Reunion Arena, Dallas, Texas
Opening bands: Dangerous Toys, Bonham
Reunion arena is a huge venue in Dallas. In spite of their popularity at the time,
The Cult's turn out was not as impressive as the fact that they played Reunion Arena.
Half of the concert hall was closed off, so from center stage, The Cult faced the
audience from one half of it, and even that wasn't full. I remember the article in
the paper the next day wasn't so flattering, but rather subdued. Dangerous Toys had
first opened, with their singer inquiring loudly "Does Dallas, Texas like to fuck?!"
They weren't so good. A lot more of us enjoyed the second opener, Bonham. The crowd
finally broke its coolness when they closed with Black Dog and went pretty
nuts! I'll never forget when The Cult came on. You know that immense sound quality
that comes from hearing the THX thing in the movie theatre? "ewwwWWWWWWAAAAARRRR -
HELL'S KITCHEN IS A DMZ - KAPOW!" That's what it was like, and they were off. It
was really thrilling, you didn't know what had happened until the last second, what
an intro. The Cult had the most sophisticated production to their shows at that time,
they could afford it. They sounded very good. I bet a bootleg of that show would be a
real favorite to all. Billy played a really sweet version of Edie (Ciao Baby).
It was something else, so cool. Ian stood there in just blue denim from head to toe
except for black boots. It was a steady, even performance, and he concentrated
professionally on delivering the goods. Jamie was the most animated that evening. I was
16 then and I'm 25 now, but the effect that show had on me has left a lasting impression.
Justin lozoff - jlozoff@mindspring.com