The boys put in a spellbinding show to a packed Carling Academy in Liverpool last Saturday night. Proving once again that Amsterdam are as good a live band as we have in the UK and the reason why so many people travel so many miles to support our heroes.

After coming onstage to a huge cheer with Paulie taking over on ‘intro’ duties the boys then raced through Amsterdam classic after classic and threw in a couple of surprises as well. The Amsterdam choir was in full voice and with Ian not having to sing hardly any of Love Phenomenon and the new version of one of Ian’s older songs Fair Blows the Wind for France shamed the original.

The setlist was:

The boys will perform a final warm up for the biggest tour in Amsterdam history at Ian and The Engine Room’s local pub The Red Lion in Little Sutton on Friday 24 February. Tickets can be reserved by calling 0151 339 2496.

A unique chance to catch the boys just yards from their own homes and a very rare Little Sutton showing!

Watch this space for exciting news about the next Amsterdam single and a tour questionnaire answered by the lads.

The four lucky people to win Paulie’s personally designed special one of a kind t-shirts are:

Lucy Kirkham
Jimmy Andrews
Gaynor McTaggart
Mark Baker

They will be in the post this weekend, well done!

Meanwhile, the opening show of 2006 is shaping up to be a real cracker as it looks likely the boys will be joined onstage for a song or two by ‘a very special musician’. Tickets for the big night at the Liverpool Carling Academy are available now from Ticketweb and Seetickets.

Support on the night comes from new Liverpool band Rebbeca and BBC Radio Merseyside favourites The Circle.

Our heroes will hit the stage at about 9:30pm.

In other important news the boys will shortly be entering the studio to record the next all important Amsterdam single, watch this space for all up-to-date info!

There are now four tracks to listen to on the and Amsterdam MySpace page: Nostalgia, Takin’ on the World, Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves and Short Sharp Shock. You can also download Nostalgia from the downloads area.

In the run up to the gang’s first show of 2006 we’re offering visitors to the official Amsterdam website the chance to win a one-off piece of genuine Amsterdam memorabilia.

In a response to requests from Amsterdamsters after several recent shows, we are giving away four authentic Paulie t-shirts, as worn on stage during the bands various outings of 2005.

And why are these t-shirts so special? Each one of them was designed by Paulie, and is a one-of-a-kind item, so you won’t find them in any shop. The designs feature some of Paulie’s musical heroes, and include Elvis, The La’s, The Beach Boys and William Shatner! And all you have to do to get your hands on one is to answer a piece of Amsterdam trivia.

The b-side on the CD version of the last Amsterdam single Takin on the World was a duet between Ian and Paulie called You Can’t Trust the People. The question to win your very own Paulie t-shirt is: What was the catalogue number of the CD single featuring this track?

To enter, send your answer to amsterdamhq@hotmail.com along with your name and address. The closing date for entries is Monday 30 January, and winners will be drawn at random from the correct entries (and if you need a clue, try checking out the website of Amsterdam’s distributors Pinnacle Entertainment).

Good luck!

Tickets for the UK’s best live bands first show of 2006 are now available from Ticketweb and Seetickets.

The show is at the famous Carling Academy in Liverpool on Saturday 11 February and it promises to be one of those special nights that only Amsterdam can deliver.

It has been the most-successful year yet for the band – let Ian, Paulie and Dr Kev talk you through 2005 in the the annual end-of-year interview.

Finally, for those of you interested in such things, the little Russian girl who appeared on the front of Amsterdam’s debut album The Journey this year has now grown up into a brilliant abstract modern artist. You can view her work at www.myspace.com/synchronicitykat.