There's something unique about being over 50:
Many of those lucky blokes have had the opportunity to attend HISTORIC perfomances by HUGE artists. Like Miles in his blue period, Satchmo with Ella, Hendrix anywhere in the sky and, the biggest myth of all time,
the Beatles.
Having attended such a concert seems absolutely surrealistic to me, it must have been over the top. Is there anyone of you naimites who had the incredible luck to see them ?
Bernard
Posted on: 26 April 2001 by Peter Litwack
Never saw the Beatles, but I did see Hendrix a couple of times. Once at the Fillmore East (I worked there in 1967-68), and once in a jam session with B.B. King, Al Kooper, and Elvin Bishop. Never was able to hear Miles, live, but I did get to meet him at his house on West 77th st., while I was a student at Columbia U. (but that's another story). Saw Cream in their first US performance (same bill with The Who & Wilson Pickett). Saw Dylan many times, even met him once. He taught me to play a couple of his songs on the guitar. This was very early on in his career -before "The Times They Are A Changin", his 3rd album, came out. Saw the Stones several times while Brian Jones was still in the band. Saw the Band in their first appearance as The Band. The concert was delayed for a long time because Robbie Robertson had stage fright (he wrote "Stage Fright" about that very concert).
Other ones I've seen live:
Jeff Beck Group (first US appearance w/ a then unknown lead singer-Rod Stewart!)
Grateful Dead (many times-I know, who hasn't!)
Fleetwood Mac (when they were lead by Peter Greene)
Janis Joplin & Big Brother
Jefferson Airplane
Quicksilver Messenger Service
Frank Zappa & the original Mothers of Invention
Traffic, when they still had Dave Mason
Sonny Rollins
Coleman Hawkins
Ornette Coleman
Dizzy Gillespie (several times)
Roland Kirk (before he was Rahsaan)
Thelonius Monk (several times - at The Five Spot)
You know, it was amazing in the olden days. Bill Graham would put on these shows, either in SF at the Fillmore, or in NY at the Fillmore East, where you could see two or three legendary acts on the same bill (although they weren't legends yet!). You'd pay your 5 bucks, or sneak in, and get to hear the most incredible stuff in a fairly small hall and dance the night away. I guess, in some ways, I'm glad to be an "old guy".
