2. Duran Duran at Villa Park, Birmingham, England 1983
A year before this fondly remembered show at Villa Park in Birmingham, Duran Duran had released their classic album 'Rio', and were absolutely massive everywhere in the world. The hysteria they caused wherever they went hadn't been seen since The Beatles heyday. The groups well documented love affair with groundbreaking music videos and MTV was in full effect and they were working on their third album that was due to be released later that year. The band, or perhaps their PR people, decided they should stage a large, outdoor concert to raise money for the MENCAP charity, which was the "hip" charity to donate to at that time. Birmingham was chosen as it was the bands home city and where they formed. Drummer, Roger Taylor was delighted to be playing a show at his beloved Aston Villa F.C.'s ground, where he had spent many a Saturday in the terraces and aspired to become a Goalkeeper for the club. Even to this day he still attends home games, alongside his Father, to watch Villa. He marked the occasion by playing the whole set in an Aston Villa shirt. Bounding onto a the stage from behind two giant black curtains that opened to reveal a stage set consisting of a dozen oversized roman columns and launching straight into the million selling single, 'Is There Something I Should Know.' They continued to play for an hour and twenty minutes, running through fifteen of their best loved tracks including, 'Hungry Like The Wolf', 'Save A Prayer' and 'Rio'. Their youthfulness ensured that the energy was dialed all the way up for the duration. Many still remember how brilliant this homecoming show was and, for a lot of the 18,000 crowd, this was their first live musical experience. They were also treated to a stunning set by support act, Robert Palmer, who later in the decade would team up with members of Duran Duran to form super group, The Power Station. Duran Duran are still, to this very day, a brilliant live band, but they were still young guns then and riding high on the crest of a wave of popularity, so those that were in attendance, have major bragging rights.