The Northern Pikes and Chalk Circle live 1988

I'm finally getting around to transferring some old videotapes to DVD & uploading the interesting bits to YouTube. You know, I could have sworn this aired in 1987, but at the end it says (c)[somethingsomething]VIII. At the time I thought this concert was really awesome - and the performances are still pretty good today. This double bill was aired as part of MuchMusic's Big Ticket Concert program.



The Northern Pikes' set features material from its major-label debut Big Blue Sky and one as-then unreleased song which would be recorded for the next album - by which time they'd gotten terrible haircuts and the hammy guitarist started doing vocals - all of which lead to the cock-rocking career nadir of "She Ain't Pretty." Ugh. But this set is still pretty good. It's nice to see 1980s French boys singing along to deep cut "You Sold The Farm" - and I always thought one of the Le-Chateau-looking chicks in the front was Erica Ehm, but now I don't think so. The performance of "Dancing In A Dance Club" was later used as the official music video for that track. The performance includes the hits "Teenland" and "Things I Do For Money."



Chalk Circle's set mostly features tracks from its first full-length album, Mending Wall and the two hits from the first EP. Again, 1980s Quebec teenagers knew their Canadian rock deep cuts - opener "My Artificial Sweetener" gets a much more emphatic response than might be expected, but the performance is pretty great. In fact, this is a solid set from Chris Tate & co., marred only by the steel-drum sounding violin-plucking of special guest Hugh Marsh. Tate's hand is bleeding through the last couple of songs - a sure sign of a good show. Hits played: April Fool; Me, Myself & I; This Mourning; 20th Century Boy.