George. He was in top form. I asked him to sign some cd`s and he said "So what did you think of the new one, did you play it on the way home??". Well I was gobsmacked!!
He posed for another photo with me and thanked me for buying the records. I told him Cheapness and Beauty was his best and he said he was really pleased I like it. Too much!! So we all grabbed a beer, Believe me I needed one, and tried to chill. Roy threw his towel on the chair beside me. I grabbed my chance, "Don`t suppose I can have that as a souvenir?" I asked as he was leaving, "Course mate!" he replied.
Then George announced that he was leaving. We were standing at the door, and I said "Thanks for everything, you`re my hero!" and he kissed me !!!!!! Then he was gone. A quick hi to John Themis, Linda, and Richie, talking with Richie about the stuff with Mica Paris, and that was the night in a nutshell. It still seems too good to be true, even now when I have the photo`s to remind me, but it was truly great to meet the four men who gave me the soundtrack to my youth, and hopefully a few more years too. Here`s to the next tour.