1978 — Alvin Lee & Ten Years Later

Sep 26, 2024 | Uncategorized

Ten Years After (1978)

January 1978 – Midem, Cannes (France)

Alvin with Hille Hillekamp (Polydor Records)

Melody Maker – February 17, 1978

Ten Years After (1978)

Alvin Lee, who emerged from the ashes of Ten Years After to form Ten Years Later earlier this year, flies into Britain next month to play a one-off show at London’s Hammersmith Odeon with his new band.

The band – Lee (guitar, vocals), Mick Hawksworth (bass) and Tom Compton (drums) – started a European tour in May that included a show in front of 5,000 Parisians. Melody Makers own Chris Welch was there for the evening and witnessed a show that included “Good Morning Little Schoolgirl,” “Help Me” and the song Lee once vowed never to play again, “Going Home”. Since Europe and the release of the bands first album, Lee has been playing in America, but he and Ten Years Later return to Britain for the Hammersmith show on September 8, 1978

February 18, 1978

Ten Years After (1978)

Hörzu Magazine (Germany)

Ten Years After (1978)

Article from Hörzu (German T.V. guide magazine) seen above; Brigitte Scholz collection.

Originaltext aus dem Bild:
„Nach der Auflösung von Ten Years After hörte man nicht mehr allzuviel von Gitarrist Alvin Lee. Doch jetzt startet der schnellste Mann auf sechs Saiten ein Comeback. Er formierte die Gruppe Ten Years Later. Im März will das Trio auf Deutschland-Tournee kommen und dabei auch die Langrille ›Rocket Fuel‹ vorstellen.“

Translation:
“After the breakup of Ten Years After, not much was heard from guitarist Alvin Lee. But now the fastest man on six strings is launching a comeback. He has formed the group Ten Years Later. In March, the trio plans to go on a tour of Germany and to present their long-playing record Rocket Fuel.”

“Rocket Fuel” released in April 1978

Ten Years After (1978)

Tour Dates 1978 Germany

Ten Years After (1978)

April 8, 1978 – Stuttgart, Gustav-Siegle Haus

Photos by Christoph Müller:

John Hembrow, Mick Hawksworth, Alvin Lee

Tom Compton, Alvin Lee

watch the setting-up of the gig here> 1 2 3 4 5

April 26, 1978 – Pavilion de Paris

Ten Years After (1978)

“Melody Maker” review of concert in Paris

Ten Years After (1978)

Melody Maker – May 6, 1978

Ten Years After (1978)

The English tamed a monster that terrorised the streets of Paris last week. A giant boiled egg seven feet in its cup, was manfully tackled by Alvin Lee with a flying leap that drew cheers from revellers spilling across the cobblestones at 3:00 am. The monster had wobbled majestically along La Rue Francois Miron, propelled by a team of bearded madmen who turned out to be Alvin’s road-crew. They had captured the prize and presented it to the phantom guitarist as a token of their love and affection. There was a lot of affection for Alvin on this night of nights. It marked a return to active service by one of the giants of the rock guitar. If Alvin ever felt uncomfortable, worried or embarrassed about making a comeback with a band called Ten Years Later, he didn’t show it in the slightest on this trip to France last week. Earlier, there had been dates in Germany where he had been greeted with heart-warming fervour, and the fans at the Pavilion Porte de Panpin on Wednesday last week roared, whistled and stamped their approval after a blistering performance with Tom Compton on an enormous drum kit, and Mick Hawksworth on a double necked bass guitar.

Ten Years Later are strictly into hard rock violence, as all three are survivors of the 1960’s. But for Tom and Mick, it’s a case of success arriving after some years of struggle.

They played “Good Morning Little School Girl” – “Friday The 13th” – but the best feature of the night came with Tom and Mick pounding out a simple four to the bar beat, while the guitar player extemporized, quoted from other songs, including Sunshine of Your Love, and played every rock guitar lick of the past fifteen years. As a piece of history, it was quite unique.

I think it was on “Writing You A Letter” that Tom played his drum solo, with some splendid bass drum work, a ferocious turn of speed and good sense of construction.

But all sense of proprieties of rock were stripped away as Alvin cocked his head to the chants of the audience – “Going Home” he asked ! The bands album, just released has already sold 300,000 copies in America, and after their European warm-up, eyes are already turning towards the States. To my surprise, it transpired that Ten Years Later have already played a tour of England, and Alvin, who went unrecognised in Manchester, was told he was a brilliant young guitarist who should get a recording contract. Alvin told the would be A&R man, that he already had nine albums. At one club, punks thought the added attraction was to be Johnny Rotten and the Sex Pistols, who were actually doing the same thing at the time, and on the same circuit. “They kept yelling for punk-rock, so I took a mouthful of beer and spat it all over them.” Said Alvin. “They loved it!” Certifiable Maniacs drove us through the streets of Paris at 70 miles per hour. Here the road crew, astounded by us descending
the steep steps into the caves where we were drinking, and armed with the giant “Polystyrene Egg”. Apparently, the night before they had nicked (stolen) a “Plastic Chicken” in Germany and presented it to Alvin on stage. “Oh, I don’t know what to say!” said Alvin as he attempted to restrain Tom Compton from carving the monster up with a table knife. There was even an attempt to re-form Ten Years After with Chick Churchill and Ric Lee, which had apparently been a disappointment. Alvin says, “The audience reaction has been really good on this tour.”

“With Ten Years After, it got to the point where it was all too much. We didn’t have the time to change the music – ya know.” Alvin’s Comeback – Ten Years Later – Alvin Lee Returns !

ROCK HEBDO (French Magazine) – May 10, 1978

review of Paris show – photos Gilles Bascop

click to enlarge

May 5, 1978 – Civic Center, Indiana

Ten Years After (1978)

May 19, 1978 – Winterland San Francisco, California

Alvin plays the following:
Gonna Turn You On – Good Morning Little School Girl – Help Me – Ain’t Nothin Shakin’ (but the leaves on the tree) – Scat Thing – Hey Joe and I’m Goin’ Home.

May 24, 1978 – Uptown Theater in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

Opening act were “Shooting Star”, a local Kansas City, Missouri band that one year later would become the first US act to be signed to Richard Branson’s Virgin Records.

Ten Years After (1978)

“A snapshot of how Alvin Lee fit into the Kansas City concert scene of 1978.”

Ten Years After (1978)
Thanks to Jay Plumb for sharing his memories and ticket stub with all of us

May 10, 1978 – Milwaukee WI, Riverside Theater

May 20, 1978 – San Diego, California Theatre

May 28, 1978 – Dallas

Ten Years After (1978)

July 23, 1978 – Calderone Concert Hall, Hempstead Long Island, New York.

This concert was broadcast Live on WLIR radio. The songs included: Gonna Turn You On – Good Morning Little School Girl – Help Me – It’s A Gaz – Ain’t Nothin’ Shakin’ which also includes a twenty minute drum solo from Tom Compton. Scat Thing – Hey Joe – I’m Goin’ Home – Choo – Choo – Mama – and Rip It Up.

July 27, 1983 – Stanley Theatre, Pittsburgh, PA

Ten Years After (1978)

August 11, 1978 – Municipal Auditorium, San Antonio, Texas

Ten Years After (1978)

Rocky Magazine (Germany)

click to enlarge

Ten Years After (1978)

11 June 1978 – CIAO2001

Ten Years After (1978)

click to enlarge

Ten Years After (1978)

Ten Years After (1978)
CIAO2001, Page 64

Ten Years After (1978)

“I first saw Alvin Lee and Ten Years After at London’s Royal Albert Hall in early May 1969, where they appeared with Jethro Tull and an unknown and now long since forgotten band called Clouds. As a guitar player in my own right, I was blown away. I was fortunate to see Ten Years After four more times between then and March of 1973, all in Berlin, Germany.

The concerts included the Berlin Superfest, which featured: Ten Years After with Procol Harum, when Robin Trower was with the group, Canned Heat, on the same day that they found Alan “Blind Owl” Wilson dead in California, and Jimi Hendrix, in what proved to be Jimi’s last “Live” concert. Ten Years After, was always a class act, taking time out to acknowledge their fans and pay them respect. It was some years later, while I was a working reporter with a Maine daily newspaper, that I got to meet Alvin Lee in person backstage before an appearance at the Bangor Auditorium. At that time, Alvin was heading his new band configuration called, Ten Years Later, and the audience they would be playing to was extremely small. Alvin and his crew came out swinging and burned the house down.

I’ve played guitar for more than thirty years now and Alvin’s influence on my style is hard to miss. Only a handful of guitarist have ever made me stop and take notice, and Alvin Lee stands at the head of the class. He is truly an original, and Alvin and Ten Years After more than deserve to be inducted into the “Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame.” They’ve paid their dues, and their influence on a generation of blues-based rockers cannot be over-looked.
By Peter Weaver