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In their heyday, the members of ZZ Top (shown in a
1979 photo) made sure that 51,000 fans at Tulane
Stadium got their money's worth.
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Hey Blake,
My question is about a ZZ Top concert at Tulane Stadium. I grew up two blocks
from the old site, and I recall a day in 1976 when there was a huge rock concert
with ZZ Top headlining. I remember there was a riot because Lynyrd Skynyrd was
on the bill but did not show up. Is there any way you can find out information
from the local archives on the exact date and who else was on the bill? I'll
never forget that day. I was 9 years old, and my neighborhood became one big
block party!
Tommy
Dear Tommy,
Ah, yes. I, too, remember it well. ZZ Top was the hottest ticket in town. At
the time their recordings were outselling the Rolling Stones, and their concerts
were breaking attendance records everywhere. And on July 17, 1976, they came
to New Orleans as part of an 18-month tour with what was the biggest traveling
concert in the history of show business.
Now you can't take an act like this on tour
without a lot of equipment, so it took nine semi trucks to haul everything --
including 260 speakers as part of what was the biggest sound system in the world
-- across the country. The regular crew of 35 traveled in buses, and they hired
40 more workers when they got to town. It usually took two to three days to
set up for a concert, and about 11 hours to tear it down. Keeping the tour on
the road cost about $4,000 a day.
Also on tour was a small menagerie that included
two trained vultures, a couple of rattlesnakes, a Longhorn steer, and a 2,000-pound
buffalo that traveled in an air-conditioned trailer with a Texan trainer named
Ralph.
About 51,000 folks jammed Tulane Stadium.
Never mind that tickets cost $10 in advance and $12.50 at the gate. (Remember,
this was more than 25 years ago.) Parking was, of course, a nightmare, but the
weather -- after raining in the afternoon -- began to cooperate. No one was
scared away.
Opening the show about 7 p.m. was an act from
Boston, the J. Geils Band, with its lead singer Peter Wolf. The crowd loved
the performance, and the band was called back for an encore. Lynyrd Skynyrd
was supposed to perform next, but -- so we were told -- had to cancel due to
illness. But this was not the cause of the disturbance.
The gates had opened at 3 p.m., and a great
deal of drinking had gone on. So there were bound to be some unruly folks in
that stadium. However, it was never clear exactly what caused the disturbance
in the southeast section of the stadium floor. Two policemen were seen arresting
two people, possibly for smoking illegal cigarettes. Then a larger group of
policemen came to the aid of the first two cops. As they moved through the crowd
swinging their nightsticks, concertgoers threw bottles, cans, and cups at the
police. Many people were injured, and some were taken away in police vans.
Finally, ZZ Top came out. They played on a
stage of unpainted plywood costing $100,000, weighing 35 tons, and cut in the
shape of Texas. On the stage where Brownsville would be, a Plexiglas container
held one of the rattlesnakes. Decorations included papier-mache hills, cactus
plants, a fence with a saddle and steer skulls hanging from it, and a little
windmill. Somewhere in the background was the buzzard.
The crowd got all it came for and more. Dressed
in flashy costumes, the trio of lead guitarist Billy Gibbons, bassist Dusty
Hill, and drummer Frank Beard made everyone wish the concert could last forever.
When they left the stage, the darkened stadium was filled with thousands of
flames from lit matches and lighters. And then the trio returned; they would
return seven times. After the last encore, a canvas drop came down over the
stage with the words "Adios, Amigos." The sound system began to blare "Drifting
Along with the Tumbling Tumbleweeds."
So everyone began to tumble out of the stadium,
being careful not to trip over those who had passed out in puddles of beer.
