When I first thought about how I wanted to present the History section, the one thing I knew was that I wanted to document people's experiences of seeing Blue Oyster Cult live, and the best way to do that seemed to me to be to base the structure around the framework of the timeline provided by the Giglopaedia...
But what I didn't think of was: what do I do if someone sends me recollections of a gig that they don't know the date of? Where do I put those?
From now on - the answer will be: here!
Obviously, the intention is to one day get dates for all these gigs - or failing that - even just a year would do - so that I can move them from this page onto the appropriate History page. If you can help in this endeavour, please let me know!!
| 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1976 | 1977 | 1978 | 1979 | 1980 |
| 1981 | 1982 | 1983 | 1984 | 1985 | 1986 | 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 |
| Dunno | |||||||||
I saw this post (from 2001) on CigarFamily.com in a thread about Soft White Underbelly:
Saw them at the Sherwood Country Club in Indianapolis about 1971. Great concert. I remember walking out and seeing the interior of a VW Beetle on fire. (wonder how that happened?)
I also remember later that night being escorted out of the city of Warsaw by the local authorities. hehe You just brought back a memory for me.
Would appreciate some help with dating this a bit more accurately...
My 1st BOC show was June 21st 1973 the venue: The Palisades, Mckeesport PA. Albert and Buck both said to me they played The Palisades in Mckeesport PA before in 1971 as SFG.
I don't have any info about those shows...
A friend wrote me to say:
"Bob, did you go with JH and myself to the free concert they gave at the Albright Knox in fall of 71?
They played outside, facing Delaware Park Lake. And they were selling their 1st Album for 99 cents!"
I wasn't there and I don't specifically remember it. I'm guessing it was not likely 1972 if it did happen. But for what it's worth, two of my BOC shows I saw were with the same JH guy.
And I did see free shows in Delaware Park (1974 and 1976) so I know they had them, though my shows were not in the same area - the Albright Knox Art Gallery is a world-class gallery that borders Delaware Park.
Nowadays they have Jazz Concerts in the area he's describing, but I don't recall rock concerts there.
OK - well as the first LP came out in January 1972, Bob's mate can't have seen them in 1971 if that first LP was also on sale at the event. So I think we're definitely talking 1972...
Interestingly enough, if you check back further up this page to the gig dated Saturday 14 October 1972, you'll see a gig listed for Buffalo at an unknown venue.
Could we be talking about the same show?
I saw this post (from 2004) on audioasylum.com in a thread about Glass Harp:
Keaggy was a local boy, so I had a chance to see them at Walsh Jesuit High School--oddly enough, they opened for Blue Oyster Cult. It was a strange pairing!!
So, a Blue Oyster Cult gig - presumably in the early 70s - headlining over Glass Harp. But - if this indeed did happen - when could it have been? I contacted the Glass Harp Facebook page to see if they might have any ideas...
My name is Bob Brandt, and I work with Glass Harp. As it turns out, just last year we did a fairly thorough inventory of all known Glass Harp concert history. Still waiting to post all that online, but, for now, here's the list of when we know Glass Harp played at Walsh Jesuit HS. Obviously, it may be incomplete (although I have no knowledge of any BOC show there):
I asked two members of the band about a show with BOC. They have differing opinions whether or not such a show took place.
Daniel Pecchio (Glass Harp bass player), says he said he has no recollection of ever playing with BOC anywhere. In addition, it was his contention that in those days, a typical high school (where concerts were funded by the student body, an independent promoter, or other local organization if school wasn't in session) would likely not have the money to present two such acts.
Conversely, John Sferra (Glass Harp drummer) says "...I have a vague memory of Blue Oyster Cult *opening*. Could have been with Burks and Randy." ("Burks" being guitarist Tim Burks who replaced Phil Keaggy in August 1972, and "Benson" being violinist Randy Benson who was with Glass Harp from approximately Dec. 1972-Oct. 1973).
As to the possibility that Glass Harp would be opening for BOC at that venue: by the summer of 1971, Glass Harp was very much a headliner... albeit in a very limited patch of the U.S... but indeed Cuyahoga Falls, OH would be in the heart of that. It was only outside Ohio/Pennsylvania where they were still a support act most of the time, at least until late 1972 into 1973 (more on that in a bit).
Here's what else comes to mind:
While the music from that point on was arguably more complex and engaging to discerning ears, the band's popularity waned going into 1973 (not only around the country, but also back home in Ohio). It's also important to note that even some longtime fans didn't follow the post-Phil Keaggy version of Glass Harp as closely as before, so the later incarnation(s) aren't as well-documented (even by those who have done a lot of research/collecting).
It seems to me that by 1973 (given my limited knowledge of their history), BOC would be much more likely than at any time before that to show up at a high school in Northeast Ohio. It was also during that year that Glass Harp was in an odd spot; they were just as likely to headline at an area school for the local faithful as they would be to support an up and coming touring group such as BOC.
December 2, 1973 is the last known Glass Harp show before Keaggy/Pecchio/Sferra began sporadic reunions in the late-80's, and then more frequently in the past decade.
With one band member saying "no", another one saying "maybe", and with nothing else to go on (advertisements, concert listings, posters, etc) besides a random post on a message board, this is a really tough one. My best guess (as laid out above) is that if this show took place at all it happened in 1973, wasn't heavily advertised, and has just slipped a lot of folks' memories. Hopefully, someone else out there remembers more.
Saw your website and I was at a show that is not listed. Unfortunately I don't know the date. I was wondering if you did.
It was Blue Oyster Cult with McKendree Spring and Streat. It was at Westchester Community College in Valhalla, NY. All I remember was that it was incredibly loud.
Now I see a date that BOC did with McKendree Spring on 18 Sept 1973 on your website so perhaps it was around that time. Any ideas?
Wow! You have quite the site going on there. I do remember a few dates with BOC. Mike Dreyfuss, our violinist, may remember the specifics. I'll ask him...
I did see BOC at the Chicago Auditorium in December 1973. I swear I saw them a second time and I thought it was at an Ice Rink in Naperville, IL. in 1974.
It was middle of summer because the ice was not in place and I remember standing in line outside of the venue on a warm evening.
Is there any possibility they could have performed there the first week of August? I see they were close by in Indiana that week.
I did not think my memory was that bad. If you know of or when that might have happened?
The following post was off the old altmusicBOC newsgroup and refers to a 1974 Binghamton show which I don't have listed. Any help dating this show would be - as usual - gratefully received...
In early 1972, I was living in Queens, NY and the FM station WCBS started playing "Cities on Flame" from the self-titled debut. When that LP got a rave review in Rolling Stone, I bought a copy at Alexanders dep't store on Queens Blvd, with money from my afternoon job.
I wasn't blown away at first... but after about the 5th playing I was totally hooked. My friends at school just kinda said "Blue Oyster who?" My favorites were "Transmaniacon MC" and "Workshop of Telescopes".
When the second album, "Tyranny and Mutation" came out, it was the hardest, loudest, fastest thing I had ever heard and I was mesmerized. To this day that album for me DEFINES heavy metal, and nothing since then has ever come close to it; every song, every word, perfect.
It was that album that had a short blurb on the inner jacket about sending an SASE for Cult lyrics; they came back on white/green computer paper, probably printed out from some IBM mainframe somewhere. That offer was repeated on the next 3 or 4 albums and they always included the newest lyrics plus the old ones. I blame my slight hearing loss on the left side to "Tyranny".
The next few years brought "Secret Treaties" and the live "On your feet...". In 1973 I was supposed to see BOC opening for Black Sabbath at the newly-built Broome County Arena in Binghamton. The show was cancelled that afternoon, Ozzy was sick... wimp! Finally saw BOC for the first time a year later in the same arena.
High point: meeting the band in 1976 when I worked at the hotel they were staying at. Got all but Albert's signatures in the fold-out of "On your feet". Never met a nicer group of guys, and I met a bunch of famous '70s musicians at that job (that's a book unto itself).
All through the '70s I was a huge fan, saw them a few more times. My tastes started changing in the '80s but I always kept tabs on BOC and their progress.
However, this gig doesn't feature in Sam Judd's calendars so is unlikely to have taken place, although it is barely possible that a local NY gig could have occurred in very early January before Sam joined up...
I can't recall the date, I was stoned out of my mind, but I know I saw Blue Oyster Cult in 76 at Acker Gym in Chico California. It was my very first concert, so I recall it vividly.
Do you have ANY clues as to other details that might help me pin this gig down a bit better - for example, are you SURE it was definitely 1976?
Do you recall any other bands on the bill - could it have been Montrose, for example? - or even what time of year it might have been - Winter, Summer, school holidays etc - anything?
You know, I don't recall if there was an opening act. I just know it was a month or so before I saw Montrose and Earthquake together right after Montrose put out the Warner Bros Released album.
I know it was during Spring/Early Summer because we went up in a Convertable Firebird with the top down doing 110 mph. I didn't have a car back then so I had to hitch rides with whoever had one at school, so I know it was before summer vacation on the Agents of Fortune Tour because the ONLY song I clearly recall them doing was ETI.
Sorry, wish I could be more help.
The December 76 edition of Creem reviews a gig at a "greasers' palace in Minneapolis" and says BOC opened with Tattoo Vampire, then Stairway to the Stars, Harvester of Eyes, Sinful Love, Cities on Flame, Flaming Telepaths, Last Days of May, 2 songs not named, Dominance and Submission, Buck's Boogie, Summer of Love, Born to be Wild and Hot Rails for an encore.
Needless to say - a date and venue for this would be nice...
I saw them back in 78 at Phoenix Symphony Hall. UFO opened up.
What a great show. Lasers and all.
Postscript: Looking at your lists, my "78" memory may have been 77 - It was at the Civic Hall in Phoenix - maybe the Exhibition Hall listed on your site (14 November 1977). I remember UFO opened. I remember seeing them at an earlier date at veterens memorial colisieum.
They closed with "Born to be Wild" and crossed the guitars in the finale. I remember that, because I went out shortly after that and bought a guitar!
Still playing!
Well, the November 77 gig was with Black Oak and Head East, so if UFO opened the gig you saw, then it wouldn't have been that one.
1978 still looks favourite for the "unknown" Phoenix show you saw - especially as BOC played a number of gigs with UFO during this year...
There are some BOC gigs that seem to have slipped through the cracks for some reason, like the Old Waldorf gig of 80-09-06 in San Francisco.
The night before they played under the name Soft White Underbelly in San Jose at a club near my house. It was cool that only those of us who knew were onto them for awhile, and it was a small club, so the impact was intense.
I lived in the Bay Area for about 11 years, and there were so many venues there to see bands, and as BOC came through the area they would gig at several of the smaller places.
I'm afraid Dick must have his years mixed up as there was NO gig at the Waldorf on Sep 6 1980 and there was NO San Jose gig the night before as we were in San Bernadino taking it up the arse from AC/fucking/DC...
I saw this post (from 2008) on heatinghelp.com in a thread on What was your first concert?:
Joannie August 21, 2008 @ 10:28 AM
My first concert was Blue Oyster Cult, opened by Joe Perry Project, at the Civic Center in Bangor, Maine. I talked to Joe that day!!!"
I currently know of only two definite gigs with the JPP:
Sun 27 Dec 1981: Augusta Civic Center, Augusta Maine
Tue 29 Dec 1981: Cape Cod Coliseum, South Yarmouth Maryland
I was wondering - could "Joannie" be possibly mis-remembering which town she saw the gig in? The only problem with that theory is that there's 75 miles between the two towns, so they're not exactly next to each other...
Anyway, assuming this was a different gig (and possibly the next one too in Pittsburgh), then 1981 would definitely seem to be year they occurred.
I saw an archived interview (from 1999) with Charlie Farren, the former singer with the Joe Perry Project during 1980-1982, in which he said:
As for touring, I know you toured with Blue Oyster Cult:
Oh yeah! I forgot about that. Yeah, we did. We did some touring with ZZ Top, but we also played a lot of our own shows...
With Joe's band, it seemed as though we'd play five or six nights with Blue Oyster Cult, then three nights with Alice Cooper, four cities with Rush, three cities with Ozzy, three more cities with Rush, and then we'd do a bunch on our own.
We also did some shows with the Kinks, we did a lot of shows with ZZ Top; we did some shows with Nazareth and Judas Priest. So we were really bouncing around. I remember when we played with Ozzy, Def Leppard was the opening act.
So... "5 or 6 nights with BOC" to find... well, I already know of two, as I said, so that's maybe three or four left to find.
I decided to check out the other gigs he mentioned in the same piece - if he did "5 or 6 nights" with BOC, then "three nights with Alice Cooper" and then "four cities with Rush", maybe if I can get dates for those other shows, I can "reverse engineer" approximate dates for the BOC ones?
Rush
The PowerWindows site gives these dates for Rush with the Joe Perry Project:
2 July 1981: Met Center. Bloomington MN
03 July 1981: Met Center. Bloomington MN
04 July 1981: Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy WI
05 July 1981: Alpine Valley Music Theatre, East Troy WI
Alice Cooper
The sickthingsuk site gives these dates for Alice Cooper with the Joe Perry Project:
08 July 1981: Wendler Arena, Saginaw MI [ also with Spider ]
10 July 1981: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit MI [ also with Spider ]
11 July 1981: Joe Louis Arena, Detroit MI [ also with Spider ]
12 July 1981: Lansing Civic Center, Lansing MI [ also with Spider ]
ZZ Top
Ken's ZZ Top Tour Dates site gives these dates for ZZ Top with the Joe Perry Project:
27 Aug 1981: Civic Center, Springfield MA
31 Aug 1981: Cumberland County Civic Center, Portland, ME
01 Sep 1981: Spectrum, Philadelphia PA [ also with Johnny Van Zant ]
09 Sep 1981: Riverfront Coliseum, Cincinnati OH
Ozzy
The ozzyhead.com site lists a series of Ozzy gigs between 2 Aug 1981 through to 13 Sept 1981 of gigs supported by Def Leppard. The Joe Perry Project isn't mentioned but should logically fall within this time frame.
If you apply the logic that they're an MA-based band, then the only gig in that run that ticks that particular box is:
09 Aug 1981: Cape Cod Coliseum, South Yarmouth MA
No particular reason why it has to be an MA show, of course - I'm just guessing...
Anyway - that's the context that one would have thought any gigs with BOC would slot into. Summer 1981... Therefore, on the face of it, my guess for the JPP/BOC gigs would be sometime in 1981, maybe between June and Sept/Oct.
However, those 2 gigs I already know of where at the end of December 81, so they don't really seem to fit in with what Charlie Farren said above.
The known BOC giglists include a pretty intensive 2 month tour with Foghat between September and November of 1981, then a few sporadic shows. After Christmas, there are some NY, NJ and PA shows, so there are quite a few potential dates open...
I saw this post (from 2008) on telecaster.com in a thread called What was the first REAL concert?:
BrianD January 19th, 2008, 02:10 PM
My first REAL concert was Joe Perry Project / Foghat / Blue Oyster Cult at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena. When I made it back home ( on a "school night" ) my Mom was waiting with this line: " You were out seeing that Godzilla, weren't you?" Apparently the nightly news showed a 10 second clip of the drummer wearing a Godzilla head mask during his solo."
Regarding Pittsburgh Civic Arena - well, there was a Whitford St. Holmes/Foghat/BOC gig there on 12 Sept 1981 - obviously, Brad Whitford is an Aerosmith connection, but I've seen no mention of Joe Perry playing this gig in their place, so it's a conundrum...
Could there have been ANOTHER Pittsburgh Civic Arena with Foghat (and the Joe Perry Project) in this time-frame?
With Aldo Nova in late Summer...
Part of the 1983 Michelob Concert Series...
This gig is listed as 18 December on the official site but if you check the entry for that date listed above, you'll see why I discount that.
... we most deffo did NOT finish that swing at Joe Louis arena... we DID play Joe Louis with Rainbow on that tour though as that was the only time I ever actually talked with Richie... I repaired his little 50's reel to reel tape machine that he used as a pre-amp and actually made him smile...
I'm in the midst of reading and listening to everything Joe Meek I can get my hands on... Blackmore was one of his regular studio musicians as he lived just a few blocks away down Holloway road... would LOVED to have asked him about 'ol Whacky Joe... I'll bet the 2 of THEM got on famously... maybe Joe is what made Richie so crazy...
But the Joe Louis gig was mid tour as I remember, but will try to clear some cobwebs and find detail...
BOC's 1984 show in Juneau was in Centennial Hall...
But what was the date?... there was an Anchorage gig on 2nd Jan and a Honolulu gig on the 4th so logic might suggest it was either the 1st Jan or maybe the 3rd...?
Got this email a while ago but the guy didn't mention what gig it was - just that it was 1987...
Hemmy opened this show. BOC was great! Buck stepped on my hand and spilled a pitcher of beer on me - I dont think he even noticed as there was a large breasted blonde with me with her tits hanging all over the stage...
Great show but effects were scaled down quite a bit...
I always welcome any emails about any BOC gigs, but please - gimme a chance!! - at least tell me something about the gig to help me add it to the correct page in the site...
By the way, when I was living in Southern California in the late 80's, I was able to see BOC a number of times in small settings and theatres.
In '88, they did a lot of shows in Southern California. My girlfriend and I saw them once at a club in Santa Barbara. That show is not on your list; but I do not have a stub for that show.
So, I do not know the exact date. BOC's site doesn't have it, either. It could have been 03/22/88, before the Pismo Beach show - no way of telling for sure.
But I was at the back bar before the show and Buck walked up to me and commented on my silver BOC jacket, which I still have.
I mentioned about how many times I had seen them. He laughed and thanked me. I would loved to have bought him a beer.
As near as we could determine at the time (and from my old tired brain today), this was where Buck's white SG went missing - we don't think it was stolen, but left under a table in a dressing room trailer. We were playing an outdoor festival kind of thing in downtown San Antonio (that currently seems to be missing from the giglopedia)...
It was a multi day affair and I've always suspected the next band in there might have found it... but it was impossible to even nail down EXACTLY when it went missing... it was no longer being used at all and was generally staying in the truck... it got unloaded and put in the D-room that day and that's the last time anyone could remember seeing it...
I wasn't loading trucks in those days, so technically it wasn't "my job" to keep track of it, but I got sick to my stomach when I found out it had gone missing....
I'd sure like to help get it back to the bossman as that was THE ONE he wanted to save... I remember him telling me once he wanted to "nail that one over the bar in his den or something" whenever he actually retired... looks like we've got a few more years to find it before he does that, but not as many as we did in 1990...
Any clue as to any sort of date for this?
Not really... probably spring as it wasn't too hot... I would say fall but the list says we were there in a club in Dec, but I don't even see a TX gig at all in the spring...
All I really know for sure is that it was definitely outdoors on a stage set in a HUGE parking lot near downtown, with a midway nearby in San Antonio sometime in 90.. I was surprised to see a club date for San Antone in Dec... not sure what to say...
It was part of some kind of several day city wide festival they have there every year if that helps..
Just did a quick check and found this SA festival: "Fiesta San Antonio: Fiesta San Antonio, a ten-day Texas festival in late April, is a multicultural celebration that features music, dancing, races and three parades (including and on-the-water river parade). The citywide festival and its more than 150 scheduled events honor the heroes of the Alamo and the Battle of San Jacinto."
Dunno if it was in operation in 1990... Anybody got any ideas?
As well as the aforementioned San Antonio gig, we also played a club in Kileen TX on this swing as well I believe...
I've seen several references to this gig online:
Shot in the Dark, but did anyone out there attend the 1973 BOC Concert @ Delta College in Bay City/Saginaw Michigan?
Out of the hundreds of concerts I've attended, That show is one of the most memorable. If you saw the show, email me @ rbbiggs@ragingbull.com
Bruce, Richmond, VA
michaelflanagansf:
July 19, 2009, 09:39:45 PM
BOC has long been a favorite of mine. I saw them at Delta College (in Bay City) in 1972. Their affinity towards science fiction has always been a big draw for me.
So much rock and roll seems to be written by people who seem to have never picked up a book. BOC was/is a band that bucks that trend.
gldtp99
10-12-2009, 12:08 AM
My first concert was Blue Oyster Cult at Delta College Gym (Bay City, Mi area) in 1972-73 (?)- I was 13. The concert was on the local UHF TV station (channel 19) - I thought that all concerts had TV cameras in attendance for a while after that...
I still enjoy Buck Dharma's guitar playing...
Bloody hell - the gig was broadcast on TV??
I wonder if that was just a live feed sort of deal or it was recorded in some format or other...?
I was looking through the BOC information you have for gigs they played in Michigan, and I didn't see one.
It was in the gymnasium of Delta College back in 1972, 1973 or maybe 1974:
It is in the Saginaw, Bay City and Midland area of Michigan.
The only song I remember is Cities Aflame With Rock and Roll. I was out in the hallway and the guys from the band come in looking for the gym.
I remember the drummer being off a bit on that song. They were the headliners for the evening.
I believe the concert was hosted by an AM radio station out of Flint, MI.
The opening band was a group of African American guys. They played one Rock and Roll song which got everyone going a bit, but then did a set of disco or whatever. What a bummer. I remember shouting in between songs, "Rock and Roll". I didn't go to a Rock concert to listen to that particular kind of music.
That was the first time I had ever seen BOC live. Cities Aflame was being played alot on the radio at the time.
I believe I also saw them at the Saginaw Civic Center a few years later, in Saginaw, Michigan.
In 1976 I gave my life to the Lord Jesus Christ and since that time I play and listen to Christian Praise and Worship music. What a change, eh?
Most important decision I ever made in my life.
I don't have a clue where and when this "Christmas concert" took place - the only clue as to location would be the promoter: "Glen Eagle Concerts" - so far as I can tell, via Google, that they were based in Indianapolis - but does anyone have a clue as to when this gig might have been and where exactly it took place?
Saw this advert on eBay. There's no mention of this gig on ZZ Top's site, either. Here's the info I get from the ad:
Date: A 4th July Celebration - 12 noon-12 midnight - 12 big bands
Promoter: Starshine Productions
The Bill:
BOC
ZZ Top
Left End
L.A.W.
M.F.Rattlesnake
Atlantis Philharmonic
Fully Assembled
Coconut
Skeezix
Glass Harp
Dynamite
Night Hawk
Price: $3 adv $3.50 at ?? (gate/door?)
This sounds like an outdoor thing, but I've not heard of most of the bands though. Looking at the price alone ($3/$3.50), I'd have thought it'd have been 1971 - maybe 1972 - but in Summer 1971, it's not even known if BOC had that name yet, let alone headline over ZZ Top.
Seeing the name of Glass Harp on the list of bands, I got in touch with Bob Brandt, who helped me with an earlier entry on this page.
Nothing I've got matches this ad. A few things I can tell you:
Thanks for the info, Bob. Regarding the Mosquito Dam show, according to the poster I have here, the promoter for that was "Wah Productions".
Saw this advert on eBay. Like the show above, it appeared amongst a load of other Ohio-based shows at the Akron and Cleveland Agoras - however, the only Ritz I know of was in New York.
And if you squint at the blurred image, you can just make out a "212" phone-number...
Here's the info I get from the ads:
Date: Fri 24 Jan (an evening with BOC - special showtime midnight)
Where: Ritz
Promoter: Michelob Presents
$13.50 in advance $14.50 on day
Possible years on which 24 January fell on a Friday are:
1975
1986
1992
1997
2003
If anyone has any clue, please let me know.
Somewhere around 1982-1985, there was another Presque Isle, Maine Gig. Not the one Aldo Nova opened in Sep of '82 but later.
I attended but have no stub, opener or concrete date.
Here are the only Presque Isle gigs I currently know about:
15 Sept 1979: Northern Maine Fairgrounds, Presque Isle ME (with Ian Hunter Band)
15 Sept 1982: Northern Maine Forum, Presque Isle ME (with Aldo Nova)
So the gig you refer to would be a new show to list - can anyone help with this one?