This week the website of Guitar World magazine dug up and electronified a print article from 2005 in which rock-and-rollers were asked to tell the tale of their “Most Spinal Tap Moment”. The one we care about:
BILLY CORGAN of Smashing Pumpkins
When Mellon Collie came out [1995], we played a concert in Chicago that was broadcast directly across the world. We had 10,000 people at the show, including the world press, and millions were listening in. During the third song, a generator blew out. Some of the lights still worked, but there was no sound. I thought, No problem, I’ll play an improvised acoustic set until the problem is cleared up. Of course, nobody could hear anything past the second row. Meanwhile, the sound of a hum was the only thing being broadcast—from Chile to Tokyo! Worldwide, our fans were beginning to question our new musical direction. It took only a quarter of an hour for them to fix things, but it seemed an age. A rock star without amplification is dickless: for 15 minutes, I had no dick.
A nice tale, and understandable that over the years it gets a coat of memory varnish. And if FactCheck.org were on the case, they would surely give Billy props for remembering that it was exactly during the third song that the power went out. But…10,000 people at Chicago’s Riviera Theatre? Just, no. An “improvised acoustic set”? Didn’t happen. And in lieu of a “hum”, the band members spoke directly to the radio audience for several minutes (mp3) while power was being restored to the stacks.
It would be interesting to know how many people listened to that radio broadcast, but I imagine we will never have the hard data there…and I’m very happy just to take Billy’s word on what was happening in his pants.
(Thanks to HU reader Neil for the link.)
In 1988, Smashing Pumpkins played their first show together, at a club in Chicago. They earned $50.
