Forty two years ago yesterday, Simple Minds played a gig at the Musicians Club in Sydney to a lively and enthusiastic crowd. As one would imagine for a gig in the Australian summer, the venue was steamin’ like a sauna. The small auditorium filled with sweaty young things.
Thanks to recent photographic sharing and memories from John Gresham, the gig feels more alive than ever. See my previous post sharing John’s sets of photos for an extra sensory experience when listening to the bootleg. I honestly don’t know what Jim and Charlie were expecting that night, but of the whole band, they both seem the least sensibly dressed for the gig. Derek’s string vest is a gem! He should have completed the look with a makeshift hanky-tied “hat”.
It’s not the most perfect gig or bootleg. Unfortunately Jim’s mic stops working as he’s about to sing the third verse of ‘Sons and Fascination’ and it takes a few minutes before it gets sorted but after that all is fab. I have to say that Kenny Hyslop plays FAST that night, keeping Derek on his toes and making songs like ‘I Travel’ and ‘Thirty Frames a Second’ super speedy.
The “piece de resistance” though has to be the encore outing of ‘Room’. Famed amongst the bootleg-loving diehard set as the best version of Room out there, I can’t say that I am one to argue the point. Right from its beginning and into Jim’s opening segue of the Velvets’ ‘Rock n’ Roll’ it is delectable in its execution. Thus ending what is a pretty fantastic short, sharp set. Oh, what I would give for The Doctor to give me one of those TARDIS rides that Donna Noble is back to enjoying. (As a wee side note – how fantastic has it been to see David Tennant back in the role? I was NEVER Whovian until he took on the role and slowly drifted away from it again once he left, but now he’s back…and so am I.) Until such time, we have the combo of John Gresham’s images and the 2JJJ recording of the gig to enjoy and visit the gig at our leisure.
So, please enjoy Simple Minds at the Musicians Club on 3 December 1981. Happy MMM!