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My first rock concert was unmarred by the mishaps that tend to characterize my other "firsts." I didn't get drunk, didn't puke or pass out, didn't smoke or do drugs, didn't even flick my Bic at the musicians or sing along with the lyrics.
No, I sat up straight in my chair, wearing my best green-checked shift dress and applauding politely, though I was baffled by the entire experience. The songs didn't sound like they did on my 16 year old sister's record player, and the lead singer in the shiny leather pants kept jumping up and down, running all over the stage, and shouting rather than singing the lyrics. It hurt my ears.
I was 12 years old at the Carousel Theater in 1968 watching a band called The Doors.
The Carousel Theater (click here for larger image), still fondly remembered by many as the rock music venue of their youth no longer exists. Though my sixth grade friend Matt* and I were too young to "go steady" his parents had driven us in on Highway 10 from San Bernardino and dropped us off to see the show while they hit up whatever night life was available in glamorous West Covina.
From the following description of the two 1968 appearances in West Covina, I now realize I must have been at the first one with the energetic Jim Morrison. Twelve years old or not, I had enough experience with overly intoxicated adults to know when someone was too blasted to put up a good front. This concert was after the New Haven incident in December of 1967, where Morrison was the first rock musician to be arrested onstage.
Fri. Jan. 19th - Sat. 20th: Carousel Theater - West Covina, CA
On the first night, Jim is full of energy, as he usually is after a lengthy break, repeatedly crashing down onto the stage and jumping back up to shout out the songs throughout the evening. On the next night, Jim is just the opposite and the performance suffers due to his ever increasing intakes.
photo taken at the Carousel Theater, Jan 19th or 20th, 1968
Matt and I sat a couple of rows back from the stage where we had an excellent view of Morrison's left profile and manic performance. Of course he sang Light My Fire, the only Doors song I knew from frequent playings on KFXM (Tiger Radio, and the only station to bring a live Bengal tiger to various events around the Inland Empire).
While the cultural impact of what I was witnessing was entirely lost on me, I still vividly remember seeing those carousel horses perched atop the theater marquee as we drove up, and my trepidation at the somewhat frightening musician who leaped and snarled and at one point crawled about the floor of the stage while the blasting music made me want to cover my ears.
It was nothing like the bands on Ed Sullivan.
So-- what was your first rock concert experience?
On to tonight's Top Comments:
from
Fed Up Fed:
In my diary Rick Perry to the Olds: You living so long is unConstitutional, about Rick Perry's claim that the General Welfare Clause couldn't possibly have been meant to promote, you know, the general welfare, bamjack made as pithy an argument as I've ever seen on the subject. As a general rebuke of originalism, and a direct rebuttal to Rick Perry's claim of insight into the minds of the founders, bamjack's comment manages to distill the very essence of the rightwing misunderstanding of what it means to be an American.
from trashablanca:
middleagedhousewife gave a serious reply to a bojo'd troll diary to explain that even though she wants single payer, The Affordable Healthcare Act helped her family when they had none before.
The second comment in the same diary by Diogenes2008 is a great pic about a philandering seccesionist Texecutioner who would be prez, if Americans are stupid enough to fall for the same dirty trick in a dozen years.
[smileycreek's note: G'wan, take a look-- it's not another corndog image!]
From sardonyx:
In MBNYC's diary So you think you're the 'base', huh?, Alfonso Nevarez writes an excellent comment, We are a part of the base and a vocal one at that.
When kos notes on the front page the latest silliness from the rightosphere, Only Republican presidents can go on vacation, including Sarah Palin saying that Obama shouldn't be vacationing now, "especially not to Martha's Vineyard", gchaucer2 guesses that Palin has zero clue where that is, and blue aardvark replies with where Palin really thinks the Vineyard is.
and from yours truly, smileycreek:
OregonOak got his ire up in MBNYC'ss diary, So You Think You're the Base, huh? defends the role of progressivism in his own personal history, concluding
Not being popular is the price to pay for being more concerned about the future than the present.
Top Mojo From 8.17.11:
1) Do you see the problem with your framing? by Clarknt67 — 282
2) is this their idea by Lady Libertine — 190
3) I have never celebrated by Clarknt67 — 171
4) ...and a quote from Dr. Boyce Watkins: by Uberbah — 156
5) I can never get past these words in the by praenomen — 138
6) as a hippie who has been punched one time too many by pyegar — 126
7) And they'll blame the professional left. nt by psychodrew — 125
8) it ain't framing, by xgy2 — 124
9) It'll Definitely Win it For Somebody. nt by Gooserock — 124
10) christine, a lot of us bit our tongues for a long by lineatus — 124
11) and yet not a single banker is prosecuted by That Korean Guy — 109
12) Like the distance between "310 million tits"... by Uberbah — 106
13) And in addition by joanneleon — 103
14) Bob, the following stood out for me: by Major Tom — 101
15) Wish we had more like you Bernie. by One Pissed Off Liberal — 97
16) OFA didn't have that attitude by triv33 — 96
17) Of course the left is going to attack by VictorLaszlo — 95
18) True class warfare has always been about... by Richard Cranium — 92
19) quotes from another currently rec listed diary by happenstance — 91
20) I wondered that as well. Looked it up-it's unreal. by middleagedhousewife — 90
21) This is likely going to be a close election by slinkerwink — 87
22) But they wouldn't respond on economics by FishOutofWater — 86
23) thanks for by Cedwyn — 86
24) Very disappointing and stupid by CatM — 85
25) Only Ex-Goldman Sachs employees know what is by MinistryOfTruth — 83
26) Well that seems to be the response by joanneleon — 81
27) so when obama repeats republican talking points: by joe shikspack — 81
28) shadowstats.com by xrepub — 80
29) Big picture by joanneleon — 79
30) Thanks for the confirmation by Dburn — 77
31) Injury--meet insult by RFK Lives — 77