Those of you who are avid fans of our Kadium videos will know by now that our latest “production” ( I don’t think Mr Spielberg has anything to worry about) goes hand in hand with our current release ‘Seaside Photograph’. As I mentioned in the last Talkback that song is indeed very special to me as it takes me back to younger days when my pals and I would hop on a bus or a train and leave Newcastle to head on down to the coast. When we arrived we would spend our time (and our pocket money) just chilling out and enjoying the (smog free) sea air, and of all the places we would hang out our favourite by far was Whitley Bay. Back then none of us had even heard of St. Tropez or Puerto Banus but even if we had they wouldn’t have been anywhere near as magical. Of course what made good old WB so special was the amusement park - The Spanish City - that’s where we would always end up and it would inevitably be the highlight of our day. Looking back now the rides and amusements were really pretty tame and uninspiring compared to the theme parks we have today but back then they were more than enough to keep us all in a state of wonder and adventure.
The Spanish City actually began its life way back in 1910 and was originally built as a concert hall and tearoom and it was quite some years before the funfair came along. The building itself was always quite stunning with its white dome and towers and still looks impressive to this day and although it did fall into a state of disrepair for some years this has now been put right with a total (and expensive) refurbishment.
Sadly the amusements are now a thing of the past and have been replaced with a seafood restaurant and champagne bar! A sign of the times I suppose and looking at the images of the new interior it all seems very nicely done but being honest for me the place has lost its soul. Perhaps I should just put my sentiments down to a bad attack of nostalgia, and at least I can say that I’m not the only musician with a soft spot for the place as both Sting and Mark Knopfler (check out the lyrics on ‘Tunnel of love’) spent a good amount of their time there back in the day. To think, either of them could have been sat behind me on that ghost train! Halcyon days indeed - ‘when we were kids’.
Keith.
Seaside Photograph - A Spanish City Tribute