I remember shoveling snow from neighborhood driveways to raise the money to buy a ticket to see Roadmaster. It was brutally cold that night. I got to go over to the auditorium earlier that afternoon to visit with Steve MacNally. I was a big Roadmaster fan and it was pretty cool hanging out for sound check and talking to other guys in the band. The sound in Havens is fantastic and the show was one of my all time favorites.

MEET & GREET: Roadmaster

ROADMASTER
BUFFALO

I borrowed my grandparent's car, a sporty black Pontiac Sunbird, and made the critical mistake of getting a date for the concert. I was young, how was I supposed to know most girls didn't dig Rush? Anyway, this was the second time in my recollection that promoters put together two bands that couldn't have been any less alike and drew dramatically different fans. 38 Special was popular in the midwest with their radio hit, Rockin' Into The Night. Any band that features a Van Zandt family member is bound to hail from the south and there will definitely be a fifth of black label involved. This was one of those artsy kind of old Rush concerts with almost all epic length songs and black & white film noire movies projected behind the drum kit. The tour was in support of Permanent Waves, so there were the radio friendly songs Free Will and Spirit of Radio added to the set list. (Not that a true Rush fan is ever concerned with radio hits, right?)

RUSH SETLIST:
2112
Freewill
By-Tor and the Snow Dog
Xanadu
The Spirit of Radio
Natural Science
A Passage to Bangkok
The Trees
Cygnus X-1
Hemispheres
Closer to the Heart
Beneath, Between and Behind
Jacob's Ladder
Working Man (reggae version)
Finding My Way
Anthem
Bastille Day
In the Mood
Drum Solo

Encore: La Villa Strangiato

RUSH
38 SPECIAL

Van Halen used to have this gimmick of placing a weak band on stage in front of them, so no matter how bad VH was off, they would always be better than the opening act. Such was the case here. Fans actually booed during The Cats. Once VH took the stage, it was apparent the sound quality was so loud that it was barely audible as to which songs they were doing. Singer David Lee Roth made the comment that they were trying to set the world record for loudest indoor show, since The Who held the record for the loudest outdoor show. I think they succeeded.

VAN HALEN SETLIST:
Romeo Delight
Bottoms Up
Drum Solo
Runnin With The Devil
Tora Tora
Loss Of Control
Take Your Whiskey Home
Dance The Night Away
Women In Love
Jamies Cryin
Bright Lights Big City (Jimmy Reed cover)
Everybody Wants Some
And The Cradle Will Rock
On Fire
Guitar Solo
Aint Talkin Bout Love
Ice Cream Man
You Really Got Me

VAN HALEN
CATS

After the untimely death of former singer, Bon Scott, AC/DC had some singer searching to do. The Scott era band had achieved plenty in the US by the time they completed touring for Highway To Hell, which featured a handful of radio staples. That North American tour also featured a middle spot on a three way bill with Ted Nugent and German rockers, Scorpions. Nevertheless, AC/DC bounced back enormously with the strength of Back In Black, the new album featuring vocalist Brian Johnson. The new tracks were instant radio smashes and propelled the band further into megastardom than they had ever been before. The live show featured the introduction of the giant bell to be rung for Hell's Bells and Johnson's vocals were incendiary. There was a large and rather boisterous crowd on hand, with lots of drunkeness and fighting. Security was stepped up for it.

Through AOR rock stations, I was also familiar with the guitar work of Ronnie Montrose and knew that Gamma was one of his projects. Gamma featured more keyboard/synthesizer than you might expect from a guitar wiz, but Gamma also featured the vocal talent of Davey Pattison, who went on to front Robin Trower for many years.

AC/DC SETLIST:
Hells Bells
Shoot To Thrill
Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be
Sin City
Rock N Roll Ain't Noise Pollution
Back In Black
Highway To Hell
You Shook Me All Night Long

AC/DC
Ronnie Montrose's GAMMA