James is a Manchester institution, and the iconic Northern band made the most of every second with the Co-op Live crowd during their sell-out hometown show in the city
There was only one place to be in Manchester last night: James’ sell out ‘Love Is The Answer’ show at the Co-op Live. Their homecoming gig was a shoulder-shake of pure joy, an intravenous drip of delight injected into the veins of all 23,500 of us. From the moment the band came on stage, and grey beanie-clad lead singer Tim Booth began dancing like someone possessed with the spirit of 1989, I’m not sure who was having more fun – us, or them.
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“I Know What I’m Here For,” he sang, kicking off proceedings with Five-O and Waltzing Along, before launching into their biggest hit, Sit Down. And so did we – a party.
One of the most brilliant rock legends around is that Bradford-born Booth claims to be the only person who is actually insured to crowd surf in the entire UK. Yet despite two swan dives into the crowd and across the arena last night, gentle hands ensured his policy remains unclaimed upon.
“That’s it, that’s the end of our show,” he joked afterwards. But luckily for us, it was not. And so in Manchester began a from-the-heart set full of bring-the-house-down bangers. James doesn’t play things safe and change up their set list nightly, mixing the old with the new, omitting favourites at will and keeping the order fresh to keep everyone on their toes.
Say Something and Come Home mingled with Born of Frustration, Shadow Of A Giant and more. There were some ear drum-busting Madchester karaoke, there was much dancing. And there were some political moments, too, notably with Head. “Addressing the United States and its inherent racism and war mongering,” said Tim, his words met with boos from the crowd.
Formed in 1982 in Manchester, James has sold over 25 million records worldwide and counting. Their latest single, Nantucket, was part of the encore, and set to cement 2026 as another triumphant trip around the sun for the anthemic indie-pop group.
If the energy in the room could be bottled, it would sell for a fortune. There was a real sense of inclusion to the whole thing. Tim sang part of the set from the arena’s accessible platform, shaking hands and sharing hugs with fans like the Pope in pinstripe pants. Elsewhere, the band’s fabulous drummer Debbie had her three month old baby backstage. And trumpet player Andy Diagram wore the best outfit of the night in a floral skirt and ‘no more war’ t-shirt.
As the show closed with Getting Away With It (All Messed Up) and Laid, so ended one of the best 120 minutes of recent memory.
So what did we learn? James is a band like no other, crowd surfing into the history books, bridging the gap between the nostalgic and the fresh. And we must dance like no one is watching more often.
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