The Archive

Formatted at 1280 X 1024- Updated Jan 2008 .

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Harlow free festival 6-30-73. 8-10-74. 7-9-75 8-2-75. 8-1-81 Spurriers Park- Harlow.

            In the mid 70s Harlow Town Council, ( dominated by Labour with the exception of four Liberals) decided to use the town's park for the purpose of holding free rock concerts.The council funded the exercise , which was one of few controversial initiatives they espoused such as providing free television licenses for their constituents .
Apparently other events (for which we do not yet have dates )included 10cc, Mungo Jerry and The Bay City Rollers.
    The main instigator of the free concerts was councilor Chris Crackett, the events appear to have run from 1973 to 75 with the last show featuring Man in August 75.

Concerts also were held in the 1980s , more detials are needed to flesh out these events .

Any more details would be appreciated .Any info to add ?-well don't just sit there , Contact us !

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June 30th 1973 .

Arthur Brown

Fairport Convention, Byzantium.

Hawkwind,Magic Michael, Michael Moorcock, Liquid Len ,Al Mathews

Audience tapes exist of Hawkwind's performance . Around 5,000 attended despite very bad weather .

HAWKWIND August 10 1974, Harlow Festival, U.K. 60 minutes

Here's a vintage performance by a band who redefined the term "acid rock" and dragged it into the seventies. It is difficult to determine the band lineup on any given Hawkwind live tape since this changed from night to night, depending on who was capable of playing. This concert took place before Lemmy left to form Motorhead. This tape was listed as a soundboard, but I suspect it is one of those rare audience tapes of Hawkwind which isn't too distorted to recognize. This tape still distorts but it is apparently one of very few listenable Hawkwind tapes.
Once they take the stage, they keep playing without stopping. They start with a spacey jam which metamorphosizes into songs which keep sliding in and out of similar jamming. Various instruments can be heard dropping out and coming back on so one can only assume people are walking on and off stage.
The playing is pretty sloppy and alternates from sounding intense to droning tediously. The instrumental passages improve through the course of the concert and they even play recognizable songs (such as "The Awakening" from the Space Ritual album). This has been listed as one of the better quality
early Hawkwind tapes floating around, which is disappointing since this one isn't great. I would recommend sticking with the officially released live albums "Space Ritual" and the later released B.B.C. concert, unless you are very curious to hear more. (Erik Twight)

It's still raining when Magic Michael takes to the stage just after six o'clock. They're a three piece who are mates of Hawkwind. Their music is undisciplined to say the least and when the audience doesn't applaud to loud they shout back obscenities.
It's a toss up between sheltering or watching them and the shelters win. Besides I didn't bring my brolly.
After a set by another of Hawkwind's pals, Al Matthews - okay I was still underneath the shelter but I wasn't in the nearby pub, that was too full, Hawkwind took the stage minus Nick Turner who hadn't yet arrived.
They said it was the first time they'd played in six months and would start with a jam.

I didn't brave the storm but elected to view the band from a corner of the stage just behind one of the PA banks which was like some of the audience, covered in polythene. Yeh it was still raining, but it hadn't stopped the kids flowing in as there was now about five thousand.

Hawkwind eventually got stuck into "Warriors On The Edge Of Time" augmented by Al Matthews on conga and a lunk of a fella wearing a smock and a hat decorated with all manner of things including a feather. This gut recited 'poetry' every now and again in one of those doom-laden tones. You know the kind of thing - "we're all seated on the edge of time/ We need you, it's dark on the edge of time."
It wasn't until I was informed by Stacia that I realised the guy was Michael Moorcock, respected sci-fi writer. Surely he could have afforded better clothes than that. But then I suppose he was trying to be a hippy.

Saturday's was Hawkwind's with the newly recruited Simon King which now means they have two drummers, and emphasises the rhythmic barrage of the group even more.
Nick Turner eventually turned up on stage clad in a vivid green cosmic jump suit and preceded to dance around with Stacia.
Now I really admired Stacia who kept going out front and dancing in the rain. Bare-footed and all. She told me she can only dance bare footed. At least Turner had the sense to wear knee-high boots.
"It's too cold" she complained. "The water on your feet makes the whole body cold."
Eventually the rain did stop and the umbrellas came down. "It looks just like Bickershaw", one of the band observed.

Thin Lizzy .

No other details known.

Man ,Rab Noakes ,A Band Called O . John St Field.

This gig was all about Man, I don't remember Rab Noakes at all, but certainly remember John St Field, later to become Jacky Leven of Doll By Doll fame. He was on early in the sunny afternoon. Everyone was nicely blissed out, on the hill in front a pond if I remember; Either way he was in the middle of his singer song writer thing, and had just launched into "Strip Show", a number that would later resurface on a Doll By Doll album, when the power suddeny cut out.

John aka Jacky freaked out, started stomping, swearing, waving his arms, and was throroughly uncool and pissed off. I seem to remember he started again later, but had lost the crowd.
A Band Called O , were all slide guitar from Craig Anders(?), whose brother now works for Bug publishing, and punchy licks and very funky.

Anyway the sun shone, the audience got stoned, the crowd got bigger, and a young lady decided to enjoy the sun and stripped down to her knickers to the delight of the sound crew and roadies. Unconcerned by the roadies/audience letching she caried on her stoned dance to the in between band music.

Man finally hit the stage, it became, dark, the lights came up..I think there were lights, and Micky Jones played magnificently, especially on "Bananas", and "C'Mon" the magnificent awe inspiring opener - all space rock, and angular guitar. Terry Williams pounded the skins, the band rocked out and a magical sense of Welsh psychedelia infused the park.
Such a great time was had by me and friends that we missed the last transport home, and slept the night under some trees in the park.
regards
Pete Feenstra

Audience tape exists of Man.

July 25th-26th 1981

August 1st 1981 .

Advert for the 1981 shows , can anyone provide eye witness accounts ?