Welsh rock icons Manic Street Preachers marked the 20th anniversary of their historic gig in Cuba by sharing a series of nostalgic images with fans today. The Gwent trio’s 2001 set at the Karl Marx Theatre in Havana saw them become the first western rock band to play in the country. Manics bassist and lyricist Nicky Wire shared a selection of photographs and memorabilia from the show on the group’s social media accounts this afternoon – including behind-the-scenes snapshots from photographer and long-time collaborator Mitch Ikeda.
In the two decades that followed the gig several other acts have made the trip to the Cuban capital (notably The Rolling Stones, Audioslave and Major Lazer) but the Manics’ performance remains the most momentous: not least as the audience that night included then-President Fidel Castro, who met with the band before the concert. His reported rebuttal to the band’s concern about the volume of their live shows – “It cannot be louder than war, can it?” – inspired the title of DVD recording of the gig (Louder Than War).
The band’s performance in Cuba coincided with the release of their sixth studio album Know Your Enemy, which reached number #2 in the UK Albums chart and spawned hit singles in the powerful, Beach Boys-influenced So Why So Sad; punk-rock banger Found That Soul; the haunting Ocean Spray; and the melodic folk-rock ode to Paul Robeson, Let Robeson Sing.
That musical tribute to the late entertainer and civil rights activist was one of several songs on the record to reference the ideological struggles underpinning the Cold War and the strained relationship between Cuba and the USA (“Went to Cuba to meet Castro/Never got past sleepy Moscow/…No passport ’til 1958/McCarthy poisoned through with hate”). In a similar vein came Baby Elián – a reflection on the simmering tensions between the two nations during the tragic Elián González custody affair – a song which reportedly prompted a standing ovation from the watching Fidel Castro during the Havana gig.
In the years following the seminal show, Manics singer and guitarist James Dean Bradfield expressed regret about the perception of the group’s proximity to the controversial Cuban leader in the run-up to the show. In a 2006 interview with the Repeat fanzine, he said “The only thing that really disappoints me is a picture of me shaking hands with Fidel Castro, because I really didn’t want to do that. That’s when I realised we’re just a bunch of rock musicians. I’d never want to shake any politician’s hand really. It just says to people “you endorse everything I stand for”, which I don’t.”
He added “I was inspired by the people we met out there. A lot of people were at peace with themselves – not in a corny b******t way – they just seemed civically proud. They were friendly and hospitable, the flipside, of course, is that there’s not the freedom there should be and people are force fed things. And yeah, the poverty in Havana was extreme. I mean the first thing a revolution is supposed to do is get rid of the symbolism of the gun and the gun is still everywhere as a symbol. It was a really strange experience.”
20yrs ago today- photo Mitch Ikeda pic.twitter.com/mEGuIZGGtZ
— ManicStreetPreachers (@Manics) February 17, 2021
Nicky Wire has also spoken about the surreal nature of the band’s Cuban experience. He was quoted in Hot Press saying: “Cuba is one of the last places in the world with a totally different political system and we wanted to see it. It wasn’t a carte blanche endorsement of Fidel Castro, although I have to say there were some things, some remnants of human spirit, which seem to have disappeared everywhere else.” The wordsmith added: “The gig itself was majestic. It was like 1972 in Sacramento watching The Eagles. You had people playing air guitar, black girls disco dancing to us and Fidel nodding along. The disquieting bit came afterwards when you realised that the propaganda machine was in full swing. You realise who you’re dealing with when you say, ‘Sorry, we can’t come to lunch because we’ve got to fly home’, and he goes, ‘We’ll hold the plane!’”
The gig was arranged with diplomatic support from former Neath Labour MP and Manics fan Peter Hain, then a minister in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, who had helped assure Cuban authorities of the band’s solidly socialist credentials. Hain, who befriended the group during the campaign for Welsh devolution, had previously tabled an Early Day Motion in Parliament recognising the band’s “robust defence of comprehensive education“.
ON THIS DAY / AR Y DIWRNOD HYN 20 years ago today @Manics became the first Western rock band to play Cuba when they launched Know Your Enemy at Havana’s Karl Marx Theatre. Fidel Castro was in the 5,000-strong audience and declared the gig “louder than war.” pic.twitter.com/T077FT75er — Welsh Music Podcast | Podlediad Miwsig Cymreig (@welshmusicpod) February 17, 2021
