Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts
1. On 7 February 1980 I went to the Ulster Hall in Belfast to see a rock/heavy metal trio that had just earned the accolade of being the loudest band in the UK. The drummer was a Philthy Animal, the lead guitarist was Fast, and the bassist/vocalist was gravel-voiced, warts and all.
What was the name of this speed freak band?
2. On 18 February 1980 I was asked by a local promoter to pick up a van in Derry, to drive it down to Sligo to pick up a band from Dublin that were playing a gig at the Blue Lagoon, then to drive it to Dun Laoghaire the next day for another gig with the same band that evening. The band was in the early stages of their career but they soon became one of the biggest in the world, selling about 160 million albums.
Can you name them?
3. On 9 June 1980 I went to the Balmoral Hall in Belfast to see a long-established Irish rock band with a charismatic bassist/vocalist. There was plenty of whiskey in the jar that night!
What was the name of this band?
4. Life and a permanent Civil Service job brought an end to my rock'n'roll years, but on 30 October 1986 I went to a gig at the Ulster Hall in Belfast. The band featured a black film director with the longest dreadlocks I'd ever seen, sampling random tracks - at that time a very new technique. The guitarist/vocalist was a man I'd met in October 1977 when he was playing for the Clash.
What was the name of this punk/hip-hop/funk/reggae fusion band?
5. I went to the Arts Theatre in Belfast on 22 March 1992 to see an up-and-coming American singer/songwriter whose second album had just charted in the UK. Her songs were about her religious upbringing, her sexual awakening and her struggle to establish her identity - all serious stuff. A flame-haired young woman, she sat at a piano stool and hammered away at her piano.
Her surname is the same as a Biblical prophet - who is she?
6. By 1997 Belfast had acquired a new concert venue, the wonderful Waterfront Hall. On 14 April it hosted one-half of possibly the most famous singing duo in the world.
Which one was he? - he wasn't the songwriter but he was the vocal arranger.
7. We went back to the Waterfront Hall in Belfast on 10 January 1998 to see a solo gig by an artist I'd first seen performing in November 1969! One of the UK's best guitarists, he had debuted at the age of 18 with a hugely innovative folk-rock band that he'd co-founded, and had demonstrated his song-writing abilities with a track that became the band's theme song, "Meet On The Ledge".
Who was this great guitarist?
8. We went back to the Arts Theatre in Belfast on 22 March 1998 to see a concert by one of the best songwriters in the world. Just imagine yourself on the plains of rural southwest Oklahoma looking at the 'phone lines, or in the Park looking at the green icing.
Who did we see sing those songs that night?
9. So off we went to the Waterfront Hall in Belfast on 16 April 1998 to see a Merseybeat band from the early 1960s - although they were actually from Manchester, not Liverpool. They were a great harmony band, but sadly their best singer left them in 1968 to join a supergroup in the US (despite his colleagues asking him to "Stay"). The band had over 30 UK chart hits and 22 in the US charts.
They continue to tour and record - but who are they?
10. So we went "Steppin' Out" to the Waterfront Hall in Belfast on 24 February 2001 to see an English singer/songwriter of whom I was aware but hadn't listened too much - a mistake! A lovely fusion of new wave, jazz and rock, his songs were just wonderful and brilliantly performed. As to whether it actually is different for girls, I don't know.
Who was this artist?
Source: Author
Southendboy
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agony before going online.
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