Wednesday 27 October 1976
Birmingham Barbarellas
Supporting the Suburban Studs
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Recordings in circulation
Source: 5 Go Mad @ Roundhouse CD
Sound 3.5 - 32min - cd/m - Tracks 13
What's My Name
Sound Quality
5 Go Mad at the Round house also includes
13 tracks from 5 September 1976 The Roundhouse, London
Mr Gray (of Last Gang in Town) writes that, ironically, this made for one of the clearest vocal mixes they had ever experienced. Unfortunately, the vocals on this recording are not that clear — somewhat distant and thin.
The guitars come across brightly, though. It's a good stereo-miked audience recording (presumably by the same taper as the Roundhouse) and very close to the master. Drums and cymbals are very clear, with bass present but somewhat buried. Both guitars are clear, but the sound is thin and harsh, making this a less enjoyable listen than the Roundhouse.
It has a sound quality somewhere between a 3 and a 4.
Bootleg details can be found here
Visit these websites for a comprehensive catalogue of unofficially released CD's and Vinyl (forever changing) or If Music Could Talk for all audio recordings
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For all recordings go to If Music Could Talk / Sound of Sinners
Background
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...
Tickets, Posters
Poster
Surburban Studs (Punk 77) or (Punk 77)
Ticket
Other
Birmingham Barbarella's
Barbarellas was a renowned nightclub and music venue located in Birmingham, England. The club was named after the film "Barbarella" and was one of Eddie Fewtrell's clubs. Fewtrell promoted known rock bands at that time, such as AC/DC, Dire Straits, Queen, Sex Pistols and The Clash. Duran Duran's drummer Roger Taylor played at Barbarella's with punk bands in the 1970s.
It opened in 1972 and closed in August 1979, and was demolished in 1986[4]. The club was situated at 41 Cumberland Street, which is now part of the Brindley Place development of offices and banks[1].
The venue was particularly famous in the 1970s as a regular stop on the Punk Rock circuit. Notable bands such as The Clash, Sex Pistols, The Jam, and The Ramones all performed there[1]. It was also a popular venue for emerging Birmingham bands[1].
1. Barbarellas (site of)
4. Barbarella's - Wikipedia
5. The Guardian Article
7. Subtouring - Barbarellas
8. Brutalist Birmingham - Staying Cool
10. Radio To Go - Barbarellas
11. John Desmond Blog - The Selfridges Building Birmingham
16. Birmingham History Forum
I used to go to Barbarellas
"When Punk came in, they opened up a separate room. It became a second home for mohicans, extravagant make-up and piercings. You'd have prog-rock and mainstream on the big stage, and plastic bag dresses and gobbing round the side. "
Birmingham HISTORY Barbarella's (former)
Barbarella's was another legendary venue in the city of Birmingham between 1972 and 1979. Once located in Cumberland Street, this is now an area that has been completely restructured. It was one of Eddie Fewtrell's clubs. Fewtrell promoted bands like AC/DC, Dire Straits, Queen, Sex Pistols, and The Clash. It was a devoted crowd who regularly turn up at Barbarella's to see these bands as well as others such as Judas Priest, The Ramones, or The Killjoys. However, its legendary status came with Punk in the 70s. Duran Duran's drummer Roger Taylor took stage several times with punk bands. Ignore its sound quality but you need to listen to that live recording from the Sex Pistols' gig on 14 August 1976 featuring Flowers of Romance and I Wanna Be Me. Have a look at it here. On 4 July 1978, Dire Straights recorded a live album there titled Birmingham at Barbarella's. Another rare live tape includes The Ramones' Barbarella's, Birmingham, UK, 24 May 1977.
The Gig
5 Go Mad at the Roundhouse CD
This is the second gig on the 5 Go Mad at the Roundhouse CD, and although the sound is not as good as the Roundhouse gig, it is still a rare, decent early live recording from the new line-up. This Clash performance here is some six gigs on since Keith Levene left after the Roundhouse gig, and where Mick took over lead guitar and Joe rhythm.
The Clash had agreed to come up to Birmingham to support bandwagon no-hopers The Suburban Studs. Jonh Ingham, in a review in Sounds, thought their 45-minute set to be their best yet, noting "that every song is pared to the minimum required to get it across with maximum energy and zero flab." The 30 people in attendance did not go amiss, as Joe remarked upon the next visit to Barbarellas on the White Riot Tour, dedicating that gig to "the few souls who were here on this night."
Although no doubt an exaggeration, this would have been a small audience — which the recording confirms — yet the band is met with warm applause at the end and returns for an encore. Again there were sound problems, with a PA malfunction resulting in the vocals being routed through the club system, with the band's own amps required to project the sound of the guitars.
the songs are faster, shorter and now definitely punk as Ingham pointed out ...
The Clash have developed significantly since The Roundhouse, the songs are faster, shorter and now definitely punk as Ingham pointed out. Out of the set goes Mick's 'I Know What To Think About You', 'I Never Did It', 'Mark Me Absent' and 'Sitting At My Party'. 'How Can I Understand the Flies' and 'Deadly Serious (Dig a Hole)' survive but are further stripped down. In comes White Riot and Career Opportunities with 1-2 Crush On You reduced to the encore and subjected to a piss take by Joe of the teen angst lyrics.
The recording captures the band mid point between the early fast, r'n'b Clash, largely singing Mick's songs about teenage love and school, and the Clash that was to come. A new set of songs with a new direction. Lyrics by Joe inspired by Bernie's situationist politics, and a general instruction to write about as Bernie put it "what you know and affects you".
Setlist
1. White Riot
The gig begins with Joe saying, "Hello got anymore light, can't see my hero!" and Mick shouting "1.2.3.4" before launching into White Riot. This is the first decent recording of it but it's not that fast and raw yet with a poor solo from Mick. A good song but not yet a classic. There are some different lyrics, sadly indecipherable although Joe does namecheck Birmingham.
Warm but polite applause and someone shouts, "where's the pistols" (who had played Barbarella's recently).
2. London's Burning
This song is nearly the finished article with the drum crash ending now added. It's sung as Birmingham's Burning and it's with boredom now.
3. I'm So Bored with the USA
"A tune called I'm So Bored With the USA", and as if to reinforce the point that this song has undergone a highly significant change and is not now about boredom with a girl Joe shouts America after the first chords. The rest of the words though still sound the same as the Roundhouse version, so a song literally in a state of transition! As well as the lyric changes the song is now faster, rawer, and punk. Joe is obviously surprised at the enthusiastic reaction to at least some of the crowd and asks at the start of the song to some of the audience "you don't really live in Birmingham?, straight up!"
4. How Can I Understand the Flies
Stripped down and further Ramones inspired.
5. Protex Blue
"Talking about a durex!". Sounds brilliant, the finished article.
6. Deadly Serious (Dig a Hole)
"its so Deadly Serious (Dig a Hole), rock'n'roll". Still a slight song soon to be dropped, but with a better ending, punk treatment and great guitar lick mid-song.
7. Deny
Now rawer and faster, with Joe now shouting a rap over the ending coda.
8. Career Opportunities
First recording of this future classic in circulation. Not brilliant yet, a song in transition and with many different lyrics to the later recorded version.
9. 48 Hours
Joe's intro; "now its my turn to give you a guitar solo in the key of E major!" A good version nearing its final form.
10. What's My Name
Joe "In case you're wondering whether, you don't quite know what to do with yourself, maybe join the Police cadets, go on the railways, maybe you wanna work in a bank, or wanna be a popstar, well this is a song entitled What's My Nameeeee!" A great performance, highlight of the set and these early gigs. Mick sings a middle section.
11. Janie Jones
"Now we come to our big rock'n'roll hit of the year!". It's now a punk classic, played faster and tougher than at the Roundhouse.
12. 1977
"Gonna do 1977 then fuck off!" Fast and frantic, sounds great.
13. 1-2 Crush On You
After shouts of more the band return for a one-song encore. Not as good as the excellent Roundhouse version.
News Reports
Jonh Ingham, Sounds, 13 November 1976
The Clash: Barbarellas, Birmingham
WEDNESDAY had been booked as Punk Night at Barbarellas, an excuse, if nothing else, for the club deejay to fall in love with the sound of his mouth flapping. It was the brainchild of the local Suburban Studs, supported by their mentors The Clash. And here lies a story.
The Suburban Studs are the band initially thought to be called the Suburban Bolts. Now that was a great name, and I’m still hoping someone at least becomes The Bolts. But The Suburban Studs... How mundane, how archaic, how suburban. They supported The Pistols at the 100 Club during the summer, a laughable mixture of tacky jumpsuits, tacky makeup, tacky props and tacky music. More dinosaur rock.
They then supported The Runaways, billed as Birmingham's Glam Rock Band. They realised how recherché they were. Simultaneously, they were encouraged to check out The Clash, playing that night at the ICA. It was instant love; they even drove down to see the band the next week. Generally rockers at heart, they were said to have changed their music and dropped all the makeup and props. Their hair was getting shorter.
On Wednesday it took about five minutes to realise that this short-haired geezer chatting to us was actually the formerly ultra-long-haired Studs guitarist, Keef (sic). Such is progress.
After all this, they just stood there. Eddie Zippa wears a black vinyl suit — called Julian? — tastefully torn over one tit, singing songs the equal of the punk lyricists in our letters pages. E.g.: 'I don't care what life's about, I just want to jump and shout.' Well, Black Sabbath aren’t exactly Bertrand Russells in their social commentary, either.
But their music matches the lyrical artlessness. Stolen riffs and rhythms abound, with a penchant for Bowie. The saxist can’t really play — a pity, when you consider the spaces explored by Steven Mackay on The Stooges' Fun House as an example of where it could go, that he stuck to Glitter Band riffing all night.
It's a shame their music is so lacking, because they get full points for trying.
It was The Clash’s finest 45 minutes. Due to PA problems, only the voices were on it; the rest of the sound came directly from the amps — just like the old days. It made for amazingly clear vocals.
White Riot was superb. The Clash’s anthem and view of the Notting Hill Riots, it contains all of the band’s best trademarks: great hooks and chorus, a storming rhythm, and a Clash trick of everything dropping out except for Mick Jones’ guitar, dropping back in two bars later behind a thundering crack from Terry Chimes’ baseball bat-sized drumsticks.
London’s Burning became Birmingham’s Burning. I’m So Bored With You has changed to I'm So Bored With The USA. Not once do The Clash falter. Every song is pared to the minimum required to get it across with maximum energy and zero flab. Which they do with such power, speed and explosion that one assumes the lack of response from first-time audiences in London is due to shock — no one young has seen such manic energy except from The Who or Quo in a stadium.
But in Birmingham, the audience began to applaud more and more vigorously. Protex Blue, another rhythmic high point and Mick’s vocal bid for the spotlight, exploded into guitar mania — but unfortunately some amp problems took the edge off the attack.
But it was the encore, I’ve Got A Crush On You, that clinched it. Joe sings about being handsome and does his visual best to look anything but pretty. This time, he excelled himself, and with Mick racing between mikes and Paul exploding and jerking, it had powerful effect.
© Jonh Ingham, 1976
Books
For Passion Is a Fashion by Pat Gilbert (Page 114)
Glue, Gigs, and a Rickenbacker: Patti Smith’s Punk Blessing
At their headlining gig at the ICA on 23 October, billed as 'A Night of Pure Energy', Patti Smith, whom the group had seen the previous evening at the Hammersmith Odeon, signalled her endorsement by jumping up onstage and dancing. Afterwards, she whisked Paul Simonon away to Birmingham, where The Clash were scheduled to play the next evening.
A few weeks later, she sent him a gift: a brand new stereo Rickenbacker bass. At that point, Paul might have preferred some hard cash: the ICA was the gig for which Simonon, who refused to sign on the dole (another evasion of authority), stuck up some fly-posters then devoured the unused flour-and-paste glue because he was so hungry.
For Return of the Last Gang in Town by Marcus Gray (Page 159)
From Satin Flares to Straight Trousers: The Studs Follow The Clash
Upon arrival, The Clash found that The Suburban Studs had undergone a miraculous change of image, starting — but not ending — with haircuts all round. "When we played with them in London, they had satin flares on," recalls Terry Chimes. "When we went up to support them in Birmingham, they were in straight trousers like us, and Bernie was going, 'Where’s your flares, then? I want to buy ’em for my band.'”
Unfortunately, according to Jonh Ingham, who reviewed the gig for Sounds, the transformation in the band’s material was not extensive enough to allow The Studs to grab a seat on the punk gravy train.
Magazines
...
Comments
50p to get in
Paul Apperley - I went to this. Plus Patti Smith and the Stranglers had played the Birmingham Odeon the Sunday before this and the Sex Pistols had played Bogarts in Birmingham the Wednesday before that so all in all not a bad week in October 1976.
Major Toms --- I was there 50p to get in
Pure electric memories
Dermot Lynch --- We were at this gig. And one of us climbed up the scaffolding on Bush House. Happy Days
Peter Oliver --- I was at this gig what a night the air was pure electric memories were made for me saw them when they came back in 77 2 times then as many times as was possible.
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1976, The Clash perform at Barbarella's in Birmingham.
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PHOTOS: Barbarellas Birmingham, 26 October 1976
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Birmingham Barbarella's, courtesy Martin Booth
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