The late 1970’s was a time when the successful rock and roll bands were nurtured, pampered, and often times spoiled by the record companies who were making the bulk of the money on the bands’ popularity. It was a time when the Led Zeppelins and Rolling Stones of the world were flown in private jets and Van Halen wanted the brown M &Ms removed as per contractual agreement with the promoter.

It was also a time of the full length concept album. Some, like Yes’ double album with four total songs “Tales from Topographic Oceans”, Kiss’ 1981 release “The Elder” and, more recently, Judas Priest “Nostradamus” miss the mark while others like Jethro Tull’s “Thick as a Brick” become all time classic recordings.

The rock star as “artist” is a fine line to walk and when the artist’s vision does not capture the imagination of its audience the risk is becoming a parody of itself- an unintentional Spinal Tap moment.

Ian Anderson, however, intentionally created a parody of the concept album as art form and in the process Jethro Tull produced one of their greatest masterworks.

The original album cover art that folded out and read like an actual newspaper is still one of the greatest album packages ever produced for a rock and roll act.

Unbelievably Ian Anderson is still on the road and has played with various revamped Jethro Tull line ups throughout the years. His voice is not as resilient as it once was and the roar is now an amplified measured whisper at times. On the recent Thick as a Brick 2 tour, where they played both 1 and 2 in their entirety, the band interspersed a young actor singing many of the Ian Anderson vocal parts during the ambitious recreation of the Thick as a Brick musical saga.

The band has played highlights of the original “Thick as a Brick” album at Jethro Tull concerts I have attended in the past but it was only at the recent Westbury, Long Island show that I finally saw one of my favorite albums performed in its entirety; it was a fascinating performance by a great all-time artist that was well worth the wait.

Too Old to Rock ‘N’ Roll
Too Young to Die

GQ

After Neil Young and Crazy Horse left town with the critically acclaimed Rust Never Sleeps tour, Bob Dylan took over Madison Square Garden for two nights with a fully expanded band as was captured on his “Live at Budokan” live album.

The great Bob Dylan is unquestionably a genius however he often times challenges his fans with sometimes unrecognizable versions of his songs performed in concert. The 1978 shows were not received well by fans or critics particularly following the Neil Young and Crazy Horse legendary performances that had just taken place that same week.

I recall reading an interview with Neil Young wherein he expressed disappointment that his then recent shows were received so well while Bob Dylan’s were not. Neil apparently felt that a lot of musicians were indebted to Dylan and that he did not deserve the poor reviews.

Seeing Bob Dylan live us is always a crapshoot but well worth the effort because to catch him when he is at the height of is powers is a thrilling and memorable experience.

Shadows in the Night

Rock on

GQ

Neil Young and Crazy Horse played three shows in the New York area in September, 1978 which happened to coincide with my first month attending Queens College as a freshman.
I was already a fan of Neil Young’s music and I had missed Neil and Crazy Horse the last time they were playing in the area at the Paladium.

For some reason I did not go to the first Maduson Square Garden show and my friends who did go told me I was going to love it. I do not recall where my seats were supposed to be that night but while outside the Garden before the show a scalper had fifth row center seats for $30.

Now today that deal seems like a no brainer but at the time $30 for a college student to buy a concert seat was cause for some consideration and I almost did not do it. With some encouragement from my friends, we bought the orchestra seats and headed in to the world’s greatest arena for what my friends already knew would be an epic show.

We found our seats before the start of the show and we were literally five rows from the stage dead center. The now famous Rust Never Sleeps stage was right in front of us; this was an extraordinary sight to behold as the Rust Never Sleeps album had not even been released yet so unless you went the night before this stage set up was a revelation.

The Rust Never Sleeps movie (in Rust-O- Vision) captures the magical quality of the performances that we were fortunate enough to see live in front of us. This concert was a game changer for the concert industry and for me. Neil Young’s extraordinary vision was brought to life by Neil Young and Crazy Horse and to this day I believe that this was the best show I have ever attended.

The following night at the Nassau Coliseum was a different experience as my friends and I reverted to our wandering ways since we did not have the prime seat location of the night before. At one point I found myself walking in front of the first row directly
beneath a solo acoustic Neil Young singing “Already One”.

I have not missed a U.S. Neil Young tour since then (and most tours I have gone to multiple shows). Rock, country, blues, Crazy Horse, Blue Notes, CSNY, International Harvesters, Shocking Pinks, with Family and Friends or Booker T and the MGs-
Hey Hey My My
The road goes on forever.

I Am a Child

GQ

Springfield Civic Center 09/02/1978
New Haven Coliseum 09/03/1968
Madison Square Garden
09/06/1978
09/07/1978
09/08/1978
09/09/1977

The world’s greatest progressive rock band Yes came up with a brilliant concept for its 1978 tour. The band would perform on a revolving round stage making every seat in the venue a good seat. The revolving stage with Rick Wakeman, Chris Squire, Steve Howe, Alan White equidistant, and Jon Anderson on top in the center of the stage, made each equally great musician the viewers’ focal point at different points of the show allowing , and sometimes forcing, you to redirect your concentration toward the various musical nuances of the band’s compositions.

Depending on how many times you saw the show, and depending on where you were sitting, each performance was a unique experience with your visual emphasis intermittently placed on a specific different performer throughout the concerts.

Six shows in eight days- my friends Steve, Joe and I were fully immersed in all things Yes and could not get enough of the band. For us, Yes was the greatest band on the planet at the time with unparalleled musicianship and extraordinary live performances that never disappointed.

Yes released a triple live album YESSONGS that was recorded at the height of its artistic powers and actually captured the band’s genius as a great live album will do for a band. The companion movie YESSONGS is one of the great rock and roll concert films ever produced and stands up to the test of time.

I recently saw Yes at the former Westbury Music Fair and my friend The Gull pointed out that the now hefty Chris Squire’s seemingly tiny harmonica started to resemble a Scooby snack in his large mitts.
I found this to be an hysterical observation.

Yes is still on the road today but without Jon Anderson. The original road warriors are looking their age but the music continues to be outstanding.

Don’t Kill the Whale

GQ

Peter Wolf is rock royalty; he is the American Mick Jagger and Wolf referenced his friends the Glimmer Twins a couple of times during a tremendous show at City Winery last night.

The show was billed as an acoustic evening but with electric guitar, stand up bass, and acoustic guitar in tow, Pete Wolf fleshed out country and blues tunes while sprinkling in some extraordinary tales from a long career as a rock and roll legend and his Bronx roots.

Near the end of the show, Mr Wolf pointed out and acknowledged that Little Steven Van Zandt of the E Street Band and the Underground Garage was tucked away in the rafters enjoying the show inconspicuously as he has been known to do; Little Steven talks the talk and walks the walk as he truly loves and lives the rock and roll.

This performance by Peter Wolf was an old time stripped down rock and roll show and a rollicking time was had by all.

Give It To Me

Rock on

GQ

Peter Wolf of J. Geils Band fame is playing an acoustic set tonight at City Winery.

Mr. Wolf, owner of some of the best dance moves in rock and roll, just recently blew the roof off of Madison Square Garden with the J. Geils Band while opening for Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band.

Love Stinks

Rock on

GQ

Rainbow with Ronnie James Dio and AC/DC with Bon Scott played the Paladium theater and we were looking forward to a big night of heavy metal mayhem.

AC/DC played a rousing set and the stage was set for the headliner Rainbow to take the crowd to the next level.

Rainbow came out beneath a giant overhead neon rainbow and the music was loud. About halfway through the first song the band walked off stage for some reason unknown to the crowd. After a pretty significant delay, it was announced that due to technical difficulties the concert was being canceled and that refunds could be obtained at the point of purchase.

Ritchie Blackmore, lead guitar and band leader, is known to be a perfectionist and a bit eccentric. Apparently Blackmore heard a buzz in one of the speakers and refused to continue when it could not be corrected.to his satisfaction.

This concert was the only show that I have attended where the tickets were refunded after the show was already half completed and the event was never rescheduled.

It was the first and only time that I would see Rainbow or Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple fame.

However, I would have the opportunity to see Ronnie James Dio again with Black Sabbath and later on with Heaven and Hell.

Long Live Rock and Roll

GQ

My friend Joe and I have always had a knack for getting toward the front of the stage and we found our way to the orchestra of Madison Square Garden during my first Bruce Springsteen show. This concert would be one that I will never forget because of what happened at the end of this epic performance.

Somehow Joe and I got separated near the end of the show and I was about ten rows back to the right side of the stage while Bruce was firing up the crowd during the encores.

The front of the stage stepped down ostensibly so Bruce could get up close and personal with his fans. During the encore girls were climbing onstage, running at Bruce until security would pull the rabid female fans off of the stage. Bruce Springsteen was a rock star channeling his inner Elvis Presley and the crowd was near delirium.

As I watched the concert play out from near the front of the stage, the band played on as Springsteen manically ran the stage while the girls continued to sporadically climb on stage to be near their hero- then I spotted Joe directly in front of the left side of the stage. Unbelievably I saw Joe lift his left leg onto the stage, push himself upright and begin walking toward Bruce with his right hand extended as if to shake Bruce’s hand. If I did not see it myself I would never believe what happened next.

Bruce grabbed Joe’s right wrist and ran off with him to the back of the right side of the stage. My first thought was that when security got a hold of Joe back stage he was going to get a beating for being so bold as to climb onstage with the E Street Band. The band never stopped playing; Bruce Springsteen came running back onstage still gripping my friend’s wrist with Joe running slightly behind Bruce.

Bruce then triumphantly raised his and Joe’s arms as they stood center stage at the world’s greatest arena and they both ran off stage a second time, this time for good.

The image of Joe in his white T-shirt with “Chicago” written in red standing onstage with Bruce Springsteen is emblazoned in my memory. Joe has told me that he was glad I witnessed it go down because when he tells others the story no one believes his incredible tale; this is the ultimate rock and roll “big fish story”.

There were no no cell phone cameras to memorialize the event but but I did read a newspaper review at the time that included the story of that night.

This past summer I was at a barbecue and I told my Bruce Springsteen story to Mark. who not only owns the phenomenal website “This Week in New York” but is the biggest Bruce Springsteen fan that I know. Mark knew of the story and could not believe that I was with the guy who was the subject of this legendary concert; as it turns out this particular show was the subject of one of Mark’s favorite Bruce Springsteen reviews and helped to make him a Bruce fan for life.

This event was an amazing set of circumstances that encapsulates Bruce Springsteen as a man of the people and a rock and roll icon for the working man. On this night we were all in together, performer and spectators, live in the moment.

Born to Run

Rock on

GQ