10. Rockpalast Nacht 3.-4.April 1982

WDR text 1982: Rick James will open the 10th Rockpalast-Festival on April 3rd, 1982. His appearance in Essen will be his first in Europe and will present superb black American funk of the 80s. Even though Rick James - or James Johnson ( his original name ) - is known as part of the young generation of black American musicians, he's been a pro for more than 15 years . He was born a little more than 30 years ago in Buffalo, New York, and grew up with 7 brothers and sisters, but without a father. As in many other cases, his home was the ghetto of Buffalo, where one relies on himself and can move ahead only by being a little quicker and smarter than the others. To avoid having to sit in jail, he voluntarily joined the Marines, lying about his age to get in. Since this job didn't fulfill him either he exiled to Toronto and turned to music.

A short stint with Neil Young and the group 'Mynah Birds' is notable in that it led Rick to 'Motown', the only record company in the USA that is still all black. Motown has it's own history, featuring important and influential artists such as Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, Marvin Gaye, The Four Tops, Smokey Robinson and The Supremes. Rick became an in-house composer and lyricist, and worked with the Holland-Dozier-Holland Team that wrote numerous classics for the artists mentioned above.
During the late 70s, Rick finally got a chance to realize his own ideas with a recording done with a band of his choice . His success was overwhelming; today, he collects platinum LPs and has concerts of20,000 spectators or more.

Rick himself calls his music style 'Punk Funk' . One reason for this definition could be his line-ups that appear as bands in the band, such as 'Stone City Band', 'Punk Funk Horns' (brass), or 'Mary Jane Band' ( the singers ). That way, Rick James has all the musical combinations and styles at his disposal. Punk funk, basically, is Rich James through the lyricists, composers and multiple instrumentalists. The pieces that he writes include the development of the black music of the last ten years and their themes relating to the everyday realities on the streets.

Rick James has a lot leftover for the extroverted lifestyle and dedicating himself to the better things in life. "To have a good time!" However, he also writes about the hard and often inhumane life in the ghettos, expresses an opinion, and writes about the discrimination and unnecessary police brutality. Therein lies much of his success in the USA. "I am the poet from the street. The music that I write should go to the legs. The lines that I sing, I sing for understanding. And I want to tie both up forever in feelings." Rick James and how he sees himself.

"With Rick James' appearance, we achieved a plan that has long been plaguing us: The presentation of contemporary black music. Especially Europe lacks an adequate amount of live performances of this rich, varied and meaningful music. So, once again, we're throwing the first stone and present the most important black musician of 1981 amongst us here in Europe. Rick James opened the 10th Rocknacht and burned up with action, special effects, and, of course, with music. He stood on-stage for the first time in Europe and could not hear any difference between the spectators of his Punk-Funk-Show in Essen and from home." From: 10 Jahre Rockpalast.

Musicians:

Rick James - voc, g
STONE CITY BAND:
Lanise Hughes - dr
Oscar Alston - b, perc
Tom McDermott - g, perc
Danny LeMelle - flute, sax
Levi Ruffin - syntheziser, voc
Erskine Williams - keyb
Nate Hughes - perc
PUNK FUNK HORNS:
LaMorris Payne - horns
Christopher Powell - horns
Ken Scott - horns
MARY JANE BAND:
JoAnne McDuffy - voc
Lisa Sarna - voc

Setlist:

01. Intro (Albrecht Metzger)        (1:36)
02. Stone City Band Hi              (1:48)
03. Ghetto Life                     (4:34)
04. Big Time                        (5:04)
05. Gettin' It On                   (5:21)
07. Fire It Up                      (2:38)
08. Love Gun                        (4:57)
09. Guitar-Solo                     (3:56)
10. Gettin' It On (Reprise)         (4:11)
11. Come Into My Life              (11:20)
12. Standing On The Top             (4:49)
13. Mary Jane                       (6:02)
14. Mary Jane March                 (2:55)
15. You And I                       (6:45)
16. Give It To Me Baby              (7:58)
17. Super Freak                     (8:03)
18. Stone City Band Bye             (2:00)
                        

Discography:

This Magic Moment/Dance With Me (1971) Warner Brother
Come Get It                     (1978) Gordy 981
Burstin' Out Of L'Seven         (1979) Gordy 984
Fire It Up                      (1979) Gordy 990
In'n'Out                        (1980) Gordy 991
Garden Of Love                  (1980) Gordy 995
3 Times In Love                 (1980) Gordy
Street Songs                    (1981) Gordy 1002
Throwin Down                    (1982) Gordy 6005
Cold Blooded                    (1983) Gordy 6043
Reflections                     (1984) Gordy 6095
YOU                             (1985) Gordy 
Glow                            (1985) Motown ZL 72362
The Flag                        (1986) Motown ZL 72443
Wonderful                       (1988) Reprise 925659-1
Kickin'                         (1989) WEA
Give It To Me Baby              (1995) Motown
Urban Rapsody                   (1997) Private I/Merc
Street Songs - Deluxe Edition   (2001) Motown
Anthology                       (2002) Motown
Gold                            (2005) Motown
The Definitive Collection       (2006) Motown
Deeper Still                    (2007) MRI
            

DVD

Rick James - At Rockpalast         (2005) Inakustik
I'm Rick James! The Definitive DVD (2009) Hip-O/Motown/UMe
            

Rick James Internet:

Rick James Homepage
Rick James facebook.com
Rick James Wilson and Alroy's Record Reviews
Rick James P-Funk Review
Rick James Wikipedia DE
Rick James Wikipedia EN

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Rick James - At Rockpalast DVD - order now at Amazon !   - DVD Info

WDR text 1982: Van Morrison will appear as second guest at the 10th Rockpalast-Festival on the 3rd and 4th of April. A longed-for wish of the staff is fulfilled with his obligation for this concert. Since the beginning of this program, Van Morrison has been at the top of the list. Van Morrison was born George Ivan Morrison in Belfast on the 31st of August, 1945. His mother was a jazz singer and his father had a large and choice record collection, including many rare American jazz and blues records. With this background, Van Morrison soon could play the saxophone, guitar, harmonica and piano. At the age of 15, he left school and played in different bands.
His first experiences as a musician were gathered playing as a member of the 'Monarchs', among others, while on tour through Germany. In 1963, Morrison formed 'Them', a group which soon would become well-known with pieces like 'Here Comes The Night', 'Mystic Eyes', and 'Gloria'. In 1966, 'Them' disputed a USA tour which brought them with 'The Doors' and Captain Beefheart in 'Whiskey A GoGo' in Los Angeles for a month, and disturbed the group's union.

In 1967, Van Morrison debuted as a solo artist. He released 'Brown-Eyed Girl', a song which was very popular in the USA. Shortly afterwards, Morrison had to start all over; his partner, Bert Berns, died. Sporadic appearances and tours followed. Finally, Van Morrison released 'Astral Weeks'; this album is a classic in rock music. Van Morrison recorded this album with the musicians from 'Modern Jazz Quartett'. With this combination, he was able to blend his voice with the arrangements and the music in such a way that he achieved an intensity which had been unknown to him before. The next steps were the forming of his own production company, which allowed him to work as his own producer, and the formation of his own group: 'Caledonia Soul Orchestra' - a big-band style group with integrated string musicians, that otherwise played at the Oakland Symphony Orchestra.

In 1973, Van Morrison and CSO went on a US and European tour and made one of the greatest live LPs ever: 'It's Too Late To Stop Now'. His influences were also noticeable in the picking of a title for this tour. Along with his own compositions, he sang standards from, i.e., Ray Charles, Sam Cooke and Willie Dixon. Later on, Van Morrison changed the 'Caledonia Soul Orchestra' to 'Caledonia Soul Express' (without the strings), so that finally, after some years, he could spontaneously gather a small group together to play. Van Morrison first started touring again in 1978. He still doesn't play often, but he has a solid group of musicians in the band, that, along with him, always guarantees great concerts.

Van Morrison doesn't have much time for publicity. He is hard to get to and is reserved; most interviews are refused. His reason: "You can find what I have to say in my songs - I have nothing to add". He describes his art of writing as "Stream of Consciousness Writing", meaning, more or less: Not consciously write about a theme, but to release what is in him.
Van Morrison is very reserved, in actions and gestures, at his concerts. Surely, when one looks a little closer at how he sings, in his own way, the texts a little differently at every appearance, one sees the tremendous strength exuded by this seemingly unmoving man. He is concentrating only on the music and his singing. When Morrison comes on-stage, he does not give the impression of a rock singer right off. Indeed, that changes as soon as he takes the mike. Then it's clear: Van Morrison is a one-of-a-kind singer.

Van Morrison plays a fantastic, intense concert with encores. He says that he didn't know what he was looking for at a rock'n'roll concert, but his audience knew it. "The whole Rockpalast team drove to Amsterdam to see an appearance (from Morrison). Questioned after a rehearsal in Essen, his agent/manager answered: Very little will happen there. Van goes on-stage just to appear.
So, we decided together to at least go and watch a little earlier. Sure enough, Morrison showed up at rehearsal. We now have a video of it which is now one of our most-loved home movies. Naturally, he rehearsed, but only numbers that he guaranteed he would not play in concert. But, he had fun and tried at least three versions of Buona Sera Senorina.
The conversation in Amsterdam lasted a half hour. Morrison was interested. We talked about which videos should be shown before his appearance (he was very excited about Muddy Waters) and his expectations." "Thirteen countries are a lot. The thought of being able to play for so many people pleases me". Or: "Until now, I've only heard good things about the Rockpalast. I already believe that it will be a good concert".
"Towards the end, the discussion went back and forth with descriptions about the Black Forest and southwestern Ireland. On this evening, Van Morrison was the opposite from what we all know about him. Two days later, he was once again the way all the stories describe him".
From: 10 Jahre Rockpalast.

What is Van Morrison actually doing ?

Rockpalast Club Info 11 May, 1997 - Uwe Schmalz

Van 'The Man'. Unconventional, odd, silly, unpredictable on-stage. At the Rockpalast Festival in 1982 in Essen hissing and begging, he led a sold-out Grugahalle quickly through the musical styles. And this, after Rick James warmed up the audience with great funk music and before the legendary Kinks blessed the impatiently waiting rock fans with 'Give The People What They Want'. A moving concert. A classic appearance.
However, what is the 51 year-old northern Irishman doing since then? Van Morrison has remained true to his introverted style. Constantly on the lookout for encounters with the most different traditional music styles, he records with old giants like John Lee Hooker or newcomers like the Chieftains. He also released albums in which not the number of albums sold, but the atmosphere was most important. Records that breathe blues and soul into the living room, and to which candlelight then gives the proper glow. Highly praised concerts in mostly sold-out, mid-sized halls, and personal appearances, as recently at the Leverkusener Jazzfestival, alongside jazz greats such as Candy and Hans Dulffer, give evidence to his restlessness. Most recent music-listening tip: The new CD 'The Healing Game'.

After his appereance at the Midem in Cannes on 26.01.1984, wich was recorded by Rockpalast, Van Morrison was third time guest at the Rockpalast Christmas Special 1998. Some Pictures are in the Picture archive of the Rockpalast Archiv! One year later he played at Loreley Open Air there are also Pictures in the archive.

Musicians:

Van Morrison - voc, g, keyb
Chris Michie - g
Don Hayes - b
Peter van Hooke - dr
Tom Dollinger - dr
John Allair - keyb
Pee Wee Ellis - Saxophon, Flute
Mark Isham - Horn, Syntheziser
Bianca Thornton - voc
Annie Stocking - voc
Pualine Lozano - voc

Setlist:

01  Go To The Place In Your Mind               (3'45'')
02  Into The Mystic                            (2'45'')
03  Moondance                                  (2'00'')
04  Wavelength                                 (3'20'')
05  Full Force Gale                            (2'05'')
06  Bright Side Of The Road                    (3'05'')
07  It's All In The Game                       (5'40'')
08  She Gives Me Religion                      (4'05'')
09  Northern Muse (Solid Ground)               (3'10'')
10  Vanlose Stairway                           (4'20'')
11  Help Me                                    (4'35'')
12  Love To You                                (2'45'')
13  Celtic Ray                                 (3'00'')
14  Dweller On The Treshold                    (4'20'')
15  Satisfied                                  (4'35'')
16  Cleaning Windows                           (4'20'')
17  Summertime In England                      (9'50'')
18  Scandinavia                                (5'30'')
                        

Discography:

Blowin Your Mind                (1967) Bang BLPS 218
This Is Where I Came In         (1967) Bang erschien 1977
T.B.Sheets                      (1967) Bang erschien 1977
Astral Weeks                    (1968) Warner 46024
Moon Dance                      (1969) Warner
His Band And The Street Choir   (1970) Warner 46066
Tupelo Honey                    (1971) WEA
St. Dominic's Preview           (1972) Warner 46172
Hard Nose The Highway           (1973) Warner
Veedon Fleece                   (1974) Warner
It's Too Late To Stop Now       (1975) Warner live
A Period Of Transition          (1977) Warner
Wavelength                      (1978) Warner
Into The Music                  (1979) Mercury 6304508
Common One                      (1980) Mercury 6302021
Beautiful Vision                (1982) Mercury 6302122
Inarticulate Speech Of The Heart(1983) Polydor
Live At The Grand Opera House   (1984) Mercury 813336 Live Belfast
A Sense Of Wonder               (1984) Polydor
No Guru, No Method, No Teacher  (1986) Mercury
Poetic Champions Compose        (1987) Mercury
Irish Heartbeat                 (1988) Mercury
Avalon Sunset                   (1989) Polydor 839262
Enlightment                     (1990) Polydor
Hymns To The Silence            (1991) Mercury
Too Long In Exile               (1993) Polydor 521290
No Prima Donna                  (1993) Polydor
A Night In San Fransicisco      (1994) Polydor 521290 Live
Days Like This                  (1995) Polydor/Atlas 3145273072
How Long Has This Been Going On (1995) Verve/Motor
Tell Me Something - 
The Songs Of Mose Allison       (1996) Verve/Motor
The Healing Game                (1997) Polydor 537 101-2/-4
The Philosophers Stone 71-88    (1998) Exile/Polydor 531789.2
Back On Top                     (1999) Virgin
The Skiffle Session -
Live in Belfast 1998            (2000) Virgin 8483072 m.L.Donegan, C.Barber
You Win Again                   (2000) Virgin 8502582 m. Linda Lewis
Down The Road                   (2002) Polydor
What's Wrong With This Picture? (2003) BlueNote/Capitol
Magic Time                      (2005) Universal
Pay The Devil                   (2006) Polydor/Universal
At The Movies                   (2007) EMI
Greatest Hits Vol.3             (2007) Exile/EMI
Still On Top - Greatest Hits    (2008) Universal
Keep It Simple                  (2008) Exile/Polydor/Universal
Astral Weeks Live               (2009) EMI - live at the Hollywood Bowl 2008            
Born To Sing: No Plan B         (2012) EMI
Duets: reworking The Catalog    (2015) Sony
The Essential                   (2015) Sony 2CD
Keep Me Singing                 (2016) Universal
The Authorized Bang Collection  (2017) Sony Box
Roll With The Punches           (2017) Universal
Versatile                       (2017) Universal
You'Re Driving Me Crazy         (2018) Sony and Joey Defrancesco
The Prophets Speaks             (2018) Universal
Three Chords And The Truth      (2019) Universal
Latest Record Project:Volume1   (2021) BMG
What's It Gonna Take?           (2022) Virgin
Moving on Skiffle               (2023) Virgin 2CD
Beyond Words + 
Accentuate The Positiv          (2023) Virgin 2CD

DVD:

Live At Montreux 1980/1974      (2006) Eagle Rock
The Glorious Decade             (2014) inakustik            
In Concert                      (2018) Universal
            

Literature:

Van Morrison Internet:

Van Morrison - Midem Cannes 26.01.1984
Van Morrison Rockpalast Christmas Special 1998
Van Morrison Rockpalast Loreley 1999
Van Morrison official
Van Morrisonr twitter.com
Van Morrison facebook.com
Van Morrison Facts and Info Page
Van Morrison Rockpalast Christmas Special 1998 - Pictures Rockpalast Archiv
Van Morrison Loreley Open Air 1999 - Pictures Rockpalast Archiv
Van Morrison Wikipedia DE
Van Morrison Wikipedia EN

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WDR text 1982: THE Kinks belong to the first generation of rock bands, and were formed in 1964. Their third single, called 'You Really Got Me', was Nr. 1 in England, Nr. 3 in the USA, and today is still one of the best rock songs that there are. This song was the beginning of a series of at least 15 more hits that stopped only at the end of the '60s. In the '70s, Ray Davies, who wrote 99% of the pieces for the Kinks brought concepts to reality, after many attempts. First, he busied himself with his hate-love for the old established English lifestyle, then later on, with his negative experiences in the music industry. Actually, Ray Davies wanted to make movies. His attempts in this direction did not turn out like he had thought they would. Deletions in his scripts and budget cuts led to the fact that Davies was never in agreement with the results. So, he returned to music and made records with film musicians.

In 1976/77, as a new way of listening to music brought itself to life, songs from The Kinks understandably belonged to the repertoire of many groups. This appearance, along with his own conceptions of rock music, also brought Ray Davies to writing songs again. Since then, he has never looked back and once again has fun playing electric guitar and really communicating with the audience.

Today, The Kinks are one of the most successful international bands. At live appearances, they have no problem playing their old songs and showing that really good songs never get old. Or, as Ray Davies himself once said: "Rock bands come and rock bands go. But rock'n'roll will always live on".

"The preparations are going on. The Kinks, as true Englishmen, absolutely could not live with the thought of having to stay in Essen from Wednesday night until early Sunday, and so, flew back to London on Thursday. This again meant problems for the production and for Jo and Tom Bullmann, our group leader. Ray Davies, who arrived at rehearsal after flying non-stop from Australia with only two hours of sleep in three days, couldn't afford to take time for a break and hadn't even had time to shave off his beard. Before his appearance, he gave a memorable interview, and he and his fellow guitarist showed that good rock'n'roll really isn't a question of age".
From - 10 Jahre Rockpalast.

Musicians:

Ray Davies - voc, g
Dave Davies - g, voc
Mick Avory - dr
Jim Rodford - b, voc
Iah Gibbons - keyb, voc

Setlist:

01  Around The Dial                            (7'00'')
02  The Hardway                                (2'30'')
03  Where Have All The Good Times Gone         (2'10'')
04  Captain America Calling
    (Catch Me Now, I'm Falling)                (3'10'')
05  Come On Now                                (2'40'')
06  Destroyer                                  (4'20'')
07  Yo,Yo                                      (6'50'')
08  Lola                                       (5'55'')
09  Dead End Street                            (2'15'')
10  Add It Up                                  (3'20'')
11  Low Budget                                 (6'15'')
12  Art Lover                                  (3'45'')
13  Back To Front                              (5'15'')
14  A Gallon Of Gas                            (4'30'')
15  Celluloid Heroes                           (7'45'')
16  Till The End Of The Day                    (3'20'')
17  Bernadette                                 (4'00'')
18  All Day And All Of The Night               (4'55'')
19  Give The People What The Want              (4'45'')
20  Pressure                                   (2'08'')
21  You Really Got Me                          (4'10'')
22  Stop Your Sobbing / David Watts            (3'10'')
                        

Discography: (selected)

The Kinks                                             (1964) Pye 202035
In Germany                                            (1965) Vogue LDVS 17077
The Kink Kontroversy                                  (1966) PYE
Face To Face                                          (1966) Pye 200731
Live At Kelvin Hall                                   (1967) Pye 202037
Something Else By The Kinks                           (1967) PYE
The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society  (1968) PYE
Arthur Or The Decline And Fall Of The Britisch Empire (1969) PYE
Part One - Lola Versus Powerman And The Money Goround (1971) PYE
Percy                                                 (1971) PYE Soundtrack
Muswell Hillbillies                                   (1971) RCA
Everybody's In Showbiz...                             (1972) RCA 2628008
Great Lost Kinks Album                                (1973) Reprise MS 2127
Preservation Act 1                                    (1973) RCA
Preservation Act 2                                    (1974) RCA
Soap Opera                                            (1975) RCA LPL 1-5081
Schoolboys In Disgrace                                (1976) Arista
Sleepwalker                                           (1977) Arista 201119
Misfits                                               (1979) Arista 201126
Low Budget                                            (1979) Arista 201146
One For The Road (live)                               (1980) Arista 300934
Give The People What They Want                        (1981) Arista 203943
State Of Confusion                                    (1983) Arista
Word Of Mouth                                         (1984) Arista 206685
Think Visual                                          (1986) Metronome
The Road                                              (1987) London 828081
UK Jive                                               (1989) London 828165
Phobia                                                (1993) Columbia 472489 1
To The Bone                                           (1997) Guardian/EMI 7243 8 56572 21
Singles Collection/Waterloo Sunset                    (1997) Castle
The BBC Sessions 64-77                                (2001) Sanctuary SANDD010
The Ultimate Collection                               (2002) Sanctuary/Zomba
The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society  (2004) Sanctuary 3-CD-Box
Picture Book                                          (2009) Universal 6 CDs            
Kinks In Mono                                         (2012) Universal 10 CD Box-Set
The Kinks At The BBC                                  (2012) Universal 5CD+1DVD
Lola Versus Powerman And The Money Goround            (2014) Sony Soundtrack Percy 2CD Deluxe
The Anthology 1964-1971                               (2015) BMG/Sony 5 CDs + Vinyl Single
The Kinks Are The Village Green Preservation Society  (2018) BMG 3LP/5CD/3 Singles
Arthur Or The Decline And Fall Of The Britisch Empire (2019) BMG 50th Anniversary Edition 4CD/4 7"
The Journey Part 1                                    (2023) BMG 2CD
The Journey Part 2                                    (2023) BMG 2CD

Kinks DVD:

The Kinks EP                                          (2002) Classic Entertainment UK
Return To Waterloo/Come Dancing With The Kinks        (2004) Eagle Vision
Kinks Independent Critical Review                     (2005) Soulfood 2DVD Set
Collector's Rarities: The Live Broadcasts             (2006) Classic Rock
The Kinks - Videobiography                            (2007) Soulfood (2 DVDs + Buch)
The Kinks - Live!                                     (2007) SPV
You Really Got Me - The Story Of The Kinks            (2010) Voiceprint/ABC	    
            

Kinks Literature:

Kinks Internet:

The Kinks Homepage Great site with infos, discography, links, tabs etc.
The Official Kinks Fan Club web site
Ray Davies official
Ray Davies facebook.com
The Kinks facebook.com
The Kinks' Golden Age
My Shrine to Dave Davies
Official Dave Davies web site
An Unofficial Dave Davies Solo Tour FAQ
Oscar's Kinks Page
The Kinks Wikipedia DE
The Kinks Wikipedia EN

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