Somewhere near the beginning of 1990, Tommy Vance broadcast a live show by The Quireboys as part of his Friday Night Rock Show on Radio 1. The live set – recorded at Wembley Arena when the still relatively new band opened for the legendary Aerosmith on their ‘Pump’ tour in 1989 – presented the boys in great shape. Numbers like ‘Misled’ and ‘Man On The Loose’ captured a Faces-obsessed swagger in a way that few bands had managed since 1975; ‘Seven O’Clock’ – already known and loved by Vance’s devoted listeners – and the soon to be released as a single ‘Hey You’ showed the crowd pleasing power Spike and the boys already had from the off, whilst the country strains of ‘Sweet Mary Ann’ suggested the Quireboys had the potential to stretch out if required. Although short, this live show was, and remains, a great document of the band firing on all six.
Tag Archives: spike gray
THE QUIREBOYS – A Bit Of What You Fancy: 30th Anniversary Edition
When The Quireboys released their debut album ‘A Bit of What You Fancy’ in early 1990, the band seemed to attack the rock media with all guns blazing. They’d spent a few years sweating it out on the live circuit and had released a couple of singles, but the album itself thrust vocalist Spike Gray and company into a whole new league. With huge coverage from the rock mags, a couple of video appearances on Top of The Pops and a high profile appearance at the Donington Monsters of Rock festival that summer, it seemed hard to avoid the band for a time.
Their success was wholly justified. ‘A Bit of What You Fancy’ seemed to speak to a broad cross section of rock fans with its big hooks and retro charm. Looking back, it’s slightly shiny production values and big, slightly brassy female backing vocals didn’t necessarily give the material the best send off – and those backing vocals in particular made the studio recordings seem a lot less urgent than the live shows at that time – but, in terms of songs, the band really couldn’t have presented themselves in a much stronger way.
DELUXE EDITION DREAMLAND: Quireboys – Live ’89-’90
In February 2011, approximately twenty one years after its original release, The Quireboys’ much-loved debut album ‘A Bit of What You Fancy’ was given an expanded reissue, adding a selection of unheard demo recordings. While the release of these demos was most welcome – and indeed, the competitively priced reissue should have warranted a purchase for most curious listeners – at Real Gone, we feel this was an opportunity wasted.
Quireboys confirm acoustic dates for early 2014
Following the first leg of the tour for their 2013 release ‘Beautiful Curse’, The Quireboys have confirmed they’ll be kicking off 2014 with a selection of acoustic shows at intimate venues, including a set at London’s Borderline.
The acoustic dates are as follows: