The Era of the Super House Band
Part II - 1987
“By Jove, without them, there wouldn’t be us.”
Wembley Arena - June 5th & 6th 1987
The Prince’s Trust 1987 ‘School Photo’. Image via https://albumsthatshouldexist.blogspot.com/2024/02/various-artists-princes-trust-rock-gala_25.html
1987 House Band
Eric Clapton – guitar / vocals
Midge Ure – guitar / vocals
Elton John – piano / vocals
Phil Collins – drums / vocals
Mark King – bass / vocals
Mike Lindup - keyboards
Jools Holland - keyboards
Mark Brzezicki - drums
Ray Cooper – percussion
Support
Jimmy Chambers – backing vocals
George Chandler – backing vocals
Jimmy Helms – backing vocals
The Phantom Horns
Set List
01. Invisible – Alyson Moyet
02. Hearts Of Fire – Bryan Adams
03. Run To You - Bryan Adams
04. Somebody - Bryan Adams
05. The Wanderer – Dave Edmunds and Bryan Adams
06. Misfit – Curiosity Killed the Cat
07. So Strong – Labi Siffre
08. Running In The Family – Level 42 (Mark King and Mark Lindup w/Eric Clapton)
09. If I Was – Midge Ure
10. Don’t Look Down – Go West
11. Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
12. Behind The Mask – Eric Clapton
13. Stand By Me – Ben E. King w/ Eric Clapton
14. Through The Barricades – Spandau Ballet (Tony Hadley & Gary Kemp w/ Eric Clapton)
15. Your Song – Elton John
16. Saturday Night’s Alright (For Fighting) – Elton John & Bryan Adams
17. Reach Out, I’ll Be There / Can’t Help Myself / Same Old Song – Phil Collins & Paul Young
18. You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling – Phil Collins & Paul Young
19. While My Guitar Gently Weeps – George Harrison, Ringo Starr and Eric Clapton
20. Here Comes the Sun – George Harrison and Ringo Starr
21. With a Little Help From My Friends – Ringo Starr and George Harrison, All Stars
1987’s concert is our sequel to Midge’s 1986 ‘House Band’. The overall structure is the same: some current artists play a mini set each, with a mini House Band made up of some of the different bands, then the ‘All Stars’ house band come out and take turns leading on their own songs whilst supporting each other, alongside some special guests. The inclusion of the Phantom Horns adds a welcome dynamic to many of the songs throughout the concert and allows certain songs to be performed at all.
It’s a shame Knopfler couldn’t make it this year, but Midge steps up to the plate and takes on more guitar duties. Mike Lindup from Level 42 and Jools Holland switch in for Howard Jones on keyboards and Big Country’s Mark Brzezicki on drums (joining Phil Collins and Ray Cooper). The Venn diagram of charity gigs with multiple drummers on stage + Ray Cooper on percussion is a near perfect circle.
Like the 86 concert, room is made for current performers in the shape of Go West, Alison Moyet, Spandau Ballet’s Tony Hadley and Gary Kemp, Labi Siffre, Curiosity Killed The Cat, Dave Edmunds and Bryan Adams.
Fresh from winning "British Breakthrough Act" at the 1986 Brit Awards, Go West performed a full-throttled ‘Don’t Look Down’, with a mini 80’s Super House Band, formed of Big Country’s drummer, Mark Brzezicki, Midge Ure on guitar, Mark King on Bass, Jools Holland on keyboards, and Go West’s own session lead guitarist, Alan Murphy.
From the outset, it’s a barnstorming performance: Midge’s no-nonsense intro, Peter Cox’s ‘Be working, be working….GOOD EVENING!’ into the mic, Mark King’s slap bass terrorising Wembley Arena to kick off the song and then a superb Van Halen-esque guitar solo from Alan Murphy, who, whilst wasn’t formally part of the two-man band of Go West, did play with them often as a session player on albums and live. Interesting bit of history here:
“In 1985 Peter and Richard were invited to play at the Princes Trust concert. There was a core band that included Level 42’s Mark King on Bass. They insisted on having Alan with them as they were going to play ‘Don’t look down’ and they couldn’t imagine anyone else playing the solo on this. Unfortunately the pressure of being amongst so many of Peter’s respected peers contributed to a very nervous performance which Peter was very self-critical of. He felt he was singing out of key, but Alan sensing the situation, seemed to pull out all the stops, and ‘barnstormed the guitar solo’ and which went someway to rescuing the situation. Watch the video footage below, you will see Mark King taking note of Alan’s outrageous playing Alan from 3:30 onwards. Who would not want this raw talent in their band one day….”
Cox’s vocals are fantastic in this, and it’s a shame to hear he was critiquing his own performance so harshly. You were great, Pete! That’s how you get to greatness, though, kids. From our point of view, he’s totally in the zone and flexing his voice at times. You’d happily donate a kidney to have them perform King of Wishful Thinking, We Close Our Eyes and Call Me with that band. Why didn’t that mini 80’s super band tour the world together in ‘87? Christ.
“When Go West achieved singles success with ‘We Close Our Eyes’ in 1985, just about everything involved with the record was impressive. The subsequent hit singles and Go West album confirmed that not only are Peter Cox and Richard Drummie a very talented pair but also that the production of their records is outstanding. Arif Mardin is reported as describing the Go West sound as ‘Modern Motown’ after hearing an early version of ‘We Close Our Eyes’. Everything to do with the band’s music and presentation has been slick and professional, at times standing head and shoulders above a vacuous landscape of vinyl wastage.”
I love Go West’s trajectory of having a real vision for the production of their music, and after producing two tracks 'We Close Our Eyes' and 'Call Me' with producer Gary Stevenson, they got a record deal with Chrysalis. There’s a great article here where Ralph Denyer interviews Stevenson on the approach to their music, alongside a fun anecdote where Go West nearly performed the iconic Rock IV training sequence music ‘Hearts on Fire’, they did contribute ‘One Way Street’, which certainly sets the bar for washing your car in style.
“I like to be able to hear everything. I like it to be crystal clear, really. We spend a lot of time doing that, getting the frequencies all right. There’s so much more to a good record than just the ideas you know.””
This reminds me of a quote from advertising legend John Hegarty, who had this statement framed at the offices of BBH, “Advertising is 80% idea and 80% execution”. I would apply this to any artistic endeavour (commercial or otherwise). You need both the idea and the execution to be ‘at 11’ to break through.
I have to take this opportunity to mention their great music video for King of Wishful Thinking directed by FYI - Paul Flattery and Jim Yukich, which was lovingly recreated by Paul Rudd & Jimmy Fallon in 2018. I love exploring the music video styles in the ‘80s and ‘90s, so many interesting ideas, and even if they sometimes didn’t quite land - it was fun to see people at least trying. This video certainly lands and creates many iconic images. The exaggerated enthusiasm in the performances is made even starker when seeing Rudd emulate Cox’s physicality through a 2018 lens, but in 1990, it fits. Smart they weaved in nods to Pretty Woman in the video, too, with an avatar of Julia Roberts’ Vivian. (This track plays in the opening credits of the film).
Also worth noting that ‘Call Me’ was on GTA Vice City’s Flash FM. You know you’ve made a cultural impact when you appear in a GTA radio playlist.
Level 42 showcases their live credentials again, with Mark King and Mike Lindup performing a rousing ‘Running in the Family’ with a great short solo by Clapton. I love right at the start when you hear the click track time the band in and everyone kicks in simultaneously with a brilliant energy. Clapton even shuffles across the stage in time with the beat. The track's pace and musicianship reflect Level 42’s live performances, which if you haven’t heard on Spotify/Apply Music, do check out. This is our first glimpse of Clapton’s interesting choice of light yellow t-shirt and black and white check suit combo, the usually sartorially proficient Clapton gives us a rare miss here!
In a shift from the performers singing their own songs and empowered by the presence of the Phantom Horns, Phil Collins and Paul Young perform a medley of Four Tops/Motown tracks - Reach Out, I’ll Be There / Can’t Help Myself / Same Old Song followed up by You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling. It even includes a very of-its-time ‘audience participation time’ where Young and Collins get two sides of the crowd to compete with each other. At Walken & Talken we’ve always been taken by the sheer scale of Phil Collins’ shirt pocket. I love the interplay of Collins and Young and how their voices complement each other. And on Reach Out, I’ll Be There, Collins’ “And I...I’ll be there” gives me chills every time.
Phil shows us his moves during I Can’t Help Myself
If I Was - Midge Ure
The Musical Director gets his turn in the spotlight, with his 1985 No.1 hit, If I Was. Mark King introduces Midge to the mic, and Mark not only plays live, but played on the original recording:
“[Midge Ure] invited Mark King of Level 42 to play bass guitar on the song, having met each other in Swansea Top Rank for a Radio One road show event. According to Ure, King “ended up playing the most simplistic bassline you could think of – it was incredibly basic for him. He showed great restraint by not slapping all over it.”
Midge Ure at the 1987 Prince’s Trust Rock Gala
If I Was came off Ure’s first solo album after Ultravox, The Gift, and was the hit single reaching No.1 in the UK & Ireland and peaking in the top 20 in eight other countries. It also had made an impression on the Latvian public:
“The president, who was young, funky and pretty laid-back, told me I was a national hero in Latvia because ‘If I Was’ had been one of the songs that inspired Latvia’s struggle for independence from the Soviet Union. It’s funny the way things work out.”
Alongside the house band, Midge performs a note perfect rendition of the single, Mark King stays in his lane with the straightforward bass line, whilst Clapton couldn’t help adding a little flourish here and there.
Eric Clapton Guest Solo Section 🎸
Through The Barricades
Tony Hadley and Gary Kemp from one of the quintessential 80s bands, Spandau Ballet, perform one of their more solemn songs, Through the Barricades (which I referenced in the 1986 post). This was based on the murder of one of the band’s crew, Kidso, in Belfast during The Troubles.
“One hot, sunny evening, Kidso was walking home bare chested through the streets of West Belfast, when he and a few friends were stopped by an army patrol. After giving his name and details he walked away. In one hand was his takeout, in the other his T-shirt. A few seconds later he was dead, shot in the back by a young private who would later become the first British soldier convicted of murder while serving in Northern Ireland. Kidso was twenty-three.”
They make the most of the support from the stellar house band, most notably with Clapton’s potent lead guitar adding some emotive heft in the latter part of the song. There’s a lovely moment right at the start of the song, where Hadley’s opening bars make Clapton shake his head at the sound of Hadley’s voice.
Clapton astonished at Hadley’s vocals.
Interestingly, the video version of this live performance chops off the last three minutes, missing out on some great emotive solos - whoever made the call on that needs to be marched to The Hague. When Hadley finishes his lyrics, a sax solo begins to play us out from Gary Barnacle of The Phantom Horns (who also played on the original studio track), which then segues beautifully into a guitar solo from Clapton, then into a piano solo, then another guitar solo. This adds a rare coda to the song with more gravitas than the original recording. Whilst the video is missing this section, the audio (below) includes this welcome longer version.
Audio of the full performance with end solos intact.
“By Jove, without them, there wouldn’t be us.”
At this year’s concert, we get a 2-for-1 deal for Beatles performers, swapping out 1986’s Beatle, Paul McCartney, for George Harrison and Ringo Starr, (along with Jeff Lyne) who perform a brilliant While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Here Comes the Sun and a convivial finale, With A Little Help From My Friends with all performers. I love Elton’s heartfelt intro to them both.
Like McCartney, Harrison had not been performing live at this stage of his career. Several factors had been keeping Harrison out of the limelight. The strained live performances that The Beatles had to contend with by being drowned out by screaming fans, the pressure of always having to deliver on some form of a Beatles reunion and the conflict of loving to play music with a band but not having to receive the constant ‘adulation’ from an audience. I also think people forget that someone as iconically famous as a Beatle, (or anyone in the limelight for that matter) might just want to live their life for a bit, take a breather from it all, and spend some time at home. Harrison’s son, Dhani, was born in 1978, and I’m sure a huge part of this ‘break’ for Harrison, was just to spend time at home with his family. He was asked about this on Michael Aspel’s talk show in 1988…
‘The Howard Hughes of Henley’
The full video of George Harrison and Ringo Starr is here on YouTube.
Two years before the Prince’s Trust gig, in 1985, he played at a special gig, Blue Suede Shoes: A Rockabilly Session, with Carl Perkins, which was shot in London at Limehouse Studios, with special guests Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Rosanne Cash, Phantom, Rocker & Slick, and Dave Edmunds. As Carl Perkins introduces Harrison in the video below, he alludes to Harrison’s rumoured retirement, “It ain’t true, he will come out and he’ll shake again”.
The whole Carl Perkins concert is fantastic, with exemplary musicianship from all and well worth a watch. It is especially interesting to observe the dynamic at play, with Carl taking the ‘Alpha’ position (it’s his show, after all), even commenting on how cute they look (Clapton, Starr, Harrison etc.) with their nice guitars, looking like kids ready for school. Carl even shouts at the end of the gig to the audience, “Did my class pass?!”. Incredible to think that at that point in 1985, those ‘kids’ had been performing at the top of their game for 20 years.
Every track of the concert is superbly executed, and the energy of the ‘younger’ players collaborating with Perkins is a joy to see (not unlike what happens in this run of Prince’s Trust concerts). Clearly, it was an emotive experience for all involved, playing with one of their heroes, and Perkins was literally brought to tears receiving the respect and adulation from the next generation of rock and blues players. You can hear Perkins’ voice crack when he thanks the band after playing the encore of ‘Blue Suede Shoes’.
“I have never in my life enjoyed it, singing that song like I did, tonight, with these people, my friends, my rockabilly buddies, and you the greatest people in the world, god bless you and thank you”
Carl Perkins with his ‘class’
Harrison & Clapton in 1968
While My Guitar Gently Weeps was the first recorded collaboration between Harrison and Clapton, with Harrison famously drafting in Clapton to add musical and personal gravitas to help the studio dynamics with Lennon & McCartney’s initial indifference to Harrison's composition.
“It was written by George Harrison, the band’s lead guitarist, as an exercise in randomness inspired by the Chinese I Ching. The song conveys his dismay at the world’s unrealised potential for universal love, which he refers to as “the love there that’s sleeping”.
The song also serves as a comment on the disharmony within the Beatles after their return from studying Transcendental Meditation in India in early 1968.”
Clapton was still in the supergroup Cream at this time, and firmly in his ‘God’ phase as a guitarist. This collaboration marked, not the first, but certainly the biggest ‘guest appearance’ of his career at the time, and an aspect of his career that would go on to flourish, being a frequent collaborator on other people’s music, whether live or in the studio. Clapton, perhaps more than any other musical artist, has performed with a wealth of bands and artists across the decades and genres. (Take a peek at this list here.) Phil Collins famously released an album titled Plays Well with Others, showcasing all his collaborations through the years, I think Clapton gives him a run for his money. (And of course, Collins & Clapton have played on each other’s studio sessions and live tours hundreds of times through the years).
On While My Guitar Gently Weeps, Clapton’s emotive playing, with his exemplary use of vibrato and string bends, combined with the Leslie/Flange tone, provided the perfect ‘voice’ to compliment and duet with Harrison’s mournful lyrics. A song that would mark the beginning of a friendship and musical partnership for the rest of their lives, they would often perform it live together, including at the Concert for Bangladesh in 1971, this Prince’s Trust concert in 1987, and George’s 1991 Japan tour, with Clapton and his band. When playing live, and they both duel guitar solos, it adds another layer to the song compared to the original recording, firstly the joy of hearing (and seeing) them perform in this way, but on a meta level having George’s voice ‘become’ the guitar and interplay with Clapton’s takes the song to another level from a narrative point of view.
When George Harrison passed away in 2001, Clapton played two notable performances, first at the Queen’s Golden Jubilee at the Party at the Palace, alongside Paul McCartney (and some familiar friends) and then for the incredible Concert for George, where I would argue Clapton performs his best interpretation of the song, clearly a highly emotive performance, but for the stoic Clapton, there’s only one way you’re going to see emotion, and that’s through his playing.
I know the Prince version gets the majority of the plaudits, and whilst it is another showcase of Prince’s unparalleled musical talents, Clapton’s solos on the Concert for George pack an emotive punch that even Prince’s gymnastics can’t match.
Below are three videos, the first with the original Beatles song, the second with Clapton’s isolated guitar and the Concert for George performance. Enjoy.
Mark King, George Harrison, Mike Lindup, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr & Jeff Lynne
The pressure of reforming the Beatles, or playing Beatles songs, must have been stifling for Harrison, and even in the run-up to the Prince’s Trust gig in 1987, Harrison felt that an attempt was being made at a reunion when he found out that Ringo had been invited to play too without his knowledge:
“George didn’t know Starr was also called to perform. He found out when Ringo called him. According to Rolling Stone, George and Ringo had been contacted without the other knowing about it.
“Ringo phoned me up,” George said, “saying, ‘Somebody’s asked me if I’m doing this Prince’s Trust, and of course, I can’t really do it without playing on it with you.’ I said, ‘Ooo, I don’t know about that.’ I mean, Ringo will always be my friend, but that made me nervous.
“I felt straightaway, somebody’s trying to set this up again.” This being a Beatles reunion. “You know, it’s one thing going on as me. But if I’m going on as the Beatles, I want to be able to have some sort of control over it.”
Harrison also admitted to feeling scared going up to perform again, “It felt like I was going to the electric chair,” George said. “Sat there for hours waiting to go on. Very very nervous.” Fortunately, George was around friends. “There was a lot of support from the gang,” he added.
“On June 5, 1987, three of the five original musicians who appeared on the classic Beatles ‘White Album’ track ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps’ reunited to perform the song live at the Prince’s Trust Rock Gala in London’s Wembley Arena.
Harrison, Starr, and Clapton last performed the song live 16 years earlier at the Concert for Bangladesh in New York City. What most interesting about this performance is the fact that A., the normally Strat-happy Clapton is playing a beautiful Gibson Les Paul, just as he did on the original 1968 recording, and B., the also-Strat-happy Harrison joins Clapton in the extended guitar solo at the end of the song. The two guitarists trade solos and feed off each other’s energy, and their intertwining lines are often pretty damn cool.”
Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Jeff Lynne and George Harrison playing out 1987’s Prince’s Trust Concert
After the 1986 concert, Midge Ure mentions in his biography how everyone went to a party at AIR studios, with Prince Charles and Princess Diana, and she told Ure she’d asked the Trust ‘if we could have the party back at our place’ – and they’d said no. Plans were different after the 1987 concert…
“That sounds like a great idea,’ I said. ‘You should do that next year.’ I never expected anything to come of it. The next year everyone who’d ever performed at a Prince’s Trust concert was invited to ‘our place’ – Kensington Palace. The atmosphere was very stiff to begin with until, to loosen things up a bit, HRH asked Jools Holland to play the piano. Jools launched into his regular boogie-woogie make-it-up-as-you-go-along routine. Soon the lights had dimmed, champagne flowed, faces glowed and everyone had a ball – especially Diana.”
Before that, everyone descends to the stage for the finale, and Ringo running down from the drums to perform With a Little Help from My Friends was a perfect way to end the concert, alongside all the performers.
With a Little Help from My Friends - Encore from The Prince's Trust 1987 Concert
Performers
