Category: Gigs Abroad

Gigs from Abroad Part 18 – Madrid

I have discovered I have a particular affinity to visiting Spanish cities as I love the vibe, bustle, ethos and cuisine and my personal favourite would be Madrid as the buildings and architecture to a degree remind me of Manchester. Our first visit was as part of a backpacking trip across the country in 2003 encompassing visits also to Seville, Zaragoza and Barcelona.

Our trip to a staggeringly hot Seville took place about a week after the Uefa Cup final between Porto and Celtic and I think the Irish bars were probably still restocking and recovering! Zaragoza was intriguing despite the train station having moved location since my Rough Guide tome was published, however we had a couple of challenging circumstances in Barcelona that probably meant we didn’t see the city in its best light.

The history of Madrid dates back to the ninth century and the extensive Ferrocarril Metropolitano (Metro) was subsequently introduced in 1919 which now provides easy access to the Aeropuerto from the city. They suffered a terrorist attack in 2004 when 118 people perished from bombs placed on busy morning rush-hour trains. Famous madrileno include Penelope Cruz, Placido Domingo, Julio Iglesias and the excellent garage rock band the Hinds.

Our mode of transport on the 2003 trip was the uber efficient trains including the AVE on the Seville to Madrid leg completed in under 2.5 hours, a train so punctual they begin to compensate you if over 10 minutes late! We visited the Prado Museum, had an aperitif on Plaza Major and basked on the vast El Retiro Park. The cultural highlight though was via a train trip to nearby Aranjuez where we visited the Royal Palace there which was an astonishing place to behold.

We stayed near the Puerta del Sol suburb which contained a rabbit warren of dusky streets with a suite of fabulous bars and tapas restaurants to weave in and out of. We also paid homage to a superb rice restaurant called Arroceria Balear Pozuelo.

A young David Beckham in PNE shirt. Image Credit www.bing.com

Whilst we were in the city there was blanket news coverage of David Beckham transferring from Manchester United to Real Madrid. Quite often forgotten is the fact that his first ever professional appearances were when he was briefly on loan to my team Preston, a fact he graciously referenced within his Sports Personality of the Year acceptance speech. We chortled though when the reporter referred to them as ‘Preston Norte End’!

We visited again a few years later and this time ensured we included a trip out to the old walled city of Toledo. As you exit the train and peer up the hill to the city you could imagine you are on a ‘Game of Thrones’ set.   

In May 2019 we returned for our third and most recent visit though the trip started in chaos from the point we landed, as our suitcase had the brazen temerity to not arrive with us. Emergency shopping trips and considerable hassle ensued, but after many phone calls, we finally managed to reconnect with the missing suitcase three days later.  

Our carousel looked like this! Image Credit bigstockphoto.com

Just prior to traveling I identified that the prestigious Madrid Open tennis tournament coincided with our visit, so we headed out to La Cala Magica to attend. It was a superb set up and we saw Petro Kvitova and Elise Mertens competing, however we unfortunately could not gain access to the court where the best named tennis player ever, Juan Martin Del Porto was playing. I had a close sighting of Novak Djokovic and a more distant sighting of one of my sporting heroes, Rafa Nadal. One thing Gill and I both observed and commented on was that all the players were astoundingly lean and generally very tall.

As ever, I scoured the lists and managed to locate a gig taking place at Madrid Sala Caracol which is located in the Palos de Moguer suburb.  Prior to the gig we visited a terrific bar across the road, where on a muted TV they were showing Liverpool’s remarkable comeback in a Champions League semi final against Madrid’s arch enemies Barcelona. In those circumstances I thought the locals might be animated, but they were very chilled and almost ambivalent about it.  

Madrid Sala Caracol. Image Credit ideasala.blogspot.com

The Caracol was a small stylish venue with vibrant lighting and an unobstructed view to the stage. Previous bands to have played there over the years include New Model Army, Editors, Suede, Mark Lanegan and even Mogwai on an early tour way back in 1999. It operates traditional Spanish opening hours from 5pm to 5am, but thankfully our gig didn’t have an am start time attached to it.

We were there to see a six-piece country rock band from Texas called Whiskey Myers who released their debut album ‘Road of Life’ back in 2008. They received a significant boost when they were featured on the ‘Yellowstone’ TV soundtrack and were also in one episode playing on stage. They put on a decent set but were a tad country lite when I was hoping for a bit more of a ‘Crazy Horse’ crunchy sound from them.

Gigs from Abroad Part 17 – Tenerife

Tenerife is the largest and most populated of the Canary Islands, containing 43% of the total population of the archipelago. Located there are two separate World Heritage sites at La Laguna and Teide National Park. Back in the day of the New World colonization many Spanish expeditions on their way to the Americas had a cheeky stop off there for additional supplies. It was also the location of the worst ever aviation crash in 1977 when two Boeing 747’s collided on a foggy runway resulting in 583 deaths.  

Teide National Park. Image Credit peakvisor.com

Many movies have been filmed there including Fast and Furious and Jason Bourne and music videos with artists such as Brian May, Mike Oldfield and Pendulum. It is a popular holiday destination with five million tourists visiting annually and we decided to make our debut in November 2023 in the Costa Adeje resort. Whilst in residence we walked many miles and frequented numerous establishments and restaurants where we saw a plethora of low quality music acts but as cited previously, I need to cover everything in these blogs for it to be a full compendium of Jimmy gigs!

So, let’s begin with the Tenerife Berlin Bar on the main road where we saw an artist called Paddy. From the road to the harbour front there are a suite of escalators and on the first level down is Tenerife Scallywags Family Showbar where in passing we witnessed Rebecca Bond and an excruciating Boy George tribute. Maintaining that outstandingly low bar, we briefly endured a Chris Rea and a Neil Diamond at Tenerife Old Lodge.

We spent many hours walking up and down the promenade which at the following restaurants Tenerife La Farolo De Mar we saw Pablo, Tenerife Qomo where Beth was performing and Tenerife Cala where Ella played. Nearby was the Amalfi restaurant overlooking the sea where we visited one lunchtime and there was an unseasonably torrential downpour resulting in half of the establishment flooding out, thankfully for us that was an anomaly as the sun shined for the rest of the week.       

There were also beach bars visited and these were namely Tenerife Diana’s Bar where The Fleetwoods were playing and Tenerife Cocoa Beach Club where a half decent performer under the moniker of Purple Rain was playing a set. Back up on the main road was Tenerife Unique Bar where a chap called Dave T was on stage and further round the street in the ground floor shopping arcade a place called Tenerife Cocktail House sprung into life in the evening hours and a crowd gathered for Doug to sing his tunes.  

One night we took a break from the bright lights of the resort and took a cab up into the hills to find some solace in the quiet streets of Costa Adeje old town where we located a panoramic vantage point. There were also some homely local restaurants and one that locals flock to is called the Oasis near the top of the hill and the Church. We managed to purloin a table and enjoyed their simple and tasty staple of spicy chicken and chips washed down with a couple of ice cold beers! 

Costa Adeje old town. Image Credit tenerifebooking.com

The remaining four events at least had some quality control to them. First up was Didi in the Tenerife Sky Bar who had a lovely smoky voice and there were fine views from there overlooking the ocean. Nearby is the live music bar Tenerife Route 66 where we witnessed a decent band called ElectriccirKus. The next occurred when we were heading down Tenerife Bar Duque Promenade and there was a terrific violinist called Maria performing. I recall she did an absolutely stellar version of the ’Game of Thrones’ theme which was spellbinding!

The final one occurred at Tenerife Harleys American Restaurant and Bar which is modelled on a biker bar diner with large plates of unhealthy food and live music from Wednesday to Sunday each week. It was a very busy spot on the night we visited, and we could only obtain seats perched at the bar.

The resident house band were Soundchaser who formed in 2004 and have twice won the ‘prestigious’ Tenerife Entertainment Award for best live band. They have recorded a couple of albums and undertook a European tour in 2012. The lead singer Marcos Rodriguez took a break in 2013, living in Belgium and Germany and undertaking a six year stint as the composer and music producer for the heavy metal band Rage, before ‘getting the band back together’ in 2019.

Harleys Bar. Image Credit harleystenerife.com

They are now a covers band but played at a very healthy volume and played three AC/DC tracks, which is always fine by me. These kids could play and had an engaging banter with the audience and had a humorous extended monologue in Spanish with the gist being that they would continue in their native tongue until the crowd became more responsive!