John Otway at the Ivy and a question about Carter USM

[malumbu]

Hope many of you saw the fine John Otway gig on Friday. For those of you who didn't, do check him out, more of a cabaret performer than rock artist.

I saw Mr O afterwards and reminded him of the fantastic gig on a snowy February in 1991 at the New Cross Venue. Billy Bragg and the wonderfully named Atilla the Stockbroker were supporting an anti-war gig. Then came on a band that I had never heard of - Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine and the place went mad.

I reminded Otway that he played with Atilla that night, but he couldn't remember and I may have just confused this with a number of other gigs I saw at the time. T'internet hasn't helped. They were often performing together at the time. Here's a more recent event

Was anyone else in New Cross that evening almost 23 years ago?

[????]

Nope. Saw john otway upstairs at the EDT, mad as a box of frogs

[steveo]

I saw Otway and Barrett in the Red Cow in Hammersmith in 1978 or 79

Yes, frogs

[Sue]

Glad you enjoyed the gig!

If you missed out on tickets for John Otway, sign up to our newsletter via our website to get early news of gigs (tickets had been on sale since last August):

http://www.thegooseisout.com

New website going live tomorrow (fingers crossed). Hopefully there won't be any downtime, but if it disappears into the ether please try again later :)

[Otta]

malumbu Wrote:

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> Then came on a band that I had

> never heard of - Carter the Unstoppable Sex

> Machine and the place went mad.

Their best known song was "The only living boy in New Cross", so they were playing to their home crowd.

[red devil]

steveo Wrote:

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> I saw Otway and Barrett in the Red Cow in

> Hammersmith in 1978 or 79

I cleary remember this performance on TOTP, one of those WTF moments, once seen never forgotton.

Malumbu, I think JO might have difficulty remembering what happened 23 days ago let alone years, so you were probably right...

 

[Sue]

red devil Wrote:

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I think JO might have difficulty

> remembering what happened 23 days ago let alone

> years, so you were probably right...

xxxxx

He seemed perfectly fine to me - offstage, that is :))

Amazing he's still doing forward rolls. Seems to have given up jumping off the top of stepladders though. And the headbanging no longer seems to be drawing blood .....

I saw him in the early eighties at some small venue somewhere in London, can't remember where but it was with Wild Willy Barrett.

Still got the "Really Free" single somewhere,but I always liked the B side better (anyone else remember B sides?)

[malumbu]

No, he is clearly mad, in a nice way, and plays this very well. The show comes across as 'ad libbed' but as with every good comedy act it is very well rehearsed. Very entertaining.

Him and Atilla had a dance mat if I remember correctly.

There are some even better clips on Youtube of him doing "Beware of the Flowers" (B side to Really Free) live, with both him and WWB so hairy in those days.

[malumbu]

Met Atilla at Forest Fest in Honor Oak last year.  Otway wasn't playing with him at the New Cross Gig.  A band called Newtown Neurotics also played but I don't remember them.  I also don't remember seeing Blur opening in a four band tour at the Academy around this time, or Pulp supporting St Etienne at the Shepherds Bush Empire a couple of years later.

David Badiel and Rob Newman played the Venue around the same time; he is discussing this with Verne on Radio 2.  Googled for more info and oddly came up with this thread. I expect this will have zero interest for most of you.

Unless you want to talk about famous bands you saw, but don't remember.

[Sue]

Malumbu, this thread is over eleven years old!

Do you spend your time trawling  through ancient EDF threads?

Btw John and Willy are returning to The Ivy House in 2026 👍

[malumbu]

I explained that I had Googled due to David Badiel talking about the New Cross venue and for some reason found my thread.  

https://www.concertarchives.org/venues/the-venue-new-cross-f673e868-e71d-49ee-8238-855de27b040b

For younger readers the link gives a few highlights, I was at the very early Levellers gig silverfish (who?) but missed all the early Britpop.  I recall grunge bands playing there - Nirvana?  

[Sue]

43 minutes ago, malumbu said:

I explained that I had Googled due to David Badiel talking about the New Cross venue and for some reason found my thread.  

https://www.concertarchives.org/venues/the-venue-new-cross-f673e868-e71d-49ee-8238-855de27b040b

For younger readers the link gives a few highlights, I was at the very early Levellers gig silverfish (who?) but missed all the early Britpop.  I recall grunge bands playing there - Nirvana?  

Sorry, I hadn't actually read your explanation 🤣

[Earl Aelfheah]

On 03/02/2014 at 08:48, Otta said:

Their best known song was "The only living boy in New Cross", so they were playing to their home crowd.

Sheriff fatman surely!

[Eats Dulwich]

Do I get any bonus points for seeing Carter USM's previous band Jamie Wednesday? 

(I think Newtown Neurotics were mates of Atilla - part of the Harlow anarcho-punk scene).

[malumbu]

2 hours ago, Earl Aelfheah said:

Sheriff fatman surely!

To square the circle Rob Newman used Carter as his theme music and Badiel Genesis (pre-80) or the Smiths (I'll have to reslisten to the programme)

2 hours ago, Eats Dulwich said:

Do I get any bonus points for seeing Carter USM's previous band Jamie Wednesday? 

(I think Newtown Neurotics were mates of Atilla - part of the Harlow anarcho-punk scene).

Yes in deed, I'm well trumped.

Just done a little more research, Mudhoney and Hole played there - the latter featuring Courtney Love, I recall a poster advertising this but I last went decades ago, and the bands that became mega - Oasis, and Radiohead.

[Sephiroth]

I get to see a LOT of Jon Otway down in lewes

 

 

[Sue]

On 30/04/2025 at 20:11, Sephiroth said:

I get to see a LOT of Jon Otway down in lewes

 

 

How come? Has he moved down there? I thought he lived in London?

[Sephiroth]

He’s always playing a gig somewhere here and I thought I had read he lived here - I could be wrong on latter point tho 

[Sue]

11 hours ago, Sephiroth said:

He’s always playing a gig somewhere here and I thought I had read he lived here - I could be wrong on latter point tho 

So far as I know, he lives somewhere in Wandsworth, but maybe he has moved!