GIRLSCHOOL's first-ever concert in Japan is finally getting a proper release. Cleopatra Records will put out Tokyo Breakdown, a recording of the band's January 21, 1982 show in Tokyo, on November 6 — on CD and, for the first time, on vinyl. The live version of "The Hunter" is out now as the first single.
The show was a milestone on two counts: GIRLSCHOOL were the first all-female British band to play live in Japan, and one of the very first New Wave Of British Heavy Metal acts to make it there at all. The release marks the gig's 45th anniversary and continues Cleopatra's series of classic GIRLSCHOOL live archives, which earlier this year brought us the band's 1981 Reading Festival headline set, Nothin' To Lose In Reading.
Vocalist and guitarist Kim McAuliffe remembers the trip as pure chaos. The band were mobbed by screaming young fans the moment they stepped out of their hotel, and the reception inside the venue was even louder — so loud, she says, that they felt like THE BEATLES. That crowd noise runs all through the recording, starting with the band's intro tape of aircraft and sirens.
The setlist leans on the two albums GIRLSCHOOL had out at the time, Demolition and Hit And Run: "C'mon Let's Go" opens the night, followed by "Victim", "Kick It Down", "Breakdown" and their breakthrough cover of "Race With The Devil". The set closes with a run of "Yeah Right", "Hit And Run" and "Tonight" before ZZ TOP's "Tush" sends everyone home. Four tracks are exclusive to the CD.
Cleopatra says more archival live material from this peak era is coming in 2027, focusing on GIRLSCHOOL's first U.S. tour in April 1982.
Tracklist:
- C'mon Let's Go
- The Hunter
- (I'm Your) Victim
- Midnight Ride (CD only)
- Race With The Devil
- Kick It Down
- Don't Call It Love
- Don't Stop
- Breakdown (CD only)
- Nothing To Lose (CD only)
- Watch Your Step
- Future Flash
- Yeah Right
- Hit And Run
- Tonight
- Tush (CD only)