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    Surprise special guests

    Spunoff from the Irredeemable artists thread, gigs you were at where you had a surprise guest appearance.

    I mentioned Peter Kay showing up and shitting all over a Clapton gig in Manchester, but an much more welcome example was watching Neil Finn at the Apollo circa 1998. Three quarters of the way through, Johnny Marr joins for "How Soon Is Now?" and the place went crazy.

    #2
    All time best would be Neil Tennant guesting with Suede at the Roundhouse around the time of Coming Up; they performed Saturday Night and Rent as duets between him and Brett.

    When 808 State supported Happy Mondays at the G-Mex in 1990, my friends and I got waylaid playing bar billiards, pleased to find a working table. We walked into the hall just as Bernard Sumner waved goodbye to the crowd after his guest vocal spot. Stings to this day.

    Barry Adamson wins the weirdest combination of special guests in one show prize, lining up Nick Cave and burlesque artist Immodesty Blaize for a show at the Queen Elizabeth Hall some years ago.

    The Will.I.Fucking.Am and Prince episode is only carried across for completeness.

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      #3
      When we saw Bruce & the E Street Band at the old Wembley in 1988, Edwin Starr joined Bruce on War.

      And not quite a guest, but the night I saw Van Morrison double billing with Bob Dylan at Madison Square Garden in 1997, it was the day Carl Perkins died. They dueted Blue Suede Shoes between Van's and Bob's sets.

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        #4
        In 1984 I saw Echo and the Bunnymen at Irvine Meadows Amphitheater in Southern California. I think the Fuzztones were the opening band. But between them and the Bunnymen, Billy Bragg played a short set. He was not listed on the bill. I heard some guy yell out, "What manhole did you climb out of" during Bragg's set. Maybe that guy would have the same opinion now but I doubt it. I will say, though, that this was quite an odd bill.

        At the time, I hadn't heard of Bragg; it took a couple years before he started to get some airplay on local radio stations.

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          #5
          Elvis Costello brought him out of Los Lobos on stage for three numbers during the solo part of his show at Glastonbury in 86(?) though this being Glastonbury it wasn't really a surprise that he was there as Los Lobos had played earlier that day. (At the end of his full solo set Costello did two encores during the second of which the curtain got drawn back to reveal the Attractions with whom he proceeded to do a whole new set - which again was a huge and very welcome surprise

          My favourite though was taking my oldest friend when he was visiting me in Porto to a club to see local funk/jazz favourites Pedro Abrunhosa e os Bandemonio. I'd seen them play a couple of times before and they were always great but this time there was a new guy on stage with them. My mate turned to me half way through and said "That guy looks like Maceo Parker". At the end of the first two songs Abrunhosa duly announced him as such to the crowd. About 10% of us whooped and hollered and the rest looked a bit perplexed. Anyway it was a fucking superb gig. Turns out Parker was over recording their first album with them.

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            #6
            I just remembered that I saw Amy Winehouse guest with Paul Weller at the Roundhouse soon after it reopened. He also wheeled out the one from The Libertines who isn't Pete Doherty and the singer from current residents of the where-are-they-now file Hard-Fi, so a one in three strike rate isn't all that great.

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