Blue Oyster Cult, Foghat, and Whitford/St. Holmes: 10/9/1981

Here is why it was so cool growing up in the 70s and 80s. A great triple bill for a whopping $9.00! Even though I had seen Blue Oyster Cult earlier in 1981 with Heart, I could not pass up on this one.

First to play was Whitford/St. Holmes, a band comprised of Brad Whitford from Aerosmith and Derek St. Holmes from Ted Nugent’s band. This was one of those moments in rock history, where I had the chance to see a band that really was not around very long, but was very cool.

Next up was Foghat, and if memory serves me well, this was the first time I saw them. I admit I was into Foghat as a teenager, so seeing them live was a big deal for me (I would see them more times than I care to admit afterwards). They played a short, tight set that included all their hits, and the generally intolerant Sportatorium crowd was appreciative.

Then came BOC. As always, they were nothing short of excellent. This was the Fire of Unknown Origin tour, which was definitely a high point in the band’s career. I have some distinct memories from this performance, like the amazing version of “Godzilla” and “Roadhouse Blues” for the encore, at the end of which Buck Dharma systematically popped his guitar strings one by one during the closing solo, grasping and tearing the last string as the final note decayed. It was rock and roll at its finest.

So as I was researching this show online and I found the setlists for Foghat and BOC, I discovered something ultra-cool. It seems that “The Red &The Black”, “Joan Crawford”, “Burnin’ For You”, “Godzilla”, “Veterans of the Psychic Wars” and “E.T.I (Extra Terrestrial Intelligence)” were all recorded at this show and released on the Extraterrestrial Live album (here is track list on Wikipedia). Once this Shelter-in-Place restriction is lifted, I will definitely be scouring the record stores to get a copy of this.

Anyway, here are the setlists. Rock on!

Foghat Setlist:

• Stone Blue
• My Babe
• Eight Days on the Road
• Wide Boy
• Fool for the City
• Third Time Lucky (First Time I Was a Fool)
• Honey Hush
• Live Now Pay Later
• Slow Ride
• I Just Want to Make Love to You

Blue Oyster Cult Setlist:

• The Red & the Black
• E.T.I. (Extra Terrestrial Intelligence)
• Joan Crawford
• Burnin’ for You
• Cities on Flame With Rock and Roll
• Veteran of the Psychic Wars
• ME 262
• Godzilla
• Born to Be Wild

Encore:

• (Don’t Fear) The Reaper
• Roadhouse Blues

Blue Oyster Cult: 7/3/1991

Blue Oyster Cult, in a club. Definitely had to check this one out. Although they were not the band I saw back in the late 70’s, they still had Buck Dharma and Eric Bloom, so well worth the $10.

I went with my friend Jim and we wedged our way into Summers on the Beach, a Fort Lauderdale club that managed to get bands that brought in more fans than was probably safe to host.

The band came out, and as expected, they rocked the house. Seeing them in a small venue was way different than seeing them in a stadium. And although the rockers were starting to show their age, they still kicked out the jams.

One cool thing that happened, during a pause between songs, I screamed out for “Astronomy,” which is my fav BOC tune. Eric stepped up to the mic and said, “Yeah, we can do that one,” and broke into it. Although looking back over the setlists from that tour, seems like “Astronomy” was a standard, it was still cool and made me feel like there was a connection between me and the band.

Here is a generic setlist from the tour, which seems like what they played at this gig.

• Stairway to the Stars
• OD’d On Life Itself
• Before The Kiss
• ETI
• Buck’s Boogie
• Take Me Away
• Cities On Flame
• Astronomy
• Career of Evil
• Unknown Tongue
• Burnin’ For You
• Godzilla
• (Don’t Fear) The Reaper
• Dominance & Submission
• The Red & The Black

Blue Oyster Cult with Ian Hunter: 8/31/1979

Growing up, I loved BOC, and this was my first time seeing them live. As a bonus, the show also featured the legendary Ian Hunter (from Mott the Hoople) who also had Mick Ronson on guitar (from David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust era). It was a hard-rocker’s dream come true.

Since this show was almost 40 years past, a lot of the details are fuzzy at best. I have impressions, such as Ian with his top hat singing “Cleveland Rocks” as the audience chanted along in rock and roll ecstasy. I recall the Cult’s impressive light show, and banging my head to classic songs like “ETI,” “Cities on Flame,” “Godzilla,” and “Don’t Fear the Reaper” (which was the encore). They also played a rip-roaring version of “Born to be Wild,” which got the South Florida crowd riled.

Throughout the years, I would go to see BOC many more times, and they were always great, but there was something special about seeing them for the first time. It was almost mystical.

My heart is black, and my lips are cold
Cities on flame with rock and roll
Three thousand guitars they seem to cry
My ears will melt, and then my eyes

(Cities on Flame)

Heart and Blue Oyster Cult: 4/19/1981

While the stub only lists Heart and Blue Oyster Cult, there were several other bands at this all-day rock fest:

• Firefall (don’t ask me how they managed to get on the bill)
• Motorhead (they were cool)
• Freewheel (a most forgettable act)

So a little bit about the Miami Baseball Stadium. Back then, Miami had no professional baseball team. The stadium was a dump that was used by northern teams for spring training. And occasionally, they would book a large show there. Since I was a huge BOC fan and I also really liked Heart a lot, going to this concert was a no-brainer.

As I mentioned, Freewheel was completely forgettable, and if it wasn’t for the wonders of the internet, I would never have even been able to tell you who was the first band that played. But Motorhead was very good. They rocked and got the crowd riled up. Unfortunately, Firefall sucked all the energy out of the crowd. It was kind of like being on a musical rollercoaster.

Finally, BOC came out. This was right before they released Fire of Unknown Origin, so they were still a powerful force in rock music. I had seen the Cult before, so I knew what to expect, and they delivered, tearing through a set of hits like “Cities on Flame,” “Don’t Fear the Reaper,” and “Godzilla.” During “Godzilla,” a huge Godzilla monster emerged from behind the stage, shooting menacing red lights from its eyes and breathing clouds of smoke. It was impressive.

Heart took the stage and proved that they deserved the headliner slot. They totally rocked! I was in the stands at that point, having spent most of the day on the open field and desperately needing a break. I remember feeling the stands trembling under the concerted stomping of feet as Ann and Nancy Wilson kept the crowd rockin’ after a long day of music.

It’s kind of weird to think back on this show, which was almost 35 years ago. Makes me feel old. But, one good thing about being old is that I was able to go to see great shows like this for less than what TicketMaster now charges as a “convenience fee.”

Thanks for stopping by, and be sure to go out and see some live music!