1. Katie Melua - Statoil Troll A
The raven haired singer songwriter and her band performed 303 metres below a North Sea oil platform in 2006, setting a world record.
2. U2 - L.A. warehouse roof
For the 'Where The Streets Have No Name' video the Dublin troubadors took to the top of a downtown building to play live in 1987. LAPD had other ideas.
3. Pere Ubu - Chislehurst Caves
Ticket holders had no idea where the American avant garde troop would be playing when they boarded coaches in Bromley, until they arrived at the dank rock formations.
4. Pink Floyd - Pompeii
Setting up and playing in an ancient amphitheatre, it is often thought the psychedelic dinosaurs had no audience but a camera crew. Not so. A gaggle of local children crept in to watch (probably didn't dance though).
5. Mike Peters - Empire State Building
The Alarm front fellow and band climbed 1576 steps to gig at the top of this NY landmark. A storm prevented them from playing outside and they performed their set in the gift shop.
6. Kosheen - Belgrade Poseidon Hall
A fairly ordinary looking concert hall was revealed pre-gig to be the site of a concentration camp and genocidal Nazi massacre. The band declined to play .
7. Jamiroquai - 747
The prat in the fuzzy hat and his white funk friends staged a gig on a Boeing jet flying from Germany to Greece. You don't get that on Ryanair. Fortunately.
8. Slim Jim, Glen Tilbrook, Mike Peters - Everest Squeeze, Stray Cats and Alarm blokes (plus 40 others) trekked for 14 days through the Himalayas to reach a base camp 18,000 feet up the world's tallest mountain.
Once there, they performed a few of their hits in the freezing cold raising £120,000 for cancer
charities.
9. Doctor & The Medics - Butlins Southend
A train full of freaks and hippies trundled from London to Southend unaware of their destination. Once at Butlins, they were treated to 24 hours of Hendrix tribute acts and a lengthy set by the good Doctor. Suitably refreshed they floated home.
10. The Clash - busking tour
After the departure of Mick Jones and the poorly received 'Cut The Crap' album, Strummer demanded the band go back to basics and led them through the streets of Britain, busking for pennies. A permanent split followed.
11. Sex Pistols - Ivanhoe's, Huddersfield
Amidst the filth and the fury of 'God Save The Queen' and 'Never Mind The Bollocks' the Pistols spent Christmas Day 1977 playing a free gig for the families of striking firefighters in West Yorkshire with buffet provided.
12. Louis Armstrong - Batley Variety Club
Strange as it may seem, this West Yorkshire venue was once known as the Vegas of the north and at its height in 1967 was such an attractive prospect it drew Satchmo across the Atlantic to perform in a former mill town.
13. Jesus & Mary Chain - Ambulance Station
A deserted, squatted ambulance station obviously. Before they released anything and started riots, the band played a chaotic set on London's Old Kent Road with Primal Scream's Bobby on drums and several dogs in the audience.
14. Ash & Catatonia - Sheffield Park
A gig notable for the fact that both headline acts chose to split up the day before and were replaced by, wait for it, Emma Bunton and A1.
15. Echo & The Bunnymen - Crystal Day
An event which invited bunnyfans to spend the day cycling a route which described the outline of a giant rabbit and touring the band's favourite Liverpool haunts, including a cafe.
Magnus Shaw, 2010
