Sisters Gigs in 1981

THE place for your Sisters-related comments, questions and snippets of Sisters information. For those who do not know, The Sisters of Mercy are a rock'n'roll band. And a pop band. And an industrial groove machine. Or so they say. They make records. Lots of records, apparently. But not in your galaxy. They play concerts. Lots of concerts, actually. But you still cannot see them. So what's it all about, Alfie? This is one of the few tightly-moderated forums on Heartland, so please keep on-topic. All off-topic posts will either be moved or deleted. Chairman Bux is the editor and the editor's decision is final. Danke.
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Christian
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*** edit: for an updated version pls see page 2***

I recently did some research on the Sisters gigs in 1981 and found that some lists state dates and venues which are missing on others. Quite confusing to me. Some data seems to be quite clear (appears on every list) others are more mysterious.

Anyone out there who can confirm dates like April 22nd 1981?

Here is what I have found out so far:


16.02.1981 York University (Vanbrugh College)
On some lists the name “Alcuin College� appears. Both names may be correct since the Alcuin college is claimed to be a smaller building within the Vanbrugh College.

Teachers / The Damage Done / Watch / Good Things / Adrenochrome / 1969 /
Sister Ray
(source: Pinnell 1990)

Kenny Giles Walks On Water (Tape)
Good Things

19.03.1981 Leeds F Club

22.03.1981 Leeds F Club

05.04.1981 York. University
??
any information highly appreciated

22.04.1981 York University
??
any information highly appreciated

04.05.1981 Leeds Warehouse

Damage Done + 3 (Single)
The Damage Done / Watch // Teachers/Adrenochrome

The Damage Is Done (LP)
The Damage Done / Watch // Teachers/Adrenochrome / Sister Ray

Monochrome (CD)
The Damage Done / Watch // Teachers/Adrenochrome / Sister Ray

Rough Diamonds (Do-LP)
The Damage Done

07.05.1981 York University

Brimstone & Treacle (Single)
1969

Good Things + 2 (Single)
1969 / Sister Ray

Halloween’s Day (Do-LP)
1969

In Red (LP)
1969 / Sister Ray

Rough Diamonds (Do-LP)
1969

Sunglass (Single)
(other titles: “Good Things + 2 – different artwork�)
1969 / Sister Ray

13.06.1981 Leeds University

02.07.1981 Leeds Warehouse

05.09.1981 Stafford Bingley Hall – Futurama Festival
On some lists the name appears as "New Bingley Hall"

Floorshow / Good Things / Watch / The Damage Done / 1969 / Teachers/Adrenochrome Sister Ray
(source: Tape)

06.09.1981 Leeds Queens Hall
Whether this gig was played or not is unsure. The date does not appear on the official website. On some lists the name of the venue appears as “Queen Hall�.

07.09.1981 Leeds F-Club
??
any information highly appreciated

02.10.1981 Leeds F-Club
According to some sources the gig took place in a location called “Brannigans� or “Branigan’s�.

09.11.1981 Leeds University


sources:
Sisters Homepage
A Fragment (revised version)
A Fragment II
UTR 6
Live In The Reptile House booklet (similar to Patrick Tappes "Konzertdatenchronik")
Several lists circulating among collectors and on the internet
Last edited by Christian on 02 Apr 2007, 19:53, edited 1 time in total.
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To be 100% accurate, the Stafford 81 festival is: Futurama 3, New Bingley Hall, Stafford as per the ticket stub in the gallery. clicky
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I'm sure there was a post about Futurama 3, but I can't locate it from the search function. Remember reading a fairly detailed account of the weekend, that I'd love to see again, but I just can't find it. Can anyone shed some light - it may not have been on Heartland that I read it, but that would be the logical place that I saw it.
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02.10.1981 Leeds F-Club
According to some sources the gig took place in a location called “Brannigans� or “Branigan’s�.
That's probably Brannigans. Which, unless there was another one back in '81, is on Vicar Lane.
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Excuse me. Was on Vicar Lane. It's a Chinese supermarket now if memory serves.
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Christian
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Thank you for the link to the ticket stub Johnny Rev 7.0, that’s the kind of information I was looking for!

@markfiend
Any indication that the Sisters ever played a gig in the “Brannigans�? Or is “F-Club� maybe just another name for the same location?

Any information about the (most) “uncertain� gigs, especially
05 April 1981 York University
22 April 1981 York University
07 September 1981 Leeds F Club
?

If memory serves me right I once read something like the first of the three was mentioned as date of recording on a bootleg but I do not remember which. I found these three on a list but I really have my doubts here.

Does anybody own gig adverts or reviews about gigs from that year? Seems like the first gig and the Futurama thing are the ones with least doubts regarding the question whether they were played or not.

Any bootlegs missing on the list containing titles from 1981 gigs?
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Wonder if anyone recorded the ones from 1980, before they became a three-piece (discounting the Dok)...
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Dark wrote:Wonder if anyone recorded the ones from 1980, before they became a three-piece (discounting the Dok)...
The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs :innocent:
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the-happening wrote:
Dark wrote:Wonder if anyone recorded the ones from 1980, before they became a three-piece (discounting the Dok)...
The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs :innocent:
what about 1979?
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the-happening wrote:
The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs
Ormfdmrush wrote:
what about 1979?
:lol: :lol: :lol:

How about 1986-1989 :!:

How about 2007 and on ... what is next :?:

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Christian wrote:@markfiend
Any indication that the Sisters ever played a gig in the “Brannigans�? Or is “F-Club� maybe just another name for the same location?
As I understand it, the "F-Club" was the name of the club-night but it moved from venue to venue. Brannigans is/was the name of the venue.

I can't confirm whether the Sisters ever really played there.
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markfiend wrote:
Christian wrote:@markfiend
Any indication that the Sisters ever played a gig in the “Brannigans�? Or is “F-Club� maybe just another name for the same location?
As I understand it, the "F-Club" was the name of the club-night but it moved from venue to venue. Brannigans is/was the name of the venue.

I can't confirm whether the Sisters ever really played there.
yep, "f-club" was the name of the night rather than the venue, and it moved around

undertow might have some idea of the whens & wheres...?
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F-Club Seven, is that how Eldo started out? :lol:
Is this the place I used to know as Fatherland?
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the-happening wrote:
Dark wrote:Wonder if anyone recorded the ones from 1980, before they became a three-piece (discounting the Dok)...
The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs :innocent:
Maybe. The difference being that I don't know anyone who went to any in 88. Whereas I do know someone.. oh, we've already covered this. :lol:
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Dark wrote:
the-happening wrote:
Dark wrote:Wonder if anyone recorded the ones from 1980, before they became a three-piece (discounting the Dok)...
The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs :innocent:
Maybe. The difference being that I don't know anyone who went to any in 88. Whereas I do know someone.. oh, we've already covered this. :lol:
I must have missed this revelation, do tell more about these 1980 gigs.
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Dark wrote:
the-happening wrote:
Dark wrote:Wonder if anyone recorded the ones from 1980, before they became a three-piece (discounting the Dok)...
The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs :innocent:
Maybe. The difference being that I don't know anyone who went to any in 88. Whereas I do know someone.. oh, we've already covered this. :lol:
private gigs? :innocent:
for Mr.Ray and others
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ormfdmrush wrote:
Dark wrote:
the-happening wrote: The 1980 gigs are as rare as the 1988 gigs :innocent:
Maybe. The difference being that I don't know anyone who went to any in 88. Whereas I do know someone.. oh, we've already covered this. :lol:
private gigs? :innocent:
for Mr.Ray and others
I think someone is yanking your chain.
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Please, I doubt JR even made music in 1980.

No, I have a friend who swears blind that early incarnations of the Sisters and (he's almost positive) the March Violets played in 1980, and that he saw them.
IIRC, he said it was September 1980, and the Sisters were just "two guys and a drum machine" and sounded pretty damn near awful. He said the Violets were better, but not by much.
Apparently there was a small advert for the gig in our local newspaper.. I doubt I could find copies of all the daily newspapers from that month, and even if I could, it'd take a lot to convince me to search through every newspaper for a tiny gig notice. :lol:
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Surely you'll have some time during the Easter holidays? :innocent: :twisted:
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iirc, prior to the violets coming together, choque and simon d where in a band, albeit very briefly. choque played drums. i think. :?

its no surprise that anyone from one of these bands was doing something however informal with other fledgling bands before they hit their stride doing what we now know them for...

fwiw, i doubt it was the sisters, and i doubt it was the violets either, but its conceivable that one or more of the people concerned could have been playing. either that, or they're confused and it wasnt actually 1980, but 81 or even 82...
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My guess at their reasoning was that they were "testing the waters", so to speak, before going out as a "real band" (see: reasoning before Body Electric release, starting together again "properly").

I'd also have guessed it was actually 81 or 82, and probably asked him if he was sure about the date, but he said the gig was in Lincoln. And correct me if I'm wrong, but in neither the Sisters' nor the Violets' gigographies are there any Lincoln dates. :?
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VP4tj7mdLdU

early sisters were limited to wakefield and consisted mostly silver machine and sister ray [at least that's what the taper says]
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paint it black wrote:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VP4tj7mdLdU

early sisters were limited to wakefield and consisted mostly silver machine and sister ray [at least that's what the taper says]

:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: total heart attack, funniest thing I have seen in ages

:notworthy: :notworthy: :notworthy:

proto Lucretia vid ?
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paint it black wrote:early sisters were limited to wakefield and consisted mostly silver machine and sister ray [at least that's what the taper says]
With Claire on keyboards?
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16.2.81 Yes, Alcuin College was a building within Vanbrugh College

5.4.81 Never seen that date before. Possibly someone wrote the 4.5.81 gig with the year and month the wrong way round and put the wrong venue (I've seen the 4.5.81 and 7.5.81 gigs sometimes listed with the venues the wrong way round also.)

22.4.81 Never seen that date before

4.5.81 It's Leeds St John's. The 4.5.81 & 7.5.81 were on a demotape (along with the 4 songs later bootlegged as "Floorshow E.P."). I've seen a scan of the original cassette cover where it listed it as St. John's but I've no idea where the scan is now, I can't find it. Maybe someone else has it to hand.

5.9.81 Slight correction, It's Futurama III

6.9.81 I don't think they played there. The confusion probably arose becase this was also a Futurama.

7.9.81 Never seen this date before

2.10.81 It was Brannigans. I used to know the keyboard player of the support act that night (Screaming Abdabs). He said there was only about 20 people at the gig to watch the Sisters including the members of Screaming Abdabs. Eldritch bought one of their singles at the gig (or they gave him it, one or the other). There's a scan of the gig poster that he gave me in the image gallery. Clicky. It's not the same Brannigans that became Wing Lee Hong (very good Chinese supermarket!), as that was only been there for a few years. Different location, and not the F club either. He did tell me where the location was but I can't remember.

Also you missed one.

21.11.81 Bradford Caesars (supporting Nico). For this one I've a feeling I got the info from a gig ticket sold on ebay. Some people from this forum were interested in it but I dunno who won.

As for what PiB said about Silver Machine, I can confirm they did play it in the early days. Eddie (the keyboard player for Screaming Abdabs) also saw the Sisters at Keighley Fun House on 29.3.82 and he said for an encore they played Silver Machine joined onstage by members of March Violets. Also Eldritch played drums on some demos in one of his other bands in 1981-ish. Sadly he no longer had a recording and wasn't in contact with any of the other band members, who he said all became lawyers and such.
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