Fact #165715
When:
Short story:
Echo And The Bunnymen start a brief tour of the Outer Hebrides, at the Gathering Hall, Portree, Skye, Scotland, UK, Europe.Full article:
Bill Drummond (Manager) : The notion of playing in the Hebrides grew out of various conversations we’d been having. I’m Scottish anyway, and I’d been to the islands when I was a teenager, and I was particularly impressed by the circle of standing stones at Callanish on Lewis. It seemed like a romantic thing to do.
To put it in context though, these dates were part of a bigger tour which took in dates on Iceland and in The Royal Albert Hall in London. I made a jokey comment to a journalist about there being an intergalactic ley line that touched earth in Rekyavik, then ran down to the Western Isles, through Glasgow, directly through Matthew Street in Liverpool where Eric’s Club was, and down to London. Next thing we know, it’s being quoted as the reason for the tour.
Jonathan Ashby (journalist) : It had a dream-like quality, right from the start, going over on the ferry to Skye with the fans and the band. The sea was perfectly calm, the sky was clear and bright blue, just a perfect day. We all got out of it, and just sat out on the deck looking at the sky. Nobody said very much other than the occasional ‘Wow!’.
Colin Wilson (fan) : Bands never came to Skye. Me and my friends were called freaks at school because were into the Bunnymen instead of Quo or Duran Duran, so it felt like a dream when we heard they were coming to Portree. For two nights before the gig, the pubs were heaving with goths and Siouxsie lookalikes, like an invasion.
Mick Houghton (PR man) : There were girls from Japan, and one guy had come from San Antonio. There was never any security with the Bunnymen, so the fans just hung around with the band.
Bill Drummond : We arrived in a minibus, and Mac had been complaining the whole way up about why we were doing this at all, but when he saw how many fans had come over, he started to get into it.
Max Bell (journalist) : It had more of the atmosphere of a holiday than a rock tour. Most bands on tour will hole up in the hotel and indulge their whims, but not the Bunnymen. They made the most of a trip like that. Les brought his fishing gear, and Will had a pair of binoculars for bird-watching.
Jonathan Ashby : One interesting thing was how the band welcomed us in. Even though we were outsiders, we were made to feel like part of an extended family. When we walked from the hotel to the gig in the afternoon for the soundcheck, it was a bit like a scene from High Noon. There were little clusters of local people staring at us like we were aliens, and we were staring back at them.
Mick Houghton : One illustration of just how un-rock’n’roll the Bunnymen could be was that the local Free Presbyterian Church was next door to the Gathering Hall and the gig was due to start at the same time as a prayer service. It could have gone to a clash of cultures but, when they heard about it, the Bunnymen just agreed to start their show a bit later. No problem. When they went on stage, though, that was when they became a rock band. Then it was total rock’n’roll.
Max Bell : Playing in weird settings always brought out the best in them. The Gathering Hall was a lovely old building with a wooden balcony, and it had an almost school-like atmosphere. It seemed to make no difference to them how many people were in the audience - I’d seen them in Norway playing to 24 people - and in Portree they were just amazing. Even the mayor turned out.
Colin Wilson : I had my New Order t-shirt on and faded jeans, and I was literally pinching myself to be sure it was real as I walked down. An older friend went in the pub and got us a carry-out, because I was too young. It was a balmy night, and the place got so packed that sweat was dripping off the roof onto us. Never Stop, with the big glockenspiel was the song that stood out as really amazing.
Jonathan Ashby : That gig was fantastic. The entire back wall seemed to be filled with stacks of speakers and you could feel the whole hall shaking with the noise. They had a brilliant liquid light show and the total effect was quite overwhelming. You felt like you were somehow inside the performance.
Colin Wilson : We knew the handyman at the hall so, when it was over, he got us backstage. They were all having a good puff, well out of their heads, but they were really good to us, signed our tickets and everything. Two boys from East Kilbride had got backstage as well with a big ghetto blaster and they’d taped the set on it. They asked Mac if he wanted to hear it, but Mac said “No, my ears are still ringing.”
Mick Houghton : When I came down for breakfast the next morning, Will was sitting there with his sewing kit, offering to fix any buttons on for anybody. That’s a very typically Bunnymen thing. Will never went anywhere without his sewing kit.
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To put it in context though, these dates were part of a bigger tour which took in dates on Iceland and in The Royal Albert Hall in London. I made a jokey comment to a journalist about there being an intergalactic ley line that touched earth in Rekyavik, then ran down to the Western Isles, through Glasgow, directly through Matthew Street in Liverpool where Eric’s Club was, and down to London. Next thing we know, it’s being quoted as the reason for the tour.
Jonathan Ashby (journalist) : It had a dream-like quality, right from the start, going over on the ferry to Skye with the fans and the band. The sea was perfectly calm, the sky was clear and bright blue, just a perfect day. We all got out of it, and just sat out on the deck looking at the sky. Nobody said very much other than the occasional ‘Wow!’.
Colin Wilson (fan) : Bands never came to Skye. Me and my friends were called freaks at school because were into the Bunnymen instead of Quo or Duran Duran, so it felt like a dream when we heard they were coming to Portree. For two nights before the gig, the pubs were heaving with goths and Siouxsie lookalikes, like an invasion.
Mick Houghton (PR man) : There were girls from Japan, and one guy had come from San Antonio. There was never any security with the Bunnymen, so the fans just hung around with the band.
Bill Drummond : We arrived in a minibus, and Mac had been complaining the whole way up about why we were doing this at all, but when he saw how many fans had come over, he started to get into it.
Max Bell (journalist) : It had more of the atmosphere of a holiday than a rock tour. Most bands on tour will hole up in the hotel and indulge their whims, but not the Bunnymen. They made the most of a trip like that. Les brought his fishing gear, and Will had a pair of binoculars for bird-watching.
Jonathan Ashby : One interesting thing was how the band welcomed us in. Even though we were outsiders, we were made to feel like part of an extended family. When we walked from the hotel to the gig in the afternoon for the soundcheck, it was a bit like a scene from High Noon. There were little clusters of local people staring at us like we were aliens, and we were staring back at them.
Mick Houghton : One illustration of just how un-rock’n’roll the Bunnymen could be was that the local Free Presbyterian Church was next door to the Gathering Hall and the gig was due to start at the same time as a prayer service. It could have gone to a clash of cultures but, when they heard about it, the Bunnymen just agreed to start their show a bit later. No problem. When they went on stage, though, that was when they became a rock band. Then it was total rock’n’roll.
Max Bell : Playing in weird settings always brought out the best in them. The Gathering Hall was a lovely old building with a wooden balcony, and it had an almost school-like atmosphere. It seemed to make no difference to them how many people were in the audience - I’d seen them in Norway playing to 24 people - and in Portree they were just amazing. Even the mayor turned out.
Colin Wilson : I had my New Order t-shirt on and faded jeans, and I was literally pinching myself to be sure it was real as I walked down. An older friend went in the pub and got us a carry-out, because I was too young. It was a balmy night, and the place got so packed that sweat was dripping off the roof onto us. Never Stop, with the big glockenspiel was the song that stood out as really amazing.
Jonathan Ashby : That gig was fantastic. The entire back wall seemed to be filled with stacks of speakers and you could feel the whole hall shaking with the noise. They had a brilliant liquid light show and the total effect was quite overwhelming. You felt like you were somehow inside the performance.
Colin Wilson : We knew the handyman at the hall so, when it was over, he got us backstage. They were all having a good puff, well out of their heads, but they were really good to us, signed our tickets and everything. Two boys from East Kilbride had got backstage as well with a big ghetto blaster and they’d taped the set on it. They asked Mac if he wanted to hear it, but Mac said “No, my ears are still ringing.”
Mick Houghton : When I came down for breakfast the next morning, Will was sitting there with his sewing kit, offering to fix any buttons on for anybody. That’s a very typically Bunnymen thing. Will never went anywhere without his sewing kit.