Spike Island

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Spike Island.

Let them eat nostalgia, as some cunt once said. It is the 30th (fuck me) anniversary of the ‘seminal’ gig at Spike Island. Now this has been described as ‘seismic’ and ‘the Woodstock for the E generation’ and other bollocks like that. But the truth is it was shit.

The venue was both nonsensical and crap. A bugger to get to and get out of. In the middle of the fucking Mersey and in the middle of a chemical plant. The air fucking stank for a start. The bogs and the catering were also substandard, overpriced and nowhere near adequate. The support acts were total shite. Some ‘DJ’ cunt called Frankie Bones and that tuneless gobshite, Gary Clail. If they thought it would create a ‘rave’ type atmosphere, they were wrong.

This shit went on for hours and the crowd got more and more pissed off. Then arriving ‘fashionably’ late were The Stone Roses. And they were crap on the day. The sound was total bollocks and they just couldn’t go toe to toe with a crowd of that size. It was badly organised, badly put on and the choice of venue was ridiculous.

It took them 22 years to realise that Heaton Park was ideal for such a gig, and that gig in 2012 was everything May 1990 should have been. It has been mythologised and its reputation enhanced over the years, but I was there and Spike Island was a load of cunt. I saw the band do some great gigs, but this was not one of them.

Nominated by: Norman

38 thoughts on “Spike Island”

  1. At the time i was gutted i missed this gig. Not so much now. It’s a bit like seminal Acid House club Shoom this gig, everyone you fucking speak to was there, when really they fucking weren’t.
    Seen the Stone Roses a few times early doors and was never impressed, just a shit live band unfortunately, always a great atmosphere mind.
    Happy Mondays at the G Mex, now that was a fucking gig!

  2. I know not this ‘Spike Island’ of which you speak, but from your description it seems to resemble Plum Island near New York, otherwise known as ‘Anthrax Island’, where all sorts of cold-war biological weaponeering naughtiness went on.
    Are you absolutely sure you didn’t leave the gig with a secret special take-home ‘gift’, Norman?

  3. Sounds fucjing shite anyay. I’m surprised Frankie Bones played that shite. He should have been the main act lol

    • The Roses management was so clueless that they booked the wrong bloke. The band wanted Frankie Knuckles.

  5. Bit likr the Oasis gig at Knebworth in 1995, even today its referred to as one of the top ten gigs of all time in the U.K well I was there and it was crap seen better bands in my local pub.

  6. Spike island? Sounds like a place full of Bulldogs…Thomas!!! Catch dat cat…

  7. Gary Clail? Wasn’t that the actor in Metal Mickey?

    “Boogie boogie boogie”

  8. Widnes, North West England’s answer to Chernobyl.
    On a sunny day, you can take your kids to a little ‘ nature reserve ‘, that was built on an old mustard gas site, don’the sit on the grass for too long.They had to shut the local golf course, after it started oozing a cocktail of chemical shite, and the local kids used to play on the asbestos tip,digging caves, possibly graves.
    Lovely.

  10. Whoever thought Spike Island was a good place for a gig,must have been stoned at the time.
    Ditto Creamfields.

    • Roses manager Gareth Evans had the bright idea. Could do with his very own cunting this bloke, dodgy cunt of the highest order.

    • Creamfields? I thought that was a Tesco brand for milk and cheese products.

    • Didn’t go, glad I didnt.
      Never a big fan of the Roses, preferred the Mondays and James.

      • MNC – Great to see James get a name check here.

        Me and the Mrs went to see them at a smallish venue in Minneapolis several years ago. I think it was to support their Hey Ma album. Anyway, they were fantastic. I especially remember how good Tim Booth’s voice was and how spot on the horn players were. All those guys can play! Great gig.

      • Hi IY, I saw them in the 90s at the Apollo in Manchester, it was my birthday and had a great night!
        Think theyd just released “shes a star” and were promoting it.
        They played “sometimes” and “hymn from a village”I remember,
        Both great tunes,
        Great band.

      • Nice. That’s a great venue too. I’ve seen Gary Numan play there a few times and INXS too, way back when. Cheers MNC.

      • Seen some top gigs by James. The free one at Piccadilly Gardens in 91 springs to mind. Then there was G Mex. When ‘Sit Down’ echoed out from the entire crowd for minutes on end.

        The Spike gig was utter shite and a total myth has built up around it. In the early days, the Roses never cut it live, mainly down to Brown’s voice (or lack of it. Heaton Park in 2012 was a big improvement and Reni (drums) was better than ever. But touring a greatest hits set for five years (2012-2017) and two substandard singles (with no B Sides) and fuck all else for a band supposedly so ‘great’?

        ‘I don’t have to sell my soul.
        I’ve already sold it’.

  13. Only had the “pleasure” of visiting Widnes once. What a king-sized shithole. Reckon all those chemicals have turned the locals into mutant freaks.

  14. I am lost, never heard of this Spike Island and it happened 30 years ago……

    Seems a long time to wait for a cunting 😂

  15. Tina Wisby told me of a gig in Manchester where the families of the Stone Roses were all waiting backstage to greet them after the show.
    The band instead , dived into the limos and made for the hotel – leaving the P.R. to apologise to over 20 people waiting patiently.

  16. I saw the Rose’s on the reunion tour in 2017. 75 quid to watch them play exactly the same set they played when I last saw them in 1995.

    They were never that great and I’m in the minority that prefers their second album anyway. Some of browns solo stuff isn’t bad.

    • Hi Mecha –
      I have a couple of SR’s albums. They rarely get played to be honest, but was wondering which of Ian Brown’s albums would you suggest I start with? Ta – IY.

  18. Since this is a music related Post, I thought I’d share this with you. Each Sunday, very late and going into early Monday morning I think, the channel MTV Classic shows re-runs of the alternative rock show, 120 Minutes. I say re-runs. There’s no presenter and they play the same 10 or so videos every week which seems rather pointless. Anyway, the point of the story is, this past week they played one of my favourites, Pepper by Butthole Surfers. Here’s a link should you be interested:

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CO8vBVUaKvk

    The lyrics are not that raunchy and the song overall is about the fate of several characters who either died or had close shaves with death. The lyrics includes these lines:

    “Then there was the ever present football player rapist”
    “Pauly caught a bullet”
    “Well it should have been a better shot”

    Despite being VERY late night AND an alt rock show AND the words are far from offensive, MTV Classic muted out “rapist”, “bullet” and “shot”. I shit thee nay. This is the level of censorship now.

  19. spike Island- thats savid geffens hunting ground isn’t it ?
    Stone Roses- vastly over rated and sounded shit more times than not

  20. I was offered free tickets for that gig-to far away as I had just moved.
    Mates who did go were either so fucked up they thought it was amazing or sober and driving and thought it was shire.

  21. Theres a film called spike island about the stone Rose’s concert that mother of dragons bitch from game of bones is in it

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