Category: Gigs Abroad

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!  

Gigs From Abroad Part 16 – Eindhoven and Den Bosch

On our lad’s trip in 2018 a decision was made to return to the Netherlands and to the city of Eindhoven. It is the fifth largest city in the country and its wealth was initially built on textiles and tobacco before two significant companies DAF Trucks and Philips were founded there. The latter firm’s name is referenced in their famous football club PSV (Philips Sport Vereniging) Eindhoven. It has a large student population and contains the Muziekcentrum Frits Philips, a classical and pop music venue which is renowned across Europe for its excellent acoustics.

On our traditional Day 2 jaunt we traversed over to nearby Hertogenbosch, which translates as ‘the forest of the duke’. It is known locally as Den Bosch and is the established location for an annual high profile grass court tennis tournament and it also staged the start of the Tour De France in 1996. It is a bonny city with a plethora of bars and hostelries and a protected townscape with ramparts which surround most of the boundaries. The ex-Man United footballer Ruud Van Nistlerooy started his career at FC Den Bosch and famous previous residents include the scholar Erasmus, artist Heironymus Bosch and one of the finest ever female cyclists, Marianne Vos.  

As we exited the train station, we were instantly approached by one of the locals with the leading question ‘are you here for the festival?’ for which my ears perked up. My ears reduced to semi-perk state when informed it was a jazz festival which is probably my least favourite genre, but my gig addiction was piqued by the possibility of unexpected bonus venues forthcoming!

Den Bosch Festival. Image Credit denboschtips.com

It is the ‘free jazz’ style that doesn’t personally move me and can in fact be a tad nurofen inducing but I am more conducive when it is incorporated in a more blues domain synonymous of what I would imagine would be played in a Bourbon Street bar in New Orleans.

However, we took advantage of the festival hitting the town and our first venue was Den Bosch Stadscafe Basiliek which is a cosy brown café located near St Jan’s Cathedral with a comprehensive choice of beers. They regularly have live music and we saw a band under the name of Paul Sproetska. We then headed over to Den Bosch Kerkplein where a combo called Groupo Des Cargos were playing. The next site was at a square at Den Bosch Minderbroedersplein where they had an outdoor stage and performing there was Zwerm Koeien.

At this point in time, we had an attack of the munchies so decided to obtain some food from one of the numerous stalls dotted around the large expanse of Den Bosch Market which is surrounded by many grand old buildings including the 14th century Town Hall. Located at the market was the festival’s main stage where you expect the red letter acts to be performing. However, whilst we were awaiting our tucker, we were comprehensively underwhelmed by the Stark Linnemann Quartet who are comprised of 75% Dutch and 25% Greek origin.  

Our final performance was at Den Bosch Uilenberg where we witnessed the Jurgen Burdorf Band. Jurgen has crossed over into many other genres in his career including indie pop, 1960’s musicals and has also played mandolin in a Dolly Parton tribute show. The entire festival had an inclusive relaxed vibe about it and was well attended. In the last pub next to the train station, I recall the FA Cup Final being on in the background with Chelsea defeating Man United in that year’s final.   

Cafe Altstadt. Image Credit thisiseindhoven.com

We returned to Eindhoven in the evening and visited Eindhoven Alstadt which was located next door to a terrific rough and ready rock bar which we frequented both evenings and where they had a fine noisy jukebox.

The Alstadt is a lively bar and was funded from January 2017 by the Performing Arts Netherlands to become a Core Stage live music venue and has acts on most nights of the week and is open until 4am at weekends.  On the night we visited a soul band called Herman Brood Academie were playing who are named after a music college in Utrecht.

On our return day on the Sunday, we had two-star spots, the first being when a couple of the chaps espied the actual Hollies in the hotel breakfast area in the morning. Following that at the airport there was a further double take when we saw the darts legend Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor who had been competing at an exhibition event in the area and subsequently got on our flight and was sat in the row adjacent to myself.

Phil Taylor. Image Credit Sky Sports.