From Bluff to 90 Mile: Midge Marsden and Hammond Gamble

They’ve been friends for more than three decades; shared billings at the infamous final ‘Sweetwaters’ festival in ‘99 and ‘All Stars Play The Blues’ tour, supported The Eagles, Joe Cocker, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Fleetwood Mac; won admiration and recognition for services to music; and received accolades at both the APRA Silver Scroll Awards and the New Zealand Music Awards. Now Midge Marsden and Hammond Gamble are hitting a venue near you for a show that simply can’t be missed.

As a Rocktober special, Brent Eccles Entertainment present this Kiwi Blues and Roots duo on a combined tour the likes of which has never been witnessed before, as each artist performs a selection of his finest and most loved songs in back to back full-length sets with a combined encore that will bring the house down.

The “From the Bluff to the 90 Mile” theatre tour kicks off in Invercargill on Thursday 9 October after which the old friends play Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, Palmerston North, Napier, Tauranga, New Plymouth, Hamilton, Auckland, Whangarei, Kaitaia and finally Mangawhai.

After a career that’s gone from the Blue Diamonds, to 60s pop stardom with Bari and the Breakaways, to traveling the Southern states of America, playing in juke joints where a drunk shot out the lights of the cars outside, to the chart success of “Burning Rain”, to an award from the nation for his services to music, Midge Marsden at heart is still that bright eyed kid who lights up when the topic is music.

The tour coincides with the release of Hammond’s latest album – ‘Ninety Mile Days’, a fitting collection of all new originals covering the electrifying gamut of Gamble’s styles from McCartney-esque pop songs in ‘Memory No 1’ through gentle soulful ballads like ‘I Had a Dream’, to full-blooded blues rock songs such as ‘It’s Been Too Long’ which literally rings with Gamble’s lead guitar.

And so Midge’s ‘Travel N Time’ and Hammond’s forthcoming new album ‘Ninety Mile Days’ capture a fitting legacy to the history and longevity of two of New Zealand's blues and roots pioneers. With both albums sharing a combination of many tales, this memorable tour will share their story right throughout the length of the country ‘From The Bluff To The Ninety Mile’.

This isn’t just a tour for fans of the blues; it is an opportunity to witness mastery at work and celebrate two of the finest New Zealand musicians ever to grace the stage as they show off the full range of their talent in some of the best venues in the country. To miss out would be a sin.

"A vital crop of songs from a man whose latest vintage sounds are among his best work. Much recommended.” - Russell Baillie, NZ Herald’s Time Out