DO YOU REMEMBER THE FIRST TIME?

THIS IS NEITHER AN ARTICLE ABOUT THE PULP SONG OF THE SAME NAME (TRIVIA FANS NOTE, THE SHEFFIELD INDIE GODS ALSO HAVE A SONG CALLED MASTER OF THE UNIVERSE!), OR FOR THAT MATTER THE MUSEUM DELVING A LITTLE TO DEEPLY INTO VISITORS PRIVATE LIVES BY ENQUIRING AFTER "THE FIRST TIME" (NUDGE, NUDGE, WINK, WINK). NO WHAT WE WANT ARE PEOPLE ACCOUNTS AND MEMORIES OF THEIR FIRST HAWKWIND EXPERIENCE, SO WHY NOT HAVE A GO, PIECES CAN BE AS LONG OR SHORT AS YOU FEEL IS NECESSARY.

WANT TO SUBMIT A PIECE - THEN E-MAIL HERE

THANKS TO ALL OF YOU WHO HAVE SUBMITTED PIECES ALREADY, AND  ALSO TO BERNHARD POSPEICH FOR SUPPLYING THE TICKET SCANS, WELL DONE

IAIN FERGUSON

Bristol Colston Hall Oct 23rd (ish) 1979
Tim Blake with his full synth set-up - bleeping & whirring all by itself,  Simon King the powerhouse was spell binding, he had a see though kit if I remember right... Dave Brock definitely in charge... The laser light show ... it totally blew me away and I haven't come back since.

The hall was full of really cool people whooping and Cheering, I didn't know any of the songs,  I went out the next day and bought PXR5 ( f**king excellent record)......and I was so pleased that early in the next year Live 79 came out, which is still a brilliant record after all these years and a perfect momento.... The picture on the back of the LP always looked like Bristol to me.....

SAMANTHA FITZPATRICK

The first Hawkwind gig I went to was on 22nd November 1993 at the 'Academy' in Manchester ( England ). on the Business tour.
It was a really cold night but we decided to walk the two miles to get there so as to save the money for a taxi home.
We got there early but already a long queue had formed. There were a few touts ( or that was the impression I got - they certainly didn't look like fans) hanging about asking each person if the had any tickets to sell to them., which I thought was a little strange never having been to a real gig before.
When the doors finally opened everyone filed in and our tickets were checked. Only a handful of people headed for the bar, the rest of us formed groups and sat on the floor. A friend spotted us and came over to tell us that somebody was selling trips. So we decided to blow our taxi fare on two 'strawberries' and promptly dropped them.
The show started with two support bands who I cannot remember the names of but they were fairly good. We were waiting for the stars of the show.
After an interval during which the stage was rearranged and equipment set up the band came on for the sound check . We took this as our queue to move forward and managed to get up against the 'fence' right in front of Alan Davey. A man who was standing next to us who we hadn't ever met before made a joint and shared it with us and continued to do the same for the rest of the evening ( I was really touched by this)
When the band finally came on I think they started with 'L.S.D.' ( which would have been appropriate had we come up on the acid before the walk home, but this in no way affected our enjoyment what so ever)
My first impression was WOW!! It was loud to the point where I could feel it as well as hear it and I was experiencing Hawkwind instead of just listening to it.
I can't remember exactly what they played, but I particularly remember 'Hassan.....' as a very beautiful dancer came on to the front of the stage who was made up in the style of an Indian goddess ( that's the best way I can describe her) she danced with bells on her wrists and ankles and seemed to be too perfect to be human.
Apart from being overwhelmed by the sheer brilliance of the show I was struck by how normal the band looked and behaved ( I know this sounds somewhat converse given the effect they had on us). Dave looked like he had grabbed the first t-shirt he could find in his drawer and teamed it with his favourite pair of old jeans. They didn't say very much and it certainly wasn't the standard 'rock-star stage bellowing' that I might have expected. I found this very pleasing as I'm not really a fan of stars with huge egos.
They played some great numbers and had a small but effective light show. I'm sorry but I can't remember what the encore was either , but the whole gig had a very profound effect on us and when it finished we just stood there dumbstruck until the hall was almost empty and somebody suggested that we should go.
When we got outside it was freezing - literally , but we were on such a high from the show and the acid had started to kick in. We wandered the few miles home in the dark recounting each amazing part of the show, with the word 'wow' being used in every sentence................

CAPT BLUE SKIN

My first Hawkwind concert was the Hawkestra gig 21-10-00.

I flew over from Australia just to see Hawkwind that night.  After the meetup at the beehive pub - several pints and some tasty chocolate truffles we wandered over to the academy.  I was feeling pretty buzzed about the whole thing and made my way straight to the front of the hall to the stage just a little to the left of where Dave Brock was set up.  I'll never forget it.  the music and the lightshow combined to make the perfect psychedelic experience in my opinion.  I'd never experienced anything like it.  and it was something I had only ever dreamed of doing since I first heard the levitation album nearly 12 years prior to that night.  I don't think words can express the feeling and emotion I experienced during that night.  It was full on TRIP OUT!

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