November 24, 2007 - Saturday
Current mood:
nostalgic
Current mood:
nostalgic ..It was 30 years ago on November 23rd 1977 that I saw a concert that changed my life forever.... AC/DC on the "Let There Be Rock" tour! I was turned on the AC/DC when I used to work at the Cracker Barrell on Merchant's Road in Knovxille Tenessee (the spot where the original store was is now an Applebee's since they built a bigger store a block away) by Tim & Tony Nowell who also worked with me and the album "High Voltage" was a new release at the time. A few months later "Let There Be Rock" was released and I can remember being a first day buyer at a store that was called "Records N' Things" which was owned by a couple of hot sisters that we would now call a "MILF" who was well stocked in 8-track tapes!
Anyway..... when the local newspaper had an ad for a "budget" concert (I think the tickets was like $4 in advance!) at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum for AC/DC UFO & special guests The Motors I had to go! At this time there was very little airplay for any of these bands so I guess that is why the tickets was so cheap. I had known about UFO from a bootleg 8-track that had a couple of the songs from "Force It" (Shoot Shoot & Let It Roll) along with Nugent (Motorcity Madhouse & Stormtroopin') Jeff Beck (Freeway Jam) and a few other songs I can't remember so I knew I was going to have a good time! I went with some friends I used to hang out with at the time (Steve "Tub" Fine, Linda Annette & Gary Pike) and we had plenty of "libations" (Jack Daniels Redbud & downs) so I was pretty well wasted enough to not walk but straight enough to remember! We went to the back corner of the Coliseum where we could get high without getting hassled (it's not a huge place....maybe 9 to 10 thousand capacity at the most) and chilled during The Motors set until they played the song "Emergency" which got on my nerves!
The next band up was UFO.... who was touring for the "Light's Out" album. They was billed as a co-headliner so they got to play about the same time that AC/DC did (which I'm assuming was about an hour each.... but you know how time is distorted when you are high!). A great show and Michael Schenker was on fire! Come to find out later that Paul Raymond was arrested that night when Phil got him to play the piano in the lobby of Hyatt Regency (now a Marriot namesake) which was next door! Or so is what Phil Mogg said when I first asked him about that show when I seen them in Milwaukee at the Metalfest during the "Walk On Water" tour!
By time AC/DC got on stage I had "rubberlegs" so I was stuck where I was sitting. "HOLY SHIT" is what I was thinking after I seen Angus tear up the stage! I had never seen anybody so possessed in my life! He I was and I could hardly move and he could stand still if his life depended on it! Then during the song "Rocker" Bon took Angus around the main floor on his shoulders during his guitar solo! Needless to say that the next 2 tours I would see them in this venue ( 1978 opening for Alice Cooper & 1979 Highway To Hell headlining) I made sure I was on the floor!
The rest of the night I can't really remember.....but I do remember that during one of my "lost" night of partying that at the Best Western at Merchant's Road (now a "Days Inn") I do remember being at some kind of party after a concert with a band who wanted some booze after "last call" and I knew a place on Clinton Highway called "Snow White" where you could get liquor anytime you wanted it (as long as you answered "no" to the question "are you a policeman/cop") through a sliding door. I also remember waking up hungover (on the floor naked) in a room with a bar waitress who was with another dude who was passed out. I can only assume it was a band member who may have been with her. At the time I never been laid (at 19 years old) and since my ass wasn't sore I hope that I lost my cherry that night!
I still wonder if it could have been sharing the same woman with the same band I saw 30 years ago the same night but I will never know. And this is something I have never revealed to anybody. I guess that was just part of growing up in the 70's!
Anyway..... when the local newspaper had an ad for a "budget" concert (I think the tickets was like $4 in advance!) at the Knoxville Civic Coliseum for AC/DC UFO & special guests The Motors I had to go! At this time there was very little airplay for any of these bands so I guess that is why the tickets was so cheap. I had known about UFO from a bootleg 8-track that had a couple of the songs from "Force It" (Shoot Shoot & Let It Roll) along with Nugent (Motorcity Madhouse & Stormtroopin') Jeff Beck (Freeway Jam) and a few other songs I can't remember so I knew I was going to have a good time! I went with some friends I used to hang out with at the time (Steve "Tub" Fine, Linda Annette & Gary Pike) and we had plenty of "libations" (Jack Daniels Redbud & downs) so I was pretty well wasted enough to not walk but straight enough to remember! We went to the back corner of the Coliseum where we could get high without getting hassled (it's not a huge place....maybe 9 to 10 thousand capacity at the most) and chilled during The Motors set until they played the song "Emergency" which got on my nerves!
The next band up was UFO.... who was touring for the "Light's Out" album. They was billed as a co-headliner so they got to play about the same time that AC/DC did (which I'm assuming was about an hour each.... but you know how time is distorted when you are high!). A great show and Michael Schenker was on fire! Come to find out later that Paul Raymond was arrested that night when Phil got him to play the piano in the lobby of Hyatt Regency (now a Marriot namesake) which was next door! Or so is what Phil Mogg said when I first asked him about that show when I seen them in Milwaukee at the Metalfest during the "Walk On Water" tour!
By time AC/DC got on stage I had "rubberlegs" so I was stuck where I was sitting. "HOLY SHIT" is what I was thinking after I seen Angus tear up the stage! I had never seen anybody so possessed in my life! He I was and I could hardly move and he could stand still if his life depended on it! Then during the song "Rocker" Bon took Angus around the main floor on his shoulders during his guitar solo! Needless to say that the next 2 tours I would see them in this venue ( 1978 opening for Alice Cooper & 1979 Highway To Hell headlining) I made sure I was on the floor!
The rest of the night I can't really remember.....but I do remember that during one of my "lost" night of partying that at the Best Western at Merchant's Road (now a "Days Inn") I do remember being at some kind of party after a concert with a band who wanted some booze after "last call" and I knew a place on Clinton Highway called "Snow White" where you could get liquor anytime you wanted it (as long as you answered "no" to the question "are you a policeman/cop") through a sliding door. I also remember waking up hungover (on the floor naked) in a room with a bar waitress who was with another dude who was passed out. I can only assume it was a band member who may have been with her. At the time I never been laid (at 19 years old) and since my ass wasn't sore I hope that I lost my cherry that night!
I still wonder if it could have been sharing the same woman with the same band I saw 30 years ago the same night but I will never know. And this is something I have never revealed to anybody. I guess that was just part of growing up in the 70's!
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