Jump to content
Hamer Fan Club Message Center

Hamer sighting.


Recommended Posts

1 hour ago, Ting Ho Dung said:

 

I saw them either at the Lakeland Civic Center or the Orange County Civic Center (CRS) in '81 or '82. Phenomenal show. One of my favorites. When Dennis DeYoung was doing his keyboard solo segment, he was showing off his prowess in classical music, and ragtime, and the FLA rednecks were booing and screaming "rock 'n roll! We want rock!" Surprisingly I didn't hear the dumb asses yell "Freebird."  I was half embarrassed to be in the crowd. I thought he was great and the band fucking rocked it!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

59 minutes ago, gtrdaddy said:

I saw them either at the Lakeland Civic Center or the Orange County Civic Center (CRS) in '81 or '82. Phenomenal show. One of my favorites. When Dennis DeYoung was doing his keyboard solo segment, he was showing off his prowess in classical music, and ragtime, and the FLA rednecks were booing and screaming "rock 'n roll! We want rock!" Surprisingly I didn't hear the dumb asses yell "Freebird."  I was half embarrassed to be in the crowd. I thought he was great and the band fucking rocked it!

I crashed the gate at the Lakeland Civic Center for this one, '77 era. They were on the Crystal Ball Tour and opened for Kansas. Great show. It used to be really easy to crash the gate there and I saw several shows that way, even a few I didn't like because I happened to be near there with nothing to do. I saw the Beach Boys because I was bored. Tried to pick up on a chick but she thought it was creepy that I wanted to put my tongue down her cleavage. If you were there in '81 or so I was too with my wife, then girlfriend. Grand Illusion or Pieces of Eight, can't remember the tour. I remember my wife took one look at Tommy Shaw and grabbed my binoculars out of my hand. She's been infatuated with him ever since. 

No photo description available.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

30 minutes ago, Ting Ho Dung said:

I remember my wife took one look at Tommy Shaw and grabbed my binoculars out of my hand. She's been infatuated with him ever since. 

:lol:

There was a Schlitz beer tent, and they were giving away free beer in cups! What crazy great time! Boy are those days gone!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I saw them on the Paradise Theater Tour, and Shaw was rocking a Standard then too. JY was on a Strat all night IIRC....Philly Spectrum 1981.

It was a really good show.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Jakeboy said:

I saw them on the Paradise Theater Tour, and Shaw was rocking a Standard then too. JY was on a Strat all night IIRC....Philly Spectrum 1981.

It was a really good show.

Tommy had a black ‘77 Explorer back then.   He used a bunch of Hamers in the ‘90s and early 2000s with Damn Yankees and Styx.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, cmatthes said:

Tommy had a black ‘77 Explorer back then.   He used a bunch of Hamers in the ‘90s and early 2000s with Damn Yankees and Styx.

Ahhh, I had always assumed it was an Explorer until this thread!  As you well know, in the second level seats of the Spectrum, it was hard to see the headstock!! Lol Plus the haze of smoke....

Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 hours ago, gtrdaddy said:

There was a Schlitz beer tent, and they were giving away free beer in cups! What crazy great time! Boy are those days gone!

I was, admittedly, much less selective about beer in my late teens/early 20s, but I feel confident that "free in cups" is the only way I'd be convinced to drink Schlitz.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

23 minutes ago, Biz Prof said:

I was, admittedly, much less selective about beer in my late teens/early 20s, but I feel confident that "free in cups" is the only way I'd be convinced to drink Schlitz.

Curiously, I was a beer snob back in the day and became less of one as I got older.  There's a long story here involving having diabetes, developing rosacea as I got older, and the amount of Wild Turkey I same to be able to imbide without a second thought, which had led, of all, things, to Coors Light working its way back into my life on occasion.  Twenty-six-year-old me would be mortified and want to lecture me about adjuncts and hop strains, but 40-year-old me looks a lot better and is healthier, sadly enough. 

And yes Ting, offering to lick someones cleavage right out of the gate will do that, lol. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, LucSulla said:

Curiously, I was a beer snob back in the day and became less of one as I got older.  There's a long story here involving having diabetes, developing rosacea as I got older, and the amount of Wild Turkey I same to be able to imbide without a second thought, which had led, of all, things, to Coors Light working its way back into my life on occasion.  Twenty-six-year-old me would be mortified and want to lecture me about adjuncts and hop strains, but 40-year-old me looks a lot better and is healthier, sadly enough. 

And yes Ting, offering to lick someones cleavage right out of the gate will do that, lol. 

Believe it or not, I was drinking Schlitz Malt Liquor and licking cleavage when I was 15.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

When I think of Styx, I think analog synthesizers... they weren’t a “guitar” band to me. They always had one guitarist too many.

Damn Yankees were such a fart in a bucket... about as awesome as Bad English.

Dennis DeYoung was a monster genius and Styx fans act like he weighed the band down with his theatrics and saccharine ballads.

The Damn Yankees thing was always a slap in the face to a Hamer fan... the understated rhythm guitarist used the Hamer while the flashy dickbag lead guitarist played the nemesis of Hamer... Paul Reed Smith.

Of course being a Hamer fan was always like slapping oneself in the face as far as artist endorsements and owning a guitar from a brand whose artist roster was about as deep as the guy who used to play rhythm guitar for Def Leppard, the rhythm guitarist from Damn Yankees... or the singer from Lincoln Park.

i loved how Hamer scored that Jeff Watson endorsement AFTER the public decided that they didn’t want to hear Night Ranger ever again. Great timing Jol!!!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, zenmindbeginner said:

When I think of Styx, I think analog synthesizers... they weren’t a “guitar” band to me. They always had one guitarist too many.

Damn Yankees were such a fart in a bucket... about as awesome as Bad English.

Dennis DeYoung was a monster genius and Styx fans act like he weighed the band down with his theatrics and saccharine ballads.

The Damn Yankees thing was always a slap in the face to a Hamer fan... the understated rhythm guitarist used the Hamer while the flashy dickbag lead guitarist played the nemesis of Hamer... Paul Reed Smith.

Of course being a Hamer fan was always like slapping oneself in the face as far as artist endorsements and owning a guitar from a brand whose artist roster was about as deep as the guy who used to play rhythm guitar for Def Leppard, the rhythm guitarist from Damn Yankees... or the singer from Lincoln Park.

i loved how Hamer scored that Jeff Watson endorsement AFTER the public decided that they didn’t want to hear Night Ranger ever again. Great timing Jol!!!

I loved Styx once I found them in the mid 70's. Saw them 5 times or so before the end as I know it.  

You must have started with Styx in or after 1979 or 1980 or so if think they are not a guitar band.  I started following them in 75 and had to work my way back to their earlier stuff.  Yes, they were a guitar band, that became a synthesizer band.  Dennis DeYoung was a monster genius, but I think Tommy Shaw was a great addition. Him and CY Young were a great complement for rock guitar.  The band  went in different directions because DeYoung wanted one thing and everyone else wanted the combination.  Kilroy was here was the end.

Listen to Miss America, Renegade, Blue Collar Man or songs before 1977.

I won't argue about the Damn Yankees part...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, zenmindbeginner said:

When I think of Styx, I think analog synthesizers... they weren’t a “guitar” band to me. They always had one guitarist too many.

Dennis DeYoung was a monster genius and Styx fans act like he weighed the band down with his theatrics and saccharine ballads.

 

16 hours ago, mathman said:

I loved Styx once I found them in the mid 70's. Saw them 5 times or so before the end as I know it.  

You must have started with Styx in or after 1979 or 1980 or so if think they are not a guitar band.  I started following them in 75 and had to work my way back to their earlier stuff.  Yes, they were a guitar band, that became a synthesizer band.  Dennis DeYoung was a monster genius, but I think Tommy Shaw was a great addition. Him and CY Young were a great complement for rock guitar.  The band  went in different directions because DeYoung wanted one thing and everyone else wanted the combination.  Kilroy was here was the end.

Listen to Miss America, Renegade, Blue Collar Man or songs before 1977.

I won't argue about the Damn Yankees part...

I'm a huge Styx fan. I discovered them in '75 or '76 when I bought my first Styx LP, the Equinox album. After I bought that, I got their previous releases and was hooked ever since. I never thought of them as a guitar or synth band. I think they were a very balanced band with great dynamics and they all complemented each other. The early music IMO was spectacular and to me their first few records were a mixture of rock stylings, some songs were straight forward rockers, and some were incredibly seductive compositions of almost a cross between mainstream rock, and prog. You'll hear this on What Has Come Between Us on the first album. This song, stands out on that album to me and foreshadows the music of Styx to come. It is also the highpoint of the album. No doubt, it was Dennis DeYoung behind it. He is indeed a genius and one of my favorite composers.  

Their second album released in '73, was a definite step up. Opening with You Need Love, this song again foreshadows the future sound to come. Lady of course is a classic, that went on to become a huge hit for them two years later in '75. Earl of Roseland is a song that sounds like it should have been written by Pete Townshend and I can almost imagine it as a Who song with Roger Daltrey belting out the song with ease. As a whole, this album really helps to see how the band got its sonic footing. Distinctly more congruent with the classic Styx sound. 

Tommy Shaw was a fantastic addition and can't imagine Styx of the late seventies without him. He definitely made his mark on the band. 

I Saw them a couple of times, the first time being at the Garden in '78 for the Pieces of Eight tour, and the last time being the Kilroy Was Here tour. I'm prepared to take the razzing, but I liked Kilroy Was Here. Still do. Those two shows stand out in my memory as two of the best concerts I've seen. They are definitely one of my favs to see. Great shows BOTH! 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Was the previous guitar player that Shaw replaced better or worse than Shaw?

Shaw could definitely write a great song... as amazing as DeYoung was, Shaw’s songs were pretty much just as good.

I was born in ‘73 and my brain was fairly useless until I was 3 or 4. My first experience with Styx was obviously The Grand Illusion. I remember the full size card board displays of Grand Illusion next to Heart’s “Little Queen” at the front of the record store where my Mom worked part time in 1977.

I’m absolutely ignorant on anything before Shaw joined the band... I haven’t gone back through Styx’s catalog. I probably should.

fwiw, I consider “Come Sail Away” one of the greatest rock songs of all time. The middle section is friggin’ amazing. The part where DeYoung hits that last note of the space solo and it oscillates onto feedback before the main theme comes back in just floors me every time I hear it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 hours ago, zenmindbeginner said:

Was the previous guitar player that Shaw replaced better or worse than Shaw?

Shaw could definitely write a great song... as amazing as DeYoung was, Shaw’s songs were pretty much just as good.

I was born in ‘73 and my brain was fairly useless until I was 3 or 4. My first experience with Styx was obviously The Grand Illusion. I remember the full size card board displays of Grand Illusion next to Heart’s “Little Queen” at the front of the record store where my Mom worked part time in 1977.

I’m absolutely ignorant on anything before Shaw joined the band... I haven’t gone back through Styx’s catalog. I probably should.

fwiw, I consider “Come Sail Away” one of the greatest rock songs of all time. The middle section is friggin’ amazing. The part where DeYoung hits that last note of the space solo and it oscillates onto feedback before the main theme comes back in just floors me every time I hear it.

I don't believe there was another guitar player. If I remember correctly, Shaw just joined the band and wrote Crystal Ball. The band had great faith in him and labeled the album, "Crystal Ball."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...