Lindisfarne
The Princess Alexandra Auditorium (PAA)
Yarm
Stockton on Tees, UK

17th February 2024

Following last week’s double header in North Shields, The Lads continued their run of “doorstep gigs” this week with a trip to Berwick and a trip to Yarm. Last played Yarm 18 months ago. Hoped they’d return. Not too far down the road for TF & myself, and it’s a really good venue. Wide, deep stage, almost semi-circular, banked seating. Nice view, nice sound regardless of where you’re sat. Has a quite intimate feel to it, although seats about 750.

This time around it’s a sellout. Putting a lot of bums on seats this tour (most of whom, I suspect, will struggle to get up again from their seat).

Very polite venue. Tannoy messages “politely requesting” you to do this or “politely requesting” you do that. Gets the bewildered majority attending tonight’s show to where they need to be in good time for the performance. Me & TF included.

Early(ish) start (7:30pm), and The Band are instantly into their stride. “Alright on the Night” jolts any of the grey parade into waking up from any little nap they may have been having, before moving straight into “Squire”. In fact, the first five tunes are played without a break or narrative, after which…you’re pretty much half way through set one (as we’ve noted before, the shows fly by).

Playing-wise, they’re getting better & better, although Steve’s voice did sound a little ragged in places this evening.

As usual, “January Song” closes out the first set magnificently, after which the locals participate in the biggest queues in history in the hope of securing an ice cream before “expiring” or else being led back by nursey to their “secure surroundings” for meds & beds.

Set two follows the now usual mix of powerful, poignant thought-provokers & party-time ditties. “Dingly Dell” is huge. DHD never performs “When the War is Over” the same way twice (especially good vocal delivery this time around) and the Party Songs were all enthusiastically accompanied throughout by the 750 vanilla-bedecked onlookers.

By 10:00pm the “Clear White Light” has guided us on our way and we’ve cleared the on-site car park to play our now traditional game of “which way do we go?”.

Three gigs in eight days? We’re wishing we’d gone up to Berwick now, as well.

Through The Fog On The Tees we could see:-

S101 Alright On The Night
S102 Squire
S103 Scarecrow Song
S104 Statues & Liberties
S105 Lady Eleanor
S106 Train In G Major
S107 All Fall Down
S108 Anyway The Wind Blows
S109 Road To Kingdom Come
S110 Walk A Crooked Mile
S111 January Song

I N T E R V A L

S201 No Time To Lose
S202 Passing Ghosts
S203 Sundown Station
S204 Dingly Dell
S205 When The War Is Over
S206 Winter Song
S207 We Can Swing Together
S208 Fog On The Tyne
S209 Band Intros & Thanks
S210 Meet Me On The Corner
S211 Run For Home
S212 Clear White Light Part II

ROD CLEMENTS Vocal, mandolin, fiddle, guitars
DAVE HULL-DENHOLM Vocal, guitars, harmonica
STEVE DAGGETT Vocal, keyboards, guitars, harmonica, percussion
IAN THOMSON Bass, vocal
PAUL SMITH Drums

Lineage
SP-CMC-4U >
TASCAM DR-40 >
Sound Forge Pro 14 >
Trader's Little Helper (level 8) >
Torrent Site

Lindisfarne have a huge tour booked throughout 2024 reaching most areas of Great Britain.

When they happen by, meet them on a corner close to you.