Unusual occurrences at gigs

chas smith R.I.P. · From: Encino, CA, USA

The Radio Ranch Straight Shooters, for whom I played steel, were reminiscing on some of the odd things that happened while we were playing. Years ago at Raji's, in Hollywood, there were a bunch of people, who lived above the club, partying and hanging out the windows and during our set, one of them fell out and landed in the parking lot, RIP. Another time, we were playing at the Three of Clubs, also in Hollywood, when virtually everyone ran out of the club during one of our numbers. There had been a drive-by shooting in the parking lot just outside the door and they all wanted to see the body.

Earnest Bovine · From: Los Angeles CA USA

I saw a couple guys get into a fight once.

Bill Crook · From: Goodlettsville, TN , Spending my kid's inheritance

In my younger days,(when I played only 6 -string)I really played a gig in a dive that had chicken wire in front of the stage.

I do understand why it was there !!

Larry Bell · From: Englewood, Florida

Not exactly AT a gig, but just after . . .
I was coming home from a gig in Nashville, about 1966 or so, driving down 16th Ave S down by Music Row. I was a bit sleepy and didn't notice these two shadowy figures walking out in front of me. Slammed on my breaks. All I saw was the silhouette of a short, stout person and another with long, kinda snaky looking hair. Next day I heard Dylan was in town. It was Bobby D and Charlie McCoy. Glad I stopped.

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Larry Bell - email: larry@larrybell.org - gigs - Home Page
2000 Fessenden S-12 8x8, 1969 Emmons S-12 6x6, 1971 Emmons D-10 9x9, 1971 Dobro

[This message was edited by Larry Bell on 21 March 2002 at 01:19 PM.]

CrowBear Schmitt · From: Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France

Way back when i was a roadie for the Crazy World of Arthur Brown during a show in Detroit, the organ player (who was the main Musikal component)had a nervous breakdown on stage. Considering that CWAB was very theatrical, the public loved the act.
it was one hell of an ordeal to us tho'...
the tour grinded to a halt while another organist was flown in from the UK.
Gone but not forgotten....

John De Maille · From: On a Mountain in Upstate Halcottsville, N.Y.

While working a Christmas Show one afternoon, at a local club, a lady lost control of her car. She drove right through the front window, onto the dance floor. By the grace of God, no-one was injured. How ironic that we were playing Six Days on The Road, at that particular time.

Bob Hoffnar · From: Austin, Tx

In the 80's I was touring France with a new wave/punk band. We played in some little farm town on the way to someplace else. First off there was no electricity in the hall so we had to tap into the power line so we could set up. Then the crowd was nothing but these grape pickers who dressed up exactly like the Specials and they all did that little goofy walk dance along to a Specials tune that got played over and over again before we started. I'm talking 50 or so guys with the suits, hats and sunglasses. They hated us. Once we finished our set they put that tune on and they all started doing that walk/dance thing again.

There has been so much weird stuff that has happened and keeps on happening it is hard to know where to start.

Bob

Bob Farlow · From: Marietta,GA,

I've had two people have heart attacks while I was playing. One, a spectator, fell across my guitar bending one of my guitar legs. The other was a fiddle player on the opposite end of the stage. He fell out,but I was taking a ride and didn't even know it till I realized I was the only one left playing.

Matt Steindl · From: New Orleans, LA, USA

I was in college at the time in Kansas City, and went to see the Flaming Lips at the Grand Emporeum(great venue!), and this was back when the Lips had a pretty crazy psychedelic road show with lots of homemade props that would smoke, flame or blow bubbles. During the crescendo of a crazy jam, their bass player got a little too close to a flame pot and the back of his hair pulled a Michael Jackson. Apparently he didnt know what was going on, so he kept playing, and consequently, most of the crowd thoughT it was part of the show. Eventually a guy up front threw a beer on his head to put it out! Nobody was hurt, and.........drumroll please...............IT WAS A SMOKIN SHOW!!!

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Mattman in "The Big Sleazy"-:
S-10 Dekley, Suitcase Fender Rhodes, B-bender Les Paul

Frank Parish · From: Nashville,Tn. USA

It was 1977 at The Robert E Lee Inn New Albany, Indiana and there was guy very drunk at the bar. We played behind a piano bar. He got into it with the bartender because he wouldn't serve him anymore. They had it out at the bar and the waitress got knocked down and the guy threatened to shoot anyone that moved towards him.
We were playing Today I Started Loving You Again. I'll never forget that.
The place was a local motel and most of the local politicians were customers and Fuzzy Zoeller the pro golfer was a regular.The guy went out the back door to leave. Somebody called the police that were two blocks away and they surrounded him in the back parking lot. He told them they wouldn't take him alive and they wound up shooting the guy. The bullets went through him and a Volkswagon deck lid. I won't describe the scene but it was gruesome to say the least. As it turns out he was an escape convict on the run.

Larry Miller · From: Dothan AL,USA

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

In the late 70's I played gigs with my country rock band at Chuck Berry's house in Wentzville, MO, where fights, actually brawls with flying bottles, upturned tables, etc just like in the westerns, would often break out during the evening (I guess we had that effect on people!) One evening a guy ran thru the brawl with a rifle, and Chuck Berry appeared, chasing him and brandishing a pistol. The band packed up and left rather quickly. That's the only time I ever saw Chuck Berry there.

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The "Master of Acceptable Tone"
www.jimcohen.com

Pat Burns · From: Branchville, N.J. USA

..c'mon, Jim, get with the program...the topic is "unusual occurrences"...

Bob Bowden · From: Vancouver, BC, Canada * R.I.P.

Most unusual I can think of was at a small town bar with no stage so the band had to setup on the floor. There was one girl in the audience who suffered from a motor control affliction(Multiple Schlerosis?) who could barely walk but insisted on dancing. Needless to say she bounced off band members, mics and monitors a few times. The real problem was that she fell down a lot while attempting to dance. Everywhere she fell, she left a small pool of yellow liquid. Fortunately, she didnt land on any of us or our gear but we really had to watch where we stepped.

Earl Erb · From: Old Hickory Tenn

I was playing at th Wisk-A-Go-Go Club in Mason City Iowa in 1968 with Chuck Wood.Two guys got into a fight over a pool game and one guy through the other guy through a huge plate glass window at the front of the club.We were just starting our first,the cops came and closed the place down for the rest of the night.The guy ended up in the hospital in bad shape.
I have a lot more stories but I am tired of typing.

Tom Olson · From: Spokane, WA

Bob Bowden -- I'll bet you guys were pretty pissed-off about the whole affair, eh?

[This message was edited by Tom Olson on 21 March 2002 at 08:36 PM.]

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

Cal Sharp · From: the farm in Kornfield Kounty, TN

Speaking of Chuck Berry... I was on a package show with Chuck, Leslie Gore, Faron, and "many others" and the promoter had a "heart attack" midway thru the proceedings and was whisked away in an ambulance. Needless to say, not everybody got paid.

C#

BTW, Faron and I went over to Chuck's trailer to say howdy and his bodyguard wouldn't let us in. Can't repeat Faron's comments on this Forum.

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

Cal, Chuck doesn't do 'howdy'.

Pat Burns · From: Branchville, N.J. USA

..cultural diversity...

...the "dancer" certainly qualifies under this topic!..eewwww..

Michael Johnstone · From: Sylmar,Ca. USA

One time in 1976,I was playing out in Calabassas,CA at what was basically a 150 year old victorian house made into "The Sundance Saloon" - replete with a 150 year old "hangin' tree" outside in the dirt parking lot.I set up early among the pool tables in an area that was to be "the stage" later on.Some guy kept insisting on sitting on my 65 Sho-Bud whilst he was composing his next 9-ball shot.After a pitcher of tap beer I decided to knock him off his perch and he responded with a blow to my face with the butt end of his pool cue.I played the whole night with a throbbing headache and a gaping gash under my left eye taped shut with a butterfly bandage.The culprit however,was ousted but hung around all night outside on the porch,glaring in the window at me while I picked.The club owner was apologizing all over himself while he brought me pitcher after pitcher of free beer hoping I wouldn't sue - while Gary Busey hooted and whistled in the corner.If I hadn't got so shitfaced,I woulda considered taking the guy to task later,in the parking lot - out by the "hangin' tree" -MJ-

Tom Jordan · From: Wichita, KS

There I was....country gigs were getting out of fashion in the late '80s and we were playing a road house nightly to pay the rent. The current tough guy had just got whipped real good by the new tough guy and lost a large portion of his long hair with the scalp still attached. These folks were not squeamish...that hairy scalp got tossed around the bar like a penalty flag for the next couple of weeks until it finally disentigrated.

...then there was the neked biker girls....

Tom

Rusty Hurse · From: Hendesonville, Tn

I was playing a Christmas party at the Reo Palm Isle in Longview TX, in the real early 70's. Now this was a Christmas party for the employes and the band. Carl Johnson own the club for years and did this every year for the club. Well it was getting kind a little late in the nite and the party was really getting good when all of a sudden the bass player the drummer and the fiddle players all got into in over each others wives!There had been a little more than TAPPING going on and I dont mean feet either, during the break.Now this was a site to behold! Drums and fiddles and guitars were hitting the dance floor,Fender Twins were flying,Bassmen hitting the floor it was just a good ol TEXAS FREE FOR ALL.In just 10 to 15 seconds only me and Emmons guitar and my 2 Twins were left on the band stand.God it was great!I sure am glad that I was only TAPPING my pedals back then.I did finish my solo though!There was a lot more than gifts exchanged that nite, but maybe someone got upset about the gift that was given or not given!

Rusty Hurse · From: Hendesonville, Tn

You always did have to watch those fiddle players though!

Gene Jones · From: Oklahoma City, OK USA, (deceased)

.....Bill Crook said: "I really played a gig in a dive that had chicken wire in front of the stage."......

So did I Bill...and to make sure we all knew why it was there, the club owner had inserted a beer bottle half-way through the wire and left it dangling there as a reminder!

www.genejones.com

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