LUCY BURDETTE: Loni Emmert asked this question on Facebook last week (thank you Loni!) and I knew we would have fun discussing it here: What was the first concert you ever attended?
And I am chagrined to have to say: The Monkees! (Couldn't it have been something uber-cool like the Beatles or the Rolling Stones?) But I was a teenager, madly in love with Micky Dolenz. And tickets to the 1967 Monkees concert in Detroit were what I wanted for my birthday most of all. Earlier that year, my best friend and I had slaved for hours to make Micky a "party kit" to celebrate his birthday. We'd made crepe paper party hats, and lord knows what other homemade gifts, and packed it off to his fan club address. I did get a signed photo back from the club. But I suspected he was waiting to give me a shout-out from the stage...
I don't remember much about the concert--except that we screamed and screamed. And even though it isn't listed on the set, I'm certain that Davy Jones dropped to one knee and crooned "The day we fall in love." The memory still sets my young-girl heart aquiver…
HALLIE EPHRON: Mine was pretty amazing. It was at the Hollywood Bowl Sept. 3, 1965, Bob Dylan made his Bowl debut as the opening act for Joan Baez. I was singing folk songs and learning guitar, and I am chagrined to admit that I did not get Dylan, not one bit. (A few years later I saw Big Brother and the Holding Company with Janis Joplin at the Filmore in SF and was similarly baffled.) JULIA SPENCER-FLEMING: Lucy, I have to admit, my first concert was similarly dorky: at the age of fifteen, my best friend and I went to see Barry Manilow when he came to Syracuse.
The tickets must have been a present from my parents, as I had spent all my allowance money on Barry Manilow records. Oh, my, how we screamed and sighed. He was so slim and cute and he had the fluffiest, most perfectly-blown-out seventies hair ever.Most memorable concert? Going to see the Grateful Dead in college and discovering AFTER I had gotten through security that one of my friends had hidden his stash in my purse.
HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: My very first? Well, my father was the music critic for the Chicago Daily news, and when I was pretty young, like, five, he would take me to the symphony. Was I well behaved? I guess so...since he kept taking me. But apparently there was one memorable (for Dad) occasion where I must have been fidgeting and the man in front of us turned around and said: "Please keep that child quiet." And it was Yul Brynner!
And I would have loved to see the Monkees!
But my first real concert as a separate person was the Beatles at the Indianapolis Coliseum, a huge arena usually used for cows. I cried for DAYS. Before, during, and after.
One of the most memorable: some college pals and I sneaked off campus (in Ohio) and drove to Chicago to see Crosby, Still and Nash. They sang for a while, and it was great..and then they said: we'd like to introduce you to another guy who sings with us sometimes. And out came Neil Young!
And then they sang Suite Judy Blue Eyes...and out came Judy Collins!
And all the while, my parents thought I was in class.
But other types of concerts--my aunt was a huge theater buff and took me to opera, musicals etc when I was quite young. I saw Rigoletto at twelve and cried my eyes out because it was so sad.
DEBORAH CROMBIE: My first concert WAS the Beatles--on their first US tour in 1963, at the Dallas Convention Center, with my best friend, Franny, and a bunch of other girls from our 6th grade class. I have no idea now how we got tickets, or whose parents took us (certainly not mine...) We were on the 12th row, center. Could we see anything? NO. Everyone stood on their chairs, and I was short. Hear anything? NO. Non-stop screaming from the minute they took the stage until the end of the concert. Still, it was something never to be forgotten. Now I think, poor guys, having to play city after city to a bunch of hysterical screaming girls... No wonder they got tired of it.
Most memorable concerts from the last few years? The Police reunion tour. And Paul McCartney, a couple of years ago. Dallas was the last stop on his tour, and you could tell when he walked out on the stage that he was exhausted. But then the audience started cheering and clapping, and you could just see him taking in all that love and energy, absorbing it. He played his heart out for three hours--three hours!!-- and every second was fabulous. Still gives me chills just thinking about it.
SUSAN ELIA MACNEAL: OMG, Debs, the Beatles? Wow. <fans self> OK, I think my first concert was Sonny and Cher.
(No, I'm not joking. I was fairly young.) The most memorable is a toss-up between two. First is opera singer Leontyne Price at Artpark (outside on a perfect summer night under the stars — she finished with Gershwin's "Summertime"). And also Madonna's Blond Ambition Tour. (Anyone remember that? It was the one made infamous by the Gaultier cone bra.) It was amazing and life-changing. (Seriously. I'm being serious here, folks. I think Madonna is a fabulous performance artist. Seriously.)Reds, do you remember your first concert? Are you willing to tell us about it??
And just for fun, here's Kaye Barley's Memory Quilt, made from the concert t-shirts she scored over the years!
Sad to say, there's no concert-going in my past . . . but I did spend a lot of time going to Broadway shows . . . .
ReplyDeleteHere's the part where I start throwing out names and the rest of you scratch your heads and go who?
ReplyDeleteMy first concert - Sandi Patty (or Patti as she spelled it back then).
Next up was Don Francisco several times. Then Al Denson.
My favorite to see was Downhere, who I got to see several times before they broke up two years ago. I'm still upset about them breaking up. Love that band. Plus, they introduced me to Jason Gray since he was their opening act one year. I fell in love with his music and am now obsessed with it.
Most recent? Last October with Jason Gray, Laura Story, and headliner Steven Curtis Chapman. I was on the side, but right next to the stage. Great tickets from my perspective.
Now the explanation. I listen to Christian music. Granted, most of the artists I listed aren't the biggest names out there, but no one who doesn't listen to Christian music will have even heard of them.
One name you might recognized. I was thrilled to finally get to see Amy Grant in concert last summer.
Hank and Debs—The Beatles!!! That was the concert I would have given almost anything to go to! I wouldn't have been able to see either, Debs. But I would have been ecstatic to be there! And Hank... Crosby, Stills, Nash—and Young—before they were Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young? Wow!
ReplyDeleteHallie, my first real concert was also Joan Baez! When I was in high school my girlfriend and I went to a free outdoor concert that she gave on Boston Common. Halfway through she said she had a special guest. It was Bob Dylan! He was our other favorite. We were thrilled! He sang a few songs, and the two sang several together. It was great. Hallie I adored Bob Dylan and Janis Joplin! But my father teased me constantly by making fun of them. He especially hated Bob Dylan. So of course I played his albums very loud whenever he was around.
Actually... a few years before that, although I don't think you'd call it a concert, one of my mother's friends opened for Pat Boone at Blinstrubs in Boston, so he invited us to come and see the show. I wasn't a fan, but he was good... and it was a big deal to meet him. But... I was only 13 and didn't like the nightclub atmosphere.
Rhys—The Stones! Loved them!
I saw the Beatles in 1966 in Dodger Stadium. It was the first concert they ever held there. Tickets were outrageously expensive: six dollars! My sisters and I each took a friend. My dear father drove us with no intention of going in himself, so he sat in the station wagon in the parking lot reading the whole time. It was incredible.
ReplyDeleteOkay, first you have to understand that I am from Milwaukee (though I went to college in NYC, law school in Madison, and spent a couple of summers in Florence, Italy). First concert I ever went to? When I was seven or eight, my aunt and grandmother took me to a concert of a local favorite: Liberace. It was in a local auditorium with wooden floors and folding chairs, and we were in the front row.
ReplyDeleteThen, lots of Broadway musicals, string quartets, operas, classical music concerts ("Die Valkyrie" from the first row of the first balcony at the OLD Met in NYC), concert versions of operas ("Carmen"!) at Lewisohn Stadium on summer nights, and a pretty memorable concert version of "Don Giovanni" in the courtyard of the Pitti Palace in August of 1969. But the most memorable concert ever: Simon and Garfunkel at the Madison (WI) Colosseum in the fall of 1968. Packed. Accoustic, not miked. You could have heard a pin drop. "Hello darkness, my old friend"....
Most recent? Last summer, at the last minute, my sister called: "Hey, do you want to go see Sir Paul? I forgot that I have two tickets." Hot humid night, temps in the nineties, sitting amid a throng, way up high at Miller Park (Milwaukee baseball stadium). The man is older than I am and he BOUNCED as well as sang for over an hour and a half-- HOW?
Judy Collins at Bowdoin College, The Association at U. Maine, and The Turtles at Bates College, all 1968-9. And I was still in Maine in the summer of 1969. Me, the girl who grew up about ten miles from Max Yasger's dairy farm. Talk about a missed opportunity! On the other hand, I'd have been miserable in all that rain and mud.
ReplyDeleteKathy/Kaitlyn (yes, I am that old)
Broadway shows! Joan Emerson, writing it down for a future blog topic!
ReplyDeleteEllen Kozak: LIBERACE! I'll be chuckling about that all day.
ReplyDeleteThis is reminding me, I saw Martha and the Vandellas multiple times at college. "Come and Get These Memories!"
Tell us about a Broadway show Joan!
ReplyDeleteMark, you're right, haven't heard of those folks except for Amy Grant, who is lovely...
Reine, I never saw Bob Dylan but I did ask for his record when I was in 9th grade for Christmas. I played it over and over and over and my parents just scratched their heads...
And oh Kathy, imagine if you'd been to WOODSTOCK! Though the conditions did sound appalling--but what an amazing memory!
ReplyDeleteI have to say I'm most jealous of Susan! Huge Sonny and Cher fan here. I've seen Cher twice, and I did call Sonny's restaurant once to wish him a happy birthday.
ReplyDeleteMy first concert was Eurythmics. How very 80s! I'm sure I went to something with my parents before that--Maynard Ferguson, probably--but Eurythmics is the one I remember. And then Madonna, The Virgin Tour. Still have the T-shirt, and I'm planning to wear it to 80s night at my weekly dance class!
My first concert was Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show and it was before Cover of the Rolling Stone, the hit then was Sylvia's Mother.
ReplyDeleteMost memorable? Several come to mind. Barry Manilow, The Statler Brothers, and Kenny Rogers.
Not too many "big" groups come to the areas I lived in Iowa and South Dakota.
I didn't go to concerns as a teen, so my first was George Strait with the hubby after we were married. By then, I really didn't see the attraction.
ReplyDeleteMost memorable was, without a doubt, Tony Bennett when he came through Pittsburgh the year he turned 80 (I think it was 80). They gave him a birthday cake. It was a Heinz Hall and he turned off the mic and you could hear him sing perfectly. He begged the audience to never let them tear down that building because of the perfect acoustics.
I love this!
ReplyDeleteAs a little girl and as a pre-teen my parents and I went to Atlantic City for a week every summer. The week we would choose to go was usually based on who was appearing at the Steel Pier in concert. So looking back, it seems I've been attending concerts my entire life.
I remember seeing Paul Anka, Fabian, Bobby Rydell, Bobby Darin Frankie Avalon and Conway Twitty. And we also saw a Lawrence Welk review (yes, yes, we did) with Teresa Brewer and someone called "The Champagne Lady," along with the band and a lot of dancing. Polka comes to mind.
I clearly remember walking into the ballroom on the pier and seeing Louis Armstrong standing on a small platform playing his heart out. I was blown away.
While in college I saw The Temptations and The Four Tops, both at The University of Delaware.
And I remember telling my parents one Friday that I was going to the little town next door to a dance. But, instead we drove to Baltimore (something I was strictly forbidden to do) to see a Motown concert - Otis Redding, Martha and the Vandellas, Smokey Robinson, Mary Wells, Marvin Gaye and Gladys Knight & The Pips.
Since then, because I'm married to a guy who loves music and concerts as much as I do, I think we've seen every artist and group we've ever wanted to see - rock 'n roll and country. Except the Beatles - I will always be sad that I never saw the Beatles (although we did get to see Paul McCartney).
And I'm so glad I kept "most" of the concert Tshirts because I now have a huge quilt my sister-in-law made me from all the Tshirts I did keep. I love it as much as anything I own.
And here's a funny little Red aside - Hank Phillippi Ryan and I were both at a concert in Atlanta in 1981. Frank Sinatra and Sammy Davis, Jr. For a very sad occassion - do you remember what that was, Hank? (no, we did not know one another then - but we should have!).
Forgot to add recent: Emmy Lou Harris in Portsmouth a couple of years ago. Can that woman rock at age 65! She played her big guitar and sang every song, energetically, with her boots and her short skirt and her gorgeous voice, some with her band, some solo. I'd watch her every week if I could.
ReplyDeleteFirst, Hank, I am DYING of jealousy: Yul Brynner, and the Beatles, and Neil Young??? Dying, dying, dying here. My sister and I have made a pact to go to Canada someday, to see the museum dedicated to Neil Young in his little hometown.
ReplyDeleteFirst big concert: Peter Frampton. He was so tiny, he looked like a Ken doll wearing a big curly wig. It was so loud, my ears were permanently damaged.
Best concert: small venue with James Taylor. He chatted between songs. So wonderful.
I've met Judy Collins. She was signing her autobiography at Books by the Banks here in Cincinnati a couple years ago. She is still so, so beautiful, with those exquisite blue eyes, and she's as slim as ever.
ReplyDeleteSince I grew up in Hamilton, Ohio, and we never had a family car, the idea of going to a concert in the "big city" of Cincinnati--a mere 30 miles away--was as likely as going to the moon. So I was an adult, living in Cincinnati, and married, when I went to my first concert. It was Chicago. I was with my first husband, who was a cop, and there were people lighting up all around us. It was super uncomfortable, but the music was great.
The next concert was after our divorce. My next boyfriend took me to see Procol Harem. The warm-up groups were Golden Earring and a then little-known guy by the name of Billy Joel, who blew us away with his music, and with the fact that he was playing harmonica, singing, and playing the piano at the same time.
Now we live two miles from the premier concert venue in the Tri-State, and in the 25+ years it's been open I've been to maybe six concerts there. The two most memorable: Willie Nelson and John Fogarty on the same stage. Kaye, you would have loved it!
The other was a Cincinnati Pops concert (the Symphony owns the venue, Riverbend) with Doc Severinson as the guest. It was his 70th birthday, and I was with my friend whose husband was not only a bassist with the Symphony, but also good friends with Doc and his wife, so I was invited to go backstage for Doc's birthday party after the concert. I'd make the remark to my friend during the concert that I'd always wondered if horn players were good kissers, and she repeated it to Doc! He said, "Pucker up, baby", and gave me a big kiss!
My husband's twin brother and a couple of friends went to Woodstock, and I knew a couple others who went. Isn't that wild, to know that many people who went there? I can't imagine how they even knew about it, or where it was, pre-Internet tom-toms and Google Maps, etc.
Ramona, Peter Frampton married a Cincinnati girl (I think they've split up in the last couple years), and he lived here for several years while their kid(s) were in school. In a house our close friend built. So they knew the Framptons (and were kind of neighbors), but we never got to meet them. Now he's sold that house and moved to the West Coast, as far as I know.
ReplyDeleteDiane, you called Sonny to wish him happy birthday??? Did you get to talk to him?
ReplyDeleteMary, that Tony Bennett moment is amazing...
And Kaye, you are a concert-going fool!
I have a couple others I loved--Bonnie Raitt and Emmy Lou Harris--would follow them everywhere. Traffic in NYC during college, plus David Bowie in Philly, and Lou Reed right in NJ. I was lucky to hang around with music fiends on the cutting edge. (Not like the days of the Monkees:)
Concert story: I visited my sister when she lived in Providence, and she told me that a local opera star was retiring, and was doing a concert for the people who had supported her over the years. We decided to go, and my nephew, then two, insisted that he wanted to go with us. We explained that it would just be a lady singing, and that he wouldn't know the songs, but he insisted. Then he insisted that he had to go in his best clothes: jacket and tie!
ReplyDeleteSo we walked in, and the woman sang her arias, and he sat there quietly for the duration of each, and then politely applauded when the rest of the audience did. The people around us kept asking us "How old is that child," because they couldn't believe how well behaved he was.
We left at intermission, not wanting to press our luck.
That was me-- stupid computer posted without letting me finish typing my name.
ReplyDeleteWonderful story about your nephew Ellen. Has he turned out to be an opera buff?
ReplyDeleteKaren, I'm pretty sure we had Chicago do a concert in our high school gym...though I could be making that up...
OH, when I was in college, we all decided to go to this music festival thing..I wrote it n my calendar: "music festival.". But then the time came to actually DO it--we slacked. And stayed in Ohio.
ReplyDeleteIt was Woodstock=although it wasn't called that then, of course.
I still haven't decided whether that was a good decision!
Ramona,awww... xoxo
ReplyDeleteAnd we saw Emmy Lou, too, YEARS later. SO fabulous.
The Turtles! Flo and Eddy---our ducks are named after them! (Sort of..) :-)
ReplyDeleteI too saw the Blond Ambition tour Susan. It was an incredible theatrical event which I feel changed the way concerts were presented forever, moving forward.
ReplyDeleteMy first concert was Sheena Easton (with opening act, Michael Damien from The Young and the Restless). The less said about this, the less embarrassing it will be. I hope. ;)
Favorite concert experience was sitting front row to see Renee Fleming in La Jolla, CA.
Most seen on tour: a close call between Tori Amos, Melissa Etheridge and Emmylou Harris.
Hank, judging by what happened later to everyone I know who went to Woodstock, you probably made the best decision. :-)
ReplyDeleteFirst concert? Joan Baez, summer of '71 in Cleveland. A guitar, that voice, wonderful! Most memorable? Bookends in a way--saw Gordon Lightfoot at Mershon Auditorium at Ohio State about '76--in his absolute prime! And then, last summer, he came to our hometown theater--78 years old and still making magic--thanks to my sis, we had backstage passes and I got to shake the hand of a legend!
ReplyDeleteConcert I'm most envious of? Ellen's Simon and Garfunkel, no mike!
I saw Bob Dylan in New Haven, CT in the fall of 1964! I guess he was my first big name concert star.
ReplyDeleteI haven't seen many, but had the experience of seeing Joan Baez twice -- once at the Greek Theater at UC, Berkeley and again at the Lincoln Memorial as part of a protest event.
I took my preteen daughters to see Cyndy Lauper & that was a lot of fun!
This is a fun question!!
My sister who is three years younger was really into pop music -- she saw Herman's Hermits, and a family she babysat for took her to see the BEATLES in a Broadway Theater. My mother and I drove her into Manhattan and we went to the Lunt-Fontaine theater to see an operetta!
The Bee Gees, when I was in college. They were the size of the miniatures on my father's HO gauge train set up from the seats where I was, but I was in heaven.
ReplyDeleteBlood, Sweat and Tears,circa,1976,in club in San Francisco. In college, I made a friend with one of the band member's brothers and he got me in for free. I couldn't even afford the parking.
ReplyDeleteNot a big concert, but I saw The Lettermen when I was a freshman in college.
ReplyDeleteWent to see Sly & The Family Stone my senior year.
Didn't go to another big concert until I escorted my daughter & her best friend to a KISS concert.
I am much more a book fan than a music fan. 8-)
I take it you don't mean classical music with parents in the high school auditorium? There was an organization that brought fine music to small towns - I actually saw Leontyne Price just before she became famous. The first big time, grown up one? Must have been Peter, Paul and Mary freshman year in college.Lemon Tree was a huge hit then and I did love them
ReplyDeleteBruce Springsteen, Born to Run tour in '76 - awesome!
ReplyDeleteI never saw the Stones, Rhys, so I'm jealous. I did see Led Zeppelin, and Chicago, and CSNY (also on their reunion tour) and too many other bands to name. Most of these concerts I don't remember all that well, for the, ahem, obvious reasons.
ReplyDeleteA really fun one, a few years ago, Sting and Annie Lennox. That was a rocker!
First concert was Duran Duran in 1987.
ReplyDeleteBest concert was The Cure in 1992.
Most recent was Iggy Pop and the Stooges (my husband dragged me) in 2003. Yes, it's been awhile. I don't get out much now that I have small kids. Plus tickets are ridiculously expensive these days. I'd rather spend my money on other things--like books!
~Kimberly
I'm not sure if it was Barry Manilow or Judy Collins I saw first. Julia, I thought Barry Manilow was wonderful, too. I went to see him twice and was sure that he would eventually single me out of the crowd for a special dedication. Hehehe! When I went to see Judy Collins on my college campus (University of Kentucky), the friends I went with had weed and were smoking it. I think I might have had one puff, wasn't really into that. What I was naive about was that I thought I wouldn't get in trouble with them if they were caught.
ReplyDeleteMy most memorable concert was several years back when I took my adult son and his girlfriend to see Sir Elton John. My daughter was going with her husband and some friends, too, but I didn't know where they were sitting. It turned out they were sitting just a few rows behind us, and the two seats beside me on the end remained empty. My daughter came down to our row for quite a while, and we all sang the Elton John song we had sung when they were growing up, "Tiny Dancer." So much fun!
Another person I've always loved that I saw later in life was James Taylor. Such a great concert with so many favorites.
I am so jealous of those of you who got to see the Beatles or the Rolling Stones. So cool. I almost forgot that I did see Chicago, which was a college concert, too. Fun topic today!
Lucy/Roberta - I truly am a concert going fool! Truly!
ReplyDeleteI just pulled out our memory quilt of concert Tshirts and here's a few of the shirts along with some concerts I've seen but have since "lost" the shirts - Simon & Garfunkle, Allman Bros., Hank Williams, Jr., Eric Clapton, The Rolling Stones, Willie Nelson (more times than I can remember), Bruce Springsteen, Bonnie Rait, Tom Petty, Don Williams, George Strait, Tim McGraw, Rod Stewart, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Brooks & Dunn, Steppenwolf, Janis Joplin, Dolly Parton.
My first concert without the parents was Supertramp at the Milwaukee Arena. The first show I ever saw was with my folks, The SPinners at Summerfest.
ReplyDeleteKaye, email me a picture of the quilt and I'll post it at the bottom of today's post so everyone can drool? raisleib at gmail dot com
ReplyDeleteLucy/Roberta - Will do!
ReplyDeleteActually, I wrote about it here - with several pictures:
http://www.meanderingsandmuses.com/2012/12/christmas-2012-memories-including-quilt.html
That quilt would be perfect here! I am very impressed!
ReplyDeleteI posted a picture of Kaye's quilt so you can scroll up and take a look...
ReplyDeleteOne of my first concerts was Sonny and Cher; I took my pre-teen daughter Julia as a birthday gift. And she grew up to be one of your Reds... Hope she remembers!
ReplyDeleteLove the quilt, Kaye!
ReplyDeleteMark, Steven Curtis Chapman? I'm green with envy . . . .
Lucy, we've gone to a fair amount of community theater and summer stock shows and have always enjoyed the performances.
I'm so not an opera fan, but I did have season tickets to the Met one year and I have to admit that being there was almost as good as going to a play.
But Broadway is an experience like no other . . . you can almost feel the excitement in the air around you and it's always spectacular . . . .
My favorite concert ever was Sammy Davis Junior. What an entertainer. What a voice.
ReplyDeleteOh, you guys, so many terrific names here. Susan, I am green with envy about Leontyne Price! Mark, I saw Don Francisco just last year and he is still terrific. Have you seen Phil Keaggy? He is still the best guitar player in Christian music and probably in the world. Eric Clapton is close, though.
ReplyDeleteMy very first concert was The New Christy Minstrels (for my 14th birthday). I was a folk musician fan very young. Judy Collins at Red Rocks for my 25th birthday was so memorable! And that same year I got to see Frank Sinatra. O my gosh, even as an old man he was terrific.
We saw John Sebastian in a small venue and he was just wonderful, very personable, and plays a mean harmonica in addition to having such great songs, from Lovin' Spoonful days and later.
But I have to say the best was Elton John. He did a performance in Laramie, Wyoming and we took all three of our children, who were able to say that their first rock concert was Elton John!
A little more history: Peter, Paul and Mary did a fundraiser for LBJ in the fall of 1964, here in Milwaukee. I was in charge of the volunteer ushers, and I had roped off an area for them to sit in when they were through, but a bunch of city and county officials took it over.
ReplyDeleteI went back stage and asked Peter, Paul and Mary if I could bring my volunteers back to meet them, telling them what had happened. they were really nice about it. The kids got to hang out backstage with them before they went on. Maybe better than, but at least as good as having good seats, I hope.
I must steal Kaye's idea and make a quilt out of all my concert t-shirts from my teenage years!
ReplyDeleteMy favorite recent concert was probably Lou Reed, a few years before he passed away.
(I plead the 5th when it comes to my first concert. But I'll provide a hint that it may have been a boy band with the initials NKOTB, a few years before I had my drivers license...)
Kaye, I love the quilt! Thanks for posting the photo, Lucy! xo
ReplyDeleteLucy,
ReplyDeleteI called Sonny Bono's restaurant on his birthday. He wasn't there, but his mother was, so I gave her the message. I think that was the same year I designed the museum of Sonny & Cher memorabilia for my architectural drawing class...!
I think my first rock concerts were when I was a college freshman. At U of Texas in Austin you could buy a blanket tax that covered sports and concerts. I do remember seeing the Association (Windy, Along Comes Mary) but can't remember who else. I did manage to coerce my dad into taking me to see Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66 when we lived in New Orleans.
ReplyDeleteMy first concert was so long ago...I think it was Adam singing "Indian Love Call" to Eve in the Garden of Eden. No, really... A memorable one was The Kingston Trio at the Greek Theater. The entr' acte introduced a new young guy, Roger Miller. He blew everyone away; no one wanted him to leave the stage. Does anyone remember ANY of these names?
ReplyDeleteLenita in Chatsworth
Blood, Sweat, and Tears at the Hollywood Bowl in 1970. Lots of touring company Broadway musicals at the LA Music Center growing up. Long dry spell when I was in the military, but more recent great concert/shows: BB King, Willie Nelson, Tommy Emmanuel, but I think my favorite adult musical experience was getting to see the Canadian National Touring Company version of Phantom in Ottawa.
ReplyDeleteOh, best concert too? That would have to be The Who at Madison Square Garden...invited by our post-college daughter. It was a milestone in our family life. And those guys could still rock the house. Second best would be Bob Seger, terrific himself, and his buddy, one B. Springsteen showed up for a number. Or maybe James Taylor and Carole King together.Or..or...how do you choose?
ReplyDeleteFirst concert ever - Creedence Clearwater Revival in Dallas while in college (late 60's) - everyone was singling along and dancing in the aisles. Favorite? Bob Dylan and the Band in Fort Worth (early 70's). Worst ever? Neil Young here in Austin - he started with some of his slower and quiet stuff on the piano and the young men in the crowd completely killed the sound.
ReplyDeleteHe was pissed, switched to his rock stuff with the sound so loud that we left in self-defense. My ears were ringing for at least 15 minutes after leaving. A shame as I'd been a fan since the Buffalo Springfield days.
How nice to have Julia's mother comment! I'd like to thank you, Mrs. Fleming, for the talented daughter you raised, one of my favorite authors. I'm betting Julia remembers that concert.
ReplyDeleteKaye, that is one of the coolest quilts I've ever seen! Wow!
I grew up in New Orleans, surrounded by music everywhere in the city. But this lil Southern gal was transplanted temporarily to New York just in time for the Beatles in concert at Shea Stadium! Couldn't hear a thing really above all the screaming, but it was an experience of a lifetime for this Beatlemaniac!
ReplyDeleteBeen to many concerts through the years, but two of my favorite events were at Texas International Pop Festival in 1969 and Atlanta Pop Festival in 1970. Whole lotta days of crazy outdoor fun, but as Deb said, I don't recall all the details for obvious reasons! These days I greatly prefer smaller indoor venues with air-conditioning and comfy seats!
I loved reading all the comments today. What a great topic!
Debs - soooo jealous that you got to see Led Zeppelin. I was too young to see them before John Bonham died.
ReplyDeleteMy first concert was either Journey or KISS in the early 80's. I've been to so many concerts over the years that I wish I'd kept all of my concert t-shirts...the quilt was a great idea!
The top three concerts I've seen are: Van Halen's 1984 tour, the Who in 2000 and AC/DC's the Razor's Edge Tour in 1992/3. Rock on!
I'm not really into concerts, I'd prefer music videos or a concert DVD. The only concerts I've seen were free ones. Sadly, they are no longer free at the state fair. I did see Kool and the Gang around 1986 at the Ohio State Fair in Columbus. At different state fairs my parents saw Barbara Mandrell and Juice Newton. The only other concert I saw was Weird Al Yankovic around 2000 or '01 here in downtown Toledo. Bob Seger has been here a few times recently for concerts. Elton John was here once. Another free concert was in high school in the mid to late '80's when the Air Force band came from Dayton and performed Top 40 hits.
ReplyDeleteWish I could've seen The Monkees. I know when they toured in the 80's they came here to Toledo. I was a teen then. Didn't have the money to go because I didn't work.
I have heard of Sandi Patti even though I've never listened to her music. Didn't realize she changed the spelling of her name.