THE BEST OF BIG COUNTRY
The band will be performing all their great hits
along with live favourites.
The band will be performing a large selection of
all their great hits and live favourites.
BIG COUNTRY
Big Country Legendary Scottish Celtic Rock band still featuring two of the original founding members Bruce Watson and Mark Brzezicki.
BIOGRAPHY/TOUR
Big Country was originally formed in 1981 by guitar playing founder members Stuart Adamson and Bruce Watson both native of the band's hometown Dunfermline in Scotland.
Initially driven by a shared vision of widescreen guitar melody, harmony and lyric, the classic Big Country sound was further enhanced later that summer by the arrival of drummer Mark Brzezicki and bass player Tony Butler. This is the Big Country that (with producer Steve Lillywhite), recorded the classic debut album 'The Crossing' in 1983.
The band broke massively worldwide with the release of the album's classic singles 'Fields Of Fire', 'Chance' and signature song 'In A Big Country', which went on to become massive worldwide hits, selling over 2 million copies and driving 'The Crossing' to 3 prestigious Grammy nominations in the USA.
The run of success continued throughout the 1980's with the release of the anthemic single 'Wonderland' and the second album 'Steeltown' (1984), which debuted at Number 1 in the UK and contained the hit singles 'East Of Eden', 'Just a Shadow' and 'Where The Rose Is Sown' . In 1985, Big Country appeared at Live Aid in London followed by further successful album releases 'The Seer' (1986, which included the bands biggest UK hit 'Look Away', which also reached Number 1 in the Irish Singles chart) and 'Peace In Our Time' (1988), which saw the band playing the first ever privately promoted gig in Russia at the Moscow Sports Stadium.
At the start of the 90's 'Through A Big Country', featuring all the bands classic hits was released, followed by the fifth studio album 'No Place Like Home' (1991) taking the band's total record sales to well over five million copies.
Further studio albums 'Buffalo Skinners' (1993) and 'Why The Long Face' (1995) followed,which saw Big Country landing the special guest slot on the Rolling Stones 'Voodoo Lounge' European tour and several shows in the UK and Ireland with Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page and Robert Plant in 1995.
In August 1998 they were once again invited to open for the Rolling Stones on their 'Bridges To Babylon' tour of Europe prompting Mick Jagger to say that Big Country were "one of the best opening bands we ever had".
Two songs written at that time ('Somebody Else' and 'Devil In The Eye') were co-written with Ray Davies of The Kinks who invited the band to back him on the main stage at Glastonbury to perform a storming set in the rain.
By now singer Stuart Adamson had relocated to Nashville, Tennessee and so his fellow bandmates decamped to America to join him in writing and recording the album 'Driving To Damascus'. It would be the last album they recorded together. With Stuart at the helm, Big Country, scored 17 top 30 UK singles achieving 5 gold and platinum status albums along the way. Stuart and Big Country would tour Europe one final time in 2000 and on the closing night at their beloved Barrowlands in Glasgow the band were fatefully joined on stage for one last song by Alarm singer Mike Peters and Bruce Watson's son Jamie on guitar.
Tony Butler, Mark Brzezicki and Bruce Watson re-united in 2007 to celebrate the band's Twenty-fifth anniversary. "It wasn't a come-back... it was just the three of us having fun, as friends and as a band, and hoping to give the fans some enjoyment by playing our songs live, to celebrate 25 years" - Bruce Watson
In the summer of 2010, Bruce Watson picked up the phone and asked Mike Peters to sing with Big Country. The first gig was in Glasgow on New Years Eve 2010 and the second in the band's hometown of Dunfermline. The rest as they say is history.
The band have performed at many of the UK and Europe's most famous festivals, including Isle Of Wight (Twice), V Festival, T In The Park, Oxegen, Pink Pop and Cropredy creating a new generation of fans and renewing the passion for diehards with the introduction of new original songs such as 'Another Country' and 'The Journey' which encapsulate not only the sound but the heart and soul of Big Country past, present and future.
With the promise of a new era dawning for the band and the realisation that Big Country now have the platform to once again record and tour on a world wide scale, bassist Tony Butler has decided that his time in Big Country has come to a close and so he has retired gracefully from the stage. The band now welcomes Scott Whitley on bass.
In April 2013, Big Country released ‘The Journey’ and toured across the globe in support of this highly acclaimed album throughout the year.
Coming into 2014, new challenges arose for Big Country. With Mike Peters dedicating his efforts full-time towards the support of the 30th Anniversary of The Alarm’s Declaration, Big Country have been joined by Simon Hough to perform vocal duties. He has fitted in perfectly. As the band continues its touring throughout the year that Big Country celebrated the 30th Anniversary of the release of the album, ‘Steeltown’. 2015 sees a massive Best Of (and more) tour of the UK and Europe, during which, Scott Whitley joined the band on bass, following Derek’s departure after 3 years.
Big Country just gets Bigger.
JUNE 2021
Friday 25th SKIDS Stone Valley North Festival (John Connor)
Saturday 26th The Phoenix Theatre Blyth
JULY 2021
Saturday 10th Thame Town Music Festival Oxfordshire
Friday 16th SKIDS Oran Mor Skids Unplugged
Saturday 17th Mareel, Lerwick, Shetland
Friday 23rd Tan Hill Festival Richmond
Friday 30th Cottingham Civic Centre (Martyn Rudd)
Saturday 31st Cleethorpes Rocks Meridian Park (Solid)
AUGUST 2021
Friday 6th The Pavillion Whitby (Solid Ents)
Saturday 7th Food in the Park, Blair Atholl, Perthshire, Scotland.
Friday 13th W Fest Belgium (Bart)
Saturday 14th The Dome Doncaster (Soild Ents)
Sunday 15th Big Country and The Skids Stone Valley South (JC)
Saturday 28th SKIDS Georgian Theatre (JC)
Sunday 29th Stone Valley Midland Thoresby Park,Newark, with The Skids (JC)
SEPTEMBER 2021
Thursday 2nd Colchester Arts Centre
Friday 3rd Stormin The Castle Festival County Durham
Saturday 4th Newcastle O2
Sunday 5th The Skids Stone Valley North (JC)
Friday 10th MK11 Milton Keynes
Saturday 11th SKIDS The Peacock Sunderland (JC)
Friday 17th Northern Kin Festival, Stanhope (JC)
Saturday 18th SKIDS Cumbernauld Theatre
Saturday 25th Lets Rock Norwich Nick Billinghurst
Sunday 26th The Bowden Rooms, Altrincham - Acoustic Show
OCTOBER 2021
Friday 1st The Engine Shed, Lincoln (AGMP)
Saturday 2nd The Rescue Rooms Nottingham (AGMP)
Sunday 3rd Tbc Skegness
Wednesday 6th SKIDS The Music and Arts Centre, Barnoldswick
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson
Thursday 7th SKIDS The Crescent, York
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson (Christopher Jones)
Friday 8th SKIDS Club Academy Manchester (John Connor)
Saturday 9th SKIDS Islington Academy, London (John Connor)
Sunday 10th Breakout Festival, Kirkaldy, Scotland
Thursday 14th SKIDS Epic Studios, Norwich
Friday 15th SKIDS Rescue Rooms Nottingham (John Connor)
Saturday 16th SKIDS Town Hall Gloucester (John Connor)
Sunday 17th Victoria Hall Settle (Acoustic)
Thurday 21st SKIDS Elgin Town Hall
Friday 22nd SKIDS Liquid Rooms Edinburgh (John Connor)
Saturday 23rd SKIDS Lemon Tree Aberdeen (John Connor)
Sunday 24th SKIDS Irvine
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson
Friday 29th SKIDS The Brudenel, Leeds (John Connor)
Saturday 30th SKIDS Concorde 2 Brighton (John Connor)
NOVEMBER 2021
Friday 5th SKIDS The Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal (John Connor)
Saturday 6th SKIDS The Fleece, Bristol (John Connor)
Friday 12th SKIDS Boiler Shop Newcastle (John Connor)
Saturday 13th SKIDS Robin 2 Bilston (John Connor)
Thursday 18th The Flowerot derby Acoustic
Friday 19th Epic Studios, Norwich (AGMP)
Saturday 20th Roadmenders Northampton (AGMP)
Friday 26th Lemon Tree, Aberdeen (AGMP)
DECEMBER 2021
Thurday 2nd The Empire, Coventry (AGMP)
Friday 3rd The Public Halls Harpendon (AGMP)
Saturday 4th Mick Jagger Centre, Dartford (AGMP)
Thursday 9th King Georges Hall, Blackburn (AGMP)
Friday 10th Grand Central Hall, Liverpool (AGMP)
Saturday 11th Academy, Manchester (AGMP)
Friday 17th O2 Glasgow (John Connor) with The Skids
Saturday 18th Glen Pavilion, Dunfermline (Callum) with The Skids
JANUARY 2022
Friday 14th - Shrewsbury, Buttermarket (AGMP)
Saturday 15th Portland House Cardiff (AGMP)
Tuesday 18th SKIDS The Music and Arts Centre, Barnoldswick
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson
Wednesday 19th SKIDS 229 Club, London (AGMP)
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson
Thursday 20th SKIDS Harpenden Public Halls (AGMP)
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson
Friday 21st Culture House Roermond, Holland
Saturday 22nd Duycker Hoofddorp. Holland
Sunday 23rd Baroeg Rotterdam. Holland
Monday 24th Cactus Hengelo. Holland
Thursday 27th Princes Royal Theatre, Port Talbot
Friday 28th The Picture Dome, Holmfirth (Barney)
FEBRUARY 2022
Friday 4th Friday 30th Elgin Town Hall
Saturday 5th Motherwell Concert Hall CH, Scotland (Craig Smart)
Friday 18th THE SKIDS London Reshed show
Saturday 19th The Gliderdrome, Boston Lincs
Thursday 25th Viften,Copenhagen. Denmark
Friday 26th Rockefeller Music Hall, Oslo. Norway
Saturday 27th Pustervik, Gothenburg, Sweden
MARCH 2022
Wednesday 2nd Bristol, The Fiddlers (AGMP)
Thursday 3rd Cambridge, Junction (AGMP)
Friday 4th Brighton, Concorde 2 (AGMP)
Saturday 5th Southend, Chinnerys (AGMP)
Tuesday 8th Dorking, Dorking Halls (AGMP)
Wednesday 9th London, Islington Assembly Hall (AGMP)
Thursday 10th Southampton, The Brook (AGMP)
Wednesday 16th Newcastle, Boiler Shop (AGMP)
Thursday 17th Leeds, Brudenell Social Club (AGMP)
Friday 18th Middlesbrough, The Empire (AGMP)
Friday 25th The Skids Cottingham
Saturday 26th SKIDS Scarborough Punk Festival Rescheduled from 2020)
APRIL 2022
Thursday 14th Nantwich Civic Hall, Nantwich Jazz and Blues festival
Sunday 10th Melrose Rugby Ground (Ram)
Friday 22nd SKIDS La Belle Angele Edinburgh
An Acoustic Audience with Richard Jobson and Bruce Watson
Saturday 23rd SKIDS Scotland Calling near Edinburgh (John Connor)
Saturday 26th SKIDS Scarborough Punk Festival
MAY 2022
Saturday 7th The Assembley Leamington Spa (AGMP)
JUNE 202
Friday 17th Georgian Theatre, Stockton (JC)
Saturday 18th The Point Sunderland (JC)
JULY 2022
Saturday 2nd Bught Park Inverness Big Top as special guests to Skipinnish
Saturday 30th Troon Concert Hall Weekend Festival with The Skids
AUGUST 2022
Saturday 20th City Parks Stirling Big Top as special guests to Skipinnish
Saturday 27th Thunder in the Glens Aviemore with The Skids
Wednesday 31st Depart for New Zealand
SEPTEMBER 2022
Thursday 1st 1st Auckland arrive
Friday 2nd Auckland tuning fork
Saturday 3rd wellington san fran
Sunday 8th Brisbane Zoo, Australia
Monday 9th Sydney Factory Australia
Tuesday 10th Melbourne Max Watts Australia
Wednesday 15th Adelaide Gov Australia
Thursday 16th Perth Mojos Australia
Friday 17th Perth Rosemount Australia
Saturday 18th Perth depart
OCTOBER 2022
Friday 7th SKIDS Rescue Rooms, Nottingham (John Connor)
Saturday 8th SKIDS Brudenel Leeds (John Connor)
Friday 14th SKIDS Academy, Manchester (John Connor)
Saturday 15th SKIDS Islington Academy, London (John Connor)
Friday 21st SKIDS Lemon Tree Aberdeen (John Connor)
Saturday 22nd SKIDS Garage Glasgow (John Connor)
Friday 28th SKIDS Concorde, Brighton (John Connor)
NOVEMBER 2022
Friday 11th SKIDS La Belle Angel Edinburgh (John Connor)
Saturday 12th SKIDS Boiler Shop Newcastle (John Connor)
Sunday 13th SKIDS The Picture Dome Holmfirth (Barney)
DECEMBER 2022
Saturday 3rd The Brighton Centre (AGMP)