Rock meets history at North Shields venue
In praise of musical tastes 170 years apart. Tony Henderson reports
The long-time guitarist for a band which has sold 60 million albums worldwide will be performing a track called Hymn 43 at a Tyneside venue.
The song is from the Jethro Tull band’s Aqualung album, which was released in 1971 and sold more than seven million copies.
Now lead guitarist Martin Barre brings his own band to The Exchange in Howard Street in North Shields on January 30, when they will perform Aqualung in its entirety.
And Hymn 43 will be a very different sound to the hymns which were heard in the venue building, which this year is celebrating its 170th anniversary.
In 1856, work began on the now-listed building which was to become the Wesleyan Reform Methodist chapel and Sunday School.
The interior was embellished with an ornamental sunlight of 46 gas jets and a radiant centrepiece with an inner circle of 25 jets below an ornate ventilation roundel.
It was later amalgamated with an adjacent group of buildings designed in phases by leading architects John and Benjamin Green and John Dobson, to form part of a civic complex.
The former chapel housed the local authority’s borough treasurer’s department and was adapted in 2001 for use as a theatre with an entrance foyer.
The location is now The Exchange, in what is the Howard Street cultural sector, and as a cultural and community hub features live music, theatre, art exhibitions, family entertainment, corporate events, auditorium and bar, restaurant and coffee shop.
The historical thread runs through Jethro Tull, with the band named after innovator Jethro Tull, born in 1674, who helped to bring about the agricultural revolution in 18th century Britain.
He perfected a horse-drawn seed drill in 1701 that economically sowed the seeds in neat rows and later developed a horse-drawn hoe. Tull’s methods were adopted by many landowners and helped to provide the basis for modern agriculture.
Martin, who has been the guitarist of Jethro Tull for over 40 years, says: “It always adds that bit of anticipation when we play a new venue and it will be extra special considering the history of The Exchange and its importance to North Shields.
“I know that the town is a famous fishing port, but these days I am also aware that there is a new sensation in home-grown singer-songwriter Sam Fender.”
In November, Martin released his autobiography, A Trick of Memory, which details his journey from his early R&B days and joining Jethro Tull in 1968, to his solo career.
The Martin Barre Band plays at The Exchange, North Shields on Friday January 30.
Tickets £30 online from the venue or telephone 0191 432 1856 for details.
Love how this piece connects th 170year arc from methodist chapel to prog rock venue. The architectural continuity between gas jet ornamental lighting and modern stage production creates this weird temporal overlap. Worked at a converted church space in Leeds once and the acoustics were insane precisely becuase of those original design choices for vocal projection. Curious if The Exchange benefits from similar unintended sonic advantages when Martin Barre tears into Aqualung.