before Yellow River……

Jeff and psychedelic friends. Use the chart below to identify!

Way back in’ 67, three years before CHRISTIE would hit the heights  with Yellow River around the world, there was, making its way around the U.K, the last of a Sixties phenomenon – The Package Tour.  Previous incarnations had thrown together such unlikely bedfellows as The Beatles, Freddie and the Dreamers and Helen Shapiro, but by the heady days of psychedelia, there was an altogether different musical board of fayre on offer around Britains venues. It would put a young Jeff Christie and his band “The Outer Limits” – signed to his Deram label by the Stones‘ Andrew Loog Oldham  – on the same stage as the fast-rising guitar hero Jimi Hendrix. Oh, and in case anyone was thinking of heading to the bar anytime during the evening, the show included Keith Emerson’s “The Nice” , “The Move” , “Amen Corner ” and “The Pink Floyd“.- a band on the verge of dropping the definitive article, not to mention Syd Barrett. Not a bad line-up for your money!

The Outer Limits, after two singles – the second one banned from the BBC for being called “The Great train Robbery ” (unbelievable but true!) – disintegrated along with the Sixties, but Jeff’s tenacity and songwriting skills won through, and by the summer of 1970, he was Number One.

The tour was the last of its kind for many a year. Though Dave Robinson, founder of Stiff records and the road manager in ’67 for another band on the bill “Eire Apparent“- revived the format to promote Stiff artists over a decade later.

If it seemed like a good idea at the time, it was. Nowadays, bands adopt a similar policy. Earlier this year you could see Whitesnake, Def Leppard and Thunder all under the same roof, on the same night. Similar ventures have been undertaken featuring the bill of Deep Purple, Styx and Thin Lizzy, albeit without the late lamented Lynott.

So if you attend one of these new breed of musical package tours, pay close attention to the new bands further down the bill – they might be tomorrow’s stars!

Naming names. The Nice were absent.

Kev Moore

Christie Renaissance

In 2008, almost imperceptibly, a groundswell of interest and activity in all things Christie has begun to gather momentum. Jeff himself has appeared on, or filmed for future broadcast, several TV shows in Europe. The artist-friendly record label AngelAir (who also released the Graham Oliver solo album I guested on) has released A double CD retrospective featuring tracks from Jeff’s first band, The Outer Limits on CD for the first time, plus his unreleased solo album from 1979. The project is entitled “Outer Limits & Floored Masters – Past Imperfect“. SEE REVIEWS

As we approach the 40th. anniversary of Christie’s multi-million selling hit “Yellow River” in 2010, it looks like we’ll be heading back out on the road for a series of dates across Europe next year. We’ve had the same line-up with Jeff for 20 years, and it’s the same line-up that will be out there in 2009.

I’m looking forward to it immensely, and, as and when dates get confirmed, you’ll hear it here. But for now, take a look at Me, Jeff, Fos and Simon when we appeared back in 1990 at the Golden Years Concert in the Sportstadion, Antwerp. Good times!

Kev Moore