• From: Benicia, Ca.
  • Registered: 2006-05-08
  • Posts: 5,828

Topic: Cow Palace To Be Raised

I just saw Keith's post about the club that burned down in Albuquerque. Big news in the Bay Area on Thur. was that Daly City, just south of SF is planning to tear down the old Cow Palace Arena. This venue has been host to The Grand National Rodeo, The Golden State Warriors, NHL Hockey, 2 Beatles concerts among many others, fishing, boating, RV, home and garden, and my sons and my fave the model railroad shows. My favorite concert memory there was Nov. 1973 an infamous night in rock history. we went to see the Who play and just about three songs into their set Keith Moon OD's on some PCP someone slipped him and he passes out and falls right off his drum stool. They stopped the show and thought they revived him only to last about ten beats into the next song as two roadies caught him as he fell out the second time and they hustled him off to the emergency room. So Pete steps up to the mic and says, we can't very well go on without a drummer, so if there's anybody in the crowd who's a drummer, mind you, you have to be an F***in' good one, then come on up. Some people in the front row pushed one of their friends up on the stage and this dude jams with the Who for about 45 mins. and that was it. The night wasn't a total loss as we were blown away by this opening act nobody had ever heard of named Lynyrd Skynyrd. I've read on one of their sites that this was their first show they ever played in a venue that big as everything they had done to that point was in bars and honkytonk roadhouses. Looks like this old venerable arena is in the way of progress and it's time is up. They won't be seeing the cattle drive up from Brisbane to the Cow Palace through the streets of Daly City ever again.

                                                                                                     J Dawg

What is success? Is it do yo' own thang, or is it to join the rest?   -Allen Toussaint
  • Libby
  • Libby
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  • From: Sunny Southern California
  • Registered: 2008-02-14
  • Posts: 1,551

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

Bittersweet tale J Dawg.  Thanks for sharing it.  Can you imagine that substitute drummer trying to tell his grandchildren about the night he played drums for The Who?  "Yeah, right Grandpa......sure you did......Grandma, does Grandpa need to go to the doctor?"

smile  Libby  smile

I know that Joe could play one of those kid's guitars with the plastic strings and make it sound good-
Bill S.
  • Registered: 2006-12-28
  • Posts: 3,742

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

NOOOOO!!!!!!!!! Say it aint so John....way to many memories to count...plenty of car shows, and gigs over the years...I'll never forget a show back in 1975, me and the posse park down the street behind a closed business...we were "busy" in the parking lot when a patrol car pulled up...my friends went running and left me behind as i was still in the car...got the you know what scared out of me as they were going to haul my behind to jail...if it wernt for another patrol car pulling up and telling them to let me go...I would have been thrown in the pokey!!......the ZZtop show back in 92 was very cool as they had a laser shooting from one side of the building to other...it had the 32 coup with a very attractive lady leaned over it ( I'm really trying NOT to be to descriptive, if you know i meen wink )...such great memories for sure smile

Dave

  • From: Amsterdam
  • Registered: 2007-10-06
  • Posts: 5,249

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

ohiodawg13 wrote:

The night wasn't a total loss as we were blown away by this opening act nobody had ever heard of named Lynyrd Skynyrd.                     J Dawg

I think it was round about '73 that a bunch of us went off to the Town Hall, Wolverhampton (England) to see the truly legendary Captain Beefheart and Magic Band. Imagine our astonishment when confronted by an opening act of long-haired rockers with three (yes, three - count 'em!) alternating lead guitarists, something that no one had seen before. We were also all blown away by Skynyrd, though to this day I can't figure out why anyone thought they would fit on the same bill as the Captain.

RIP Iron Man

Rock On and keep the Faith
  • From: Boston
  • Registered: 2007-01-13
  • Posts: 415

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

Sad to see another piece of history about to get the
wrecking ball. Saw my first concert at the old
"Boston Garden" when I was 17 in 1979 . It was
the "J. Giels" band Sanctuary tour ...and it's still
one of the best concerts I've ever seen.

Saw over 100 concerts there before they demolished it
in 1996.  I still have most of the ticket stubs and
a boatload of memories.

I was lucky enough to work at the old barn and still
work at the new "Garden"..but the new building will
NEVER have as much character .

                                   Paul

  • From: Benicia, Ca.
  • Registered: 2006-05-08
  • Posts: 5,828

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

I hear ya Paul, I remember watchin' Celts games on the tube and they'd have to call time outs to repair the crumbling parque on the court. Another great show I caught at the Palace was in '74, Rod Stewart with Foghat opening for him. Rod brought in the entire string section from the SF symphony in all white tuxedos for one song, Bring It On Home To Me.

                                                                                           Time Marches On,

                                                                                           J Dawg

What is success? Is it do yo' own thang, or is it to join the rest?   -Allen Toussaint

7 Reply by ohiodawg13 (edited by ohiodawg13 2008-03-02 12:23:35)

  • From: Benicia, Ca.
  • Registered: 2006-05-08
  • Posts: 5,828

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

Amsterhammer wrote:
ohiodawg13 wrote:

The night wasn't a total loss as we were blown away by this opening act nobody had ever heard of named Lynyrd Skynyrd.                     J Dawg

I think it was round about '73 that a bunch of us went off to the Town Hall, Wolverhampton (England) to see the truly legendary Captain Beefheart and Magic Band. Imagine our astonishment when confronted by an opening act of long-haired rockers with three (yes, three - count 'em!) alternating lead guitarists, something that no one had seen before. We were also all blown away by Skynyrd, though to this day I can't figure out why anyone thought they would fit on the same bill as the Captain.

Saw these guys last night A-Hammer. A tasty appetizer to hold me over till July 12th when we see the Skynyrd boys up in Clearlake.

                http://www.reloadedrocks.com   
                                                                                             J Dawg

What is success? Is it do yo' own thang, or is it to join the rest?   -Allen Toussaint
  • From: Amsterdam
  • Registered: 2007-10-06
  • Posts: 5,249

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

I'm as far from being any kind of redneck as you could possibly imagine, but I always loved this band. big_smile

RIP Iron Man

Rock On and keep the Faith
  • From: The House Of Rock
  • Registered: 2006-06-18
  • Posts: 760

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

They should leave well enough alone, but it seems sooner or later, someone will get the bright idea that newer is better. Hell, they're tearing down Yankee Stadium and Madison Square Garden, to build "new improved versions", so apparently nothing's sacred anymore. Just for the historical value alone they should preserve them.

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  • Registered: 2006-12-28
  • Posts: 3,742

Re: Cow Palace To Be Raised

Keith wrote:

They should leave well enough alone, but it seems sooner or later, someone will get the bright idea that newer is better. Hell, they're tearing down Yankee Stadium and Madison Square Garden, to build "new improved versions", so apparently nothing's sacred anymore. Just for the historical value alone they should preserve them.

I agree with you Keith...I wish they would just remodel at times....how many times have we heard people say "I wish (insert) were still there, those were the good ole days"....my wife and I had this plan to travel to New York this year, we were going to hit Yankee and Shea stadiums along with eveything else we could fit in for our 30th anniv....then she got cancer...then lost her job on the mortgage business...now were sqeezing our savings until she finds work...everyone in the mortgag bus. is out of work it seems...a few of Debs friends had to take jobs they would never do as there unemployment benefits ran out...oops I'm getting off topic...anyways those stadiums are closing this year, and I'm torn between saving money or just going anyways

Dave