kenneth in the (212): Love Plus One (Great Friend)

Wednesday, August 28, 2024

Love Plus One (Great Friend)

Death in the family aside, what a splendid time I had seeing Haircut 100 open for ABC and Howard Jones on Sunday in Kansas City, where my Arizona childhood best friend (Greg) came to meet me from Omaha. The show started at 7 o'clock sharp -- exactly as stated on the tickets -- and we were both dazzled by how youthful leadman Nick Heyward looked and sounded, as if a fraction of the 42 years since the band's seminal debut album had been released.

Longtime fans will recall that the band imploded after "Pelican West" became a worldwide hit, spawning several hit singles and garnering rave reviews. By the time the band returned to to the studio for a follow-up, Heyward began suffering from psychological issues -- before it was trendy to admit it -- and ended up leaving the band. (After returning from a mental institution, he discovered the guys had been writing songs without him, and decided he was no longer welcome, never bothering to talk things over.) Although he went on to have a moderately successful solo career in his native Great Britain, he never returned to the U.S. Top 40 again, with just one of his albums hitting the Billboard Hot 200 at all ("North of a Miracle" peaked at No. 178 in 1983).

But this tour -- the band's first in the U.S. since 1982 -- was all about revisiting happy times, as was my reunion with my 1980s partner in crime, with whom I saw my first concerts (Go-Go's, Missing Persons, Pretenders, A Flock of Seagulls, Talking Heads, etc) .

Although the set list has changed slightly from city to city, our show was six straight songs off their famed LP, which at point led to a fan standing up and screaming: "Do you have any idea how frickin' great this album is?"

Obviously we were left dying for more. But having never thought this day would come -- it’s already been another 20 years since Haircut 100's "Bands Reunited" episode and none of the subsequent reunions have ever crossed the pond -- we were in no mood to be greedy.

Bummed the ticket -- which I paid to have a hard copy of -- didn't even mention HC100.

"Love Plus One" live from Kansas City!

Afterward, and before the main acts, Nick, bassist Les Nemes and guitarist Graham Jones signed memorabilia and posed for pictures with their adoring public. Here's me and Greg with the guys, who truly seemed to be basking in the adulation.

Haircut 100 is about to release their first single with Nick since 1982's "Nobody's Fool" --- called the "The Unloving Plum" -- and Nick tells me a full album will follow soon. (Percussionist Marc Fox and saxophonist Phil Smith aren’t part of this reunion, but I’m not sure what drummer Blair Cunningham's status is. He was in the recent promo photos but I haven't seen him in any of the videos from this tour.)

Confession: Don't tell Mr. Heyward, but Greg and I both loved the Nickless follow-up album, "Paint and Paint," with Fox on lead vocals and even produced a CD version in the 2000s long before it got a Super Deluxe reissue!

Next up was ABC, which for decades now really just consists of Martin Fry and his touring band. Damian and I had recently seen them in NYC, yet they were so "on" that it felt like a whole new sensation.

The band also focused on its famed debut (also from 1982), "The Lexicon of Love," but quickly reminded the audience that they were far from one-hit wonders, having succeeded on the U.S. chart with numerous singles after "The Look of Love" including "Poison Arrow' (a favorite), "That Was Then but This Is Now," "How to Be a Millionaire," "Be Near Me" and "When Smokey Sings" as well as the U.K. hits "Tears Are Not Enough," "All of My Heart" and favorites like "Vanity Kills," "The Night You Murdered Love" and "King Without a Crown."

Something that I didn't see the last time I saw ABC was their hunky keyboardist.

And then last (but least), Howard Jones came out with his guitar-style synthesizer and crazy duds. He opened with "New Song," which happens to be the one single of his I bought at the time (the 12-inch, natch!), back when I was so in love with him, and doing everything in my power to look like him. (Who knew I was once a wannabe boyfriend twin?!) It's funny to think I have seen him at least three times before this, yet didn't purchase an album of his until "The Essentials" CD in the 2000s.

It didn't take long before Greg noticed that former Kaja(GooGoo) bassist (and onetime lead singer) Nick Beggs was there on (an annoying) bass. This led to a sweet (if a bit awkward) moment where Howard got the audience to participate in a singalong of "Too Shy," which apparently cannot be officially performed presumably because ex-bandmate Limahl won't allow for it. (I've read that the other guys pushed him out back in the day when they discovered he was gay, although I don't know this to be a fact.)

Howard, of course, had his share of chart hits in the U.S., including "What Is Love?," "Like to Get to Know You Well," "Things Can Only Get Better," "Life in One Day," "No One Is to Blame" and "Everlasting Love." But as the headliner he did a longer set, including many the crowd wasn't familiar with, as well as adding sort of a "house"/"rave" beat and light show to the set that didn't really work coming from a 69-year-old white dude. Still, there was enough nostalgia to make for an enjoyable set, which of course was all the better by having my BFF by my side again.

P.S. We weren't in Kansas City but 24 hours, but I can report that I liked what I saw. We stayed at the InterContinental Kansas City at the Plaza and were dazzled by the stately homes along Ward Parkway, all the way to the Trader Joe's where we stopped by so Greg could do some reconnaissance. (He works at an Omaha location.)

Midtown, where the concert was held at the fabulous Uptown Theatre, and the whole Westport area was charming and full of restaurants and shops. (I got Damian an anniversary present at The Bunker Inc., although we were bummed the city's Hamburger Mary's is closed on Monday.) Greg visited Lenexa (where my aunt lived) and thought it was very nice, too.)

Here's hoping global warming doesn't make it uninhabitable -- it was over 100 on Monday -- because it seems like a lovely place to live.

I'm told Midtown/Westport isn't officially a "gayborhood." But with numerous LGBT bars and gay-friendly shops and restaurants, it definitely reminded of my beloved Chelsea back in its heyday.