On This Day 02/05/1975 Yes

On this day, 2 May 1975, prog rock giants Yes played the first of two nights at Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre on the band’s Relayer tour. Support was provided by Gryphon.

Relayer is the seventh studio album by the English progressive rock band Yes, released in the UK on 29 November 1974 and in the US on 5 December 1974 by Atlantic Records. After keyboardist Rick Wakeman left the group in May 1974 over disagreements with the band's direction following their double concept album Tales from Topographic Oceans (1973), Yes entered rehearsals as a four-piece in Buckinghamshire. They auditioned several musicians, including Greek keyboardist and composer Vangelis, before settling with Swiss musician Patrick Moraz of Refugee who incorporated elements of funk and jazz fusion to the album. Relayer is formed of three tracks, with "The Gates of Delirium" on side one and "Sound Chaser" and "To Be Over" on side two. This was the only studio release to feature Moraz on keyboards.

Relayer received a mixed to positive reception from contemporary and retrospective critics. It reached No. 4 on the UK Albums Chart and No. 5 on the US Billboard 200.

Yes fan Gerard made these comments about the gig on a Yes band fan site -

My first Yes show, still the best gig I've ever been to and the best Friday night of my life! (even without Rick).

I was 16 and with a bunch of school friends. About 6 weeks previously we'ed queued all night for our tickets. The box office was due to open at 10 AM on a Sunday but they opened at 08.30 on the advice of the police as the queue was a few thousand strong and growing fast. When they opened the box office bedlam ensued!

We got our tickets, those who turned up later had no chance.

At the gig Gryphon opened and were good. Then, at the first strains of Firbird Suite everyone rose and roared their approval. As the guys came on the stage there was a great surge to the front and those of us a little further back stood on our seats.

And that is where everyone stayed for the whole show, the place was bouncing. The Capitol, now demolished, held over 2,500 and the balcony was literally shaking through the whole gig. The atmosphere was absolutley electric! I came away with an Alan White "Ludwig" drum stick (which I still have) and a smug expression on my face as those in my group of friends who had seen Genesis two days earlier in Bristol freely admitted that Yes were in a different class. Three of us had been wise and purchased a second Yes ticket for the Bristol show on the following Wednesday.

Lineup: Jon Anderson, Steve Howe, Chris Squire, Patrick Moraz, Alan White.

Setlist :

Firebird Suite
Sound Chaser
Close To The Edge
To Be Over
Gates Of Delirium
Your Move/Mood For A Day
Long Distance Runaround/Moraz Solo
Clap
And You And I
Ritual
Roundabout
Sweet Dreams

On This Day 27/04/1968 Bee Gees

On this day, 27 March 1968, Australian singer/ songwriting brothers the Bee Gees played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre. Support was provided by Grapefruit and The Foundations.

In February, Horizontal repeated the success of their first album, featuring the group's first UK No. 1 single "Massachusetts" (a No. 11 US hit) and the No. 7 UK single "World". The sound of the album Horizontal had a more "rock" sound than their previous release, although ballads like "And the Sun Will Shine" and "Really and Sincerely" were included. The Horizontal album reached No. 12 in the US and No. 16 in the UK.

The Bee Gees embarked on their first major UK tour in early 1968, opening at the Royal Albert Hall in London on March 27, 1968, featuring a 37-piece orchestra and choir. The tour, which ran through late March and April, included stops in cities like Sheffield, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester.

Setlist
New York Mining Disaster 1941

To Love Somebody

Jumbo

The Singer Sang His Song

I Have Decided to Join the Air Force

I Started a Joke

Let There Be Love

Words

I Can't See Nobody

Morning of My Life

Really and Sincerely

Massachusetts

I've Gotta Get a Message to You

Spicks and Specks

Words

On This Day 26/04/1958 Johnnie Ray

On this day, 26 April 1958, American singer Johnnie Ray played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre.

Inspired by rhythm singers like Kay Starr, LaVern Baker, and Ivory Joe Hunter, Ray developed a unique rhythm-based singing style described as alternating between pre-rock rhythm and blues and a more conventional classic pop approach. He began singing professionally on a Portland, Oregon, radio station at age 15, sharing billing with Jane Powell, then a local young singer.

Ray's performing style included theatrics later associated with rock and roll, including tearing at his hair, falling to the floor, and crying on stage. Ray quickly earned the nicknames "Mr. Emotion", "The Nabob of Sob", "The Prince of Wails", and several others. One source states that Ray "opened the way for Elvis and the overt sexual energy of rock and roll and is credited by the Beatles, Bob Dylan, and Elton John as being a formative influence on their artistic styles". As well, Ray's manager said that Elvis Presley often watched Johnnie's concerts.

On This Day 15/04/1976 Rick Wakeman

On this day, 15/04/1976 keyboard giant Rick Wakeman played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre. He had just released his fourth studio album, No Earthly Connection, with the English Rock Ensemble. Recorded at Château d'Hérouville in France, the album charted at No. 12 in the UK and No. 29 on the Billboard 200.

No Earthly Connection marked a change in Wakeman's musical direction. He retained the progressive rock style in his music, but made a conscious decision to make a more serious album without the comedic and tongue in cheek elements he had incorporated in his previous works. He wished to write something "that I believed in fervently". Wakeman said it is a part fictional and non-fictional musical autobiography based on things people know exist but unsure as to why or cannot explain, the question of life and its different forms, evolution, and flying saucers.

On This Day 11/04/1968 The Tremeloes

On this day, 11 April 1968, pop band the Tremeloes played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre. Also on the bill were, Headiners The Kinks and The Herd.

The Tremeloes (formerly Brian Poole and The Tremeloes) are an English beat group founded in 1958 in Dagenham, England. They initially found success in the British Invasion era with lead singer Brian Poole, scoring a UK chart-topper in 1963 with "Do You Love Me".

The band achieved their greatest success after Poole's departure in 1966. The band reformed as a four-piece that year with Chip Hawkes on bass, Rick Westwood on lead guitar, Alan Blakley on rhythm guitar, and Dave Munden on drums. All four members sang, with most of the leads being sung by Hawkes and Munden. The quartet had 13 top 40 hits on the UK Singles Chart between 1967 and 1971

New Seekers 3 April 1972 Cap

On this day, 3 April 1972, pop group The New Seekers played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre.

Formed in London, in 1969, by Keith Potger, after the break-up of his group, the Seekers. The idea was that the New Seekers would appeal to the same market as the original Seekers, but their music would have pop as well as folk influences. They achieved worldwide success in the early 1970s with hits including "I'd Like to Teach the World to Sing", "You Won't Find Another Fool Like Me" and "Beg, Steal or Borrow".

The group were chosen to represent the United Kingdom in the 1972 Eurovision Song Contest. They entered with the song "Beg, Steal or Borrow", which was chosen by viewers of BBC1's It's Cliff Richard! show from six shortlisted songs performed by the group on a weekly basis. They went on to finish in second place at the Eurovision final in Edinburgh, where the group received the biggest cheer of the night from the partisan audience. The song was a No. 2 hit in the UK and sold well in Europe. Around this time, they also charted highly with their most successful album, We'd Like to Teach the World to Sing, which reached No. 2 in the UK Albums Chart. Another top five hit came with the next single, "Circles" in mid 1972.At the end of the year, the group took part in the BBC's anniversary TV show Fifty Years Of Music.

On This Day 24/03/1958 Buddy Holly

On this day, 24 March 1958, rock and roll legend Buddy Holly played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre.

Buddy Holly and The Crickets' only UK tour in March 1958 was a seminal, month-long package tour featuring 25 nights of performances, often twice nightly, starting at London's Trocadero. Supported by acts like Des O'Connor and Gary Miller, the tour played a pivotal role in influencing future British rock musicians.

South Wales Argus

HOLLY AND THE CRICKETS GIVE US LOUDEST ROCK SHOW YET!

If rowdyism, drive and down-to earth abandon are the ingredients necessary for success in the rock’n’roll field, then Buddy Holly and The Crickets are all set for a long and eventful run of popularity! They rocked their way through a tremendous, belting 25-minute act without letting up for one moment at the Capitol Theatre on Monday, and the audience shared their approval in no uncertain terms. Much of the trio’s success can be attributed to the fact that their “in person” sound is almost identical to the sound they produce on record. They generate a brand of contagious excitement that is irresistible. On Monday, they completely overpowered the 13-piece Ronnie Keene Orchestra in relation to the volume of sound produced and, at times, I felt that leader Holly’s guitar was badly over-amplified. Drummer Jerry Allison attacks his kit with murderous intent, but bassist Joe Maudin remains relatively calm, and looks rather miserable most of the time! But how these 3 boys manage to make such a big, big sound with their limited instrumentation still baffles me!

Review - Cardiff and Suburban News.

On This Day 22/03/1975 Cockney Rebel

On this day, 22 March 1975, rock band Cockney Rebel played Cardiff’s Capitol Theatre with support provided by Sailor.

The band had recently released the No 1 UK single Make Me Smile (Come Up and See Me) taken from their third studio album The Best Years Of Our Lives, released earlier in the month that peaked at No 4 in the UK album charts.

To promote the album, the band embarked on a UK and European tour from March 1975 onwards. On the tour, the band hired guitarist Snowy White to play rhythm guitar. In a January 1975 issue of Record & Popswop Mirror, it was announced that the upcoming tour would feature "a specially built set and lighting to reflect songs and images featured on the forthcoming album". Later in the year they toured America, as a support act for The Kinks.