>> I originally posted this as reunion rumours became more serious.  Seems apposite to revisit….

“Lots of reforming chat tonight….a’definitive’ book is apparently out next year,  large publishing advance and all of that, so it looks more likely this time.  Reni just now saying he’s not in though –  it’s all or nothing surely.  

This live recording is from when it was all new, wide-eyed, genuinely exciting…..(A fogged stream-of-conscious recall is available via the ‘read more’ button below. Warning – it contains colloquialism & local minutiae.  Mon.)

d/l – The Stone Roses ‘Park Lane, Shrewsbury 25 May 1989′  (soundcheck and gig – mediafire)

The description here comes via the bootleg guide on excellent fansite thestoneroses.co.uk

“Sound Quality: B - Clear and steady, but distorts during particularly loud sections. Sound check is in marginally better quality than the gig.

Performance Quality: A - Very melodic performance. Squire’s jangling guitar with Ian and Reni’s great vocals. This is one of Ian’s best ever live performances – not even a glitch on the chorus of Resurrection.

Why should I get this bootleg? The best ever live performance of Made Of Stone is on here, and great performances of Where Angels Play and Standing Here are too. Also funny to hear Ian shout to someone in the audience “Sit down man – you’re making a spectacle of yourself” and hear the audience all laugh at him. This causes a fight, which Ian tries to calm down during the opening to Adored!”

The Sound Check (20 mins):

1. Ian solo singing verses of I Am The Resurrection
2. Ian clicking some drum sticks
3. Mani solo playing: an unknown bassline, She Bangs The Drums bassline, Waterfall bassline (small bit)
4. Squire solo playing very small bit of Waterfall
5. Mani solo playing She Bangs The Drums bassline, Waterfall bassline, unknown bassline, funky bassline
6. Roadies/crew/band/promoter talking
7. Squire solo playing part of Made Of Stone (x2), Elephant Stone intro, and final solo on I Am The Resurrection
8. Whole band playing vocals part of Waterfall (no backing vocals)
9. Ian complains he can’t hear Reni
10. Reni sings part of Waterfall solo
11. Squire and Reni briefly mess about
12. Whole band play I Am The Resurrection

The Gig (55 mins):

1. She Bangs The Drums
2. I Wanna Be Adored
3. Elephant Stone
4. Made Of Stone
5. Waterfall
6. Where Angels Play
7. Shoot You Down
8. Standing Here
9. Sally Cinnamon
10. I Am The Resurrection

Many thanks from me to whoever originally recorded/uploaded/etc

Shrewsbury’s leading nightclub, possibly nitespot – Park Lane – was an absolute fucking shithole.

It was at the glossy end of an archetypal market-town after 11 drink, ‘smart dress only’ & all that.  Brilliantly stereotypical bouncers enforcing absolutely no-jeans-or-trainers-are-you-fucking- joking pal?.   DJ talkling before, between, over, through the awful but often really startling music.  Everyone mum-dancing in shocking clothes and hair.   Proto-cocktail bar with blue drinks, shit lager & a separate hot-food facility.  3 people trying to show they could  ’do rave’.  Omnipresent threat of violence and, once it’s all been ‘slowed riiight down so ladsgrabalovelyladyanthanksforcomingoodNIGHT’, a literal kick out.  You actually had to queue forever to get in.   And pay.

To the right of Park Lane, up the flyover to Woolies, was an adjoining venue.  This adjoining club – ‘The Fridge’ – and Park Lane were connected yet divided, in so many ways.  Muchreally startling musiclike the then still demarcated Germany.  Unlike Germany, this division between the 2 comprised a large concertina-style folding door.  When The Fridge closed for good it was done up and became ‘Liberty’ – forget it’s exact usp, but think smaller, older, more ‘relaxed’ than Park Lane.  Mainly no-fucking-trainers.  Saturday nights they ran autonomously until 11pm when, theatrically, the concertina doors swung open* (*were ‘slid laboriously across’ by 2 bouncers, anyone nearby chatting unawares shoved away with a cheery ‘fucking move, twat’).  During the hours of 11-2 Liberty and Park Lane became one.  The whole space an apocalyptically  logic-defying, Hooch-fuelled tableaux of tight-perms belting out chaka khan, ruddy faced farmers trying Bobby Brown moves, ‘Ride On Time’, Stefan Denis making it feel good,  the dj inevitably “slowin it downaliddlenow….c’mon guys, you know the score….” finishing with the get coat/get cab/get pizza/get punched/get lucky in the dingle/erection-section .  Less Studio 54, more Area 51.

‘The Fridge’ though hosted a weekly indie night.  It was Shrewsburys’, hell Shropshires’, premier indie-night. Looking back through these tints it was brilliant –  the most unlikely, unbalanced crowd outside of a Shelton open day, a mythical ‘melting pot’ made flesh - all dancing to The Fall, Sisters Of Mercy, ’20 Seconds To Comply‘,  ’She Sells Sanctuary’, JTQ  ’Starsky & Hutch’, each holding warm red stripe and/or fag.  Asoundtrack provided by the grumpiest dj.  Not moody, not darkly mysterious – grumpy.  It was like we’d somehow mistakenly locked ourselves in his empty bar and had option but nervously phone him at home  - home where he’s nicely settled, plating up  a chip supper from Georges. Apologetically asking if he’d (sorry) reaaally mind (gulp) driving over with the (sniff, slight cry) (vocal pitch up) spare key please??.  Begrudgingly and only at his speed, he’d eventually bring the key.  Once we were unlocked,  he’d sigh heavily and decide to have a beer – might as well, his fucking chips will be cold.  So, cold chips causing festering resentment towards each & every one of us he stays.  He stays and eventually ok YEESSS RIGHT,  he’ll play records.  Play them despite being pissed-off-rather-be-home grumpy.  So don’t even think about requests.   Forever extolling to us the virtues of “stopping jumping a-fucking-round”  because then his ‘RECCCOORDS  might not SKIP so MUCH.” (these last words pro-no-un-ce-d deliberately, with pure contempt. Like at the end of the Pistols Winterland gig)

Aaaaaahhhhhhh yes, good times………….. probably all shit really wasn’t it.

1988/89 saw a flurry of actual, promoted, good gigs at The Fridge.  bob played.  Saw The House Of Love just days before going to Reading Festival (where we met Guy at Reading Pizza Hut). All good.   The Stone Roses was the most incredible though.  The most important band in the world, were coming to The Fridge.  They’d be here – weeks after the LP we devoured and an amazing NME cover , the gig was booked & confirmed. What?!  Cue massive demand and unprecedented excitement.  Together with an unspoken fear it wouldn’t happen, something must go wrong.  But, oh it happened – and it not only happened, it was bumped up to Park Lane.

Those concertina doors were in action again…..

It seems surreal even now.