Hmmm a really interesting thread this one...........anyway here's my take on post Mac Peter Green.
Like some of you lucky people I lost count of the number of times I saw FM with Peter at the helm and when my guitar hero called it a day with the Mac I was devastated to say the Least!
The last gig I went to before Peter really started to show outward signs that all was not well health wise was the 1970 Bath festival when he joined John Mayall. The Bootleg recording of that gig is awful but I can assure you the band and Pete's guitar playing was outstanding.
Fast Forward to the early 80's and Peter's first proper comeback gig was at the Golden Lion Pub in Fulham, London. The Place was packed out as you can imagine but alas what a disappointment it turned out to be for all those Punters who came to see PG as they remembered him with FM. The Guy was totally out of it and should never have been on the stage....I felt so sorry for him and came away from the place feeling angry
that the people around him at that point in time were using him and his legacy to their advantage and had completely disregarded his mental state and health.
I cannot recall how long it was before I had the next opportunity to see
'my guitar hero' but I just had to go with the hope that what I witnessed at the Golden Lion was a One Off....bad day at the office type thing. This Gig was at the Tolworth community centre (South West London/Surrey) and what a transformation! Peter for
better not worse (high on something or totally clean?) was on
FIRE that night with his guitar chops and vocals well and truely nailed. I remember him playing and singing a stunning 'Need Your Love so Bad' and 'Man of the World'. I really could not believe the difference between these two gigs...chalk and cheese as they say in the uk.... but I was a very
happy guy that night as
'my hero' was back on track or so I thought at the time..........
The Next time I saw PG was with Kolours at (I think) The Astoria Theatre in Victoria London. I wont dwell on the details to much but just to say that it was a repeat of the Golden Lion gig. Peter during one number stepped on his guitar lead and pulled the Jack plug from his guitar and continued to play without realising that nobody could hear anything.....it was so sad to see him totally out of it. Also he did leave the stage soon afterwards during one song leaving the band to conclude the number and the concert. No encores or a return to the stage for any of them that night.
I think the above highlights the thoughts of some that during the early 80's you never knew what you were going to witness when you went to see PG and for me during this time he became an enigma.....but also someone who I still wanted to support and see whenever I could. Now in hindsight I totally understand what was happening to the guy thanks to Martin Celmins, the BBC 'Hard Road' documentary, Man of the World dvd and the likes of you lot out there in
Penguin Land.
Blue Horizon.