Led Zeppelin Concert Memories: Madison Square Garden, NY, June 8th 1977

From ledzepconcerts.com

Concert Memories :: Led Zeppelin :: June 8, 1977

06/08/77 – Madison Square Garden, NY, NY – Bill McCue
Ah, memories. I saw Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden in New York City on June 8, 1977 – the second of six sold-out nights for the boys. My seat was in a corner slightly behind the stage on JPJ’s side. Section 315 in the green section, to be precise.

Zeppelin’s run of shows was a family affair for the McCues. My brother Kevin went on opening night, my brother Larry accompanied me. It was my first concert in NYC. I was 13 years old. Quite an experience for a young lad.

My most distinct memories are of the volume – extremely loud, almost painfully so – and the “heavy” crowd. Lots of bikers and pyromaniacs. Fireworks were set off indiscriminately throughout the evening, despite Robert’s constant pleas for sanity. The opening numbers were incredible but the sound was a big mush.

Things crawled to a halt early on with JPJ’s extended solo during No Quarter. My brother fell asleep, folks ran to the concession stands and lingered in the hallways outside the main arena. I remember going for a pee during Moby Dick and being struck by how “Night of the Living Dead” everyone appeared. People got really stoned back in those days, smoking bushels of pot and drinking lots of cheap wine. There was a big cloud of smoke hanging over the orchestra during Zeppelin’s set.

My favorite song of the night was Ten Years Gone. Quick sidenote: I’m sure you remember that details like set lists weren’t well known back in those days. I only knew they were going to do TYG because my brother had been to the show the night before. I also loved SIBLY and IMTOD. The acoustic set was cool, too, but the fireworks ruined most of it. The crowd perked up for Kashmir, but after the acoustic set, everyone seemed worn out.

Three hours is a long show, especially when a fair amount of the show involves really LONG solo passages. JPJ tinkered during NQ for about 10 minutes, WS/BMS was about 10 minutes, Moby Dick/Over the Top was about 15 minutes, Jimmy’s violin bow/theramin/box of tricks schtick prior to ALS was about 10 minutes. That’s a lot of noodling to sit through. Even today I skip around a lot and rarely listen to anything beyond Kashmir when I play a bootleg from that tour. Unfortunately, I’ve never heard a boot from the show I went to. I would imagine it was a decent show by 1977 tour standards. I don’t remember any major screw ups or “cringe inducing” moments that were all too frequent during the post 73 tour years.

The visual effects were very impressive, particularly the spinning mirror ball during Kashmir. As I mentioned earlier, the volume was L-O-U-D loud. Volume covers up a variety of audio “blemishes,” I guess.

I remember walking out of the Garden at around 12:30 or so. I believe they came on at around 9:20. Hotel California was playing when the lights went out. I also remember hearing Life in the Fast Lane from the same album. I had on a red Led Zeppelin shirt over a white long sleeved thermal shirt. Purple high top Converse and a huge Afro. Levi Jeans. I was pretty groovy for a 13-year old. Didnt smoke any pot, but I’m pretty sure I got a nice contact high from the cats sitting next to me. People in the crowd were very nice to me. Everyone seemed pleased to see someone so young at the show. I guess I stood out. Very small for my age, which probably made me look even younger.

I got my tickets by cutting out a coupon from a full page ad in the New York Times and sending in a money order for $21 for two tickets. I think they were $9.50 a piece plus a $2 handling charge. A far cry from today’s T-master thievery. The whole event was exotic – even the concept of getting a money order was a new and exciting thing for me at the time. And think about it – six sold out nights! Not sure any of today’s acts could duplicate that feat.