Live: Kokusai Kaikan, Kobe

David Bowie and the Spiders From Mars performed at the Kokusai Kaikan in Kobe, Japan, on 16 April 1973.

It was the 108th date of the Ziggy Stardust Tour, which had begun on 29 January 1972. As with all the shows outside of Tokyo during the Japanese leg of the tour, the venue was approximately half full.

Kobe, the old capital of Japan and still its spiritual centre, was an impressive place and probably the prettiest city in Japan. I played tourist again, and the Monday night gig at the Kobe Kokusai Kaikan theatre was another near riot of teenage frustration; identical behaviour to the previous concerts.

The setlist

• ‘Hang On to Yourself’
• ‘Ziggy Stardust’
• ‘Changes’
• ‘Moonage Daydream’
• ‘John, I’m Only Dancing’
• ‘The Jean Genie’
• ‘Time’
• ‘Five Years’
• ‘Let’s Spend The Night Together’
• ‘Starman’
• ‘Suffragette City’
• ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Suicide’
• ‘Round And Round’