Planned Assault: Rochester Castle Concerts, July 2022
It’s that time of the year again for Medway’s historical landmark Rochester Castle. Each summer, the Castle Gardens are besieged by a variety of acts across several dates, playing to thousands of the Kentish populous. This year, from the 6th of July to the 9th, the Castle will be treated to performances by The Human League, James Blunt, Cameo and The Specials.
Situated on the banks of the River Medway and a stone’s throw from Rochester Cathedral, the Castle has previously played host to an array of acts both classic and modern, with genres to suit a multitude of music lovers. These include Van Morrison, Blondie, Jools Holland, The Libertines, Billy Ocean, Craig David, Wet Wet Wet, Steps, UB40, Ray Davies, McFly, Status Quo, plus classical concerts and much more. This year’s run of outdoor events begins with The Human League on Wednesday July 6th.
The Human League were formed in the late 1970’s and reached the U.K. top ten with eight singles including ‘Being Boiled’, ‘Love Action (I Believe In Love)’ and ‘(Keep Feeling) Fascination’. They hit the number one slot for five weeks in 1981 with ‘Don’t You Want Me’ from their third album ‘Dare’, which the trio of Philip Oakey, Joanne Catherall and Susan Ann Sulley celebrated last year with a fortieth anniversary tour.
General Admission tickets for The Human League are £50 plus £5 service charge.
Continuing on the 7th of July is James Blunt, who kicked off his music career with the U.K. number one album ‘Back To Bedlam’ in 2004, featuring ‘Wisemen’, ‘Goodbye My Lover’ and the number one single, ‘You’re Beautiful’. His recent collection, ‘The Stars Beneath My Feet (2004-2021)’ is a two-disc celebration of his work with four brand new tracks and added live performances. James Blunt is touring the U.K. and Europe in support of the release, with completed dates including a stop at London’s Wembley Arena in February.
General Admission tickets for James Blunt are £55 plus £5.50 service charge.
New York funk band Cameo have released seventeen albums since their debut, ‘Cardiac Arrest’ in 1977. The band saw continued success in the 1980’s with their singles, ‘She’s Strange’, ‘Single Life’ and their U.K. top five record and accompanying top ten album, ‘Word Up!’. Cameo released their first single in nineteen years, ‘El Passo’ in 2019 and continue to tour with frontman Larry Blackmon, including their stop at the Rochester Castle Concerts on July 8th.
General Admission tickets for Cameo are £50 plus £5 service charge.
2 Tone Records band The Specials are well known for their two U.K. top five albums, 1979’s ‘The Specials’, produced by Elvis Costello and ‘More Specials’, released in 1980. Their top ten singles from this time include ‘Gangsters’, their cover of Dandy Livingstone’s 1967 track ‘A Message To You, Rudy’ and 1981 number one ‘Ghost Town’. The band have existed in various configurations over the years, including The Special AKA and Fun Boy Three, with most of the classic line-up reuniting in 2008 for their 30th anniversary. Original members Lynval Golding, Terry Hall and Horace Panter continue to tour as The Specials, releasing their latest album ‘Protest Songs 1924-2012’ in 2021. Their concert at Rochester Castle closes out this year’s events on Saturday July 9th.
General Admission tickets for The Specials are £55 plus £5.50 service charge.
Special guests for all four nights are due to be announced soon. Entry for the Rochester Castle Concert events begins at 4pm with no further admission beyond 7:30pm and strictly no re-admission. Curfew is 11pm.
VIP tickets for all events are £99 plus £9.90 service charge.
For Accessibility tickets, please contact support@musicglue.com.
--------
For information on the Castle Concerts Covid-19 protocol, plus other frequently asked questions, please check their FAQ.
To sign up to their mailing list and keep up to date, visit the official Rochester Castle Concerts website.
Follow Rochester Castle Concerts on Facebook @rochestercastleconcerts.
--------
Follow and interact with Moths and Giraffes on Instagram and Facebook @mothsandgiraffes, and on Twitter @mothsgiraffes.
We have a Spotify Playlist! Featuring almost every artist we've written about on Moths and Giraffes, find some new music here.
For submissions, or if you’d just like to send us your thoughts, don’t hesitate to contact us via our social media accounts, our contact page, or via email at mothsandgiraffes@outlook.com. We receive a lot of emails though, so please bear with us!
