Author: Pete Mason

Ciarra Fragale and more Featured on this week’s EQXposure

Each Sunday evening from 7-9pm you’ll find EQXposure on WEQX, featuring two hours of local music from up and coming artists. Tune into WEQX.com this Sunday night to hear music from Ciarra Fragale and many more!

WEQX has long been the preeminent independent station in the Capital Region of New York, broadcasting from Southern VT to an ever-expanding listening audience. NYS Music brings you a preview of artists to discover each week, just a taste of the talent waiting to be discovered by fans like you.

Ciarra Fragale – “Miss That” and “Too Good For You Baby”

Ciarra Fragale is an indie pop act born and raised in New York’s Hudson Valley. By blending the nostalgic traditions of songwriting with unique new-wave sensibilities, she creates a sound all her own. Ciarra spent years playing solo, until early last year when she joined forces with Kingston drummer Eli Marzano. Since then they have brought their dynamic set all across the Northeast, opening for renowned acts like Sammy Rae & the Friends. Ciarra relocated to North Adams, MA at the end of last year and just last weekend sold out two shows at Mass MoCA, her first shows since March.

After the release of my second LP, Call It What You Will, I found myself already collecting a bunch of new material. Last fall, I visited a friend of mine’s studio (Sleeper Cave Records) while I was passing through for a show and really fell in love with the space. I had been familiar with [Andy’s] engineering work, as a lot of my friends had recorded with him. After a few conversations, we went in to record “Too Good (For You, Baby)” and quickly realized that we weren’t just recording a single—we were making a record. We’ve been plugging away on it ever since. It feels really good to push the envelope. I just know so much more now than I did when I was making the previous records, both as an artist and as a producer. I’m really excited to share these new songs, most of which no one has never really heard. The climate is different now…usually you write a new song and you try it out at a few shows to gauge interest. Since that is not really an option right now, we’re just going for it on this record and it feels quite liberating. The collection of songs on this album feel like my most honest, which is why I decided to make the record self-titled. This new album is not necessarily a “quarantine record,” even though a lot of the songs were written during this tumultuous time. They are just a snapshot of where I am, right now.

EQXPosure will open the show 7pm Ciarra’s “Miss That” and later play “Too Good For You Baby” later in the 7 o’clock hour.

October 10, 2020
Flashback: Phish at Nassau Coliseum, October 1999

Phish has a storied history at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, one highlighted by Island Tour performances in April 2 and 3, 1998, and one of their most notable performances of the ‘2.0’ era, February 28, 2003. The Uniondale venue has played host to Phish seven times, most recently on December 1, 2019. 1999

Phish would return to Uniondale on October 7 and 8, 1999, nearing the end of their Fall Tour, with two shows to follow in Albany that would close the tour. Newsday reviewed the first of the two nights, saying, “The Britney Spears of the world come and go, but Phish, the shaggy Vermont jam-band that has never had a hit on the radio or video, is proof that quality music can survive in a mass marketed world.”

The first set on October 7 was highlighted by three songs – an 18 minute “David Bowie,” a “Gotta Jibboo” with an ever-rare “Dave’s Energy Guide” tease, and to follow, a set closing “Fluffhead.” The second set would feature an inventive ‘Mike’s Groove,’ with a nearly an hour of music packed in between “Mike’s Song,” (featuring Trey on keys) “McGrupp,” “Prince Caspian,” “Golgi Apparatus” and “Weekapaug Groove.”

Also notable was the encore, which featured three songs – “Rocky Top,” “I Am Hydrogen” and “Julius” – the stand alone “I Am Hydrogen” being played outside of the typical “Mike’s Song” > ” Weekapaug Groove” for the first time since Halloween 1987, and almost as rare, being played in an encore slot.

October 7, 1999 Setlist via Phish.net

Set 1: NICU > My Soul, Dirt, David Bowie, Frankie Says > Possum, When the Circus Comes, Gotta Jibboo, Fluffhead

Set 2: Boogie On Reggae Woman, Heavy Things, Tube, Back on the Train > Mike’s Song[1] > McGrupp and the Watchful Hosemasters, Prince Caspian > Golgi Apparatus > Weekapaug Groove

Encore: Rocky Top > I Am Hydrogen > Julius

[1] Trey on keys.

Fall 1999 tour map via Todd Puckett

After the barn burner of the night before, October 8 would still have some tricks up its sleeve, particularly in Set 2. The first set was somewhat standard, beyond a “Meatstick” that brought Sofi Dillof to the stage for the dancing portion of the millennium tune.

Set 2 opened with “Halley’s Comet” and then ventured into a 20-minute “Tweezer” which featured a jam that was reminiscent of the Siket Disc tune “My Left Toe.”

After a fantastic mid-set “Harry Hood,” Phish began to play the opening notes of The Who’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It,” and appropriately brought to the stage Phish lyricist Tom Marshall, singing “My name is Tommy” to a rapt audience. The track from Tommy was played to perfection, as Phish is well versed in The Who‘s catalog, particularly Quadrophenia from their Halloween 1995 show at Rosemont Horizon in Illinois. Turning into the “Listening to You” portion of the song, the energy in the room can still be felt as Marshall belts out the remainder of Townshend’s lyrics and Phish tears through the rock n roll overture.

Even though Nassau Coliseum is shuttered for the time being, and may not reopen, the performances Phish and others have made there have secured the venue’s legacy for generations of music lovers.

October 8, 1999 setlist via Phish.net

Set 1: Piper, AC/DC Bag, Suzy Greenberg, Meat, Meatstick, Run Like an Antelope

Set 2: Halley’s Comet > Tweezer, Bug, Fee, Harry Hood, We’re Not Gonna Take It[1] > Chalk Dust Torture

Encore: The Squirming Coil, Tweezer Reprise

[1] Phish debut; Tom Marshall on vocals.

Phish Nassau 1999

October 9, 2020
Fans flock to Swanzey, NH for Goose at Drive-In Live
Goose has been loose across New England in the past few weeks, performing Drive-In shows in Yarmouth, MA, Morris, CT, Essex Junction, VT and soon they’ll head to Ohio, Maryland and North Carolina. Goose hit a fever pitch with fans in 2019 and have made the most of this new era of live music, between a successful Bingo Tour in June, and recent Drive-In stops across the Northeast.

So when Goose headed from Northern Vermont down to Southwestern New Hampshire on Saturday, October 3, they marked the closest shows to New York State, and beyond their just announced Halloween run at South Farms in Morris, CT, these shows stand to be the final chances to catch Goose in the Northeast, possibly until 2021.

Arriving at the Cheshire Fairgrounds in Swanzey, NH, cars were greeted by a friendly staff and it was incredibly easy for you to locate your car’s spot. Areas on either side of your car were marked off for social distancing, and your party could begin once you were parked.

No matter where you parked, the sound was incredibly good. Speaker stacks made it so the folks in the C section towards the back got the same quality as folks in the A section up front, allowing all to hear the new clavinet for guitarist/keyboardist Peter Anspach. Even the sloping hill allowed for good views even from the top of the venue.

Highlights from the evening included an early cover of The Band’s “Look Out Cleveland” and 20-minute versions of “Madhuvan” and the second set opening “Tumble.” Tom Waits’ dark “Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis” followed “Tumble,” and was repeated in the encore due to skipping a portion of the song the first time. The encore was polished off by the second ‘Jive’ tune of the night, “Jive Lee.” Listen to the show on Archive here.

Swanzey has succeeded in a state where live music is still embraced and allowed, and should be looked at as a template for how to pull off live music until the pandemic has subsided. On Saturday, October 31st, Pink Talking Fish will headline a at Drive-In Live in Swanzey, featuring Mihali from Twiddle and Neighbor, marking the grand finale for the Drive-In Live concert series.

The night before in Burlington, Goose welcomed Giant Country Horns member Dave ‘The Truth’ Grippo for most of the show, including “Time to Flee,” seen below.

Setlist – Goose at Drive-In Live, Swanzey, NH, October 2, 2020

Set 1:Yeti, Look Out Cleveland*, Honey Bee, Jive I, Madhuvan, 726
Set 2: Tumble, Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis^, All I Need, Echo Of A Rose, Flodown
Encore: Christmas Card From a Hooker in Minneapolis^, Jive Lee

* The Band ^Tom Waits

For Halloween, Goose will perform two shows on Friday, October 30th and Saturday, October 31st. South Farms has hosted numerous acts, using the multipurpose outdoor venue with a grid-like layout where the audience is situated in pairs, on 8’x8’ plots of grass.

Unlike drive-in shows, South Farms is equipped for the band to use live sound, as opposed to FM radio transmitters. Social distancing guidelines are in effect while attending the event.

Ticket presale begins on Wednesday, October 7 at 10 AM ET, followed by a general onsale on Friday. October 9 at 10 AM ET.

photos by Zach Culver
October 7, 2020
Legendary Guitarist Eddie Van Halen, dead at 65

Eddie Van Halen, legendary guitarist and co-founder of the eponymous 80’s rock band Van Halen, has died after a battle with throat cancer. He was 65

TMZ reports that Van Halen died in Santa Monica, CA, with his wife Janie by his side, along with his son, Wolfgang, and his brother Alex, with whom he co-founded Van Halen.

Eddie Van Halen, late 1970s

Van Halen had been battling cancer for more than a decade. He had recently been seeking treatment in Germany.

Although Eddie was as heavy smoker, he believed he developed throat cancer from the metal guitar pick he held in his mouth more than 20 years ago.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CGA4YQmlmSr/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Van Halen formed in Pasadena, CA in 1972, with Alex on drums, Michael Anthony on bass and David Lee Roth on vocals. Van Halen would be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. Their last performance was on October 4, 2015 at Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

photo by Rob Teller

Revisit Van Halen’s performance from Rich Stadium in Orchard Park, NY on June 19, 1988, and more recently from Jones Beach 2015. RIP Eddie.

October 6, 2020
Front Biz, Waitress, In the Valley and more Featured on This Week’s EQXposure

Each Sunday evening from 7-9pm you’ll find EQXposure on WEQX, featuring two hours of local music from up and coming artists. Tune into WEQX.com this Sunday night to hear music from Front Biz, Waitress, In the Valley, and many more!

WEQX has long been the preeminent independent station in the Capital Region of New York, broadcasting from Southern VT to an ever-expanding listening audience. NYS Music brings you a preview of artists to discover each week, just a taste of the talent waiting to be discovered by fans like you.

In the Valley – “Rest”

Starting out in the bygone days of 2018, James and Katie Johnson have been playing folk-pop covers, but this year 2020, the married singer-songwriters announced an original music duo under the name In The Valley. Catch “Rest” this Sunday evening on EQXPosure during the second hour, and be sure to check out their performance on WHMT/PBS, “A House for Arts” this month. In The Valley’s music is a blend of folk indie, with lo-fi alternative pop grooves, with soaring voices and well told stories.

Waitress – “Lonely”

Ending the first block of tunes on Sunday evening’s EQXPosure is a tune called “Lonely” by Waitress. The band just lost a key member but their music is deeply enriching. A unique folk and electronic mix with Indie pop, Waitress utilizes ambient synths, and elaborated guitar lines, paired with electronic production provides a new twist on pop sound that is both relaxing and dance-y. Waitress’s beach-like ambience gives listeners a chill and relaxed musical environment, while at the same time inspiring them to move to the beat. More music from this dynamic outfit will be available in the coming few months.

Front Biz – “Little Mutants”

Front Biz is a shell company for an intergalactic real estate firm primarily focused on laundering money through an Earth-based rock band. Their latest album, Lunch Money, was recorded over three days in an Upstate NY cabin in March of 2018. The album was tracked live with virtually everything piped through a vintage Roland Space Echo for that timeless UFO hover. Victoria Rutledge and Anna Lazarou were ‘abducted’ for vocal support. Deep in the delay chain, the band made first contact with a disincarnate intelligence, entrapping them in a cosmic Ponzi scheme. Lunch Money is the group’s attempt to pay off their debt, and maybe get a bite to eat. Either way, the portal is open.

October 3, 2020
Trey Anastasio to perform weekly Twitch series “The Beacon Jams”

Trey Anastasio will hold a series of free live concerts from the Beacon Theatre, in partnership with MSG Entertainment. The Friday night series, dubbed The Beacon Jams, will kick off on October 9 at 8pm and run through November 27, featuring both acoustic and electric performances, as well as home audience interaction, with surprises in store. The series of performances will stream exclusively on Twitch, in partnership with Relix Magazine.

While each performance of The Beacon Jams is free, fans are encouraged to donate to the WaterWheel Foundation, and its new Divided Sky Fund (DSF). The proceeds will be used to deliver help to those affected by addiction and help further plans to open a treatment center in Vermont.

When we thought about playing the Beacon, I was reminded of the meaning of the word. A beacon is a beam of light, often from a lighthouse, which sends it out to sailors who are lost at sea and all alone. They look for the beacon and it guides them home.
Sometimes gifts come wrapped in strange packages. A lot of this is thanks to Twitch and our friends and family at MSG Entertainment. When the idea to do these benefits was born, everybody at MSG Entertainment jumped in and partnered with us and the Divided Sky Fund, which is very kind of them. This is an opportunity for forward motion.
Trey Anastasio, on The Beacon Jams

The WaterWheel Foundation, created by Phish in 1997 to oversee the band’s charitable endeavors, partners with local non-profits while Phish is on tour, and partnering with national organizations during times of need, donating millions of dollars over the past 20+ years.

The Divided Sky Fund will focus on delivering quality care and compassionate treatment for those suffering from addiction. Fans will be encouraged to donate throughout the eight-week event; net proceeds from merchandise sales during The Beacon Jams will go directly to the DSF.

I’ve been sober for 13 years. It’s a great blessing in my life. We started talking about the idea of a treatment center about a year ago. I was worried that the project would get derailed because of the pandemic but it didn’t – it actually picked up steam; things are really rolling along now. The Beacon Jams emerged as a way to raise money for it while also allowing me to play for the fans again.
Trey Anastasio, on the Divided Sky Fund

Executive Vice President of MSG Entertainment, Darren Pfeffer spoke highly of the new series.

We’re thrilled to be able to partner with Trey on this very special and first-ever virtual residency at the Beacon Theatre to benefit two immensely important causes – the Divided Sky Fund and the WaterWheel Foundation.
As we navigate the live music scene through this socially distant world, we couldn’t think of a more natural way to bring live music to so many fans for such a great cause. Trey’s connection not only with the Beacon Theatre, but with all our venues over the years, including Madison Square Garden, The Chicago Theatre, and Radio City Music Hall, have made this unique concept a perfect partnership.
Darren Pfeffer, Executive VP of MSG Entertainment

Twitch, a platform finding immense popularity in the last year due to the increase in streaming of online performances, also celebrated the partnership.

We could not be more excited to be part of this amazing partnership with Trey Anastasio and MSG Entertainment to help raise donations for such worthy causes. Twitch offers the same intimate experience that artists and their audiences have come to expect from live shows. Over the course of this virtual residency, fans of Trey and Phish will be able to attend performances from anywhere in the world, while feeling like they are right in the front row of the Beacon.
Will Farrell-Green, Head of Music Content at Twitch

Trey Anastasio has been busy since March, releasing numerous songs on his Instagram account, culminating with releasing an album featuring many of these songs, Lonely Trip. Anastasio was also the first in-studio musical guest on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon in late August, performing alongside the Roots.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAxfNSG94vU

October 1, 2020
Lettuce gets Animated in Storybook Music Video for “Silence Is Golden”

Experimental funk/jam legends Lettuce have issued an eye-catching official video for the instrumental “Silence Is Golden” off latest album, Resonate.

The colorful, animated storybook visual was created by the Los Angeles-based team at Black Balloon Media. The video is directed by Brad Strickman, produced by Shane Strickman and illustrated by Carolyn Arcabascio.

Images from the video will be transformed into coloring book pages for fans to enjoy, with the first available to download here.

With this video, we want to take you on a visually stunning, colorful journey into a fantastic storybook-like world that invokes peace and inspires creativity. We want to make the connection resonate between ourselves, nature, and the spirit that binds us all together. Lett us present, ‘Silence is Golden.’
Lettuce Guitarist Adam “Shmeeans” Smirnoff.

Black Balloon Media previously worked on a video for Neil Young’s “Powderfinger,” which is what attracted Lettuce to work with the company, seeing a similar style and approach for “Silence is Golden”

Smirnoff connected with the Black Balloon Media team and advised them on the song’s themes of music and nature intertwining and connecting all of us. This also led to discussing having the band members animated in the video and playing their instruments within nature, creating a wide variety of scenes – not just one setting, but instead, in all of nature.

From there, as we do with all projects, we put together some boards and a treatment. There was a little back and forth on the style, colors, and look of the band members. We brought on Carolyn Arcabascio to do a lot of the illustrations. We love her watercolor, painterly style and it fit the direction very well. We had worked with her previously on an animated video for Palisades “Erase the Pain.”
Brad Strickman, Creative Director

With the team together and boards and treatment approved, the team started building shots and assembling an edit. Since “Silence is Golden” appropriately has no lyrics, the video was approached a little differently.

We didn’t have to worry about sync as much as you would with a song with wall to wall singing. We still wanted them to be playing correctly and in time, but we had some leeway. In fact, we built a lot of the scenes without them playing at first, and then as the edit got finalized, we animated them to be more in sync with the locked timing. This gave us more flexibility. As it came together we would send them updated versions. They were loving it, so minor adjustments along the way, handling any notes they had and polished it as we went.
Brad Strickman, Creative Director

“Working on the art, it was amazing to me how Lettuce’s music already felt so visual,” adds the video’s illustrator Carolyn Arcabascio. “You can just imagine the colors as the song goes from dreamy and trance-like to energetic and explosive. A total dream project for an illustrator.”

Brad Strickman, director, also shares, “We really enjoyed bringing this video to life for Lettuce and their management team. The song has such a great vibe and, right from the beginning, we loved their concept of nature and music connecting us all.”

The connection of nature to music is essential to understand. The sound of the leaves swaying in the soft breeze along with the crickets and birds singing, can be very inspiring. This song represents a quiet place that resides in all of our minds that can bring peace to our souls. Lettuce meditate to the golden silence.
Lettuce drummer Adam Deitch

Black Balloon Media, in addition to Lettuce and Neil Young, has worked with Linkin Park, Disturbed, Bebe Rexha, Prince, Neffex, Palisades, Bad Bunny and Stone Temple Pilots, among many others.

Resonate, Lettuce’s seventh studio album, is a sonic continuation of the acclaimed sextet’s 2019 GRAMMY Award-nominated album Elevate, which earned Lettuce their first collective nomination in the category of Best Contemporary Instrumental Album.

On Resonate, Lettuce continue to be celebrated boundary-pushing innovators nearly three decades into their lauded career, blurring the lines and smashing it up with jazz chords, psychedelic passages, big horns, strains of soul and go-go, hip-hop elements and a joyful, uplifting improvisational sound all their own. They also found inspiration from many of their idols, such as James Brown and Earth, Wind & Fire, for the new music. Resonate was helmed by esteemed producer and engineer Russ Elevado [D’Angelo, The Roots, Erykah Badu] and written and recorded during the same Colorado Sound Studio sessions for Elevate.

October 1, 2020
Presenting NYS Music in Motion, an Interview series with Rocker Frank Palangi

We’re heading into the fall and NYS Music is gearing up for our first ever season of NYS Music in Motion, hosted by rocker Frank Palangi and sponsored by Helping Friendly Salve.

The series will bring together seasoned musicians from across New York State, who hail from the Empire State or have made New York their home, and Palangi, a native of Warren County.

Palangi is a homegrown indie rock recording artist, singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Palangi fuels his positive ambition naturally by serving up a feeding frenzy of edge heavy guitars, with a side of deep, gritty vocals. With a no-quit mentality, Palangi draws on influences from 80s & 90s rock, including post-grunge and heavy metal.

His latest EP, Bring On the Fear, found him working with Lester Estelle (Kelly Clarkson), Brian Craddock and Brandon Maclin (Daughtry), which allowed Palangi to step up and think about the recording process as a whole. The results can be seen and heard in the video for “Gone Mad,” released this past summer.

Palangi opened up for major bands including: 3 Doors Down, Red Sun Rising, Buckcherry, Candlebox, Aaron Lewis (Staind), Starset, Kip Winger, Jack Russell’s Great White, Lacey Sturm (Flyleaf), FUEL / Marcy Playground, TRAPT with Smile Empty Soul / Candlelight Red / Veer Union, and Powerman 5000 with HEDPE, to name just a few.

Tune in starting on Friday, October 2 and every other Friday for each installment of Music in Motion on the NYS Music YouTube, IGTV and Facebook page.

Palangi will have a sit down conversation with each artist, with a first season lineup that includes the following musicians from across New York.

October 2 – Mick Fury
October 16 – Belén Cusi
October 30 – Charley Orlando
November 13 – Added Color
November 27 – Sawyer Fredericks
December 11 – Wavy Cunningham

Frank has interviewed a great deal of musicians on his IGTV, including American Idol alumni Charles Grigsby, Jess Meuse, Riley Bria, Vanessa Olivarez and Madison VanDenburg, plus The Voice’s Moriah Formica, Daughtry guitarist Brian Craddock, Hole/Candlebox drummer Robin Diaz, Jack Russell from Great White and guitarist Robby Lochner.

https://www.instagram.com/tv/CEIJRNpAi49/

September 28, 2020
Phish to celebrate Trey Anastasio’s birthday with Dinner and a Movie from Polaris 1999

As Phish moves their Dinner and a Movie series from weekly to monthly, the newest installment has been announced, featuring the band’s performance on July 23, 1999 from Polaris Amphitheater in Columbus, OH. The never before seen full show archival video will air on Wednesday, September 30 at 8:30PM ET at LivePhish.com, which also happens to be Trey Anastasio‘s birthday (more on that below).

For the Dinner part of the evening, Phish HQ’s Betty Frost has put together a spread that includes enchiladas, a jicama/orange/cucumber/mint salad and apple fritters. You can find recipes for all these here.

Released on Live Phish in November 2019, the show in the Columbus suburbs was the 17th show on a 20-date summer tour. A humid evening, the show started with a 12-minute “Ya Mar,” and features Anastasio on keys briefly on the “Punch You in the Eye” intro.

On July 23, 1999 Phish returned to Polaris Amphitheatre for their second show at this 20,000-seat outdoor shed in the Columbus suburbs. It was the 17th show on a 20-date U.S. summer tour.It was still light out on a sticky Ohio evening when the band took the stage with a rollicking Ya Mar opener, followed by NICU, followed by Back At The Chicken Shack > Punch You In The Eye with an extended synthesizer-infused intro.

Set 2 turned up the heat with a first even pairing of “Ghost” > “Free,” with a lightening storm growing as intense as the jams between these two. A 25-minute “Birds of a Feather,” then still a new song in their catalog, allowed the band to play on and off with the storm as it raged overhead. During the late-set “Meatstick,” Anastasio announced that the band’s New Years Eve performance would be held at Big Cypress Seminole Indian Reservation in southern Florida.

Sticker sold on Summer ’99 tour – courtesy of PhanArt

Dinner and a Movie is presented free to all, with a charity selected each week where donations are asked to be directed. This installment’s beneficiary is the ACLU. Founded in 1920, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, multi-issue, public interest organization devoted to protecting the civil liberties of all people in the United States. Recognized as the nation’s premier public interest law firm, the ACLU works daily in courts, legislatures, and communities to defend and preserve the freedoms guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.

Over $850,000 has been raised by Phish fans since late March for the Waterwheel Foundation and other charities highlighted in the Dinner and a Movie series.

Sticker sold on Summer ’99 tour – courtesy of PhanArt

Additionally, a group of Phish fans have put together a fundraiser idea for Dinner and a Movie, celebrating Trey Anastasio’s birthday. The goal is to raise $20,454 for the Waterwheel Foundation, which is the number of days Trey will have been alive on his birthday. See below for details and support Waterwheel Foundation!

Setlist via Phish.net

Set 1: Ya Mar, NICU, Back at the Chicken Shack > Punch You in the Eye[1], Fast Enough for You, Back on the Train, David Bowie, Strange Design, Possum

Set 2: Ghost -> Free > Birds of a Feather > Meatstick > Fire

Encore: Bouncing Around the Room > Rocky Top

[1] Trey played keys for part of PYITE.

Trey played keys for part of PYITE. During Meatstick, Trey talked about the band’s desire to teach fans the Meatstick Dance and break the world record. He then informed the crowd that the New Year’s Eve concert would be played in Florida. This show is available as an archival release on LivePhish.com.

September 28, 2020
Long Live Rock the Casbah: The Who, The Clash Rock Rich Stadium

London punks, both young and old, invaded Orchard Park, NY on September 26, 1982. The Who and The Clash, as well as New York Dolls frontman David Johansen, performed before a sold out crowd at Rich Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills.

photo by Michael Mack

This concert is seen as an historical moment, where one older punk band, The Who, passed the torch to a new, younger one, The Clash.

An expectadly rowdy crowd of more than 80,000 packed The Rich. David Johansen warmed up the crowd with a half-hour set, including “Stranded in the Jungle” and a medley of the Animals “We Gotta Get Out of This Place”, “Don’t Bring Me Down” and “It’s My Life.”

The Clash were just coming off the release of Combat Rock, recorded at Electric Lady Studios on West 8th Street in New York City. Hits including “Rock The Casbah,” which reached the Top 10 in America, and “Should I Stay Or Should I Go” gave The Clash a worldwide smash hit in 1982. Less than a year after this performance in Buffalo, guitarist Mick Jones would leave the band. Watch a slideshow of photos by Michael Mack of The Clash from the performance below.

For The Who, this was the first of many farewell tours, having lost drummer Keith Moon just 4 years prior. Kenney Jones (Small Faces, Faces) took over behind the kit, with Tim Gorman on keys, Roger Daltrey on harmonica, guitar, and vocals, John Entwistle on bass and Pete Townshend on guitar and vocals.

Given the packed stadium – with entrances only on the floor at the time – the temperature inside the stadium was warm to say the least, with fans drenched in sweat, and some passing even out. As if Keith were looking down from heaven, the skies that were overcast all day opened up during the emotionally charged “Love Reign O’er Me,” the only time of the evening it would rain. As the song ended, Daltrey remarked “How’d you like that one?,” with Townshend saying “Even the Rolling Bones couldn’t have done that one.”

via Matthew Heimberg

While no video or audio exists from this show of The Who, you can view a slideshow of photos by Michael Mack here, and watch below for The Who from December 17, 1982, closing our their North American tour in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The Clash setlist: London Calling, Career Opportunities, The Guns of Brixton, Police On My Back, Rock the Casbah, Magnificent 7, Train in Vain, Brand New Cadillac, Armagideon Time, Should I Stay or Should I Go?

Encore: Clampdown, I Fought the Law

The Who setlist: Substitute, I Can’t Explain, Dangerous, Sister Disco, The Quiet One, It’s Hard, Eminence Front, Behind Blue Eyes, Baba O’Riley, I’m One, The Punk And The Godfather, Drowned, A Man Is A Man, Cry If You Want, Who Are You, Pinball Wizard, See Me Feel Me, 5.15, Love Reign O’er Me, Long Live Rock, Won’t Get Fooled Again

Encore: Naked Eye, Summertime Blues, Twist And Shout

photos by Marc Starcke

September 27, 2020