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| The Proclaimers in The Botanical Gardens |
How time flies! It's almost ten years since we last saw The Proclaimers in concert. I blogged about it here.
We saw them again on Saturday evening in Sheffield's Botanical Gardens. The local Rotary Club had organised a series of evening concerts to raise money for charity. Imaginatively, they titled these evenings "Music in The Gardens"
It was a balmy summer's evening. I was in hiking shorts and my "Yorkshire Pudding" T-shirt and I was carrying two old deckchairs that I unearthed from our underhouse area. We hadn't sat on them in years.
Finding a good space with a nice view of the stage wasn't easy. Some concert goers had claimed extra large spaces and clearly resented the possibility of intruders even though they can only have arrived minutes before. One miserable bloke said,"You're not going to sit there and block my view are you?" Obviously, not one of the Woodstock generation. Peace and love man!
A woman said, "You can't sit there! We're saving that space for friends!"but we squeezed in anyway and her "friends" never did arrive.
The Proclaimers were as professional, tight and entertaining as they had been in 2005. Their set included old favourites like "I'm on My Way" (made famous by the film "Shrek"), "Sunshine on Leith" (Which features in the film of the same name) and "I'm Gonna Be - 500 miles". They must have played these numbers hundreds of times.
Yes, they were brilliant with the twins from Auchtermuchty in Fife, Scotland - Craig and Charlie Reid - supported ably by a drummer, lead guitarist and keyboard player. The crowd bounced along and flags were waved. Shirley was danciug like a teenager but curiously I felt rather detached - as if I wasn't truly in the mood for this very good concert in the gardens on such a lovely summer's evening.
Anyway, while watching, I snapped some more pictures:-
This is one of their best known songs.Unashamedly delivered in a broad Scottish brogue, it speaks of Scottish emigration - "If you go will will you send back a letter from America?..."
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| Dedicated to Gerald England |
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| Craig Reid |
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| Charlie Reid |
Yes a great group.
ReplyDeleteThe comments on your link back make amusing reading.
"Always happy to give you a chuckle Cap'n!" said the bosun.
DeleteHow brilliant YP!
ReplyDeleteAnd I would walk 500 miles ~ could be your plodding theme.
Ha-ha! I reckon I have walked five hundred this year alone.
DeleteSounds like a great evening, but I think I understand what you mean about having felt strangely detached from it all. This happens to me every now and then; I truly look forward to a certain event, prepare by dressing according to place, weather and circumstances, and then I am there and get that strangely detached feeling, as if I were in an observing role more than participating.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I manage to switch into "full fun" mode halfway through, but other times I've stayed, mentally speaking, on the outskirts of the event. I can't predict this happening and don't really know what to do about it if it does happen, so I have come to accept it as something that is simply part of me.
Those people!! They have not paid more than anyone else for their tickets, I assume, and when there aren't any numbered rows of seats, everybody can sit, stand or stretch on the ground whereever they choose. Actually, I thought this was typical German behaviour, but apparently, Yorkshire people can be like that as well.
Now you come to mention it Meike, they spoke with German accents and were wearing lederhosen so I doubt that they were Yorkshire people. I feel a little comforted that you could relate to that odd feeling of detachment.
DeleteI've got a couple of tapes of these guys. they were different but good to listen to.
ReplyDeleteThey certainly have their own distinctive style Red.
DeleteOur Hudson Gardens does the same thing in summer. A concert on the grounds about every two weeks. Older 60's and 70's bands, mostly. I pact a small dinner, chairs and hats and off we go to meet our friends there. The part I like is that the concert does not have opening bands leading up to the main event so the concert lasts less then two hours. Eat dinner, listen to some people our own age sing songs that we can relate to, talk and drink a beer with friends, pack up and go home for an early bedtime. Nice!
ReplyDeletep.s. Some of the bands should have quit about 10 years ago, but we will not mention who they are.
Do you mean The Rolling Stones. The Who and :Paul McCartney? I agree wholeheartedly!
DeleteFancy "The Proclaimers" still performing. I loved their music. There's something so happy and carefree about it. :)
ReplyDeleteStill on the go Lee and Charlie and Craig are 53 years old now.
DeleteAh, the Proclaimers!! How good are they? And how good was the movie Sunshine on Leith?
ReplyDeleteMs Soup
Yes Soup Dragon, "Sunshine on Leith" was a lovely, uplifting film and it integrated The Proclaimers' songs so comfortably.
DeleteA wonderful and, of course, iconic group played as often by me and my friends in New Zealand as by my friends in Scotland.
ReplyDeletePS I'm glad to see that you have a better class of commenter these days! I'm surprised you left the spammers on.
ReplyDelete