Florida Coalcracker Chronicles: Gerry and the Pacemakers - Wintergardens Theatre - Blackpool

Saturday, November 11, 2017

Gerry and the Pacemakers - Wintergardens Theatre - Blackpool - England

Gerry and the Pacemakers - 1964

Gerry and the Pacemakers - 2017

Our show

Lulu had a gig in Glasgow. Our train would be traveling right through Liverpool. I googled Gerry Marsden and to my surprise - he was still touring.

Gerry and the Pacemakers were a very popular band in Liverpool in the 1960s. Brian Epstein managed just three acts - The Beatles - Gerry and The Pacemakers - and Cilla Black. George Martin produced all their records. When the Beatles made a movie - Hard Days Night - it was only natural to follow it with the Gerry's movie - Ferry Cross The Mersey.

People do not know that Gerry and the Pacemakers were the only group to have their first three singles go to number 1 in the nation.

Blackpool - We stayed at the Pelham Lodge - a tiny very old hotel for 50 pounds a night. It was a fantastic time warp - with eclectic furniture - but great service and very clean. The owner made us breakfast. The dining room sat 75 people. The stairs were wooden and there was surface wiring - but it was warm and had hot water.

We walked the beach - but the 40 degree temperatures and 30 MPH winds - churned the sea and shortened our walk.

The Wintergardens Theatre has been there forever. The Beatles filled it 8 nights straight in July of 1964. Blackpool is close to Liverpool and the Beatles and Pacemakers used to hang out here as youngsters. John Lennon - who was raised by his Aunt Mimi - spend holidays at Blackpool with his cousins.

The crowd for our concert was old. There were a lot of gray heads and bald heads - both on the stage and in the audience. It was just a nice crowd to be with. People come back for the rock and roll shows every year. The national flower show was going on in the same old complex - and many of the ladies showing their flowers in the show - also wanted to see the old rockers.

We arrived in town at 3 PM Friday on the train - and the show was at 7. I was tempted to wait until show time and take my chances with the touts - but Lulu said I came a long way to see this show. I bought 2 tickets in the Circle (lower balcony) for 35 pounds each. That came out to about $90.

The show was great - I wish we were closer to see their faces better - maybe not :-)

It lasted almost 3 hours with a 20 minute break. Gerry played until the break - then the Searchers came out and finished the night. Gerry is 75 now - I figured he had an early bedtime :-) Sorry - for all the old jokes.

This was the last night of Gerry's Finale Tour. Gerry does have knee problems - he collapsed on stage in March - and had to end his show. He lingered a little while before he left. He did a great show - and his hits made a lot of people very happy.

His third number one hit - "You'll Never Walk Alone" - has become the rally song of the Liverpool Soccer Team. When he sang that - the whole place belted it out.

After the show we only had to walk 3 blocks to our hotel. In the morning we walked around Blackpool - Lulu loved the shopping. We went to the arcades on the pier. We caught our train to London around noon. There were a few delays on our train to London - and Virgin Trains announced halfway to London that they would refund our money for the trip. That came to about $120. So subtracting $90 for the tickets from the $120 refund - we made $30 by going to the concert :-)

Check out the 3 videos from the show below.