THE POLICE – Capitol Theater, Passaic, New Jersey, 29/11/1980

In their short lifespan of just under eight years, like The Beatles of post-punk, The Police took on the world. The bulk of their studio output retains a near timeless appeal, but it was in the live setting that the power of this trio of talented musicians became really obvious.

It’s a shame that the only widely available live show from the band’s original existence is from the Synchronicity tour. Although a great show, the shine and bombast doesn’t quite capture the spirit of the earlier years. The BBC’s ‘Rock Goes To College’ show sits gathering dust in an archive and other bits and pieces – although pro-shot and circulating among fans – are unlikely to get a DVD release any time soon.

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Rick Parfitt (12th October 1948 – 24th December 2016)

Few musicians hope they will be in the spotlight for fifty years and even fewer expect to spend that long with the same band. For guitarist Rick Parfitt, of course, this was pretty much the case. The young Richard Parfitt joined the fledgling Status Quo (previously called The Spectres) in 1967. His friendship with Francis Rossi now more than cemented, they both became committed to the band, which from 1967 scored hits across the bulk of the next five decades.

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New video from Lasers Lasers Birmingham

In July 2016, Lasers Lasers Birmingham released a four track EP exploring different elements of country music.  While the Band-esque ‘Shedd Aquarium’ was undoubtedly the highlight, each number showed Lasers’ head honcho Alex Owen to be a man with a well-rounded talent.

The title cut, ‘Royal Blue’ now has an official video, which you can watch in full below.

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Deconstructing The Dame: David Bowie Uncovered

bowiecollageThe 10th January 2016 was a dark day in the music world. Singer, songwriter, musical chameleon and legend David Bowie passed away. The strangest thing happened: the people of the internet came together in an outpouring of grief. Grown men cried. Some trolls stopped being angry. From huge fans to casual admirers, Bowie’s death seemed to touch almost everyone in some way. Even people who weren’t fans were more than aware of David’s importance. Love him, like him, hate him: everybody knew something from Bowie’s vast and varied back catalogue.

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