As we move towards the concerts at the Sage, Royal Albert Hall and the Symphony Hall I thought it might be worth looking back at that 1974 tour through the pages of the Melody Maker, to perhaps get a sense of the excitement and turmoil of those days.
The Melody Maker was very supportive of Cockney Rebel. In late ’73 they tipped Cockney Rebel as an act to watch during '74.... and the boys duly delivered. Most of the press focussed on Steve of course, and he was often on the front page of the Melody Maker, with the accompanying copy always encouraging and caring, almost paternal at times.
Nowadays, leafing through sets of bound-together archived Melody Makers from that time, the dried pages seem to come alive and dance as they chart the feeling of that summer and how big Cockney Rebel was at that time. The magazine observes at one point that Cockney Rebel only ever played one support spot (early on) in their career, all other gigs were as headliners in their own right.
The magazine captures the country’s anticipation of the tour, noting additional dates being added as the tour progressed, and moves to bigger venues to accommodate increasing demand.
The early tour gigs at The Friars in Aylesbury and the Winning Post in Twickenham (two important barometers of any band’s standing in Britain at the time) were sell-out successes (there was even a riot outside The Friars by fans unable to get in). The Stafford, Top of the World date was moved forward a week because of demand, the Manchester Stoneground date on the 21st of June was cancelled in favour of a later date at the larger venue in town..... the Hard Rock on the 22nd of July. Southampton and Cardiff Top Ranks were added to the tour, and both venues decided to run ‘Cockney Rebel Week’s to coincide with the shows.
The Melody Maker comments in early July ’74 that Cockney Rebel are “a post Bowie phenomenon, the great difference between Harley and others is that he wants to close the distance between him and his audience – not widen it.... they are one of the most happening bands in Britain, and in Harley they have a superstar.”
The magazine reviewed several dates on the tour, all of them very positive. Indeed, of the Coventry Lorcano show on the 2nd of July the magazine contentedly purred that “There are few warmer sights than a fine band on the verge of the crucial breakthrough to wider acclaim.”
Passing through so many pages of a bygone era is a heady reverie, a beautiful dream.... and so, to peel back a page to be caught by the front page headline - “Cockney Rebel Split” - jolts the senses, even now. A sense of loss lingers.
But all is not lost of course - Steve is still up there on the stage and we are lucky to have these shows, shows that may bring back many joyous memories for those that were there at the time.
I’II let the Melody Maker have the last word on the tour vibe with their review of the St. Albans City Hall gig on the 31st of May ’74.
“Cockney Rebel’s Steve Harley has been dismissed as an ego-maniac, a hip poster, yet when you see them his magical macabre charisma rubs off on you. The band took St. Albans City Hall by storm on Friday, turned 1,000 kids upside down for an evening, sent shivers up their spines and had them clamping stomping and raving.
Harley’s self-indulgence is the lifeblood of the band. He looked pale and emancipated, black and eerie with sweat dripping from his body. And his Rebels are behind him all the time. Beautiful drummer Stuart Elliot was perched on a dais, like an effigy of David Essex, fast, flashy and beaty, driving the band along. Cool bassist Paul Jefferys was rooted to his little patch of stage, and Milton Reame James’ tinkling piano fused with the violin strains of Jean Paul Crocker. The Rebels combine depth with instant commerciality, intellectualism with sex appeal. Their magic exudes from the stage, love it or hate it. They were raunchy, decadent, yet sophisticated and professional to the n’th degree. They worked the audience into a frenzy and got them all chanting “Oh dear, look what they have done to the blues”. They played a lot of material from their new album “The Psychomodo” – but the old favourites such like “Sebastian” and “Death Trip” showed the disturbing emotional quality they can produce. Cockney Rebel are undoubtedly destined for the top. Having unwrapped their packaging, the product is superb.”
