Ultravox

As a teenager one of my favourite bands was a British electronic pop band called Ultravox. The band was most popular between 1979 and 1985; a period that later came to be known as the Classic line-up. I bought every album during this period and enthusiastically played them at full volume for weeks on end.

The band had several hits including Vienna, which peaked at No.2 on the UK and New Zealand singles chart in 1980; and Dancing with Tears In My Eyes, which reached No.3 in the UK in 1984. It's lead singer, Midge Ure, also co-wrote the 1985 famine fundraiser, "Do they know it's Christmas?" which became the UK's fastest selling single of all time. It sold a million in the first week and stayed at No.1 for five weeks. More than three million copies were eventually sold.

Living in distant New Zealand, I naturally assumed I'd never see them play live; that is until tonight. Six months ago Ultravox announced plans for a reunion tour of the UK and Ireland. To date 19 concerts have been scheduled including one at Camden's Roundhouse venue, a short walk from Swiss Cottage. After a brief internal debate I soon had a ticket ordered and on its way.


This evening I dragged Garry down the road to see Ultravox live, fulfilling a teenage dream. For 90 minutes 25 years disappeared as the band performed my favourite tracks. I suspect I wasn't the only one in the room taking a trip down memory lane. The average age of the crowd had to be at least 40, with plenty of pot-bellies and receding hairlines in view.

However, for a brief moment, we all rediscovered our long lost youth while chanting the lyrics of their greatest hits. I never thought I'd find myself with thousands of others singing Hymn at the top of my lungs. It's moments like that make our time in the UK so unique. Ultravox live in concert? Never in New Zealand. 15-minutes from Swiss Cottage? Absolutely!