The Erie County Fieldhouse was located at 5750 Wattsburg Road in Erie, PA, off of Route 8 near I-90. The Erie Lions played hockey there, as did the Erie Blades. When concerts came to town during hockey season, they covered the floor with sheets of wood. It was a little chilly, but no one complained. Some shows had an open floor plan and some had rows of metal chairs on the floor.
I saw a ton of shows at the Field House. Off the top of my head, the ones I remember include Mahogany Rush, Head East, Sammy Hagar, Boston, Blue Oyster Cult, Nazareth, Shakin' Street, April Wine, Triumph, Blackfoot and Fastway. I'll add more when I find my ticket stubs.
I worked at a record store, and we would take unsold tickets and money up to the Field House before the show. It was fun to watch them put piles of money in a counting machine. It was also fun to get free concert tickets, even if they only cost $7.75 each. We sold a lot of tickets to closed-circuit boxing matches. This was in the days before satellite TV and the Internet. We had a seating diagram that showed which tickets we had for sale, and would then cross off the seat numbers as they were sold. This was the days before Ticketron and Ticketmaster.
There was always a handful of scalpers selling bootleg t-shirts in the parking lot before and after a concert. The shirts were cheap. When you washed them a few times, they shrunk or became deformed.
Enjoy more historic facts and photos of Erie, PA at: oldtimeerie.blogspot.com
Since you mention a "record store", do you recall a record store that had booths in it where you could take a record and hear it before you purchased it? I think it was on State Street, between 9th and 10th, on the east side of the street? I don't remember the name but it was a great place to hang out with other music lovers.
ReplyDeleteAre you referring to the old location of the Record Bar that was either in or near the Commerce Building between 11th and 12th on State Street? I think that was the store that had the booths. They later moved to State between 9th and 10th Streets.
ReplyDeleteYou're right! The Record Bar! And this oldie was confused about the location. Funny how the old mind moves buildings around the Erie map as if they were Monopoly buildings. The brain isn't as sharp as it used to be. :-/
DeleteI think I was at that Boston concert! It was one of the first concerts I ever went to. (Did Boston ever play at Edinboro? Ancient Wanderer isn't the only one who's brain isn't as sharp as it used to be.) The Record Bar was a regular stop after school. That was when it was between 9th and 10th. After the Record Bar, then it was off to the library.
ReplyDeleteLeslie Ann
Hello Debbi and all visitors!,
ReplyDeleteWhat a neat site!....I sure hope you don't mind, But I believe I may have found my new home away from home..... I was born and raised in Erie,Pa, and relocated my family to south central Kentucky in 2001.....We are only able to make the trip back up to Erie about once a year and we always look so forward to that trip so we can see our families, and see all of the new changes Erie has undergone.....Hopefully this site will help me to get through the long year of anticipating my trip up to Erie.