Axl Rose - dressed properly

Axl Rose

In 1987, a world before Chinese Democracy and band-sacking, Guns and Roses played Rock City on their first European tour. Axl, ever the exhibitionist, arrived alone at the front doors dressed in only a bath towel – for reasons we’re still not entirely clear on.

Receptionist Christine had dealt with various nutters over the years and refused him entry. A good while passed before he came back clutching his security pass.



Bruce Dickinson

The Iron Maiden frontman is a part-time airline pilot and liked to fly his own plane to Nottingham. So Rock City sent out their manager to meet him at the airport and he duly waited in the control tower. Bruce was on the microphone saying “I can see the airport, but there are not many lights.” He eventually landed with plenty of turbulence and a bumpy landing. It took a while for all parties to realise he’d arrived at a different airport (in Langar) two miles south - the first person to successfully land there since World War II.



Courtney Love

Thirteen months after Kurt’s death, Courtney Love’s band Hole played Rock City. Towards the end of the set a fuse blew in one of the speakers and all the lights and the PA went out. When it was finally sorted an increasingly angry Courtney refused to come back on and the crowd were eventually sent home.

Afterwards a member of Rock City staff reported her as “not being shy to undress in front of crew backstage” with a distinct look of horror, rather than pleasure, in his eyes.



Damon Albarn - fluffy teeth

Damon Albam

The first Blur gig after Beetlebum got to number one was at Rock City. But rather than necking loads of champagne and complaining about a bad stomach, Damon was more worried about having ‘fluffy teeth’ and refused to go on before he had brushed. It’s not easy to buy a toothbrush in town at 9pm, but the backstage staff promptly obliged. The next day said dental aid was auctioned off for charity on local radio.



David Bowie

Every rock star loves a bit of pampering, but David Bowie’s backstage set-up was probably the most impressive ever seen at Rock City. He was touring his 1997 Earthling LP and turned The Rig into his own personal lounge. Four couches and a Persian carpet were brought in to make the dressing room look respectable.



Marilyn Manson

Good old Marilyn arrived at the venue pleading of a throat infection, although everyone knew that he was just hungover from the MTV Music Awards the night before. He pulled out of the gig, irritating his Nottingham fanbase – who pretty much all refused to turn up to the rescheduled date four months later.

One of the crew backstage told us how Marilyn didn’t like people to see him eating and so the staff had to put a cubicle up for him to eat his dinner inside.



Metallica

The American rock phenomenons were booked to play an unbilled Monsters of Rock warm-up show at Rock City on the regular Friday club night. It would have been a nice surprise for the crowd, were it not for the fact that drummer Lars Ulrich drank everything in sight beforehand and thus the band had to pull out because he was far too wasted to actually appear.



Ozzy Osbourne - fancied a night in





Ozzy Osbourne

Rock City appeared to have pulled off a major coup booking Ozzy for one of only three live appearances worldwide in 1988.

Unfortunately Ozzy locked himself into a hotel room less than 500 yards up the road and refused to play – despite hours spent attempting to coax him out. Eventually the crowd were told to go home and in the minutes that followed the first and only real Rock City riot ensued.

No-one got seriously hurt, but a speaker landing on the chief of police made interesting fodder for the local paper the next day. Ozzy made amends a few years later by doing an unbilled gig on the Friday rock night.



Pearl Jam

It was just a few songs into the February 1992 night when Eddie Vedder decided to crowdsurf. Unfortunately rather than being carried halfway into the crowd and then back to the stage, he made it all the way to the old food bar at the back. The band played on as Vedder, no longer sure of how to get back onstage, grabbed a bag of hotdog rolls and offered them to a crowd willing to part for bread.



Rage Against The Machine

When first booked, RATM were relatively unknown and scheduled for the basement on a regular club night. Between then and the gig, the bands profile increased massively and attempts were made to move them upstairs.

However the band always liked the sweaty intimate club atmosphere and refused. Hence came one of the most chaotic Rock City club nights ever as thousands of people tried to get into a room that only holds a couple of hundred.

Michael Stipe - giz a shoe



REM

The 1984 Nottingham show by Michael Stipe and co was broadcast on radio and voted one of the 100 greatest gigs of all-time by Q Magazine. During the gig Stipe’s heel came off and he asked the crowd if anyone had a spare size 9 ½ he could borrow. A member of the crowd duly obliged and they swapped shoes and the gig went on. If any of our readers have that shoe in their possession it’s worth a few bob these days.



Robbie Williams

Just after leaving Take That and before he released Angels Mr Williams played an early solo gig at Rock City. Surprisingly the gig did not sell out, but those who were there got to see him perform much of it naked behind his guitar.



Shane MacGowan

Everyone knows Shane is partial to a drink and this made him miss his first train to Nottingham, Eventually when he did arrive it took a tour manager shining a laser pen in his eyes trying to keep him awake before the gig. When he eventually made it onstage he was so blind drunk that he sang several of their songs to the curtain rather than the crowd.



