Was wondering if anyone on here has experienced some Spinal Tap moments at any ABB shows? Here's my 2.
At the 2nd, Saturday July 7, 1990 show for the ABB's Seven Turns tour/show at Fort Lauderdale's Sunrise Musical Theater, I stayed late after the show because I was reviewing & photographing the show and Alan took me backstage to the nice lounge area, to talk to the band and where there was catered food, press, and everyone was noshing and talking shop. The band said their goodbyes and I left and went through a dark corridor that had equipment and road cases, and I ran into a nice couple who never went backstage but was waiting in the corridor I think for the band (who left through another exit). Anyway, since it was about 1am and my car was about the only one left on the dark parking lot, on the other side of the venue and the pond/lake that was at the venue, they offered to drive me in their van to my car so I would not have to walk across the giant parking lot to my car late at night.
YES I am getting to the point. As we are walking through the dark corridor, past equipment, cables, etc...who do we run into? JAIMOE, who the band HAD FORGOT ABOUT and LEFT BEHIND! LOL! We asked him why he was there by himself and he told us the band had forgotten to take him back to the tour bus or whatever. So, the couple offered to also have him walk out with us and to their van. While we were all walking out of the venue to the couple's van and we were all talking with one another, Jaimoe told us that since it was now July 8, it was his birthday, so we all wished him a Happy Birthday! After they drove me to my car and dropped me off, they took Jaimoe I am guessing to the hotel or where ever the band was staying.
My 2nd Spinal Tap moment was at The Allman Brothers Band's November 1990 daytime Tamiami Fairgrounds, Homestead, Florida Festival show. I was interning as a DJ at WSHE Radio who sponsored the show, and after the show Alan remembered me from reviewing the Sunrise Musical Theater show in July 1990 just a few months before, and he got me and my DJ friend Mike backstage (God Bless Alan he was always getting me backstage, such a sweetheart), and me and Mike starting shop talking with Johnny Neel. Now remember Johnny is blind and he had that day, a personal assistant who helped him around. Johnny told us that his personal assistant had forgotten him! So me and Mike escorted him around the backstage area until we found a member of the crew to assist Johnny and we said goodbye.
Anyone else experience Spinal Tap moments with the ABB? LOL!
[Edited on 6/12/2017 by ArleneWeiss]
No but these are great stories.
Slightly off-topic since this is a Gov't Mule "Spinal Tap" moment but it only happened 2 days ago at The Holland International Blues Festival so i hope this "counts". Gov't Mule did a signing session at the festival at the merch booth. When i arrived there there were at least 40 people already a waiting. I got in line (well there wasn't a line actually it was kinda chaotic). I was kinda disapointed in the Mule merch which consisted of CD's and vinyl releases i already owned and which were expensive. So i didn't had anything to get signed. Already had their autographs (except Jorgen) and was getting impatient. So i left the merch booth cue which was in a corner of the huge festival tent (approx. 9000 people attending, Mule was headlining!) left the tent and outside to the immediate left there was a table at which at that very moment all 4 Mule bandmembers were getting seated and somebody was just opening a box with their new CD (double disc version). So suddenly i was the first in line and with the new CD in my hand. Jorgen, Matt, Warren and then Danny signed with mainly silver and golden sharpies and then Danny saw that Matt had signed with a black pen on the black part of the cover and wanted to pass the CD back to him to have it re-signed. I said it wasn't necessary because he did it the SPINAL TAP way which got a good laugh out of them.
This was funny on purpose instead of Spinal Tap cluelessness, but I think of the Billy Gibbons sit-in. This was on 3/24/2009 at the start of the second set. Everybody in the band was wearing a long fake gray beard - including Gregg, over his own real gray beard. They kept them on through Jesus Just Left Chicago and I think of it as the only time I saw the band attempt actual comedy. Billy's monologue was pretty funny, too. I'm sure it's a joke he's told a million times, but the punchline was "There are two rules at an Allman Brothers show: one, no drinking during the gospel numbers." (Crowd boos.) "Rule number two: no gospel numbers." (Big cheer.) Again, a type of showmanship the ABB usually avoided.
I don't know if these count, but:
The legendary moment when Dickey (supposedly) asked the band what song they were playing and one member replied, "us or you?"
So many guests on stage during the last show at Atlanta's Chastain Park - at one point, there was only one member of the band playing.
My only backstage experience (thanks, Bill Ector) in Birmingham. I was basically a fly on the wall - just observing. A raging and ranting woman with a teenage daughter shows up screaming, "GREGG! GREGG! COME OVER HERE AND SAY HELLO TO YOUR DAUGHTER YOU SON OF A BITCH!". I had heard the woman on the radio the day before. She had called up the station telling her story and her plan of ambush to the on-air personality. I guess I should've notified somebody. Gregg handled it immaculately!
During the opening Sailing 'Cross The Devil's Sea at the 4/1/94 or one of the other 4/94 Beacon shows, NYPD radio banter starts playing through the speakers.
Red Dog's Book of Tails was full of Spinal Tap-worthy stories. 😉
