Vinegar Joe Supported By Queen For Newcastle Gig!
On August 3, 1973, British R&B band Vinegar Joe were booked to appear at the Mayfair Ballroom in Newcastle with a then little-known support act.
Situated on Newgate Street, the oblong room where gigs were staged could hold 1,500 people and was to boast Europe’s largest and longest-running rock club, spanning four decades.
It was as popular with fans as it was with bands that played there and was steeped in history. Led Zeppelin’s first ever live performance in the United Kingdom reportedly took place at the Mayfair on October 4, 1968.
Before it was demolished in the late 1990s to make way for The Gate leisure complex, artists who graced the stage included The Who, Pink Floyd, The Police, Kylie Minogue, Tin Machine, U2, The Clash, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Nirvana. And that August night in 1973 it was the venue for Queen’s first ever gig in the North East.
Promoter Fraser Suffield was the man who booked them. He said: “I’d never heard of Queen then. They were recommended by another agency. There were three bands on that night. Vinegar Joe, who got £600, Queen who were paid £60, and Optic Innovations who got £25."
While Vinegar Joe were to break-up the following year – band members Robert Palmer and Elkie Brooks went on to have successful solo careers – and Optic Innovations were to disappear, ahem, out of sight, it was another stepping stone towards greatness for Queen.
Fraser said: “I tell you what. The thing that stands out about Queen compared to all the other support bands we had there over the years was they had class then."
"I remember they were a cut above the usual support band. Already they had the classic line -up – Freddie Mercury, Brian May on guitar, Roger Taylor on drums and John Deacon on bass. It was no surprise to me when they reached the heights.”
In November 1973 they were back in Newcastle, this time at the City Hall, supporting Mott the Hoople and, in March 1974, Queen headlined at the Sunderland Locarno. It was the year their breakthrough came as their album Queen II charted and the Freddie Mercury-written lead single Seven Seas Of Rhye reached number 10 in the UK, giving the band their first hit.
They came back to the region on four more occasions until their final appearance, on the Magic Tour, when they played in front of a 38,000 crowd at Newcastle United’s St James’ Park on July 9, 1986.
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Mike Kelly (The Journal - Nov. 2011)