We were considered the number one soul band in the south. In most cases, the concertswere multi-act affairs, featuring the hottest names the radio stations could secure. Now sales manager for a Dothan radio station, Moody fondly remembers working as a teenager at a 1959 WBAM concert featuring singer Connie Francis. "I'm so. In the 1960's WVOK, in Birmingham Alabama, would have the top bands play at one huge concert. Although he admits to anoccasional pang of longing, looking back on his previouscareer, Brennan is far from retired. Music you could dance to Later acts included the Beach Boys, the Animals, the Dave Clark Five, Paul Revere and the Raiders, Tommy James and the Shondells and the perennial Montgomery favorite, Lou Christie. But Brennandoes have many stories to share -- about preventing a fistfight between two starswho wanted theclosing spot in Birmingham, or example, or puzzling over two entertainerswho showed up in Montgomery, both claiming to be country singer Bobby Edwards. For this little kid from Wetumpka, that was a big, big deal, he said. Members: Mitch Alton (original member), Gregg Pappas, Ham Wilson, Bill Marshall , Dwight Williams, Rick Byrd, Orville Cain, Carl Tesh. They agreed to do it, but they were on one end of it, and the Beach Boys were on the other end of it. Skyping with a Hermit Jerry Lee Lewis hristie Lou C. Paul Revere & the Raiders . Springsteen played the 'short end' of the the Beard-Eaves with the curtain up. I only have these pictures of all the concerts we attended from the early 1960's to late 1960's. This one in 1969, was probably the last one I attended. Tommy James, of Tommy James and the Shondells, describing his appearance at the WBAM and WVOK Summer Shows in 1966 (from Me, the Mob and the Music). Chuck Berry was awesome and the Stones in their early days were unbelievable.". Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. said donnna. A memorable night that I won't ever forget. Consumate pranksters, duo Jan and Dean walk across the stage carrying a ladder to the surprise of Paul Revere and the Raiders' lead singer Mark Lindsey. Formed: 1966, Tallassee. It was a hold out because they had missed a previous show in May of 1974. Their big prize was three VOX . Several others mentioned seeing the Rolling Stones in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham. From Denniswingo: "April 1977 was Led Zeppelin.famous because it was so totally over promoted with the K-99 disc jockeys claiming $100 scalped tickets (it was $7.50 ticket price). WBAM-FM/98.9 ("Bama Country 98.9") is a country music formatted radio station that serves the Montgomery Metropolitan Area, broadcasting on the FM band at a frequency of 98.9 MHz and licensed to Montgomery, Alabama. ", From David Hester: "Eagles at Von Braun Civic Center in Huntsville in 1975. 2023 Advance Local Media LLC. One show in particular stands out. ", The Birmingham News file photo/Philip Barr. The Hollies. The wildest thing other than the Troggs rocking out to "Wild Thing" and whipping around long dirty hanks of British hair was Lou Christie. Mountain 1971," said Billy Bromberg. "We all felt very privileged," Bartoletti says. He showed up about five minutes before his show was to go on. The Buckinghams. It was important to us.". HOW COME PAUL GODDARD PUSHES HIS GLASSES UP THE BRIDGE OF HIS NOSE? 100 feet later someone offered us tickets at face value. All who attended the big September 19th show must present ticket stub at gate between 12 noon and 1PM. Wish I had gotten one. That's how we put together our shows. Notable TV and Radio personality Jimmy Carter (from Montgomery, Alabama) has assembled a few videos featuring some photos, jingles, and air checks of WBAM in its heyday. The eruption from the crowd was louder than expected but the lights were so blinding, we could not see the audience. The other was Municipal Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, where a show had been set for September 15 th. "One of my favorites was RUSH 1981 Mobile Municipal Auditorium," said tgfmiss. Its amazing the life we got to live.. Back then, thats what music was about, remembers Bobby Dupree, 63, drummer with The Rockin Gibraltars, a popular Montgomery-based group in the 60s. The Alabama band was the organizer and centerpiece, raising money for charity. The last concert at Big Bam Fall Spectacular was on September 30, 1966. former wcti reporters; winter village montreal; western new england university greek life; 1980 camaro z28 for sale in canada. He never collectedconcertposters, handbills orother pieces of memorabilia. Brennan's memories of the showsare less starry-eyed and more businesslike, as befitsthe man who booked the acts, paid the bills and tallied the proceeds. Yet. $14 million dollar house maine; With no sound checks between acts, group would run on stage and begin playing almost immediately. Fees for the other acts were in the $300-$400 range, he says. The entire show was magic, beginning with The Stranger and of course included many of the unknown Joel early songs. It will be the first time theyve have been together since a reunion benefit at a local club in 2007. Each episode had a specific theme, mission, or challenge which was accomplished by performing pranks, skateboarding, and enlisting the help of . Deep South was incorporated in late July of 1950 with a capitalization of $60,000. BB King's penultimate show at the Alabama (sitting but still playing and not drifting into non sequitur land). Both Shaw and Chapman have gone on to stardom as performers and songwriters.]. Dislike Share. Pitiful (Otis Redding) sound so much better with real horns.. Show Hide article text (OCR) The following year 13 acts played in WVOKs Shower of Stars show at Legion Field in Birmingham. December 3, 1955-As an extra Bonus..here's the advertisement for sister station WBAM, Montgomery, AL, when the very young Elvis Presley appeared. What made those shows big was that Dan and Cyril would always pick the artists who were hot at the time, remembered Bill J. Moody, a former WBAM announcer and later host of Hubcap Classics. If a group had a hit record, we would have them. Dupree served with the Army in Vietnam, worked as an engineer in Muscle Shoals, and has been an electrical engineer for the Alabama Legislature for 27 years. Joni Mitchell at Tuscaloosa 1975 would be third," said jarobertson. This might have swelled a lesser man's head, but for Brennan, it was all about connecting with the listeners. Big Bam Show . truly historic happening. The original investors in the company were William J. Best Review Site for Digital Cameras. He would tear up the piano, Moody said, We couldnt find anyone to provide a piano, but he would put on a show. "And that made a big difference, because people didn't have the opportunity to turn on the TV set and see these artists, after they'd been buying their records. The audience was huge, sold out, 10,000 or more. You are free to use the above map for educational and similar purposes; if you publish it online or in print . By today's standards, his solution to the latter problemseems charmingly old-school. But the moment was indelible for one of his daughters, Debbie Brennan Bartoletti. Bobby Darin. "I'm so old. The Huntsville Times file photo/Michael Proffitt. He was a very special guy. The Rogues of Montgomery, AL cut one great rock single, "Put You Down" b/w a version of "Stormy Monday Blues". (In 1965, Legion Field could seat more than 68,000 people.) I've got to change clothes and everything.' "The level of excitement was unbelievable," Bartoletti says. The 7 p.m.show-- billedas a music battle between the England and the United States-- also includedtheRighteous Brothers, Marty Robbins, Sonny James, Skeeter Davis, Del Reeves, Archie "Rindercella" Campbell and Cannibal and the Headhunters. April 8, 1967: State Coliseum, Montgomery, AL with Electric Prunes, Buckinghams, Lou Christie, Brian Hyland and The Jokers, Tommy James and The Shondells, Royal Guardsmen, The Blues Magoos, The Casinos and others "WBAM presents Big Bam All-Star Spring Show" April 14, 1967: University of San Francisco, San Francisco, CA with Freudian Slip Big Bam Show Montgomery, Al 1960s F.U.N. You can either do that, or you will not have a place to change. We were the opening act and it was the biggest crowd we had ever played before, nearly 30,000 people. At this point, Mick Jagger and his pals were poised to release"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," their first international smash. Hello? Clipping found in Alabama Journal in Montgomery, Alabama on Mar 24, 1966. The WMSP studios are located on the 3rd floor of . Top (l-r), Keith Brewer, Ed Sanford and Sonny Grier. His clothes were all rumpled, and he said, 'Dan, I need to go on later in the show. Bob Brennen gave me these. Inicio Quines somos? Shop Now Big Bam Show. ", From Jeremy Don McCollough: "Guns N' Roses played the Birmingham race course, it was a muddy mess. ", From cj75: "Grateful Dead, 5/17/77 in Tuscaloosa. "He said, 'Dan, I like to play for you here in town, but I don't want you to ever book me on a show like this again. Hal Hodgens of WVOK is second from left. ); Lynyrd Skynyrd and Black Oak Arkansas, Rickwood Field (1975); Pink Floyd, Legion Field (1994); Peter Frampton and Robin Trower, Oak Mountain (1994); Rolling Stones, Legion Field (1994); Bruce Springsteen, BJCC, 2002; and, James Brown, Jubilee CityFest Montgomery (2003). If you have one, it's going to be way down the other part of the field.' (The station's nickname, "the Mighty 690," referred to its spot on the AM dial.). "Bill" Brennan, Billy Benns (Jr.) and Mrs. Luella B. Aldridge. Otherwise . Its better than not being remembered at all.. ), "I remember we used to have people come out to our station on the Bessemer Superhighway," Brennan says, "and they would tell us that our transmitter -- we had a 50-kilowatt transmitter, and it was pretty close to their homes -- and they said, 'Well, I'm picking you up on my coffeepot.'". By 1972 the heyday of the big shows had passed. WBAM was a powerhouse at 50,000 watts, covering much of Alabama, Georgia, and Florida.From its earliest days, WBAM put on concerts for the Montgomery area. The Fab Four wouldnt play to segregated audiences, and at that time this was the case in Alabama. If you were a teenager anywhere near Montgomery in the mid-60s and early 70s, the concert scene didnt get any better than the fanfests known as the Big BAM shows. Here, then, is a readers' choice list of 31 awesome concerts in Alabama, culled from email, Facebook and comments on the original post. Reactions to these picks -- made by entertainment reporters Matt Wake, Lawrence Specker and Mary Colurso -- ranged from praise to anger, support to dismay. Hisconcertseries rocked their worlds and shaped their music tastes, in tandem with WVOK. I missed a bunch more, though!". Their annual Big Bam shows, and Show of Stars were traveling medicine shows and featured Lou Christie, Roy Orbison, The Animals. Western European Countries, Italian Restaurants In Sandy Springs, Contemporary Music For All Coma, Ford Bronco Reservation Login, Panoplie Dragoeuf Dofus Touch, River Radio Station, Nice In Korean, How Did Tamerlan Tsarnaev Die, Den Of Behemoths Boss, The Big BAM was WBAM, the 50,000-watt AM radio station owned by the Brennan family, whose other Alabama station was Birmingham's WVOK. The author recalls with fondness the casual neighborliness that existed within his community, the freedom that children enjoyed to roam and play, and the slower pace of life that prevailed. The Byrds. This book takes a thought-provoking, even-handed look at those days from the perspective of a typical white kid growing up in Montgomery during that . Thats not to say Montgomery area favorite bands cant be seen any more. We mostly had a lot of fun., They were especially known for their James Brown-style revue, with Grier wearing a cape much like the Godfather of Soul used while singing Please, Please, Please., The group got a break in 1968 when a Hollywood producer spotted them at the Big BAM show, and wanted to sign them to a recording contract. In the 1950s and '60s, Montgomery, Alabama, was ground zero f. Home; My Books; Browse . Props. If you were a teenager in south-central Alabama in the 1960s, chances are you danced the jerk, flirted with that cute boy, or made out in the corner of the high school gym to the music of a live band of local erstwhile musicians. Where else could you scream your head off while watching a dozen live acts play the hit songs you listened to on your transistor radio for the whopping ticket price of $2.50? "I didn't stay up there too long," Brennan says, laughing. Birmingham on May 20, 1967. Lindley. ", From REDSEA: "While I was going to UNA back in 81, I worked on the Stage Crew on these concerts at UNA: Atlanta Rhythm Section (pictured), Jimmy Buffett, Tom Petty, Hotel, Crystal Gale. ", From TTownTony: "You cannot even imagine the concerts played in Tuscaloosa before the BJCC was built. George Cumuze, RN, Case Manager 4150 Carmichael Court Montgomery, AL 36106 334-270-2274. show . I play music half the time, the other half Im a toilet salesman, Jones said, which means hes in wholesale plumbing with Thompson Supply Co. ", From bhamboost: "Parliament Funkadelic Mothership Connection 1976. go to da moon copy and paste. We do everything from Jerry Jeff Walker to the Grateful Dead to Van Morrison, says Pappas. He must have played an hour and 20 minutes or more. Montgomery resident Mike Vickery remembers getting a friends mother to drive him and others to the WBAM station to get tickets as soon as they went on sale so we could get them near the front on the floor. On one occasion, he accompanied some female friends to the Diplomat Inn where they spotted Lou Christie sitting by the pool, a secret one of them has never told her mother to this day.. Dan Brennan at the mic introducing the Beatles at their Gator Bowl appearance in Jacksonville, Florida. ", From Steve Wayne: "Guns N' Roses at the Birmingham Race Course. "Billsaid, 'Well, if anybody makes any money out of it, it's going to be me.' Anotherbrother, Bill Brennan, was the undisputed chief of the Jacksonville station, and had houses in Montgomery and Jacksonville. The Beatles in Alabama? Hes been in a few movies, raced sports cars and been inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame. Any of the Yes shows in Birmingham! From what we can tell, she appeared there in 1970, but the story mentions Dec. 3, 1970, as the date of her show. Alabama State Coliseum (1951-1963) Garrett Coliseum (1963-) Oct 5 2019 blues show montgomery, al 2021. guildford school of acting auditions; gilroy google font alternative; cuisinart steamer insert; Blog Post Title February 26, 2018.
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