CELTIC rockers Big Country and Mike Peters of The Alarm brought some 80s nostalgia back to Warrington Parr Hall as many in the audience relived their youth.
Kudos to Mike Peters, who came direct from cancer treatment at The Christie after being “patched up” by the doctors and nurses, so he could perform a solo set, appealing for anyone in the audience between 18-55 to register for stem cell donation, to help him fight the disease.
While both bands still retain a cult following, the two stand out tracks “68 Guns,” performed accoustically by Peters and “In a Big Country” both raised the roof.
Mike Peters of The Alarm
While many attending may have expected Peters to front for Big Country, the band he joined from the Alarm, he performed a solo set, jumping from one microphone to another as he put his heart and soul into a near hour long set.
The Welsh rock band was formed in Rhyl, Wales, in 1981. Initially formed as a punk band, the Toilets, in 1977, under lead vocalist Peters, the band soon embraced arena rock and included marked influences from Welsh language and culture. By opening for acts such as U2 and Bob Dylan, they became a popular new wave pop band of the 1980s.
The Alarm’s highest-charting single in Britain was 1983’s “Sixty Eight Guns”, which reached number 17 on the UK Singles Chart. Their 1984 album Declaration, which contained “Sixty Eight Guns”, peaked at number six on the UK Albums Chart.
Meanwhile Big Country, a Scottish rock band, were formed in Dunfermline, Fife, in 1981.
The height of the band’s popularity was in the early to mid 1980s, although they have retained a cult following for many years since.
The band’s music incorporated Scottish folk and martial music styles, and the band engineered their guitar-driven sound to evoke the sound of bagpipes, fiddles, and other traditional folk instruments.
The band’s “classic” lineup between 1982 and 2000, consisted of Stuart Adamson (vocals, guitar) Bruce Watson (guitar) Tony Butler (bass guitar) and Mark Brzezicki (drums). Following Adamson’s death in 2001, the band reformed in 2007, with the surviving members. Between 2010 and 2013, the band reformed with Mike Peters of The Alarm on lead vocals. The band then continued with only two of the original members (Watson and Brzezicki), until Brzezicki’s departure in October 2024, leaving Watson as the only original member.
Big Country on stage at the Parr Hall
@garyskent Kudos to Mike Peters of #TheAlarm coming direct from his #cancer treatment to perform a moving rendition of #68Guns @PyramidParrHall #warrington supporting #BigCountry #rockmusic ♬ original sound – GarySkent
