I have a
confession to make. I have seen Heaven
17 play live more than any other band. Their debut album, Penthouse and
Pavement is in my personal top five of all albums ever. That album is 35 years old this year and that’s
a scary thought. But Heaven 17 are one
of those bands that you can never see enough of. They are professional and funny, sometimes reminding me of Morcambe and Wise with their banter. They can guarantee you a good night out.
So with all
that in mind I headed off to the Jazz Café. These tickets were supposed to have been for
an event in May but the Jazz Café has undergone a fantastic refurbishment, so
the gig was postponed until October. Rule
number one when you are only 5ft tall is to get there early to guarantee yourself
the front row. But I was in good company
with all the Heaven 17 die-hards – some of whom go to every gig and follow them
around the country.
The
anticipation grows and soon enough we wait no more as some BEF electronic music
plays and they walk on stage. The first
track is Circus of Death. Not the most
obvious opening track but of course for those who don’t know, Martyn Ware
(along with previous founder member Ian Craig Marsh) founded The Human League and
this a rare outing for this track. The
evening is pitted with THL tracks and we are lucky enough to hear Black Hit of Space, Loving Feeling and of course Being Boiled. Fans of early Human League were in their
element.
Our next track
is a brand new track which they have never played live before. EVER!. It’s
called ‘Captured’ and the single was only released the day before so when I say
brand new…I really mean it. They joke to
the audience that they now have half an album of new songs so maybe by 2020 we
will see an album release. And then we
are straight back to classic Heaven 17 with Fascist Groove Thang. Glenn asks who would vote for Martyn as PM –
everyone here would. Fascist Groove
Thang, or to use its full title for extra points (We don’t need this) Fascist
Groove Thang, has lyrics that are still as relevant today as they were 35 years
ago. Indeed, it might be even more poignant
with Brexit, a Tory Government and the USA having a possible President called
Trump. These lyrics are simply genius.
What makes the
gigs at the Jazz Café with Heaven 17 extra special is they perform tracks we
hardly ever hear them perform. On this
occasion we had Trouble and Contenders. Both these tracks have not had the recognition
they deserve and are brilliant tracks. Come Live With Me has the audience joining in so loudly that although Martyn told us
it got to number 5 in the charts, it really should be a number one single with
the love for it in this room.
One of my
personal favourites is We’re Gonna Live For a Very Long Time. It’s such an upbeat track and the electronics
are so pure. And when Glenn opens his
arms it’s like he is preaching to the congregation. If you love Heaven 17, you
will live for a very long time! More P&P tracks included Play to Win and
Penthouse and Pavement. I couldn’t be singing more loudly if I wanted to. Glenn
says his favourite early Human League track was the cover version of You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling. Martyn comes out from behind his keyboard and they sing
together. It’s so lovely how they interact. They obviously enjoy each other’s
company and have a good laugh on stage.
During Temptation,
Glenn sings with me ’Love to love you baby’ (another advantage of being front
row) and mouths to me ‘Happy Birthday’. Of course this makes my day. They go off for a well-deserved break and come
back on for an encore. It feels so right
and proper that their encore should include two Bowie songs. It feels like it was arranged just for me as
both Glenn and Martyn know I am a huge Bowie fan. Glenn and Berenice cover Life on
Mars and once again the audience is so loud joinin in singing, that Glenn asks for the piano to be
louder to he can hear it. I love Glenn singing
Bowie. He does it justice and I know he
is a huge Bowie fan too. Martyn and Billie and Rachel all come back on stage
for Boys Keep Swinging. After this I
show Glenn my tattoo. Don’t worry – it’s
on my wrist and is a tribute to Bowie. He
looks at it then tells everyone it’s my birthday and wishes me a happy birthday
so the whole audience now know it’s my birthday. I don’t mind. Its lovely to feel I have such a
lovely Heaven 17 family around me. It’s
a double celebration as Keith and Chezzie celebrate their 50th H17
gig. They finish with Being Boiled. The first song Martyn ever wrote. It’s a fitting tribute that the last song is
the first song.
And with that
the gig is over – but the feeling of exhilaration continues long into the
night. Of course Martyn and Glenn come
over and say hello and wish me a happy birthday in a more personal setting and
sign the set list with ‘Happy b-day.’
So as I
mentioned – I have seen Heaven 17 live more than any other band, but this isn’t
the end. I do not have to wait long as they have an upcoming tour of 35 years
of Penthouse & Pavement plus BEF. This is truly heaven!
Details of the
tour can be found on their website: http://www.heaven17.com/
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