Uploaded March 2020 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
No-Man's (then going by No Man Is An Island) second ever performance, which was filmed as part of a battle of the band competition.
At this point the band was operating as a four piece with Stuart Blagden on guitar and Steven Wilson on keyboards, along with Ben Coleman on violin and Tim Bowness on vocals.
The following information is from Live Among The White Trash by Richard W. Smith
"The second gig was on Sunday 12th February at an event called “Bandsearch”. Winning a Battle of the Bands competition is usually a sure-fire kiss of death but history shows that no-man escaped the
curse. Tracks played were Dull Day (later known as Long Day Fall), Forest Almost Burning, Heaven’s Break, The Miracle Game (which was never released), Life Is Elsewhere and The Girl From Missouri. The band entered as a joke but still walked off with the title on their home turf of the Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead. One of the judges was none other than Jakko Jakszyk , guitarist with Level 42 and future member of King Crimson.
Long-term collaborator Michael Bearpark, who had played with Tim in Plenty and would do so again with Samuel Smiles, was also at this gig. “Tim introduced me to Steve shortly after they met, just after they’d made the first duo recordings as no-man,” he recalls. “I went to see them a lot when they played live - though not every show – mainly because they were good! But also because I knew Tim.” Mike kept a diary throughout this time – a source which has provided much of the information found here. He recalls no-man being favourites with the judges, if not the crowd. “They were competing against some very slick cabaret acts, and seemed completely out of place”. Steven also won a flanger pedal for “best instrumentalist” as keyboard player and arranger. But that wasn’t all. “Believe it or not, one of the other prizes for winning this was a “professionally” edited video of the performance, which I still have,” says Steven. “I can’t say that I have ever been able to face watching it”. (note: since writing this, Steven has finally faced his demons and watched the video to produce the set-list above). And there was more. “We also ‘won’ a couple of days in a professional studio,” says Tim, “which we used to record the appalling Girl From Missouri single.”
Setlist
Long Day Fall
Forest Almost Burning
Heaven's Break
The Miracle Game
Life is Elsewhere
The Girl From Missouri
No-Man's (then going by No Man Is An Island) second ever performance, which was filmed as part of a battle of the band competition.
At this point the band was operating as a four piece with Stuart Blagden on guitar and Steven Wilson on keyboards, along with Ben Coleman on violin and Tim Bowness on vocals.
The following information is from Live Among The White Trash by Richard W. Smith
"The second gig was on Sunday 12th February at an event called “Bandsearch”. Winning a Battle of the Bands competition is usually a sure-fire kiss of death but history shows that no-man escaped the
curse. Tracks played were Dull Day (later known as Long Day Fall), Forest Almost Burning, Heaven’s Break, The Miracle Game (which was never released), Life Is Elsewhere and The Girl From Missouri. The band entered as a joke but still walked off with the title on their home turf of the Pavilion, Hemel Hempstead. One of the judges was none other than Jakko Jakszyk , guitarist with Level 42 and future member of King Crimson.
Long-term collaborator Michael Bearpark, who had played with Tim in Plenty and would do so again with Samuel Smiles, was also at this gig. “Tim introduced me to Steve shortly after they met, just after they’d made the first duo recordings as no-man,” he recalls. “I went to see them a lot when they played live - though not every show – mainly because they were good! But also because I knew Tim.” Mike kept a diary throughout this time – a source which has provided much of the information found here. He recalls no-man being favourites with the judges, if not the crowd. “They were competing against some very slick cabaret acts, and seemed completely out of place”. Steven also won a flanger pedal for “best instrumentalist” as keyboard player and arranger. But that wasn’t all. “Believe it or not, one of the other prizes for winning this was a “professionally” edited video of the performance, which I still have,” says Steven. “I can’t say that I have ever been able to face watching it”. (note: since writing this, Steven has finally faced his demons and watched the video to produce the set-list above). And there was more. “We also ‘won’ a couple of days in a professional studio,” says Tim, “which we used to record the appalling Girl From Missouri single.”
Setlist
Long Day Fall
Forest Almost Burning
Heaven's Break
The Miracle Game
Life is Elsewhere
The Girl From Missouri
