Del Amitri - Past to Present - Four Decades Of Their Greatest Music
Odeon Theatre, 167 Liverpool St, 7000 Hobart Directions
Sun 28.02.2027 19:00
Approximate Running Times: Doors: 7:00pm In February 2027, DEL AMITRI return to Australia with Past to Present: Four Decades of Their Greatest Hits a celebratory tour showcasing the songs that defined their remarkable career, from early indie beginnings to international chart success. Formed in Glasgow in 1982 by Justin Currie, Del Amitri found their longterm creative backbone in guitarist Iain Harvie, whose presence has been central to the band's sound for decades. Their breakthrough came with the 1989 album Waking Hours, featuring the enduring hit 'Nothing Ever Happens' and the deliciously catchy 'Kiss This Thing Goodbye.' The early '90s brought further global recognition with 'Always the Last to Know' and their biggest US success, 'Roll to Me,' which reached Number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and remains a worldwide jukebox favourite. In 2027, celebrate their legacy with a powerful, careerspanning Australian tour Past to Present: Four Decades of Their Greatest Hits.
Performers
-
Del AmitriDel Amitri are a British pop-rock guitar band, formed in Glasgow, Scotland in about 1979 or 80. They came together at school as teenagers when Justin Currie (bass and vocals), James Scobbie (guitar and vocals) and Donald Bentley (guitar) formed a band in reaction against the rest of the 'rockers' in the school. The name was chosen deliberately because it didn't mean anything but sounded a bit like someone's name - early Del Amitri did not want to be classified and their existence was kept secret from the rest of the school.
Early rehearsals in Justin's parents house were followed by a move to secret rehearsal space behind some storage cartons in the basement of Glasgow Art Centre (now defunct). Later on the band secured official rehearsal space at the Art Centre in a proper room with a cupboard to keep their gear in. Postcard Record signing and future megastars Aztec Camera rehearsed in the room next door. At this time Paul Tyagi (drums) joined the band as its first drummer. The first recorded Del Amitri track "What she Calls it" was the B side of a flexi-disc given away free with Stand and Deliver fanzine - the A side was given to another future Glasgow megaband "The Bluebells". Unable to read music, early Del tracks were arranged and remembered according to 'bits' named after musical influences that included from Genesis, Captain Beefheart and Orange Juice.
Guitarists Bentley and Scobbie left in 1982 for university and the band faced a brief uncertain future until Justin Currie placed an advert in the window of a music store asking for people who could play to contact him, and the new line-up was formed with Currie (bass and vocals), Iain Harvie (lead guitar), Bryan Tolland (guitar) and Paul Tyagi (drums). The first non-flexi 45 single was 'Crows in the Wheatfield' with cover design by artist Laura Michael. Tyagi left after the release of the first album three years later becoming a successful photographer. Currie and Harvie were the only members of the band to remain present throughout its history – they were also the main songwriters of the group.
Jon McLoughlin (recorded and toured with the band during 'Some Other Suckers Parade') passed away in March 2005 from complications of Diabetes. He was 42.