Review - Midge Ure - Chepstow Castle

Review - Midge Ure - Chepstow Castle

Where do you even start with a set list if you are Midge Ure? His back catalogue as a songwriter, a solo artist, a member of Ultravox (and a man who enjoys the occasional cover version) is so extensive, and his fans so knowing and appreciative of his work, that it must involve a few challenges - especially when the decision has to made as to what to leave out.

Midge bases this 'Live Under the Stars' performance on the Ultravox albums Rage in Eden and Quartet but also includes some standout favourites in addition to some deep dives into his back catalogue.

Yellow Pearl comes smashing out of the stage nestled in the lower bailey at Chepstow Castle - one of the rarest places for the crowd to have heard the Top of the Pops theme tune and a revelation to hear it in literal surround sound at full volume rather than out of a 1980s mono speaker from a cheap TV.

From this point it is a wonderful sonic journey with Midge moving from his guitar to his keyboard depending on the song - his young band behind him banging out the tunes with a verve and a freshness that makes them sound as exciting now as they were back in the day when they were at the cutting edge of everything that came out of the early 1980s.

His huge number one 'If I was' is brought on early, as is 'Fade to Grey', possibly one of the most influential songs of the era. Midge himself is as full of energy as he ever was - infused with a stern passion throughout many of the songs but quick to smile and share a grin with the appreciative fans. The guitar God moves are all still there - the guitar screaming as Midge, legs apart, rips through another overdriven and finely honed solo.

There are great moments throughout - 'Love's Great Adventure' is particularly full of joy - a relentless piece of music that hits the audience in the face and then repeats and repeats the same thing with a huge smile on its face for a wondrous four minutes - the cheer at the end is immense.

Where do you go after that? Well if you're Midge Ure you have 'Vienna', Hymn and 'Dancing with Tears in my Eyes' in your back pocket and you are also able to remind everyone that there was plenty of great material on all those Ultravox albums including the tunes 'Serenade' and 'Astradyne'.

Chepstow Castle will have seen its fair share of legendary events in the past 1000 years but for those that were there this night it was an unforgettable experience to see a very fine musician at his absolute best.