Marquee Gigs

Marquee Gigs
There have been a lot of gigs in Cork over the years, some good, some bad!!! I've probably been to most of the bad ones but it's because of the Marquee midsummers festival that has been a staple for the last 3 or 4 years that the gig's have really stepped up!! Up until a few years ago the only big gigs were the ones where you had to travel to Dublin if you really wanted to see a decent band!! Now these events are on our doorstep and maybe, because of this starvation of big events over the years, when they do happen, the Cork people really do appreciate the significance of whats happening!! The younger people in the crowd take these gigs for granted....it's what they have grown accustomed to.....it's what they deserve, I suppose !!! However a lot of the people going to the gigs in the Marquee were over 30 ...the kinda crowd who had nothing in Cork for years...their favourite bands opting for the Pale in favour of Cork... Cork was a no-go area for most bands....any bands that did come to Cork in the 90s came because they wanted to sell albums...a lot of big bands did come though to give them there dues!!
One of the best gigs in my time to grace the Cork stage was "Manic Street Preachers" in the grand parade in the early 90s. This was a seminal gig for me ......a real live rock band playing right in our midst!! They really knew how to rock a crowd into a frenzy....a great live band at the height of their fame!!
There were a lot of gigs over the years ....small ones that only a few hardened few might turn up to see.....it always amazed me to see such a good band play to sometimes pitiful crowds...where was everybody?...how could they miss such a great band? Small bands starting off on their tour around Ireland landing on Cork turf on a thursday night playing their hearts out to 10 or 20 people.....breaks your heart to see it....
Then a few weeks later there would be a massive turn out for the likes of 'Tom Robinson' who did a comeback tour....playing Nancy Spains to a capacity crowd!! Boggleds the brain!! The people were there for the gigs alright but they just didn't turn up....opting for the bigger names ...not bothering to show their faces at the smaller gigs!!
So why are there such big crowds at the Marquee gigs?.....the small crowd from Cork is supplemented by the Dublin crowd...a lot of Dubliners travelled down to Cork for these gigs!!! "The Point" may be good but the Marquee is 10 times better for atmosphere....the sound may be shite but who cares!!!! Whoever graces the stage seems to play better...it's a unique place to do a gig. .....5000 people in a circus tent.....unusual to say the least......they get sucked into the whole sense of occasion ....they can feel the crowds anticipation from the side of the stage...they can't wait to get up there and play to an appreciative crowd!!!
I saw this when 'Paul Weller' strode on stage with his band....he was up for it from the get go.....that first rockin tune to the very last .....he gave his all for the crowd..!!! This is a fella who's been gigging for over 30 years and he still gets up on stage every night playing as if this is his last gig!!!!! What a performer....consistent to the very last .....familiar songs mixed with the new ....all sounding fantastic!!!
Morrisey and Massive Attack were good .....I enjoyed them immensely.....but Weller just proved to me that here was a guy who really gave his all......smiling at certain points throughout the gig....enjoying himself just as much as the crowd were!!! He enjoyed that gig.....the crowd were in the palm of his hand!!!! He could have easily crushed us but instead he chose to lift up with a sensational gig!!!!
It's not often you get a buzz like that from a gig but when it comes it makes all those thursday nights listening to shit bands in Nancy's & De Burca's worthwhile....those carefree student days when we didn't have a care in the world!!
It's all such hard work ....looking forward to next years lineup!!!!