Blue Öyster Cult at Ulster Performing Arts Center — July 30, 1986
Forty years ago, Long Island’s own Blue Öyster Cult brought their dark, smart hard rock to the Ulster Performing Arts Center in Kingston — a grand old vaudeville and movie house turned concert hall. The band behind “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper,” “Burnin’ for You,” and the gleefully heavy “Godzilla” were arena-rock veterans by 1986, equal […]
Jeff Beck & Buddy Guy at CMAC — July 29, 2016
Jeff Beck and Buddy Guy shared the CMAC stage in Canandaigua — two of the greatest guitarists in blues-rock history on one bill. Beck’s jazz-fusion virtuosity meeting Guy’s raw Chicago blues fire. For guitar fans, this was a once-in-a-lifetime double bill under the Finger Lakes stars.
Whitney Houston at Saratoga Performing Arts Center — July 28, 1986
Whitney Houston played SPAC in Saratoga Springs. Her debut album had just made her the biggest new pop star on the planet — ‘Greatest Love of All,’ ‘How Will I Know,’ ‘Saving All My Love for You.’ That voice, under the SPAC pines. Forty years ago.
Heart, Joan Jett & Cheap Trick at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center — July 27, 2016
Heart, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, and Cheap Trick shared the Darien Lake stage — three rock legends, one epic summer night. Ann Wilson’s powerhouse vocals, Joan Jett’s punk swagger, and Cheap Trick’s power-pop perfection. A triple bill that would be the concert of the year for most cities.
Elvis Presley at Rochester Community War Memorial — July 26, 1976
The King of Rock and Roll played the Rochester War Memorial in the summer of 1976. Elvis was still drawing massive crowds and delivering powerful performances. For Rochester, this was one of the biggest shows of the year — and one of the last chances to see the most iconic performer in music history.
Woodstock ’99 (Willie Nelson, Elvis Costello, Creed, Megadeth, Jewel) at Griffiss Air Force Base — July 25, 1999
The most infamous festival in Central New York history reached its chaotic climax 27 years ago. Woodstock ’99 drew an estimated 200,000-plus fans to the tarmac of the former Griffiss Air Force Base in Rome from July 22–25, and the final Sunday became legend for all the wrong reasons — but also for an astonishing […]
Elvis Presley at Onondaga War Memorial — July 25, 1976
Elvis Presley played the first of two nights at the Onondaga War Memorial in Syracuse. The King was touring relentlessly in his final years, and Central New York got two nights of the most iconic performer in rock history. Fifty years ago.
Eddie Murphy at Olympic Center — July 24, 1986
Eddie Murphy performed at the Olympic Center in Lake Placid. The biggest comedy star on the planet in 1986 — Beverly Hills Cop, Raw, Delirious. Murphy at the Miracle on Ice arena in the Adirondacks. Forty years ago.
Fats Domino & Jerry Lee Lewis at Weedsport Raceway — July 23, 1986
Fats Domino and Jerry Lee Lewis played Weedsport Raceway. Two founding fathers of rock and roll — ‘Blueberry Hill’ meets ‘Great Balls of Fire’ — at a RACEWAY in rural Central New York. The 1950s rock revolution, alive and kicking at a stock car track. Forty years ago.
Styx at Tag’s Summer Stage — July 22, 2006
Twenty years ago, Styx rolled into Tag’s Summer Stage in Big Flats — the outdoor Southern Tier venue near Elmira that drew classic-rock crowds all summer long. Tommy Shaw and James “JY” Young led the band through the arena-rock canon they built in the ’70s and ’80s: “Come Sail Away,” “Renegade,” “Blue Collar Man,” “Mr. […]