One of the mini-gigs put on in early 1983 where the main hall
wasn’t used and smaller acts got a chance to shine with tickets available
only on the night. I went along with open ears as I had heard neither band
before. I cannot remember whether the Aston Hall was used, but the
upstairs bar certainly was and I remember Steve Rothery was a special
guest as Friars got the first hearing of Marillion’s upcoming He Knows You
Know single. Solstice weren’t that bad as I recall.
Andy Glass, writing for
the Friars website in 2009:
I certainly do remember playing the great Friars
club. In particular finding ourselves (Solstice -
http://www.solstice.me.uk) replacing the
Boomtown Rats as headliners at the last moment. We also had a great time
playing with Marrilion and Uncle Llama (whose keyboard player Steve
McDaniel is now a member of Solstice).
I also have fond memories
of seeing so many great bands there - Steve Hillage, Motorhead, Black
Uhuru and many, many others.
As an 18 year music fan
the place was some kind of Nirvana, to play there as a musician was damn
near heaven.
