Did You Hear About The Time Michael Jackson Played Halifax?

Back in 1979, things were a little different.

A pint of milk cost 14p. Trevor Francis became Britain’s first £1m footballer. Apocalypse Now hit the cinema screens. The Sugar Hill Gang released the world’s first commercial rap hit, Rapper’s Delight. And tragically, Sid Vicious was found dead in New York at the age of 21.

This side of the pond, some 3,345 miles from New York, The Jacksons were readying themselves to play The Civic Theatre (now Victoria Theatre) in Halifax.

Strange times indeed.

Michael, Jackie, Marlon, Tito and Randy had just released their fourth studio album Destiny, featuring the singles Blame It On The Boogie and Shake Your Body. They promptly headed to Europe to kick-start a world tour in support of the album.

It was a hectic time for Michael whose solo career was also about to explode. He had to break away from recording Off The Wall to do the Destiny tour.

The Jacksons’ run of European gigs started in Germany and included 11 UK dates, one of which was at The Civic – February 19th, 1979. Actually, The Civic had one date but two shows, which wasn’t uncommon back then. The Jacksons were booked to perform at 6.45pm and then again at 9.15pm.

Ticket sales had gone really well for the late performance. It looked set to be a full house. But, much to the band’s annoyance, the crowd for the first show was thin on the ground. On seeing so many empty seats, they threatened to pull out of the second slot.

Now, it has to be said, the Jackson weren’t exactly happy campers from the moment they arrived in the UK. Rifts were appearing in the ranks, perhaps fuelled by Michael’s growing desire to go it out alone and explore new creative territories. At The Civic, one of the band got in a strop and requested a separate, private dressing room. Faced with the added frustration of a low turnout, tempers were flaring.

At that moment, in stepped the real star of the show – of many shows at The Civic – venue manager, Robbie Robinson. Unruffled by the band’s disputes and demands, he read them the riot act and told them, in no uncertain terms, to get on stage, do their job and “get out of the building” as soon as they had finished. The Jacksons’ celebrity status cut no ice with Robbie.

It worked.

Michael and Tito with fans in Halifax after the show

Speaking some years later, assistant manager Les Milner said: “To give them full credit, after Robbie had got them together and given them the hard word, they went on stage and were superb.”

The Jacksons’ world tour got off to a sticky start. The following day, the band woke up feeling unwell. They were scheduled to play two shows at Leicester’s De Montfort Hall. After struggling through the first with croaky voices, they cancelled the second. They had to cancel their next gig too – at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff – before recovering in time for their two London dates.

For Robbie, the showdown with The Jacksons wasn’t the only time he had to stand firm in the face of pop star ego. When the former cinema manager took over at The Civic, the venue wasn’t in the best of shape. It took him some time to get it looking the part. It clearly wasn’t good enough for a disgruntled Shirley Bassey who took umbrage at the facilities and told Robbie she’d never play there again. Robbie then informed her she was contracted to be back there performing in six weeks.

Robbie Robinson booked many big names during his time at the Civic – he somewhat transformed the venue’s reputation for live music— but he booked none as big as the King of Pop, Michael Jackson.

About The Music Trail

The Halifax Heritage Music Trail was set up by local music fan and historian, Trevor Simpson, and Michael Ainsworth, owner of the town’s independent live music venue, The Grayston Unity.

The trail is marked by plaques around the town where all the famous old gig venues used to be. Michael runs occasional guided tours, as advertised. The next one will be on Sunday 1st September at 2pm. It is a two-hour walk around the key sites, with a fact-packed, colourful commentary.

Before setting up the Heritage Trail, Trevor collated and crafted a big bundle of local music stories for a book, Small Town Saturday Night. A volume 2 of the same title followed some years later. Trevor, sadly, is no longer with us. His considerable effort in giving new life to these great old stories was fundamental to the trail’s formation and those efforts continue to be seen today.

Words: Stephen Desmond