<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In Part 1 of <\/span>Live Shows Revisited <\/span><\/i>(2-23-22), I asked for stories about your favorite concert memories.\u00a0 Less than three days later, Howard Szaroletta from Reno, Nevada responded.\u00a0 In terms of \u2018mining data\u2019 for interesting stories, I have to say I struck paydirt on the first try.\u00a0 There is no way I could tell Howard\u2019s story better than he did, so what follows is a direct quote (<\/span>with a few additional comments from yours truly<\/span><\/i>):<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAs a youth growing up my idea of a live concert had always been \u2018it\u2019s a waste of time and money\u2019 because a person could just buy a band\u2019s record and play it over and over for enjoyment and stay true to the frugality of the times (at least the frugality I was raised under!).\u00a0 A great and special friend of mine in high school had tried to arrange a trip out to New York for a few of us on Greyhound to see a concert.\u00a0 Our parents forbade it, otherwise Woodstock would\u2019ve been my first taste of live bands and I\u2019d be writing about IT!\u00a0 We survived the disappointment of not going though as the time news coverage of the festival was not positive.\u00a0 Looking back now at how close we came to being a part of that experience makes me wonder the effect on each of our lives (it would have had) if we\u2019d have just jumped on a bus and gone and faced the music when we returned.\u201d (<\/span>My note:\u00a0 At my house, I am pretty sure the locks would have been changed and I would have been disowned.<\/span><\/i>)<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u201cStill hanging on to my \u2018just buy the record\u2019 mentality though, I came back to the U.P. for college at Michigan Tech in 1971 (I\u2019m an Ontonagonite born in 1953 but raised from age 5 in the Lower Peninsula).\u00a0 Sometime after my freshman year, we got tickets to a concert going on in Marquette at NMU in a large building there. (<\/span>My note:\u00a0 H<\/span><\/i>o<\/span>ward and I agreed it would have been at Hedgecock Field House.\u00a0 The Hedgecock database says it was 11-13-74<\/span><\/i>).\u00a0 The Heimlich Maneuver had just been invented and I studied it up for some reason when it came out.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The concert was Frank Zappa and The Mothers of Invention, and between all my friends and I we had plenty of his records to play, (so was my thinking), but the tickets were purchased and we got set for the concert.\u00a0 Several of us went and I was thinking it was going to be a waste with Frank up there doing gross stuff.\u00a0 Well, was I mistaken!\u00a0 The warmup band I don\u2019t remember much of (<\/span>no mention made in the database)<\/span><\/i>, however, THEY were a shocker how good the sound was.\u00a0 When The Mothers came on and Frank joined them, they just flat out played one song to the next and I remember thinking he just showed us the part in his hair as he bent over his guitar and rocked out that hall.\u00a0 What a blast, I was at my first concert and realizing how WRONG my earlier thoughts were all at the same time.\u00a0 \u2018Nothing beats a live performance,\u2019 was ever after going to be the new mantra PLUS from now on, we\u2019ll get the record to remember the performance by (I did not have money for t-shirts back then so no memento like that either).<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0They encored with Johnny B. Goode and we (especially me!) went wild to hear someone jam out like that.\u00a0 I was hooked and began a life of attending concerts and performances that continues to this day.\u00a0 (<\/span>My note:\u00a0 At this point, I was still wondering how the Heimlich Maneuver fit in . . .<\/span><\/i>)<\/span><\/p>\n There\u2019s a small story that goes along with that day.\u00a0 A friend, while getting out of the vehicle right before the concert, began choking on a piece of food and was struggling to get our attention.\u00a0 Actually, I thought he was just kidding but it got serious when his color was changing blue so I got around on him and performed the Heimlich and out shot this chunk of sandwich.\u00a0 He turned and said, \u2018You just saved my life!\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0I replied to Howard to tell him I missed this show but had gotten a first hand report from a classmate in the Geography Department at NMU.\u00a0 My source raved about the concert and said on the way down a flight of stairs to a side exit on the lower level of Hedgecock, the crowd found Frank Zappa with a towel around his neck having a smoke by the open exit.\u00a0 He nodded and smiled as everyone filed past him with many commenting on what a great show it had been.\u00a0 Sad to say, I missed one for the ages.\u00a0 Thank you, Howard, for sharing.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0My second response came from another former Ontonagonite now living in Green Bay, John Fischer.\u00a0 John also traveled from MTU to his favorite concert but it wasn\u2019t held in Marquette.\u00a0 He had to travel from Houghton to Green Bay.\u00a0 He and Bob \u2018Rouse\u2019 Colclasure were dedicated Kingston Trio fans so they made the pilgrimage to see the Trio perform (an act they repeated several times as John and Bob played Kingston Trio music with John\u2019s brother Bobby).\u00a0 Near the end of the show, the Trio asked if there were any volunteers who would like to come on stage and perform with them.\u00a0 John said he almost yanked Bob C\u2019s arm out of his socket to get the band\u2019s attention.\u00a0 What happened next could only be described as the Kingston Trio getting more than they bargained for.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Anyone who had the privilege to see the two Bobs and John play Kingston Trio tunes will recall two things:\u00a0 They performed flawless renditions of the KT songs and between numbers, Bob C would get on a roll with funny asides and imitations of actors like Jimmy Stuart.\u00a0 True to form, Bob bantered back and forth with the band before they handed him a guitar.\u00a0 Bob C grabbed the lead vocal part he was used to singing and Bob Shane (from the Trio) sang backup for him.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0John says the people around him were absolutely sure that Rouse had been planted in the audience just for this moment.\u00a0 He says now, \u201cHis performance was so good, I had to convince them that it wasn\u2019t a set up and that Bob C was just another concert goer like them.\u201d\u00a0 John had told me this story once before:\u00a0 I had picked up tickets to see The Kingston Trio perform during one of their anniversary tours at the Calumet Theater in 2007.\u00a0 Ironically, John had to drive from Green Bay to L\u2019Anse (where I met him at a commuter lot so he could relax a bit after his four hour drive) and he shared this tale with me on the way to Calumet.\u00a0 Had the trio asked for volunteers that night, it would have been me yanking John\u2019s arm out of joint to try and get him up on stage, but alas, they weren\u2019t looking to be upstaged that night.\u00a0 We had to settle for me taking a picture of John with the newest member of the Kingston Trio\u2019s (then) current lineup.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0WOAS-FM West Coast Bureau rep Todd and I had our share of memorable concert moments when the WCB was still in Los Angeles.\u00a0 Having seen the Black Crowes with him twice in L.A., I had a feeling his favorite moment would be Crowe based.\u00a0 Sure enough, it involved them (daughter Elizabeth being the other half of the WCB) traveling from L.A. to San Francisco to see a couple of Crowe\u2019s shows at the fabled Fillmore Auditorium.\u00a0 According to Todd, the Crowes played six consecutive nights and each night, they did a different theme for their encore.\u00a0 The shows were great and he said the most memorable night, they closed the second set with <\/span>Midnight Rambler<\/span><\/i> and followed that up by doing an encore of Rolling Stones covers.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Not to leave Elizabeth out of the concert picture, she had good words to say about both Cher and Lady Gaga shows.\u00a0 As for Cher, she reports, \u201cIt was great to see Cher because her performance included songs from every decade of her career, and her voice was still spectacular!\u00a0 Hearing her perform <\/span>Believe <\/span><\/i>live (complete with the famous \u2018Cher effect\u2019 on Auto Tune was a particular highlight.\u201d\u00a0 Lady Gaga gets similar high praise:\u00a0 \u201cIt was fun seeing Gaga at the height of her <\/span>Monster Ball<\/span><\/i> fame, as those shows were over the top!\u00a0 She skillfully played keyboard and keytar at various points during her performances.\u00a0 We (<\/span>Todd was a good sport and went along in light of all the shows that Elizabeth had taken in with bands he follows<\/span><\/i>) had the good fortune of seeing her perform on her 25th birthday, and although the show started late because she had been having a wild birthday dinner beforehand (according to the tabloids), it was still special to see her band and dancers present her with a cake and sing <\/span>Happy Birthday<\/span><\/i> at the end of the show.\u201d\u00a0 (<\/span>At the time, I recall her adding, \u201cI danced and screamed like a thirteen year old\u201d which is one reason I figured this show might show up on her list<\/span><\/i>).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0My wife has also been able to see some great shows, both in L.A. and Eugene, Oregon.\u00a0 I would not be stretching the truth to say two of her favorites involved Neil Young.\u00a0 The first was a solo acoustic show she attended with the WCB at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles.\u00a0 Neil switched between acoustic guitar and piano throughout the show and she said guitars sounded phenomenal.\u00a0 Between adoring fans (\u201cNeiiillll – you\u2019re still changing the world, Neil!\u201d) and his dry sense of humor, it was a wonderful show.\u00a0 You can clearly hear the crowd gasp when he performs <\/span>Thashser<\/span><\/i> in the soundboard recording Todd sent my wife later.\u00a0 The last time NY played <\/span>Thrasher<\/span><\/i> was with Crazy Horse in Inglewood back on October 24, 1978 (the song is about his departure from CSN&Y).\u00a0 Those in attendance in Hollywood on March 29, 2014 got quite a treat to hear this deep cut after a 35 year absence from his live shows.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The second show they took in was at the Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Oregon and it was\u00a0 different for a couple of reasons.\u00a0 Neil\u2019s tour just before the COVID pandemic hit was with The Promise of the Real (Lucas Nelson\u2019s band).\u00a0 The show opened with NY doing his solo thing and when the whole band joined him in the second half, they tore the house down.\u00a0 Weather complications involving a canceled flight from Ironwood and a hastily rebooked flight the next day from Houghton plunked my wife in Eugene the day of the concert.\u00a0 By the time they were making the three mile trek back to the car, she was running on fumes – but still elated by the energy of the show.\u00a0 Todd gets a particular kick out of sending Neil music to my wife on a regular basis.\u00a0 I may have missed these shows but again, the WCB has been able to find soundboard recordings of many of them so I can at least hear what I missed.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0My wife and I have been to many great shows here in our own backyard (including the Ontonagon Theater, The Calumet Theater and the Rozsa Center at MTU).\u00a0 When Ladysmith Black Mambazo appeared at the Rozsa, my wife had worked the phones and gotten us seats at stage left only two rows back.\u00a0 It would have been a wonderful show from anywhere in the\u00a0 theater, but being that close to the stage gave us an up close and personal view of the group\u2019s choreography.\u00a0 We were in almost the exact same location in 2011 to see <\/span>Rockland the Opera <\/span><\/i>that was commissioned by the Pine Mountain Music Festival.\u00a0 The original true story had been written by Alfred Laakso, one of the miners involved in the events of 1906 and his grandson Andy Hill of Wakefield was instrumental in getting it turned into a stage production.\u00a0 Having known Andy for many years, we had heard about <\/span>Rockland<\/span><\/i> as it was being developed so finally seeing it on stage was another highlight for us.\u00a0 When the national touring production of <\/span>Porgy & Bess <\/span><\/i>came to the Rozsa, it was notable because of the quality of the performances and the sub zero blizzard we had to navigate on the way home.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0There have been a number of shows we also enjoyed at the Calumet Theater over the years.\u00a0 My wife loves George Winston and this was one of our first concerts in this long string.\u00a0 Winston makes fine albums, but the variety of styles he puts into his live shows make his concerts very entertaining.\u00a0 Judy Collins\u2019 explanation of how she began formal voice training late in her career made sense when she unleashed her remarkable voice.\u00a0 Even in her late 70s, her voice had lost none of its crystal clear sparkle.\u00a0 The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Roger McGuinn, Arlo Guthrie, Kim Wilson and the Fabulous Thunderbirds, and The LowRider Band were all enjoyable live shows hosted by the Calumet Theater.\u00a0 The LowRider Band is the name used by the band formerly known as War because they were contractually banned from using their more familiar name.\u00a0 I had seen them previously as War at Lakeview Arena in Marquette so I was not sure what to expect of them thirty years later.\u00a0 As I told the theater manager during the intermission, The Lowrider Band put on an even better show than they did back then.\u00a0 Seeing guitarist\/vocalist Howard Scott take to the audience to pass around a mic for a <\/span>Why Can\u2019t We Be Friends<\/span><\/i> sing-along was a lot of fun.\u00a0 When he got to an enthusiastic teenage boy in the middle of the main floor, Scott let the kid shine and lingered there long enough to bring the house to its feet.\u00a0 Maybe they should have offered him a contract on the spot.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Back in part one of <\/span>Live Shows Revisited<\/span><\/i>, I mentioned there have been too many great shows for me to pick any one favorite.\u00a0 This statement still stands as I haven\u2019t even gotten to gems like the two <\/span>Alan Parsons Project <\/span><\/i>shows done with the MTU Symphony, The Outfield, Flo and Eddie (The Turtles), Blue Oyster Cult (twice), Fleetwood Mac, Savoy Brown, Dave Loggins, Catfish Hodge, Chicago, Brownsville Station . . . I am sure you get the idea by now.\u00a0 Need I add I have never been to a live music event that has left me disappointed?<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Last note on live shows.\u00a0 Over a couple of birthdays, I was gifted three volumes compiled by Richard Houghton and put out by Red Planet Books.\u00a0 The series bears the title <\/span>I Was There<\/span><\/i> and contains many first hand accounts of regular people seeing bands both as they were coming up and after they were famous.\u00a0 Having absorbed many interesting stories from these three books, I\u00a0 donated them to the Ontonagon Township Library for others to also enjoy.\u00a0 I don\u2019t normally give away birthday presents, but my bookshelves are getting more and more crowded so in this case, I can accomplish the dual goals of thinning my collection while sharing interesting tales with other music lovers.\u00a0 Many thanks to adjunct West Coast Bureau member Brian for the excellent reading material.<\/span><\/p>\n \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The other thing I promised back in Part 1 was a more detailed accounting of the second Measured Chaos show put on at the Ontonagon Theater in June of 2009.\u00a0 Some of that story has already been told in <\/span>FTV:\u00a0 Al J Returns <\/span><\/i>(Ontonagon Herald 3-30-22).\u00a0 We will wrap up Part 3 of <\/span>Live Shows Revisited <\/span><\/i>a little closer to Al Jacquez\u2019s OTPA show in August of 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n FTV:\u00a0 Nitty Gritty Dirt Band from 2006 Farm Aide concert – they were another favorite concert moment for my wife and I when they appeared at the Calumet Theater.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0In Part 1 of Live Shows Revisited (2-23-22), I asked for stories about your favorite concert memories.\u00a0 Less than three days later, Howard Szaroletta from Reno, Nevada responded.\u00a0 In terms of \u2018mining data\u2019 for interesting stories, I have to say I struck paydirt on the first try.\u00a0 There is no way I could tell […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,11,8,7,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2511","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bands-musicians","category-education","category-from-the-vaults","category-local-music-news","category-woas"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2511","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2511"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2511\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2516,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2511\/revisions\/2516"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2511"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2511"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.woas-fm.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2511"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}