A night at New York City’s The Ritz was always a great club night out on the town to see up and coming acts or to check out new bands and music that was not necessarily mainstream. The Specials were one of those acts that were part of the burgeoning New Wave scene in the early 1980’s that was decidedly anti-Styx. I saw The Pretenders, with the original lineup, Adam & the Ants, and U2 touring with the “ October” album on Saint Patrick Day at The Ritz so it became an important venue where special performances could be experienced and where spontaneity and surprise guests were possible on stage and in the crowd.

A Message to You, Rudy

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GQ

Styx was never one of my favorite bands but in 1981 they played Madison Square Garden while dominating the classic rock airwaves with huge hits and catchy pop tunes making them arena rock headliners for many years. Dennis DeYoung left the band at some point, touring solo playing Styx songs, and Tommy Shaw did a stint with Ted Nugent and Damn Yankees before he hit the road again with a revamped Styx lineup performing everywhere and anywhere including Citifield after a Mets game and the NYCB Theatre at Westbury as a regular stop.

The Best of Times

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In August of 1981, blues legends Johnny Winter and opener The Fabulous Thunderbirds performed at the Dr. Pepper Concert Series at Pier 84 on the West Side of Manhattan. While no longer held in the beautiful setting where it once was at Central Park, it was a blessing that the summer series under the New York City stars had found a new home where live rock and roll music could be enjoyed at a reasonable price.

Wrap It Up

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GQ

One of several Judas Priest concerts I have attended through the years, one week after playing the Palladium in downtown Manhattan, Priest returned to New York City to perform at the Dr. Pepper Concert Series which had been relocated from scenic Central Park to the West Side where the heavy metal thunder would not disturb the neighbors.

Breaking the Law

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My wife loves Al Pacino so when he starred in the play American Buffalo I bought a pair of tickets and we enjoyed a night Off-Broadway in Manhattan. I have always preferred dramatic plays as opposed to Broadway musicals, although the musical can be entertaining and you can party like a tourist in your own hometown.

Great White Buffalo

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GQ

I wish that I had a better memory of this John Cale concert at My Father’s Place in Roslyn than vaguely recalling him at a piano (on the left side of the stage?). John Cale is an iconic musical figure most famously known as a member of the Velvet Underground. John Cale’s music is eclectic, and not for everyone, but I am all about musical experimentation and sonic exploration. The Dead Boys opened for Cale at the intimate My Father’s Place venue with table seating much like the Bottom Line in New York City.

Songs for Drella

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Squeeze had a couple of great poppy new wave albums my favorite of which is “East Side Story”.

The band played with opener Fleshtones for the Dr. Pepper Concert Series at Pier 84 near the water on the west side of Manhattan in the summer of 1981.

Cool for Cats

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Hot on the heals of seeing Van Halen at the Nassau Coliseum, a heavy metal band of a different stripe came to town. I wish I could say I have any recollection of Iron Maiden opening for Judas Priest this night in 1981 but I do not. I have seen Judas Priest perform enough times that the shows tend to blend together in my mind at this point. I believe this may have been the Priest concert that my future bride had it in her head that she wanted to drink a Sloe Gin Fizz from a neighborhood bar more suited to serving bottled beer and small tap beers with a shot. The cocktail was presented blood red in color and, with neither of us quite sure what it should have looked like in a perfect world, she drank it like a pro resulting in her feeling not so great for the rest of the evening’s festivities. A rookie mistake but everyone survived and the heavy metal music played on.

Diamonds and Rust

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GQ

When dating my wife while we were both attending Queens College, I somehow managed to purchase two really good tickets for Van Halen at the Nassau Coliseum; facing the right side of the stage, just a few rows off the floor on Eddie Van Halen’s side. The mighty Van Halen was at the height of their powers. Eddie Van Halen exuded pure joy while shredding the guitar, and David Lee Roth performed at his rock star best, working the crowd into a frenzy, part front man, part circus ringmaster. I may as well have been invisible as my future bride stood on top of her seat screaming at every DLR gyration. It was rock and roll at its best performed by one of the great al time bands.

Unchained

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GQ

The Dr. Pepper Concert Series moved to Pier 84 on the west side of Manhattan in 1981 after neighbors’ noise complaints resonating from the super expensive residences in midtown finally won the day. While it was good that the concert series continued, but the venue itself did not compare losing a lot of its luster compared to the backdrop that was Central Park. Before Bruce Springsteen took Gary U.S. Bonds under his wing and resurrected his career with a hit album and tour that followed, Mr. Bonds career was hanging by a thread. The first time that I saw Gary U.S. Bonds perform was at a Jamaica, Queens club called Beggars Opera where bands like Twisted Sister, Good Rats, Zebra and others played during the heyday of Long Island rock and roll. There could not have been more than fifteen or twenty people in the bar on the night Bonds and his band took the stage, almost all seated in the booths behind the general admission floor which was empty. The man was huge act at one time and now found himself playing his set to a just about empty house, none of whom really cared about his past successes and were just looking at it primarily as a night out with some live music. After one too many beers I made a move I still regret to this day. I picked up a chair, walked across the empty floor, placed the chair in front and put my feet up on the stage. Gary gave me a look, and during what must have been one of several lowlights during his career, and possibly with his life flashing before his eyes, the band continued to play through this insult despite the complete indifference of the small audience in attendance. Thankfully, Gary had the last laugh as sometime soon after this low point, Bruce resurrected Bonds’ career and he was headlining 5000 plus seat venues for a couple of years following a couple of well received albums.

Quarter to Three

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GQ