Chelsea In Concert – Paris Theatre, London – In Concert series – September 29, 1979 – BBC Radio 1
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Chelsea in concert tonight – recorded live at The Paris Theatre in London for the In Concert series by BBC Radio 1 on September 29, 1979. Almost 40 years to the day that this gig was recorded – how years have flown by. This is, in reality, Chelsea 3.0 – the first incarnation of Chelsea split in late 1976, with members going off to form what we later came to know as Generation X. This is the five-piece incarnation that that came about in December of 1977. The new Chelsea sported rhythm guitarist Dave Martin, bassist Geoff Myles and drummer Steve J Jones joining October and Stevenson. Extensive gigging and the third single Urban Kids was released before drummer Chris Bashford replaced Steve J Jones. The first album was released in early 1979 and the band continued to tour extensively including UK dates supporting The Clash and another tour, with The Police supporting them ! They also made their first foray into the U.S with an East Coast tour. As the first album contained none of the band’s singles, a compilation of them was released as the second album; ‘Alternative Hits’ which also featured a couple of new tracks. The album sleeve designed by drummer Chris Bashford was banned in the U.S and so renamed ‘No Escape’ for that territory.
Flash forward to 2019 – Starting the year with Undercover Festival Chelsea did a handful of UK shows and a European tour in September. Writing is underway for a new album due to be recorded early next year.
With numerous personnel changes as well as breakups and reunions, they are still together.
But to get an idea of what the third incarnation of Chelsea sounded like, crank this concert from 1979 up and enjoy the hell out of it.