Date: 10th February 1977
Venue: High Park School, Wollaston
Setlist:
We had been planning this gig for some time before Duncan even had his first drum kit. We would practice in my bedroom and Dunc would use a biscuit tin snare and a black plastic wine making tub for a bass drum, I had the idea that if we painted a drum kit onto a board and put it centre stage with Dunc and his biscuit tins behind it, nobody would know. So the gig was booked at our old school, we made our own posters and Dunc got his first drum kit just in time (a John Gray Autocrat which cost £39).
I set up and waited for the PA to arrive which was late so there was no time for a sound check. Someone had organised two flash pots at the front of the stage to go off in the first number. The crowd of around 150 people had paid their 30p to get in and our old science teacher who was on duty that night warned the crowd that there would be ‘a big explosion’ at the start of the set, so stand well back. We came on and opened with a song called ‘Grass Roots’. The flash pots went fizz, Sean singed his eyebrows, and the crowd must have thought ‘oh, is that it?’
Halfway through the first song we stopped playing because it sounded so awful. Then a few minutes were spent messing with amps and mics trying to control feedback and we started the song again. The rest is a blur, but I do remember kneeling down for a guitar solo and thinking it must look cool.
Unfortunately, the gig was not recorded or videoed, and no one took any photos.
Brian Tatler