Sabbath days - the Bev Bevan Diaries

My diary notes this week date back exactly 21 years ago to the 3rd week of July 1987, when I found myself, for the second time, occupying the drum-stool for Black Sabbath.

Tuesday July 14th
Rehearsals at "Tasco Sound Stage" in London. Staying at the Post House hotel in Hampstead. Slept in late. Drove the lads in my Range Rover to rehearsals and started about 5pm.Went OK. No chance for dinner, so when I got back to the hotel , around midnight, had room service chicken sandwich and ransacked the mini-bar.

Wednesday July 15th
Back to the rehearsal studios in Woolwich and ran through the whole set. Fish and chips from the local chippie. Chatted with Joe Brown, also rehearsing there, in the recreation room. I drove Geezer (Butler) and I back to the Midlands and home about 2am.

Thursday July 16th
Day off at home. News of late gig coming in for Saturday at Plymouth festival to help boost the very poor ticket sales there.

Friday July 17th
News from the Sabs management office that Geezer now not doing the upcoming gigs and the tour manager is arranging to fly in ex-Sabbath bass player Dave Spitz from New York.

Saturday July 18th
What a fiasco! Packed some stage clothes. Taxi to Birmingham airport and met up with the rest of the band. Smooth one hour flight on nice little 8 seater private plane to Plymouth. On arrival told by promoter there were "Not many in" at the football ground venue.
Got there about 7pm as Captain Sensible was finishing his set. Only a few hundred people in the crowd and management made the decision we should not go on. So it was back to the airport to get our plane back to Birmingham and I was home watching the British Golf Open highlights on TV by 11pm !

Sunday July 19th
Packed my bag for the gig in Athens tomorrow. Watched the end of the golf on TV - Nick Faldo winning.

Monday July 20th
Drove to Heathrow for our flight to Greece. Arrived in Athens and met by hordes of photographers, press, etc. Very, very hot. VIP treatment and whisked through passports and immigration. Taxis to the Inter Continental hotel and late supper of kebabs and a few local beers.

Tuesday July 21st
Sunbathing and swim at the hotel then some sightseeing, including the impressive Acropolis. Got to the football stadium gig about 6pm. Bit of a rehearsal in the dressing room with bass player Dave. Singer Tony Martin's debut show and he was understandably nervous.
Big, enthusiastic crowd. Good show but got crazy at the end when about 100 of the audience began climbing on the stage. We deffed the encore and legged it back to the dressing rooms! The crew did well to save all our equipment from getting wrecked.
Had late supper at a nearby open air nightclub. Still oppressively hot.
Back to the hotel bar then, until the early hours.

Back on Saturday with more of my early rock and roll memories