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 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 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 that 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 for long, 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 me of my beloved Chelsea back in its heyday.

UPDATE: Greg pointed me to these photos from Haircut 100's previous U.S. tour -- back in 1982!

Doesn't get any more '82 than a Jane Fonda workout video! 

No Detroit or Phoenix dates, so I was doomed from the start! 

Total Fox: I can see why Nick felt "threatened" by this one! 

Song of the Day: 'Vanity Kills' by ABC

Between Wimbledon, my being forced to return to the newsroom twice a week -- where all our desktop computers were disappeared, so I had no way of working because I was one of the few who didn't  already have a work laptop -- and my continuing investigation into the death of my old friend in L.A. (update TK), I haven't had a chance to say anything about the ABC concert Damian and I attended earlier at Sony Hall earlier this month. 

Short review: Other than the obnoxious opposite-sex couple directly in front of us who fought for the first hour of the show until a woman behind us finally asked them to knock it off -- heterosexuality isn't natural, so I couldn't really blame them for not getting along -- it was a joy from start to finish.

ABC, which these days consists of singer Martin Fry and a backing band, pulled no punches, playing virtually everything you could ask for including "Lexicon of Love" classics "Tears Are Not Enough," "All of My Heart," "Show Me," "Poison Arrow" and "The Look of Love"; "That Was Then but This Is Now" from sophomore slump "Beauty Stab"; "How to Be a ... Zillionaire" favorites "Be Near Me," "Ocean Blue," the title track, and today's SOTD ("Vanity Kills"); "When Smokey Sings," "The Night You Murdered Love" and "King Without a Crown" from "Alphabet City" as well as "Viva Love" and "The Flames of Desire" from the sublime "Lexicon of Love II" album that never saw a U.S. release. (I convinced myself Martin appreciated my singing along to those two, too!) If I were going to quibble -- and what fan doesn't like to? -- I'd have thrown in "S.O.S." from "Beauty Stab" as well, but you can't have everything. 

Not unlike the near-capacity crowd on hand, Martin seemed to be having the time of his life, sounding and looking like a million zillion bucks in his brocade smoking jacket and perfectly coiffed hair. It was a night of pure nostalgia for the '80s -- something Martin fully embraced, telling stories of Sheffield days and London nights alongside Phil Oakey, Simon Le Bon, Depeche Mode and other assorted New Romantics -- that made us happy to be near.

Song of the Day: 'Confessions of a Fool' by ABC

I received an email yesterday letting me know that ABC will be performing in New York City in July, which appears to be just after the band's U.K. tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of their iconic "Lexicon of Love" LP. Although I've always been a casual fan of the band -- which these days is really just singer Martin Fry and session musicians -- the news spurred me to (finally) try to track down 2016's sequel, "The Lexicon of Love II," which I was sort of stunned to discover is quite good. Although Trevor Horn isn't at the con this time around, "II" captures the same lush feel of the original, enough so that it actually charted at No. 5 on the British albums charts, making ABC's first album to enter the Top 10 in 26 years. (The U.S. hasn't had any use for the band since "When Smokey Sings" hit No. 5 1987, becoming their biggest single.) If you haven't heard it, look for it on your favorite streaming service. And let me know if you're going to the show -- I'm still on the fence! 

Song of the Day: 'High & Dry' by ABC

I've never heard the original -- apparently it's Radiohead, which is a bit after my time -- but the cover definitely has the look of love. Would you believe Martin Fry & Co. got billed higher than Belinda Carlisle at a recent '80s concert on Long Island?

Song of the Day: 'Tears Are Not Enough' by ABC

Inspired by this genius tweet by Patton Oswalt, although I'd already used "Be Near Me" as song of the day!

'Real O'Neals' Star Noah Galvin Has a 'Known Attitude Problem'

Truthfully, I was never sure if this meant I had the 'best attitude' or gave it.

ABC executives are reportedly so infuriated by the bitchy interview Noah Galvin gave to New York magazine's Vulture blog in which he called Colton Haynes’ coming out “pussy bulls**t”, mocked Eric Stonestreet, referenced charges against Bryan Singer regarding underage boys, and criticized ABC itself for taking too long to renew the show, that they are considering axing Galvin’s show, "The Real O’Neals," according to The Hollywood Reporter: The trade rag's sources also note that Galvin -- who plays Kenny ... or Kenneth on the sitcom -- has a "known attitude problem," something I cannot relate to at all! Read HERE.

 

Song of the Day: 'Be Near Me' by ABC

Heard this at Mattachine recently and was surprised when my partner in crime mentioned it was his favorite ABC song. I never really thought the band rebounded after its classic debut -- which featured "The Look of Love" and "Poison Arrow" -- but forget that they actually had a few hits when they pared down to a duo, including this, "(How to Be A) Millionaire," "Vanity Kills" and "When Smokey Sings," What's YOUR favorite ABC song?

Whitewashed

You wanna know how white the people who control Hollywood are? They are patting themselves on the back for picking "ethnic" Juan Pablo Galavis to star as the leading man on "The Bachelor," even though he's whiter than I am. Did they ever think about why sometimes surveys ask if you are a "non-Hispanic white"? So much for diversity. Read HERE.

Song of the Day: 'The Look of Love' by ABC

  Off the band's epic debut, "The Lexicon of Love."