The Concert of A Lifetime

By Catherine Galda

The year was 1967 and it was a time of change in politics and music.  Vietnam was in full swing with many people unhappy with how the war was turning out.  The British invasion was also stirring Americans.  The group was The Monkees.  Members of this band were American and British and they were going on tour.  For their opening act, they picked a guitar player who was not too well known in the United States but was known in England. 

My aunt got tickets to see one of these groups and was forced to take my mother with her.  My mother was excited to go to the concert.  She could finally see Davy Jones!

It is the day of the concert and my mother cannot wait.  She did not care that she had to spend time with her annoying older sister and her friends, she was going to see The Monkees.  My mother, like many young girls in this time, had a crush on Davy Jones, one of the singers of the band.  She was so excited to see him.

The show is about to start and all the girls are ready.  Here comes Davy Jones where they can finally see him.  Instead, a young man comes out to play guitar and no one is happy.  Young girls start booing and screaming “We Want Davy Jones!” “Get Off The Stage We Want Davy!” The young guitar player named Jimi Hendrix’s plays his set and leaves the stage so that The Monkees can perform.  All the girls were happy to finally see Davy Jones. 

It has been years since this concert but my mother still remembers it.  To her, it is more memorable because of how short Jimi Hendrix’s career ended up being.  She became one of a few people who can claim they saw one of Rock’s greatest guitar players live and in concert.  She may not have appreciated it then but she is forever glad she went.  Not only did she get to see the band she wanted to see but she also got to see a legend before his time ran out. 

Hendrix’s career took off shortly after the concert.  He performed at the Monterey Pop Festival and afterwards people knew who he was.  His rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner still means something to the generation who listened to him.  Sadly, Hendrix died four years after my mother saw him in concert at the age of 27, joining the ill-fated “27 Club.” 

To this day, with a memory that is slowly failing her, my mother still remembers this.  She has seen many famous people such as Sally Field, Rex Harrison, Julie Andrews, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Paul McCartney and Jackie Kennedy Onassis.  Seeing Jimi Hendrix in concert is not something my mother will ever forget and hey, how many people can claim they booed Jimi Hendrix off a stage?