Hi James, just saw this and it brought back memories. I was lucky enough to be at the Wings concert at Lancaster Great Hall in 1972. Happy to share my experience with you.
Hey James, Had somehow missed this one. Wonderful taking us through this all. Enjoyed very much the drive and campus tour. How neat it being part of your own history. Funny and poignant about the 'forgotten chords' at the end. Thanks for sharing this. -Carm
Thanks Carm, glad you enjoyed it. I had a ball making this video! Hope you had a good Halloween.....I was off-and-on all day yesterday watching your last video in small instalments, but wasn't finally able to leave a comment.Very busy day with the kids and all the horror etc. Managed to read a bit of Lovecraft.
What a great video James! Making good use of your local piece of Beatles history. This whole period as you say is fascinating and in dire need of re-appraisal so thanks. I saw a picture of the 1972 Wings Over Europe bus sitting in some scrapyard...in Spain I think of all places. Was tempted to buy it so it could sit in my back garden. Not the high life but in many ways just as interesting as what was to follow, if not more so. Looking at the set list I find it quite surprising that he didn't do more stuff off Ram (Eat At Home was performed in Europe 72). But Another Day is nowhere to be seen....perhaps John's jibe on How do You Sleep has git to him. Too Many People would also have been an obvious choice. Wish I'd been there. Even John spoke admiringly of this small tour in the Playboy interview of 1980. Cheers!
Thanks John, glad you enjoyed it. I would love to research and write a book on this tour. Just to find out where the band stayed when they were here in Lancaster (which B+B? Is it still open? is the owner still alive?? etc etc). There was one factoid I didn't mention in the video, and that is I did chat on-line to a couple of guys who used to frequent the old indoor market (long closed) wherein there used to be a record stall called Hedgehog Records (I bought records there myself in '89-90). Apparently, Paul and Denny both went there on the lunchtime and chatted to the owners, and left him some handwritten leaflets to publicise the gig. Unbelievable! Your bus in the scrapyard story is truly incredible - imagine having that at the bottom of your garden! There was some TV show I saw a while back in which some bloke had the toilet from John Lennon's old house, and was using it as a plant-pot!
Really appreciated this video - it's a part of McCartney's career that had always seemed very mysterious and intriguing to me when I was growing up. And here in the States, very little information seemed to be published about it which made it even more fascinating for me.
Excellent video. I thoroughly enjoyed this. I have never heard this story before. I didn't even know that Paul wanted to do a back to basics tour with the Beatles. Thank you James.
Very cool walk thru of this. Things I love to see. Enjoyed it very much. This is why I am a Paul guy. He was the down to earth and grounded one. I am a Wings fan of the early part......I met Denny L and he was very laid back....I did not bother him, just small talk. Thanks. Steve
Thanks Steve, pleased you enjoyed it. Great that you met Denny, I did too a few years ago. I have a photo which I'll share with you on FB later. He came to play a gig just up the road from us. He seemed like a nice guy but slightly spaced. He said he was meant to be working on his autobiography but was struggling to actually remember anything about his life!
I feel like I have ben on a Paul McCartney field trip . I have always wondered what it look like so thanks to you I now have see it :} . It was so cool to see this . You put a lot of hard work in this ... And it shows well done James :}. Now win I listen to my boot leg of Paul I now can visualize exactly the location Thank you . :} . I love stuff like this what a treat . O James do I get extra credit for showing up in class lol. Thank you for a FANTASTIC trip and video !!!.
This was a really enjoyable watch! Like the 1972 Wings university tour, this video was rough around the edges and I mean that in a good way. It was great that you went to the actual venue at Lancaster University. Now that's dedication!
Thanks Matt. I made this in the spring, before I upgraded my production quality (did you notice that??) so yes, it looks a bit weird now....no fairy lights on the book shelf, and did you notice the record shelf was bowed but not broken? As for the 'dedication', Lancaster Uni is only a short drive away from my house!
Yeah but I liked the rougher approach. It fit in well with the theme of the video. Even if the university is close, you still had to go there. Did you have to ask permission to film inside the hall or did you just casually wander in hoping nobody would notice?
That's exactly what I did. I was so lucky because as you saw, the hall had been set up for an exam - I think there'd already been one in the morning and they'd set up again for an afternoon one, and I cruised in between the two sessions. There's normally a porter on duty in a little room just off the hall, but he wasn't there (his door was unlocked though, so he probably wasn't too far away). I kind of wish I'd talked louder in the hall now. I did some extra filming in and around the hall complex but it ended up on the cutting room floor. I even took the camera to the building where I'd lived in halls, but I thought it was all getting a bit self-indulgent!
Good gawd James this was incredibly fun!! Loved hearing all the info, pictures, etc. hard to believe once you were on the stage that Paul Mc, would have played a small room( considering) what they became.....thanks for this video, take care-Lis
Excellent video James. It was entertaining and informative. I believe that tour did not go without some problems but it showed that McCartney was never going to rest on his Beatles laurels.
This time I feel on a conquered ground and all these additional details come to feed my "Maccaesque" culture and or confirm all that I already knew. So great to see the real place. Thank you for the university first date free 2017 tour Professeur _and you were on THE original stage!_ :) If I had a modified DeLorean in my garage, I know I will not allowed to change the history (in the name of our "safety" in 2017) but... I already know couple of good and historical concerts I would go see. This place is added to my long list. For me the photo that summarizes the spirit of this first tour is the one on the roof of the double decker bus... Jazz cigarettes, guitars, kids all around, pillows and hair in the wind _aka "Who's giving a damn about seat belt? Have some fun guys because we can!"_ Different times but... Paul could have signed a contract of several million and start touring almost immediately after the separation of the Beatles. But he had the wisdom, the courage and yeah the freedom to consider a different path. Today, his tours are a gigantic ticket machine (tickets expensive as real gold ticket) but this first tour and that until 1974 were very humble. *It's only Rock'n'Roll but I like it, like it, yes, I do!* GREAT video Professeur ! Great VIDEO !!!! Ps : I read somewhere couple of months ago... the real original bus who has been re find.
Thank you Paul, it is so good to hear from you TWICE in one evening! The bus photos are very cool I agree, but in fact this was not the university tour I talk about in this video but the subsequent tour of Europe later the same year. I wish I could think of more videos like this...maybe I could go to the Cavern? But the thing is, it's not the same one! John Heaton tried to get up onto the roof of Saville Row, do you remember that video?? Bye for now!
Damn you're right ! Of course this pic is from the europe tour + I think it was in the East South of France ! haha ! But you understood what I meant about their freedom fresh new band start. :) I remember John's video and I tried too in august 1998 but it was impossible _and the almost 15yo doc was even less reckless than the 34-year-old version._ :)
Hey James, this was a fantastic video. I think this was better than Magical Mystery Tour👍and more logical😁haha. I loved all the details and appreciate the hard work it took you to produce this fine video. You truly are the Professor, no Doctor😎lol
Have just watched the whole vid. Really enjoyed it mate. There are lots of thoughts swirling around my head now, questions etc. I'll compile them into a seperate comment. I will say though James how much I enjoyed your insights into McCartney/Wings more than I do your views of the Beatles. Nice not to hear the misuse of the word 'phenomenon' in relation to this part of McCartney's work. I'm not that familiar with his/Wings records, but his first album and Ram do hold a special place in my interest. In fact the first McCartney record was very important to me when I got into it.
The way you describe the Wild Life tour reminds me of the life style that Ronnie Lane adopted with his band Slim Chance after the Faces. I wonder if the urge to get back to basics and rough-it is some sort of way of rediscovering what it was they liked about playing music in the first place. An attempt to re capture the memories of band life before the pressures of fame took over. If Macca were to play that 'Great Hall' today I suspect that the security would be very tight. I wonder what sort of security they had in 72 on that tour. Very little if the entrance price was 50p I'll wager.
Hi John. There was no security on that tour, none whatsoever. I didn't know about Ronnie Lane and Slim Chance. I think with Macca's case you have to see it in the context of him attempting to pull himself out of a huge emotional hole. His life collapsed for a while at the beginning of the seventies, and I think it was either get a band together and go on the road or just sink into alcoholism and despair. But yes, also definitely an attempt to recapture the magic of the pre-fame years...not that he could ever do that of course, and with McCartney you have to always remember that he's always loved being 'out and about' and being famous, so a tour like that would also have been a huge stoke for his ego.
Had great bands at Lancaster in the early 80s. OMD, The Cure, Human League, Pretenders, and even Slade (grad ball). Alot were breaking when booked and by the time they played had hit albums.
Fantastic video, James! It was really fascinating to go on a guided tour through such an interesting part of McCartney's history. I think I have a couple of bootleg CDs of a couple of the shows from this tour. The sound is mediocre, as it was recorded from the audience, but it's still a fascinating listen. You were making me nervous by driving on the wrong side of the road!
ha ha yes, I do it all the time! One of the scariest experiences OF MY LIFE was hiring a car in San Fransisco and driving it onto the huge freeway heading out of town for the first time, enroute to Nevada. At least I didn't have to change gears though. Glad you enjoyed the video!
Hi James - Terrific video. I really enjoyed the tour. It must have been quite interesting to see Wings at that time. I always wonder how many people were screaming out for Beatles numbers.
Thanks Jeff. Prior to making this video I put the word out on local FB that I wanted to talk to anyone who'd been at the gig. Frustratingly, one woman did get in touch, but she told me there was no point interviewing her as she couldn't remember anything about it! There must surely have been screams for Beatles songs though...how could there not have been??
Great video, interesting and illuminating angle on a story I knew little about! Excellent video- storytelling. What song off 'wild life' would you have wanted to hear if you were there?
Hi Dean. Interesting question....maybe Mumbo! Not exactly the best 'song' on the album but I can imagine it would have been quite an exciting jam to hear live. Glad you enjoyed the video!
My favorite line was "Instead of desks and chairs there would have been a packed rock 'n' roll audience. This was fantastic Professor James. The way you retraced the steps was wonderful. But what you also did was retrace the steps for another amazing show whose location has been a mystery to me for a long time. Yes, Led Zeppelin played there also on November 25th, 1971. The price of the ticket was one pound in advance. ruclips.net/video/VC_XBCspQA4/видео.html Here is the show if you would like to hear it: ruclips.net/video/f-E2af37FZ4/видео.html I would have loved to have seen the Mighty Blimp play there in 1971 and also Macca/Wings in 1972. This was one heck of a video James. Thank you so much for taking me along. I can now picture the venue of Mystical Majesties Request bootleg that I have enjoyed for a long time. Talk to you soon~ Rob/Boston
I was there, and while watching last night's 80th birthday programme on BBC2 I tried to check out the date of the performance, but it doesn't appear in the records. I posted on FB, and one of my ex-pupils found your film. Story on campus was that the group had gone to play at Carlisle, not realising it had no uni, so headed on down the M6 to Lancaster. BTW, that French lecturer wasn't the ever-adored Malcolm Quainton by any chance, was it?
Thanks for the info, and for watching. Interesting history. No, it wasn't Quainton...I forget the guy's full name now but his first name might have been Gilbert. Short chap with a moustache as I recall.
I'd no idea Paul took the Beatles breakup so rough; understandable though considering having such a huge part of your life since you were a teen crumble around you. Interesting how that "Get Back" motif carried over into the formative stages of Wings. Interesting to see that set list - I thought Seaside Woman was a bit later, in my possession is a Jamaican pressed 7" of that song which may well have been played at the open air dances on the island at the time ;-) Give Ireland Back To The Irish must certainly have been a controversial statement for a fledging band to make, sort of refutes the popular notion of John as the only political Beatle as well. I like that period of time in rock and how low key and sort of family oriented things could be. Terrific tour, I can almost feel we are back on that night in 1972 as Paul & Co. nervously tread the boards. Cheers James!
Cheers Doug. Yeah, Paul had a rough ride after the Beatles broke up. He nearly became an alcoholic. The greatest book I've ever read about the Beatles, 'You Never Gave Me Your Money' by Pete Doggett, goes into some detail about why he went to pieces so badly and offered the insight it was very much to do with Paul losing the esteem and friendship of John Lennon. Curious to report, but I've never owned Give Ireland Back to the Irish on vinyl! Fascinating you have a Jamaican pressing of Seaside Woman. In the early 70s (I think before the 72 tour), the McCartneys travelled to Jamaica (Linda was a reggae fan before Paul) and they swooped down on various record shops and bought up loads of white label 45s without knowing who any of them were by. Then of course on the first Wings album they recorded a reggae version of Love Is Strange. Paul's love of reggae music is not often widely reported - oddly enough, he ran into Denny Laine a few years ago (the first time the pair had met for decades) at a UB40 concert in London.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic My 45 of Give Ireland Back To The Irish had green shamrocks against a white label. Really enjoyed the video - I had followed it via the NME but remembered little of the details. Thanks for the memory jog.
Out of all the 72 shows I have and I've got quite a few they only played some people never know the first two nights. Is that pretty much what you got there?
I like the map of the UK. Wales, apart from showing Cardiff, might as well say "Here be monsters!" Was there any contractual reasons why they didn't perform any Beatles songs? Or was it simply because he was trying to plow a new career? Do you know if Lennon and the other Beatles would play old songs of theirs at live gigs?
Hi Hedley. Yes, Wales does look like something of a wasteland on that particular map doesn't it. They couldn't even be arsed to have Swansea on it. Macca refused to play any Beatles songs for the first few years of his solo career; he was too cut up about the break-up, but also very keen just to establish himself as a solo artist. He started throwing Beatles songs into the set by the mid seventies, mainly because promoters asked him to do it, but there were only a handful even during the mega-venue years. After he'd taken 10 years off touring in the eighties, he returned to the fray and re-invented himself as Beatle Paul Mark 2, playing mainly Beatles stuff again, and that was that. Even hard-core Beatles fans are now bored with hearing Hey Jude, and are desperate for him to go back to doing stuff from the solo years.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic Don't get too bored with Paul's Beatle classics live - he will not be around forever & when that time comes, to hear those songs performed live by the composer will be gone forever!
They got real close to the stage, not much in a way of lugging gear.About bands not playing in Lancaster anymore;They probably aren't considered a big name and i don't know if they are active today, (the last that i heard of them, Bill Wyman released a solo album and had got cancer) Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings toured mostly in those small towns. I have twice seen the list of their tour dates over UK and they included towns i hadn't even heard of. Maybe they have played in Lancaster during the recent years? Pasi
No Wyman's not been to Lancaster. There are literally no rock gigs at the Uni now, and there are no other venues in the town that would be suitable. The nearest venue is called The Platform in a seaside town called Morecambe which is about five miles away. The biggest names I've seen there have been people such as Midge Ure, or Dr Feelgood in their present guise without Wilko. Actually, I just checked and it seems Fairport Convention are playing there, which is a bit surprising - they're probably lacking a few key members though by now aren't they. Actually I'm quite excited now because The Magic Band (Beefheart) are playing there in November....I might have to go to that. Thanks for watching!
I was a student at Lancaster Uni in the late 90s to 2008... did my BSc and PhD there... had no idea Wings played there! I know people always talked about Queen being there back in their early days (maybe Sheer Heart Attack era)... It's a shame the uni/band circuit scene died in the 80s... it was incredibly boring music-wise when I was there... I saw the jazz guitarist Larry Coryell in the Great Hall which was pretty nice but mostly it was boring classical music (I love modern classical) and pretty pompous... I even played there myself with a world jazz/fusion band...
Btw I just found an old programme from 1977... AC-DC, Mike Harding, The Jam, Eddie and the Hot Rods... all £1.50 a ticket Boomtown Rats... £1.25 (still overpriced IMHO ;) )...
U2 played there also. There's a person in Lancaster who went to all these gigs and is writing some sort of book about it all, but I haven't managed to track them down yet.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic that would be a great read... Many of my ex colleagues at Lancaster used to talk about all those old concerts. I even remember watching an old episode of the Old Grey Whistle Test from about 1978 and Jan Akkerman of Focus had a band with great jazz fusion keyboardist Joachim Kuhn and they mentioned playing Lancaster that very week... I honestly could not believe how that could have happened as there was an air of pomposity about the arts/music department and what constituted "real music" when I was there... so much has changed since those days... even from your days there.... I feel my university experience was really short changed in that respect.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic Hi James. I have just been made aware of your video by my co-author, Barry Lucas. NIce work......Last year we released 'When Rock Went to College' Legends Live at Lancaster University 1969-1985.
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Hi James, just saw this and it brought back memories. I was lucky enough to be at the Wings concert at Lancaster Great Hall in 1972. Happy to share my experience with you.
hI Sheryl. I've been hunting around for someone who was there. Are you in Lancaster still?
James Griffiths no I’m not unfortunately. If we can find a way to send a private message, I’m happy to exchange emails. Perhaps on Facebook?
Enjoyed this video very much! Nice to see the inside of the Hall. I've only seen it via old footage and photos. Cheers!
Thanks James, glad you enjoyed it.
Its so funny to think of Paul playing in Universities... very nice job, James.
Thanks Kris. Yes, it's certainly difficult to imagine him doing it today.
Hey James, Had somehow missed this one. Wonderful taking us through this all. Enjoyed very much the drive and campus tour. How neat it being part of your own history. Funny and poignant about the 'forgotten chords' at the end. Thanks for sharing this. -Carm
Thanks Carm, glad you enjoyed it. I had a ball making this video! Hope you had a good Halloween.....I was off-and-on all day yesterday watching your last video in small instalments, but wasn't finally able to leave a comment.Very busy day with the kids and all the horror etc. Managed to read a bit of Lovecraft.
What a great video James! Making good use of your local piece of Beatles history. This whole period as you say is fascinating and in dire need of re-appraisal so thanks. I saw a picture of the 1972 Wings Over Europe bus sitting in some scrapyard...in Spain I think of all places. Was tempted to buy it so it could sit in my back garden. Not the high life but in many ways just as interesting as what was to follow, if not more so. Looking at the set list I find it quite surprising that he didn't do more stuff off Ram (Eat At Home was performed in Europe 72). But Another Day is nowhere to be seen....perhaps John's jibe on How do You Sleep has git to him. Too Many People would also have been an obvious choice. Wish I'd been there. Even John spoke admiringly of this small tour in the Playboy interview of 1980. Cheers!
Thanks John, glad you enjoyed it. I would love to research and write a book on this tour. Just to find out where the band stayed when they were here in Lancaster (which B+B? Is it still open? is the owner still alive?? etc etc). There was one factoid I didn't mention in the video, and that is I did chat on-line to a couple of guys who used to frequent the old indoor market (long closed) wherein there used to be a record stall called Hedgehog Records (I bought records there myself in '89-90). Apparently, Paul and Denny both went there on the lunchtime and chatted to the owners, and left him some handwritten leaflets to publicise the gig. Unbelievable! Your bus in the scrapyard story is truly incredible - imagine having that at the bottom of your garden! There was some TV show I saw a while back in which some bloke had the toilet from John Lennon's old house, and was using it as a plant-pot!
Really appreciated this video - it's a part of McCartney's career that had always seemed very mysterious and intriguing to me when I was growing up. And here in the States, very little information seemed to be published about it which made it even more fascinating for me.
Thanks Thomas, glad you enjoyed it. I had fun making it. The story of this tour would make a great book.
Excellent video. I thoroughly enjoyed this. I have never heard this story before. I didn't even know that Paul wanted to do a back to basics tour with the Beatles. Thank you James.
Cheers, glad you enjoyed it.
Very cool walk thru of this. Things I love to see. Enjoyed it very much. This is why I am a Paul guy. He was the down to earth and grounded one. I am a Wings fan of the early part......I met Denny L and he was very laid back....I did not bother him, just small talk. Thanks. Steve
Thanks Steve, pleased you enjoyed it. Great that you met Denny, I did too a few years ago. I have a photo which I'll share with you on FB later. He came to play a gig just up the road from us. He seemed like a nice guy but slightly spaced. He said he was meant to be working on his autobiography but was struggling to actually remember anything about his life!
I feel like I have ben on a Paul McCartney field trip . I have always wondered what it look like so thanks to you I now have see it :} . It was so cool to see this . You put a lot of hard work in this ... And it shows well done James :}. Now win I listen to my boot leg of Paul I now can visualize exactly the location Thank you . :} . I love stuff like this what a treat . O James do I get extra credit for showing up in class lol. Thank you for a FANTASTIC trip and video !!!.
:}
Cheers Brad, glad you enjoyed it! Do you really have a bootleg of the tour?
?? I think so I will lock ??.
This was a really enjoyable watch! Like the 1972 Wings university tour, this video was rough around the edges and I mean that in a good way. It was great that you went to the actual venue at Lancaster University. Now that's dedication!
Thanks Matt. I made this in the spring, before I upgraded my production quality (did you notice that??) so yes, it looks a bit weird now....no fairy lights on the book shelf, and did you notice the record shelf was bowed but not broken? As for the 'dedication', Lancaster Uni is only a short drive away from my house!
Yeah but I liked the rougher approach. It fit in well with the theme of the video. Even if the university is close, you still had to go there. Did you have to ask permission to film inside the hall or did you just casually wander in hoping nobody would notice?
That's exactly what I did. I was so lucky because as you saw, the hall had been set up for an exam - I think there'd already been one in the morning and they'd set up again for an afternoon one, and I cruised in between the two sessions. There's normally a porter on duty in a little room just off the hall, but he wasn't there (his door was unlocked though, so he probably wasn't too far away). I kind of wish I'd talked louder in the hall now. I did some extra filming in and around the hall complex but it ended up on the cutting room floor. I even took the camera to the building where I'd lived in halls, but I thought it was all getting a bit self-indulgent!
Good gawd James this was incredibly fun!! Loved hearing all the info, pictures, etc. hard to believe once you were on the stage that Paul Mc, would have played a small room( considering) what they became.....thanks for this video, take care-Lis
Thanks Lis, always great to hear from you. Hope to see you soon!
Excellent video James. It was entertaining and informative. I believe that tour did not go without some problems but it showed that McCartney was never going to rest on his Beatles laurels.
Hi Steve...no indeed, I think it set the tone for the ensuing decade really. Macca was nothing if not a grafter! Thanks for watching.
This time I feel on a conquered ground and all these additional details come to feed my "Maccaesque" culture and or confirm all that I already knew. So great to see the real place. Thank you for the university first date free 2017 tour Professeur _and you were on THE original stage!_ :) If I had a modified DeLorean in my garage, I know I will not allowed to change the history (in the name of our "safety" in 2017) but... I already know couple of good and historical concerts I would go see. This place is added to my long list.
For me the photo that summarizes the spirit of this first tour is the one on the roof of the double decker bus... Jazz cigarettes, guitars, kids all around, pillows and hair in the wind _aka "Who's giving a damn about seat belt? Have some fun guys because we can!"_
Different times but... Paul could have signed a contract of several million and start touring almost immediately after the separation of the Beatles. But he had the wisdom, the courage and yeah the freedom to consider a different path. Today, his tours are a gigantic ticket machine (tickets expensive as real gold ticket) but this first tour and that until 1974 were very humble. *It's only Rock'n'Roll but I like it, like it, yes, I do!*
GREAT video Professeur ! Great VIDEO !!!!
Ps : I read somewhere couple of months ago... the real original bus who has been re find.
Thank you Paul, it is so good to hear from you TWICE in one evening! The bus photos are very cool I agree, but in fact this was not the university tour I talk about in this video but the subsequent tour of Europe later the same year. I wish I could think of more videos like this...maybe I could go to the Cavern? But the thing is, it's not the same one! John Heaton tried to get up onto the roof of Saville Row, do you remember that video?? Bye for now!
Damn you're right ! Of course this pic is from the europe tour + I think it was in the East South of France ! haha ! But you understood what I meant about their freedom fresh new band start. :) I remember John's video and I tried too in august 1998 but it was impossible _and the almost 15yo doc was even less reckless than the 34-year-old version._ :)
Hi Paul...see John Heaton's comment on this video for the whereabouts of the Wings European tour bus!!
Hey James, this was a fantastic video. I think this was better than Magical Mystery Tour👍and more logical😁haha. I loved all the details and appreciate the hard work it took you to produce this fine video. You truly are the Professor, no Doctor😎lol
I wish I was a Doctor or a Professor, I'd have a bigger salary, ha ha. Thanks for watching and enjoying!
Hi James, Good to see you back. I have just watched the intro to this video...will save it for after the kids bed time. Nice idea though. Cheers
Have just watched the whole vid. Really enjoyed it mate. There are lots of thoughts swirling around my head now, questions etc. I'll compile them into a seperate comment. I will say though James how much I enjoyed your insights into McCartney/Wings more than I do your views of the Beatles. Nice not to hear the misuse of the word 'phenomenon' in relation to this part of McCartney's work. I'm not that familiar with his/Wings records, but his first album and Ram do hold a special place in my interest. In fact the first McCartney record was very important to me when I got into it.
Thanks John, glad you enjoyed it. Look forward to receiving your thoughts and questions.
The way you describe the Wild Life tour reminds me of the life style that Ronnie Lane adopted with his band Slim Chance after the Faces. I wonder if the urge to get back to basics and rough-it is some sort of way of rediscovering what it was they liked about playing music in the first place. An attempt to re capture the memories of band life before the pressures of fame took over. If Macca were to play that 'Great Hall' today I suspect that the security would be very tight. I wonder what sort of security they had in 72 on that tour. Very little if the entrance price was 50p I'll wager.
Hi John. There was no security on that tour, none whatsoever. I didn't know about Ronnie Lane and Slim Chance. I think with Macca's case you have to see it in the context of him attempting to pull himself out of a huge emotional hole. His life collapsed for a while at the beginning of the seventies, and I think it was either get a band together and go on the road or just sink into alcoholism and despair. But yes, also definitely an attempt to recapture the magic of the pre-fame years...not that he could ever do that of course, and with McCartney you have to always remember that he's always loved being 'out and about' and being famous, so a tour like that would also have been a huge stoke for his ego.
Had great bands at Lancaster in the early 80s. OMD, The Cure, Human League, Pretenders, and even Slade (grad ball). Alot were breaking when booked and by the time they played had hit albums.
Yeah, amazing to think of the bands who played there. My neighbour saw them all.
Bravo James !!!!!!!perfect one..............
Thanks!
Fascinating stuff. Thanks.
You're welcome, glad you enjoyed it.
Fantastic video, James! It was really fascinating to go on a guided tour through such an interesting part of McCartney's history. I think I have a couple of bootleg CDs of a couple of the shows from this tour. The sound is mediocre, as it was recorded from the audience, but it's still a fascinating listen.
You were making me nervous by driving on the wrong side of the road!
ha ha yes, I do it all the time! One of the scariest experiences OF MY LIFE was hiring a car in San Fransisco and driving it onto the huge freeway heading out of town for the first time, enroute to Nevada. At least I didn't have to change gears though. Glad you enjoyed the video!
Hi James - Terrific video. I really enjoyed the tour. It must have been quite interesting to see Wings at that time. I always wonder how many people were screaming out for Beatles numbers.
Thanks Jeff. Prior to making this video I put the word out on local FB that I wanted to talk to anyone who'd been at the gig. Frustratingly, one woman did get in touch, but she told me there was no point interviewing her as she couldn't remember anything about it! There must surely have been screams for Beatles songs though...how could there not have been??
Great video, interesting and illuminating angle on a story I knew little about! Excellent video- storytelling. What song off 'wild life' would you have wanted to hear if you were there?
Hi Dean. Interesting question....maybe Mumbo! Not exactly the best 'song' on the album but I can imagine it would have been quite an exciting jam to hear live. Glad you enjoyed the video!
My favorite line was "Instead of desks and chairs there would have been a packed rock 'n' roll audience.
This was fantastic Professor James. The way you retraced the steps was wonderful. But what you also did was retrace the steps for another amazing show whose location has been a mystery to me for a long time. Yes, Led Zeppelin played there also on November 25th, 1971. The price of the ticket was one pound in advance. ruclips.net/video/VC_XBCspQA4/видео.html Here is the show if you would like to hear it: ruclips.net/video/f-E2af37FZ4/видео.html
I would have loved to have seen the Mighty Blimp play there in 1971 and also Macca/Wings in 1972. This was one heck of a video James. Thank you so much for taking me along. I can now picture the venue of Mystical Majesties Request bootleg that I have enjoyed for a long time.
Talk to you soon~
Rob/Boston
Hi Rob. That's amazing about Zeppelin - can't wait to hear the show, thanks for the link. Glad you enjoyed the video, Speak soon!
I was there, and while watching last night's 80th birthday programme on BBC2 I tried to check out the date of the performance, but it doesn't appear in the records. I posted on FB, and one of my ex-pupils found your film. Story on campus was that the group had gone to play at Carlisle, not realising it had no uni, so headed on down the M6 to Lancaster. BTW, that French lecturer wasn't the ever-adored Malcolm Quainton by any chance, was it?
Thanks for the info, and for watching. Interesting history. No, it wasn't Quainton...I forget the guy's full name now but his first name might have been Gilbert. Short chap with a moustache as I recall.
I'd no idea Paul took the Beatles breakup so rough; understandable though considering having such a huge part of your life since you were a teen crumble around you. Interesting how that "Get Back" motif carried over into the formative stages of Wings. Interesting to see that set list - I thought Seaside Woman was a bit later, in my possession is a Jamaican pressed 7" of that song which may well have been played at the open air dances on the island at the time ;-) Give Ireland Back To The Irish must certainly have been a controversial statement for a fledging band to make, sort of refutes the popular notion of John as the only political Beatle as well. I like that period of time in rock and how low key and sort of family oriented things could be. Terrific tour, I can almost feel we are back on that night in 1972 as Paul & Co. nervously tread the boards. Cheers James!
Cheers Doug. Yeah, Paul had a rough ride after the Beatles broke up. He nearly became an alcoholic. The greatest book I've ever read about the Beatles, 'You Never Gave Me Your Money' by Pete Doggett, goes into some detail about why he went to pieces so badly and offered the insight it was very much to do with Paul losing the esteem and friendship of John Lennon. Curious to report, but I've never owned Give Ireland Back to the Irish on vinyl! Fascinating you have a Jamaican pressing of Seaside Woman. In the early 70s (I think before the 72 tour), the McCartneys travelled to Jamaica (Linda was a reggae fan before Paul) and they swooped down on various record shops and bought up loads of white label 45s without knowing who any of them were by. Then of course on the first Wings album they recorded a reggae version of Love Is Strange. Paul's love of reggae music is not often widely reported - oddly enough, he ran into Denny Laine a few years ago (the first time the pair had met for decades) at a UB40 concert in London.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic My 45 of Give Ireland Back To The Irish had green shamrocks against a white label.
Really enjoyed the video - I had followed it via the NME but remembered little of the details. Thanks for the memory jog.
Out of all the 72 shows I have and I've got quite a few they only played some people never know the first two nights. Is that pretty much what you got there?
I like the map of the UK. Wales, apart from showing Cardiff, might as well say "Here be monsters!"
Was there any contractual reasons why they didn't perform any Beatles songs? Or was it simply because he was trying to plow a new career? Do you know if Lennon and the other Beatles would play old songs of theirs at live gigs?
Hi Hedley. Yes, Wales does look like something of a wasteland on that particular map doesn't it. They couldn't even be arsed to have Swansea on it. Macca refused to play any Beatles songs for the first few years of his solo career; he was too cut up about the break-up, but also very keen just to establish himself as a solo artist. He started throwing Beatles songs into the set by the mid seventies, mainly because promoters asked him to do it, but there were only a handful even during the mega-venue years. After he'd taken 10 years off touring in the eighties, he returned to the fray and re-invented himself as Beatle Paul Mark 2, playing mainly Beatles stuff again, and that was that. Even hard-core Beatles fans are now bored with hearing Hey Jude, and are desperate for him to go back to doing stuff from the solo years.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic Don't get too bored with Paul's Beatle classics live - he will not be around forever & when that time comes, to hear those songs performed live by the composer will be gone forever!
They got real close to the stage, not much in a way of lugging gear.About bands not playing in Lancaster anymore;They probably aren't considered a big name and i don't know if they are active today, (the last that i heard of them, Bill Wyman released a solo album and had got cancer) Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings toured mostly in those small towns. I have twice seen the list of their tour dates over UK and they included towns i hadn't even heard of. Maybe they have played in Lancaster during the recent years?
Pasi
No Wyman's not been to Lancaster. There are literally no rock gigs at the Uni now, and there are no other venues in the town that would be suitable. The nearest venue is called The Platform in a seaside town called Morecambe which is about five miles away. The biggest names I've seen there have been people such as Midge Ure, or Dr Feelgood in their present guise without Wilko. Actually, I just checked and it seems Fairport Convention are playing there, which is a bit surprising - they're probably lacking a few key members though by now aren't they. Actually I'm quite excited now because The Magic Band (Beefheart) are playing there in November....I might have to go to that. Thanks for watching!
I was a student at Lancaster Uni in the late 90s to 2008... did my BSc and PhD there... had no idea Wings played there! I know people always talked about Queen being there back in their early days (maybe Sheer Heart Attack era)... It's a shame the uni/band circuit scene died in the 80s... it was incredibly boring music-wise when I was there... I saw the jazz guitarist Larry Coryell in the Great Hall which was pretty nice but mostly it was boring classical music (I love modern classical) and pretty pompous... I even played there myself with a world jazz/fusion band...
Btw I just found an old programme from 1977... AC-DC, Mike Harding, The Jam, Eddie and the Hot Rods... all £1.50 a ticket Boomtown Rats... £1.25 (still overpriced IMHO ;) )...
Thanks Neil, great comment. I'm impressed you played the Great Hall. I've seen classical concerts there myself.
U2 played there also. There's a person in Lancaster who went to all these gigs and is writing some sort of book about it all, but I haven't managed to track them down yet.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic that would be a great read... Many of my ex colleagues at Lancaster used to talk about all those old concerts. I even remember watching an old episode of the Old Grey Whistle Test from about 1978 and Jan Akkerman of Focus had a band with great jazz fusion keyboardist Joachim Kuhn and they mentioned playing Lancaster that very week... I honestly could not believe how that could have happened as there was an air of pomposity about the arts/music department and what constituted "real music" when I was there... so much has changed since those days... even from your days there.... I feel my university experience was really short changed in that respect.
@@jamesgriffithsmusic Hi James. I have just been made aware of your video by my co-author, Barry Lucas. NIce work......Last year we released 'When Rock Went to College' Legends Live at Lancaster University 1969-1985.