Bowie at the Harlow Playhouse: Fifty years on: “Hey, that’s far out, so you saw him too?”
Entertainment / Wed 20th Apr 2022 at 07:42am
ON April 20th, 1972, David Bowie and The Spiders from Mars performed at the Harlow Playhouse.
He was on the cusp of a major breakthrough.
“For some, he was a one-hit wonder with his smash hit Space Oddity. But that was three years before, in 1969.
Albums such as The Man Who Sold The World and Hunky Dory were critical successes but did not chart or sell.
However, there was not only a real vibe with the new album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, but the tour was gaining momentum.
A month after his appearance at the Harlow Playhouse, Bowie released Starman as a single. Again, it did nothing. And then, in July, they appeared on Top of the Pops and it really was a case of life imitating art as the day after music fans across the country really did say “Hey that’s far out, so you saw him too?
So, who was there?
Harlow resident Paul Blake told us that he had just started going to concerts so had no real expectations.
“I really enjoyed it. He started off with Hang onto Yourself and the whole concert motored on from there.
Bowie engaged with the audience a lot, handing out his guitar to the front row but making sure he got it back again!”
Another audience member was Gillian Corrigan. Gillian now lives in Florida but at the time was a primary school pupil at Holy Cross.
Gillian said” I was only ten years of age but I really wanted to go, so my mum took me!
“I really enjoyed the concert and went on to see him at Milton Keynes in the Serious Moonlight Tour in 1983 as well as his last tour, The Reality Tour in 2004.”
Former chair of Harlow District Chamber of Commerce, Ian Hudson was also impressed. Ian said: “I had just started going to concerts. I think I saw Slade at Harlow Technical College.
“I really enjoyed the concert although one of my first observations was why were they wearing red wellies?”
In the fine tradition of Harlow audiences, the editor’s brother told us that Bowie asked the audience: “Do you like living in Harlow. The audience responded “No..It’s really boring”.
A number of the audience members must have been inspired by Bowie. Chester Kamen went on to play with Bryan Ferry at Live Aid in 1985 and tour with Pink Floyd.
The editor regretted not going but a few months later bought Hunky Dory for £2.39 at Startime Records.
Klara Bow
2022-04-20 09:00:03
This shows just how much Harlow has changed. The Playhouse is still the leading voice for entertainment but not on this level. Where are the venues for local bands; safe places for young people to meet; safe places for the LGBT community. Where is the nightlife? Where are the community events in the town centre. The council needs to try harder,. This coming election on May 5th is an opportunity to vote in some Harlow Green Party councillors because they are the only ones who have the arts and community as one of their key policies.
Bruce Downey
2022-04-20 09:23:15
WOW, didn’t know that how fantastic for Harlow to be part of David Bowie history.RIP Legend 🫶
Bert puttocks
2022-04-20 09:34:43
Didn't the beatles once have a residency at the Essex skipper
Nicholas taylor
2022-04-20 17:30:49
Clara, I have to say that the Green Party is not the only Party which has the arts and community as one of its key policies, indeed they are following the lead set by the Harlow Alliance Party who have been around for over 4 years, with this as a key policy. We have been advocating the building of a new much larger theatre, an exhibition centre and live music venue, but both the Tory and Labour plan for the future of the town centre leaves no room for such developments. We have also advocated community hubs in each neighbourhood, building on the neighbourhood council offices which both of the other two Parties closed down in the early 2000's.
Angela
2022-05-27 16:35:17
This goes way further back than the Green Party or Harlow Alliance. Harlow used to be full of venues that hosted big well known bands in the 60s and 70s - Harlow Odeon not only had one of the largest cinema screens in the country but also a stage large enough to hold pop / rock concerts - Several well known groups, including Hawkwind played there.... Then there was The Grove (part of the old Brays Grove School) that regularly hosted concerts, as well as the bandstand in the Town Park and, later, The Square. Sadly, most of these venues no longer exist, and those that do are in a sad state of disrepair. Maybe instead of bickering about who the better political party for the town and who closed what and when, someone just needs to look at our past and start looking at how we can bring this back and bring music back to our town......
Angela
2022-05-27 16:40:59
This goes way further back than the Green Party or Harlow Alliance. Harlow used to be full of venues that hosted big well known bands in the 60s and 70s - Harlow Odeon not only had one of the largest cinema screens in the country but also a stage large enough to hold pop / rock concerts - Several well known groups, including Hawkwind played there.... Then there was The Grove (part of the old Brays Grove School) that regularly hosted concerts, as well as the bandstand in the Town Park and, later, The Square. Sadly, most of these venues no longer exist, and those that do are in a sad state of disrepair. Maybe instead of bickering about who the better political party is for the town and who closed what and when, someone just needs to look at our past and start looking at how we can bring this back and bring music back to our town......
John Brown
2023-04-23 21:16:44
I was there! My friend John Sanders had turned me onto Bowie when Hunky Dory came out and we listened to it non-stop. John had a sardonic sense of humour and loved winding me up, so when he told me Bowie was going to play the Playhouse I was so convinced he was joking that I almost didn’t bother to get tickets. The day came and John, his wife Janet, her brother Bob and I were all there. Amazing concert. Best bit? That’s easy! After the concert I was sitting in my car in the car park when the band came out! Bowie brought me over to their van and introduced me to “Mick and the lads” They all seemed so happy that we’d enjoyed the concert. Bowie was all smiles, sincere, sensitive and so down to earth-for a Star-man! 💫
Jan Sanders
2023-04-23 21:59:26
I am Janet (Jan) mentioned above by John Brown and had seen Bowie in the ‘Tiptoe’ a very seedy club on Wardour Street in the late sixties when he was performing as David Jones. Could not believe it when he performed at ‘The Playhouse’ it was amazing, but what I will always remember was at the end he threw his guitar into the audience which was caught by Mike Roskell, younger brother of a friend of ours, and I have spent all this time wondering if he still has Bowie’s guitar !!
Jan Sanders
2023-04-23 22:02:58
I was there and had seen Bowie in the ‘Tiptoe’ a very seedy club on Wardour Street in the late sixties when he was performing as David Jones. Could not believe it when he performed at ‘The Playhouse’ it was amazing, but what I will always remember was at the end he threw his guitar into the audience which was caught by Mike Roskell, younger brother of a friend of ours, and I have spent all this time wondering if he still has Bowie’s guitar !!
Jan Sanders
2023-04-23 22:26:35
Agree with Angela totally, I saw my idol Eric Clapton at The Birdcage 19……… ?? Rod Stewart at ‘The Grove’ to name just a few, heavily into my music seeing so many in London so it was great to see people like that at home in Harlow. Remember seeing Billy Bragg at The Square - brilliant days
Ron Kamen
2023-08-01 16:22:51
Hi, I’ve stumbled across my ticket for this gig. It doesn’t have the year on it, so while looking it up, I found your website, here and thought I’d add my experience of it. I went with a few school mates and because we hadn’t really heard any of his music, we thought that we were going to an acoustic folk concert! It wasn’t until we were in our seats and from the darkness of the unlit stage, we heard the sound of a jack plug being plugged into an electric guitar and the rattle of a snare drum, that we realised that there might be a whole band. We started to get a bit excited by that thought and not knowing what to expect, we waited! Suddenly, like an explosion, the lights came on and an alien with orange hair backed up by three shimmering gold and silver band members blistering out the most amazing, blistering sound I’d ever heard. It was the best thing I’d ever heard and to be honest, it still hasn’t been bettered! And I’ve seen many many bands since then. Btw, my name is Ron Kamen and my brother, Chester, because we thought it was going to be a folk concert, he decided not to go, so he missed it! It was such a shame, I would have loved it he he had been there too. Cheers Ron Kamen
Mickey Howard
2024-08-29 14:07:55
Best 30p I ever spent.
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