APB still has it! They rocked incredibly hard throughout their entire performance and fortunately for me I was there to see it. Special SHOUT OUT To Ariel for accommodating my request for admission as the show was completely sold-out, but just like the song, from the album 'The Radio 1 John Peel Sessions' goes, 'Don't Close the Door' until I am in. Thank you Ariel.
1979 APB formed in their hometown of Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Glen Roberts on guitar, Iain Slater on bass and vocals and George Cheyne on drums make up the post-punk trio. The band blends punk rock with funk rock and new wave mixed in which is why anyone who hears them likes the band immediately, if not flat out loves them.
Two years later they would release their very first single 'Chain Reaction'. And as if psychic, that song would kick off a chain reaction of hits to follow. 'Shoot You Down' was their second single. This is the jam that would put them on the international map. A few copies of the single made its way across the pond into the clubs of NYC and the rest is history. This would be the first time we would get to hear them in The States. Their first American tour soon followed, encompassing the northeast. They held concerts at legendary, long-ago closed clubs like: The Ritz, Danceteria, Mudd Club, et al. Fittingly the van they were using to tour broke down outside Portland, Maine.
Since those early days, APB, like almost all bands, have added and subtracted band members. The first addition was the keyboardist, Neil Innes. Neil played the keys on APB's first three hits so the band just decided to make him a full-time member by the fourth single.
1979 APB formed in their hometown of Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Glen Roberts on guitar, Iain Slater on bass and vocals and George Cheyne on drums make up the post-punk trio. The band blends punk rock with funk rock and new wave mixed in which is why anyone who hears them likes the band immediately, if not flat out loves them.
Two years later they would release their very first single 'Chain Reaction'. And as if psychic, that song would kick off a chain reaction of hits to follow. 'Shoot You Down' was their second single. This is the jam that would put them on the international map. A few copies of the single made its way across the pond into the clubs of NYC and the rest is history. This would be the first time we would get to hear them in The States. Their first American tour soon followed, encompassing the northeast. They held concerts at legendary, long-ago closed clubs like: The Ritz, Danceteria, Mudd Club, et al. Fittingly the van they were using to tour broke down outside Portland, Maine.
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| Iain, Glenn and Nick strolling through NYC |
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| Backstage Pass from The Ritz show |
George left, as drummers do, and was replaced by another great percussionist, Nick Jones. Nick left, as drummers do, and was replaced by the very talented Mickey Craighead. Toward the end of the eighties, the band had an epiphany to add a second bass player, Bruce 'Sparky' Clark. But by 1989, APB had reverted to its original three-piece formation and kicked off a tour of colleges and clubs across the entire United States.
This is when I first saw them, at Nassau Community College, in Uniondale, Long Island on November 21, 1989. Fast forward thirty years later to 2019 and here I am seeing them again tonight. (I did get to see them one other time in 2011 at Highline Ballroom.)
Opening act was a DJ, but not just any DJ, none other than the world-famous DJ Bruce Ciccone. His spinning skills were superb! He knows just how to mix it to keep the vibe flowing. The crowd was grooving with classics that are hardly ever heard anymore. The turntables were set up on the ground level, not on the stage but more off to the side, stage right. It is safe to assume that most people in attendance came out tonight with the intent to dance. There was this one girl there. We have all seen it before.
She started dancing in front of the DJ's booth really hard, flaring her arms going all out. She was carrying out an outrageous attempt to get the DJ's attention. It was very desperate. He ignored her, he played the song 'Hotstepper' by Ini Kamoze. I hadn't heard that in the clubs in years, what a treat.
Girl is now just convulsing dancing, she will not be ignored. Her arms were over the DJ's glass, well into his personal space with her hands in his face. She was getting quite aggressive. He was a complete professional and kept doing his DJ thing. She was going to need to be watched but maybe she was just showcasing her 'Danceability'.
DJ Ciccone finishes up his set and after a brief intermission the moment we had all been waiting for, the band takes the stage. The audience cheers and properly welcomes them back to New York. What great energy they had opening with 'From You & Back To You'. The second number of the evening was equally well-received 'Palace Filled with Love'. The Mercury Lounge is most definitely a rock palace and it was filled with love that night.
Next tune played was 'At the Store' followed by 'Higher the Climb'. Each a masterpiece in its own right the audience loved every note. It had rained earlier and it was a bitter cold, bone chilling January day in NYC. When the song 'Rainy Day' started everybody there could relate when the line "Why did it have to rain today? I, I'd really like to know." was sung.
The show was great. The talented members of the band looked good, sounded even better and had tremendous stage presence, you could not have wanted anything more. The band was cranking out one great tune after another. Everyone was enjoying it thoroughly. About an hour into the 90-minute concert, it was time for 'What Kind Of Girl Are You?' The audience loved it and started dancing enthusiastically when all the sudden who came flying right past me dancing crazy? That's right! The same girl who was in the DJ's face earlier in the evening.
She starts crashing into people trying to get some sort of slam dance/mosh pit going. No one was buying it. They didn't like her crashing into them. Let's face it, this crowd, myself included, are mostly in their late-40's, early-50's and we have all had some sort of injury by now. We have all had at least one broken something or something else replaced or some other calamity so no one was joining her, yet she persisted.
Within a minute a bouncer walked over to her, just to tell her to calm down, but now she gets combative. She started swinging! He hurriedly grabbed her and wrapped himself around her so he could grasp both her wrists to stop the swinging. The second he did, she got this superpower strength and started kicking! We all cleared the area because no one wanted to get kicked in the face.
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| Top- Flyer for APB at Nassau Community College, 1989 Bottom-Ticket for APB at Highline Ballroom, 2011 |
She started dancing in front of the DJ's booth really hard, flaring her arms going all out. She was carrying out an outrageous attempt to get the DJ's attention. It was very desperate. He ignored her, he played the song 'Hotstepper' by Ini Kamoze. I hadn't heard that in the clubs in years, what a treat.
Girl is now just convulsing dancing, she will not be ignored. Her arms were over the DJ's glass, well into his personal space with her hands in his face. She was getting quite aggressive. He was a complete professional and kept doing his DJ thing. She was going to need to be watched but maybe she was just showcasing her 'Danceability'.
DJ Ciccone finishes up his set and after a brief intermission the moment we had all been waiting for, the band takes the stage. The audience cheers and properly welcomes them back to New York. What great energy they had opening with 'From You & Back To You'. The second number of the evening was equally well-received 'Palace Filled with Love'. The Mercury Lounge is most definitely a rock palace and it was filled with love that night.
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| Setlist |
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| Iain Slater on bass |
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| George Cheyne on drums |
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| Glen Roberts on guitar |
She starts crashing into people trying to get some sort of slam dance/mosh pit going. No one was buying it. They didn't like her crashing into them. Let's face it, this crowd, myself included, are mostly in their late-40's, early-50's and we have all had some sort of injury by now. We have all had at least one broken something or something else replaced or some other calamity so no one was joining her, yet she persisted.
Within a minute a bouncer walked over to her, just to tell her to calm down, but now she gets combative. She started swinging! He hurriedly grabbed her and wrapped himself around her so he could grasp both her wrists to stop the swinging. The second he did, she got this superpower strength and started kicking! We all cleared the area because no one wanted to get kicked in the face.
Another bouncer rushed in, grabbed her legs and they just carried her out the closest door. Took her through the band's green room and threw her out onto the street. They so weren't having it. This was definitely a surreal experience, throughout this entire time the band continued performing 'What Kind Of Girl Are You?' She showed everyone there that night, what kind of girl she was. The funny thing is just two songs earlier, APB played 'Choose Your Exit' and she definitely chose her exit.
The show continued on and thanks to the quick actions of the bouncers everyone was now safe from being kicked in the face. The biggest hits were still to come, 'Something to Believe In' was fantastic as was 'Talk To Me'. 'Shoot You Down' is my favorite, they played that next.
APB formed in 1979, now 40-years later, they are still living their Rock & Roll dream and that is definitely something to believe in.
APB formed in 1979, now 40-years later, they are still living their Rock & Roll dream and that is definitely something to believe in.
