By Graham Clark, January 2024
In 2024, The Stranglers, one of the most iconic and influential bands in British music history, are celebrating their 50th year anniversary with a UK & Irish tour – and there are two dates in Yorkshire.
Since playing their last full-scale UK tour in 2022, the band has turned their minds to how they would like to celebrate their 50th anniversary with their fans. They have decided to embark on a short tour visiting some truly special and iconic venues to mark their golden anniversary.
Formed in 1974, The Stranglers uncompromising attitude was embraced by the punk movement of the late 70s, but their musicianship and menace transcended the genre. They created their own unique sound and achieved over 25 Top 40 singles and 18 Top 40 albums, with their most recent release, Dark Matters, reaching number 4. It is the band’s highest UK chart position since Feline in the early 80s and the album was acclaimed as their best in decades.
The Stranglers plan to make these milestone anniversary shows extra special with two sets featuring songs from the band’s inception through to the present, showcasing their unique fifty-year career. These truly special events will be unmissable for fans of the Meninblack.
Ahead of the tour I spoke to Baz Warne, guitarist and singer in the band.
Are you and the band in a good place now?
We are indeed, we have been rehearsing for the last five or six days at a studio in the West Country not too far away from Bath. We have sorted out everything we need to play on the tour and looking forward to getting back out on the road again.
The band are celebrating fifty years together, has it been hard to produce a setlist?
It always is hard; this year we are doing a lot of festivals too and we must tailor the songs to those types of audiences too. We always try to include one song which we have never played live before, which will be the case again in this tour.
The tour visits Sheffield City Hall, have you good memories of the venue?
All of us in the band like to play the City Hall in Sheffield, I was there as a member of the audience late last year when I went to see Geddy Lee from Rush who was doing a speaking tour, my wife surprised me and got me a ticket, back in the day I was a big Rush fan. The venue is a classic venue, I do believe that the man who designed the City Hall also designed the City Hall in Newcastle, another of our favourite venues.
Is there going to be a support act on the spring tour?
We have dispensed with a support act on this tour, I do not want to give too much away but we are going to be doing two sets, the first set might be challenging for the ones who have come to hear just the big hits, the second half will include the hits.
In August the band play the Piece Hall in Halifax, have you been there before?
I have never been but have seen photos of the place – it looks amazing. It was on our radar for a couple of years, so we are all glad that we are finally getting to play a gig there. The Buzzcocks are supporting too which will be good for the fans too.
Have you heard about the new Bradford Live venue opening in the autumn?
I live on the outskirts of Leeds, and I know Bradford quite well. The plan sounds great, I’m sure that The Stranglers would fill Bradford Live, you never know one day the band might play there, we would certainly love to. The band in the past have played St George’s Hall though the city tends to miss out on touring acts.
Did you ever see The Stranglers in concert before you joined the band?
I did but it was only once at Gateshead Stadium in the early nineties, they were on a bill that included Simple Minds, I was always a fan of the band, and I still can’t believe that it is now twenty five years since I have been in the line-up.
Was it hard to learn the songs?
Not really. Hugh Cornwall who wrote all the original guitar parts has a great knack of making things sound more difficult than it was, that is an art in itself. I grew up listening to these songs so most of them were in my DNA, you just know them.
Who else did you listen to?
I was more info rock than punk. I loved AC/DC, Motorhead, Status Quo and just proper classic rock bands. I used to like The Ruts, they wrote some good songs, and I am friends with the band. I have met the Quo lads quite a few times and I met Chris Spedding, the guitarist and we had a great chat about guitars and getting older!
Who comes to see The Stranglers these days?
When I look down into an audience and see the demographic, you have the original fans who have brought their children and in some cases their grandchildren too. Once you are a fan of The Stranglers there is no going back. When the tours are announced some of the fans book off their entire holiday allocation so that they can follow the band. When someone comes up to you and says that they are seeing all the gigs it is so lovely. We were once eating Noodles in a backstreet bar in Tokyo and a knock came in the window and standing there were six Stranglers fans who had travelled over from Britain to see us. We hope to see as many of the older fands as well as the newer ones on the tour, I am sure that everyone who comes to one of the gigs will have an enjoyable time.
The Stranglers play the following Yorkshire gigs:
21st March – Sheffield City Hall – tickets here
3rd August – Halifax Piece Hall – tickets here
For full tour details visit: thestranglers.co.uk/tour-dates
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