Manfred Mann's Earthband - On The Road June 2001
Saturday-Monday, 1-3 June, Pfullendorf/ Fussgönnheim/ Hanau, Germany
Posted by Thorbjorn Hi :-) Eventually the day was here... Thursday 31st of May!
We (my good friend Roar and I) left our hometown Fredrikstad in Norway with one single aim: The MMEB Gigs in south Germany! The first stop was Gothenburg in Sweden for the ferry Stena Germanica which was to take us to Kiel.
Friday 1st of June and it's just turned 9 o'clock when we left the ferry. So.. where was the signs for the Autobahn? After some minutes we
found it "Hamburg 215/A7". Our journey through Germany could start. We had to drive 910 km before we reach the nice place Pfullendorf. Thanks
to Uschi there was no problem finding the place in the middle of nowhere. She had E-mailed me a good description of the road from Ulm, where
we left Autobahn. After some hours with a breakneck speed (thank you my dear Mazda!) we stopped outside the hotel 5.30 in the afternoon. The
first man I met outside the hotel was no less a person than Ian (Tompson)! He recognised me from last year and we had a nice little chat. He told
me that the Band also was staying in the hotel. (That was no joke...) Ian likes to speak in jest, but he is -STILL A VERY NICE PERSON! Inside the
hotel we met Uschi (fan-friend)who also stayed in the hotel. We decided to go out for a meal before the Gig, and we found a nice Greek
restaurant. The venue was at Seepark Linzgau only 5 minutes by car from the Hotel Adler. We entered the tent about one hour before the Gig
was to start. At the CD&T-shirt stand we saw Karin & Thomas who was responsible for the sale that evening. -It was very nice meeting you both
again! And I must mention Sebastian, Martin's son, who is only 7 years old!!! And already a fan! He stood along side us in the front row during the
hole Gig. And he applauded and cheered after every song. A great little lad - good work Martin! It was another great Gig and the atmosphere was
very good :-) For me the song: "Dancing in the dark" was new, but I liked it very much! Of course I miss "Father", but I think The band have done a
great job replacing it with "Spirits in the night". But once again... I miss "Father"! For the first time I was witness to a technical problem... the sound
disappeared under "Blinded", The Band left the stage and Ian and his crew tried to solve the problem. But the problem was the technical equipment
with the Gig organizer ( a fuse I heard later). So after 3-4 minutes the Gig went on without any more problems! After the Gig we went back to the
hotel and met Noel, Steve, Richard, Ian and the rest of the crew in the hotel night club. I had a long talk with Richard, and he told me about his
drummer career and how pleased he was to get this chance with MMEB. -You are a very kind person Richard! ... and a great drummer!!! Maybe it
sounds incredible, but Sebastian was in the night club too! It was a good mood around our table with The Band, crew, Karin&Thomas, Uschi, Martin&Sebastian, Roar and me. Saturday 2nd of June
and it was time to leave Pfullendorf and head for Fussgönnheim. But first Roar and I would like to see the castle ruin,
Hohenviel in Singen. The French men destroyed the great castle back in 1801. It was an amazing view from the top of the castle, but I nearly got
an heart attack when we climbed up to the top... I'm not a youngster anymore! The time was running and we had to be in Fussgönnheim well in
advance before the Gig. So we go at a dizzy speed towards our Gästehaus Nina in Schauernheim 350km away. Once again Uschi had make a
good job with her map and we find the place with no problem. A quick shower and a couple of beers and we was again ready for another Gig. I
asked the land-lady if she could call for a taxi, but she insisted to take us to the venue by her own car. -You Germans are so friendly :-)
Fussgönnheim was only 2-3km from Schauernheim where we stayed. Outside the tent where the Gig was to take place it was a lot of security
people. The control of each person who attended to go into the tent was very intimate. Maybe it was the wrong venue? This was maybe the tent
where The Queen of England was having her speech! Just kidding... it was the right tent and venue. But I had to leave my camera outside in the
security shed, and I had to pick it up again before 11.30 in the evening. Well inside (with no guns!) we met Uschi and she introduced us for
Reinhard & Erika, Iris, Angela, Jens & his wife and Iris & Arthur (Angelas brother). All in the front row (The Fan-Family Stand!) And of course Karin
&Thomas was there too, busy with selling CD's & T-shirts! When the Gig started Karin joined us in the front row. The Gig was on :-) Another great
one with a fantastic audience, the best one I have heard! The Gig started around 10 o'clock and I had to leave the tent before "Redemption song" to pick up my camera :-(((
So I heard the rest of the Gig outside the tent, thanks to the stupid security people. After the Gig Iris&Arthur gave us a lift back to the Gästehaus. Sunday 3rd of June
and the last Gig for us this time. The target today was Hanau 225km north/west from Fussgönnheim. Reinhard had booked a
hotel for us there and we had agreed to meet Reinhard&Erika and Uschi&Iris in the hotel at 2 o'clock. We parked outside the hotel just in time in
spite of our "journey" around Frankfurt Am Main! Erika from Hungary was also coming for this Gig and she stayed in the same hotel as us. We had
been told that the 1. Hanauer Pfingstrock in The Irish Park was to start at 3 o'clock, but there was no hurry because The Band should go on stage
around 8.30. So we decided to have something to eat first. The choice was an Italian restaurant, but forget asking how the food tasted :-(
The weather forcast for the evening was not the best, and this was to be an Open Air Gig! We arrived the Park in a taxi and it was raining, and
there I saw a poster... "Bei regen im festzelt!" Perfect :-) And I assumed that The Queen of England had left the country, because no security this
time! We had a look around before we went into the Irish Pub for a beer and coke. We sat down and had a nice coversation about The Band and
"everything else". And Roar told "The Fan-Family" that he was a Led Zeppelin fan !??? But now he had finally become a true MMEB fan :-) After a
few beer time was come to enter the tent, and as always in the front row. After a "crazy" warm-up band, The Band was ready to give us
another great Gig. Once again the sound was perfect and the atmosphere in the tent was good. After the Gig we stayed in the tent for about an
hour or so, talking and having a good time. I think we were the last to leave the tent and the hotel Zum Riesen was the last stop for the evening. Monday 4th of June
and no Gig! We had agreed to meet in the breakfast room at 9 o'clock, but Roar and I overslept overselves. So Reinhard
wake us up by knocking on our door at 9.30 (to much beer last evening maybe...) Sorry about that Reinhard! By strenuous effort we entered the
breakfast table and said good morning to our good friends. After a quiet and good breakfast it was time to pack the bag for the last time. Roar and I
was to head home to Norway and Reinhard&Erika and Iris&Uschi for the next Gig in Kassel the same evening. We followed Reinhard's car from
the centre of Hanau to the A5. At the motorway we travelled by full speed and left Reinhard's Seat and Iris' BMW behind us. We had to catch the
ferry in Kiel and we had about 610km in front of us. We arrived Kiel around 5 o'clock, 2 1/2 hour before departure time. Our journey in Germany was coming to an end... Tuesday 5th of June
and the Stena Germanica docked at 9 o'clock in Gothenburg. The customs officer in Gothenburg asked us if we had
anything to declare? We said no and he asked us where we had been? We told him that we had been in south Germany for 3 MMEB concerts and he shook his head and 3 hours later I parked my car outside my house... With nothing to declare!
A total of 2360km by car to see 3 Gigs! Was it really worth it? The answer is: YES!!! It was worth every single kilometer to see MANFRED MANNS EARTH BAND live ;-))) So thanks to The Band for your performance on stage!!!
And a special thanks to Reinhard and Uschi for organizing tickets and accommodation for us!!! I promised Reinhard to speak German next year, so I have to practice a lot. But I will do my best to keep that promise!
Es war ein wunderbarer urlaub! Ich hoffe, dass wir Sie bald wiedersehen! Best wishes from Thorbjorn
Pfullendorf on Friday 1st June-Report ???
Posted by gorodish on June 01, 19101 at 13:43:39: Hi
well we`ve been there. I think Karin will bring a report from Pfullendorf since I can´t compare to so much other gigs. I missed the one in
Friedrichshafen in March or so this year. The Pfullendorf concert should start at 9 pm. We arrived a quarter to 9 at the Zelt and there were not as
many people as we expected. There were even tickets available. Though we were a little late, we got a place direct at the barrier in front of the stage on the right side of the band.
At 9 pm the (big) Zelt was filled maybe half. Suddenly the barrier in front of the stage was moved on demand of the band (Thank you !!) closer to
the stage. So we found ourselves appr. 2 m in front of Mick !! (Oh happy day !!!) ;-) At the beginning of the concert the audience was a little "quiet"
in my opinion, but I have not seen to much of the audience, I was looking at the band. Later in the concert (esp. at Blinded and Davy) the audience was nearly as loud as I expect it to be at a concert from the Earth Band.
We felt extremely good this evening and I think most of the other people did so, too. There was a technical problem with the sound of Manfreds
Keyboard at Davy. It was fixed in about 5 minutes time and then the show went on. During this time some of the audience started to sing
Do-wah-diddy. I don´t know wether the Band liked it, but it certainly wasn´t ment bad. The concert was finished at about 11 pm.
Sorry, I can`t give you much informations about the songlist. The concert began with shelter, then there were two or so new songs and of course
there was SOS - I like this version very much. Father wasn´t played, but there were fragments of father in an other song. Ah, yes : And there was the riff of smoke on the water in Blinded (or was it Mighty Quinn ?).
So we enjoyed this evening very much and would like to say to the band that we loved their performance. It´s difficult to express in words.
I am so glad, that the Earth Band is back on Tour !! And in 4 weeks time they will be back again in our region (Konstanz) !!! Greetings, Gorodish
Pfullendorf on Friday 1st June-Report ???
Posted by Martin Retzbach
In Reply to: Pfullendorf on Friday 1st June-Report ??? posted by Roland Hi Roland and all others!
Sorry for the late report, but I returned tonight at 2 a.m. and had to work this morning. The rest of the time I spent in searching english words in the
dictionary. I'm the first one who is back from the gig, so it's my part, to write a few words on it. To all others: enjoy the gigs today and tomorrow! Hope to see you all soon.
We (my son Sebastian and me) started last evening to Pfullendorf, about 45 km from here. We arrived at 8 p.m. The Earth Band gig was the first
event of the "Parkfestival" in the "Seepark Linzgau". There are many events until september. But the best one is over now. :-(
We parked the car and entered the big tent, it was still nearly empty. First we saw Karin and Thomas doing their new job: selling the fan T-shirts and CDs. Well done, after the gig nearly everybody wore a MMEB T-shirt. :-)
After that we met Uschi, Simon and Ian, and the special guests from Norway, Thorbjorn and his friend (sorry, but I don't remember the name,
please forgive me). Nice to see many of the worldwide fans from gig to gig. Perhaps the Earth Band should give an award for the farthest travel to a gig every year. About 8.45 p.m. the tent was filled very good, I think it nearly was sold out.
At 9 p.m. the gig started. We stood in the first row in front of Steve. Thanks to Ian for reducing the distance of the barrier to the stage just before
the gig. The same problem after every gig - I hope to remember the correct setlist: Intro, Shelter, Castles, Martha, Carol (nice new lyrics, Manfred!),
SOS (there it is again!!!). After that the mix of "House in the Rising Sun" and "Dancing in the Dark", Karin already described it in her report from
Delitzsch. I think it will become a good song, the audience loved it. But I also think, there is much more potential in it. Then Sprits In the Night with a
little Sprit of Father. I don't know why, but every time I'm hearing Sprits I'm missing Lies (all through the 80ies), Earth Band, what about that song on
the setlist? After that Demolition Man and She was. Exactly between She was and Blinded there were technical problems, the band left the stage
for a few minutes. After the problems were corrected, Manfred began with the chords of Blinded. Unfortunately we lost the wonderful junction
between these two songs. After that as usual Davy, Redemption Song and finally Mighty. The gig took nearly 2 hours, wonderful! I can't get enough of the Earth Band sound, but 2 hours is a good compromise. ;-)
The mood in the audience was very good from the beginning until the end, perhaps not the best audience I've ever seen, but really good. When I watched Manfred, it looks for me he had very much fun this evening.
A special thank to Noel, Mick and Richard to endure our small photo session after the gig! And a very special thank to all the people we met after we left the tent, it was a very special evening! And a very very very special thank to Karin
and Thomas for making this possible! I'm looking forward to the gig in Ulm in three weeks!!! Bye Martin
Saturday, 8 June, Hachenburg (Bongo Bongo Sunsplash), Germany
Posted by Wil It's been some months ago since I saw my last Earth Band gig. It was in England. Together
with Reinhard, Erika and Uschi I would go to the Bongo Bongo gig in Hachenburg. I also tried to convince Thomas to come to the gig but I got no email from him. I went to Reinhard's place
(sorry I was too late) and the three of us (Reinhard, Erika and myself) we drove south direction Hachenburg. In Hachenburg we picked up Uschi and went to the castle where
Uschi lived for half a year some centuries ago. After that visit we got us a real German snitzel in the lovely centre of the little town. Every time I go to German the cities I visit are so
nice looking. And then on the way to the "Gasthaus" and back to a three-day festival in the middle of nowhere (Germany),or to be more exact a one and a half hour drive from Reinhard's place.
On Friday the festival started with the Manfred Mann's Earth band after two supporting acts. The other days it was more reggae music but that part we skipped.
Back to Friday. The first supporting act I have forgotten, the second, called Sheela, was a group from Germany playing symphonic Rock music like Saga. They were good. But of
course we all waited for the gig to come. And there was Thomas, nice to meet you again. It was 22.30 hrs and Ian introduced the Earth Band. It was a could evening, Manfred wearing a jacket and Noel had his coloured shirt on since
long (am I right Uschi?). Even Steve had his buttons closed from his shirt (what a pity for the women). Of course the gig started with Manfred on the keyboards and after the intro
Shelter from the storm, as usual the last years, the first song on the setlist. Castles is the next one on the list and it's really one of the best live songs. With Mick's solo on the guitar
and after that Manfred on the keyboards, it's a song you don't want to miss. Then came my favorite live song, Martha's Madman. The solo from Manfred in this song is never the same and it's allways too short, you know it
when Manfred points up his finger it's finished. As we all know Manfred wants perfection,and there was the first technical check. When Noel asked Manfred if everything was ok, Manfred made a disapproving gesture with his arm.
With Steve on the base the next song was coming up, Don't kill it Carol. Noel's voice was deformed at the start and that gave a special effect. Then again a technical check ending with Manfred saying "Technical check finished".
And now the new song would come, anxious to hear it. The first words were different , Noel singing "Technical bull shit, technical, technical".
Two songs strangled together in one beautiful song. Noel singing the Dancing in the dark part, Mick House of the rising sun. And then Noel is
singing House of the rising sun, perfect. Then Manfred on the keyboards (da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da, the rhythm Reinhard,Erika). Steve again in the spotlight and Noel with a base voice and "dancing in sunsplash".
If it's like this please give us more new songs Manfred. The other change in the program "Spirits in the night" with a little bit "Father". This songs
gives Mick still the possibility to show what he can do with a guitar and with his voice. I specifically like the part between Mick's and Manfred's
solo. After the duet between Mick and Manfred the song finishes with Father and Mick on his knees. I don't have a problem with this version at all, and watching Manfred and Mick they enjoyed it as well.
It was time for Noel to come back on stage, with a cigaret in his mouth and the Demolition man. Noel moves his hands like Joe Cocker used to do.
Richard's drive is best heared in this song and the rock an roll part from Mick is very nice. Then comes Blinded and a dream away part from Manfred as intro. End of the gig, und dann kommen die Zugaben.
A little reggae talk of Noel introduces Redemption song. Mick, Noel and Manfred in a perfect combination, wonderful song with the audience
singing the last part of it. Davy's on the road again with Manfred in a jazzy role and Mick pointing to Reinhard he had forgotten to shout. Und jetzt
die zweite zugabe. Of course Mighty mighty mighty quinn. Richard hitting the drums, Manfred adding the keyboards and then "We have not seen something like the MMEB''. Smoke on the water Mick and jump for joy, the gig is over.
Thanks again Richard, Steve, Noel, Mick and Manfred. It took me four hours to get there but I enjoyed it a lot. Thanks Thomas,Uschi, Erika and Reinhard for joining me. 
Thursday, 20 June, Ulm, Germany
Posted by Martin Retzbach Hi folks! We're just back from the gig this evening in Ulm. After bringing Sebastian to bed I'm writing a few words...
OK, that's done. We arrived the Ulmer Zelt about 15 minutes before the beginning of the gig. So first of all thanks to Uschi and Iris for keeping us a
place in the first row, just in front of Steve's micro (those who know me know, that I need a lot of place -- no Graeme, not for jumping, just for
standing ;-)). The tent reminds me the wonderful gig last year in Friedrichshafen. And the audience was as good, too! At 8 p.m. the gig started as
usual. Intro, Shelter, Castles, Martha. The special: Manfred praised the audience to be the first one in the last five years who clapped the hands at
right rhythm, what an honour! After that Carol and Dancing. Karin, I think you're right, after hearing this song the second time, I enjoyed it more.
Sebastian is anyway enthusiastically from this song. Then SOS with this wonderful audience - it was great! Now Sprits, I'm still missing Father,
but I also have to admit, that this song is going to reach its quality, wonderful solo from Mick and wonderful duet with Mick and Manfred. Nearly like
Father. Of course at the end there was again the little part of Father. Then Demo Man and Blinded, this time without technical problems between
the Intro and Blinded. After Blinded the tent seemed to explode. A fantastic mood. Finally Redemption Song, Davy and Mighty. So this was again a
very professional gig from these five artists without any mistakes. Additionally another compliment: again a great light show, I think that is not easy in such a small tent.
After the gig it seemed, Sebastian and I were the only one wearing Earth Band T-Shirts. Was this because Karin and Thomas weren't here? Ian, where's your ambition? :-) CDiiiiiiiiiiiies, Tiiiiiiiiiiiii-Shirts........
Fortunately this time I only have to wait 12 days to the next gig. Monday in one week in Konstanz. Good night Martin
Friday 21 June, Bochum, Germany
Monday, 24 June, Meiningen, Germany
Posted by Andreas Pirali
Hi! Today I have the nice task to write a little bit about the wonderful gig we had yesterday in Meiningen! What do you want to hear? :-) As always
when I drive to MMEB-concert in the eastern parts of Germany I get a little bit lost. (I have to fight against my Altenburg-trauma - does somebody remember? ;-)
Ok, but this time I started very early and so I had enough time to find my way. At Bad Salzungen they had ripped of a street and forget to sign out
the new way... grmpf... but I found the way, yeah! :-) And at Meiningen they also "forget" to sign out the way to the concert area. So I drove from
one end of the town to the other one - and back. But - don't ask me how - I found the place where the gig should take place. I bought a ticket and
after all in all 2h30min of driving I entered the very nice Open Air area. There where some people sitting around, eating "Thueringer Bratwurst"
(lecker!) and drinking beer or coke they had bought at one of the stalls. The atmosphere was very nice, I think. And Karin and Thomas Sonntag
were also there, ready to sell some T-Shirts, Buttons, Posters and CDs. But the box with the sellable stuff wasn't there. Not so nice, cause all the
people standing or sitting around had nothing to do than to wait for the bands. Maybe they would have bought some stuff in this time.
Around 7 pm the first band started to play. "Electra" made very nice music. They are an old band from the eastern parts of and had their big time
when the border was still there. So I didn't know so much stuff by them. But they made very good songs with strong vocal parts and beautiful
melodies. The man with the Bass-guitar made a wonderful solo part, wow! Whilst they were playing the box with the T-Shirts arrived. And I think
Karin and Thomas made a very good job and sold a lot of them. And the CDs also sold very good - especially "Mann Alive".
After "Electra" "Bell Book & Candle" entered the stage. They had one big hit "Rescue Me" one or two years ago. But they touched not my soul
(ohhhh) - the whole stuff sounded equal. The front girl tried to animate the crowd, but she lost. The crowd was there to see and hear Manfred
Mann's Earth Band, not for them, that was the point. "Bell Book & Candle" played until 10 pm, then the crew of Manfred Mann's Earth Band entered the stage.
I left my place near the little "Sonntagshop" and looked for a place in front of the stage. I got a place in the second row. And after maybe 20-25
minutes Manfred Mann took his place behind the keyboards and Mick Rogers buckled on his guitar - and the rhythm engine Richard Marcangelo
and Steve Kinch was started. Yeah, that was the stuff the people waited for. As always at first the melodic Joybringer -Introduction and then
Noel arrived at his place and gave us Shelter from the Storm (the weather was very nice but a little bit cold, thanks!). In the middle of "Castles
Burning" some people right in front of me left there place and I got a place in the first row :-) And then Martha's Madman walked through and the
crowd woke up and began to sing and clap there hands. The musicians were in a very good mood and gave us wonderful music. And we gave
them the SOS ;-) The new song is very nice, I think. I heard it for the second time and liked it very much. "House Of The Rising Sun" is such an old
and hackneyed song, but in this version it stands up and becomes new! I like it! It is a really complex arrangement with a lot of different parts and I would like to have a CD-version of that to hear it again and again, Mr. Manfred Mann :-)
When Manfred had his part in Blinded By The Light he had to laugh for a short time. And also Noel had to laugh when he had to sing the last words
- it's so nice to see that these guys have so much fun on stage! I liked the piano solo of Manfred in this song very much! For first encore they
played the Redemption Song (one man behind me shouted "We came for you!" again and again, but Noel said "No, that's Chris' Song - I'm not such
a great one" - I hope I understand him right). But the Redemption Song is also a beautiful song. Than my all time favourite Davy - I love this one,
why it is always so short? And then "Mighty Quinn" with a cool jazz intro. The crowd danced around and had a lot of fun! It was a really good
concert, one of the best I have ever seen. Maybe you want to know how much there were, it's hard to say! Karin, what would you say? Around 1500?
After Manfred Mann's Earth Band another band played, but I left the area "saying my goodbyes again" to Karin and Thomas and drove home. At 2.45am I arrived without getting lost :-)
It was a very nice evening! Thanks to Karin and Thomas and of course the Earth Band. :-) Best regards, Andreas Posted by Thomas and Karin Hi,
Andreas, that report is a masterpiece! Fantastic, we see it all in front of us while reading your report.
Nice to hear that you liked Elektra. It was one of my favourite bands in the GDR because of their great keyboard sound, connected with fine guitar,
flute and a fantastic vocal arrangement - some of the band members sang in famous choirs like the "Dresdner Kreuzchor" when they had been
little boys. And that classical touch you can hear in their songs - wonderful vocal parts. The original singer wasn`t there, but Stefan Trepte, also a
well known name to all "old GDR music lovers", did his job on stage very well - it was great to listen to that band again and on the same festival as the Earth Band. To me they are just as good or better than Jethro Tull!
Also to us the MMEB - performance yesterday was one of the best we ever heard and for sure the very best of the gigs we visited in 2001 up to
now. And so we ask ourselves always the same question: How is it possible - to do a super show like in Augsburg, Pfullendorf or Fussgönheim
and than to top it again and again and to be better and better from concert to concert? The answer knows only the band - but to us it's always a
fantastic discovery that they found another way to top their own high level also this night! We saw yesterday on the top of that mountain near
Meiningen a mixture of great solo performances by all of the band members, and all together it made the fascination of that show. Most impressive
to us: Manfred`s keyboards and Noel`s vocals in Martha, Mick with the best Spirits we know from him, a great duel in the Father part - there was
such an excitement built up by Manfred and Mick during that duel - you could hear it rustle - and then they started into the final part - and all those
people around us, so far away from the stage as we stood near the mixers, seemed to explode in their mood! (We sold the next four "Mann Alive"
still during the next song :-) ) Dancing in the sun in a perfect version, we cannot get enough of it, and the classical songs at the end of the gig in the well known fantastic quality...
BTW, we had to laugh, too, during Blinded, because of the moment of "Ian in the light" - nice joke! :-) You looked good on stage, Ian!
Okay, the mood in Fussgönheim was surely better in the audience than yesterday in Meiningen, but that is the old " Eastern problem" - people like a
gig very much, but they don`t show that so expressive like in the western parts of Germany. And they really liked it, we heard wonderful
responses after the show! We agree with you, Andreas, we, too estimate around 1500 people, but it's hard to say in that big area.
It was a pity that we, too, were not able to stay for the last act of that night, Klaus Renft, another one of the old GDR - musicians. (Best regards to
their nice merchandising team who stood just next to us :-) ) But we had to leave around 1 a.m., because we had just like Andreas around 2
hours to drive back and our horses got new shoes today at 9 in the morning. On the way back through the forest of Thuringia we met about 10 or
12 big red deers on the dark streets. But we arrived well at 3 a.m. and had to get up at 7 - and now the new horseshoes are ready, and we are tired but happy - wow, what a weekend!
Looking forward to the next, and another big "Thank you" to the band and the crew for that night. Best regards to everyone, of course especially to Andreas K & T
Sunday, 30 June, Klam, Austria
Posted by Thomas and Karin Hi, are you already at the Konstanz gig? Enjoy it!!!
To be just in time before the next report we want to give you an impression of the gig in Klam/ Austria last Saturday. It was the second time for us
to see the Earth Band there, but they played already some years ago in Klam together with Toto and I don`t know if they had been there even
before? We saw in 1999 in Klam the best MMEB concert we ever had - and now we started in the hope to get another one of that level :-)
It was a special weekend to us, we celebrated Thomas` birthday, and so we drove already on Friday morning to Austria, spent the night in a nice
hotel in Enns near Linz and looked at the old houses in the centre of Enns in the next morning - very nice, very interesting - and there was all over
town that kindly, relaxed athmosphere we love so much in Austria! :-) After a good meal in one of the street restaurants a short break in our hotel - and then it was time to start!
To find the way to Klam was not a problem, we had spent two years ago some days in that area after the MMEB gig and our car seemed to
remember the road :-) So we arrived after 20 km well in Klam - and all cars behind us turned the same way to the left as we! At the top of the hill,
in the middle of nowhere, or better in the middle of the Klam forest a policeman showed us the way to the "parking meadow" - it was all very well
organized that evening, and just like in 1999 the whole village was there to help and to work and to make the gig to a real highlight! It was around 5
p.m. when we entered the garden of the castle brewery - a little, but beautyful area with old trees, a lot of stands for food and drinks, a little stage
down and the area around the stage went up like in a circus arena. And above all the castle Clam (with "C", but the name of the village is written
with "K") - what a panorama! We felt just like coming home from the first minute. Then the doors opened, and from our stand near the entry we could watch the people who came in very well - a well mixed audience this time,
most of them in the 30ties and older, some joung girls, some children, and some guys who had already too much beer when they came in - or was it because the weather was so hot??? We all expected a great evening, and we got it!
First, around 6.30, started two Austrian bands, King Size and El Fischer as supporting bands. Telling the truth we cannot say so much about them,
we had to do enough during that time, but it sounded all equal to us... The mood at the place was going to be better and better, everybody was
relaxed and was looking forward to the two following great bands now - that is the special Austrian flair we enjoyed already two years ago in
Klam! I tried to cross the area in the break before the next band - it was very difficult, they stood even in the last rows already very closed!
And then Uriah Heep entered the stage - the first big applause, the first great songs - and the audience was now warmed up enough! We had
been at an Uriah Heep gig two years ago in Germany, and I was so disappointed in that concert, because the sound had been bad and all the two
hours sounded like a loud mixture of ??? You couldn`t hear the keyboard and the singer last time in Germany, the guitar of Mick Box was much too loud...
And now - what a difference! Uriah Heep played a fantastic gig. I couldn`t see them from my place in the further back, and I`m really not the big
Uriah Heep fan, but I couldn`t stop moving because the music was so great and powerful :-) At this time Tom already got lost in the crowd, and he
returned to our place only when the 90 mins were over - happy and with a red face. He told me that the people around him had wondered who that was in that MMEB t-shirt singing the lyrics of nearly all Uriah Heep songs :-)
The audience was now completely enthusiastic, and some of the guys around us asked the question if the Earth Band could top that performance! We only smiled - we knew they could!
And they did so. Playing a short set, without SOS and without the new song (what a pity!!!) - but on the other hand it was already late enough and
I guess it was the right decision of the organizers to let the two great bands play each only 90 mins. And during that time we saw a real brilliant
show - may be the Meiningen gig the week before had been a little bit better in the music level, but the power and the enthusiasm the band
showed in Klam was unbelievable! This time I got lost in the crowd - it was a hard work but at the end of Carol I could manage it to reach the
second row behind Wolfgang, our Austrian friend, who stood together with his friend in the frontrow just infront of Noel. We stood there like
herrings in a tin, it was very hot there, but it was fantastic! Manfred played powerful solos in Martha and Blinded I never heard before from him,
and Mick did the best "Castles-Solo" I ever heard. Noel returned after Spirits to the stage and had some ice cream in his hand - a present for some
of the children who stood infront of the stage - nice idea, Noel! At the end of Davy, when I started to fight for my way back to the stand, all people
around me were clapping their hands and singing and dancing - nobody looked at his neighbour, they all watched only the band and the mood
was really great. Noel had no problem to find an echo in the audience for Redemption song - I guess SOS would have been great there, too, they
would have been for sure a great choir down infront of the stage. But of course they all sang Mighty in a perfect way, too, all together, the band
on stage, the crowd infront of them and we both in the further back (fortunately nobody listened to us :-) )
Wow - now it was over - much too soon as ever. The air was still very hot, or was it from that fantastic night? All people who spoke to us after
the gig said the Earth Band was really the headliner of the night, not only because of the last position in the set. But to compare these two bands
is really hard, they both played wonderful gigs, but they make of course different music - you cannot say one is better. I like the Earth Band music more :-)
So let us say a big Thank You to the owner of the castle, the Count of Clam, who organized such a great rock night at his castle (and he is doing
so already since 10 years!). The whole event was again perfect organized, it was a fantastic athmosphere, and his private brewery made a real good dark beer (said Thomas :-) ).
BTW, the weather played a good rule there, too - it started only to rain when we were already down in the car on our way back - it was around 2 in the morning :-).
I think the band is just now already in Konstanz on stage - and we are sure they play tonight as well as in the last fantastic concerts we saw. Greetings to all of you, we are looking forward to the next gig K & T.
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