Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating * * * *

The Manic Street Preachers are no strangers to Liverpool, having the rare bestowment of love given to them by the city for the part they have played in music history but also in the way they have sided with the city in political respects, they have felt the damage to the city and its citizens’ reputations as surely had they plied their early days continually performing at the Lomax or gigging round the town on a daily basis. No strangers, just another opportunity in which to perform in a city they love, and to perform at the home of the European Champions as support to Bon Jovi must surely rank as one of the great moments of the band’s history.

It was a moment that was not wasted, a short set perhaps, certainly when compared to the recent triumph of a night at the Olympia in May but then this was a time to take stock in front of a crowd that rivalled the support slot to Paul McCartney, a gathering inside a venue that holds history with seamless reverential heart, that as you make your way past the statue of Bill Shankly you cannot but help but find the hymn like words that is sung by the Kop faithful before, during and always when the rest of the country seems to want to tear the city apart, resonating round your mind in unison, in empathy, in solidarity.

It was a sense of solidarity and togetherness that the Manic Street Preachers returned to the Anfield stage and performed a rich set of songs that captured the vibe, the setting and the bounty of the evening. Against a slow-setting sun that seemed to bounce off the stands and add its own cosmic camaraderie to the occasion, songs such as Motorcycle Emptiness, You Stole The Sun From My Heart, The Everlasting, Your Love Is Not Enough, If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next, Tsunami and a powerful version of the Guns N’ Roses epic Sweet Child Of Mine, which strangely drew a cheer that would have rivalled the home fans applauding feverishly a goal that sealed any league title win.

A moment of joyous reflection as once again the Manic Street Preachers played at Anfield with the crowd behind them and with nothing to lose, a support that was enthusiastically greeted and given the freedom of Anfield.

Ian D. Hall