For a long time I've been collecting ticket stubs mostly from events that Dianne, the kids and I have attended over the years. These memorabilia include stubs from movies, concerts, sporting events, whatever. I now have two cigar boxes [remember those?] full of these things, so let's investigate a few of the contents.
In this post I'm doing the concert tickets; blog posts on sports, movies and a miscellaneous selection of others will follow at some point. I hope....
I don't have ticket stubs for some concerts. For instance, I saw The Who at Memorial Coliseum in Tuscaloosa on November 22, 1971, but I can't prove it. Also, I seem to remember a couple of concerts at Oak Mountain Amphitheatre not documented here, including a Steppenwolf/Three Dog Night double bill. Neither do I have any stubs for the several times we've seen and enjoyed Roman Street, Eric Essex, and probably others. Daughter Becca and I saw The Manhattan Transfer at UAB's Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center, but alas no stubs for that one, either. Great concert, by the way.
Most of these performances took place in Alabama; a selection of others is at the end.
Dianne and I were living in Tuscaloosa at this time, working toward masters degrees in library science. This ticket is unused, and I've never seen the Allman Brothers. I don't remember how I acquired this one.
Bob Dylan had one of Rick Carter's bands opening, if I remember correctly. This concert was on April 20, 1991; here's the setlist.
The Alabama Symphony Orchestra can trace its roots to a volunteer ensemble in Birmingham in 1921. The current name was adopted in 1979; financial difficulties forced bankruptcy in the early 1990s. The Orchestra has operated in the black since a 1997 reorganization.
The LAGQ formed in 1980, so the group had been around for many years by the time son Amos and I saw them at the UAB performing arts center. Amos had played guitar in a metal band with friends in high school, but he--and I--enjoyed this concert of mostly classical music. We sat in Row C, which was practically underneath the group, and their musicianship was incredible.
To top it off, they did an unexpected sort of encore. It started with a standard classical guitar interpretation of Pachelbel's "Canon in D Major" and by the time it ended the piece had been transformed into country, bluegrass, rock, and jazz renditions. Needless to say we in the audience expressed our appreciation.
Harris has been a force in American music for more than four decades. She was born in the Magic City, but her family moved after she completed the first grade. Of course, she sang "Boulder to Birmingham" in this concert and made a few local comments as well.
I first encountered the work of Ravi Shankar in the early 1970s, probably as a result of his influence on the Beatles. Dianne and I both looked forward to this concert, and we were not disappointed. His daughter Anoushka played sitar the first half of the concert, and she was spectacular.
Then, after the intermission, Anouska came out beside her seemingly frail 86 year-old father as he walked slowly to a stool at center stage. Once seated, Ravi began his magical playing. Father and daughter also played together on several pieces. A very special evening...
Blues musician Taj Mahal [born Henry Fredericks] has been playing and recording since 1964. In addition to his own unique interpretation of the blues, he incorporations world music and musicians into his work. This concert was a good example of all that.
We saw Paul Simon in 1991, and then Art Garfunkel in 2008. Dianne and I grew up in the 1960s when songs like "The Sound of Silence", "Mrs. Robinson", "The Boxer", "Bridge Over Troubled Water" and "Scarborough Fair" were everywhere. I'm glad we got to see them both perform, even if not together. Garfunkel's album Some Enchanted Evening had been released in 2007.
We actually saw The Chieftains twice at the Alys Stephens Center, but I don't seem to have the stub for the other one. As Wikipedia notes, "The Chieftains are a traditional Irish folk band formed in Dublin in 1962, by Paddy Moloney, Seán Potts and Michael Tubridy. Their sound, which is almost entirely instrumental and largely built around uilleann pipes, has become synonymous with traditional Irish music. They are regarded as having helped popularize Irish music around the world."
The concerts we saw were a rousing delight. Co-founder Moloney died in 2021, and
the band's future is uncertain. They did regroup in
April 2023 to perform when President Joe Biden visited his ancestral Irish home.
We've also seen Celtic Woman twice; the first time was with daughter Becca at the Alabama Theatre. The group formed in 2004 and has toured steadily since then, with many personnel changes along the way. Luckily fiddler Mairead Nesbitt performed with the group both times; she put on quite a show by herself. And of course the song harmonies by the vocalists were wonderful.
What can I say? Kottke is simply a wizard on the 12-string guitar and one of the all-time great American guitarists, 6- or 12-string. Born in 1945, he began performing in the mid-1960s and released his first album in 1969. He has toured and recorded both solo and with others over the years. Sometimes he sings, but most of his work is instrumental. In concert he tells a lot of stories.
We saw him twice, once at Zydeco in 2001 and earlier on Sunday afternoon, June 20, 1993, at City Stages in Birmingham. He appeared solo both times. If you ever get the chance to see him live, don't miss it. He also has plenty of recorded music to choose from. If you've never heard him play, YouTube can help.
And believe it or not, there is a connection between Kottke and the English band Procol Harum ["Whiter Shade of Pale", etc.].
I have the stubs for several concerts I attended in Atlanta in 1974. What a year!
Jefferson Starship is one of those rock bands with a very convoluted history; Wikipedia sorts it out for us. The group, featuring former Jefferson Airplane members Grace Slick and Paul Kantner and a number of other musicians, began touring under that name in March 1974. Thus I saw them early in their existence at the Omni in Atlanta, an indoor coliseum opened in 1972 and demolished in 1997.
This jazz fusion group was active from 1970 until 1986 and recorded some great music. Some friends and I saw them at the Great Southeast Music Hall, a superb venue that was actually a bar, restaurant and concert hall. Capacity was 525; the audience sat on cushions on the floor. Beer came in 32oz metal buckets that cost $2.75
Founded in 1970 by keyboardist Joe Zawinul, saxophonist Wayne Shorter and others, Weather Report blended various musical styles and used a large number of musicians during its existence. One of the band's best known works is the instrumental "Birdland", written by Zawinul as a tribute to the New York City nightclub of that name. The Manhattan Transfer has a great version of that song with lyrics.
Something I especially remember about this performance is one of the band's percussionists playing as he strolled through the audience.
Well, I was never a Deadhead, but I sure do like the music, and I'm glad I got to see them live. On this particular night they played a number of favorites, including "U.S. Blues", "Scarlet Begonias" and the immortal "Truckin'". You can see the entire set list and listen to the concert at the Internet Archive.
Oh, and I enjoyed folk and blues singer Maria Muldaur as well. Her career began in 1963, but she had released her first solo album the year before I saw her. That work included her popular song "Midnight at the Oasis", a showcase for her beautiful voice. I'm glad to see she is still active.
Dylan had just released the Planet Waves album, and this tour with The Band had forty shows in North America in January and February 1974. As with the other shows I saw at the Omni, the place was packed. This one was Dylan's first tour in seven years. The Before the Flood live album released on June 20, 1974 documents the tour, although most tracks were recorded at the Los Angeles show.
I started listening to both Dylan and The Band in the 1960's, so this show was special. They played another concert in Atlanta the next night. You can see the set list of performances I saw here.
