Rock and roll history was made at The Gathering Ten when the spiritual mainmen of The Alarm, The Cult, Spear Of Destiny and The Mighty Wah! performed together for the first time ever to create an unforgettable evening of high musical drama.

As The Welsh National Anthem came over the P.A. system at precisely 9.15 on Saturday the 12th of January 2002 Pete Wylie introduced Mike Peters and The Alarm MMII to the stage and so began one of the most momentous rock and roll shows I have ever witnessed.

Strobe lights flashed and out of the dark the band unleashed a brand new song Trafficking, an audacious move but what a track. Shades of The Clash, shades of Led Zep, shades of T-Rex, brilliant, and it was all over in 2.5 minutes. Before anyone could draw breath, drummer Steve Grantley rapped out the familiar drum attack of Absolute Reality and as the guitars burst in every member of the audience went berserk. Peters switched from electric to acoustic and stabbed out the intro to Ground Zero the audience roared it's approval and the band which had started in top gear, now swung into overdrive. Another new song followed called Close. It is so immediate that by the second chorus it felt like everyone knew it.

The sound was brilliant in the hall, Sold Me Down The River was followed by The Wasting Land. A lone orchestral note washed through the room and Mike Peters began picking a haunting chord progression to a third new song on his familiar acoustic 12 string (which only ever has 6 strings on). He had just started singing when the microphone suddenly fell off the stand. Unruffled, Peters stopped the song and while the road crew fixed the problem, Mike explained that we shouldn't be surprised that something like this should happen at this moment because the song is called The Normal Rules Do Not Apply. He calmly called for the songs introduction again and started all over. Even on first listen, I am moved to say that this is one of the most beautiful and atmospheric songs Peters has ever written. It begins slow and temperate and builds to a climax that once familiar, is surely going to be a magical moment in many future concerts.

Deeside is always a crowd favourite and is quickly followed by the psychedelic In Circles which is segued into the fourth new song of the evening. A gothic riff chorused from Peters' black Gibson Les Paul and we were treated to another great rock song. Echoes of Coloursound could be heard as Peters defiantly sang the refrain "One Life, you only get one life". I don't know what it was called as it wasn't introduced but it's definitely another live classic in the making.

The light show went into overdrive as guitarist James Stevenson fired off the intro to Burnout Syndrome and laser beams circled over the heads of the surging crowd. Stevenson played the solo to perfection with Peters stalking him left and right. What a great rapport there is between these two it's amazing how their relationship has grown over the years. As Burnout Syndrome faded out, Twenty First Century faded in. Peters roamed all over the stage enticing a 'Queen' style hand clapping call and response from the crowd before leaving the stage followed in turn by each member of the band. The audience never stopped singing for the entire time they were off stage.

A voice came over the P.A. and we were introduced to the first major surprise of the evening when Mike Peters and Billy Duffy of The Cult walked out together to perform a medley of Coloursound songs. The roar that greeted Billy Duffy's appearance was amazing. Under The Sun and Alive were brilliant with Duffy proving he is a superb acoustic player before switching to electric for Fade In Fade Out Fade Away. The band came back onto the stage half way through the song and erupted into the electric crescendo while Billy Duffy coaxed some amazing sounds from his guitar. Billy left the stage to rapturous applause.

"3 - 4" shouted Peters into the microphone and the frantic strumming of Declaration gave the impression that the gig was starting all over again. Marching On, Where Were You Hiding (with the biggest shower of playing cards I have ever seen) and Knife Edge all came in quick succession. Breathe, Rain In the Summertime, Strength, Rescue Me, Regeneration (whoever came up with this set list certainly knew what they were doing. The pacing was superb). Peters gave thanks to his family and in particular his wife - Jules, for helping to organise the event and to every one for coming, dedicating the final song of the set to those who still believed. What a sight it was to see every hand raised for the Spirit Of '76.

The band trooped back on for an encore and began with what turned out to be the final new song of the night In the Poppy Fields. The significance of the song was not lost on anyone and I'm sure I wasn't the only person at The Gathering who thinks that Mike Peters may have just written his finest body of songs to date. Unsafe Building took us back to more familiar territory as did Blaze Of Glory with Peters singing his heart out and hitting the highest note of the evening after what must have been 2 and a half hours on stage. Incredible does not do this performance justice, and it was all about to get even better.

A second encore was demanded and Mike Peters introduced each member of the band to the audience followed by none other than Pete Wylie (The Mighty Wah!) and Kirk Brandon (The Spear Of Destiny). Wylie strapped himself into a twelve string electric guitar stage left, and Brandon armed himself with an acoustic guitar stage right. The Stand nearly brought the house down and the sight of Peters, Wylie and Brandon belting out the lyrics in unison was a sight to behold. Pete Wylie, The Mighty Wah! himself lead the next song. An amazing version of Come Back (There is a massive bond between Alarm fans and Wylie as he has been a part of Alarm culture ever since The Alarm started covering 'Better Scream' back in '83 before Peters wrote him into the lyrics of Spirit Of '76). Wylie quietened the band down and invited Kirk Brandon to say a few words. Kirk gave a rousing speech about being knocked down but never being knocked out. Come Back finished with all three singing around the mic stand. Wylie delivered the last line "hats off to Mike Peters and all the 'gatherers".

Mike asked Kirk to sing the next song and Kirk told a story about meeting a young guitarist in London in 1982. The guitarist was none other than Billy Duffy (who was an original member of 'Theatre Of Hate'). It was an emotional moment as the two were reunited onstage for the first time since 1983. Kirk and Billy broke into Do You Believe In The Westworld and we we were treated to the unbelievable sight and sound of all seven guys on stage at the same time, all brothers in arms, all heroes, all doing their musical thing in unison. It was a sight that nobody who witnessed it will ever forget. Mike Peters, Billy Duffy, Pete Wylie, Kirk Brandon, James Stevenson, Richard Llewellyn, Steve Grantley....... The Magnificent Seven. The combined forces of The Alarm, The Cult, Theatre Of Hate and The Mighty Wah!

Billy Duffy then cracked open the riff to She Sells Sanctuary, Mike Peters strutted and sang it faithful to the original (complete with swinging microphone). Wylie and Brandon smashed out the acoustic guitar answers while Stevenson, Llewellyn and Grantley kept the rhythm tight.

This impromptu supergroup then burst into The Alarm's classic 68 Guns and with every voice raised to the roof the show came to an end. When the music was over, all seven gathered arm in arm at the lip of the stage and paid respect to the audience. Flash bulbs popped all over the place. Billy Duffy thanked and described Mike Peters as the hardest working man in rock. Pete Wylie asked for the loudest cheer of the evening for Mike Peters. Mike thanked every one of his 'brothers' for coming. It was 12.10 a.m., Mike Peters and The Alarm MMII had been on stage for almost three hours. It was all over except that you felt like it was just beginning..... and in many ways maybe it was just the beginning.

Trafficking
Absolute Reality
Ground Zero
Close
Sold Me Down The River
The Wasting Land
The Normal Rules Do Not Apply
Deeside
In Circles
New Song
Burnout Syndrom
Twenty First Century
Under The Sun
Alive
Fade In Fade Out Fade Away
Declaration
Marching On
Where Were You Hiding
Knife Edge
Breathe
Rain In The Summertime
Strength
Rescue Me
Regeneration
Spirit Of '76
In The Poppy Fields
Unsafe Building
Blaze Of Glory
The Stand
Come Back
Do You Believe In The Westworld
She Sells Sanctuary
68 Guns