Maps of Music

Under Blackpool Lights (2004)

Where the lyrics of Under Blackpool Lights take you, and where it was really made.

The title comes from a line Jack White spoke on stage, about a place George Harrison said the Beatles used to visit.

Key places

Recording at The Empress Ballroom (2004)

Live show The Empress Ballroom — The DVD's 26 tracks were recorded at The Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens in Blackpool on 27 and 28 January 2004. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Under Blackpool Lights: first official DVD by the White Stripes
• 26 tracks in total
• Recorded at The Empress Ballroom at the Winter Gardens, Blackpool, England, on 27 and 28 January 2004
• Directed by Dick Carruthers using super 8 film
• Released 22 November 2004
• Includes several cover songs, as with most White Stripes live performances

Background

• Title comes from a moment in which Jack White addresses the audience
• He quotes George Harrison saying the Beatles used to go see Blackpool lights
• Martin Scorsese's concert film The Last Waltz (1978) served as the reference point
• Jack did not want the DVD to look like typical MTV Films footage
• During the DVD's production, Jack said he felt like a self-directed actor rather than himself

Recording

• Cover songs include "Take a Whiff on Me", "Outlaw Blues", "Jack the Ripper", "Jolene", "Death Letter", "Goin' Back to Memphis" and "De Ballit of de Boll Weevil"
• Setlists from both nights are listed as external links
• Personnel: Jack White on vocals, guitar and piano; Meg White on drums
• Track list includes "Seven Nation Army" and "Hotel Yorba"

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• The White Stripes was an American rock duo formed in Detroit, Michigan, in 1997.
• The group consisted of Jack White (guitar, keyboards, piano, vocals) and Meg White (drums, percussion, vocals).
• The duo began as part of the Michigan underground garage rock scene.
• Their debut single "Let's Shake Hands" was released on vinyl in February 1998.
• In 1999 they signed with Sympathy for the Record Industry and released their self-titled debut album.

Members

• Jack White played guitar, keyboards, piano and sang.
• Meg White played drums, percussion and sang.
• Jack wrote all the original songs, while the duo composed and performed them.
• The duo performed without a bass player.

Career

• White Blood Cells (2001) brought the band commercial success and placed it at the forefront of the garage rock movement.
• Elephant (2003) won the band its first Grammy Awards and produced the signature song "Seven Nation Army".
• Get Behind Me Satan (2005) experimented with piano and marimba.
• Icky Thump (2007), the sixth and final album, returned to blues and punk influences.
• The band went on hiatus in 2007 and officially ceased recording and performing in February 2011.
• The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2025.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Jack White said he felt like a self-directed actor rather than himself on the DVD
• He was deeply frustrated by his performance in the film
• He felt his guitar was discordant, his effects did not come in on time, and his movement was clumsy
• He was highly critical of the performance, saying the band looked "boring and flat"
• He pointed out that any mistake Meg White made would be noticed immediately by the audience
• He felt intimidated by the audience, fearing that a joke would get no laughs
• He was so absorbed in the songs, which he felt were the film's saving grace, that he forgot to smile
• A scene showing how he used his wah-wah pedal was removed at his request; nothing else was edited out to keep the essence of the film
• These are Jack White's own remarks, not reviews by outside critics

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• The title comes from Jack White's remark that George Harrison said the Beatles used to go see Blackpool lights
• Martin Scorsese's concert film The Last Waltz (1978) was the reference point, as Jack did not want typical MTV Films footage
• A wah-wah pedal scene was removed at Jack's request, and nothing else was edited out
• The 26 tracks include cover songs such as "Jolene" by Dolly Parton and "Outlaw Blues" by Bob Dylan

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.org

Maps of Ages ↗ (mapsofages.com)

Privacy · Contact