Friday Night Video

Tonight we're still stuck in the 80's, but at least we're off of Rick Springfield (for now) and on to something different.

My first ever rock concert was back in 1984, courtesy of my sister and loyal blog reader, Susan. Hi, Sue! She managed to score seventh row, dead center tickets to see Foreigner at Reunion Arena in Dallas, Texas, somewhere close to my 11th birthday. I remember three things about that show. First, I remember when the opening act, Robin Trower, came on stage and played his opening notes. The sound was deafening. My virginal ears had never been exposed to anything quite so loud---including my mother's voice---and I felt as though my ears were literally about to bleed. It took me most of the show before I adjusted to the pain, and several days more to regain normal hearing. I'm pretty sure I suffered some minor hearing loss that night, and I'm pretty sure I blame my sister and Robin Trower in equal measure.

The second thing I remember is some guy in front of me getting stoned and drunk out of his mind...and then throwing up on the floor inches from my feet. I was getting the full-on rock concert experience, whether I was ready for it or not. The third thing I remember is just how awesome Foreigner was. True, this was Foreigner's "Agent Provocateur" tour, meaning I had to endure the insufferable and never-ending version of "I Want to Know What Love Is," complete with a local choir who chimed in for the gospel parts, but despite that lyrical abomination, Foreigner's canon is a deep one, and they rolled out all of their many, many hits that night. One of my favorite Foreigner songs is Urgent...right from the opening notes. These were the good old days when you could get away with a sax-heavy rock song.

Here's a 1985 version of Urgent. I'm almost getting a contact high just by watching...