Brain Salad Memories

Happy New Year!

2012-01-03T09:56:00.000-08:00

I just saw this video this morning and had to share it. Tom Jones and CSNY performing Long Time Gone together on some German TV show back in 1969. I think the first 45" I had when I was a kid was Tom Jones singing "She's A Lady". I need to ask my parents how that happened...did I ask them to buy it for me? Whatever the case I loved that record and was devastated when my baby brother accidentally broke it.

This performance is brilliant! I've never heard Stills sing that high before. A good start to hopefully a Groovy Tuesday for everyone....enjoy!

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Great Western Forum, Los Angeles 11/11/91

2011-11-18T22:23:00.001-08:00

This is one of several shows where I took advantage of free tickets from work...it was a great perk.
I liked Petty's music and I may have owned one of his albums at this point, but I wouldn't have been looking to buy tickets to one of his shows. Fortunately I took advantage of the freebies.

The show was sort of a revelation. What I never really grasped before was what a great band these guys were...extremely tight! And it also struck me that they had so many great songs. It was like I had taken advantage of Tom Petty, I had let him entertain me for years and I never gave him anything in return...sort of like the relationship I have with my local NPR station. (I used to subscribe)

I can't find a setlist from the show but I found some clips from the tour. The band recorded a concert video during the same month that I saw them called Take The Highway and you can find the entire video on You Tube. Here are a few from the show that really remember being outstanding.

Guns N' Roses, Great Western Forum, Los Angeles 7/30/91

2011-11-09T23:47:00.000-08:00

Edit this setlist | More Guns N' Roses setlists

I'm probably going to say this quite often as I go back in time and recall these concerts, " I can't believe that this was 20 years ago!" It seems like yesterday that I was watching Axl Rose run across the stage in a kilt. This Guns N' Roses show back in 1991 was another one of the concerts I was able to experience thanks to some free comps at work. I wasn't a huge GNR fan but I did like some of their songs and was happy to take advantage of the free tix. I'm glad that I did, it was quite an experience.

Back around the time of this show, there was quite a bit of drama surrounding GNR. New album, new band members, and Axl being Axl. Earlier in the month that I saw them Axl was charged with inciting a riot in St. Louis. I remember that the big question was going to be when they would eventually come on-stage....Axl didn't really seem to care how late they were taking the stage back then.

Skid Row was the opening act...nothing memorable about their performance. Then there was the wait for GNR which became sort of a show itself. The video crew for the concert started working, scanning the crowd for hot chicks who would hopefully be encouraged by the guys in the crowd to take off their tops. Several of them did. I remember someone said that the band was watching the feed backstage and would determine which girls they would have join them by watching the video feed.

When the show eventually started, it was a great performance. I really was impressed with Axl. The amount of energy that guy had, running across this big stage that they had and singing at the same time. I don't remember his voice sounding bad that night. I've seen some You Tube clips from the tour where he sounds awful, but he sounded alright the night I saw him. Of course some people might wonder what my definition of "alright" is.

The setlist featured all of their big hits plus some material from Use Your Illusion. Civil War is one of my favorite GNR songs and it was cool to hear them play it live. All in all it was a definitely a unique show that I was glad that I was able to experience. Coincidentally I could have shared that fact with Slash just this past weekend. We were at Disneyland getting ready to ride the roller coaster called "California Screamin". I was talking with my brother when I recognized Slash on the other side of the tracks, he and his family had a personal escort from Disneyland. I didn't realize until after the ride was over that he was on one of the cars behind him. I should have done my best Axl voice and screamed out "You're Gonna Die!"

Chris Isaak, Wiltern Theater, Los Angeles 2/22/91

2011-11-08T00:55:00.000-08:00

Alright...it's been close to a month and a half since I made a post about a concert that I attended and since that was the original intent of this blog, it's time to get back on track. Next up on the concert calendar total recall is Chris Isaak at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles on February 22, 1991.

I first heard Chris Isaak when his second album came out, we received a promotional copy at work. I really liked what I heard, incredible voice and a very cool guitar sound. I went back and picked up his first record and then Heart Shaped World when it came out. I had a chance to see him and his band play at a fundraiser for the Surfrider Foundation, I think it was before I saw him at the Wiltern but I'm not sure. He and his band sounded great live and what you realize when you see him in person is that besides having an amazing voice...he's a very funny guy.

When I saw him at the Wiltern, he was supporting the Heart Shaped World album and riding the success of Wicked Games which was receiving a lot of attention because it was a great song and oh yeah...the music video for the song at the time was considered risque.

It was my first show at the Wiltern and I really liked the setting. The show itself was good. The band didn't stray too much from how the songs sounded from the record. Of course the key to the band back then was Isaak's guitarist James Wilsey. His guitar playing created so much of the atmosphere in Isaak's music. Luckily I got to see him play a couple of times before he left the band after recording the San Francisco Days album.

As I'm writing this, I can't believe that it's been 20 years since I saw this concert! Where does time go? I bought a few more of Chris's albums after seeing him, but I really stopped listening to him. I think his sound was becoming a little too repetitive. I've been listening to his music as I write this and it's fun to listen to him again. I know he recently released a new album that he recorded at Sun Studios. I've heard a few of his Elvis and Johnny Cash covers and they sound great. After going down memory lane, I might just have to pick it up.

More Great Music on TV This Week!

2011-09-27T23:43:00.000-07:00

Just finished watching the hour long Colbert Report with Radiohead...great show! The web version offered more music to watch and listen to. Then I noticed that Jimmy Fallon is having Pink Floyd Week. Last night The Shins performed Breathe, tonight Roger Waters and The Foo Fighters are performing.

Wilco & Radiohead TV Appearances

2011-09-25T22:33:00.000-07:00

Two of my favorite bands made live appearances on tv this past week. Radiohead on Saturday Night Live and Wilco on Letterman. Wilco actually played for a little over an hour in the Ed Sullivan Theater. They started the show with the first track on their new album, it's called "Art of Almost". Love it! I've seen Wilco twice, but since I have been journaling my concerts in the order that I saw them....my Wilco postings won't be coming for awhile! Just had to share this show when I saw it was available. Love this band...can't wait to see them on their next tour!

I've only seen Radiohead once, but definitely hope to catch them on their next tour. They were amazing to see live!

ZZ Top, Great Western Forum, Los Angeles 11-25-90

2011-09-20T00:16:00.000-07:00

It's really fun to go back and try to remember these shows...or in this case, to remember the reason why I was interested in seeing a band in the first place.

I can only find one ticket stub for ZZ Top, but I'm sure that I saw them twice. Both times were at the Forum. I was looking at a website that listed a Forum date prior to this tour as being in August of 1986. That would have been the first time that I saw them. I was working in Santa Barbara at the time and I went to the show with a friend. I paid for those tickets. At the show in 1990, the tickets were free. I was working for a company that would get tickets to shows at The Forum. I believe that this show was the first time that I was able to take advantage of those perks. It would be the first of many.

I became a ZZ Top fan in the 70's. I remember reading an article about them in Circus Magazine, I found this picture online from one of their magazines in 1975. They were called "That Little Ol' Band From Texas" and the article was written about their Worldwide Texas Tour which included a stage in the shape of Texas as well as livestock on stage.

I don't remember if I had heard them by the time I saw this article or not? Fandango came out in 1975 and that was the first album of theirs that I owned. I loved that album, La Grange is one my all-time favorites. I'm a big Billy Gibbons fan. Of course ZZ Top exploded to an entirely new level in the 80's when their music videos, image and tweaked sound brought them a bigger audience. I liked their 80's work, but not as much as their pre-Eliminator work.

Both times that I saw the band, their 80's synth mode was in full effect. They still sounded alright, but I would have liked to seen them when they were more raw. The 1990 show was on the Recycler Tour. My favorite song from that album was My Heads In Mississippi which reminds me a little of La Grange. As you can see, they were still producing music videos with hot girls and cars during this time! Years later I was at the Petersen Automotive Museum in LA when they had some cars from Billy Gibbons' collection on display. I believe the car in this video is Billy's "Cadzilla" which is a beautiful car!

It was a good show...hearing Billy Gibbons play was definitely the highlight. I found a setlist for a show a couple days after the 11-25-90 date at The Forum. This setlist from Sacramento looks pretty close to what they were playing back then.

Edit this setlist | More ZZ Top setlists

I couldn't find any decent live clips from this tour...so I went all the way back to 1980 for this great version of La Grange from Germany. Love that nasty guitar sound!

Living Colour, Hollywood Palladium, Hollywood, CA 11-20-1990

2011-09-05T23:57:00.000-07:00

Talk about shifting gears! I went from watching Linda Ronstadt in concert the month before to one of the heaviest shows I've ever been to the following month!

I was into Living Colour when their debut album came out and went to check them out at the Palladium when they were out supporting their Time's Up record. I remember that the opening act was Trulio Disgracias, which was comprised of Norwood Fisher of Fishbone and a bunch of his buddies. It was a crazy show...energy was off the chart and now that I see the notes from the setlist, there was too much energy in the room. Things were getting too physical in the mosh pit and the band had to stop during their third song in and ask the crowd to chill out. The song was Time's Up and as you can see and hear, you really can't blame people for getting a little wound up!

Edit this setlist | More Living Colour setlists

Vernon Reid is an amazing guitarist and their rhythym section with bassist Muzz Skillings and drummer Will Calhoun was awesome as well. This band deserved more love than they got. They played songs from the first two albums plus some great covers like "Should I Stay Or Should I Go" by The Clash and Traci Chapman's "Talkin' About A Revolution". Unfortunately they didn't play their version of the Talking Heads "Memories". Great show!

By the way, I bought a Living Colour sweatshirt at the show and many people thought I must have been a fan of the tv show In Living Color.

Linda Rondstadt, Universal Amphitheater, Los Angeles 10-10-1990

2011-09-05T11:57:00.000-07:00

I had to ask my wife this morning whether we paid for tickets to see Linda Ronstadt in 1990 or did someone give them to us? She seemed surprised that I didn't think that we would have paid for them. I think this would classify as the first concert I went to because my wife really wanted to go. There will be a few more of these in the future.

I'm not complaining, it was a good show. Linda Ronstadt has a great voice. During this period we had been listening to her album "Canciones de mi Padre". Her next album, "Cry Like A Rainstorm" was what she was promoting on this tour. To paraphrase one of the songs from that record, I don't know much, but I know that Aaron Neville came on stage to perform the duets from that album. It's always amazing to look at him and then hear the voice that emanates from him. Doesn't really match. I haven't been able to find any setlists from this period, but I remember that the show was comprised of much of the music from this album.

As I was looking for images and videos from this time period I came across this 1975 cover of Circus Magazine. I used to buy this back in the day and I remember this cover because of the dress she was wearing. That was the same dress I remember her wearing the first time I saw her on TV performing the song "Heatwave". That dress left an impression! And thanks to the wonders of You Tube, I can share that memory with you. Enjoy!

David Bowie, Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles 5/26/1990

2011-07-01T00:05:00.000-07:00

The first time I remember hearing David Bowie had to be around 1975, that's when I bought a 45 of Fame. I remember loving that song, not sure why....I just did. After that I remember hearing other Bowie songs on the radio, Golden Years, Young Americans, all from that time period. I had a friend who had won a copy of Station to Station from a radio station and I remember checking that out...but the only Bowie I owned for years was the 45 of Fame.

I believe the first time I saw Bowie on tv was on Saturday Night Live back in 1979. I remember because the outfits that he and the band were wearing were definitely unique.

I don't remember if Let's Dance was the first Bowie album I bought or not? If it wasn't, it would have been his greatest hits at the time ChangesOne. Regardless, I was becoming a big fan. When I was in college, my boss and friend at the tv station that I worked at sold all of his albums after becoming a born again Christian. I gladly took the Diamond Dogs and Pinup albums off of him. (Rest in Peace Fred) I also remember seeing a video of his Serious Moonlight tour while in college and thought that he and his band put on an amazing show.

So while I'm looking for the setlist for this show, I started to remember something about Bowie's Glass Spider Tour stopping in Anaheim. Did I go to that show? I don't have any ticket stub and I really don't remember it...so for the sake of my memory I hope that I didn't see it. But I did see him at Dodger Stadium on the Sound & Vision tour. I thought it was a great time to see him since he said that the tour would be the last time he played his old music. Like many others who have said something similar....he would not follow through on that promise. So here I am, really excited to see him, thrilled that Adrian Belew would be playing in his band too. The problem was first noticed during the opening act...Lenny Kravitz. It was my first concert at Dodger Stadium and we were sitting in the loge level facing the stage head on. There was a cement wall right behind us and the sound was bouncing off of it pretty badly. It didn't get any better during Bowie and although the setlist was amazing...the experience was definitely a disappointment because of the sound quality in the stadium. What's ironic is that I'm having to deal with the sound system in the same stadium 21 years later...and it still sounds like crap. At least there's some good quality clips on You Tube. These clips from Tokyo were captured less than two weeks before the Dodger Stadium show.

Grateful Dead, Great Western Forum, Los Angeles, CA 12-09-1989

2011-06-27T05:42:00.000-07:00

This was my 6th Grateful Dead concert but it was only the second show that I had attended under a covered roof. My first show and first indoor show was a Radio City Music Hall, so comparing any other indoor shows to that would be tough, and this experience definitely suffered because of the venue. I have seen many concerts and sports events at The Forum, I liked the place, I think I just preferred my GD shows under the open sky.

I had to look at the Grateful Dead website to remember anything about the setlist that night. And thanks to Archive.org, I was able to listen to it all over again!

The band sounded good that night. They played Bird Song which is one of my favorites and the version from that night's show turned up on their Without A Net album. I had forgotten about the Dr. Mr. Fantasy/Hey Jude reprise that they played near the close of the show...that was definitely something new. In retrospect, they played a couple of my favorites that night that I had never seen them play before...Mexicali Blues and Cumberland Blues. Sounds great to hear the show all over again.

Strangely what I most remembered about this show was the great Lakers inspired Steal Your Face logo that I bought in the parking lot. It was really cool...had it on my pickup truck for years. I'm glad I'm going through the process of retracing my concert past because this show deserved more memories than just the cool sticker I bought in the parking lot.

The Worst Movie Of All-Time?

2011-05-08T00:11:00.000-07:00

Just noticed that KDOC-TV is airing Elvira's Movie Macabre right now. The movie tonight is "Manos, the Hands of Fate". It's one of the worst movies ever made and it was featured on an episode of the late great series, Mystery Science Theater. Looked online and found the entire episode is available for viewing....enjoy!

David Byrne at Pantages Theater, Hollywood, CA 10/12/1989

2011-02-06T03:53:00.000-08:00

Here's another concert that falls into the "I Wish I Had Seen Them With Their Original Band" category. Missing out on seeing The Talking Heads in concert is definitely one of my musical regrets, but at least there's the movie Stop Making Sense which is the next best thing to being there. Coincidentally that movie was shot at the Pantages.

David Byrne released the album Rei Momo just 9 days prior to this show, I'm not sure that I bought it before or after? He was touring with this great Latin band and I believe Celia Cruz and Tito Puente made guest appearances at the show. You can hear influences towards this musical direction on the Talking Heads "Naked" album which was released in 1988. It was my first time at the Pantages and it was a great venue for a show like this. The band was tight! The percussion and horn sections were amazing. This was definitely not a show to remain seated at, even if you can't dance (myself included) you couldn't help but get up and move. I wish I had a setlist for this show. I remember that most of the music that night was from Rei Momo, but I seem to remember at least one or two Talking Heads tracks. Great show!

Concert For Human Rights Now, LA Coliseum Sept. 21, 1988

2010-12-17T22:44:00.000-08:00

What a great lineup for my second Amnesty International Show. Bruce Springsteen, Peter Gabriel, Sting, Tracy Chapman, Youssou N'Dour. This tour had 3 stops in the U.S. and one of the memorable aspects of the show was that the artists would join each others during their sets. Branford Marsalis joined Youssou N'Dour, Tracy Chapman sang "Don't Give Up" with Peter Gabriel, Sting joined Springsteen for "The River" and they all joined Springsteen on stage at the end for "Get Up Stand Up" and more. Of course we had to watch most of it on the big screen because we were a long way from the stage! But the music more than made up for the seat location. There were many musical highlights and there was one distinct non-musical highlight. Bono joined the proceedings as a Special Guest and when my wife saw him appear she shrieked "oh my God it's Bono!"

Happy 90th Birthday Dave Brubeck

2010-12-08T22:27:00.000-08:00

This morning I was looking at the Sunday paper that I didn't get a chance to read yet and noticed that Dave Brubeck's 90th birthday was this past Monday. My Dad is a Dave Brubeck fan and he used to play his music for us. If I was putting together a playlist of my favorite jazz tracks of all-time Take Five and Blue Rondo A La Turk would definitely be included. If I had to make a playlist of some of the coolest tracks of all-time I would definitely include Take Five and Blue Rondo A La Turk. Happy Birthday Dave...hope you keep playing for many years to come.

LENNONYC

2010-11-23T21:29:00.000-08:00

Watched this great documentary on PBS last night on John Lennon's post-Beatle years. It's hard to believe that we're approaching the 30th anniversary of his death. I was living in New Jersey at the time and remember listening to the radio in bed that night...they were playing music of The Doors to mark what would have been Jim Morrison's birthday. It must have been within minutes after shutting off the radio that they would have announced the news about John. Instead my Mom woke me up the next day and said, "You better turn on the radio". I couldn't believe the news. I stayed home from school that day and just listened to NYC radio, WNEW and WPLJ which was still a rock station back then. It was definitely a dark day.

I listened a lot of Lennon music and interviews around that time. Listening to the interviews you could hear how happy he was at that time, looking forward to making music and going on tour. It made the entire incident all the more sad. Those feelings come back watching this documentary, but it's still worth your time to check this out. You really get an understanding of how much he loved this country and especially NYC. Tea Party members complain about the power of the government...well 40 years ago the government was trying to deport people who were all about freedom. One very funny moment was this audio recording of Sean Lennon singing one of his favorite Beatle songs. He's singing and it actually took John awhile to respond " Oh yeah...that's With A Little Help From My Friends". Imagine not instantly recalling a song from one of the greatest records of all-time.

We miss you John Lennon

Watch the full episode. See more American Masters.

Grateful Dead, Los Lobos & David Lindley, Laguna Seca Speedway, Monterey, CA 7-30-1988

2010-11-07T21:34:00.000-08:00

The closest I would see The Dead near their San Francisco home was this show at Laguna Seca Speedway in Monterey. What a great experience this was. My wife (girlfriend at the time) and I drove up from Santa Barbara to take in the show featuring the Dead, Los Lobos and David Lindley. I don't remember how I decided to pick up tickets for this show? I was already a Los Lobos fan by this time so maybe I had known they were opening up and decided to make the road trip? Whatever was the case, it was well worth the trip.

This was my 5th Dead show. The grounds were expansive, I remember parking in some hills and then having to trek to where the stage was. I had never been to a show in such a wide open venue before and the whole vibe was very cool. We arrived towards the end of David Lindley's set. I wasn't familiar with his music, I just knew he had played with Jackson Browne. I was really interested in catching Los Lobos and they disappoint. They mixed it up with their own tunes and then played this smokin' version of Crossroads that was unbelievable! I've been a big fan ever since. The Dead's set was good...but it was the boys from East LA who blew me away that day.

You can listen to the Dead's show from that day below. Or you can check it out here.

Sting at the Santa Barbara County Bowl 4-1-1988

2010-11-06T22:13:00.000-07:00

Nothing Like The Sun was another great solo record from Sting but he didn't have the same band on this tour as he did when I saw him back in 1985. Branford Marsalis and Kenny Kirkland were there though and I remember this show in Santa Barbara as being a great one. It was good...just not as good as 85. There were some great songs on the album though which were good to hear live. This was the last show that I saw in Santa Barbara, I moved to LA later that year. What a fantastic place to live and the County Bowl was a great venue!

Is There Anybody Out There?

2010-11-02T00:21:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to let anyone who happens to wander on to this blog know that I haven't left for The Great Gig In The Sky just yet. It's been over a year and a half since I last posted here. The reason for the lull is a very good one...I got a full time job.

I had been freelancing with some time on my hands when I started this blog back in 2008. But soon after my post in March 2009 my schedule became quite busy with a combination of labor and life. Adjusting to the freelance world after 18 years with the same company was definitely a challenge, one that I'm sure many others have been experiencing. But now I have a full-time gig again and although the schedule can be hectic, I wanted to get back to blogging again.

I dug out the concert tickets from the garage and will pick up with a Sting show in Santa Barbara back in 1988. Eventually I will run out of shows to write about because I just don't get those opportunities anymore. But when I started this I eventually wanted to share more than concert memories. I love music, sports, comedy and the visual arts and I look forward to sharing some of those passions with you in the future.

See you soon.

The Kinks & King Sunny Ade, Greek Theater Los Angeles, CA, Summer 1987 or 88?

2009-03-21T20:55:00.000-07:00

Well it's been awhile since my last post and there have been a couple of reasons why. First of all, I've been busy. Secondly, this show I'm writing about is one of the one's I don't have a ticket stub for and I haven't been able to even find a date for it on the internet. Did it really happen? Yes...I know it happened.

It's somehow appropriate that I can't find any good details on The Kinks tour dates. They are one of the more overlooked of the great British Invasion bands. I can't imagine that any band sounded heavier than The Kinks when they released songs like "You Really Got Me" and "All Day and All of The Night" back in 1964. Those guitar riffs are CLASSIC! Yes the band has been overlooked and I did my part back in my youth. When I was in 3rd grade our neighbors across the street from us in Fridley, MN were getting rid of some of their old albums. I took a couple of Kinks records like "Face to Face" pictured above, Moby Grape, and I believe some Dave Clark Five. The only one that I really listened to was a Paul Revere and the Raiders record because for some reason I loved a song of theirs that I heard on AM radio back in the day...it was called Indian Reservation. So what did I do with these classic Kinks albums? I ended up trading them in for something in the late 70's....might have been Ted Nugent Double Live Gonzo, may have been Rush "All The World's A Stage". Whatever it was it was a bad trade.

A couple of years later I got into the band hearing the Low Budget album. Then when I started to hear more of their old stuff I realized the mistake I had made.

I believe the reason I really wanted to see this show was because of the unique billing...the opening act was King Sunny Ade and his African Beats. Now I can't find any documentation that this actually happened. I do know I saw both bands at the Greek and I believe it was together. I started listening to Kings Sunny Ade in college when I happened to pick up a record of his called Aura. It's a great record and the highlight is this track called Ase which features Stevie Wonder playing harmonica. I still need to get a CD copy of this record.

So I do remember that King Sunny Ade and his very large band were great. Very colorful African clothing, dancers and drums, drums, drums. Actually it was the Talking Drum players that impressed me the most. I love percussion and this performance was a real treat.

As for The Kinks, they sounded awesome. They played plenty of their classics. I really wasn't buying Kinks records at the time...I think "Come Dancing" sort of turned me off on their new stuff. I did find one setlist from a show in 1987 and it looks pretty close to what I remember. I remember "Living On A Thin Line" as a stand out from the show along with faves like Lola, All Day and You Really Got Me. I'm pretty sure they also played "Celluloid Heroes" which was perfectly appropriate since they were playing in LA. Great song by the way.

One reason I believe it happened in the Summer of 87 or 88 was that I had to drive home to Santa Barbara after the show. I was driving a Mazda RX-7 at the time and I remember enjoying the drive along the rincon with my future wife. Beautiful night, the sunroof popped off. Nice!

If anyone happens to read this and can confirm that this show actually happened I would greatly appreciate it!

Here's that Paul Revere & The Raiders song that I was crazy about for some reason.

Grateful Dead, Ventura County Fairgrounds, Ventura, CA 6-13-87 & Dylan & The Dead, Anaheim Stadium, Anaheim, CA 7-26-87

2009-02-23T22:33:00.000-08:00

My first Grateful Dead show in California took place at the Ventura County Fairgrounds which is right on the coast. This was my third GD show.

There are a couple of things that I remember about this show and none of them are great memories. First of all I remember being cold at some point...probably a case of the coastal clouds not burning off and it was colder than I was prepared for. I also remember walking behind the sound board during the "Space" part of the show and my ears were killing me...was not digging Space.

I also remember seeing some big guy wearing a Celtics jacket dancing around on the side of the stage. I'm pretty sure that it was Bill Walton since he was on the Celtics team that LOST to the Lakers in the Finals that year.

The show was alright but wasn't one of my favorites. Of course a Dead show isn't always about the music. The show around the show was quite entertaining...lots of dancing and freaky people having a great time.

One month later I saw the Dead perform with Bob Dylan at Anaheim Stadium. This was the first time my soon to be wife saw the Grateful Dead, and she really enjoyed the show around the show. We had seats pretty close to the field so we could watch the crowd without getting hurt...which was fine with my wife. It was a very hot day.

My wife enjoyed the experience but this wasn't a good introduction to the Dead. Nothing remarkable about the set and the Dylan and the Dead portion of the show was pretty disappointing. No chemistry between Dylan and the Band...he looked like he didn't want to be there. Too bad. Other people had bad memories of this show too.

Hey it wasn't all bad...here's the opening from the Anaheim show

What Would Gilligan Do?

2009-02-15T21:48:00.000-08:00

My cousin Eric posted his Top 10 Albums of All-Time on Facebook and challenged myself and others to come up with our own. So here is my 10...sort of my Desert Island Disc collection. This is much harder that sharing 25 random things about myself because this could possibly be a decision I have to live with for the rest of my life.

I'm not going to put these in any numerical order because it's hard enough for me to choose just 10...so here they are:

Sticky Fingers by The Rolling Stones (1971)

My favorite Stones album offers a little bit of everything...Rock, Country, Blues, Jazz. Brown Sugar, Sway, Wild Horses, Can't You Hear Me Knockin', Bitch, Dead Flowers, and Moonlight Mile. Classic!

The White Album by The Beatles (1968)

I had a hard time trying to figure out which Beatles record to choose. I love Abbey Road but after listening to a 40th Anniversary Special on The White Album I was reminded what a great record it is. It's a double album so you also have the bonus of quantity. Dear Prudence, While My Guitar Gently Weeps, I'm So Tired, Back in The USSR and many more make this my choice.

Goodbye Yellow Brick Road by Elton John (1973)

I loved this album when I was a kid and continue to love it now. I remember the first time I saw it at someone's house, it too is a double album and it opened up to display the lyrics and song titles which had artwork connected to every track. I was a big Elton John fan up to Captain Fantastic...after that I didn't follow him too closely. Once again I love the variety this record offers...from the opening epic Funeral For A Friend/Love Lies Bleeding to rockers like All The Young Girls Love Alice and Saturday Night's Alright For Fighting and ballads like Candle In The Wind and Harmony...there's even some country with Social Disease.

Dark Side of The Moon by Pink Floyd (1973)

This record takes you on a journey and you don't have to be high as a kite to take the trip. It may have been better to listen to this on vinyl because finishing Side 1 with The Great Gig In The Sky gives you some time to soak it all in before the cash register starts cranking up and Money begins. I had a High School English class where our teacher asked us to bring in a song about war. I used "Us and Them" and the teacher said, "I'm a Pink Floyd fan and I didn't even realize what it was about. Our High School yearbook had a collage of pictures put together with the lyrics of "Eclipse" scattered throughout the pictures. This album has been a part of my life for a long time!

Kiko by Los Lobos (1992)

I had already been a Los Lobos fan by the time this record came out. I remember being at Rhino Records in Westwood on my lunch break when they started playing this album in the store. It opens up with "Dream In Blue" and after hearing it I knew I had to buy it immediately. It's funny but when you put the CD into iTunes it is labeled as Country. I don't think fans of that genre would agree with that. This record has a definite swampy, voodoo vibe to it. "Angels With Dirty Faces" and "When The Circus Comes to Town" along with the opener are my favorites...but the entire record is awesome. David Hildago is The Man!

Achtung Baby by U2 (1991)

I love The Joshua Tree album but Achtung Baby has a darker edge to it which I prefer for some reason. I remember when I first heard the opening track I was thinking...what the hell? It just sounded so different from where the band had left off, and I really respected them for taking chances like that. But more than appreciating this record because it was different, there are alot of great songs here. "Even Better Than The Real Thing", "One", "Mysterious Ways" and "Who's Going To Ride Your Wild Horses" were the ones that got the airplay, but songs like So Cruel, Ultraviolet (Light My Way) and the closing "Love Is Blindness" help make this one of my favorites.

Automatic For The People by R.E.M. (1992)

I had been a fan of R.E.M. from the start and like U2 appreciated the fact that they weren't content to keep producing the same music over and over. This is my favorite album of theirs. Drive, Everybody Hurts, Man On The Moon, Nightswimming, Sweetness Follows...great album.

Legend by Bob Marley (1984)

The purists will say that you can't put a Greatest Hits album in your Desert Island Discs...well I guess I'm not a purist. I picked this one for a change of pace and a smile on my face. I didn't own any of his records prior to owning this one. I first remember hearing of Bob Marley from one of my friends in Canada who had the "Babylon By Bus" album. He would come struttin' around sing "Jammin". There was a big Jamaican population in the area where I lived and looking back I'm surprised I wasn't exposed to more reggae music. "Could You Be Loved", "Redemption Song", "Get Up Stand Up"...I wish I could have seen him play live.

Led Zeppelin IV (1971)

I have some rockin' music in my Top 10 but I needed to add something that really can shake your foundation. It's a hard to choose the one Zeppelin album to take with you but this one has a little of everything. "When The Levee Breaks" is a bulldozer of a song, "Going To California" is beautiful, "The Battle of Evermore" is mystical and "Black Dog" lets you know what their intentions are right away, "Hey Hey Mama like the way you move, going to make you sweat going to make you groove". Oh yeah...Stairway to Heaven is on this album too.

Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere by Neil Young & Crazy Horse (1969)

Led Zeppelin may be considered the heaviest on my list but this one is close. Neil Young didn't have John Bonham and John Paul Jones as his rhythm section but his guitar sound is loud and raw and I love it. The album opens with a bang with "Cinnamon Girl", then gets a little country with the title track and then folksy "Round & Round". The pattern almost repeats itself with the next 3 songs starting with "Down By The River". "Cowgirl In the Sand" closes it all out with 10:30 of magic...at least it is for me. Neil released a 1968 show from the Fillmore East a couple of years ago that has a 16 minute version of Cowgirl...it's 6 minutes more magical than the version on this album.

If My Mind Changes Here's The Next 10:

Who's Next by The Who

In Rainbows by Radiohead

Are You Experienced by Jimi Hendrix

Aladdin Sane by David Bowie

American Beauty by The Grateful Dead

A Ghost Is Born by Wilco

Howl by Black Rebel Motorcyle Club

Remain In Light by The Talking Heads

Innervisions by Stevie Wonder

Born To Run by Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band

U2, Los Angeles Sports Arena, 4-17-1987 and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum November 1987

2009-02-11T21:21:00.000-08:00

I saw U2 twice in 1987 and there will be several more U2 postings to come.

The first time was on the first leg of The Joshua Tree tour. The April 17th show was the first of a 5 night stand at the LA Sports Arena. A band couldn't play a 5 night stand at The Forum at that time of year because the Lakers would be still playing basketball in the playoffs. But since the Sports Arena was the home of the LA Clippers....it was available.

By this time U2 was already big...but they really blew up on this tour! They opened the show with "Where The Streets Have No Name" which is one of my all-time favorites from any band. It's a great song on their album but it rises to another level when they play it live. I think you can say that about any U2 song. They played 7 tracks from The Joshua Tree album during the show but I recall being disappointed that they didn't play "Red Hill Mining Town" which was one of my favorites.

One song they did play was "Bullet The Blue Sky" and it has consistently been one of my favorite songs during any U2 show. The Edge's guitar work on that track is mind-blowing!

When I saw U2 previously it was part of the "Conspiracy of Hope" tour for Amnesty International and they shared the stage with many acts. Back then I could tell they were a great act to see live, but after seeing them perform an entire show I was really sold....this was something special.

The band returned to LA in November, I can't find the ticket stub to the show but I know I was there. The Pretenders opened up for them which was a great bonus! The song selection for U2 wasn't much different than the April show, but playing at The Coliseum definitely made it more of an event.

One last thought regarding the band at this time. I loved the Anton Corbijn photography that appeared on the album. Someone also gave me a giant poster from this tour with one of his photos. I had lived in California for a little over two years by this time and I loved the diversity of the southwest scenery. From the desert to the mountains to the beaches...you can't beat it. Joshua Tree is a beautiful place...my wife and I have camped out there. I loved driving out to the desert listening to this album.

General Public, Arlington Theatre, Santa Barbara, CA 12-16-86

2009-02-07T03:59:00.000-08:00

Santa Barbara was such a great place to live. It's absolutely beautiful and has some great venues to see live music. The Arlington Theatre and the Santa Barbara County Bowl cover both your indoor and outdoor options very nicely.

I had been to the Arlington once before to see Jay Leno but this was the only music show I saw there. My wife (girlfriend at the time) was a General Public fan and that's how we ended up at the show. I didn't have any of their records and was familiar with some of their songs from the radio. I don't know what I was expecting but the show was pretty good....pleasantly surprised was how I would describe it. "Tenderness" is a great pop song and they played English Beat tracks like "Mirror In The Bathroom" and "Save It For Later" which are a couple of my favorites.

General Public performs on MTV New Years show

The Smithereens, Oscar's Nightclub, Santa Barbara, CA 11-20-1986

2009-02-03T17:40:00.000-08:00

Here’s a band that I thought produced a few great power pop songs...but they never really made it.

The Smithereens first album had two songs that I played the hell out of, Blood and Roses and Behind The Wall of Sleep....the latter always seems like a lost nugget whenever I hear it. Some people criticized the band for ripping off too many of their influences but in my opinion a good song is a good song and when your influences are the Beatles, Stones, the Who and others, it's worth checking out.

The show was at Oscars in Santa Barbara. The band is from New Jersey and by sheer coincidence one of my high school friends from NJ was visiting. I don’t know if he was expecting to hear Bruce Springsteen or Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, but I think he was pleasantly surprised by what he heard. It was a good show. The guys looked like playing in a club or a garage was their natural habitat...maybe that's why they never made it to the next level and that's a shame.

It’s funny, other than enjoying their music I think the lead singer influenced my facial hair style. He was the first guy I remember either sporting either a gautee or a soul patch. Eventually I made the move from pornstache to gautee and then to pornstache with soul patch which I wore proudly until just recently. I think I need to grow it back.

Behind The Wall of Sleep from British tv show The Tube in 1987...Great Song!

David Sanborn, Universal Amphitheater, Hollywood, CA 11-13-1986 & Hassan Hakmoun, Some club in West Hollywood, CA around 1993

2009-02-02T21:05:00.000-08:00

This post is going to take care of two shows, David Sanborn at the Universal Amphitheater and Hassan Hakmoun at some club in West Hollywood around 1993. The reason I'm combining the two is because David Sanborn was the reason I wanted to see Hassan Hakmoun.

I went to go see David Sanborn with my brother who is a sax player himself. I had heard Sanborn's solo work but I was a fan of his for other reasons as well. First of all he became a fixture on the David Letterman show playing with the band quite often. I was a huge fan of the Letterman show back then and always enjoyed when David would sit in with the band. The other reason I was a Sanborn fan was his involvement with the show Night Music. Night Music was a fantastic music show that aired Sunday nights on NBC...like starting at midnight or something. It was on late! Anyway he had some great music guests, amazing variety. I can't think of a better music show that's been on TV in my lifetime. Austin City Limits is great, but the Night Music format really offered some interesting lineups.

So that leads me to Hassan Hakmoun. On one of the Night Music shows Sanborn introduced this band called Zahar who played "Morrocan-roll". The performance blew me away and I searched for their music for several years. Finally Peter Gabriel featured Hassan Hakmoun and Zahar on one of his Real Music releases and I was able to figure out who the guy was who played this crazy instrument called the Sintir. So I noticed he was playing at a club in West Hollywood and my wife and I went to check it out. We danced and we tranced....great show.

As for the Sanborn show...it was good too. Some of his music borders on being boring...something you would hear on The Wave. But his uptempo pieces can groove and he had some great musicians playing with him...especially Marcus Miller on bass. David Sanborn seems like a very cool cat.

David Sanborn & Bootsy Collins on Night Music playing Healing Power

Hassan Hakmoun & Zahar on Night Music

Sanborn gets shot by Paul Schaefer on Late Night with David Letterman 1986

INXS, Santa Barbara County Bowl, Santa Barbara, CA 8-29-86

2009-02-02T17:37:00.000-08:00

Alright...I do recall going to this show and I was interested enough in the band that I would have tried to get a ticket. Just don't ask me what songs they played.

I started listening to INXS in college and although I didn't own any of their records prior to this show...I liked their music. "The Original Sin" was the first song I remember taking a liking to and "Don't Change" was another. My next door neighbor at one of the places I lived at in college would occasionally DJ at a club and he had some 12" mixes that I listened to.

I can't tell you any details other than remembering that it was a fun show. They were touring to promote "Listen Like Thieves". Before starting to write about this I was guessing that they were supporting the KICK record, but that didn't come out until the following year.

My wife and I went to this show and then almost 20 years later watched the band choose a new lead singer on the reality tv show Rock Star. It was fun to remember how many great songs they had, but without Michael Hutchence it wouldn't be the same.

Live from 1987

Eurythmics, Santa Barbara County Bowl, Santa Barbara, CA 7-20-86

2009-01-30T22:25:00.000-08:00

Ladies & Gentleman, please fasten your seatbelts. Our trip down memory lane is about to hit some more turbulence.

So when I first looked at this ticket stub I thought to myself...I've seen the Eurythmics twice? I think I wrote that about Bob Dylan on the last post. At least with Dylan it was a concert with many artists on the bill..this was one band!

I did like some of their music at the time, but I didn't own any of their records. I sort of grew to appreciate the band...especially Annie Lennox who is one of my favorite singers. But I don't think I was into them enough to buy tickets for their show. When I saw them years later I received the tickets for free....maybe this was a freebie too? My wife isn't happy that I have little recollection of the first couple of shows we saw together.

So this will be a quick post...was it a good show? I don't recall. I was living in Santa Barbara at the time...maybe there was something in the air there? I seem to remember that Reagan was losing his memory around the same time.

I found a clip from a show the month before in LA and after watching it seemed to vaguely recall seeing the band around that time.

I Love You (like a ball & chain) live

A Conspiracy of Hope, The Fabulous Forum, Los Angeles 6-6-1986

2009-01-22T23:40:00.000-08:00

I wrote down the names of the acts that played at this show on the back of the ticket stub and it's a good thing I did because over 20 years later I'm looking at it saying to myself...Bob Dylan with Tom Petty....really?

This show supporting Amnesty International was one of 6 shows with an amazing lineup of talent. On this night were U2, Peter Gabriel, Sting, Bob Dylan & Tom Petty, Lou Reed, Bryan Adams, Jackson Browne, Bob Geldof & Dave Stewart, The Neville Brothers and Joan Baez. If you had asked me to name the bands without looking at the back of my stub I would have answered U2, Peter Gabriel, Sting & The Neville Brothers. Maybe this marks a turning point in my memory recall? I had recently thought that the only other time I had seen Dylan was at Staples Center...oops!

Dylan performing License To Kill 6-6-86 at The Forum

The two acts that stand out the most here were U2 and Peter Gabriel. This U2 appearance was before The Joshua Tree had come out. I was anxious to see them after watching them on MTV performing at Live Aid and the show at Red Rocks. They became one of my all-time favorite bands. There will be several more U2 entries to follow so I'll save my worshipping of The Edge for a later time.

U2 performing Maggie's Farm/Cold Turkey at the final show of the Amnesty tour

I started listening to Peter Gabriel when Games Without Frontiers came out. I can still remember listening to that song in my car in New Jersey and looking at the driver behind me whistling along...we were both tuned to the same radio station (probably WPLJ at the time). Anyway Gabriel is a great showman and I became a big fan of his music too.

Peter Gabriel performing San Jacinto on the last stop of the tour

The other band that registered that night was The Neville Brothers. Their "Yellow Moon" record is a favorite of mine but I don't think it was released by the time I saw them. I suppose I just really enjoyed their playing. I do remember being impressed that a big guy like Aaron Neville could have such a sweet voice.

X, Oscar's, Santa Barbara, CA 4-15-1986

2009-01-15T12:44:00.000-08:00

I'll always remember my first mosh pit show. Actually I didn't jump in, I'm more of an observer than a participant.

I started listening to X in the Early 80's and I think MTV was where I first heard and saw them. The video I remember seeing was for True Love Pt. 2 and I really liked the song. I went out and picked up the record "More Fun in the New World" and have been a fan ever since.

Video for True Love Pt.2

My first full-time job after college brought me to Santa Barbara, CA and I often wish I was still living there. There was a nightclub called Oscar's that was the venue where a lot of bands would play when they came to town. It was a small club, very intimate place to see someone play.

The lineup for X at the time wasn't the original, Dave Alvin was playing guitar with them. I love Billy Zoom but Dave Alvin was a great replacement. This was a great show. As I discovered when I started listening to X, labeling them as a Punk band was too limiting. X is a great rock band and if they weren't labeled as a punk band they probably would have received more airplay on the radio. There's a great line of theirs in the song "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts" that says "Will the last American band to be played on the radio bring the flag". There were definitely some bands from that period that were under appreciated and X was one of them. They had a powerful sound live, John Doe's bass and DJ Bonebrake on drums were a great rhythym section.

I saw X again later opening up for Pearl Jam at The Forum. It was cool because Billy Zoom had reunited with the band but this performance in Santa Barbara will always be the one I remember most fondly. I should have jumped into the mosh pit while I was there.

X performing in LA in 2004...still sounding strong

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, L.A. Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles 9-26-85

2009-01-14T21:28:00.000-08:00

Many of my memories of Los Angeles prior to moving here came from watching sporting events on tv. I knew of Dodgers Stadium from watching the Yankees and the Dodgers in the World Series. The Forum was where the Lakers ran the Sixers and Celtics off of the court. The Los Angeles Coliseum was where I had seen Super Bowls, the Rams and Anthony Davis and USC destroying Notre Dame. Now I would get a chance to see The Coliseum for myself but not for a sporting event...for my second Bruce Springsteen show.

It had been 10 months since I had seen Springsteen play in Kansas City. The Coliseum held more than 4 times as many people as Kemper Arena. My brother and I were sitting right in the middle of it...probably around the 50 yard line with seats on the field. I forget whether it was prior to the show or during a break but the crowd started doing the wave...the energy from the audience was amazing!

Springsteen was playing 4 shows at The Coliseum...yes he was The Boss back then. It's weird because searching for the setlist of this show I can't find any that matches the date on my ticket? Well I was there for one of the shows...not sure what's up with the date? The concert was awesome. His setlist was similar to what he played in Kansas City, but the performance seemed to be rise to a different level...probably to try and match the size and energy of the stadium. I remember thinking while I was there that it must be quite a head trip to be on stage and have 90,000 people singing along to your songs.

It was quite a night. I remember there was a full moon that was rising over the famous Coliseum peristyle. You couldn't script it any better.

Tal Farlow, Jazz Club on Jersey Shore, Early 80's

2009-01-11T08:48:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was my father's birthday and it struck me that I should add one of the concerts that I attended with him.

As I was growing up my Dad shared his love of music with my brother and I. Sunday mornings we would awaken to the sounds of either classical, jazz, folk or show tunes. The Fiddler on the Roof soundtrack, Bolero, Beethoven, The Weavers were some of his favorites to play. My Mom gave him a set of drums for Christmas one year. There's a great picture of Dad playing drums when he was in High School....Jazzbo was his nickname back then. Dad introduced me to Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Dave Brubeck, drum battle records between Buddy Rich and Max Roach and more. My appreciation of listening to the musicians making the music is definitely influenced by my father.

When we lived outside of Toronto we went to a park called Ontario Place for free concerts in the summer. Some of the shows I remember seeing were Stan Kenton, Chuck Mangione, maybe Woody Herman? But when I was older Dad took me with him to a jazz club on the Jersey Shore to see one of his favorites, Tal Farlow.

It was how you might imagine a stereotypical jazz club, dimly lit, small with people sitting at the tables repectively listening to the music. We were sitting pretty close to the stage where Tal and his trio were playing. For a guy with such big hands he had a very light touch on the guitar. During one of the breaks he talked to Dad and I for a few minutes. Nice guy. That kind of intimacy between a performer and audience is what's so cool about going to jazz clubs.

So Happy Birthday Dad...thanks for sharing your love of music with me. I'm going to try and do the same with my kids.

Tal Farlow performing "Misty", one of my Dad's favorites

Tal Farlow and Red Norvo - Fascinating Rhythym

Dire Straits, Greek Theater, Los Angeles, CA September 1985

2009-01-08T23:57:00.000-08:00

Well here's another show I can't find the ticket stub for...but I do remember seeing Dire Straits back in 1985 at The Greek Theater. One website I saw mentioned that this was a 4 night stand at The Greek.

I was a fan of the band from their debut record back in the late 70's. Their first album is still one of my all-time favorites. I'm sure I heard Sultans of Swing first but there are so many great songs on that album...and it sounded so clean. Making Movies is my second favorite Dire Straits record.

Dire Straits were huge in 1985. The album Brothers in Arms featured several hits including the MTV classic "Money for Nothing" which featured Sting's famous "I want my MTV" line. The record wasn't my favorite but I was anxious to see the band play live. It was definitely worth it, Mark Knopfler is an amazing guitarist and they played a great set of songs.

One of my favorite songs: Water of Love from a performance in Paris 1978

Money for Nothing with Sting at Live Aid 1985

Sting, Greek Theater, Los Angeles, CA, August 1985

2009-01-05T23:19:00.000-08:00

In 1985 my family moved from NJ to Southern California. After finishing up college in Missouri I headed for The Golden State and it has been my home ever since. I don't have the ticket stub for my first show out here but I remember that it was Sting at The Greek Theater. I'm a big fan of the venue and it still is one of my favorite places to see a show in Los Angeles. I found a website that showed he played 5 nights at the Greek....I was there for one of them.

This would be my third time seeing Sting in concert, the first as a solo artist. He was touring with his new band made up of jazz musicians. My Dad is a big jazz fan and I grew up with an appreciation of the music. I went to the show with my brother who also loves jazz and plays tenor sax.

Sting was supporting The Dream of The Blue Turtles record. I liked the album but hearing it performed live was much better. His band was great, I especially enjoyed listening to the late Kenny Kirkland on piano and Branford Marsalis on sax. I had the opportunity to meet Branford several years later at the taping of a TV show I was working on...very cool dude.

The best songs performed at the show weren't from Sting's solo record, it was their version of songs by The Police. "Driven To Tears", "When The World Is Running Down..." and "Bring On The Night" were to put it mildly....Smokin'.

Driven To Tears from the movie Bring On The Night

Frank Zappa, Uptown Theater, Kansas City, MO 12-4-1984

2008-12-24T08:43:00.000-08:00

"Is that a real poncho or a Sears poncho?" The line is from a Frank Zappa song called "Cosmic Debris" and a friend of mine from college said that to me as I was wearing this very cool poncho my Dad picked up for me in South America. No...it wasn't from Sears.

The above video of "I Am The Slime" from Saturday Night Live in 1976 was the first time I had ever seen Frank Zappa. Around the same time I remember hearing Stinkfoot and Dancin'Fool on the radio and he also played Dancin' Fool on SNL. But this particular performance always stuck in my mind, although it didn't influence me enough to NOT work in television.

My friends in college were Zappa fans and I dubbed some of their music for myself. His Apostrophe album is my favorite. My friends had a live recording of one of his shows and I looked forward to the chance to see him in concert.

The Uptown Theater was a great venue to see him at. His band was awesome...Zappa's music definitely can't be described as simple. This guys were tight and they just looked like they were having fun on stage.

This is Zappa and his band performing Whipping Post a few months before I saw them in 84.

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Kemper Arena, Kansas City, MO 11-19-84

2008-12-22T22:19:00.000-08:00

I think I mentioned in an earlier post that when I moved to New Jersey I realized everyone there was 6 Degrees Separated from Bruce Springsteen. For instance one of my good friends claimed he was somehow related to him. The woman who cut my hair told me that she used to live on the same street as Miami Steve Van Zandt. The last time she cut my hair she was telling me that she was invited to attend his wedding on New Year's Eve in NYC. Of course Bruce would be there too.

At the time I felt like I was having the cult of Springsteen shoved down my throat, but I wasn't buying into the hype. I rebelled against joining the Bruce bandwagon...I liked some of his music but he wasn't my Boss.

It took the separation of being away at college in Missouri for me to develop more of an appreciation and once I saw him in concert...the conversion was complete. This show was during the "Born In The USA" tour and they played tracks from that record plus The River, Nebraska , Born To Run (which is my favorite) and more. Bruce even worked "Kansas City" into the set which of course endears every act that plays that song in that town.

The best way to describe the sound of the band played was BIG. I appreciated the fact that they didn't play everything the way it was originally recorded. I don't remember exactly how long the show was but it was a marathon. I remember Keith Richards once saying that Springsteen's shows were too long. Bruce was a great showman and his concerts were definitely a production. I know some who would argue that his shows were too contrived, but I felt the spirit behind his music and performance was genuine.

Listening to his music definitely takes me back to my brief time living in New Jersey. I remember riding in a friend's car...it was a summer night and we were driving around Asbury Park. My friend had Springsteen playing on his stereo and I remember looking out the window at the scene thinking that the music was perfect for the setting....it was a nice moment. But that moment was shattered along with the leg of a motorcycle driver who was hit by my friend's car, or was it the motorcycle driver who collided into us? Sounds like a tragic ending you would hear in a Springsteen song doesn't it?

Here's Backstreets from Toronto 1984, a couple of months before I saw him.

Crosby, Stills & Nash, Garden State Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ 8-6-1984

2008-12-20T21:44:00.000-08:00

This was my last concert as a resident of the great state of New Jersey. Coincidentally it took place at the Garden State Arts Center which was the location of my high school graduation ceremony.

After spending most of the summer attending classes in Missouri, I came home for a couple of weeks with a buddy who had never been back east. We had a great time in NYC, hit the beach at Sandy Hook and I think we may have even driven down to Atlantic City. While we were in NJ Crosby, Stills & Nash were playing near home so we picked up a couple of tickets.

I'm a fan of CSN's early work...especially with Neil Young playing with them. I wanted to hear all of the old stuff and fortunately that's much of what they played. "Wooden Ships" is one of my favorites and seeing it live made me appreciate what a great guitarist Stephen Stills is. David Crosby took front and center on "Guinnevere" which was another standout. Crosby is a trip. He scolded the audience during the song's intro saying "Shut up man...this song means something to me". Reading "Shakey" the biography on Neil Young gives some great insight into this guys.

I couldn't any decent videos of CSN from the 80's and that provides with a great excuse to post one of my favorites. Here's CSN&Y performing "Down By The River" at Big Sur.

David Johansen, Tradewinds Night Club, Seabright, NJ Summer 83?

2008-12-20T20:25:00.000-08:00

Here's one show that I don't have a ticket stub for and really am not sure exactly when it took place? I know it was when I was back home from college for the summer, so it had to be somewhere between 1982-84. Tradewinds was one of the clubs on the shore that we used to go to.

I wasn't into the New York Dolls, I first remember hearing David Johansen on the radio playing his Animals medley for "We Got To Get Out of This Place". I remember that it was a fun show, as Johansen has shown he can entertain in a variety of ways. One of the highlights of the night was meeting WNEW-FM legend Scott Muni...he was there to introduce Johansen. It's always funny to meet the person who you've been listening to on the radio...they rarely look how they sound.

I had a chance to co-host a radio show with a friend of mine in college. I think we played Johansen's "King of Babylon" on one show. I don't know if it's still on but Johansen hosted a show on Sirius that was really good. I loved his sign off song..."I'm just an old chunk of coal...but I'm going to be a diamond one day".

This was from a New Year's Eve show in 1982...I think. This was pretty close to the time I saw him.

The Grateful Dead, Starlight Theater, Kansas City, MO 7-3-1984

2008-12-17T14:04:00.000-08:00

This was my second Grateful Dead show and this was probably my favorite venue to see them. Radio City Music Hall was a great but I enjoyed watching the band in an open air environment. It was better to be outside with the variety of funky scents in the air at a Dead concert.

I went to this show with a pretty big group of people and we had a lot of fun. We sat in the Orchestra section on Jerry Garcia's side of the stage. I thought the first set was great...the band sounded good. This was my first Dead show where I was really familiar with the music.

After the intermission however it seemed to me that the band had lost it's momentum. Jerry looked and sounded like he had been "over-served" with whatever he might have been taking that night. What made the second set so interesting was the lightning show taking place. There were some big thunderstorms coming and what we saw in the sky above the stage was as cool as anything we would see the following night on the 4th of July. I'm sure there were many minds being "blown" during the second set because of the weather...but it could have been better.

Fortunately the rain held off until after the show was over...unfortunately we had a little over an hour journey back home driving through what seemed to be a cloudburst. I'm glad I didn't have to drive because it looked as if Noah would be pulling up with an Ark at any moment. It was a deluge! All of our party made it back safely but I read on the Dead's website today that someone died on the road after the concert. The band dedicated the show to him the following night.

This is the band playing "The Promised Land" from the show that night. Pictures are also from that show.

This was from a show called Playboy After Dark which aired in 1969. Watching Garcia chat with Hef is hilarious.

David Gilmour, Starlight Theater, Kansas City 6-11-1984

2008-12-13T08:41:00.000-08:00

Sweet Little Show Sixteen was David Gilmour at the Starlight Theater in Kansas City.

One of my musical regrets in life is that I never saw Pink Floyd in concert. The posters from the Dark Side of the Moon album were taped to the walls of my bedroom for many years. Dark Side was the first Floyd record I owned and then I bought everything they made up until The Final Cut. After Roger Waters split from the rest of the group I developed this "purist" attitude and didn't even pursue seeing the band after they continued on. Stupid Purist Attitude!

The main reason I should have tried to see Pink Floyd post-Roger was that Dave Gilmour is one of my all-time favorite guitar players. "Money" probably ranks in my Top 10 of songs I played air-guitar too. Granted there weren't many opportunities to see the band once I started attending shows. The first and last chance I can remember was "The Wall" tour. I had just moved to New Jersey and they played a bunch of shows at Nassau Coliseum. I hadn't really made any friends yet so I didn't have anybody to go to the shows with. Afterwards I was jealous of the people wearing t-shirts they got at the show.

Well at least I had the chance to see Dave Gilmour live and it was a great show. He was touring to support a solo album (About Face) and most of the material he played was from his work outside of Floyd. But he did play "Run Like Hell" and "Comfortably Numb" from The Wall and I think he also played "Money". The Starlight Theater was a beautiful venue. I was usually back in NJ for the summers during college but I spent my last one staying at CMSU and taking a few classes. I took Business Law and Golf...didn't fare too well with Business Law. As one of my friends used to say, "These are the times of our lives".

Here's Comfortably Numb from April 1984.

The Police with R.E.M., Madness, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, JFK Stadium, Philadelphia, PA 8-20-1983

2008-12-11T12:58:00.000-08:00

My brother and I made the trip to the City of Brotherly Love to see The Police on their Synchronicity Tour. The band had played at Shea Stadium prior to this show but their big vidio screens didn't make the trip to Philly. When the band came onstage Sting says something like "Where are the big screens? Fuck it...let's play!"

I remember it being a hot day... The Opening Act was R.E.M. I don't remember where I first heard the band...but I think I already owned Murmur at the time. I seem to remember that they were playing as we walked in but I do remember hearing Radio Free Europe and Catapult. We were pretty far from the stage at that point...so I really couldn't see what they looked like. R.E.M. became one of my all-time favorites.

Radio Free Europe being judged on American Bandstand...pretty funny!

Never thought of R.E.M. as a dance band...what do I know?

Madness followed R.E.M., they were fun. One Step Beyond is still a classic party song!

Joan Jett followed...she opened for The Police when I saw them in KC the year before. Then The Police closed out the day with another great performance. It had only been a year since I had seen them last but this show had a much bigger feel to it. It would have been interesting to see what direction they would have gone in had they stayed together, but there's something to be said for going out at the top of your game.

Synchronicity I from Montreal in 1983

B.B. King, Uptown Theater, Kansas City, Mo 3-24-83

2008-12-08T10:49:00.000-08:00

"It all starts with The Blues."

That was the philosophy of a friend of mine from college who got me listening to B.B. King. My friend was sort of like an old bluesman in the body of a 20 year old college kid. I made copies of a couple of his albums...one of them was "Live at The Regal". That along with "Live at The Cook County Jail" which I bought on vinyl were all I needed. When we found out he was playing in Kansas City we picked up some tickets and went to the show.

The Uptown Theater was a great venue to see him. Bobby Blue Bland was the opening act. B.B. King has one of the greatest voices in music...he can knock down walls with that powerful voice! Add Lucille to the mix and they make a perfect Duet.

It was a fun night...great music, lots of dancing in the aisles. My friends and I sort of stood out in the crowd that night...but it was one big happy party.

This clip was from 1972...awesome!

Neil Young, Kiel Auditorium, St. Louis 1-30-83

2008-12-02T04:36:00.000-08:00

Some people are superstitious and consider the number 13 to be unlucky...I'm not one of those people. My 13th concert was Neil Young touring to support his Trans record. Some fans would consider that unfortunate but in retrospect I consider myself lucky.

When it comes to Neil Young's music, I was playing catch up. I remember liking songs like "Cinnamon Girl" and "Heart of Gold" which I heard on the radio but I didn't own anything until Rust Never Sleeps. That album is a good example of the ever changing moods of Neil, one side is acoustic and the other side he turns the amps up to 11.

At college my friends had plenty of his music for me to listen to. My roommate bought the Trans record which was Neil's foray into Electronic music. Talk about changing gears! I read a biography on Neil called "Shakey" which is a great book if you're a fan. This guy definitely follows his own path and I respect him for that.

Many of my friends at school were from St. Louis so we made the 3 and a half hour drive to see him play there at the Kiel Auditorium. It was a crazy show. There was a big TV on the stage and Neil had some fake newscast and other weird stuff being televised from backstage. He played some acoustic and he played some of the electronic, and he was completely solo. I didn't realize until I started writing this that he toured with a full band to support the record in 1982. Although I would have like to have seen him with that band it seems that the Solo shows in 83 were more unique and probably a better format to present that music.

I don't know where this clip came from...it has footage of the tour from 1982 combined with a bunch of female robots.

The Who, The Checkerdome, St. Louis, MO 12-6-82

2008-11-30T17:13:00.000-08:00

I used to collect 45's when I was young, I believe the above copy of "You Better You Bet" was the last one I ever purchased.

Show #12 was The Who at The Checkerdome in St. Louis. I don't think I owned a Who album until my junior or senior year of High School. I liked the band but it was a friend from school in New Jersey who took my interest to another level. He was a drummer in a band and we both were in awe of Keith Moon's drumming. Would have loved to see the band with him behind the kit.

The band was joined The Stones and had a corporate sponsor for the tour...Schlitz Beer. Do they still make Schlitz Beer?

Their current album at the time was "It's Hard" which wasn't very good but it did have "Eminence Front" which is a great track. They only played a couple of their post-Keith songs and the rest covered their whole career. The Quadrophenia tracks they played were my favorites...especially "Drowned". And Kenny Jones did a great job drumming even though he was in the impossible position of following someone like Moon. Overall I thought it was a fantastic show...well worth the 3.5 hour trip back to our college town after the concert.

Years later I was able to get John Entwhistle and Pete Townshend to autograph my history of The Who book. Entwhistle was doing an in-store promotion for Rickenbacker at a small music store in Ventura, CA. It was cool watching The Ox with his massive fingers playing "My Generation". Pete meanwhile showed up at KLOS-FM in Los Angeles where about 100 guys with guitars all joined him to play Pinball Wizard in the parking lot at the station. Pretty cool.

The Who Who Are You 1982 Music via Noolmusic.com

Santana, Kansas City, MO, Municipal Auditorium 10-1-82

2008-11-28T12:09:00.000-08:00

Look at that ticket price...$11.50 and that included tax and fees!

Show #11 was Santana at the Municpal Auditorium in Kansas City. I only had one Santana album growing up, the Greatest Hits record with the picture of the guy holding the dove on the cover. The only problem with the record was that they used the short version of my favorite song, "Black Magic Woman". I eventually got a copy of the Moonflower record which had the full "live" version of the song.

This show rocked, Santana's rhythym section was tremendous. Once again as a hack drummer I loved listening to all of the percussion. I haven't been able to find a setlist from this show but I remember he played many of his hits. Our seats were on the floor and we had to stand on them the majority of the show.

I couldn't find any video clips from around this time period but my favorite will always be Soul Sacrifice from Woodstock. It's such an amazing performance and the way it's edited together in the movie is great. I love the shot of the fan dancing with the sheep as the song is reaching it's crescendo. Even though KC is considered a cow town there were no livestock present at the show I was at.

The Police, Kemper Arena, Kansas City, MO 3-25-1982

2008-11-26T16:16:00.001-08:00

Well this exercise in restoring my memory has already already hit a snag. I guess I should have figured out the exact date of this show before I got to this point. As you can see by the stub the only thing that's clear with regard to the date is the year. I was thinking that this show happened in the fall but after finding their tour dates on the web this morning I realized I was wrong. Oh well, who cares? It's not like anybody is actually reading this.

So The Police was actually Show #8 and I think this was the first band that I saw playing around their creative peak. I mean the other bands sounded good, but the best music they had produced was in their rearview mirror. The Police remind me of the Neil Young line "It's better to burn out than to fade away", although I find it hard to believe that any band that has a reunion tour is capable of going out in a Blaze of Glory.

I was a big Police fan and they didn't disappoint. I've long been a frustrated drummer (weak left hand) and was always impressed with Stewart Copeland....the guy is amazing. He generates so much energy, we need to figure out how to harness for our power grids. All of the guys are great musicians and Sting really encourages audience participation. He customized the performance for the venue by incorporating the song "Kansas City" into their "Can't Stand Losing You" jam.

I don't think we sat down much that night.

King Crimson, New York City, Pier 84, 8-2-82

2008-11-24T17:25:00.000-08:00

This was an amazing show.

I think it was a friend from High School who turned me on to King Crimson, but I didn't start listening to them until this version of the band started putting out records in the 80's. On this tour they were promoting their "Beat" album.

Part of the fun with this show was getting there. I was living in Middletown, NJ which is about an hour out of the city...maybe? Anyway my two friends and I were going to the show and it turned out I was the only one who could drive. My parents were out of town on vacation, they knew I was going to the show but they didn't know I was going to be driving into NYC. I had my drivers license for two years and this was definitely the most difficult outing I had taken in our Toyota Corona station wagon. Luckily my friend was familiar with where we were going and we made it in one piece.

The concert was at Pier 84 and I think there was some sort of big Navy ship docked right where the show was. I don't have a ticket stub but somewhere there is a WPLJ Dr. Pepper Summer Concerts button from the show. I don't think WPLJ would sponsor a concert series featuring King Crimson anymore.

The band opened up with "Waiting Man" which is the video I added to this post. Members came onstage one at a time and started joining in on the song. Bill Bruford on drums, Adrian Belew on guitar, Tony Levin on bass and Robert Fripp on guitar. Each of these guys were amazing and I was blown away by how they could play these complicated rhythms and freakouts and sound so tight. "Indiscipline" is a good example. The sound dynamics are extreme! This isn't music that you're likely to get laid to.

After the show my friend directed me towards Greenich Village where I devoured my first slice of Ray's Pizza. It was a perfect way to end our journey and I was able to return the Corona home unscathed.

Bobby And The Midnites, Capitol Theatre, Passaic, NJ 6-12-82

2008-11-23T18:11:00.000-08:00

Show #8 was a solo project from the Grateful Dead's Bob Weir, Bobby and the Midnites. I was home from college for the summer and went to the show with my date from my High School Junior Prom. There was no way my Senior Prom date would ever go out with me...I'm sure she hates me to this day.

Nothing really stands out about this show. Weir had some great musicians playing with him, especially Billy Cobham on drums and Alphonso Johnson on bass. Most of the songs were from their debut album.

Rolling Stones, Kemper Arena, Kansas City 12-14-81

2008-11-20T11:01:00.000-08:00

Lucky #7

There are a few reasons why concert #7 could be called Lucky #7. First of all it's The Stones, one of my all-time favorites. Secondly, my two friends and I drove into KC from our little college town with about $80 to try and snag 3 tickets. That's pretty comical considering the current cost of a show. And the third reason this was a lucky night was that former band member Mick Taylor joined them on stage.

I didn't own many Stones records before college, not sure why? Maybe it was because I was more of a Beatles fan? I still favor the Beatles but if I had to name the Best Rock & Roll band in the world it would definitely be The Stones.

We arrived in KC pretty close to showtime...George Thorogood was the opening act. We were not having much luck until we came across this guy stumbling out of a bar or restaurant. He was on his way into the arena and sold us two tickets for $50. We took the remaining $30 and got a single ticket and then the 3 of us all met inside the arena. We arrived just as Thorogood was finishing his set.

While searching the web for the setlist I found a pretty good bootleg of the show. Listening to it I'm reminded about how great the supporting members of the band were: Ian Stuart on piano and Ernie Watts on sax were awesome. I remember being a little disappointed in the song selection. They were supporting Tattoo You and played many cuts from the record. I would have loved to hear more from Mick Taylor's era with the band, but it wasn't to be.

It was a great show. Our seats were in the back of the arena but we were able to move down to the floor. The stage had some extensions that let the band wander towards the crowd. At the time I was impressed with Jagger's stamina. Over 20 years later I'm still impressed.

The above clip was from a show a couple of nights after we saw them.

The Moody Blues, Kemper Arena, Kansas City, Mo 10-24-81

2008-11-18T22:35:00.001-08:00

I started college in the Fall of 1981 at Central Missouri State which was about a hour southeast of Kansas City in a little town called Warrensburg. My roommate and I were on our way to play in an intramural softball game with some of the guys on the floor of our dorm. It was early in the semester and I hadn't met too many people yet. I was wearing my Grateful Dead t-shirt from the Radio City show and that caught the attention of a couple of guys who shared a room across the hall from me. They were Deadheads and after that game they were part of a great circle of friends I spent most of the next four years with.

Music was what brought us all together. My Deadhead friends listened to other music...just nothing recorded in the decade we were living in. Actually that's not entirely true, if a band from the 60's released music in the 80's they might check it out. Much of my music education during college was appreciating bands that I was too young to experience in their prime. That long explanation leads me to Show #6: The Moody Blues.

I don't remember listening to the band prior to college. Oh sure, "Nights in White Satin" was a staple on the radio and I'm sure I had heard "Ride My Seesaw" and "I'm Just a Singer in a Rock & Roll Band" too. This would be the first (and last) time I would stay up all night to line up to buy tickets when the box office in some record store opened the next morning. Can't believe that this was the show that I did it for?

The band was promoting their "Long Distance Voyager" record and I was familiar with that and their older stuff by the time we went to the show. I really liked the band and they played some classics; "Question", "Tuesday Afternoon", "Legend of a Mind" and more. I remember the bands harmonies being some of the best I had ever heard live. That didn't mean much considering it was only my 6th concert.

It was a good show and those were the best seats I've had at a concert up to that point. In fact as we were standing on our seats at the end of the encore I could have sworn that the drummer Graeme Edge gave me a thumbs up sign. Graeme Edge is credited with some of the more poetic pieces the band played and every once in awhile I'll dramatically recite the "Late Lament" that follows Nights in White Satin..."Breathe deep the gathering doom" and "Cold hearted orb that rules the night". It really freaks out younger people who don't know what the hell I'm talking about and it sort of freaks out my wife too and she's my age. I'll leave you with a little more from Mr. Edge:

Blasting, billowing, bursting forth With the power of ten billion butterfly sneezes Man, with his flaming pyre Has conquered the wayward breezes

Ten billion butterfly sneezes?

I usually try to find videos of the band from around the time I saw them, but this clip was about 12 years earlier. Still, it's a great version of a classic.

Styx, Brendan Byrne Arena, East Rutherford, NJ 8-23-81

2008-11-17T01:08:00.000-08:00

If this is Paradise I don't want any part of it.

I've now come to the concert I usually consider my least favorite. Show #5 was Styx playing on their Paradise Theater tour in 1981. I'm trying to figure out why I disliked this show so much? Much of it was the album the tour was supporting...I really didn't like The Paradise Theater. I listened to Styx, The Grand Illusion spent alot of time on my turntable. I received Paradise Theater from the Columbia Record Club because I didn't return the order form in time (that's how they made their money). Anyway I had a girlfriend from Canada who was coming to visit and I saw that Styx was playing while she was going to be there...so I bought the tickets.

While at the show I was realizing that not only did I dislike the album, I really didn't like Dennis DeYoung. I don't know what exactly it was about him. Maybe it was intros like this one that had me rolling my eyes.

I also didn't like the fact that the band sounded pretty much the same "live" as they did in the studio. I know some people prefer that and it takes talent to be able to pull it off. But I prefer more improvisation, experimentation, recklessness. So a thumbs down on this show...but I still will listen to Crystal Ball every once in awhile.

Grateful Dead, Radio City Music Hall NYC, 10-25-80

2008-11-15T13:39:00.000-08:00

There is nothing like a Grateful Dead concert.

The Grateful Dead at Radio City Music Hall was the 4th concert I ever went to...and in retrospect I wish I would have been more prepared.

I moved from Canada to the Jersey Shore area during my Junior year in High School...fall of 1979. Some of the music being played at school around the time that was new to me was Lynyrd Skynyrd's double live album and Neil Young's Rust Never Sleeps. I soon found out that in New Jersey there's Six Degrees of Bruce Springsteen. And last but not least, I found out about The Dead.

When I got the tickets for the show, I was only familiar with the songs I heard on the radio, Truckin', Casey Jones, Friend of the Devil and a few of the songs from the Go To Heaven album which was released that year. I had heard from others how great their concerts were and I wanted to check it out for myself. The shows at Radio City along with a run of shows in San Francisco were celebrating the band's 15th anniversary. They played acoustic and electric sets and the music would later appear on the Reckoning and Dead Set albums. I'm listening to Reckoning as I write this.

When I said at the top that I wish I would have been more prepared for this concert, I didn't realize how special these shows were at the time. And I didn't really know the music either. I saw the Dead several times after this show and there were some great shows...but this one probably was the best.

I rode into the city with a couple of friends and their parents. The parents were going to a black tie event at the Waldorf Astoria. We get dropped off and somehow purchased some Jack Daniel's which we drank prior to the show. We get to our seats and this guy sits down next to us. He unpacks some recording equipment and runs a couple of microphones a few rows ahead of us. He lights up a joint a says "Hey I'm Paul, this is my old lady Mary and this is Ralph". Ralph was the dragon hat that he was wearing. I made of screwed up the names in this story...but hopefully the picture has been painted.

Musically, I really enjoyed the show even though I didn't know the tunes. They were great musicians and let the music take them on little journeys. My Dad is a big jazz fan and used to play his music for me, I think that's where I developed an appreciation for improvisation.

And then there was the show outside of the show...the Deadheads. There was dancing, and characters like Paul, Mary and Ralph. Everybody was cool. And having this all take place at Radio City Music Hall...it was great.

The evening wasn't all that great for one of my friends who had a little too much Jack Daniels. He got sick at the show. It was also his parents who drove us to the city. The three of us walked into the Grand Ballroom of the Waldorf Astoria after the show to catch our ride home. His parents were cool but I'm sure others were wondering what the 3 of us had been up to.

It was a great show and the t-shirt I bought there would later connect me with real Deadheads in college...the place of higher education.

KISS, Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto, 8-4-79

2008-11-13T15:46:00.000-08:00

When it comes down to it...I'm a man of Peace. Maybe that's why I never joined the KISS Army.

KISS was my third concert and last while living in Canada. This was on the Dynasty Tour, Dynasty was the record with the band's attempt at a disco "I Was Made For Loving You".

I owned some KISS records, but I stopped buying them after this one. Their show was quite the spectacle...which did a good job of disguising the fact that much of their music was pretty lame. Our seats were towards the side of the stage and you could definitely feel the heat when they would blast those giant flames into the air. I'm surprised the hair on Paul Stanley's chest never got singed. The program for the show had pictures of each member and the character they were: Ace Frehley was "The Spaceman", Peter Criss was "The Cat", Paul Stanley was "The Starchild" and Gene Simmons was the "I'll Do Anything For A Buck" guy. Actually Simmons was "The Demon" and definitely the biggest showman of the group. Each member had their "solo" part of the show....talk about excess! Gene Simmons is onstage playing a bass solo (a freakin' bass solo) when he gets lifted into the air and is playing up near the rafters of the arena. That's one way to make a bass solo interesting.

I saw the band again 19 years later....the tickets were free. I don't have any KISS CDs to pull out for a blast from the past, but I'm really glad I had the chance to see them while they were in their prime.

Canadian World Music Festival, Exhibition Stadium, Toronto 7-2-79

2008-11-12T14:52:00.000-08:00

As a father of two young boys I sometimes wonder what sort of music they will be listening to as they get older? Should I be afraid? All I need to do is remember a song that was in my heavy rotation when I was 15 years old...Wang Dang Sweet Pootang by Ted Nugent. I turned alright...well maybe I need to reflect on that some more.

The Canadian World Music Festival was the second concert I ever attended. Multiple artists were on the bill. The day started with some Canadian band named Goddo...don't remember much about them. I think there was a band called Moxy that played after them but I wasn't familiar with any of their music and their show didn't leave me wanting to rush out and buy any of their records. The Ramones were next and I do remember The Ramones! I remember making my way on to the field for that part of the show and having to watch out for food and drinks being thrown towards the stage. My impression of the band was that all of their songs sounded the same and they were definitely playing in front of the wrong crowd.

Johnny Winter was up next. I had never heard any of his music...I did own a 45 of Frankenstein by his brother Edgar. Johnny Winter had been the best set of the day at that point.

Nazereth was next. I was familiar with their cover of Love Hurts, but they really didn't do anything for me.

I was there to see Ted Nugent and he didn't disappoint. Ted would only disappoint me later when I realized what an asshole he seems to be. Cat Scratch Fever was the album that hooked me into him and Double Live Gonzo followed after that. Nugent was great air guitar music and it's no surprise that he's now featured on Guitar Hero. Ted's schtick was pretty much the same...only the name of the pussy changed. I later had a friend in NJ who told me that spent a month one summer following Nugent around on tour...he referred to it as TEDSTOCK.

Aerosmith topped the bill and they were alright...but it had been a long day and I thought Nugent sounded tighter. I saw Aerosmith years later and I think they sounded better after sobering up.

Outside of the music I'll remember the day for a couple of other reasons. The friend I went with had been one of my closest friends during the time I had lived in Canada. But because of where we lived we went to different High Schools and are paths went in different directions.

And the day ended on a definite bummer. The concert had happened the day after my family had returned from a family vacation. My parents had dropped me off at a train station and then were waiting for me after the show. I get in the car and find out from my Mom that our family dog had died in the kennel while we were on vacation. I suppose that's one reason I don't have the fondest memories of this show.

ELP WTF?

2008-11-11T07:03:00.001-08:00

I was so excited that I figured out out to embed a video in my last post that I didn't finish up my thoughts on ELP. When I saw them back in 78 the new music that they were producing was starting to go downhill. I had bought their 2 releases Works Vol. 1 & 2 which had some moments, but you could tell that their sound was taking a turn for the worst. Then they released Love Beach. All you had to do was take a look at the album cover and you knew that it was over. How could you release a record with a cover like Brain Salad Surgery and then 5 years later release Love Beach? Even though Carl Palmer and Greg Lake were part of the "supergroup" Asia...I didn't follow them anymore. Coincidentally or not ELP's downfall was happening around the same time that Fonzie "Jumped The Shark" on Happy Days.

Emerson Lake & Palmer, Maple Leaf Gardens Toronto February 1978

2008-11-10T15:55:00.000-08:00

I have ticket stubs from most of the shows I've attended...unfortunately I'm missing the one from my very first concert, Emerson Lake Palmer. Looking at some websites I guessed that it was one of two shows at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto in February of 1978.

My family moved around quite a bit when I was growing up and I lived in Mississauga, Ontario Canada during the time I refer to as my "Wonder Years". I was in either 6th or 7th grade when a friend of mine introduced me to ELP and the Brain Salad Surgery album. I was fascinated by the album cover and knocked out by the music. I bought my own copy and taped their debut. My Dad is a jazz fan and I knew he would enjoy listening to Carl Palmer's drum solos. I can still remember the time he had a friend over and I was playing the song Tank for them. My Dad's friend was listening with the headphones on and was tripping out on the sound of the synthesizers shouting out something like "This is Far Out Man!" Now that I look back on it, this was pretty heavy to be listening to at that age. I was driving my 3 year old son to preschool one morning and Toccata came on the Sirius channel I was listening to. I was thinking to myself how frightening this track sounded! Meanwhile my son says "This is cool Dad". Like father like son.

As for the show my friends and I rode buses and subways to the show...can't imagine letting my boys do the same at that age. Times have changed! I remember it being a great show. It was also the first time I saw people smoking weed....no I didn't.

Welcome To My Blog

2008-11-08T22:27:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Brain Salad Memories...a not so desperate attempt to put together pieces of my past.

I'm finding that my memory is abandoning me more often than it used to. For many years I've had more success recalling the insignificant rather than the vitally important. For instance I can tell you who played shortstop for the Chicago Cubs back in the late 60's (Don Kessinger) but I will have a hard time remembering the name of the person who was just introduced to me 30 seconds ago. Hey, I've driven away from a gas pump with the nozzle still in the car....twice.

Recently I was cleaning out the junk drawer in my dresser and came across this tattered envelope full of ticket stubs from concerts I've attended. Maybe this is why I seem to recall the insignificant so well. I had been thinking about starting a blog and thought it would be a good exercise to try and document what I remember about these shows. Some of the posts may be very brief, others may stray into subjects not connected with the show. Whatever it becomes, I hope you enjoy it.

The picture above is of a GE Wildcat. The record player I spent untold hours of my youth with was a Wildcat...in fact it was the same color as this one.

As you'll soon see the name of the blog is inspired by the first concert I attended. If I could only remember who that was?