in
Vlaardingen, Holland - 21 November 2004

Golden Classics 30th anniversary Holland tour
with SAILOR and The Rubettes featuring Alan Williams
20 November - 02 December 2004

Location: Theater van Vlaardingen
Beginning: 8.15 pm
Bands: SAILOR, The Rubettes featuring Alan Williams

The songs that SAILOR played in Vlaardingen:

A Glass Of Champagne
Blame It On The Soft Spot
Sailor
Josephine Baker
Vera From Veracruz
The Old Nickelodeon Sound
Traffic Jam
Karma Chameleon
Give Me Shakespeare
La Cumbia
Girls Girls Girls
Latino Medley
Champagne Reprise

encores:
"Grant's moment" - drum solo
The "Full Monty"

A concert review by Peppo Woudenberg:

How exiting! After being a SAILOR fan for 30 years (yes, I was one of many people trying to get hold of their first album in 1974 after "Traffic Jam" was played almost every hour on Dutch radio for a week and I finally managed to secure my copy at the Makro wholesale store in Amsterdam), I finally would attend my first live SAILOR concert ever. I looked forward to it for weeks, especially after receiving a copy of the DVD a couple of weeks ago and having already played that over and over again.
Of course I arrived at the Vlaardingen theatre well in time, because the seating arrangement was free and I wanted to avoid being seated behind a pillar (or something else that would obstruct my view) at all costs. Fortunately my fears were completely in vain. When the doors of the theatre opened, I found a seat somewhat near the middle of the tenth row. Because the Nickelodeon was already present on stage, I draw the correct conclusion that SAILOR would start the show and that the Rubettes would perform after the break. I was a bit disappointed by this, because the Rubettes really never were more than "nice guys playing nice rock and roll songs" to me and I thought it would be nice to have SAILOR finishing the show.
When SAILOR entered the stage the applause was not really enthusiastic. The audience got a little more exited when the first bars of "A Glass Of Champagne" sounded and after "Blame It On The Soft Spot" the audience was already visibly enjoying themselves. This was followed by "Sailor" and "Josephine Baker", but the appreciation really started to grow with "Vera From Veracruz", which is a typical SAILOR song with a very dominant role for the Nickelodeon. When "The Old Nickelodeon Sound" started, Phil urged the audience to wave. Almost everyone participated and the atmosphere evolved in that of a large party where everyone was thoroughly enjoying themselves. This was followed by "Traffic Jam", "Karma Chameleon", naturally a song that all members of the public were familiar with and everyone sang "their lungs out of their body", which is a literally translated Dutch expression. They sure know how to warm up an audience, these guys! "Give Me Shakespeare" and "La Cumbia" were played next and when they played "Girls, Girls, Girls" and the "Latin Medley" the audience almost started tearing the furniture apart. They were all standing, singing, clapping and singing. "Champagne (reprise)" was the last regular song and "Grant’s Moment", a very impressive drum solo, and "The Full Monty", which is really hilarious by the way, were played as encores. Well, after playing the "Pirate Copy" DVD so many times, I already knew that these guys were real professionals, tremendously good musicians and singers and after seeing the show I thought it was great. The only disadvantage was that where I sat I heard Peter definitely louder than Rob, Phil and Grant, which spoiled the great harmonies a little, but for the rest it was (in one word) GREAT!
During the break the merchandise desk was very crowded, so I decided to go out for a smoke and have a chat with the guys later. When I returned they still were very busy, so I went for a cup of coffee, but after finishing that the break was over, so unfortunately I had no chance to speak to them in person.
The Rubettes part of the show was also very impressive. I especially liked the a capella version of Neil Young’s "After The Gold Rush" and the "Shanana Song", which incorporated parts of "Hey Jude" and "Give Peace A Chance".
In short: an evening out to remember for a long time.
Best regards,
Peppo Woudenberg
Rotterdam, Netherlands

Concert Photos