MUSICAL MEMOIRS ROCKS OUT LIVE FROM ABOVE
I almost hate to say how long it’s been since I saw my first concert. Because once I tell you, you’ll be like, “Wait — how old are you?” And I’ll be like, “Dude, age isn’t — it’s not how old you are, man. It’s how immature you act.”
Oh, what the heck — it was 1986. Go ahead and call me a geezer now.
Anyway, while other kids in my school were buying crap for the prom, I decided I was going to see John Mellencamp (formerly John Cougar, formerly John Cougar Mellencamp) live, in his hometown. With Mellencamp at his peak and the concert set to coincide with the Little 500 bike race made famous in “Breaking Away,” it was going to be a big deal. So I decided I would wait in line overnight for tickets.
Waiting in line was, of course, a tradition for hardcore concertgoers. And even though I was just a teen, I was prepared to do what I had to in order to get great seats. So as soon as school ended that day, I rushed off to the College Mall, where I found myself 7th in line.
Fortunately, a friend and classmate was there — number 6, in fact — so I didn’t have to wait alone. And, of course, there was lots of Mellencamp music throughout the night.
When they started selling tickets the next day, I was pumped, thinking about how close I’d be to the stage. Some of my friends had seen Mellencamp around town — my sister-in-law actually cut his hair at the mall, others waited on him at the nearby Waffle House. But I’d yet to see him in person.
So you can imagine my surprise — and horror — when I learned that, starting with this concert, tickets for concerts would be sold randomly. Another words, the last person in line could get better seats than, say, #7.
In fact, if you look at this photo of Memorial Stadium, picture Mellencamp’s stage at the end zone closest to you. Then pretend to walk all the way to the other end zone, take a left and climb the stairs not quite to the top of the stadium but near the far most entrance tunnel.
That was me — #7 — prom night, 1986.
Despite my bird’s eye view, it was a great show. And the next time Mellencamp came to Little 500? Well, I got crappy seats again.
So I guess the key is, if you really want to get a good look at Mellencamp, go to Waffle House.
Posted on November 14th, 2008 by Pat
Filed under: Songs in the Key of Life: My Musical Memoirs
Ah, first concerts.
Mine was at The Holiday Star in Merrillville, Ind. It was 1987 and Survivor was riding a wave of Top 20 hits.
“Eye of the Tiger.” “I Can’t Hold Back,” “High on You,” “The Search is Over.”
They opened with “Poor Man’s Son” and closed with “Tiger.” I once had the set list written down — it seemed important at the time.
Our seats were seven rows back … and it was a good time. Sure, it was popcorn rock and won’t be remembered for much … but I’ve always wanted to see a Behind The Music: Survivor. If for not other reason, they had more pop hits than a lot of other BTM alumns.
A few years later, I started seeing a lot of concerts. Some great, some embarrassing. But that was my first, so that band always has a place in my history.
This blog is getting weirder by the minute. Too many Hoosiers. Scott are you also a transplant from Indiana or are you still there? Mine was also at the Holiday Star in Merrillville, Ind. My only close venue from Chesterton, In. But it was The Psychedelic Furs. I would like to try and be cool and say I knew enough about music to make that choice on my own, but I was just going to be with my friends. I must have been a sophomore in high school and was happy just to make it to a concert. I remember getting up to the stage but not really wanting the be there. The skinny singer kind of creeped me out with his pale sweaty skin. A fun expereince but I didn’t really know their music.
I’m not sure if it was my first concert…but I was taking pictures for the Mustang Daily when the English Beat came to the Chumash Auditorium at Cal Poly. It was in their early glory days.
The concert was great, but I had trouble focusing the camera (no auto focus then) with the aggressive pogo dancers who would hit me in the back of the head during the dance songs, which was all of them. I understand they studied the engineering of the floor after the concert and discovered it was not designed to carry the weight of over 1,000 pogo dancers.
The Pogo. Haha. I always broke that out at our high school “sock hops” for laughs. I never thought about the damage it could cause. Those dances were good times.
Nope, Steve… not living in SLO, but I’ve visited Pat and Candi twice. Met him working in southern Indiana and remain friends. Living and working in the Region right now.