Party At The Palace – Linlithgow Palace, Saturday 9 & Sunday 10 August 2014
Saturday
When I first read about this I thought to myself…what a fantastic idea…”a celebration of some of Scotland’s Biggest Bands” in the historic surroundings of Linlithgow Palace. Living relatively close-by, this two day event instantly caught my attention and over the next few weeks I let my imagination run wild with possibilities about who would be playing over the course of the weekend.
When the line-up was announced I was delighted to read that Deacon Blue and Simple Minds would be headlining the event whilst other acts such as Hue and Cry, Horse, The Silencers, Frightened Rabbit, Attic Lights and of course Dundee’s The View made it an event I needed to attend. The event was also peppered with a few former X-Factor/Britain’s Got Talent contestants and whilst I tuned out of both these shows some time ago I was intrigued to hear Jade Richards was going to be singing as Jade was someone I did connect with back in the days when I did join my wife in watching the reality stuff.
So roll on to Saturday 9 August for the first ever Party At The Palace and as I arise from my scratcher it is thankfully a relatively decent day with the sun threatening to come out (after Kendal Calling the previous weekend surely my luck had to change). By the time I arrive at the ‘Party’ after attending a mate’s BBQ in the early afternoon the sun is well and truly beaming down on those in joining the festivities and everyone is in good spirits. Attending the BBQ means I miss a few of the early acts (family, mates, work..if only it could always be that simple) and The Bluebells are on the stage. I don’t know much about The Bluebells but will be honest and disclose I was one of the people who found their number one single ‘Young At Heart’ very annoying back in 1993 when it was played to death on the radio. In saying that, the band sounded a decent live act and certainly brought the party to the Palace.
Saturday
When I first read about this I thought to myself…what a fantastic idea…”a celebration of some of Scotland’s Biggest Bands” in the historic surroundings of Linlithgow Palace. Living relatively close-by, this two day event instantly caught my attention and over the next few weeks I let my imagination run wild with possibilities about who would be playing over the course of the weekend.
When the line-up was announced I was delighted to read that Deacon Blue and Simple Minds would be headlining the event whilst other acts such as Hue and Cry, Horse, The Silencers, Frightened Rabbit, Attic Lights and of course Dundee’s The View made it an event I needed to attend. The event was also peppered with a few former X-Factor/Britain’s Got Talent contestants and whilst I tuned out of both these shows some time ago I was intrigued to hear Jade Richards was going to be singing as Jade was someone I did connect with back in the days when I did join my wife in watching the reality stuff.
So roll on to Saturday 9 August for the first ever Party At The Palace and as I arise from my scratcher it is thankfully a relatively decent day with the sun threatening to come out (after Kendal Calling the previous weekend surely my luck had to change). By the time I arrive at the ‘Party’ after attending a mate’s BBQ in the early afternoon the sun is well and truly beaming down on those in joining the festivities and everyone is in good spirits. Attending the BBQ means I miss a few of the early acts (family, mates, work..if only it could always be that simple) and The Bluebells are on the stage. I don’t know much about The Bluebells but will be honest and disclose I was one of the people who found their number one single ‘Young At Heart’ very annoying back in 1993 when it was played to death on the radio. In saying that, the band sounded a decent live act and certainly brought the party to the Palace.
Next up was Jade
Richards of X-Factor fame followed by Carrie Mac. After hearing Jade live there
is no denying the lady can sing and I was also equally impressed by Edinburgh
Singer/Songwriter Carrie Mac and found her acoustic sound and vocal instantly
infectious. Following on from the ladies were The Libations who I believe
contained a band member known as the Unknown Scotsman (who turned out to be
someone I actually did know).
At this stage I decided to have a walk around the site and get a real feel for the ‘party’. The site itself consisted of one main stage a few bar tents and multiple trader stalls. Walking around in the bright sunshine was a complete contrast to my previous weekend at Kendal Calling but yet there were positive similarities in the friendliness of the people attending and those working over the weekend also enjoying the occasion and doing their jobs with panache that is sometimes lost in festivals and the like. With the stage facing out to the water with the Palace on the left it was a really stunning location and I loved the fact the traders in attendance came largely from the local community who appeared to be completely embracing this well organised event. Buoyant and reveling in the party atmosphere I treated myself to a little back massage at the Mary Philbin stall and I can categorically state it was the best £10 I have spent on myself in a long LONG time!
Next up on the bill were Glaswegian band Attic Lights. Having been compared to Teenage Fanclub and REM, I was expecting big things from Attic Lights and whilst they did not scale to these heights (a very tall order in my opinion) the band appeared to have a few of their own fans in the audience and did a good job entertaining the crowd with their sometimes Beach Boys inspired sound.
Next up on the bill were Glaswegian band Attic Lights. Having been compared to Teenage Fanclub and REM, I was expecting big things from Attic Lights and whilst they did not scale to these heights (a very tall order in my opinion) the band appeared to have a few of their own fans in the audience and did a good job entertaining the crowd with their sometimes Beach Boys inspired sound.
For me one of the big attractions of the weekend was Hue and Cry and they did not disappoint. Despite having never heard Hue and Cry live previously they are a band I have always liked and back in my high school days I remember spending my pocket money on the ‘Labour of Love’ 7”. I also own the Best Of CD and have enjoyed listening to tracks such as ‘I Refuse’, ‘Violently’, ‘Strength To Strength’, ‘Ordinary Angel’ and the classic ‘Looking For Linda’ throughout the years. Hearing Hue and Cry live I must admit I was uber impressed with Pat Kane’s vocal with ‘Mother Glasgow’ being a specific highpoint.
With the sun still
shining, Deacon Blue took to the stage and wasted no time belting into their
classic hits from the album When The
World Knows Your Name with both ‘Fergus Sings The Blues’ and ‘Queen Of The
New Year’ featuring early on. ‘Chocolate Girl’ from the album Raintown sounded immense integrated with
the Motown classic ‘My Girl’ with both Ricky Ross and wife Lorraine MacIntosh
sounding fantastic. Highlights were a constant as the band delighted fans with
‘Loaded’, ‘Your Town, ‘Real Gone Kid’, ‘Wages Day’ and ‘Dignity’ taking the
crowd to another level. At one point Ricky shouted repeatedly “Yes, yes, yes”
and with all this celebration of Scotland I could not help but wonder if there
was a little message in these words. For me personally, the highlights of the
set were the band being joined on the stage by a choir and a gospel like
version of ‘When Will You (Make My Telephone Ring)’ and the final encore song
‘Twist and Shout’. Wow! What a day and what a great start to an event first
muted in a Linlithgow pub by two blokes called John and Peter. Nice one fellas!
Sunday
For the avoidance of doubt, I should make it clear that this was a two day event and not a festival and therefore there was no camping. With the weather I awoke to on Sunday morning I cannot stress how happy I was not to be camping! Unfortunately, Sunday morning did not get much better for me and after hearing some really terrible news about a friend I struggled to get myself emotionally up for the day ahead.
With the rain continuing to pound throughout the day, I eventually motivated myself to go along and catch the Frightened Rabbit set. Having heard many positive things about Frightened Rabbit’s live performances, I was keen to hear the band live and whilst I do not naturally connect to their music I could appreciate the musicianship of the band.
For the avoidance of doubt, I should make it clear that this was a two day event and not a festival and therefore there was no camping. With the weather I awoke to on Sunday morning I cannot stress how happy I was not to be camping! Unfortunately, Sunday morning did not get much better for me and after hearing some really terrible news about a friend I struggled to get myself emotionally up for the day ahead.
With the rain continuing to pound throughout the day, I eventually motivated myself to go along and catch the Frightened Rabbit set. Having heard many positive things about Frightened Rabbit’s live performances, I was keen to hear the band live and whilst I do not naturally connect to their music I could appreciate the musicianship of the band.
Next on the bill were Dundee band The View. Now The View are a band I do enjoy and have casually listened to their music since they erupted onto the scene with their number one debut album Hats Off To The Buskers. Having caught The View supporting the Stone Roses last year at Glasgow Green I was keen to hear them again live. In a pleasant surprise, The View were joined on stage by the Cairn String Quartet and I really enjoyed their contribution to the live set. Despite the dreadful weather, drummer Steven Morrison brought a smile to my face and as he attacked his kit bare-chested.
It was clear the Dundee boys had a number of their own fans in attendance and early set tracks ‘Grace’ and ‘Anfield Row’ pumped-up a number of fans in attendance who continued to shout for ‘Same Jeans’ throughout the set. Unfortunately, after playing the opening chords to ‘Same Jeans’ The View left the stage stating it was not their fault as their set appeared to come to a somewhat abrupt and untimely end. For me this was the only low-point over the course of the two days and I felt for those fans close to me who were waiting to hear the trademark View song.
It was clear the Dundee boys had a number of their own fans in attendance and early set tracks ‘Grace’ and ‘Anfield Row’ pumped-up a number of fans in attendance who continued to shout for ‘Same Jeans’ throughout the set. Unfortunately, after playing the opening chords to ‘Same Jeans’ The View left the stage stating it was not their fault as their set appeared to come to a somewhat abrupt and untimely end. For me this was the only low-point over the course of the two days and I felt for those fans close to me who were waiting to hear the trademark View song.
As the rain continued to downpour the excitement
continued to build as the crowd waited on one of Scotland’s most successful
bands of all-time to take the stage..Simple Minds! As lead singer Jim Kerr
bounced onto the stage it was clear the rain had not dampened the bands
enthusiasm for tonight as the beats of aptly titled ‘Waterfront’ pounded out
from the stage towards the water. Throughout the set an appreciative Kerr and
band sounded great and it was evident listening to songs such as ‘The American’
and ‘Someone Somewhere In Summertime’ along with ‘Promised You A Miracle’ and
‘Alive And Kicking’ that Simple Minds still have what it takes as a live band!
Party At The Palace 2015? Yes please! One can only think of the names on the bill next year...Pete MacLeod, Modern Faces, Common Ground, Toni Etherson?
More photos from Party At The Palace can be found here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bazzamills/sets
Words: Bazza Mills
Twitter: @bazzamills
More photos from Party At The Palace can be found here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/bazzamills/sets
Words: Bazza Mills
Twitter: @bazzamills