Merthyr rocks on Quo at the Castle day! PR519 Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council hosts the summer event of the year with Quo at the Castle!
It was the glorious sunshine, an amazing venue and fantastic music that provided the success of the Status Quo concert at Cyfarthfa Park, Merthyr Tydfil on Saturday 26th July 2008.
'Quo at the Castle', saw several thousand people come to the grounds of Cyfarthfa Castle to enjoy the action packed day which gave several thousands a day that will stay with them forever.
The event that was attended by all ages, lasted 11 hours with the doors opening at 12 noon. The day kicked off with the showcase stage where six talented Welsh bands, One Hot Puppet, The Last Republic, Celtic Pride, The Enormous Sizes, the Suspects and the Oratorios gave outstanding performances which got the crowd into the summer party atmosphere that lasted throughout the entire day.
Battle of the bands winner Along Came Man opened up the main stage, while ex-Stereophonics drummer Stuart Cable was there as main stage compere and co-producer of the concert, who also played with his new band, Killing For Company.
Following this, American rock-grass raconteurs Hayseed Dixie, a tribute band with a difference, covering hard rock classics in a country/bluegrass style appeared on stage. The colourful outfits and energy of this band provided a fantastic vibe in preparation for the main act.
Merthyr Tydfil was definitely rocking when Status Quo themselves arrived on stage opening with Caroline followed by all their old favourites like Down Down, Rockin All Over the World and In the Army Now.
Leader of the Council, Councillor Jeff Edwards commented: "The Status Quo concert was one of four major events that have taken place in Cyfarthfa Park over the last four years and builds on raising the awareness within South Wales of Merthyr Tydfil being an outdoor venue for major attractions. The Council is hoping to learn lessons from each of the above events and thus improve the quality of events in future years.
"Officers of the Council have worked extremely hard to make the Status Quo concert a success and having a showcase of local bands performing also got the community involved. As Leader of the County Borough, I felt priviledged to witness what was quoted by a resident as the best thing that has happened in Merthyr Tydfil for a long time."
The Mayor of Merthyr Tydfil, Councillor Clive Jones, also commented :"Everybody I spoke to during the day throughly enjoyed themselves. The weather was perfect for the event and I walked around and met many people from outside the County Borough from places like Portsmouth and beyond. As the Mayor of Merthyr Tydfil I was very proud that such an amazing event in such a fabulous setting within our County Borough was such a success. When Status Quo appeared The Mayoress and I were also in the crowd and the atmosphere was electric"
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