Fans of the band Go West were in for a treat last week when concerts celebrating 40 years since the release of their debut album were held in Manchester, Birmingham and London.
2 July 1987 – Go West are the last band to play the Birmingham Odeon
It had been over 37 years since I last saw Peter Cox, Richard Drummie and their magnificent band perform at the Birmingham Odeon in the UK. At the time, I was only 12 years old and was therefore accompanied by Dad to one of my first concerts. What a time we had! The gig was originally scheduled to take place on Monday 15 December 1986. However, something happened and it was re-arranged for Thursday 2 July 1987. At some point during the timeframe Rank Theatres, the owners of the Odeon in Birmingham, had decided they were going to close down the venue for hosting live music and were instead convert it to a cinema.
As a result, Thursday 2 July 1987 was the final time live music was performed at the Birmingham Odeon after 30 years and Go West had the honour of closing it down. The venue had a rich musical history. Bill Haley & His Comets played the first major pop show there and since then The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, David Bower, Genesis, Diana Ross, The Who, Rod Steward and Duran Duran all performed there.
“Let’s see the Odeon back again soon” shouted Richard Drummie and “This is apparently the last pop show at the Odeon. Let’s make it a night to remember” said Peter Cox. And what a night it was! A capacity crowd of 2,500 fans including me and my Dad poured into the Odeon to see Go West that night! I don’t have details of the exact songs they performed by it’s probably the same setlist as that included on the 1987 video Go West – The Runaway Train Tour Live At Hammersmith Odeon
2025 – Celebrating 40 years of their self-titled debut album
Step forward 37 years and it was time for me to see the band once more! Three special shows across 6 days in May 2025 were to celebrate the anniversary of the release of their debut album. The mini tour saw them play Manchester (Bridgewater Hall), Birmingham (Symphony Hall) and London (The Palladium).
Johnny Hates Jazz
Before we get onto the main act, it’s worth giving a huge thumbs up to Johnny Hates Jazz for supporting Go West. They performed a flawless 45 minute set ahead of Go West and they have their own headline concerts planned for later this year including at the Union Chapel in London. For more details, head to their website – https://johnnyhatesjazz.com/
Go West with Sinfonia Smith Square (formerly Southbank Sinfonia)
Performing a live set of songs 40 years after their making is a challenge. The original Go West album of 1985 had a certain sound – Peter Cox’s masterful vocals, the blend of synthesizers, percussion and electric guitars and the processing techniques of day made it a bit of classic amongst fans. In fact, listening back again to the 1987 concert you are reminded of how close the sounds from that tour was to the album. Performing these songs in 2025 needs a fresh take. Not one that rips the soul out of the original and not one that unsuccessfully tries to reproduce the sounds of that past era.
Go West teamed up with the 30-piece orchestra Sinfonia Smith Square (formerly Southbank Sinfonia) on their tour and I have to say it works really well. The concert opening is quite moving – a composition that takes the familiar melodies of Go West tracks and blends them together through rousing strings. Anyone familiar with 80’s pop would listen to it and find themselves humming along.
Go West 2025
To the main event – after the orchestral opening the Go West band join in in full force on the energising Don’t Look Down. It’s worth saying at this point that Richard Drummie was unable to join the performances due to illness. Get well soon, Richard! Peter Cox and the band stepped up. Yes, it’s a little sad not to have the duo performing together, but Peter’s energy and voice alongside the band and orchestra really get the energy levels up. At 69 years of age, he still has the same charismatic voice whether he is performing a ballad or one of the classic up tempo pop hits.
The first three tracks of the evening were from the early years. It’s worth noting that of the fourteen tracks performed during the concert Peter and Richard wrote the bulk of them – something that you don’t necessarily see with today’s younger pop stars. From Baltimore to Paris really suits the band/orchestral combination – a rich blend that is a feast for the ears.
The one and only cover song of the night came by the way of ‘The Tracks Of My Tears’ originally written in 1965 by William “Smokey” Robinson, Jr., Warren Moore and Marv Tarplin, three members of the Miracles. Go West covered the song in 1993 and released it as a single. Peter invited the audience to join him and the orchestra in singing along – something you don’t get to do every night!
The hits kept on coming – a mix across the decades. Peter is a great performer who gave small introductions to each of the songs before they were performed. You almost feel like he’s performing the concert just for you the way he presents the stories and context behind the songs. That invitation to join him and band in singing along reinforces this!
I’ll perhaps add some of these stories to this page later as they were interesting!
It would be fair to say that I personally found it quite an emotional event. As a young lad the three Go West albums (Go West, Bangs and Crashes and Dancing On The Couch) got a LOT of listens! CD’s were pricey back in the 1980’s but they have the advantage of not wearing out (thank goodness!). So it’s fair to say I’ve listened to their songs 100’s (1000’s?) of times. However, my musical tastes changed, the Internet has brought a world of music to our ears, and I’d not spent time listening to or following Go West for the best part of 30 years. To see them again is fantastic, uplifting and a little sad at the same time – you realise how both you and them have aged, some members of that 1987 tour band (such as Alan Murphy, guitarist) are no longer with us and Richard Drummie falling ill reminds one of life’s fragility. However, I also reconnected to my younger self when life was simpler and listening to Go West brought so much joy. I think many of the fans felt that same connection last week.
All in all, the 90 minute concert was over too fast. I really hope I get to see Go West again soon – if you get the opportunity I highly recommend it!
The complete set list for the evening was as follows:
- Don’t Look Down
- Eye to Eye
- From Baltimore to Paris
- Glow
- Goodbye Girl
- Faithful
- Stars Don’t Shine
- Faded
- Let Love Come
- The King Is Dead
- The Tracks of My Tears
- Call Me
- We Close Our Eyes
- King of Wishful Thinking
Other Concert Reviews
- Niall Brannigan – Go West review. 10 May 2025. A great review!
Go West Fan Club
To keep up to date on all things Go West, check out the official website and Facebook page where you can chat to fellow fans:
- https://gowest.org.uk/ – Go West Official Site
- https://www.facebook.com/groups/161196437252833/ – Go West Official Facebook group
Go West Music Videos
Coming soon!
Go West Links
- Wikipedia – Go West
- discogs.com – Go West A list of all the Go West releases and versions and the opportunity to buy some of them
- The Telegraph: Interview with Peter Cox 2016 interview with the Money section of the newspaper
- The Telegraph: Interview with Richard Drummie 2021 interview with the Money section of the newspaper