outside of pittsburg residents, nobody cares about the Mellon Arena.
The Spectrum on the other hand was a rock and roll mecca, historic. Mellon Arena..not at all
Wachovia Center, Philadelphia - 10/3/05
Tweeter Center, Camden - 5/27/06
Verizon Center, Wash. DC - 5/30/06
Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 6/14/08
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 6/19/08
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/28/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/30/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/31/09
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 5/21/10
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 10/21/13
1st Mariner Arena, Baltimore - 10/27/13 Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 4/28/16 Enterprise Center, Saint Louis - 9/18/22
Hm.. Actually, as fun as those shows were, I don't think the Spectrum was really all that unique. I don't know much about its rock and roll history. I do know that a lot of bands played there but I don't know if any shows were particularly historic to the Spectrum. I think it's another case of big east coast city chest-thumping. The Igloo on the other hand is a really cool building. There's not another arena that looks like it. And it had a retractable roof. I wish it could be reused, like Toronto is reusing Maple Leaf Gardens even though the Leafs got a new rink..
Hm.. Actually, as fun as those shows were, I don't think the Spectrum was really all that unique. I don't know much about its rock and roll history. I do know that a lot of bands played there but I don't know if any shows were particularly historic to the Spectrum. I think it's another case of big east coast city chest-thumping. The Igloo on the other hand is a really cool building. There's not another arena that looks like it. And it had a retractable roof. I wish it could be reused, like Toronto is reusing Maple Leaf Gardens even though the Leafs got a new rink..
Hm.. Actually, as fun as those shows were, I don't think the Spectrum was really all that unique. I don't know much about its rock and roll history. I do know that a lot of bands played there but I don't know if any shows were particularly historic to the Spectrum. I think it's another case of big east coast city chest-thumping. The Igloo on the other hand is a really cool building. There's not another arena that looks like it. And it had a retractable roof. I wish it could be reused, like Toronto is reusing Maple Leaf Gardens even though the Leafs got a new rink..
Hm.. Actually, as fun as those shows were, I don't think the Spectrum was really all that unique. I don't know much about its rock and roll history. I do know that a lot of bands played there but I don't know if any shows were particularly historic to the Spectrum. I think it's another case of big east coast city chest-thumping. The Igloo on the other hand is a really cool building. There's not another arena that looks like it. And it had a retractable roof. I wish it could be reused, like Toronto is reusing Maple Leaf Gardens even though the Leafs got a new rink..
Rock concerts
Popular music concerts have been staged at the Spectrum since the 1960s, which was renowned for its world-class acoustic properties.
* Cream performed during their farewell tour there, supported by Lee Michaels.
* The First Quaker City Rock Festival was an early all-star show there, featuring Moby Grape, The Chambers Brothers, Vanilla Fudge, and Big Brother & The Holding Company, among other acts.
* The Doors performed a 95-minute show, a recording of which was released years later as "The Doors Live in Philadelphia '70".
* The Grateful Dead played the Spectrum 53 times, by far the most of any musical act.
* British Progressive rock band Yes played the Spectrum 32 times between 1971 and 2004, including a matinee show in 1974 for their Tales from Topographic Oceans tour.
* Aerosmith played the venue 23 times between 1976 and 1994, including a few notorious performances in the late 1970s in which rowdy fans injured the band members with glass bottles and M-80s.
* Pink Floyd played the Spectrum in 1972, 1973, 1975 and 1977. They last played two shows there on June 28-29, 1977, during their Animals/In the Flesh Tour. On the second night (June 29, 1977), Floyd member Roger Waters fell ill and did most of the show after a painkiller injection. However, the painkiller wore off and was taken to the hospital and missed the final encore of "Us and Them" where second guitarist Snowy White had to fill in on bass guitar. Unbeknownst to the crowd, this was the first time that the rest of Pink Floyd (guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason and keyboard player Rick Wright) performed a song live without Waters (they would go on without Waters as of 1986). Roger's experience performing while ill at this venue would be documented on "Comfortably Numb".
* The Who performed at the Spectrum throughout the 1970s. The 1973 show was documented in a famous audio bootleg of their Quadrophenia performance. A CD has been released of John Entwistle's performance on March 15, 1975, when he opened for Humble Pie.
* Genesis regularly played the venue during the Phil Collins era from 1977 to 1986 (they would play Veterans Stadium on their 1992 We Can't Dance tour and the Wachovia Center on their 2007 Turn it on Again reunion tour). Their three November 1983 performances on the band's Mama Tour were recorded for a US FM radio broadcast and was released as a bootleg entitled "Three Nights in Philly".
* Roger Walters returned to perform, solo, at the arena during The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Tour on July 24, 1984 & March 29, 1985 & during his Radio K.A.O.S. Tour on August 24, 1987.
* U2 performed at the arena during The Joshua Tree Tour on September 12, 1987 & during their Zoo TV Tour on March 10, 1992, with The Pixies as their opening act.
* KISS performed live during the Crazy Nights tour in 1987. The concert can been seen on the 3rd disk of Kissology Volume Two: 1978–1991, although footage is incomplete.
* One of the most memorable performances came on the night of December 9, 1980. After learning of the assassination of John Lennon following a performance there the night before, Bruce Springsteen opened the show with a statement regarding Lennon and said, "It’s a hard thing to come out and play but there’s just nothing else you can do." With members of the E Street Band in tears, Springsteen and his band put on 34-song marathon which ended nearly 3 and 1/2 hours later, with a scorching version of Twist and Shout.
* The hard rock band Dio, fronted by vocalist Ronnie James Dio played the Spectrum frequently in the 80's. Two of the mid 80's appearances were filmed and released commercially. The first of these even went by the name "A Special at the Spectrum" (and as later released on DVD in the 2000s under the name "We Rock").
* The last public events at the legendary arena took place on October 27, 28, 30 and 31, 2009, by Pearl Jam. The band came to the stage each night after a video montage of memorable Spectrum moments followed by the Rocky theme music. Over the four nights, Pearl Jam performed 103 different songs, with its final night on Halloween lasting over 3 hours and 35 minutes and including 41 songs.[10]
* The final event was a large private cocktail party thrown by Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider on January 16, 2010. Musical acts included a duet of "God Bless America" featuring a recorded Kate Smith alongside a live Lauren Hart, headliner Earth, Wind, and Fire, with the very last set being a performance by Elvis interpreter Johnny Seaton.[11].
Other artists to perform at The Spectrum include: Frank Sinatra (several occasions between 1968 & 1994), Jimi Hendrix (1969), The Rolling Stones (1969, 1972 & 1975), Led Zeppelin (1969, 1970, 1972 & 1973), Wings (1976), David Bowie (1976, 1978, 1983 & 1990), Queen (1977, 1978, 1980 & 1982), Elvis Presley (1977), Dio (1983 & 1986), U2 (1984, 1987 & 1992), Beastie Boys (1985), Madonna (1985, 1990, 1993, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2008), Rush (1985, 1987, 1989, 1991 & 1994), George Michael (1988 & 1991), Metallica (1989 & 1992), Guns N' Roses & Dire Straits (1992), Mariah Carey (1993), Phish (nine times between 1995 & 2003), 'N Sync, Sisqo & P!nk (2000), The Cheetah Girls, Vanessa Hudgens & Queen + Paul Rodgers (2006) & High School Musical & The Foo Fighters (2007).
Wachovia Center, Philadelphia - 10/3/05
Tweeter Center, Camden - 5/27/06
Verizon Center, Wash. DC - 5/30/06
Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 6/14/08
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 6/19/08
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/28/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/30/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/31/09
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 5/21/10
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 10/21/13
1st Mariner Arena, Baltimore - 10/27/13 Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 4/28/16 Enterprise Center, Saint Louis - 9/18/22
Hm.. Actually, as fun as those shows were, I don't think the Spectrum was really all that unique. I don't know much about its rock and roll history. I do know that a lot of bands played there but I don't know if any shows were particularly historic to the Spectrum. I think it's another case of big east coast city chest-thumping. The Igloo on the other hand is a really cool building. There's not another arena that looks like it. And it had a retractable roof. I wish it could be reused, like Toronto is reusing Maple Leaf Gardens even though the Leafs got a new rink..
Rock concerts
Popular music concerts have been staged at the Spectrum since the 1960s, which was renowned for its world-class acoustic properties.
* Cream performed during their farewell tour there, supported by Lee Michaels.
* The First Quaker City Rock Festival was an early all-star show there, featuring Moby Grape, The Chambers Brothers, Vanilla Fudge, and Big Brother & The Holding Company, among other acts.
* The Doors performed a 95-minute show, a recording of which was released years later as "The Doors Live in Philadelphia '70".
* The Grateful Dead played the Spectrum 53 times, by far the most of any musical act.
* British Progressive rock band Yes played the Spectrum 32 times between 1971 and 2004, including a matinee show in 1974 for their Tales from Topographic Oceans tour.
* Aerosmith played the venue 23 times between 1976 and 1994, including a few notorious performances in the late 1970s in which rowdy fans injured the band members with glass bottles and M-80s.
* Pink Floyd played the Spectrum in 1972, 1973, 1975 and 1977. They last played two shows there on June 28-29, 1977, during their Animals/In the Flesh Tour. On the second night (June 29, 1977), Floyd member Roger Waters fell ill and did most of the show after a painkiller injection. However, the painkiller wore off and was taken to the hospital and missed the final encore of "Us and Them" where second guitarist Snowy White had to fill in on bass guitar. Unbeknownst to the crowd, this was the first time that the rest of Pink Floyd (guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason and keyboard player Rick Wright) performed a song live without Waters (they would go on without Waters as of 1986). Roger's experience performing while ill at this venue would be documented on "Comfortably Numb".
* The Who performed at the Spectrum throughout the 1970s. The 1973 show was documented in a famous audio bootleg of their Quadrophenia performance. A CD has been released of John Entwistle's performance on March 15, 1975, when he opened for Humble Pie.
* Genesis regularly played the venue during the Phil Collins era from 1977 to 1986 (they would play Veterans Stadium on their 1992 We Can't Dance tour and the Wachovia Center on their 2007 Turn it on Again reunion tour). Their three November 1983 performances on the band's Mama Tour were recorded for a US FM radio broadcast and was released as a bootleg entitled "Three Nights in Philly".
* Roger Walters returned to perform, solo, at the arena during The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Tour on July 24, 1984 & March 29, 1985 & during his Radio K.A.O.S. Tour on August 24, 1987.
* U2 performed at the arena during The Joshua Tree Tour on September 12, 1987 & during their Zoo TV Tour on March 10, 1992, with The Pixies as their opening act.
* KISS performed live during the Crazy Nights tour in 1987. The concert can been seen on the 3rd disk of Kissology Volume Two: 1978–1991, although footage is incomplete. * One of the most memorable performances came on the night of December 9, 1980. After learning of the assassination of John Lennon following a performance there the night before, Bruce Springsteen opened the show with a statement regarding Lennon and said, "It’s a hard thing to come out and play but there’s just nothing else you can do." With members of the E Street Band in tears, Springsteen and his band put on 34-song marathon which ended nearly 3 and 1/2 hours later, with a scorching version of Twist and Shout.
* The hard rock band Dio, fronted by vocalist Ronnie James Dio played the Spectrum frequently in the 80's. Two of the mid 80's appearances were filmed and released commercially. The first of these even went by the name "A Special at the Spectrum" (and as later released on DVD in the 2000s under the name "We Rock").
* The last public events at the legendary arena took place on October 27, 28, 30 and 31, 2009, by Pearl Jam. The band came to the stage each night after a video montage of memorable Spectrum moments followed by the Rocky theme music. Over the four nights, Pearl Jam performed 103 different songs, with its final night on Halloween lasting over 3 hours and 35 minutes and including 41 songs.[10]
* The final event was a large private cocktail party thrown by Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider on January 16, 2010. Musical acts included a duet of "God Bless America" featuring a recorded Kate Smith alongside a live Lauren Hart, headliner Earth, Wind, and Fire, with the very last set being a performance by Elvis interpreter Johnny Seaton.[11].
Ron: I just don't feel like going out tonight
Sammi: Wanna just break up?
Just got the Philly boots, those shows were really something. So jealous. We just want 1 show in Pittsburgh, wherever it may be...it would be nice to see them at Mellon one more time. Or perhaps open the new arena? I'm not saying that Mellon has anywhere near the history of the Spectrum. Then again, Philly is nowhere near the city that Pittsburgh is either...let's be honest.
I never heard of the Spectrum until I moved out here. *shrugs*
I don't know the history of it very well, and I don't feel the Civic/Mellon Arena has a lot of cultural significance outside of my hometown, but to be honest... the only reason I think the Spectrum is culturally significant is b/c all the Philly homers tell me it is. I've never heard a peep about it from anyone that doesn't say "wudder".
The Mellon Arena has exemplified every trait of a world class entertainment facility. Originally built to house the Civic Light Opera, the Mellon Arena is home to a variety of family shows and has hosted such music legends as Frank Sinatra, The Rolling Stones, six sold-out nights of Garth Brooks and The Grateful Dead
The Mellon Arena hosted its first show, the Ice Capades, on September 19, 1961. Other notable performance highlights include: The Beatles on September 14, 1964, Elvis Presley on June 25, 1973 and the Page/Plant concert on March 25, 1995, which registered the highest attendance ever in the Arena (17,764) until January 30, 1999 when 18,150 fans packed the arena for a WWF house show.
The Mellon Arena is famous for its revolutionary architectural design which features the largest retractable, stainless steel dome roof in the world--170,000 total square feet and 2,950 tons of Pittsburgh steel. The roof, which has no interior supports, is divided radially into eight leaves and is supported by a huge cantilever arm that arches 260 feet. The Mellon Arena, which was featured in the 1995 film "Sudden Death" starring Jean Claude Van Damme, boasts a dome that is designed to open or close in just two minutes.
In the Fall of 1967, the Mellon Arena became the home of the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. The Pens have since earned three Stanley Cup Championships--1991, 1992 & 2009. Other notable sporting events hosted at the Arena have been the Larry Holmes vs. Renaldo Snipes heavyweight boxing match in 1981, the 1983 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, and the NCAA Division One Men's Basketball Championship Tournament first and second rounds in 1997.
I'm from NYC, so I know what the best arena in the world is.. but just to play devils advocate... and cause I hate Philly lol.... here were a few facts about the IGLOO.... Did the Beatles ever play the Spectrum? lol
Sorry, but the Spectrum isn't a historic ROCK and ROLL venue. Its just had alotta history. Any venue as old as the Spectrum was has seen most of the same shows.
please stop being so insecure about your city. everytime a pittsburgh thread shows up you guys gotta start some "noooo look at meeeee!!!" bullshit
sorry no one outside of philly likes philly. happens to a lot of cities. get over it or keep it to yourself
and fuck me if I say somethin you dont wanna hear, fuck me!
and fuck me if you only hear what you wanna hear
fuck me...if I care...but im not leavin here
Sorry, but the Spectrum isn't a historic ROCK and ROLL venue. Its just had alotta history. Any venue as old as the Spectrum was has seen most of the same shows.
i flat out disagree
and il leave it at that.
Wachovia Center, Philadelphia - 10/3/05
Tweeter Center, Camden - 5/27/06
Verizon Center, Wash. DC - 5/30/06
Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 6/14/08
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 6/19/08
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/28/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/30/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/31/09
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 5/21/10
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 10/21/13
1st Mariner Arena, Baltimore - 10/27/13 Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 4/28/16 Enterprise Center, Saint Louis - 9/18/22
Thanks.. But i'm pretty sure that description would also work for MSG, Boston Garden, Chicago Stadium, LA Forum, and any other 15,000+ seat arena standing in the 1970s and 1980s. Thank you Dewie for getting the gist of my post that the same legendary bands played the same legendary shows all around the country. It's not like bands were doing special one-stop tours of the US just as the Spectrum. Doesn't take away from what's happened at the Spectrum, but doesn't make it stand out either. Back on topic, the Igloo needs an appropriate send off too!!
Hm.. Actually, as fun as those shows were, I don't think the Spectrum was really all that unique. I don't know much about its rock and roll history. I do know that a lot of bands played there but I don't know if any shows were particularly historic to the Spectrum. I think it's another case of big east coast city chest-thumping. The Igloo on the other hand is a really cool building. There's not another arena that looks like it. And it had a retractable roof. I wish it could be reused, like Toronto is reusing Maple Leaf Gardens even though the Leafs got a new rink..
Rock concerts
Popular music concerts have been staged at the Spectrum since the 1960s, which was renowned for its world-class acoustic properties.
* Cream performed during their farewell tour there, supported by Lee Michaels.
* The First Quaker City Rock Festival was an early all-star show there, featuring Moby Grape, The Chambers Brothers, Vanilla Fudge, and Big Brother & The Holding Company, among other acts.
* The Doors performed a 95-minute show, a recording of which was released years later as "The Doors Live in Philadelphia '70".
* The Grateful Dead played the Spectrum 53 times, by far the most of any musical act.
* British Progressive rock band Yes played the Spectrum 32 times between 1971 and 2004, including a matinee show in 1974 for their Tales from Topographic Oceans tour.
* Aerosmith played the venue 23 times between 1976 and 1994, including a few notorious performances in the late 1970s in which rowdy fans injured the band members with glass bottles and M-80s.
* Pink Floyd played the Spectrum in 1972, 1973, 1975 and 1977. They last played two shows there on June 28-29, 1977, during their Animals/In the Flesh Tour. On the second night (June 29, 1977), Floyd member Roger Waters fell ill and did most of the show after a painkiller injection. However, the painkiller wore off and was taken to the hospital and missed the final encore of "Us and Them" where second guitarist Snowy White had to fill in on bass guitar. Unbeknownst to the crowd, this was the first time that the rest of Pink Floyd (guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason and keyboard player Rick Wright) performed a song live without Waters (they would go on without Waters as of 1986). Roger's experience performing while ill at this venue would be documented on "Comfortably Numb".
* The Who performed at the Spectrum throughout the 1970s. The 1973 show was documented in a famous audio bootleg of their Quadrophenia performance. A CD has been released of John Entwistle's performance on March 15, 1975, when he opened for Humble Pie.
* Genesis regularly played the venue during the Phil Collins era from 1977 to 1986 (they would play Veterans Stadium on their 1992 We Can't Dance tour and the Wachovia Center on their 2007 Turn it on Again reunion tour). Their three November 1983 performances on the band's Mama Tour were recorded for a US FM radio broadcast and was released as a bootleg entitled "Three Nights in Philly".
* Roger Walters returned to perform, solo, at the arena during The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Tour on July 24, 1984 & March 29, 1985 & during his Radio K.A.O.S. Tour on August 24, 1987.
* U2 performed at the arena during The Joshua Tree Tour on September 12, 1987 & during their Zoo TV Tour on March 10, 1992, with The Pixies as their opening act.
* KISS performed live during the Crazy Nights tour in 1987. The concert can been seen on the 3rd disk of Kissology Volume Two: 1978–1991, although footage is incomplete.
* One of the most memorable performances came on the night of December 9, 1980. After learning of the assassination of John Lennon following a performance there the night before, Bruce Springsteen opened the show with a statement regarding Lennon and said, "It’s a hard thing to come out and play but there’s just nothing else you can do." With members of the E Street Band in tears, Springsteen and his band put on 34-song marathon which ended nearly 3 and 1/2 hours later, with a scorching version of Twist and Shout.
* The hard rock band Dio, fronted by vocalist Ronnie James Dio played the Spectrum frequently in the 80's. Two of the mid 80's appearances were filmed and released commercially. The first of these even went by the name "A Special at the Spectrum" (and as later released on DVD in the 2000s under the name "We Rock").
* The last public events at the legendary arena took place on October 27, 28, 30 and 31, 2009, by Pearl Jam. The band came to the stage each night after a video montage of memorable Spectrum moments followed by the Rocky theme music. Over the four nights, Pearl Jam performed 103 different songs, with its final night on Halloween lasting over 3 hours and 35 minutes and including 41 songs.[10]
* The final event was a large private cocktail party thrown by Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider on January 16, 2010. Musical acts included a duet of "God Bless America" featuring a recorded Kate Smith alongside a live Lauren Hart, headliner Earth, Wind, and Fire, with the very last set being a performance by Elvis interpreter Johnny Seaton.[11].
Other artists to perform at The Spectrum include: Frank Sinatra (several occasions between 1968 & 1994), Jimi Hendrix (1969), The Rolling Stones (1969, 1972 & 1975), Led Zeppelin (1969, 1970, 1972 & 1973), Wings (1976), David Bowie (1976, 1978, 1983 & 1990), Queen (1977, 1978, 1980 & 1982), Elvis Presley (1977), Dio (1983 & 1986), U2 (1984, 1987 & 1992), Beastie Boys (1985), Madonna (1985, 1990, 1993, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2008), Rush (1985, 1987, 1989, 1991 & 1994), George Michael (1988 & 1991), Metallica (1989 & 1992), Guns N' Roses & Dire Straits (1992), Mariah Carey (1993), Phish (nine times between 1995 & 2003), 'N Sync, Sisqo & P!nk (2000), The Cheetah Girls, Vanessa Hudgens & Queen + Paul Rodgers (2006) & High School Musical & The Foo Fighters (2007).
Dear Philly,
I am from Pittsburgh and have visited your city a couple of times. It has many charms about her but she is no Pittsburgh. Now before you start mother fucking me listen, Pittsburgh is not what every one here builds it up to be. We are all from PA and lets be honest all are cities look dirty and have a bunch of drunk jackasses. So lets all realize that are pride for our home is great but, we live in shithole towns.Lets all also agree each place wants a PEARL JAM show as much as the other. So lets unite and just be glad we dont live in Jersey
Comments
outside of pittsburg residents, nobody cares about the Mellon Arena.
The Spectrum on the other hand was a rock and roll mecca, historic. Mellon Arena..not at all
Tweeter Center, Camden - 5/27/06
Verizon Center, Wash. DC - 5/30/06
Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 6/14/08
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 6/19/08
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/28/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/30/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/31/09
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 5/21/10
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 10/21/13
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 4/28/16
Enterprise Center, Saint Louis - 9/18/22
Sadly this is true, but they should be playing the burgh some time soon!!!!!
umm, wow
Sammi: Wanna just break up?
Rock concerts
Popular music concerts have been staged at the Spectrum since the 1960s, which was renowned for its world-class acoustic properties.
* Cream performed during their farewell tour there, supported by Lee Michaels.
* The First Quaker City Rock Festival was an early all-star show there, featuring Moby Grape, The Chambers Brothers, Vanilla Fudge, and Big Brother & The Holding Company, among other acts.
* The Doors performed a 95-minute show, a recording of which was released years later as "The Doors Live in Philadelphia '70".
* The Grateful Dead played the Spectrum 53 times, by far the most of any musical act.
* British Progressive rock band Yes played the Spectrum 32 times between 1971 and 2004, including a matinee show in 1974 for their Tales from Topographic Oceans tour.
* Aerosmith played the venue 23 times between 1976 and 1994, including a few notorious performances in the late 1970s in which rowdy fans injured the band members with glass bottles and M-80s.
* Pink Floyd played the Spectrum in 1972, 1973, 1975 and 1977. They last played two shows there on June 28-29, 1977, during their Animals/In the Flesh Tour. On the second night (June 29, 1977), Floyd member Roger Waters fell ill and did most of the show after a painkiller injection. However, the painkiller wore off and was taken to the hospital and missed the final encore of "Us and Them" where second guitarist Snowy White had to fill in on bass guitar. Unbeknownst to the crowd, this was the first time that the rest of Pink Floyd (guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason and keyboard player Rick Wright) performed a song live without Waters (they would go on without Waters as of 1986). Roger's experience performing while ill at this venue would be documented on "Comfortably Numb".
* The Who performed at the Spectrum throughout the 1970s. The 1973 show was documented in a famous audio bootleg of their Quadrophenia performance. A CD has been released of John Entwistle's performance on March 15, 1975, when he opened for Humble Pie.
* Genesis regularly played the venue during the Phil Collins era from 1977 to 1986 (they would play Veterans Stadium on their 1992 We Can't Dance tour and the Wachovia Center on their 2007 Turn it on Again reunion tour). Their three November 1983 performances on the band's Mama Tour were recorded for a US FM radio broadcast and was released as a bootleg entitled "Three Nights in Philly".
* Roger Walters returned to perform, solo, at the arena during The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Tour on July 24, 1984 & March 29, 1985 & during his Radio K.A.O.S. Tour on August 24, 1987.
* U2 performed at the arena during The Joshua Tree Tour on September 12, 1987 & during their Zoo TV Tour on March 10, 1992, with The Pixies as their opening act.
* KISS performed live during the Crazy Nights tour in 1987. The concert can been seen on the 3rd disk of Kissology Volume Two: 1978–1991, although footage is incomplete.
* One of the most memorable performances came on the night of December 9, 1980. After learning of the assassination of John Lennon following a performance there the night before, Bruce Springsteen opened the show with a statement regarding Lennon and said, "It’s a hard thing to come out and play but there’s just nothing else you can do." With members of the E Street Band in tears, Springsteen and his band put on 34-song marathon which ended nearly 3 and 1/2 hours later, with a scorching version of Twist and Shout.
* The hard rock band Dio, fronted by vocalist Ronnie James Dio played the Spectrum frequently in the 80's. Two of the mid 80's appearances were filmed and released commercially. The first of these even went by the name "A Special at the Spectrum" (and as later released on DVD in the 2000s under the name "We Rock").
* The last public events at the legendary arena took place on October 27, 28, 30 and 31, 2009, by Pearl Jam. The band came to the stage each night after a video montage of memorable Spectrum moments followed by the Rocky theme music. Over the four nights, Pearl Jam performed 103 different songs, with its final night on Halloween lasting over 3 hours and 35 minutes and including 41 songs.[10]
* The final event was a large private cocktail party thrown by Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider on January 16, 2010. Musical acts included a duet of "God Bless America" featuring a recorded Kate Smith alongside a live Lauren Hart, headliner Earth, Wind, and Fire, with the very last set being a performance by Elvis interpreter Johnny Seaton.[11].
Other artists to perform at The Spectrum include: Frank Sinatra (several occasions between 1968 & 1994), Jimi Hendrix (1969), The Rolling Stones (1969, 1972 & 1975), Led Zeppelin (1969, 1970, 1972 & 1973), Wings (1976), David Bowie (1976, 1978, 1983 & 1990), Queen (1977, 1978, 1980 & 1982), Elvis Presley (1977), Dio (1983 & 1986), U2 (1984, 1987 & 1992), Beastie Boys (1985), Madonna (1985, 1990, 1993, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2008), Rush (1985, 1987, 1989, 1991 & 1994), George Michael (1988 & 1991), Metallica (1989 & 1992), Guns N' Roses & Dire Straits (1992), Mariah Carey (1993), Phish (nine times between 1995 & 2003), 'N Sync, Sisqo & P!nk (2000), The Cheetah Girls, Vanessa Hudgens & Queen + Paul Rodgers (2006) & High School Musical & The Foo Fighters (2007).
Tweeter Center, Camden - 5/27/06
Verizon Center, Wash. DC - 5/30/06
Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 6/14/08
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 6/19/08
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/28/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/30/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/31/09
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 5/21/10
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 10/21/13
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 4/28/16
Enterprise Center, Saint Louis - 9/18/22
Popular music concerts have been staged at the Spectrum since the 1960s, which was renowned for its world-class acoustic properties.
* Cream performed during their farewell tour there, supported by Lee Michaels.
* The First Quaker City Rock Festival was an early all-star show there, featuring Moby Grape, The Chambers Brothers, Vanilla Fudge, and Big Brother & The Holding Company, among other acts.
* The Doors performed a 95-minute show, a recording of which was released years later as "The Doors Live in Philadelphia '70".
* The Grateful Dead played the Spectrum 53 times, by far the most of any musical act.
* British Progressive rock band Yes played the Spectrum 32 times between 1971 and 2004, including a matinee show in 1974 for their Tales from Topographic Oceans tour.
* Aerosmith played the venue 23 times between 1976 and 1994, including a few notorious performances in the late 1970s in which rowdy fans injured the band members with glass bottles and M-80s.
* Pink Floyd played the Spectrum in 1972, 1973, 1975 and 1977. They last played two shows there on June 28-29, 1977, during their Animals/In the Flesh Tour. On the second night (June 29, 1977), Floyd member Roger Waters fell ill and did most of the show after a painkiller injection. However, the painkiller wore off and was taken to the hospital and missed the final encore of "Us and Them" where second guitarist Snowy White had to fill in on bass guitar. Unbeknownst to the crowd, this was the first time that the rest of Pink Floyd (guitarist/vocalist David Gilmour, drummer Nick Mason and keyboard player Rick Wright) performed a song live without Waters (they would go on without Waters as of 1986). Roger's experience performing while ill at this venue would be documented on "Comfortably Numb".
* The Who performed at the Spectrum throughout the 1970s. The 1973 show was documented in a famous audio bootleg of their Quadrophenia performance. A CD has been released of John Entwistle's performance on March 15, 1975, when he opened for Humble Pie.
* Genesis regularly played the venue during the Phil Collins era from 1977 to 1986 (they would play Veterans Stadium on their 1992 We Can't Dance tour and the Wachovia Center on their 2007 Turn it on Again reunion tour). Their three November 1983 performances on the band's Mama Tour were recorded for a US FM radio broadcast and was released as a bootleg entitled "Three Nights in Philly".
* Roger Walters returned to perform, solo, at the arena during The Pros and Cons of Hitch Hiking Tour on July 24, 1984 & March 29, 1985 & during his Radio K.A.O.S. Tour on August 24, 1987.
* U2 performed at the arena during The Joshua Tree Tour on September 12, 1987 & during their Zoo TV Tour on March 10, 1992, with The Pixies as their opening act.
* KISS performed live during the Crazy Nights tour in 1987. The concert can been seen on the 3rd disk of Kissology Volume Two: 1978–1991, although footage is incomplete.
* One of the most memorable performances came on the night of December 9, 1980. After learning of the assassination of John Lennon following a performance there the night before, Bruce Springsteen opened the show with a statement regarding Lennon and said, "It’s a hard thing to come out and play but there’s just nothing else you can do." With members of the E Street Band in tears, Springsteen and his band put on 34-song marathon which ended nearly 3 and 1/2 hours later, with a scorching version of Twist and Shout.
* The hard rock band Dio, fronted by vocalist Ronnie James Dio played the Spectrum frequently in the 80's. Two of the mid 80's appearances were filmed and released commercially. The first of these even went by the name "A Special at the Spectrum" (and as later released on DVD in the 2000s under the name "We Rock").
* The last public events at the legendary arena took place on October 27, 28, 30 and 31, 2009, by Pearl Jam. The band came to the stage each night after a video montage of memorable Spectrum moments followed by the Rocky theme music. Over the four nights, Pearl Jam performed 103 different songs, with its final night on Halloween lasting over 3 hours and 35 minutes and including 41 songs.[10]
* The final event was a large private cocktail party thrown by Comcast-Spectacor chairman Ed Snider on January 16, 2010. Musical acts included a duet of "God Bless America" featuring a recorded Kate Smith alongside a live Lauren Hart, headliner Earth, Wind, and Fire, with the very last set being a performance by Elvis interpreter Johnny Seaton.[11].
Sammi: Wanna just break up?
on topic: YES! play the civic arena!!! they should retract the dome for the final show!
nothing against pittsburgh...I hope you guys get a show in the near future. just please don't compare the spectrum and mellon arena. that's just silly
I don't know the history of it very well, and I don't feel the Civic/Mellon Arena has a lot of cultural significance outside of my hometown, but to be honest... the only reason I think the Spectrum is culturally significant is b/c all the Philly homers tell me it is. I've never heard a peep about it from anyone that doesn't say "wudder".
The Mellon Arena hosted its first show, the Ice Capades, on September 19, 1961. Other notable performance highlights include: The Beatles on September 14, 1964, Elvis Presley on June 25, 1973 and the Page/Plant concert on March 25, 1995, which registered the highest attendance ever in the Arena (17,764) until January 30, 1999 when 18,150 fans packed the arena for a WWF house show.
The Mellon Arena is famous for its revolutionary architectural design which features the largest retractable, stainless steel dome roof in the world--170,000 total square feet and 2,950 tons of Pittsburgh steel. The roof, which has no interior supports, is divided radially into eight leaves and is supported by a huge cantilever arm that arches 260 feet. The Mellon Arena, which was featured in the 1995 film "Sudden Death" starring Jean Claude Van Damme, boasts a dome that is designed to open or close in just two minutes.
In the Fall of 1967, the Mellon Arena became the home of the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. The Pens have since earned three Stanley Cup Championships--1991, 1992 & 2009. Other notable sporting events hosted at the Arena have been the Larry Holmes vs. Renaldo Snipes heavyweight boxing match in 1981, the 1983 U.S. Figure Skating Championships, and the NCAA Division One Men's Basketball Championship Tournament first and second rounds in 1997.
I'm from NYC, so I know what the best arena in the world is.. but just to play devils advocate... and cause I hate Philly lol.... here were a few facts about the IGLOO.... Did the Beatles ever play the Spectrum? lol
please stop being so insecure about your city. everytime a pittsburgh thread shows up you guys gotta start some "noooo look at meeeee!!!" bullshit
sorry no one outside of philly likes philly. happens to a lot of cities. get over it or keep it to yourself
and fuck me if you only hear what you wanna hear
fuck me...if I care...but im not leavin here
i flat out disagree
and il leave it at that.
Tweeter Center, Camden - 5/27/06
Verizon Center, Wash. DC - 5/30/06
Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 6/14/08
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 6/19/08
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/28/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/30/09
Spectrum, Philadelphia - 10/31/09
Madison Square Garden, NYC - 5/21/10
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 10/21/13
Wells Fargo Center, Philadelphia - 4/28/16
Enterprise Center, Saint Louis - 9/18/22
(thank god it wasn't lady gaga...thats disrespectful to our fine city)
I am from Pittsburgh and have visited your city a couple of times. It has many charms about her but she is no Pittsburgh. Now before you start mother fucking me listen, Pittsburgh is not what every one here builds it up to be. We are all from PA and lets be honest all are cities look dirty and have a bunch of drunk jackasses. So lets all realize that are pride for our home is great but, we live in shithole towns.Lets all also agree each place wants a PEARL JAM show as much as the other. So lets unite and just be glad we dont live in Jersey