Suzi Quatro at Wimbledon

Suzi Quatro was headlining at the Cannizaro Festival in Wimbledon, a mere few miles away so I have the opportunity to make up for not seeing her on her first British tour in 1972 (supporting SLADE). Tickets clutched in hand we scamper off to the bus stop for the ride to Wimbledon to be followed by a nice stroll to Cannizaro Park, advertised as a 25 minute walk from the station. My response to that is 25 minutes my arse! Simply walking round the Common from the main road was a good 10-15 minutes and then a further 5 minutes just walking through the grounds to get to the festival site. I needed a sit down when I got there!

The venue was set up like a big U with the stage at the bottom, seating down each wing with the middle left open for people to sit on the grass. The seating was covered (to keep rain and sun off - in this case it was rain which started for short showers a couple of times). The place was only about half full so it must've been an odd sight for Suzi coming on stage in daylight to see the wings half full and very few people in front of the stage. Still, on she came dead on time with a six-piece band in black leather trousers and black tee shirts. Not the ideal start to a gig but that was Suzi up there!

The first half of the show was filled mainly with songs from the new album (new in 2006) and a new song dedicated to and about Elvis that's not yet been released. I like the album and Suzi played most of my favourites from it, opening with 'Back To The Drive' and '15 Minutes Of Fame' and going into a stonking version of 'Rockin' In The Free World'. Wearing torn jeans and with a big ruby red bass guitar slung from her shoulder, Suzi looked and sounded good!

Then a short break during which I got a cup of tea and some biscuits (what's happening to me?) and on comes Miss Q in black leathers for the greatest hits section of the show. It was getting dark by now and, with lights flashing, started to feel more like a gig. People started going into the open area in front of the stage and we joined them. She played all the hits and some live favourites like 'Glycerine Queen'. The crowd really came alive during the biggies of 'Can The Can', '48 Crash' and 'Devilgate Drive' - wow, that's Suzi Quatro up there y'know, and I was (almost) a teenager again! That was a thrill!

Unfortunately, none of my photos came out but here are a few out-of-focus pics to give a feel for what it was like. And I met her afterwards... well, 'met' is a bit strong since she was on the other side of a barrier but she signed the album cover for me and a postcard of the portrait of her in the National Portrait Gallery. She's looking good and puts on a great show - I'd love to see her in a proper venue.

Thank you Suzi!