On the eastern outskirts of Schenectady NY, a couple of guys converted an old bowling alley to a small Fillmore-like venue called the Aerodrome. I think it opened sometime in 1968 and closed by late '70 or early '71. But this was the days before arena rock, and they had some first-rate acts there. In the summer of '69, I had just graduated from HS and I caught a couple of memorable shows there. Three of them really stick out in my mind. What was particularly cool was, that if you got there an hour or two early, you could sit on the floor right in front of the stage--literally a few feet from the performers. Just amazingly intimate.

The first I recall was a show by the original line-up of Chicago, then known as Chicago Transit Authority. At the time, just their first album (the one with the black background cover) was out. While it has some of their strongest material, they didn't really hit big until Chicago II came out in early '70. But the band put on a great show, and I was particularly impressed by guitarist Terry Kath, who was also an excellent vocalist. The horns were something fairly new in mainstream rock at that time, with Al Kooper's Blood, Sweat & Tears having blazed the trail a couple of years earlier. Tremendous energy in the performance, and the crowd loved 'em. A real shame that Terry died so tragically a few years later.

The second one I remember was the Jeff Beck Group, with Rod Stewart on vocals and (I think he was still with them) Ronnie Wood on bass. Within a few months, the band had split up, but it was fun to see them. The show, however, wasn't particularly good. It was obvious that these guys were in a seriously altered state of consciousness (alcohol + whatever else), and it showed in the performance. Still, I enjoyed much of the material (I'd been playing the grooves off the "Truth" album for several months) and it was an experience to see what would become three legendary names in rock history together on the same stage. Loved Jeff's gorgeous LP.

The third show of note was Led Zeppelin. This one is especially vivid in my mind because I got there early enough that I was one of the first 20 or so people in the door and sat with my feet against the stage, dead center. Zeppelin was new at the time, with their first album just having been released that spring. They played several tunes that would appear on LZII, like "Whole Lotta Love", "The Lemon Song" and "Heartbreaker", but it was the more familiar stuff off the first album that really had the crowd rockin'. The band worked their tails off, esp. Plant and Page. First time I ever saw an LP played with a violin bow. When either Jimmy or "Percy" came to the front of the stage, I could have literally reached up and touched their feet. Great, great show and another beautiful LP to admire. Wished I'd had the presence of mind back then to write down the set list!

OK, end of my "Glory Days" reminiscing. Who's going to keep it going with some of their favorite live show memories?