Venue: The Astoria, London                       Date: 28th October 2003

Set List (from memory – apologies for any inconsistencies in content/ running order!): Lady Fantasy/ Unevensong/ Hymn To Her/ Echoes/ Lawrence/ Ice/ Snowgoose medley (Rhayader/ Rhayader Goes To Town/ Sanctuary/ Fritha)/ Spirit Of The Water/ Arabuluba/ Mother Road/ Drafted/ Fox Hill/ For Today . Encore: Never Let Go.

Having been postponed from June, Camel's farewell tour finally hit the UK. Given the hassle the band have been through to actually make this tour a reality its understandable that Camel don't fancy the trials and tribulation of live work anymore, but on the basis of this concert it would be a real shame if the band really are calling it a day in the live arena as they clearly still have a lot to offer.

This gig was a sell-out and the atmosphere before the band took the stage electric, although tending towards impatience as the clock ticked towards 9 with no activity on stage. Finally however the band appeared and the roar that greeted them was deafening.

The line-up here was slightly amended from the last tour; bassist Colin Bass and drummer Denis Clement were still in place but Guy Le Blanc was replaced on keyboards by long-time Camel associate Ton Scherpenzeel. No prizes for who got the loudest cheer though, and Andy Latimer (smartly clad in a black suit tonight) was clearly moved by the reception he got.

Wasting no time, the band launched into firm fan favourite 'Lady Fantasy' – I was expecting it to be an encore (as it was on the last tour) but it certainly got things off on a high. Unfortunately the sound mix wasn't perfect, with Scherpenzeel's keyboards somewhat difficult to hear – this took a little of the edge from the sound, but things did seem to improve later on. In any case, the crystal clear sound that Andy Latimer got from his guitar more than made up for this.

The set was well chosen – gratifyingly, the band repeated only a few tracks from the last tour, and weren't afraid to play tracks you wouldn't necessarily expect to hear – 'Unevensong', 'Arubaluba' and 'Drafted'. The biggest cheer though was reserved,, perhaps unsurprisingly, for the extracts from 'The Snow Goose', which were executed as well as you'd expect from this seasoned outfit.

The band kept the new(ish) 'A Nod And A Wink' tracks to the end of the set, but both the up-beat, Genesis-influenced 'Fox Hill' and the stately, emotional 'For Today' (complete with a noble attempt to replicate the great vocal climax on the album) are as well received as the older classics, and deservedly so, both translating very well to the live stage.

Another bonus with Camel is their easy-going stage manner, exchanging good-humoured banter with the crowd (and each other). Despite a bad cold (probably a remnant from Spain, where all the band were ill, apparently) Andy Latimer was in good spirits, telling a variety of amusing anecdotes, as well as paying touching tribute to the late Pete Bardens (to whom the track 'Spirit Of The Water' was dedicated).

Overall, a fine concert to make their London farewell from. I'll even forgive them the bass and drum solo's on 'Never Let Go' – not something I do lightly! We can only hope that Latimer is convinced by the success of these shows not to hang up his travel bag just yet… 

Tom

Venue: The Astoria, London                       Date: 28th October 2003

A very highly anticipated gig, this one. And a somewhat sad one too, probably one of the last Camel gigs we will ever get to see.

And it was a sell out – believe me it was pretty packed in there. Great crowd too, we had a group of guys behind us that were being pretty rowdy before the band came on, but during the set you could hear a pin drop.

Unfortunately, Andrew Latimer had a heavy cold, and the poor chap did not look at all well. Consequently his vocals were not what they could have been. But like the seasoned professional that he is, he carried on and did the full set.

I got the impression that Andy decided to let his guitar do the talking tonight. I have said before that I think he is one of this country's great unsung guitar heroes – for me he is up there with Beck, Clapton and Page.

Tonight being a farewell gig, we were treated to a lot of the old classics - Lady Fantasy, Rhayader from The Snow Goose, Ice, Drafted, Arubaluba, Never Let Go amongst others.

Apart from the above, highlights for me were also Echoes, Unevensong, Hymn To Her, and the aforementioned Never Let Go for the encore. The latter gave the other members of the band a chance to shine, with a wonderful keyboard solo from Ton Scherpenzeel, and bass and drum solos from Colin Bass and Denis Clement respectively.

I was also really impressed with a couple of numbers from the last album, A Nod And A Wink. Fox Hill (a definite nod to Genesis) relates the story of a fox and a horse during a foxhunt – with Colin Bass very entertainingly playing the roles of the animals in a cheeky chappie Phil Collins style.

 Next was For Today, with a very emotional and heartfelt introduction from Andy. It was inspired by the events of September 11^th, and is about living for the moment and having no regrets – somewhat apt as this was a farewell tour. Andy put a lot of emotion into the guitar solo on this one – knowing this was the last time we would ever hear it live, I think he pulled out all the stops.

Talking of emotion, Spirit Of The Water was dedicated to the late and much missed Peter Bardens. I'm sure there were a few misty eyes in the audience during this one.

Apparently, Andy Ward, the original drummer, was somewhere in the audience. I hoped Andy Latimer might have persuaded him to join the band on stage, but alas it was not to be.

A very satisfying farewell concert, then. Not perhaps a magical one, but for no other reason than the fact that Andy was rather ill. The only actual criticism I would make is that Andy's guitar was very loud, often drowning out Ton Scherpenzeel's keyboards.

But it's Andy's band, and it was his night. Considering it was probably the last time we will ever get to hear him play, perhaps it seems a little churlish to complain.

John Morley  28/10/03