Scotland has given the world many iconic bands – among them and currently riding high on renewed fervour for their music are Dunfermline’s multi-million selling BIG COUNTRY and U2/Green Day - ‘endorsed’ SKIDS.
Both bands are passionate performers of spirited music, woven through with words that matter. Yet, Big Country and Skids have never performed together on the same bill in Belfast. That day has now, unbelievably, arrived!
Tickets, priced at £26+ booking fee, on sale Friday March 23rd at 10am from www.limlightbelfast.com, www. ticketmaster.ie Katy’s Bar & Ticketmaster outlets nationwide. Northern Ireland customers 0844 277 44 55 & Republic of Ireland customers 0818 719 300.
Four decades after they formed – in the white-hot summer of 1977 – The Skids are back. The post-punk pioneers, released their fifth album ‘Burning Cities’ on the 12th of January 2018.
‘Burning Cities’, produced by Verve & Primal Scream studio legend Youth, re-unites founder members Richard Jobs on (vocals) and Bill Simpson (bass) with Mike Baillie (drums). Stepping in for the late Stuart Adamson is his long-time Big Country band mate Bruce Watson. Additional guitar duties are provided by Jamie Watson.
“I’m incredibly excited about this album. This music is at the heart of everything our band is about: truth, revolution, loud guitars and a refusal to keep quiet as the establishment tries to smother chances for anyone other than its own.” – Richard Jobson
The new album release coincides with the fortieth anniversary of the first-ever Skids record, the ‘No Bad’ EP, which introduced the Scottish post-punk pioneers to a whole new audience courtesy of one of their biggest fans, Radio 1’s legendary new music champion John Peel.
Big Country was originally formed in 1981 by guitar playing founder members Stuart Adamson and Bruce Watson both native of the band's hometown Dunfermline in Scotland.
Initially driven by a shared vision of widescreen guitar melody, harmony and lyric, the classic Big Country sound was further enhanced later that summer by the arrival of drummer Mark Brzezicki and bass player Tony Butler. This is the Big Country that (with producer Steve Lillywhite), recorded the classic debut album 'The Crossing' in 1983. The band broke massively worldwide with the release of the album's classic singles 'Fields Of Fire', 'Chance' and signature song 'In A Big Country', which went on to become massive worldwide hits, selling over 2 million copies and driving 'The Crossing' to 3 prestigious Grammy nominations in the USA.
The run of success continued throughout the 1980's with the release of the anthemic single 'Wonderland' and the second album 'Steeltown' (1984), which debuted at Number 1 in the UK and contained the hit singles 'East Of Eden', Just a Shadow' and 'Where The Rose Is Sown'. In 1985, Big Country appeared for the finale at Live Aid in London followed by further successful album releases 'The Seer' (1986) - including the bands biggest UK hit 'Look Away' which reached Number 1 in the Irish Singles chart –, supporting David Bowie on his Glass Spider tour in 1987, and then the 'Peace In Our Time' album (1988), which saw the band playing the first ever privately promoted gig in Russia at the Moscow Sports Stadium.
Tony Butler, Mark Brzezicki and Bruce Watson re-united in 2007 to celebrate the band's Twenty-fifth anniversary then in the summer of 2010, Bruce Watson picked up the phone and asked Mike Peters to sing with Big Country. Joined by Bruce’s son Jamie on guitar, the first gig was in Glasgow on New Years Eve 2010 and the band went on to perform at many of the UK and Europe's most famous festivals, including Isle Of Wight (Twice), V Festival, T In The Park and Oxegen, creating a new generation of fans and renewing the passion for diehards. 2012 brought the 30th Anniversary of the their first album, “The Crossing” and a tour where the album was played in it’s entirety followed before bassist Tony Butler decided to retire. Bass duties then fell to Derek Forbes (Simple Minds) for 3 years during which time the ninth studio album ‘The Journey’ was released and extensively toured in the UK as well as across Europe and North America.
In 2014 Mike Peters left to dedicate his time towards The Alarm and Simon Hough was brought in as vocalist and a tour of the UK to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of “Steeltown” was followed by a Greatest Hits tour in 2015 before Derek Forbes left the band.
2016 brought a new bass player, Scott Whitley, and a 3-week “80’s Invasion” tour with Midge Ure and Nick Heyward before the 30th Anniversary of ‘The Seer’ album which was performed in its’ entirety on tour throughout the UK in the second half of the year and into early 2017.
The second half of 2017 brought a mixture of shows from Big Country who as well as doing full electric shows with the best tracks from their first three albums plus the hits, they did a number of select Acoustic shows which promise to be something special. 2018 sees the 35th anniversary of “The Crossing” combined with the 30th anniversary of “Peace In Our Time”
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