Spacemen 3 Town & Country Club, London -1989-07-23

[evan:)]

One I was at ...

http://spacemen3.blogspot.ie/2016/08/sp ... -club.html

Thanks to Nathaniel from Spacemen 3 Appreciation Society for sharing.

[sunray]

Class, i've been after this one for years. Thank you

[good dope/good fun]

Good sounding recording.
Any chance someone with the know-how can track this out from the one long track?

[catweazel]

https://www.discogs.com/Spacemen-3-Revo ... se/1901584

Reading the comments - has anyone ever seen the video this release was supposedly taken from?

The only live Sp3 videos I've ever seen are:

Subterrania UK (mostly blue, but clears up a bit further in, iirc)
Willem 1 Holland
Germany Forum, Enger

The Subterrania gig is probably the rarest of the three... but I'm really curious about this other live video. Does it actually exist?

...and (of course) many thanks for the T&C gig!

[Ian]

https://www.discogs.com/Spacemen-3-Revo ... se/1901584

Reading the comments - has anyone ever seen the video this release was supposedly taken from?

A good few years ago, I exchanged a few emails with the chap who filmed and owns the video. He was very friendly and seemed happy in principal for it to get out there, but had no idea where exactly it was amongst his voluminous property. It seemed rude to keep asking about it. Maybe he'll turn it up one day.

[catweazel]

I'm getting deja-vu

I think I've asked this before and you replied... hey, it's been a while...I just plain forgot

It's one of those things I stumble across every few years and wonder about, mostly because it might be the only decent recording of the band on UK soil. The Subterrania gig is, for the most part, unwatchable.

If he ever finds it and wants help converting it to DVDR I'd be happy to help out - my only hope is that it doesn't get binned!

Ian, have you seen the video - or does your friend remember it being decent quality... mores the point, how about the band's performance?

[Ian]

Ian, have you seen the video - or does your friend remember it being decent quality... mores the point, how about the band's performance?

He's not a friend, friendly though he was, hence me not feeling in a position to hassle him about it again. No, I haven't seen it. When we were talking about it in 2005 (!), he said; "The video itself is not bad for a shoulder-shot '87 home video - I was right at the front of the stage so everything is close up. A bit shaky, and the focus comes and goes because of the low lighting, but the band looks cool enough!"

We live in hope...

[yangen]

This show is a mystery for me... Years ago I downloaded the big torrent one generous user uploaded on a torrent site and there were a "sp3-1989-08-22" and a "sp3-1989-08-23" folders, the latter being files Evan kindly shared above.
Then I separated the big wav files and re-upped these on another tracker as, respectively, "sp3-1989-08-22" (Subterrania show) and "sp3-1989-07-23" (T&CC show) since there is no 08/23/89 show (I guess).

I didn't realize until an user commented that these two recordings are actually the same show, 08/22/89 Subterrania show, s/he said.
So not sure what is the correct date for this one... Would somebody having the Subterrania video be able to compare?

Here are the files I'm talking about above, may you want to download. The shorter 7 tracks version includes a longer intro and is much better quality than the long one.

"sp3-1989-07-23"
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/n08n1fjckejg ... 3OC1a?dl=0

"sp3-1989-08-22"
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/15k6ya8fnc7p ... oCega?dl=0

[Ian]

The 23/7/89 gig was at the Town & Country (later the Forum, now the O2 Forum).

The 22/8/89 gig was at Subterania, three days before the final Spacemen 3 gig at the Reading festival.

Not sure which of these the recording is!

[olan]

I am on my holidays so cannot check the file sets but my recollection is that the T&CC gig was the show featuring a quite long set list and a version of Revolution that segued into War Sucks. I'll sort this out when I get back to the UK and post the set lists.

[catweazel]

I'll have a hunt for the Subteranea video over the next few days - and try to get it uploaded somewhere.

EDIT: Okay, had a dig through my CD's box and found lots of SP3 boots...but not the Subteranea gig. Which means it's still on tape (VHS) and I need to dub it again - or (more likely) it's a DVDR backed up on an old hard drive.

I will keep looking but it's going to take a little while longer. It is 100% here somewhere...

[sunray]

Dreadful quality, but it exists!

[Ian]

I had completely forgotten about this thread and have no memory of the things that I talk about above! But very glad to have finally come across a copy of this, near-unwatchable as it is.

(I've also just uploaded slightly better quality versions of the videos for Revolution and Walkin' With Jesus.)

[catweazel]

WOW!! I've yet to click 'play' (and a bit worried!) but I can't believe this has actually surfaced - I had given up hope for this one a long, long, time ago.

Many thanks to the recorder and sharer.

You know, for a band that wasn't that successful in their time - it sometimes baffles me just how much live material was recorded. Their following may not have been immense, but it seems to have more than made up for it in its dedication... impressive

Note: messing around with VLC media player, i think it best viewed in black and white. I wonder if there's any way to remove the blue specifically? It won't work miracles but it would certainly be a bit easier on the eyes.

And for all its faults - if this was an unuathorised recording - it's worth bearing in mind the colossal size of a video camera in 1989. Just getting it past security would be a challenge in itself - and then to stand there recording it? That's some cajones...

[Greeny]

Ugh - I can still so clearly remember seeing an ad for the Town & Country gig in the NME and wanting to go, but in those days I only really had one gig buddy and he wasn't bothered. The concept of solo gig-going was anathema to the then-21 year-old me.

Regrets, I've had a few...

[sunray]

Ugh - I can still so clearly remember seeing an ad for the Town & Country gig in the NME and wanting to go, but in those days I only really had one gig buddy and he wasn't bothered. The concept of solo gig-going was anathema to the then-21 year-old me.

Regrets, I've had a few...

Shame. After missing Sonic Youth and MBV i realised at 18 y.o. that solo missions were the only way for me.
I also quickly concluded that moshing / crowdsurfing etc. was a waste of time and you'd get far more enjoyment standing back a little and actually taking in the gig rather than concentrating on not falling over or getting a flying boot in the face!

[angel-sighs]

It is a breath of fresh air and a huge relief in every young man/woman's life when you realise it's not a big deal to go to gigs on your own
I guess everyone was kinda zoned out at a Spacemen gig anyway.
Maybe we should try bringing back sitting on the floor too..

[catweazel]

It is a breath of fresh air and a huge relief in every young man/woman's life when you realise it's not a big deal to go to gigs on your own
I guess everyone was kinda zoned out at a Spacemen gig anyway.
Maybe we should try bringing back sitting on the floor too..

I've only been to one gig where everyone was sitting on the floor - Alex Patterson of the Orb Dj'ing and Steve Hillage from Gong playing over the top of his mix on some odd electronic guitar for about five hours - somewhere in Brixton in the mid-90s.

Hold on... that was the chill out room!