{"id":1051,"date":"2017-08-14T19:30:53","date_gmt":"2017-08-14T19:30:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/?p=1051"},"modified":"2017-08-14T19:32:57","modified_gmt":"2017-08-14T19:32:57","slug":"ftv-the-brits-invade-milwaukee","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/?p=1051","title":{"rendered":"FTV: The Brits invade Milwaukee"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Imagine 11,000 screaming fans, the majority of them girls between the ages of 13 and 17, crammed into a ballroom with a legal capacity of just 2,500. \u00a0This crowd would be the equivalent of the audience at the much larger Milwaukee Arena packed into a space the size of a large high school gymnasium on a muggy June evening in 1964. \u00a0Kids surged forward to be near the stage with more than thirty being carted to a makeshift infirmary set up in a hallway behind the stage and eleven eventually being taken to the hospital. \u00a0The next day, the city building inspector was quoted in a Milwaukee Sentinel cover story saying, \u201cThe whole thing was horrible. \u00a0We\u2019re talking about possible dead kids.\u201d \u00a0Surprisingly, the band on stage wasn\u2019t the Beatles – they would not play their first Milwaukee show for another three months. \u00a0No, the first wave of the British invasion to reach Milwaukee was The Dave Clark Five and the lessons Milwaukee officials learned from this nearly disastrous concert would set the template for future rock shows from that first Beatles show in September of 1964 to the present.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Previous shows at the Eagles Club (whose ballroom was officially dubbed \u201cGeorge Devine\u2019s Million Dollar Ballroom\u201d back then) had seen crowds in excess of 5,000, but in the aftermath of the Dave Clark Five show, city officials reportedly told the Sentinel that they \u201cwere unable to explain how the Devine ballroom has operated in excess of its reported capacity since it opened in 1934.\u201d \u00a0The promoter couldn\u2019t say how many tickets had been sold, but the advance ticket sales numbered more than 6,000 according to his statement. \u00a0The doors opened at 1 p.m. but fans had started to line up as early as 6 a.m., a full nine hours before the DC5 would hit the stage. \u00a0Local bands warmed up the crowd from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. and as the crowd surged forward at the start of the headliner\u2019s set, officials were forced to drag some of the fainting girls on stage to help get them out of the crush from the crowd behind them. \u00a0\u00a0Drummer Dave Clark, all of 21 at the time, threatened to take the band off the stage if order was not restored. \u00a0As it was, they were only able to perform for about 15 minutes before they departed this fiasco of a show.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Some news reports called it a \u201criot\u201d with both the Sentinel and Milwaukee Journal publishing editorials critical of the dangerous situation the promoter had created. \u00a0With The Beatles coming to town, the Sentinel scolded, \u201cSuch precautions must be founded on the painful acceptance of the fact that the wild teenager adoration of The Beatles and their replicas is here to stay, for the immediate present, at least.\u201d \u00a0\u00a0Advice columnist Ione Quinby Griggs\u2019 mailbox was so overrun with letters from teens whose parents were going to deny them a chance to see The Beatles after the bad publicity about the DC5 show, she had to limit how many she could publish. \u00a0Griggs stated, \u201cNumerous Beatles fans have written me asking to \u201csound off\u201d about their troubles. \u00a0There are too many to answer all in the column, but I will answer a few and hope this will help those whose letters cannot be published.\u201d \u00a0One couple wrote to implore concert goers to, \u201cNot throw jelly beans at The Beatles or anything else! \u00a0As George once said, \u2018If you must throw something, throw kisses.\u2019 \u00a0Let\u2019s have The Beatles remember Milwaukee for its considerate teens.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The Beatles drew more than 12,000 fans to the Arena in September and the Journal reported that \u201cthe biggest challenge the police had was after the show was over, keeping girls from trying to touch the stage where the Fab Four had trod.\u201d \u00a0Things had definitely cooled off for the Dave Clark Five when they returned for another show at the Auditorium in December of 1964. \u00a0This time they were greeted by 1,900 enthusiastic fans leading a concert reviewer to note, \u201cMilwaukee teenagers apparently don\u2019t love Britain\u2019s Dave Clark Five in December as they did in June. \u00a0The teenagers who were on hand did their utmost to make up, in enthusiasm, for those who were absent.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0As for The Beatles visit, \u00a0they landed at what was then called the Milwaukee County Airport and taken to the National Guard headquarters on the east side of the field. \u00a0Forced to leave hundreds of fans waiting for a glimpse of the band, they were driven by limousine to the Coach House Motor Inn with Paul McCartney later recalling. \u201cThe police told us we couldn\u2019t go past (the crowd). \u00a0It\u2019s mean not to let \u2018em have a wave, \u00a0It\u2019s a lousy deal, a dirty trick.\u201d<\/span> \u00a0<\/span>In the aftermath of the DC5 fiasco, it showed that the local authorities were taking no chances. \u00a0The Journal later filed this report about the precautions: \u00a0\u201cSecurity was tight around the arena, as the Milwaukee authorities feared the effects of Beatlemania. The Beatles arrived in the city by aeroplane in the afternoon, and were met by around 700 fans. Fifty police officers and 30 county deputies had difficulty restraining the fans, despite makeshift fences being erected, and officers with fire hoses stood by. \u00a0At one point around 100 fans broke through the cordon and rushed towards an approaching plane.\u201d \u00a0As for the show itself, the Journal went on to say, \u201cTickets cost between $3.50 and $5.50, and had gone on sale in April 1964. Within a week all 12,000 had sold out. Also on the bill were The Bill Black Combo, The Exciters, Clarence ‘Frogman’ Henry, and Jackie DeShannon. \u00a0During the show the Red Cross posted 18 people around the venue, armed with ammonia and other inhalants, and treated at least 10 fainting girls.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Milwaukee has seen other concerts that have made headlines. \u00a0British rockers Humble Pie appeared in 1973 and that show most decidedly ended in a riot. \u00a0<\/span>Set at the Summerfest grounds on the Lake Michigan shoreline, one blogger described an over abundance of drugs and beer mixed with the extremely hot weather as being the main contributing factors of the crowd melt down at the July 21, 1973 Humble Pie show. \u00a0The end result they described as, \u201ctrashing and looting of beer tents; massive bonfires fueled by said tents; huge mud puddles of broken open beer barrels; and the ultimate result of the calling in of the National Guard; tear gas, billy clubs and over 300 arrests; a massive revamp of the Summerfest lineup in later years.\u201d \u00a0Indeed, the \u201cmassive revamp\u201d mentioned was an intentional move by Summerfest away from hard rock for a number of years. \u00a0Although he didn\u2019t cause a riot, <\/span>George Carlin\u2019s arrest after his Summerfest performance of the \u201cseven words you can\u2019t say on TV\u201d put the Milwaukee concert scene on the map again. \u00a0It also \u00a0raised Carlin\u2019s profile to near mythic proportions which he thanked Milwaukee for in later years. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The 1980 episode called the \u201cBlack and Blue\u201d concert saw Blue Oyster Cult open for Black Sabbath who at that time had Ronnie James Dio filling the vocalist\u2019s spot. \u00a0After the third Sabbath song, bassist Geezer Butler was hit in the face with a bottle thrown at the stage. \u00a0This prompted the band to end the concert then and there, setting off a riot that damaged the venue, lead to multiple arrests and sent more than a few fans and police to the hospital. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Surprise special guest Elton John was actually booed during a concert celebrating Harley Davidson\u2019s 100th Anniversary. \u00a0Harley Davidson had booked a group of \u201cbiker friendly bands\u201d sure to please their specific tastes such as Tim McGraw, Kid Rock, and the Doobie Brothers. \u00a0HD officials hinted that there would be a \u201cspecial guest\u201d at the Veteran\u2019s Park show and when John appeared, a hush fell over the packed crowd.<\/span> \u00a0One eye witness account painted a vivid picture of an audience reaction that no artist would like to be greeted with: \u00a0\u201cWith the Harley folks clad in black, it looked more like a funeral as the stunned crowd stood motionless as John launched into his set of new, soft rock tunes and old favorites. \u00a0Then, people started to leave. \u00a0In droves. \u00a0After a few new songs, John played his classics, like “<\/span>Daniel<\/span><\/i>,” “<\/span>Rocket Man<\/span><\/i>,””<\/span>The Bitch Is Back<\/span><\/i>” and “<\/span>I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues<\/span><\/i>,” but the damage was already done. The once jam-packed crowd began to thin out. Perhaps, though this is just a guess, as many as 30 percent of the audience just went home. \u00a0John didn’t help his cause by announcing to the crowd, “I’d play you a song about motorcycles, but I don’t have any.\u201d \u00a0This would presumably be the last straw that kick started the booing by the pro-motorcycle crowd.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0After decades of concerts, some with tumultuous endings, perhaps it is fitting that the Harley event ended not with a riot, but with a fizzle. \u00a0A glance at the line up of more recent Summer Fests suggests that they are no longer shy about bringing big acts into town, and yes, many of them are bands with British roots. \u00a0With yet another large venue opening soon (the new Milwaukee Bucks arena), Milwaukee can be satisfied that the riotous shows of the past are history.<\/span><\/p>\n

Top Piece Video – A snippet of the DC 5 invasion of the USA!