A Tribute To the Late Bob Kelley, Mid-South Concerts And The Memphis Rock Scene

There's a new Facebook group out there and I think it's great! I thank Scott Schaeffer for creating it. Scott and I have never met before in person but we share a lot of common ground and interests.

We have known each other for about 10 years now on FB. Mainly, we have the Mid-South Coliseum in common. Years ago, he started the “Save The Mid-South Coliseum” FB page and I started the “Fans of the Mid-South Coliseum” FB page. I think the biggest thing that we all have in common in this new group is that we loved the Memphis rock music scene from the 70’s and 80’s and its history. We were all part of this one big mammoth rock scene that spread its wings throughout five states thanks to Memphis radio stations such Rock 103, our flagship rock station at the time. We were entertained by some of the biggest rock bands in the world during those years ushered in by them late Bob Kelley and Mid-South Concerts.


Memphis had a reputation among rock musicians and bands that we were loud and raucous. And it was true! We were also known for the home of Elvis and the Blues. I think every rock band or musician who made a stop in Memphis was intrigued by that. However, I didn’t know Mr. Kelley personally or even knew that he existed, but I do remember my first Mid-South Concerts rock show experience. I saw the Doobie Brothers at the Mid-South Coliseum (MSC) in the summer of 1977 with Henry Gross opening for them.

I attended many concerts at the MSC, the Memphis auditorium, the Mid-South fairgrounds and even some Memphis music halls or bars during a five year span (1977-1982) of my life from age 15-20 years-old (18 years-old was the drinking age back then) mainly during my teenage formative years. My last concert at the MSC was Rush in fall of 1982 during freshman year at Ole Miss.

For many of us, between going to school, working odd jobs around the house to earn money (For me: doing electrical work for my brother, hauling hay for local farmers and working at Sonic in Hernando Miss.) or allowances from our parents, we somehow managed to purchase a Mid-South Concert ticket to head out to a rock show with our friends. There was nothing like the thrill of the anticipation of a Mid-South Concert rock show coming up. We marked our calendars and we could not wait! We had no iPhones, smart TV’s or internet like we have these days. Then after the show was over with, we proudly wore our concert t-shirts to school like a badge of honor the next day and our ears rang for the next three days! Lol.

For most of us those who attended high school or even college, we became cultured in campus life and activities and etc. And for those of us who were lucky enough to be a part of the Memphis rock scene back in those days and who attended Mid-South Concerts, we were cultured in ways that many people on earth will never get to experience. And we will never forgot it for the rest of our lives either whether still have our old ticket stubs, old concerts t-shirts or by watching Youtube video footage of old concerts clips, looking at pics from concerts or reading old newspaper clips about the shows. They were some of the best times of our young lives. It was all good friends, good vibes and lots of partying.


Mainly, we have our best memories. And our best memories live on in our minds, hearts and souls and this what this page is about. Thank you, the late Bob Kelley and Mid-South Concerts and to the Memphis rock scene that still lives on forever which still exists that takes many shapes and forms these days. And mainly, thank you, Scott, my good FB friend!

Rush: Keeping It In The Family By Tony Smith, Formerly of The Indie Rock Band, "Sleeper Agent," From Bowling Green, Ky.

My son, Tony Smith, posted this (see below) on his Facebook timeline about Rush and our relationship with each other regarding the band. I thought it was a fine tribute to the late Neil Peart also.

“My dad wrote a blog about Neil Peart that I’d like to share and it got me thinking about our relationship and our relationship with Rush. 

———this’ll probably be a TL;DR———-

So, Rush has been the go-to “dad rock” band for as long as I can remember. Often they’ve been the go-to joke for overzealous rockists and squares alike. But, honestly Rush was always my “dad rock” band because it’s the first thing I can remember sharing with my dad as “ours”. I used to sneak into his office when he was at work and marvel over the artwork on his LPs and cassettes. Rush always had the best covers and eventually he played me the music behind the images. It was complicated but catchy; for every 3 minute pop-gem there was a ridiculously indulgent 10-minute-plus heady jam. Over the years, it’s something we’ve shared together exclusively. Every time a modern Rush album or live DVD came out, I’d buy my dad the discs and we’d enjoy them cranked to 11. During the Vapor Trails era we grieved for Neil Peart and the trauma that he went through with losing his family. We went to the Belcourt in 2010 and watched the Rush doc: Beyond the Lighted Stage and it was strange but also fitting to see a bunch of Dads and sons waiting in line, haha. Even a little funnier watching a bunch of grown-men (aka, 70s stoners, now family-men) cry during the sad bits about Peart. When Sleeper Agent got their first “big check” (it wasn’t that big, folks) after signing our record deal, I got my dad 2 tix so see Rush at Bridgestone for Xmas. ANYWAY, Peart was the heart and soul of Rush. He wrote the lyrics and drove the songs. The lyrics were often hammy in a New Age kinda way and his solos and drum kit were absolutely ridiculous... but damn, having Peart, Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson in this world made it fun to be a square, a rockist, a dweeb, snob, stoner etc... 😂. We lost a good one far too soon. 

PS: Rush is clearly for everybody. I bet there are Moms and sons, moms and daughters and dads and daughters who had the same experience... I’m just sharing mine. 😘”

RIP Neil Peart: Rush And The "Permanent Wave"

I’ve been thinking about the news of the death of Rush drummer and lyricist Neil Peart, this morning. Probably like most Rush fans, I have been reminiscing about my youth and how I became a Rush fan as a teenager in the late 70’s on top of the bluffs of North Mississippi on a fishing lake where my dad had built a lake house in 1975. I attracted to early Rush hit songs such as “Working Man” and “Fly By Night” among several others that I listened to on my Hi-Fi Pioneer component stereo system at my dad’s lake house where we were known to have unsupervised notorious basement parties among our other teenage friends long before the days of the cell phone, internet and cable TV. But mainly we had a pool table in the basement that was the center of our attention.

I am honored to say that I was able to be under the same roof with Mr. Peart or “the professor” as he was also known and I witness his incredible drumming skills and tremendous performances during the album tours of “Hemispheres” in 1979 at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis and twice in 1981 during the “Moving Pictures” tour-once in Memphis and once in Jackson, Miss. Also, again in Memphis during the “Signals” tour in 1982 and finally 29 years later in Nashville at Bridgestone Arena during their “Time Machine” tour.

The concert in Nashville was April 3, 2011 and on April 5, 2011, Rush was to play in Louisville. I had to go to Scottsville, Ky., to work the next day on April 4, 2011, and on my way back to Bowling Green from Scottsville, I saw Neil Peart riding his BMW motorcycle on Ky. 231 heading towards Bowling Green as he passed me in my truck. I figured he had taken U.S. 31-E north out of Nashville in order to crossover into Kentucky and then on up on I-65 to Louisville for the next show. He was known to take the backroads on his motorcycle as he went from gig to gig. The two other band members, Alex Lifeson and Geddy Lee flew by plane between gigs. Believe it or not, Mr. Peart looked over at me and I waved to me as he passed me.

Getting to see Mr. Peart ride his motorcycle past me on that highway was not by chance, but a synchronized magical moment in time and space that I will cherish the rest of my life. Thank you, Mr. Peart for that “permanent wave” and all your years of entertaining Rush fans all over the world.

Rush And Heart 2013 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Inductees Among Others

    The 28th Annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held Thursday, April 18, 2013, at the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles.

     I am really excited about this year's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees.  Being a big "Rush" fan as well as a "Heart" fan, what more could you ask for?  Rush is one of the best performing rock bands that I have ever seen in concert.  I had the opportunity to see them three times at The Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tenn., in 79', 81' and 82' and once in Nashville, 10'.  I was able to see Heart perform at the Mid-South Coliseum in 78'.  I was one of thousands who has petitioned for several years recently to have Rush inducted.  I even wrote a blog about this subject a couple of years ago.  I love those guys of Rush-Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart.  And I love Ann and Nancy Wilson of Heart too!  Much love and respect to them! I commend Rush and Heart of all their years of hard work and their contributions to the world of rock and roll! Congrats!

This year's Inductees are:

·    Heart
·    Albert King
·    Randy Newman
·    Public Enemy
·    Rush
·    Donna Summer
Ahmet Ertegun (non performer) Award: ·    Lou Adler
·    Quincy Jones

    This marks the first time since 1993 that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony will be held on the West Coast. The ceremony will again be open to the public, as it was in 2009 and 2012 in Cleveland.
Joel Peresman, President and CEO of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, said, “We are thrilled to announce this year’s class of inductees, which again represents the broad, compelling and significant definition of rock and roll.”
The induction ceremony will broadcast on HBO on Saturday, May 18 at 9pm ET/PT. Said Michael Lombardo, President of HBO Programming, "We are excited to team up once again with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for what is sure to be an incredible evening of one-of-a-kind performances.” The 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame performer inductees were chosen by more than 500 voters of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation.  To be eligible for nomination, an individual artist or band must have released its first single or album at least 25 years prior to the year of nomination. The 2013 Nominees had to release their first recording no later than 1987.

All inductees are ultimately represented in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum in Cleveland, Ohio. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a nonprofit organization that exists to educate visitors, fans and scholars from around the world about the history and continuing significance of rock and roll music. It carries out this mission both through its operation of a world-class museum that collects, preserves, exhibits and interprets this art form; and through its library and archives, as well as its educational activities.

Chicago's "Buying Trouble" Will Rock You Hard

     On their Reverbnation page, "Buying Trouble," https://www.reverbnation.com/buyingtrouble a young hard rock band from Chicago claim that they play so loud that they have hearing damage and they play so hard that they bleed sometimes. And that they play with so much emotion that the stage usually isn't big enough. "We freak out to promote freedom. And we hate hip hop.  Long live Hard Loud Rock N' Roll!"     This seems to be the creed of band members Derek Vaden, Mike Dooley and Andy Modaff. Patty and I met the band and their parents when they came down to Bowling Green to attend the Starry Nights Music + Arts Festival at the end of September. They are big fans of Bowling Green's indie rock bands "Cage The Elephant" and "Sleeper Agent." They were really nice kids and their parents were super nice people too.  We really enjoyed meeting them when we all had a late lunch at Cheddar's Restaurant in Bowling Green.  The band autographed an EP which they gave to our son, Tony Smith who is the lead song writer and guitar player as well as a singer for Sleeper Agent, a copy of their EP called "Ok, Whatever"   They also autographed it for Alex Kandel, lead singer for Sleeper Agent.

    A couple of weeks ago, Tony and I listened to the EP on the way to the store.  We listened to three hard rock pounding songs on the EP called, "Shakin'," "Christian Ears & Atheist Tongues" and "Novel America." Tony said that the band "is really good and they need to keep at it."  I thought that they sounded like a combination of the classic rock bands "Kiss,"  "Rush" and "The Black Crows" and that they have a lot of potential for the future.  With much practice and persistence,  I think they might have a chance of getting a record deal one day.  Please check out this young rock band.  Who knows, one day in the future, you may be seeing them on MTV,  VH1 and other music video channels. And you might one day be able to purchase their music at your local record store as well as from other other internet stores such as Amazon.com, eBay, iTunes and MP3.

Here's what they wrote on their Facebook page about themselves. Check it out!

About

Bringin back respect for music acts that play real instruments and try to further themselves as musicians and song writers.

Biography

Buying Trouble is a three piece rock band, hell bent on rocking your brains out. Mike Dooleys full, loud, metal inspired drum beats, routinely resulting in blood, lay out an industrial foundation for the heavy, gut rocking, shell shock of Andy Modaffs blistering bass lines. Derek Vaden screams and wails over it all, and so does his guitar, while trying to thrash around like a shark or something in an attempt to hurt himself. Together their covers, originals, and the occasional one-off songs they improvise on the spot, are a full on assault of the temporal lobe. They just released a 3 song EP and will be recording more soon so enjoy it. Or tell us we suck this is America so it's ok.

Description

your not a rocker till you stop cutting your hair...and start dropping acid - Jim Morrison

Band Interests

chillin, south park, writin music, listneing to slipknot, philosophy, Gigging, going to concerts

Artists We Also Like

Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Cage the Elephant, Slipknot, Aerosmith, Guns N' Roses, Nirvana, Cream, The Doors, Humble Pie, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Foo Fighters, Rolling Stones, Soundgarden, ZZ Top, The Who, The Jimi Hendrix Experience

Launched	September 2009
Release Date	9/10/09
Genre	Loud, Hard Rock N' Fuckin Roll
Members	Derek Vaden - Guitar/vocals Mike Dooley - Drums Andy Modaff - Bass/guitar
Hometown	Lisle, Illinois
Record Label	none currently
Influences	Living, Metaphysics, Spacing, new esoteric words, Playing Live Shows
Current Location	Lisle

Contact Info

Website	http://purevolume.com/buyingtrouble
Booking Agent	Derek Vaden 630 362 8875 - buyingtrouble@hotmail.com

The Gift To All Rush Fans...The Movie....Rush:Beyond The Lighted Stage

The documentary movie, "Rush:Beyond The Lighted Stage" is a gift that keeps on giving. (sorry for the cliche). This movie is really a gift from the Rock group "Rush" to all its fans-from the past, present and future. The band that has been around for more than 40 years and has more than its shares of ups and downs in the world of rock and roll and in their own personal lives.

The reason that the movie is a gift from Rush is because they did not have to allow the filmmakers into their private lives to make a documentary about the rock band's history and their unconventional rise to fame and glory. But they did it for their fans. It's for all those middle-age men with greying hair who are located around the world. But they did allow it to be made. That's the most important thing. Rush fans have been peg by critics as white, middle-aged men in their 40's and 50's with greying hair who hold down steady jobs probably with families. I would even dare to say that some of these fans are grandfathers. And believe it or not there are women Rush fans out there too.

I can attest to this because my son and I made our way down to Nashville, Tenn., for the first showing of the movie at The Belcourt Theater near Vanderbilt University on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. June 15th. Naturally, we got lost in Nashville and turned around but finally we found our way to the theater. When we arrived there was a long line that outside the building and it curve around the corner onto another street. I thought, "Oh crap, we'll never get a seat." However, when we got inside, there was plenty of seating. There were some other men with their sons and maybe even their grandsons too. We found the perfects seats while my son went to the concessions stand to grab us a couple of cold drinks. While we were waiting in line outside, I observed the typical Rush fan and what he looked like. Like I said, most of us were white and looked about my age 48 years-old with greying hair and wearing glasses. Some of us had big bellies or smaller bellies (If you're lucky). I saw very few Rush fans with long hair these days. Most of us were dressed in casual clothes. I would say most of us had jobs or careers and probably had some sort of higher education. (I just assuming now from my journalistic observations). Also, a Rush fan walked toward the back of the line where we were standing and offered a free ticket to another Rush fan. I would say most Rush fans are kind and polite towards one of another and have a generous free spirit of giving like Rush musicians themselves, Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and Neil Peart. After the movie, I observe the Rush fan who received the free ticket thank the other Rush fan who gave him the ticket in the men's restroom. Now, isn't that in the giving spirit of Rush shining through here?

Too me, I was just totally enthralled and entertained throughout the movie. It starts from the beginning days of Rush in Toronto, Canada, where the trio....Geddy Lee, Bass, Alex Lifeson, Lead Guitar and Neil Peart, Drums, all grew up. Geddy and Alex were raised in the suburbs of Toronto and Neil grew up on a farm outside of Toronto. The film shows footage of Alex and Geddy while they were in high school and Alex quit high school to play music. I'm not sure about Geddy quiting school. I didn't catch that if he did. The movie also shows interviews with all three band member's parents which I thought was very touching. Geddy parents were Jewish prisoner death camp survivors from World War II and Alex parents where Yugoslavian immigrants. Neal parents owned a parts store where he worked as a teenager. The original drummer John Rutsey had to be replaced because of health reasons and that's when they brought Neil into the picture.

Probably, the one thing that intrigued me the most about the film was how Rush decided to be just themselves and independent of everyone else on the rock scene at the time during the early and later years of the 1970's. They produced these abstract, conceptual albums like "Caress Of Steel," "2112" and "Hemispheres" against all the odds of their record label but they were able to survive and remain themselves. They didn't change. I think that's the one thing that appealed to me when I first heard the band in the Fall of 1976 when my friend Donald Dillingham brought the "2112" album over to my dad's lake house in North Mississippi, was the band's really cool and freaky sound. When he put it on and we were just blow away by it. I had never heard anything like it before in my young life. Rush's music appealled to the psychics of our little minds. At the time, we were feeling like outcasts living in our own little worlds by our own choosing. Rush took us took us to a different world like the other rock groups did, but in a different way than Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin or Black Sabbath. It was a mental escapism with the combination of their music and some of mind altering substance which I quit using years ago. I won't say which one. I'm sure a lot of middle-age men had the same experiences with Rush as I have had when they were first introduced to the band.

And movie goes on to show concert footage when they toured with bands like Kiss and Thin Lizzy just to name a few. The movie shows how Rush evolved to eventually to become the main headliner band on the scene at the time. And then they hit the big time with the album, "Moving Pictures" in 1981 where had such mega hits as "Tom Sawyer" and "Limelight" which was being played on rock stations all over the world, over and over again. This was the heyday of Rush when they filling concert halls and arena all over the world. But they still do filled these halls and arenas to this day! As a side note, I saw Rush in concert four times. It was the one band that I saw more times in concert than anyone else.

Probably, the saddest part of the movie, is when it explains the tragedy that about Neil's daughter getting killed in a car accident and then shortly loosing his wife due to an illness. Neil is a painfully private person and you could tell it was hard for him to be interviewed for the movie. I thought he was pretty uncomfortable with the interview. That's just my opinion. I may be wrong. But regardless, he did manage to do the interview because he did it for us Rush fans. Thank you Neil! The movie goes on to show some stuff on how the group regrouped after being away from it for four years because of Neil's tragedies and how he managed to cope with it by riding a BMW motorcycle 55,000 miles all over North America. He even wrote a song and book about his experiences of that road trip called, "Ghost Rider," which is on the "Vapor Trails" album.

Regardless, if your a big Rush fan or not, this documentary movie will have you cheering, laughing, crying and cheering again. It is a must see for all Rush fans! Like I said, it's the gift that keeps on giving....from one Rush fan to another.

Rush: The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame?

There's going to be a documentary movie at the theaters this Summer regarding one of my all-time favorite "Classic Rock" bands, "Rush"-the trio from the Great White North (Canada) who has been making tremendous, incredible music for over four decades now. The movie, "Rush:Beyond The Light Stage," is going to be showed for one night only (June 10th) in theaters across the United States. I am hoping it will be shown in Nashville which is about an hour south of Bowling Green, Ky., where I live.
My hope for this group who has managed to have mega-hit songs such as "Limelight," "Tom Sawyer," "The Trees," and "Closer To The Heart," just to name a few, is that these guys deserve to be inducted into the "Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame." Come on, these guys, Geddy Lee, bass and vocals, Alex Lifesome, lead guitar, and Neil Peart, drums, are incredibly talented, awesome musicians! Seriously! I've seen Rush in concert four times-once in 1979, twice in 1981 and once in 1982 at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, Tenn., while living in North Mississippi. I also feel that these guys should have won at least one Grammy already. Yes, their music has been labeled for by Rolling Stone magazine for geeks or techno nerds because of their extreme concept albums and album cover artwork through the years as well as their style of rock music. Also, the lyrics that Peart (The Professor) writes are so deep and very abstract with such themes regarding the atom bomb, the human brain and the free spirit of the radio.
It's been said that Rush is a "cult band" with a cult following. Even Lee has admitted this. If that be case...so be it. Then I am part of their cult and I am a follower. Rush songs have been woven in the fabric of my life through the years. I can put a certain Rush song on and certain memories will come flooding back to my mind. Most of those memories involve high school and college. Perhaps, Rush has a way of making us middle-age, baby boomer men and women feel young again. Isn't that the trend with most Classic Rock bands from the past? They make us feel young again. That's probably why that movie, "I Love You, Man" has a character who is about my age or maybe a little younger (from my generation) who is a Rush fan. That's why you see so many Classic Rock bands going on tour again these days especially during the Summer months. They are milking it for all it's worth and I don't blame them. Let's keep knocking on the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame's door to encourage them to open up and let Rush in.