Top 10 Most Unusual Gigs

1) In February 2007, British funksters Jamiroquai performed their record-breaking Gig in the Sky aboard a private Boeing 757. Officially the highest concert ever played!

2) The highest gig on land was performed by members of five different bands, in order to raise money for young victims of conflict in Nepal – by playing on Mount Everest! The musicians raised almost £30,000 for their cause.

3) Katie Melua entered the record books in October 2006 by playing on Statoil Troll A, a gas rig in the North Sea, making hers the deepest gig ever at a depth of 303 metres.

4) Scottish rockers Biffy Clyro must have one hell of a booking agent: just last year they were granted the unusual honour of being the first band to play in the Houses of Parliament!

5) The world of heavy metal has always been about challenging perceptions, never more so than when Swedish Death Metal legends Entombed took their place in the orchestra pit to perform with the Royal Swedish Ballet in 2002. Their eight night run at the Royal Opera Hall in Stockholm has to go down as one of the most unconventional performances of all time.

6) One of the most famous Unusual Gigs has to belong to Johnny Cash, whose Live at Folsom Prison album saw the country star playing for a crowd of inmates at one of Sacramento’s most notorious penitentiaries. But then again, what else would you expect from the notorious “Man in Black”?

7) In 2010, East End band Real Fur started something of a local trend for “Pop Up Gigs” staging a series of performances in their local laundrette.

8) The Beatles were never a band afraid to think outside the box when it came to their art. The roof of No 3 Savile Row, in London, will always be remembered as the site of their legendary farewell gig.

9) Pink Floyd’s Live at Pompeii is a performance movie with a particularly Prog twist. The film sees the band performing at the ancient Roman amphitheatre in Pompeii, with no live audience – save a couple of local children and the odd bewildered goat.

10) The Grateful Dead were big on psychedelia, but even by hippy standards their 1978 performance on the Giza Plateau in Egypt must have been a surreal experience. The band played beneath the great pyramids, with the audience experiencing a full lunar eclipse whilst they rocked out!

Top Ten celebrity demands

 1). Salvador Dali, the eccentric Spanish painter, astounded staff at the Meurice in Paris by requesting that they caught flies for him in the Tuileries Gardens. The reason for this bizarre request caused even more consternation – amongst the artists retinue was his pet ocelot Babou, who had clearly found the mini-bar snacks not to his taste.

2). Infamous dinosaur of rock and legendary ladies man, who asked for a woman of dubious virtue to be provided. Not an unusual request, you might think – but he specified that she should be bald and toothless.

3. Lovely ladies does seem to be a recurring theme throughout the years. Sammy Davis Jr asked for “groovy chicks”, and more recently, a world famous rapper included “sweet tarts” on his list of requests – he could of course be referring to a selection of Danish pastries, but we prefer the first interpretation!

4. The musical youth of today are pretty clueless when it comes to making proper rock star demands. Recent requests include an ironing board and steamed vegetables, a novelty yoyo, local postcards, complete with first class stamps, and Gummi bears. 

5). A corker here, from back in the days when men were men and rock stars knew how to misbehave – we think it’s unlikely that the two requests were connected, but we’d still love to know why a certain American heavy metal band asked for a sub machine gun, and a 12ft boa constrictor...

6). A toilet on wheels? Coming from a band whose legendary bad behaviour already saw hotel managers clearing valuable items from their suites prior to arrival, this request must have caused some head scratching. One can only imagine that they must have decided it would be easier to roll over to the window in case they fancied throwing non electrical items – for a change.

7). Granted - Superstars have egos, but none so huge as the actor who insists on having a lifesize cardboard cut-out of himself adorning his dressing room. The mind boggles as to why, but at least he knows that he will always have someone to talk to.

8). We’re not entirely sure why he can’t draw his own curtains when he fancies a power nap, but according to one well known swivelly – hipped rocker, he can’t go on tour without a “darkening team”

9). One star, with a common sense approach to disease control, makes sure that he minimises the risk of exposure to bugs by insisting that his staff disinfect every doorknob that he may touch. His old mum must be so proud...

10). Clearly no-one has told her that gold taps are so last century, because this pop diva demands them in every suite she visits, along with a new toilet seat, and someone to dispose of her used chewing gum. She and her dog not only drink a certain brand of mineral water, but bathe in it too. She also asks for a supply of Cristal – although it is not specified whether this is for drinking, or bathing, or both.  She also asks for a supply of kittens, puppies, and bendy straws to keep her entertained. Not all at the same time, we hope…

Top ten celebrity hotel room "re-modellings"

What do The Who, F Scott Fitzgerald and a crazed armadillo all have in common?

The armadillo may well have been a figment of a certain Hollywood actor’s imagination – but if he is to be believed, all three have been known to enjoy a spot of DIY hotel bedroom remodelling. In no particular order, here are the ten that tickled us...

  1)      The Hollywood actor/supermodel partnership, who blamed the utter devastation wrought upon a hotel room in Manhattan’s exclusive Mark Hotel on an armadillo. As the armadillo had apparently fled the scene (and would have been tricky to claim damages from anyway) the actor was arrested and made to settle the 10,000 dollar bill for repairing the damage.

  2)      An infamous Mancunian rocker, who may not have done any damage (on this occasion) but gave the hotel staff plenty of extra work – probably the first time they were ever presented with a room-service order for a trampoline. Apparently he just likes to bounce. A tall order perhaps, but at least he occupies himself with low-impact aerobic exercise rather than throwing TV’s out of windows.

  3)      Aerosmith. The legendary rockers had a very organised approach to hotel room trashing. They came prepared – carrying chainsaws and extension cables (apparently, in rockstar land, you get more points for throwing televisions that are still on when they hit the ground!) on tour with them, specifically to assist them in achieving satisfactory levels of chaos and destruction.

  4)      The Who are renowned for their antics, (although age must be mellowing them - Roger Daltrey was one of the first to complain about having his sleep disturbed by the armadillo incident). Keith Moon celebrated his 21st birthday in style – blowing up the toilet in his hotel room with a stick of dynamite, before stripping to his underpants and driving a car into the hotel pool. The Who are reputedly banned from every hotel in the Holiday Inn chain – for life.

  5)      The grand-daddy of hotel room makeovers was author F Scott Fitzgerald, who started the trend back in the 1930s, aided and abetted by wife Zelda. The couple set fire to their hotel room in LA’s Ambassador Hotel and fled, allegedly to avoid paying the bill.

  6)      Led Zeppelin  -  the monsters of rock enjoyed nothing more than laying waste to hotels. Not content with throwing TV’s out of windows and a bit of light room trashing, they preferred to book whole floors, allowing them to ride motorbikes, throw legendary parties and carry out imaginative  invasions of their groupies’ personal space – often using fish...

  7)      Whilst celebrities need little encouragement to set about their hotel rooms, some hoteliers are more than happy to invite them in for a spot of light destruction. One of the highest profile trashings was French hotel The Royal Monceau, which was due for demolition. To save himself a few pennies, the owner flew in celebrities from around the world and invited them to wreck the joint.

  8)      Pop songstress and celebrity mother whose skills are being passed on to the next generation. Her little darlings have already caused thousands of dollars worth of damage to a hotel room using  nothing but a box of crayons and a pair of scissors. The angelic pair drew on every wall, wrecked the curtains, and used the hotel pool as a toilet, forcing their red faced-mother to cough up nearly  20,000 dollars in compensation.

  9)      Professional wafter who likes to indulge in “rockstar lite” behaviour. Not physically strong enough to launch a TV out of a window, and too concerned about damaging her nails to ever be more than a slight nuisance to hoteliers, she has nonetheless done her bit for the cause by ... writing her name on the walls of a hotel room. One suspects that it wasn’t done with destruction in mind – but just in case she forgot who she was. It’s a blonde thing.

  10)   Even fresh-faced, evangelical Christian American boy bands have their moments. Having pledged to remain celibate and sober, these boys have few avenues to let off steam, but still managed to indulge in some rockstar behaviour - bashing holes in the floor of a London hotel room. Their motives were pure though – they were allegedly practising their back flips! In true teenage boy style, they then attempted to conceal the damage...with a coffee table.  

Ten unusual hotels that every intrepid traveller should try before they die!

1)   The Giraffe Manor, Nairobi, Kenya
The Giraffe Manor was built in 1932, by Sir David Duncan, and modeled after a Scottish hunting lodge. Located in Nairobi, with a view of Mt. Kilimanjaro and the Ngong Hills, it is located on 115 acres, which are home to the Rothschild giraffes, who were moved onto the property after the loss of their natural habitat. Not many hotels give you the oportunity to hand feed giraffes from your bedroom window!
http://www.giraffemanor.com/
 
2)   The Library Hotel, Manhattan, New York
For those with a love of books and learning, the Library Hotel is for you. The floors are set according to the 10 main categories of the Dewey Decimal Classification system... arts, religion, philosophy, mathematics and more. Each room has a selection of books which reflect the theme of each floor.
http://www.libraryhotel.com/
 
3)   Karostas Cietums Hotel, Liepaja, Latvia
The Karostas Cietums started as a Russian prison and remains much the same now as it was then. At the start of your stay, you will be handcuffed and led to your jail cell, stripped of your belongings, fed bread and water and allotted a bed of wood or iron mattresses. The hotel is only open from May 1 to October 1 each year. There have been reports that this is a haunted hotel, so in your cell you can expect to hear eerie noises, and maybe even meet some of the former prisoners.
http://www.karostascietums.lv/new/en/intro-en.html
 
4)   Utter Inn, Lake Malaren, Sweden
The Utter Inn is an art project by Mikael Genberg, which looks like a red garden shed stuck in the middle of the lake. The bedroom is located three meters below the lake, and is accessible by ladder. There are windows all around for fish viewing. Above water is a small deck to lounge on, and a row boat to explore the lake, or the island nearby.
http://www.unusualhotelsoftheworld.com/UtterInn
 
5)   Propeller Island City Lodge, Berlin, Germany
This strange hotel is the work of artist Lars Stroschen. Each room has a different theme. There is a flying bed room, which has slanted floors and a levitated bed; the upside down room, which features all the furniture on the ceiling and a trapdoor on the floor that you climb down to find your sleeping accommodations; they also have a padded room that is covered in green leather padding, from top to bottom. For those who have vampiric tendencies, they also offer a room with coffins as beds.
http://www.propeller-island.com/ 
 

6)   Hotel de Glase, Quebec, Canada
Each December, artists start constructing this unique hotel. Open from January 7 to March 27 each year, the hotel requires 400 tons of ice and 12,000 tons of snow, and is redesigned and rebuilt each year. Everything you see at this hotel is made of ice, including the fireplaces and the glasses to drink from. They do have heated washrooms and outdoor hot tubs. The hotel also offers a wedding chapel, which is considered a top 10 wedding location.
http://www.icehotel-canada.com/
 
7)   Das Park Hotel, Ottensheim Austria
We’ve all seen the big concrete sewer tubes waiting to be installed during construction work, and now Das Park gives the opportunity to stay in one of these tubes. Each weighs 9.5 tons and needs little up-keep, just a coat of varnish to help keep the moisture from cracking the cement.
Austrian artist, Thomas Latzel Ochoa, lends his touch to the inside of the tubes to make them a bit friendlier. The concrete stays cool on the inside and makes for a nice summer retreat. Das Park is open from May to October, and the rates are on a “pay what you think the stay was worth” system.
http://www.dasparkhotel.net/
 
8)   V8 Hotel, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
The V8 hotel is the perfect destination for car enthusiasts. Located in the city’s first airport, this hotel offers car themed rooms, including a Mercedes Benz car wash, Morris Minor Garage and a Route 66 theme. The beds follow the room theme by either looking like a continuation of the road, or a car. The whole hotel, from reception to the restaurant, features car memorabilia.
http://www.v8hotel.de/
 
9)   Capsule Hotel, Den Haag, Netherlands
These bright orange oil rig survival pods are located in The Hague. While they aren’t very big, they do offer sleeping bags for 3 people (silk-lined ones for the more upscale package). Capsule Hotel offers a James Bond basic survival package, and an upgraded version that features a library of all the 007 movies, silk sheets, champagne and a disco ball. Bikes are included for sightseeing around the area. Those prone to seasickness should probably not stay here as the pods tend to sway constantly.
http://www.unusualhotelsoftheworld.com/CapsuleHotel
 

10)   Hang Nga Hotel, Da Lat, Vietnam
Hang Nga Hotel (or “crazy house,” as it’s been dubbed by the locals) is hidden away in the mountain town of Da Lat. The house is considered one of the most unusual places in Vietnam, where they tend not to have too much unconventional architecture. A random assortment of cubbyholes and rooms that twist and turn are pieced together with bridges to form a maze-type place. The house also contains caged birds, spiderweb creations, enormous animals and other curiosities that create a fairytale like atmosphere.
http://www.suite101.com/content/hang-ngas-crazy-house-hotel-in-dalat-vietnam-a186431