in
Oxford, UK - 10 April 2005

Rob and Phil at the Nickelodeon

Rob and Phil at the Nickelodeon

Rob and Phil during "Girls Girls Girls"

The "Full Monty"...

The "Full Monty"...
As a special surprise for the end of the tour, the crew left the Full Monty tape running about 15 seconds longer before playing the 'rewind' part, which was just long enough to worry SAILOR a bit - but not long enough for them to actually go further usual...

The "Full Monty"...

The "Full Monty"...

The end of the show

The songs that SAILOR played in Oxford:

A Glass Of Champagne
La Cumbia
The Old Nickelodeon Sound
Karma Chameleon
Vera From Veracruz
Girls Girls Girls
Champagne Reprise
Sailor's Hornpipe
The Full Monty

Before and after the show...

Linda and Eileen together with Peter and Phil

Linda, Eileen and Sarah together with Grant

Eileen, Linda, Karin and Franck together with Phil

A concert review by Mandy Phelps:

Fantastic! Fantastic! Fantastic! It had been a long 6 weeks since I had seen them last (in Bath). Plus I was eager to wear my new jacket I had bought especially for the concert, a naval uniform jacket complete with stripes on the sleeves and gold double breasted buttons with anchors on! (It’s amazing what you can find on ebay!!)
It was really great to see the boys again, and so many other SAILOR fans. It was a great night full of fun. Being the end of the tour, the sound engineers/ backstage stage staff etc were playing jokes on the bands. When SAILOR performed their ‘full monty’ bit, the music didn’t stop at the right point, as though they had to carry on undressing!! It was very funny!
I also managed to have a chat and some photos with the band in the interval. I asked Phil where the Autumn concert is likely to be held, he said in the London area somewhere, which is great, as that’s only a couple hours drive for me (or my husband I should say – he’s my chauffeur! bless him). I told Phil I had been at the Bath concert – and he remembered me! That really made my evening! (Considering I only re-discovered SAILOR 2 years ago I’m really making up for lost time!) Hopefully the ‘Buried Treasure’ CD will keep me going until the Autumn!
The Rubettes drum routine was fantastic, great joke with that too, as ‘someone’ had put white powder on top of the drums! As soon as they started drumming, clouds of white (smelly) dust billowed everywhere!
There was a great crowd in that night, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. I left there on Cloud 9 – as I always do (it’ll take me a few days to come down!).
Big Big SAILOR Fan!
Mandy Phelps, 12 April 2005

A concert review by Linda Welch:

70 minutes to Oxford from home and another 45 minutes going round the one-way system in ever-decreasing circles - I thought I'd never make it to the New Theatre on George Street!  But it was worth it!
Oxford was the penultimate show in the Glitz, Blitz and 70's Hitz (with a bunch of old Gitz, as Pete says) tour of 2005, and it was fantastic!  There were lots and lots of SAILOR fans there - Malcolm and Eileen, Sarah, Alison and her husband (the Abba fans from 'Marvellous' last year) a couple from Denmark, Keith and family, and a couple of girls next to me whose names I didn't get ... plus more, I'm sure, as the crowd was very enthusiastic.  The whole of the middle block of the front row was all SAILOR fans, so they got a really warm welcome.  When Grant came out to introduce "The Old Nickelodeon Sound", he said, 'I see the Ugly Sisters are in tonight,' and I laughed and thought, 'Fancy referring to me and Eileen like that!'
The whole show went really well, and the audience had a great time.  Our Bournemouth 'Get 'em Off!' wish almost came true ... as the guys had suspected earlier in the tour, the crew left the "Full Monty" tape running about 15 seconds longer before playing the 'rewind' bit, which was just long enough to worry them - but not long enough for them to actually go further than taking their belts off!  (Although Grant really seems to enjoy the "Full Monty" and probably would have continued ....)  Just prior to that, when Rob played the accordeon with the Nickelodeon, one of the crew switched his hat for a builder's hard hat, but he noticed and didn't put it on!
One of the crew sat in the front row and read a newspaper, and the guys said that that's what he'd been doing throughout the tour!  During the break, newspapers appeared on the seats of nearly everyone in the front row, but no-one was cruel enough to read them during Sweet's set (apart from the famous John!)
I'd brought spare maracas as well as my own and lent some to Malcolm and Eileen; the two girls on the other side of me also had maracas so the 'Massed Band of the Maracas' kept up a good accompaniment during "La Cumbia" and "Vera From Veracruz"...
During the break, Malcolm was ready with his camera to take several pictures and as Eileen and I posed for a photo with Pete and Phil, I said to Pete, 'As Grant called us the Ugly Sisters, maybe you're Buttons?  Or Prince Charming?'  He started to sing 'Prince Charming' by Adam and the Ants, and wondered aloud about forming an Adam and the Ants tribute band.  I reminded him that one of the Sweet fans, John, had said he looked more like Adam than a SAILOR, and suddenly there was John!  He'd bought the DVD and was hoping to get it signed, although he looked a bit nervous at meeting the guys he'd been slating only a couple of weeks before!  So ... another convert to the nautical cause!
I said to Grant, 'I'm not sure I like being referred to as one of the Ugly Sisters,' and he looked totally confused.  What he'd actually said was, 'My six younger sisters are in tonight.'  He was referring to 6 girls a couple of rows behind us who all had glitter wigs on.  He was really embarrassed to think that they might have thought he'd called them the Ugly Sisters and looked around for them to make sure they weren't offended.
It was all over far too soon and maybe this should have been the very last show - and I can't imagine a better audience than the Oxford crowd, and everyone - fans, bands and crew - had such fun that I don't think the last show, Grimsby, will match it.
Still no sign of Buried Treasure - 'out soon,' Phil said.  We've been hearing that for a long time now, haven't we?
I'm sorry it's all over - it's been a great few weeks for me and I doubt I'll get this opportunity again ... I'm now up to 12 concerts!  2 with the original line-up and 10 with the current one.  This Spring tour has coincided with my redundancy, so I've had plenty of time off work to plan my journeys to the shows I've seen (and recover afterwards!) but now the tour's over and I start work again on Monday - it will all seem very unreal after a few weeks of feeling like a teenage groupie!
To everyone I've met during the tour, I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.  To everyone who wanted to see a show but couldn't make it, you missed a treat!  Let's hope we can all get together for the headline show in the Autumn and make it a real night to remember!
... sail on, sail on SAILOR... sail on, sail on SAILOR... sail on, sail on SAILOR... sail on, sail on SAILOR...
Linda Welch ©

You’ve got the theatre full of delights - A concert review by Malcolm Knowles:

Unable to get to Grimsby, Oxford was to be the last date we would make on this tour….and what a great night it turned out to be. In the absence of any useful signage in Oxford City Centre, we found the theatre thanks only to a very helpful commissionaire in a nearby hotel.
After a few minutes in the bar it was clear that, of the three bands, this was to be SAILOR’s night. It was great to see Karin over from Denmark as well as some familiar faces from around the UK. The band also appeared to have brought along their own support from friends and family, and from the moment they took the stage they were clearly relaxed and enjoying themselves.
The set remained the same as it had been for most of the tour but playing to the ‘home’ crowd brought more smiles and interaction between the band members than had been apparent on some dates. The road crew added to the fun – firstly by taking Rob’s hat just before his Hornpipe and then leaving the Full Monty soundtrack to play just a few seconds longer than it should have done before the rewind section. The band handled the moment brilliantly and the audience, most of whom I suspect now know the routine intimately, loved every moment of it. The boys left the stage to a standing ovation and I wondered, for just one moment, whether we might just get an encore. Perhaps for one night the Rubettes would give up a few minutes of their set to allow SAILOR one more number. Sadly, it was not to be but we took our seats again happy that SAILOR had given all they could in the time permitted.
In the foyer during the interval, SAILOR remained in jovial mood. Unlike other gigs where they had stayed to chat and sign, Oxford had not provided a specific table. They were therefore free to wander and chat and took time to ensure their fans had all the pictures and signatures we needed. We had had a great evening and we all knew how much it meant to have witnessed SAILOR on tour again in the UK. Despite some small audiences and the limitations of a short set, SAILOR have renewed many friendships on this tour and without doubt acquired some new followers along the way.
We now await the release of ‘Buried Treasure’ with interest and look forward to the possibility of a special gig or two later in the year. Meanwhile, THANKS to Phil, Grant, Pete and Rob for making the past few weeks so enjoyable.
Malcolm Knowles, 18 April 2005

Concert Photos