Culture Club at Hammersmith Apollo

This evening we went back in time to visit the '80s with the Culture Club reunion tour at Hammersmith.   I was never a big fan of Culture Club back then - I liked a few of the singles and that was it, I didn't explore them any further. It was only after I was taken to see Boy George's musical 'Taboo' and loved most of the songs that I started exploring his work and found much to enjoy. I still prefer his solo work to the Club songs but this was an opportunity to see the original four back together again - Mickey, Jon, Roy and George - so who was I to say 'no thanks'?

As soon as we got there it was obvious that the old tribes were gathering and the place was flooded by middle aged couples (heteronormative and others more interesting) and groups of friends on a Saturday night out in their best casuals. There was a sprinkling of old copy-cat fans in the hats and clothes of a younger George, some of the (chubby, let's be honest) men still remembering their skills with make-up. There was even a couple wearing matching silver-white suits and big blue wigs that they thankfully took off when they sat down otherwise the people behind wouldn't have seen much. I heartily approve of the dressing up!

The lights went down and the video wall at the back of the stage started showing short snippets of people introducing Culture Club over the years (including Bruce Forsyth) and clips of their career and then that stopped and on they walked with George joining them last and launched into 'Church of the Poison Mind', one of my favourites. The band was augmented by keyboards, brass, extra guitar,  percussion and three backing singers in colourful hats. It was nice to see John Themis and Kevan Frost in the larger band since they're regular songwriting partners and performers in George's band.

It was great fun to see and hear Culture Club live - who would've thought that I'd ever say that? - but they were really good, a tight band putting on a great show. All using the stage to best effect, parading around, soaking up the applause and latter-day adulation except for Jon stuck behind his drum kit. There was a great light show and the video wall switched from showing old Culture Club videos and other bits of film to then change to show pretty patterns while the overhead lights bathed the stage in one colour after another. George had four costumes, starting with bright red, moving through two variations of black and ending up in white. At least he's finally despatched the black scarab suits to the dustbin.

They all seemed to have good fun, especially Mickey who was born in Hammersmith and still lives in the area so he's the local boy made good. George was, of course, in his element and in very good voice too, dancing round the stage like he was 30 years younger and teasing the people in the front of the crowd.

The setlist was a mix of Culture Club classics and old favourites, a selection of songs from the new album and a couple of Boy George solo songs. My favourites were 'Church of the Poison Mind', 'I'll Tumble 4 Ya', 'Victims', 'Time (Clock of the Heart)' and the inevitable 'Do You Really Want To Hurt Me' and 'Karma Chameleon'. I also liked a song I hadn't heard before, 'Move Away'. George's songs were 'Everything I Own' and 'The Crying Game'. I liked the new songs from the latest album - they sounded great! I've got no idea when it'll be released but I'll get it.

After singing 'Poison Mind' at the start George quipped about David Bowie singing there back in 1973 - I'd predicted he'd mention the Ziggy gig since he's a fan. But imagine my surprise in the encore when he says it's always good to 'keep a little Marc in your heart' and launched into a great version of 'Get It On' by T.Rex. That got the crowd singing! Especially when followed by 'Starman' as an extra gift! My only slight disappointment was no 'Bow Down Mister' since I hoped to do the Hindu chanting for Poly Styrene.

So there you have it, my time warp back to the '80s and then forward to this year for the latest album. I've seen Boy George quite a few times on stage but I never thought I'd see Culture Club and now I have. They were great fun and very professional. I hope the album comes out soon.

Marc Bolan - 'Hot Love'

Marc Bolan died in a tragic accident on 16 September 1977 just as his career was taking off again. He'd just completed the series of 'Marc' on telly and he jammed with David Bowie, his old friend and rival, on the last episode ('Keep a little Marc in your heart'). I've blogged about Marc before - about the anniversary gigs, about the musical and about his influence - and I will probably blog again. This time I'm talking about 'Hot Love', his first No 1 single.

I still have the vinyl 7" single of 'Hot Love' on Fly records (BUG 6) backed with 'Woodland Rock' and 'The King of the Mountain Cometh' produced by Tony Visconti (for Straight Ahead Productions). It was my seventh ever single - I know that because I wrote it on the record sleeve and noted that 'This record was once Top of the Pops'. It was 1971 and this was the start of glam rock. I was there to see it happen.

I don't think I was aware of his first hit single, 'Ride A White Swan'. That was still a bit hippy-trippy and probably too out there for my 11 year old self. But 'Hot Love' was something better. It was hypnotic and repetitive and had lots of 'la-la, la-la-las', perfect for an 11 year old to grasp. And perfect for my punk heroes a few years my senior.

What do these records really mean? How much of of an influence was a song like 'Hot Love' on my young self? The influence of his later singles like 'Children of the Revolution', 'Metal Guru', 'Jeepster' and 'Telegram Sam'? What did they do to me and how did they make me think? I don't know but I did think about a woman in New York city with a frog in her hand the first time I went to New York. You just can't help it really.

I went to the 35th anniversary gig at Shepherd's Bush a couple of years ago hosted by Sir Noddy Holder and Lynsey de Paul with T.Rexstacy and Boy George, Marc Almond, Glen Matlock and Sandi Shaw amongst a host of others. All there to pay righteous tribute to Marc. As is right and proper.



Keep on boogying Marc. We are. 

Advent #14 - 'You Ruined My Christmas'

Open the door to the 14th day on the Plastic Bag advent calendar and it's time for The Supreme Fabulettes and 'You Ruined My Christmas' (written and directed by Boy George). A bit of fun is fine at Christmas and, as the blurb goes, 'There just aren't enough all-male girl groups in the world'. Enjoy!

Boy George at Koko 2013

Last Sunday I saw Boy George play at Koko in Camden, one of my least favourite venues. But it was great to see and hear a slimmed down and re-invigorated Boy George in great voice sing his classics and songs from his new album, 'This Is What I Do'. And it is what he does.

We had about two hours from the Boy ranging over the last 30 years but focusing on 2013. Backed by a 7-piece band he sounded excellent and we had songs from Culture Club, his solo music, songs from his latest record and a couple of classic covers. As ever, he was backed by John Themis and Kevan Frost, his writing partners as well as leaders of his band. The addition of a horn section added a whole new texture to enjoy. Bringing on some guest musicians that played on the album made fora crowded stage but enhanced the sound. Which was great.

George opened with a reggae section of 5 or 6 songs from the new album and also gave us reggae-ish versions of 'Do You Really Want To Hurt Me' and 'Karma Chameleon' - he must be so bored of playing those songs endlessly but they're what made him a global star. We also had great versions of 'Church of the Poisoned Mind' and 'Victims' from the Culture Club days.

I liked hearing the new songs which, strangely, sound even better live than on the record. I particularly liked the countrified 'Any Road', the rock of Yoko Ono's 'Death of Samantha' and the great 'Bigger Than War' in which I had to join in the chorus of 'Bigger than the Beatles, the Rolling Stones; Bigger than Elvis... but not Yoko!'. O no, not Yoko.

The two covers were T.Rex's 'Get It On' which he really should record, with chugging guitar forcing it along and great sax, and a less polished but heartfelt 'Starman' by Bowie. George is, indeed, a child of his times, like the rest of us!

I also loved his rock star version of 'Satan's Butterfly Ball' from 'Cheapness & Beauty' and the great 'Bow Down Mister'. I'd tweeted George earlier that day saying I hoped he'd play this so I could chant along for Poly Styrene. He didn't play it at the Queen Elizabeth Hall as part of Yoko's Meltdown festival but he did at Koko, a great big rousing version in which I sang along to 'Hare Krishna, Hare Rama' for Poly. Word perfect, obv.

It was great fun to see George on top form, giving us all what we wanted and enjoying it, laughing and joking with the crowd. Well done, George, let's have more!

Yoko Ono's Meltdown 2013

The annual Meltdown festival takes place on the Southbank in London every summer, between June and August, and each year is curated by one of the great and good. Previous Meltdown's have been curated by David Bowie, Morrissey, Anthony Hegarty, Ray Davies, Patti Smith, Richard Thompson and a range of other artists over the years. 2013 was the turn of Yoko Ono.

Yoko was a guest at Patti Smith's and Ornette Coleman's Meltdown festivals so it was about time she had her own festival and what a festival! She, of course, had to include political activism and brought over two members of Pussy Riot from Russia and Peter Tatchell to do a talk, she gave us the Silent Disco (DJs played music into wireless headphones for the dancers to groove along to while we looked on puzzled and guessing what songs were being played), Peaches re-created Yoko's 'Cut Piece', the John Lennon Educational Bus was there and a host of other events and performances as well as the big shows. The other morning Yoko tweeted us to join her on the roof of the Queen Elizabeth Hall at sunrise to enjoy the birds singing.

This year I attended more shows than in previous years. I saw the Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band open the festival (and I treasure my Onochord), saw Siouxsie and Viv Albertine twice, saw the powerful 'Battleship Potemkin' with a soundtrack by Pet Shop Boys, Patti Smith give us an evening of words and music, and Marianne Faithfull and Boy George both did gorgeous singing and talking. Ten days and nights of art in all it's various forms, all down to Yoko.

It culminated with a show I didn't see, a live recreation of John and Yoko's 'Double Fantasy' LP with music provided by Sean Ono Lennon and the Plastic Ono Band and guest vocals from Peaches, Patrick Woolf, Lene Lovitch, Patti Smith, Boy George and Siouxsie amongst others. The encore was Yoko and Siouxsie singing 'Walking on Thin Ice'.

All I can say is wow, what a festival! It wore me out so I hope Yoko is going to have a break when she finally gets home. She was tweeting links to videos of the shows this morning so she's still being active. She also tweeted Boy George this morning to say he's looking much younger than she remembered and asked if he was in love. I really love it that Yoko can ask questions like that. She's a treasure.

Thank you, Yoko, for a great Meltdown that brought so many of my favourites to the Southbank to play. I wish I'd met you to say 'thank you' personally. I tied a wish to one of your wish trees at the Serpentine Gallery last year and it came true, for which thank you. You've raised the bar for Meltdown - that's going to be a challenge for whoever does it next year!

Thank you, Yoko!

Boy George at Meltdown 2013

Boy George played at the Queen Elizabeth Hall as part of Yoko's Meltdown 2013 festival. His was the penultimate show with Yoko's 'Double Fantasy' show at the Royal Festival Hall closing the festival (just as she'd opened it ten days earlier with her Plastic Ono Band) in which he was also planning to sing (which explained the early start to the show).

I've seen George a few times over the past decade when he invariably wears his BeRude clothes, almost always a black suit with giant scarabs crawling over it or shiny skulls. It's nice to see he's moved on and great to see the new slimmed down George with his cheeky little beard and he looks much younger too. He's a great advert for a healthy lifestyle.

With a five-piece backing band and three backing singers, George strode on stage, the very picture of confidence, an artist who knows what he's doing and can do it with consummate ease. Instead of the greatest hits show I, and probably everyone else there, was expecting, he launched into a series of new songs, of three minute pop songs, and they sounded good. They're from his new album that will be released in, I think, November 2013 and what a great way to hear them first. The two that stick in the memory after a first listen are 'My God Is Bigger Than Your God' and 'Death of Samantha' (his cover of Yoko's song).

We did, of course, get some of the hits as well, including 'Do You Really Want To Hurt Me' and 'Karma Chameleon' (will he ever be allowed to stop playing those two?) along with 'Victims', 'Church of the Poisoned Mind', 'Everything I Own' and 'Satan's Butterfly Ball'. His voice was on top form and he moved about the stage with such ease, laughing and joking with the audience. It was a delight to see him happy and enjoying himself, telling us about the new album and a tour to be announced in the next day or so. I'm looking forward to both.

I don't know how George knows Yoko but it's great that she invited him to do Meltdown and it was lovely to see Yoko tweet him today commenting that he looks much younger and asks if he's in love? I smiled at that.

Yoko Ono's Meltdown 2013

If you've looked at this blog before then you're probably familiar with the annual Meltdown festival on the Southbank in London. Every year someone is chosen to curate a festival of art and music. Past curators have been David Bowie, Morrissey, Patti Smith and Ray Davies. This year it's the turn of Yoko Ono.

I've seen Yoko at past Meltdown festivals, as part of the ensemble at Patti Smith's Meltdown and full (and quite astonishing) Plastic Ono Band gig as part of Ornette Coleman's Meltdown. I went to see a retrospective of Yoko's work at the Serpentine Gallery last year. As soon as she was announced as the 2013 curator I knew we were in for a treat.

I'm a member of the Southbank to hear about and buy tickets to events before they go on general sale. The pre-sale for members was on Tuesday and the tickets go on general sale tomorrow, Thursday. I was lucky enough to get tickets to see Yoko Ono Plastic Ono Band open the festival at the Royal Festival Hall, Siouxsie playing her first gig in five years, Patti Smith doing an evening of words and music in the intimate Purcell Room, and Marianne Faithfull and Boy George at the Queen Elizabeth Hall. 

That haul alone justifies the cost of my membership. I'm still mulling over trying for tickets to see Iggy & The Stooges and, of course, more events are still to be announced. I quite like the idea of seeing the film 'Battleship Potemkin' with the Pet Shops Boys soundtrack at the British Film Institute. No doubt, more will be announced in the next few weeks.

Thank you Yoko, I'm looking forward to this. I hope we get another Onochord at your gig!

The Plastic Bag Awards 2012

It's time for the annual Plastic Bag Awards, the Baggies 2012.

2012 has been a special year for us in London with the Olympics and Paralympics over the summer and, before that, the Queen's Diamond Jubilee. So much has been going on from Shakespeare plays being acted by actors from all over the world in their own languages at the Globe to pop-up themed musical festivals all along the Thames. As every year, there are revivals and tours, new records released and exhibitions of the great and beautiful. In other words, a lot to choose from.

Best Theatre - Play

The five nominees for best play are:

• She Stoops To Conquer
• What The Butler Saw
• Timon of Athens
• The Last of the Haussmanns
• Much Ado About Nothing

Three of the nominees were from the National Theatre ('She Stoops', 'Timon' and 'Haussmanns') and, of these, I'd pick 'Haussmanns' as the best production, both cheeky and funny with great characters. That came close to winning but the Baggie goes to the wonderful 'Much Ado About Nothing' starring Meera Syal in the innovative Indian version of the play that made me laugh out loud (and I never laugh at Shakespeare, especially the comedies). Meera showed her true acting skills once again, a great actor as well as comedian and writer, wringing every little bit of humour and emotion from the piece. This was the fourth time I'd seen Meera on stage and she keeps getting better. Well done!

Best Theatre - Musical

I didn't see many musicals this year and some of those wouldn't be nominated for a Baggie (such as the time vortex that was 'Starlight Express'). The nominees are:

• Matilda The Musical
• Torch Song Trilogy
• Come Dancing - The Concert
• The Harder They Come - The Concert
• Taboo

'Matilda' was a joy and it was lovely to relive happy memories with the concert versions of 'Come Dancing' and 'The Harder They Come'. It was also good to see 'Torch Song Trilogy' but the award goes to another revival, 'Taboo'!

I saw 'Taboo' a few times in its original run so it was good to see the current revival at the Brixton Clubhouse since it's the Broadway version with some subtle (and not so subtle) changes.  The cast were excellent and it was a delight to see Paul Baker in the role he made his own years ago, playing Philip Sallon. Sam Buttery was great as Leigh Bowery and Katie Kerr delivered a heart-wrenching 'Il Adore' as Big Sue. The production was due to close before Christmas but it's been extended, with a new cast, until March. A hugely enjoyable show with some great songs and performances. See it if you can.

Best Theatre - Entertainment

This is sometimes my favourite Baggies category for all the 'performances' that don't really fit anywhere else and this year was particularly rich in performances.  The nominees are:

• Matthew Bourne's Early Adventures
• Geo Wyeth @ Soho Theatre
• Rain of Poems
• The Unthanks - Songs From The Shipyards
• Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty

Matthew Bourne features twice with his 'Early Adventures' as part of his celebration of 25 years of his New Adventure company and with his new production of 'Sleeping Beauty'. Geo Wyeth is a New York singer, composer and performance artist and had a short season at the Soho Theatre in early summer. The Rain of Poems was a terrific event - and great fun - on the Southbank with poems printed on cards being thrown out of a helicopter in an artistic/political performance about dropping poems on cities rather than bombs. The Unthanks gave a marvellous live performance playing the soundtrack to a film about the growth and death of the shipyards on the Tyne.

All of these have their own merits but the Baggie goes to the magical Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty and its gothic tale of faeries and vampires. The sumptuous design, the story-telling and the twists and turns in the plot made it a joy to behold. I've already got tickets to see it again...

Best Gig

I didn't go to that many gigs in 2012 but did seem to go in multiples - three Amanda Palmer gigs, two Maximo Park gigs and two Buffy Sainte-Marie events (gig and a talk).

• Buffy Sainte-Marie @ Queen Elizabeth Hall
• Amanda Palmer and The Grand Theft Orchestra @ Koko
• Ray Davies @ The Fairfield Halls
• Maximo Park @ Shepherd's Bush
• The Human League @ The Royal Albert Hall

It's always a joy to see Buffy, particularly when she does an extended set and plays some of the songs we rarely hear. Amanda moved to a new level at Koko with her most professional gig yet and Ray Davies and Maximo Park both produced the goods as ever. But, the Baggie has to go to the Human League for their sheer professionalism, the amazing lights and staging, great sound and a set full of hit songs from the last three decades. From the second song the whole audience - including me - stood, clapped and sang along. Well done to Phil, Susan and Joanne - again!

Best Live Performance

I like to single out that special live performance, a performance that brings a song to life adding something above and beyond the recorded version. The nominees are:

• Maximo Park - Hips And Lips (@ Heaven)
• Amanda Palmer and The Grand Theft Orchestra - The Killing Type (@ Art Show)
• Buffy Sainte-Marie - Generation (@ Queen Elizabeth Hall)
• Ray Davies - Come Dancing (@ 'Come Dancing - The Concert' at Theatre Royal Stratford)
• Amanda Palmer and The Grand Theft Orchestra - The Bed Song (@ Koko)

Paul Smith's playing along to 'Hips and Lips', acting out the song for the first time at the launch at Heaven made me hear that song differently every time since then. Amanda opened her Art Show at Village Underground by scraping two knives together as the opening to 'The Killing Type', a perfect opening to a show. Buffy was magnificent singing 'Generation' a song I've never seen her play live before, with her band (aka Bruthers Of Different Muthers) adding an electric backing. Seeing Ray Davies sing 'Come Dancing' is always worth a trip out.

The Baggie goes to Amanda Palmer for her astonishing and emotional performance of 'The Bed Song' at Koko. The band left her on alone on stage as she played her piano and she told us her tale of unsatisfied love down to not talking. It's a tender song and that was a special performance. Thank you Amanda.

Best New Album

This was a very difficult category to judge - how can you compare the first PiL album in 20 years with the first ever record from Viv Albertine or the latest from Maximo Park, an album from Joey Ramone 10 years after he died or the latest crowd-sourced album from Amanda Fucking Palmer? It's impossible, right? We've had a goodly load of great new music this year - and I'll include new albums from Madonna, The Unthanks and Alphabeat in there too - but someone has to win the Baggie...

• Public Image Limited - This Is PiL
• Joey Ramone - Ya Know?
• Maximo Park - The National Health
• Amanda Palmer & The Grand Theft Orchestra - Theatre Is Evil
• Viv Albertine - The Vermillion Border

The judging panel decided to award the Baggie by a smidgeon to Viv Albertine for the excellent 'The Vermillion Border', full of innovative songs, a slight sideways look at life and a great under-produced sound.

Best New Song

Out of the thousands of new songs this year I've picked just five:

• Madonna - Give Me All Your Luvin'
• Amanda Palmer and The Grand Theft Orchestra - Do It With A Rockstar
• Amanda Palmer and The Grand Theft Orchestra - The Bed Song
• Tom Tom Club - Downtown Rockers
• Viv Albertine - I Want More

There's a tendency to either love or hate Madonna and me, I go for whether I like the songs or not, and I fell for the leading single from her latest album 'Give Me All Your Luvin', a great return to danceable pop rather than dance music. It was a treat to finally have some new songs from Tom Tom Club and I love 'Downtown Rockers' that name-checks the late 70s punk scene in New York (I also love how the girls pronounce it 'rockerzzzz'). Viv's album opens with the powerful 'I Want More' - 'no compromise, I want more!'.

The panel shortlisted two Amanda Palmer songs from 'Theatre Is Evil', 'Do It With A Rockstar' and 'The Bed Song'. The latter is a well constructed and emotional journey through a relationship that is beautiful and heart-felt and 'Do It' is a raucous and mad tale of need and threat and desperate lust. Amanda gave away 'Do It With A Rockstar' to people who'd backed her Kickstarter campaign back in May and, later, to anyone in exchange for your email address. I've listened to it countless times and then thoroughly enjoyed the video. So naturally it wins 'best song' since it ticks so many boxes. I would.

Best Exhibition

There's been a mixed bag of exhibitions this year with two great Picasso exhibitions and 'Bronze' at the Royal Academy and a rather ok-ish Pre-Raphaelite exhibition that didn't work for me (and so isn't nominated). Luckily I managed to catch the fascinating Yoko exhibition at The Serpentine and the small but perfectly formed punk exhibition at the Hayward, 'Some Day All The Adults Will Die'.

• Picasso and Modern British Art @ Tate Britain
• Yoko Ono To The Light @ Serpentine Gallery
• Picasso's 'Vollard Suite' @ The British Museum
• Bronze @ The Royal Academy
• Some Day All The Adults Will Die @ Hayward Gallery

The Baggie needs to go to either one of the Picasso exhibitions or to 'Bronze' and the panel decided it should go to 'Bronze' for the wide range of exhibits, the interesting way of collecting them together into themed rooms and for including ancient and modern works together. It lost points for the lighting but gained points for including the magnificent Piggy from Florence.

Olympics and Paralympics London 2012

2012 was an astonishing year for London and the whole country with the Olympics and Paralympics. The summer started off gloomy and wet and then the sun came out for the Olympics and stayed till the end of the Paralympics before the rain returned. It was a magical time in which London changed, people smiled and talked to strangers and I became a London Ambassador dressed in my pink and purple uniform.

I can't possibly choose a single Olympian or Paralympian to receive a Baggie so, instead, have nominated different aspects of London during the Olympics and Paralympics. These are:

• Transport for London Signage
• London 2012 Olympic Opening Ceremony Rehearsal
• The Olympic Stadium
• London Ambassadors
• The Gift of the Gods - Shot-put
• Olympic Rings on Tower Bridge
• Beverley Knight - I Am What I Am

I loved the way Transport for London plastered pink signs everywhere in the Tube network and stations pointing the way to Olympic venues rather than signposting to different Tube lines. I loved those pink signs. I was privileged to see one of the rehearsals for the Olympics opening ceremony in the Olympic Stadium  and will treasure that memory forever, just as will my experience of being a London Ambassador on the Southbank, walking up and down the south of the Thames handing out maps and guides and directing people to wherever they wanted to go.

London was dotted with art and oddness over the summer and one of my favourites was the 'Gift Of The Gods' installations around town in the strangest places. The 'gifts' were giant shot-put balls dropped from a great height that cracked the pavements and stood there as a testament to the powers of the gods ... all an installation of course, but great fun. I couldn't help but tear up the first time I saw the Olympic Rings hanging from Tower Bridge - that meant it was all finally real and was going to happen, the Olympics in London! I was both surprised and delighted by Beverley Knight appearing at the end of the Paralympics opening ceremony singing a newly arranged version of 'I Am What I Am' that worked so well and put Bev on the world stage.

The judging panel knows it's being a daft and a bit out there but it's gone for the London Transport signage if only because it was there every day, right in front of anyone travelling around London. I miss it.

And there you have it, the Baggies 2012.  I wonder what's in store for 2013....?

'Taboo' at the Brixton Club House

I went to see the revival of 'Taboo' at the Brixton Club House last week and I'm jolly pleased I did - it's just as good as I remember it from ten years ago when I first saw it at The Venue (now the Leicester Square Theatre). It's gaudy, brash, outlandish, full of fun and freaks and some great songs. It's 'Taboo'!

It's always billed as 'The Boy George Musical' and that's what it is, but this version is slightly different to the version that I saw years ago. This is the Broadway version of the play and has some new scenes and songs. The focus is shifted from Boy George and Leigh Bowery to make Billy, an aspiring photographer, the centre of the play along with his relationship with Kim, George and Marilyn. I first noticed the difference when Billy's mum mentioned he knew Kim from the sixth form at school and that he had a grant to go to college. So, he's no longer the teenager running away from home and knowing no-one, he's running to his old girlfriend as a way out. Kim is dressed as a Siouxsie goth-clone rather than the spiky haired punkstress.

It was in the second half that I noticed the bigger differences when Billy gives away photos of George on junk and makes it plain (and loud) that he doesn't want money, this is to help George. And oddly, Billy's dad doesn't beat up Philip Sallon, he's restrained while three blokes do the job and he then runs after them after making sure Philip is all right. He then re-appears covered in blood having been stabbed by the queer bashers and dies a hero. I'm not really sure why that change was made or what it adds.

The biggest change was that George and chums don't go to India at the end of the play when he becomes a Krishna kid. There was a moment of disappointment there since I'd planned to sing along to 'Bow Down Mister' and chant for Poly Styrene (as I'd promised in my blog when she died). Instead there was a happy ending ensemble song that led into an abbreviated 'Karma Chameleon'. 'Bow Down Mister' was played over the speakers as we left, but that's not the same.

Overall verdict? I loved it! The story's changed, a few new songs and scenes but it's still 'Taboo' and it will always have a special place in the pantheon of plays and musicals I've seen over the last ten years.

The cast were excellent and so many of them are young and in their first professional jobs - it'll be interesting to see what happens to them. Many weren't born when the characters they play were faces and stars. Of course, it was a joy to have Paul Baker walk on stage at the start as Philip Sallon, the role he made his own years ago, still irreverent and rude by turns, wearing his outlandish clothes and knowing everyone and everything. It's hard to imagine 'Taboo' without him.

The two key roles of Boy George and Leigh Bowery were played by first-timers Matthew Rowland and Sam Buttery (who was, according to the programme, on 'The Voice'). Both have great presence and great voices but kudos must go to Sam in full Bowery drag appearing from behind the bar as Leigh and later appearing naked to be painted by Lucien Freud. It was a very confident and professional performance and he deserves all the praise he's getting.

I'd also single out Katie Kerr as Big Sue who I saw a few years ago in 'The Little Shop Of Horrors' at the Choccy Factory. She has an excellent voice and actually got my eyes moist singing her excellent version of 'Il Adore' as Leigh dies (off stage). She brought happiness and tragedy to a song she sings as she remembers her friend and love and she deserved the huge applause she got for that song. Well done Katie!

The show is getting universally rave reviews so I strongly advise you to go and see it while you can - it's on until Christmas so there's time but don't leave it too long. The audience is small since it's set in a real nightclub that isn't very big, so tickets are limited. It has a small central stage with two runways off stage and they even make do with performing on the bar and the tables scattered near the stage. That brings something different to it, another atmosphere, a show about nightclub life played out in a real club. I shall see it again!

Marc Bolan Concert

In advance of doing a proper blog about the Marc Bolan 35th Anniversary Concert I thought I'd share a selection of photos I took last night. Do you recognise them all?

Alphabeat - 'Love Sea'

Pop has returned! Those happy, smiling Vikings called Alphabeat are back with a bouncy song and video in advance of their next album. And yes, that is Boy George in the swimming pool!

Lynsey de Paul - LIVE!

Some things just have to be shared, such as pick'n'mix sweets, a bottle of wine and news about Lynsey de Paul playing live in London in a few weeks time. Yes, you read that right, Lynsey de Paul.

I've blogged about Lynsey a few times, most recently last summer when I discovered the songs from her first album, 'Surprise' were on iTunes. Now I discover that she's playing live and I've bought a ticket to make sure I get to see her play. I must say *wow*!

Lynsey is on the bill for the Marc Bolan 35th Anniversary tribute concert at Shepherd's Bush on 15 September. It looks like a great line-up, with T.Rextasy providing the music and guest vocals from Boy George, Marc Almond, Linda Lewis, Steve Harley and a certain Glen Matlock. And, of course, Lynsey de Paul! I am, of course, terribly excited at the thought of seeing her play live and can't imagine which of Marc's songs she'll sing. Maybe 'Life's A Gas'?

I went to the 30th Anniversary concert five years ago which was saved (in my eyes at least) by the magnificent version of 'Chrome Sitar' delivered by the one and only Shakin' Stevens. Shakey saved the day as far as I'm concerned. That was five years ago. This year, I'm looking forward to seeing Lynsey.  *Wow*!

'Taboo' in Brixton

Someone's brave out there. A new venue in Brixton in south west London is going to stage 'Taboo', Boy George's musical about his experiences in the '80s. The Brixton Club House is making it's first foray into theatre by putting on 'Taboo' and you've got to give them credit for that.

I saw it a couple of times at The Venue off Leicester Square on its run over 2002-03 and enjoyed it (even though I cringed into a small, un-noticeable ball for the audience participation bits). Boy George was closely involved in the production and played Leigh Bowery in it. It'll be interesting to see how it's staged without George and with new actors. There are some very lovely songs in the show and it'll be nice to hear them sung again.

This new production is reported to run from 7 September to 23 December 2012 and I will definitely go to see it.