SAW IT ON TV. Photographs by Jill Walker and Ted Sayers.

There hasn’t been quite as much new material arriving at TWR HQ recently but in keeping with our forthcoming special edition on Mike & The Mechanics I thought it might prove interesting to have a look at a couple of Mechanics-related items which have surfaced as well as a couple of others concerning Genesis and Peter Gabriel.

So first up, another TV appearance by the Mechanics on German TV. “Live Rust” is some sort of awards ceremony at which the band were the recipients of an award. As usual at such things, Mike, accompanied by Tim and Andrew, looks suitably uncomfortable but that soon disappears as they hit the stage to perform a medley of songs from the band’s catalogue. An interesting, if short item for the collection.

The second item is much more interesting. The band opted throughout 2012 and 2013 to continue to build the momentum established with the 2011 Hit The Road tour by performing regularly throughout Europe and further afield with a series mainly festival gigs and our next item captures one of those very well.

The Main Square Festival took place in Arras France on 6th July 2013 and here we have a rather enjoyable film of that event shot by a member of the crowd. Evidently the camerman/woman was quite close to the stage - close enough in fact to be filmed by the cameram who was filming the crowd! Here we get to see why the band are such a good live act. New boys Tim Howar and Andrew Roachford have settled into the shoes of their predecessors quite nicely and throughout the show both prove that the new look Mechanics are still a highly enjoyable live act. As you might expect from a festival the band essentially give the crowd the hits but there’s nowt wrong with that especially when the hits in question are as good as the likes of Beggar On A Beach Of Gold and the inimitable Living Years. A thoroughly enjoyable performance throughout.

Peter Gabriel has been quite busy with touring activity recently too with his “Back To Front” shows and another film of one of these has recently appeared comprising the entire gig from the marvellous Palais Omnisports de Bercy in Paris - a venue I have very fond memories of! Running to essentially the same format as the 2012 American shows, the evening gets under way with a new track: Oh But and an acoustic selection comprising Come Talk To Me. Shock The Monkey and Family Snapshot before the rock and roll gets under way and the entirety of the So album gets an airing. Peter’s shows are always a visual as well as musical treat, and this one is no exception with a great amount of visual entertainment going on as well. The cameraman manages to do a decent job and the end result is another enjoyable addition to the Gabriel archive.

And finally, from the sublime to the …. Ridiculous. A recent arrival is “Discovering Genesis” a “documentary” thrown together by Sky Arts. Here you can learn about such classics as “Supper’s Delight” and the antics of a character called “Raoul” yes, really this is without doubt the single most ill-informed excuse for a documentary that I have ever had the misfortune to see. I wonder what the band themselves make of it…?

And that’s it for this edition. Happy collecting!